Virtuoso Trombonist ERIC GOLETZ's Large Ensemble "A NEW LIGHT" featuring Randy Brecker, coming January 31, 2022 on CAP Records

ONCE AGAIN, TROMBONIST ERIC GOLETZ BRINGS A 30-YEAR DREAM TO LIFE WITH HIS NEW RELEASE

A NEW LIGHT

Out January 21, 2022 on Consolidated Artists Publications

Virtuoso trombonist ERIC GOLETZ is releasing A NEW LIGHT, his second CD as a leader. After a 30-year career as a studio musician and first-call horn player in New York City, Goletz released his debut CD, Into the Night, in March of 2021. Reviewer Bill Donaldson says, “You have to give Eric Goletz credit for perseverance. And for virtuosity. And for creating music that reaches out to listeners while providing inimitable improvisational excellence. Into the Night is an uplifting, joyous album.”

Brimming with ideas and unstoppable energy, Goletz started working on A NEW LIGHT before his previous project was officially released. And like his previous release, A NEW LIGHT is an exciting, eclectic mix of musical styles that creates an infectious pastiche of sounds and textures.

Goletz’s multifarious background, experiences, and taste imbue his compositions and arrangements with a joie de vie enriched by his stellar musicianship. He began studying the piano when he was just six years old. His father was a pianist and big band arranger who wanted to share the gift of music with his children, so Goletz’s brother and sister both picked up an instrument at an early age and played with him in his band.

Goletz began studying classical piano, guitar, and music theory from the age of six with private teachers, but at the age of 14, he fell in love with the sound of the trombone in his father’s band, and he knew from then on that music was going to be his life’s work.

Goletz also began composing music at a young age and was soon writing and arranging music for the various groups he was involved with both in and out of school. Although his main focus was jazz, his tastes run the gamut of musical styles. Goletz says, “I think of music as having endless possibilities. It’s a journey where you can never be absolutely sure where it will lead. Although my background is in jazz and classical music, I spend much time listening to other forms of music such as pop, rock, Country, Motown, funk, Latin, and even Heavy Metal. There’s always something new to learn, and I try to keep an open mind to the simple joy of listening to music.”

Goletz grew up in Denver but moved to New York City to pursue his career, where he quickly found work composing and arranging for radio and TV commercials, soundtracks for independent films, album projects for many different singers and ensembles, and as a freelance jazz musician, notably with pianist Mike Longo’s State of the Art Jazz Ensemble, and with Sal Salvador, who was Stan Kenton’s former guitarist. Goletz played and wrote for Salvador’s album, Lorinda’s Kitchen.

Although he had a busy career as a sideman and studio musician, Goletz was brimming with his own creative ideas. He became intrigued with the sound of jazz fused with other styles of music, with the trombone as the lead instrument. There have been many great trombone recordings, but Goletz wanted to incorporate the traditional sound of the trombone in his own original, non-traditional musical setting.

In the ’90s, Goletz began to realize his vision by fronting a group led by both a tenor and bass trombone, that featured his original music and arrangements. He honed and developed his sound over several years, eventually releasing a sampler CD. Based on that release, Jazziz Magazine hailed him as one of the top 10 unsigned jazz artists in the country. The magazine also released a compilation CD that included Goletz’s original composition, “Night Child.”

Goletz wrote Into the Night with concepts that he had been developing for 25 years. Once the floodgate of ideas was opened, he had a torrent of creativity and wrote the arrangements for the new project in less than three months. On A NEW LIGHT, Goletz expands his original ideas with more complex arrangements, an expanded horn section, and a string section.

Goletz also made some changes to the core band. HENRY HEINITSH on guitar, STEVE JOHNS on drums, and JOE MOWATT on percussion appear on both albums. New additions include JIM RIDL on piano, ALLEN FARNHAM on keyboards, and MARCO PANASCIA on bass. A NEW LIGHT also features special guest RANDY BRECKER on trumpet and flugelhorn. Drummer Johns is a regular in Brecker’s band and introduced him to Goletz’s music. Brecker was very happy to participate on the new recording and appears on three compositions, “Dig,” “Greene Street Groove,” and “Don’t Gimme That.”

Goletz wrote all the compositions except for Miles Davis’ “Dig,” “Sunrise, Sunset” by Jerry Bock from Fiddler on the Roof, and “Song for Elizabeth” by Jonathan Butler. All the arrangements are by Goletz.

Goletz opens the album with “Prelude: Before the Light,” a lush jazz/classical composition that is somewhat reminiscent of George Gershwin. The “Prelude” introduces the melody of the opening number and title tune “A New Light,” a high energy, toe-tapping, big band number featuring Goletz’s melodic, beautifully articulated trombone sound. “The Edge of Night” has a driving jazz/rock feel. Goletz turns “Dig” into an up-tempo, Latin influenced number featuring a searing piano solo by Ridl and Brecker’s always hip, always tuneful trumpet playing. “Enchanted” is a romantic tune featuring the full band, while “Greene Street Groove” has a bluesy, funky groove. Goletz manages to keep the nostalgic, tender quality of “Sunrise, Sunset” while featuring a rock guitar solo by Heinitsh. Goletz takes down the temperature a bit on “Song for Elizabeth,” gentle love song, but kicks it into high gear again on “Don’t Gimme That,” featuring solos by Goletz, Brecker, and Farnham on keyboards. “The Mirror,” the penultimate tune, is a highly textured funk/jazz/rock number. Goletz closes the CD with “Postlude: After the Light,” which wraps up the CD with melodies and themes from all the other tunes on the disc.

Goletz’s arrangements are unique. With his solid chops as a musician and decades of working as a composer and arranger in a wide variety of musical venues and situations, it’s no wonder that his music is overflowing with a macrocosm of ideas. You can almost feel his rush of joy as he picks up his pen to get it all on paper.

1. PRELUDE: BEFORE THE LIGHT 0:41

2. A NEW LIGHT 7:12

3. EDGE OF NIGHT 7:27

4. DIG 9:02

5. ENCHANTED 7:06

6. GREENE STREET GROOVE 8:36

7. SUNRISE, SUNSET 10:19

8. SONG FOR ELIZABETH 4:00

9. DON’T GIMME THAT! 6:16

10. THE MIRROR 8:21

11. POSTLUDE: AFTER THE LIGHT 4:36

Eric Goletz trombone, keyboards | Randy Brecker trumpet, flugelhorn

Jim Ridl piano | Allen Farnham keyboards | Henry Heinitsh guitar

Marco Panascia bass | Steve Johns drums | Joe Mowatt percussion

The Horns

Trumpets: Tony Gorruso, Freddie Maxwell Kent Smith

French Horn: Will DeVos

Alto Sax: Bob Magnuson

Trombones: Erick Storckman, Chris Rinaman

Bass Trombone: Jonathan Greenberg

Tuba: Matt Ingman

The Strings

Violins: Robin Zeh, Paul Woodiel

Violas: Michael Roth, David Gold

Cello: Sarah Hewitt-Roth

All compositions by Eric Goletz except Dig (M. Davis), Sunrise, Sunset (Bock/Harnick) & Song for Elizabeth (J. Butler)

Eric Goletz Website    Facebook

Dan Wilson - Vessels of Wood and Earth (April 23, 2021 Mack Avenue Records)

Guitarist/Composer Dan Wilson Calls Attention to the

Beauty of Often Ignored Structural Foundations

of Music and Life with Debut Label Release

Vessels of Wood and Earth, Due April 23,

Marks Second Release on Christian McBride’s Mack Avenue Music Group Imprint, Brother Mister Productions

Wilson Joined by Christian Sands, Marco Panascia,

Jeff “Tain” Watts, and Guest Vocalist Joy Brown

In today’s society, perception over reality influences everyday life. Grand offerings of seemingly luxurious lifestyles flood social channels, offering a glimpse of false security and achievement that rarely lie on a strong foundation. Just as a beautiful house is finished with vessels of silver and gold, underneath lies wood and earth.

On his marvelous new album, Vessels of Wood and Earth, guitarist/composer Dan Wilson takes the title to mean that we as a society tend to look at the shiny exteriors that attract us in an instant, rather than appreciate the less readily apparent structures that actually support the house. Through 11 joyfully dynamic compositions ranging from takes on classic songs from Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Ted Daffan mixed with a nod to the spiritual master John Coltrane as well as five original compositions, Wilson builds a foundation rooted as much in tradition as it is in moving the music irresistibly forward into the modern world.

That structural integrity was front of mind when Wilson set out to craft his label debut for bassist/composer Christian McBride’s new imprint Brother Mister Productions — the label’s second release. “In 2014, I was Artist-in-Residence at the Tri-C Jazz Festival in Cleveland, Ohio,” reflects McBride. “I was involved in numerous performances and outreach events over the course of maybe four days. Terri Pontremoli, director of the festival, has been one of my closest confidants and collaborators over the course of 20-plus years. One thing she had never done during the course of our friendship was the old, ‘I got someone you need to hear’ bit. For that reason, when she did it that year, I was quite surprised. The person she wanted me to hear was guitarist Dan Wilson. When I got to Mahall’s that night and heard him playing solo guitar, I was quite impressed. He was coming straight from that Montgomery/Benson/Burrell/Martino bag that Terri knew I would like. After it was over, I knew that I’d just met someone I should have met a long time before. Dan Wilson is an absolute monster! He has an enviable technique that comes so seemingly easy to him and his pocket is very deep. Now it’s my honor to introduce you to him as a Brother Mister artist. In the words of Terri, "I got someone you need to hear."

Joined by pianist Christian Sands, bassist Marco Panascia, drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts and guest vocalist Joy Brown, the virtuosic guitarist’s broad musical roots inspired by Motown, gospel and jazz tradition result in a remarkable feel for arrangements. Wilson’s musical explorations allow the band to elevate each passage, aided by his fluid and melodic expression.

Due out April 23, the vividly expressionist recording finds Wilson in the purest of creative strides. “I try to elicit the same kind of visceral response to the music that I get in my gut while making it,” comments Wilson. “I want to convey the joy I get out of making the music.” That joy is deeply rooted in his musical beginnings in the church community, where he was quickly immersed in the rich gospel tradition. But at home, he was exposed to a wealth of music from his father, who played drums and bass, and his mother, a gifted singer.

“My parents loved Motown,” states Wilson. “My father only played at church, never at home, but my mother’s influence on me was amplified by her knowledge of standards and incredible memory for recalling lyrics and God-given natural talents as a singer.” Wilson’s parents exposed him to the great singers like Dinah Washington, Gloria Lynn, Sarah Vaughan, and Ella Fitzgerald, which he credits for his arioso approach to solos.

This strong sense of familial leadership continued when Wilson’s uncle introduced him to the world of jazz through the music of Wes Montgomery and his duets with jazz organist Jimmy Smith. “I was maybe 14 or 15,” Wilson reflects, “and my uncle took me into his basement and played me Wes and Jimmy and I was like, ‘Oh, this is it for me. I want to do that! I just want to do that forever.”

Wilson’s career took him on an exploratory journey into those foundations laid down by the guitar/organ tradition, eventually leading to an invitation to perform with jazz great Joey DeFrancesco’s quartet with which Wilson went on to earn a GRAMMY® Award nomination for DeFrancesco’s Project Freedom album (Mack Avenue Records, 2017). This collaboration allowed the guitarist to insert his own dialect into the musical prowess and respect that DeFrancesco had earned throughout his journey. Wilson had been playing with DeFrancesco for a few years when he met bassist, composer, arranger, Christian McBride. “It was just like the first time I met Joey – magic. We played three tunes and from note one, it was like ‘Yeah, we were born to play together.’” From there, Wilson went on to tour with McBride’s trio Tip City, eventually leading McBride to serve as producer on Vessels of Wood and Earth and release the album on his newly formed imprint Brother Mister Productions through Mack Avenue Music Group.

“He’s the same as a producer as he is as a person – what you see is what you get,” laughs Wilson. “Christian understands what it means to be both a bandleader and sideman, so he’s got that unique musical perspective. I’m grateful to experience both the shock and the honor of being on Christian’s label.”

1. The Rhythm Section

2. Bird of Beauty

3. The Reconstruction Beat

4. Vessels of Wood and Earth

5. Who Shot John

6. fter the Rain/Save the Children

7. Inner City Blues

8. Juneteenth

9. Cry Me a River

10. James

11. Born to Lose

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