Dara Tucker - Dreams of Waking: Music For a Better World (2021 Green Hill Music)

Award-Winning Vocalist Dara Tucker Announces the Release of Her Transcendent New Album, Dreams of Waking: Music For a Better World via Green Hill Music

Green Hill Music is proud to announce the May 28th, 2021 release of Dreams of Waking: Music For a Better World, the new album by consummate vocalist, songwriter and bandleader Dara Tucker. With fresh, inspired arrangements of classic singer-songwriter and soul compositions of the protest era, Tucker’s powerful new release gives voice to the cry for social justice and change that has swept across the United States in the new decade. Songs from such legendary songwriters as Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway and Paul Simon are presented through a jazz lens with a compelling performance from the vocalist and her illustrious band of musicians. Dreams of Waking: Music for a Better World features Tucker alongside pianists Cyrus Chestnut and Sullivan Fortner, bassists Dezron Douglas and Vicente Archer, drummers Johnathan Blake and Joe Dyson along with saxophonist John Ellis and trumpeter Giveton Gelin.

“Dreams of Waking refers to the hope that our society will develop an awareness of the inequities that still exist,” Tucker said. “It’s the dream that we will become fully conscious and attuned to the hopes, dreams and needs of every human being.”

As a songwriter, Tucker is no stranger to composition as commentary as she teamed up in a similar spirit with blues & Americana artist Keb Mo’ to co-write the title track to his 2020 Grammy-winning album Oklahoma. Tucker’s sole original composition for her new album, “Do We Sleep?” issues a passionate call for cultural awakening that echoes the title of the album. “Many of my original songs are internal statements that help to chronicle my growth, experiences and evolution that I hope will inspire others,” Tucker said. “This time, I decided to focus on the external. Are we really awake? What are we doing to give attention to the cries of injustice and inequality, or are we complicit by silence, ignorance or lack of interest and awareness?”

Drawing from the 1960’s and 1970’s, an era that holds special significance to her musical journey, Tucker’s new album brings life to a collection of songs that reaffirm her belief in our shared humanity. The jazz waltz reimagining of James Taylor’s, “Secret O’ Life” and pianist Cyrus Chestnut’s arrangement of Donny Hathaway’s, “Someday We’ll All Be Free” allows Tucker to soar, sonically capturing the spirit of hope and reflection.

The Motown-meets-New Orleans buoyancy of Stevie Wonder’s, “You Haven’t Done Nothin,’” arranged by saxophonist John Ellis, blends party with protest, while Sullivan Fortner’s recast of Paul Simon’s, “Bridge Over Troubled Water” flows both turbulently and steadily with Tucker at the helm.

Dara Tucker is making her mark in the world of organic, heartfelt music by blending the melodic and lyrical richness of the central plains with the soulful strains of the African American experience. Her eclecticism is guided by the diversity of her narrative. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma to a family of singers and ministers, Tucker and her siblings traveled across the US singing with their parents. From there, Tucker has experienced a diverse array of locales that she has called home including Interlaken, Switzerland; Nashville, and finally, New York City. Tucker has since toured nationally with her own bands and also with renowned hybrid guitarist Charlie Hunter.

Dreams of Waking: Music For a Better World is her latest in a compendium of innovative studio releases. The resulting 12-song project, recorded by GRAMMY-winning engineer Mike Marciano and produced by Greg Bryant, delves deeply into the national Zeitgeist with a clarion call to all agents of change to build a world that embraces the dignity and humanity of all people.

1. Secret O' Life (James Taylor) 4:02

2. You Haven't Done Nothin' (Stevie Wonder) 4:43

3. Someday We'll All Be Free (Donny Hathaway/Edward Howard) 4:00

4. Do We Sleep? (Dara Tucker) 4:13

5. Bridge Over Troubled Water (Paul Simon) 8:02

6. Make Someone Happy (Jule Styne/Adolph Green/Betty Comden) 5:48

7. What The World Needs Now (Burt Bacharach/ Hal David) 3:50

8. What's Going On? (Marvin Gaye/Renaldo Benson/Al Cleveland) 5:18

9. Love's In Need Of Love Today (Stevie Wonder) 4:12

10. You've Got A Friend (Carole King) 6:12

11. Wade In The Water (traditional arr. David M. Rodgers) 5:47

12. I Think It's Gonna Rain Today (Randy Newman) 4:02

Dara Tucker - vocals (all tracks) & arrangements (1, 6, 12)

Cyrus Chestnut - piano (1, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11) & rhodes piano (3, 10) & arrangements (3, 6, 7, 9)

Sullivan Fortner - piano (2, 4, 5, 8, 12) & rhodes piano (2) & arrangements (5, 8, 12)

Dezron Douglas - bass (1, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11)

Vicente Archer - bass (2, 4, 5, 8)

Johnathan Blake - drums (1, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11)

Joe Dyson - drums (2, 4, 5, 8) & tambourine (2) 

Giveton Gelin - trumpet (2, 4, 5, 8)

John Ellis - tenor saxophone (2, 4, 8) & soprano saxophone (5) & arrangement (2) & horn arrangements (2, 4)

* "You've Got A Friend" & "Wade In The Water" arranged by David M. Rodgers

Recorded November 29th, November 30th & December 1, 2020 at Samurai Hotel Studios, Astoria, NY

Engineered & Mixed by Mike Marciano for Systems Two Recording

Mastered by Mike Haynes for ENSO Mastering

Produced by Greg Bryant for Watchman Music

A & R Direction by Greg Howard for Green Hill Productions

Cover and liner photography by Andreas Hofweber

Makeup: Tanya Alvarado

Album Design by: Chad Smith

Pre-order

NEW RELEASE: Keith Brown Trio’s AFRICAN RIPPLES (f/ Melanie Charles, Camille Thurman + more) via Space Time Records

Acclaimed Pianist Keith Brown Announces the Release of His Revelatory New Album

African Ripples with his Trio, Out May 20, 2021 On Space Time Records

Space Time Records is proud to announce the May 20, 2021 release of African Ripples, the long-awaited new album by multi-faceted pianist, composer and arranger Keith Brown. The pianist’s third album as a leader, African Ripples introduces a new iteration of the Keith Brown trio now anchored by bassist Dezron Douglas and rotating drummers Darrell Green and Terron “Tank” Gully. Augmenting the mix is an abundance of notable special guests including trumpeter Russell Gunn, saxophonist Anthony Ware, vocalist Melanie Charles, vocalist Camille Thurman, vocalist Tamara Brown, spoken word artist Cyrus Aaron, and percussionist Nêgah Santos. 

After appearing on a number of universally acclaimed jazz recordings last year, including those by Jazzmeia Horn, Charles Tolliver, and Gregory Tardy, Keith Brown fulfills a long-held artistic vision on African Ripples. “The music of African Ripples was composed and collected to convey my personal experiences through Black music and how it has rippled out in so many different directions,” says Brown. “These ripples serve to bring to light our different relationships and connections and different variations of the same impactful shared experiences. This music has always been an extension of how we express ourselves within these relationships.”

Recorded in November of last year at Samurai Hotel Studios in Queens NY, African Ripples features innovative original compositions by Brown as well as several arrangements of tunes by such luminaries as Fats Waller and Stevie Wonder. Though the trio’s current configuration is new, the musicians on African Ripples have long-standing musical relationships. Terreon Gully is a longtime collaborator of Brown’s, having produced and performed on his previous album The Journey.  On Darrell Green, Brown shares that “[he] was one of the first drummers I met on the scene and has become one of my favorite drummers,” and on Dezron Douglas, he says: “anyone familiar with Dezron’s playing knows how deep his groove is but also how free he allows the music to be as well,” adding, “all these musicians provide exactly what I need to make the music speak.”

African Ripples begins with the deeply soulful “African Ripples Epigraph” featuring the evocative spoken word of Cyrus Aaron. Supple horn refrains cascade in between Aaron’s poignant words, underscored by Dezron Douglas’ deep groove and Brown’s powerful pianistic musings. “512 Arkansas St” provides the listener with some insight on the artist’s upbringing in Knoxville, Tennessee. Dedicated to the composer’s extended family, the song conjures the jubilance of family gatherings and features stunning improvisation by Brown as well as Russell Gunn and Anthony Ware. 

“Queen” is dedicated to Brown’s wife Tamara and the musical inspiration for the composition comes from a painting by Nigerian-born artist Uzo Egonu entitled ‘Guinean Girl’. The beauty and intensity of the piano is matched by the strength of Camille Thurman’s soaring vocals.“Prayer For My Nephews” is a composition written by Brown for his nephews, who are 19 and 4 years old. Featuring the words of Cyrus Aaron, the song is filled with affirmations and prayer. Brown notes “growing up as young black men, these words are important to hear, and it can also be uplifting to anyone at any age that needs a word of encouragement.” 

“Truth and Comfort” is a song about personal growth and re-education. The composer notes: “Everyone is raised in families and communities that can imprint ideas and beliefs that become a part of who we are. However, I think it is everyone’s responsibility to grow beyond the thoughts and beliefs that make them comfortable and see all the world’s many possibilities. This is something that some people have already done in their lives, so they’ll be able to relate to the experience, and for those who have not, maybe it will be an opportunity for them to think and see where they can open up themselves to truths beyond their comfort level.” The trio displays its stellar interplay on this nuanced track, and Brown offers audiences impassioned improvisation, beautifully supported by Terreon Gully and Dezron Douglas.

With the express purpose of fostering connection and positivity, African Ripples takes listeners on a journey throughout the life of the composer and offers a musical interpretation of many experiences that we all share in common – communion, hope, fear, nostalgia, grief and love. ‘My hope is that the listener will find enjoyment in the sounds, rhythms, harmonies, and melodies familiar to them and the ones that may be unfamiliar,” asserts Brown. “I hope that the energy and soul we put into this recording give them energy and uplift the soul.”

1. African Ripples Epigraph (featuring and lyrics by Cyrus Aaron) [2:03]

2. Truth and Comfort [5:01]

3. NAFID [5:19]

4. Just You, Just Me (Jesse Greer) [4:52]

5. 512 Arkansas St. (featuring Russell Gunn and Anthony Ware) [6:33]

6. African Ripples Part I (Thomas “Fats” Waller) [2:04]

7. African Ripples Part II (Thomas “Fats” Waller) [4:31]

8. Queen (featuring Camille Thurman) [6:37]

9. Come Back As A Flower (featuring Melanie Charles) (Stevie Wonder and Syreeta Wright) [5:23]

10. 118 & 8th [6:07]

11. What’s Left Behind [6:45]

12. Song of Samson (featuring Russell Gunn and Anthony Ware) [7:14]

13. Eye 2 Eye with the Sun [5:31]

14. Prayer for My Nephews (featuring and lyrics by Cyrus Aaron) [2:32]

15. African Ripples (Thomas “Fats” Waller) [0:46]

Keith Brown Trio:

Keith Brown- Piano, Rhodes, Synths

Dezron Douglas- Acoustic and Electric Bass

Terreon “Tank” Gully- (Drums, except tracks 6, 7, 8, and 13)

Darrell Green- (Drums, tracks 6,7,8, and 13)

Special Guests:

Russell Gunn-(Trumpet, tracks 1,5 and 12)

Anthony Ware- (Tenor saxophone, tracks 1,5 and 12)

Melanie Charles- (Vocals, track 9)

Camille Thurman- (Vocals track 8)

Cyrus Aaron- (Spoken Word, tracks 1 and 14)

Nêgah Santos- (Percussion, tracks 12 and 13)

Tamara Brown- Background Vocals (tracks 8 and 9)

Pre-order

MORE ABOUT KEITH BROWN

Memphis-born, Knoxville-raised and New York-based Keith Brown is one of the most in-demand pianists on the contemporary jazz scene. Since he began playing jazz at the age of 18, Brown has performed and recorded with a who’s-who of jazz luminaries. He currently tours as the pianist for Charles Tolliver and Jazzmeia Horn and has shared the stage with great jazz artists such as Camille Thurman & The Darrell Green Trio, Dezron Douglas, Sherman Irby, Steve Slagle, Terreon Gully, Kenneth Whalum III, David Weiss, Mike Clark, Bill Saxton, Joe Farnsworth, Greg Tardy, John Clayton, Benny Golson, and Bobby Watson to name a few. 

African Ripples is Brown’s third release as a leader, following the release of The Journey, in 2015 and Sweet and Lovely, in 2011. Brown appears on a number of highly acclaimed recent recordings including Jazzmeia Horn’s Where We Are, Charles Tolliver’s Connect, Janinah Burnett’s Love The Color of Your Butterfly, and Gregory Tardy’s If Time Could Stand Still. 

Greg Abate - Magic Dance (The Music of Kenny Barron) April 2021 Whaling City Sound Records

Theres a beautiful marriage happening with Greg Abates Magic Dance."" Its the union between Abates multi-instrumental gift of bebop and Kenny Barrons varied and sublime compositions. Abate, with Barron, who handles keys on this recording session, are soulmates sharing this epic musical space. On their own, Barrons melodies are transcendent. In Abates skillful hands, thanks to his ability to shift between alto, tenor, baritone and soprano saxes and flute, the material takes on new tones, colors and patterns. One of the liberties Abate took with the material involved varying the choice and number of horns on these tracks. On two tracks, he even went so far as to arrange and overdub four additional sax parts, modeled on the reed section of the traditional big band, which give Barron's lush sounds even greater texture and intricacy.

Underneath it all is the hot-shot rhythm section of bass player Dezron Douglas and drummer Johnathan Blake, a New York City tandem born to support and elevate these arrangements. In fact, the ensemble work throughout this two-disc project is incredible, and reaffirms the health of 'real' bebop, a genre in which Abate has, through a five-decade career, been a dependable flame keeper. With this collaboration, Abate, with sidemen Barron, Douglas and Blake prove that the glory of straight-ahead jazz can still be purposeful, exhilarating, and, above all, like all great marriages, faithful and true.

1. Sunshower

2. Cook's Bay

3. Golden Lotus

4. Innocence

5. Water Lilly

6. Sonya Braga

7. Bud Like

8. Lemuria

9. Concentric Circles

10. Rain

11. Voyage

12. Magic Dance

13. Song for Abullah

14. And Then Again

Pre-order

John L. Nelson: Don't Play With Love - The John L. Nelson Project (ROPEADOPE RECORDS 2018)

It is with distinct pleasure that we announce the release of The John L. Nelson Project - Don't Play With Love. The long anticipated album was in discussion between Nelson and his eldest daughter Sharon many years ago, before Prince Rogers Nelson changed the world of music. Shelved as John L. Nelson frequently collaborated with Prince, the project re-appeared in serendipitous fashion: the sheet music falling out of a cabinet as Sharon Nelson was organizing (yes, just like the movie). Sharon brought the great Louis Hayes (Prince's cousin) to Paisley Park with his seasoned band - including Richard Germanson, Dezron Douglas, Vincent Herring, and Jeremy Pelt - and they laid down seven tracks live. 

The intense history paints the picture, yet the players and the melodies let the music jump right off the canvas. Don't Play With Love is a journey from the past to the present - we get the sense of an earlier time yet we feel all of the human emotion that rings true for eternity.

‘Our dad was a loving, caring, hardworking father and a prolific jazz musician most notably known as the father of the musical genius, our brother Prince. Our dad wrote and composed many songs, but they were never recorded until now. He was Prince’s musical inspiration, and this project is very special because it was recorded in Paisley Park and guided by the spirits of my father and brother Prince.  (Sharon L. Nelson)

Victor Gould - Earthlings (CRISS CROSS JAZZ February 16, 2018)

On his sophomore leader CD and Criss Cross debut, pianist Victor Gould joined throughout by bassist Dezron Douglas and drummer Eric McPherson, with guest appearances by Tim Warfield on soprano saxophone, Godwin Louis on alto saxophone,and percussionist Khalil Kwame Bell presents a diverse, well-paced program comprised of originals and a cohort off-the-beaten-track numbers from the Great Jazz Songbook. Gould has spent consequential time apprenticing in groups led by such modern masters as Donald Harrison, Ralph Peterson, Terri Lyne Carrington and Wallace Roney, and you can hear it in his fresh, harmonically erudite approach to the repertoire, which he addresses and inhabits on its own terms of engagement while retaining an entirely 21st century perspective.

Victor Gould (p)

Dezron Douglas (b)

Eric McPherson (ds)

Tim Warfield(ss)

Godwin Louis (as)

Khalil Kwame Bell (perc)

Glenn Zaleski - Fellowship (SUNNYSIDE RECORDS 2017)

Through the act of improvisation, the jazz musician is continually composing. When it comes to formal composing of pieces for a jazz ensemble, the jazz musician must be able to not only write a good melody but also to provide a “springboard” for the ensemble to communicate and improvise. Pianist Glenn Zaleski’s second recording for Sunnyside, Fellowship, reconvenes his trio, featuring bassist Dezron Douglas and drummer Craig Weinrib, to play a program of original compositions and a couple of insightfully arranged standards. 

Zaleski’s first trio recording for Sunnyside, My Ideal, came out in 2015 and was a collection of standards and cover songs performed in a highly individual and energetic manner. For Fellowship, Zaleski wanted to bring the same musical approach to compositions from his own pen, challenging his trio mates to new creative heights on new, unfamiliar pieces. 

In writing these new pieces, Zaleski paid special attention in crafting compositions that walked a fine line, as he says: “Overwriting can stifle improvisation, but underwriting can result in monotony or chaos.” His ideal composition being one that is both tuneful and a good harmonic/rhythmic vehicle for inspired solos from him and his band mates. The program is accentuated by two pieces by legendary jazz composers, Duke Pearson and John Coltrane, that help illustrate the continuum in the development of jazz composition and improvisation from the 1950s until now. 

The recording begins with the highly interactive and inventive “Table Talk,” named for the pie company based near his hometown of Boylston, Massachusetts. The ruminative “Westinghouse” is a poetic tribute to composer Billy Strayhorn, while Duke Pearson’s toe tapping “Is That So?” is played to a quietly stirring effect. The title track is a wonderfully composed (both in form and esthetic), a true meditation in music. 

Douglas’s tremendous intro bass solo on “Out Front” leads to the harmonic underpinning of the cyclic and longingly propulsive “Homestead,” a song about the frustrations of being on the road. Zaleski’s dynamic blues piece “Lifetime” is dedicated to a club in Shizuoka, Japan of the same name, the piece as joyful and warmhearted as his recollections of the club. The wonderful take on John Coltrane’s “Central Park West” puts the trio’s sensitive artistry on full display. The program concludes with the abstractly grooving “P.S.,” a knotty dedication to friend, vibraphonist and composer Peter Schlamb. 

Pianist Glenn Zaleski continues to show his maturity and expertise as an instrumentalist and bandleader. On Fellowship, he proves his meddle as a composer of note, one who is capable of bending ears toward beautiful melodies and intriguing compositional ideas.

1. Table Talk - (G. Zaleski)

2. Westinghouse - (G. Zaleski)

3. Is That So? - (Duke Pearson)

4. Fellowship - (G. Zaleski) 

5. Out Front - (G. Zaleski)

6. Homestead - (G. Zaleski)

7. Lifetime - (G. Zaleski)

8. Central Park West - (John Coltrane)

9. P.S. - (G. Zaleski)

Glenn Zaleski - piano

Dezron Douglas - bass

Craig Weinrib - drums

Eric Alexander Trio - Just One of Those Things (VENUS RECORDS 2016)

Eric Alexander and his tenor sax join together with Dezron Douglas on bass and Neal Smith on drums to complile a nine-track SACD full of jazz's favorite staples from John Coltrane, Cole Porter and many more!

1. You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To 《 C.Porter 》

2. Just One Of Those Things 《 C.Porter 》

3. Wise One 《 J.Coltrane 》

4. Beautiful Love 《 V.Young 》

5. You Say You Care 《 J.Styne, L.Robin 》

6. We've Only Just Begun 《 P.Williams 》

7. Stardust 《 H.Carmichael 》

8. Russian Lullaby 《 I.Berlin 》

9. Bessie's Blues 《 J.Coltrane 》

Eric Alexander - tenor sax

Dezron Douglas - bass

Neal Smith - drums

Bob Wijnen - NYC Unforeseen (2015)

NYC Unforeseen

NYC Unforeseen is Bob Wijnen's first project as a band leader, and what a band it is! Next to Wijnen, who lays down a really tasteful yet adventurous way of playing the piano, NYC Unforeseen features the always fantastic sounding Peter Bernstein on guitar, the "voice of reason" Dezron Douglas on bass, and the ever swinging Billy Drummond, who participated on so many great jazz records, on drums.

Wijnen was a sideman in many bands for a long time, and still is. Yet he always felt the urge to chase dreams and to show that realizing them can make you a happier and more complete person. One dream was to go to New York, the city where the jazz scene is all about what Wijnen is striving for in music: groove, swing, energy, an open mind and the spirit of the tradition of America's true original art form. With this wonderful band it all comes out.

You can order the cd in the retail store when you scroll down the page and through iTunes, Amazon and Google Music. Reviews will follow shortly!

"Bob Wijnen is a fine pianist, who has assembled a terrific band of some of New York’s top jazz players for his debut recording. NYC Unforeseen is a great CD, fresh music from a mature pianist/composer who has honed his own swinging, lyrical voice as a player and composer. Not to be missed!" - David Berkman, pianist

Bob Wijnen, piano

Peter Bernstein, guitar

Dezron Douglas, bass

Billy Drummond, drums

1. NYC Unforeseen

2. Treehouse

3. The Look of Love

4. Baby Steps

5. Sublime Indifference

6. E For Eye Opener

7. Bring it Together

8. If It's Magic

9. The Jellyfish Blues (says Dez)

BUY THIS ALBUM!!!

Domi