Jazz Class Orchestra Meets Phil Woods - 'Porgy and Bess'

Retrospective 1999, with an album from a quarter-century ago. (Tuesday 25s 😁)

"Saxophonist Phil Woods may be at his best when working over tunes familiar to his audience. This collection of ten classic Porgy and Bess songs is just such an instance...  On this occasion, Woods was accompanied by an excellent Italian big band." David Franklin/JazzTimes. Album Discogs ; Allmusic.

Alto saxophonist Phil Woods was a jazz giant active from the 1950s into the 2010s. He played in prominent 1950s big bands (Gil Evans Orchestra), and then primarily led his own groups later. He guested on and occasionally led big band albums throughout his career. Wikipedia ; Discogs ; Allmusic ; website.

Jazz Class Orchestra Meets Phil Woods, Porgy and Bess, full album: YouTube ; Spotify

This is on the Jazz Best Albums 1999 playlist at Spotify/Jazz Todayish. 😎

Miguel Zenon - 'Golden City'

San Francisco-based saxophonist Miguel Zenon's 2024 album Golden City earned a 2025 Grammy Award nomination for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album. Recorded with a nonet, Zenon now has >20 Grammy/Latin Grammy nominations. He won Best Latin Jazz Album last year for his duet release with pianist Luis Pedromo, El Arte Del Bolero, Vol. 2.

"Thematically and instrumentally challenging and complex, featuring a nonet heavy on the low-end brass (trombones, tuba, trumpet), Golden City is a triumph.... The album is Miguel Zenon at his creative peak." Dan McClenaghan/AllAboutJazz. Musicians include trumpeter Diego Urcola and trombonist Alan Ferber.

This is Zenon's ~24th album since 2001. He is a long-time member of the SF Jazz Collective. Miguel's: website ; Wikipedia ; Discogs ; Bandcamp.

Miguel Zenon, Golden City, full album: YouTube ; Spotify ; Bandcamp

This is on the Jazz 2024 and Jazz Best Albums 2024 playlists at Spotify/Jazz Todayish.

Enjoy the tune 'Cultural Corridor' from a 2022 performance of the album. 😎

Bill Warfield and The Hell’s Kitchen Funk Orchestra - ‘Chesapeake’

"One of the more flexible large ensembles on the New York scene. Capable of swinging fervently, playing a persuasive mambo or laying down the funk in no uncertain terms, the Hell’s Kitchen Funk Orchestra (HKFO) covers a lot of bases on Chesapeake." Jeremy Smith/Last Row Music. Guests include saxophonist Gary Bartz, trombonist Conrad Herwig and keyboardist Paul Shaffer.

Trumpeter-composer-arranger-bandleader-educator and Baltimore native Bill Warfield has played in the NYC area and released ~9 big band albums since ~1983 (Discogs). Most were as the Bill Warfield Big Band, and this is the 3rd HKFO album since 2020. Bill has a day job as director of the jazz program at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Bill Warfield and The Hell’s Kitchen Funk Orchestra, Chesapeake, full album: YouTube ; Spotify

This is on the Big Band 2024 and Jazz Best Albums 2024 playlists at Spotify/Jazz Todayish. 😎