Recent instrumental big band and orchestral jazz album recommendations. With ~25 & ~50 year retrospectives, to illustrate the timelessness of this great music.
THIS SITE PROMOTES FUN JAZZ!
Excerpts from and links to album reviews of rather boisterous jazz albums. Artist and album info links at: Wikipedia; website; Discogs; Bandcamp; Allmusic, as available/worthwhile. Links to the full album on: basic/free YouTube; subscription Spotify; purchase download Bandcamp, as available. Check your favorite service. Please enjoy!
Friday 50s,an album from 1975,a half-century ago.... 😊
"A fine mid-'70s date that was both a showcase for Bellson's bombastic
drumming and also a nice straight-ahead date with great contributions
from" trumpeters Blue Mitchell, Snookey Young, Cat Anderson and Bobby Shew, saxophonists Pete Christlieb and Don Menza, and others. Ron Wynn/Allmusic. Album Wikipedia ; Discogs.
Louis Bellson released >100 albums from ~1952 to 1998, with >300 compositions and 9 Grammy nominations, mainly with big bands. Louis pioneered the use of double bass kick drums, developed new technology for and was vice-president of Remo drums, and was the husband and musical director for singer Pearl Bailey. Louis' Website ; Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs.
Louis Bellson, The Louis Bellson Explosion, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
Baritone saxophonist/composer/arranger/educator Ryan "Middagh’s arrangements reflect a deep respect for jazz’s big band
legacy, blending swing-era traditions with post-bop expression.... Each of the six tracks offers us a journey that celebrates tradition, spontaneity, and the personalities within the ensemble." Nolan DeBuke/TheJazzWord.
This is Ryan's 3rd ~big band album, and one with an octet, since 2010. 2019s Live From Nashville features vocalist Keb’ Mo’, trombonist Wycliffe Gordon and saxophonist Jeff Coffin, who is also on the new album, and his album Only The Horizon was featured in a post below. Ryan's website.
Ryan Middagh Jazz Orchestra, Live From Nashville, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
He did a 2013 album as a result of his dissertation while at the University of Northern Colorado. "This project is part of Ryan's Doctoral Jazz work and features his old
friends and mentors Jeff Coffin and drummer Tom Giampetro. They join a highly skilled student ensemble performing a set of
tunes honoring Colorado's fine craft beers. Pop a cold one and sit back
and enjoy the irrepressible joy inspired by their presence!" Soundcloud. This is a little-big-band.
Ryan Middagh, Colorado Brew, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
"This
project is part of Ryan's Doctoral Jazz work and features his old
friends and mentors saxophonist Jeff Coffin and drummer Tom Giampetro
joining a highly skilled student ensemble performing a set of tunes
honoring Colorado's fine craft beers. Pop a cold one and sit back and
enjoy the irrepressible joy inspired by their presence!"
Ryan's orchestra performs 4 tunes from the Live in Nashville album. The 1st is 'Move Your Rug'.
The 2nd is 'Dolphin Dance,' a Herbie Hancock tune.
The 3rd is 'Don't Push'.
The 4th is 'The Commissioner' and features trombonist Wycliffe Gordon.
The Nashville big band jazz scene thrives, apparently. A post below is about theChris McDonald Jazz Orchestra's It’s About Time, also based in the city. 😎
Gregg Hill is a 78 year old Central Michigan pianist/composer/arranger who is amidst a late life artistic surge that has produced 15 albums of his music since 2017, in various orchestrations. Here he arranges an album led by trombonist Michael Dease with 10 more players. Gregg's website ; Discogs.
"The highly acclaimed Dease has put an absolute stamp of approval on Hill's work.... Sharel Cassity is a highlight throughout the album on both alto saxophone and flute.... The inexhaustible energy of Hill is not to be denied." Paul Rauch/AllAboutJazz. Album Discogs.
Michael Dease, also on baritone sax, is joined on
woodwinds by Sharel Cassity, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Jason
Hainsworth and Virginia MacDonald, with trumpeter Matt White, trombonist Nanami Haruta, pianist Bill Cunliffe, bassist Katie Thiroux,
drummer Colleen Clark and percussionist Gwendolyn Dease.
This is Michael's ~14th album since 2007. He did more Gregg Hill music with a smaller ensemble on his 2023 albumThe Other Shoe. He is featured guest on OSU Jazz Orchestra - Solid Gold, in a post below. Michael's website ; Discogs ; Wikipedia ; Allmusic.
Michael Dease, Found In Space, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
Tuesday 25s,an album from Y2K / 2000, a quarter-century ago.... 😊
Saxophonist Joe Lovano's 2000 release 52nd Street Themes won the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album, even though he only used 9 musicians.
"....this record is a powerful reminder of the tenor giant’s debt to the
tradition. Still, the music has that unmistakable Lovano edge." David Adler/AllAboutJazz. Album Allmusic ; Discogs.
Joe has released >50 albums since 1986, with this Grammy Award win and 14 more nominations. He did another nonet album, 2003s On This Day At The Vanguard. Website ; Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs.
Joe Lovano Nonet, 52nd Street Themes, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
The first post for a 2025 release is from that wonderful jazz program that helps keep the flame alive. The University of North Texas (UNT) and its One O'Clock Lab Band performs songs by and with drummer Allison Miller.
"I couldn’t be more thrilled to have collaborated with Alan Baylock and
the prestigious One O’Clock Lab Band on this project. It just felt right
from the very beginning and I am immensely grateful to the talented
students for their hard work, passionate energy, and exemplary
performance on this album!"
Allison has released >15 albums since 2004. She began her jazz career as a big band drummer at age 14, and her recording career with singer/songwriter Ani DiFranco in the late 90s. She now leads her own band 'Boom Tic Boom,' and guests on many sessions. Website ; Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs.
A post below is about the One O'Clock Lab Band's album Lab 24, with more info about the band and a video with Allison.
Allison Miller And The One O'clock Lab Band, Big & Lovely, full album: YouTube ; Spotify ; Bandcamp
"The album is a collection of engaging tone poems with pungent orchestral
writing for brass, especially trombones. The virtuosity of the writing
demands and receives similar virtuosity from the players. This is an album from an eloquent new voice that has much to say." Jack Kenny/AllAboutJazz. Album Discogs.
"Born and raised in Taiwan, Tracy Yang has established herself as a
composer, musician, and cross-discipline artist in NYC since 2013.
Recognized with the Charlie Parker Jazz Composition Prize." This is her 2nd album, first with the orchestra.Website ; Discogs.
Here's 2 really nice 2024 albums by a French big band.
"Under the expert guidance of the arranger, Christophe Dal Sasso, his big band (Voted France’s
best jazz orchestra in 2020) revisits the legendary album, featuring in
the footsteps of the late Michael Brecker, three exceptional
saxophonists: David El-Malek, Stéphane Guillaume and Rick Margitza. A
lively and spectacular tribute to the pianist who passed away in 2021."
Del Sasso Big Band, Chick Corea's "Three Quartets" Revisited, full album: YouTube ; Spotify ; Bandcamp
Chris and his big band also released "Le Carnaval des Animaux, a comic musical suite composed by Camille Saint-Saëns in 1886.... The work consists of 14 short movements, each representing a different animal, and Saint-Saëns uses music to illustrate the characteristics of each animal.... So, in this brilliant latest version by maestro arranger Dal Sasso and his acolytes, it’s humor and lightness ... that characterize this work." Jacques Pauper/ColeursJazz.
Del Sasso Big Band, Le Carnajazz des Animaux, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
This is the ~6th album from the band since 2004, but Spotify/Dal Sasso Big Band is the only place I found them all listed together. Neither Chris's website nor Discogs are updated, so Facebook.
Friday 50s,today with 3 albums from 1974, so about a half-century ago... 😁
Pianist/composer/arranger/bandleader Bob James did an album of his own, and also orchestral arrangements for albums by saxophonists Hank Crawford and Grover Washington Jr. James' arrangements on these albums were with a small big band plus strings. In order by my favorite...
"This is one of Grover Washington, Jr.'s best-loved recordings and
considered a classic of r&bish jazz.... Bob James provided the colorful if somewhat commercial arrangements, ... and Washington (mostly on tenor and soprano) is heard in particularly creative form. Highly recommended." Scott Yanow/Allmusic. The title tune was 'a hit,' and the album went to #1 on the jazz and soul charts. Album Discogs ; Wikipedia. Grover's Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs.
Grover Washington Jr., Mr. Magic, full album: YouTube (1 file) ; Spotify
Grover's 1973 album Soul Box, also with Bob James arrangements, earned a post below.
"Saxophonist Hank Crawford provides three original compositions along with two Stevie Wonder tunes (hence the album title). The string arrangements of Bob James,
who also plays electric keyboards on the date, provide a light touch of
sophistication and blend well with Crawford’s R&B-steeped alto
saxophone." Al Campbell/Allmusic. Album Discogs; Wikipedia. Hank's Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs.
Hank Crawford, Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing, full album; YouTube ; Spotify
One was Bob's ~3rd album as a leader, with now >50 releases. This shortish album is the ~start of Bob's smooth jazz career as a leader, and he's still active. His albumJazz Handsreceived a 2024 Grammy Award nomination for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album. OneAllmusic ; Discogs. Bob's website ; Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs.
Tuesday 25s,an album from about a quarter-century ago ... 1999. 😉
"Terence Blanchardcovers classic motion picture scores with an
expressive jazz trumpet and approach to straight-ahead jazz on ... Jazz In Film. Scores ... are immersed in the world of jazz and resurface complete
with Blanchard's imprint and eloquent style that is reminiscent of
mid-'60s Miles Davis." Paula Edelstein/Allmusic.
Covers of Duke Ellington (Anatomy of a Murder), Quincy Jones (The Pawn Broker), Jerry Goldsmith
(Chinatown), Bernard Herrmann
(Taxi Driver) and Elmer Bernstein
(Man with the Golden Arm) and more. A band of: Bass – Reginald Veal; Drums – Carl Allen; Piano – Kenny Kirkland get some help from: Tenor Saxophone – Joe Henderson; Trombone – Steve Turre; Alto Saxophone – Donald Harrison. An orchestra supplements most tunes. Album Discogs.
Terence Blanchard is a New Orleans-born jazz trumpeter and film composer known for his close association with director Spike Lee. He has >80 film and television scores, has been nominated for 2 Academy Awards, has won 7 Grammy Awards with 16 nominations, and has an Emmy and BAFTA nomination. Website ; Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs.
Terence Blanchard, Jazz In Film, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
"The band ... has a performing home ... in Philadelphia, and has released about half a dozen superb albums, all featuring
David's compositions and bearing his unique soprano saxophone soloing
and sophisticated style of composing and arranging which allows the
musicians to play charts and improvise at very high levels, each with
his own imprint." Victor Schermer/AllAboutJazz.
The Eleventet is based in and plays regularly around Philadelphia, USA. This is their 6th album since ~ 2015. website.
Big band jazz and... harmonica? It works! Hendrik Meurkens leads 2 bands through 2 joyful albums. His 2024 album is with Costa Rica's CCCN Jazz Orchestra, led by drummer Carlomagno Araya. Album Discogs.
Here's his 2022 album. "Combine Meurkens' superb playing and writing with Mossman and
Franzetti's dazzling charts, flawlessly performed by the marvelous WDR
Big Band, and you have the complete package. To put it another way,
Latin-flavored big-band jazz simply doesn't get much better than this." Jack Bowers/AllAboutJazz. Album Discogs.
The WDR Big Band is a project of WDR Broadcasters in Cologne, Germany. They have released >75 albums since 1979. YouTubechannel (please subscribe); website; Discogs. Type "WDR" into the search box for alotta WDR Big Band album recommendations.
Hendrik Meurkens & The WDR Big Band, Samba Jazz Odyssey, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
The 2025 Grammy Awards are Sunday, 2 February. Besides the category of Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album, jazzy orchestrations were nominated in 2 other categories.
Jazz guitarist Bill Frisell received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for Orchestras, a live album with Alexander Hanson, the Brussels Philharmonic, Rudy Royston & Thomas Morgan. Bill has a Grammy, and this is his 8th nomination. Bill had a good year, as he also earned a nomination for the albumOwl Song, which he co-led with trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire and drummer Herlin Riley, for Best Jazz Instrumental Album.
A jazzy tribute to composer Henry Mancini at the Hollywood Bowl had a tune nominated for Best Arrangement Of An Instrumental. Michael League arranged his tune "Baby Elephant Walk - Encore", for his band Snarky Puppy (SP), a rather large jazz fusion ensemble.League has 5 Grammys with SP and this is his 8th nomination.
Henry Mancini, The 100th Sessions: Henry Has Company, full album:YouTube ; Spotify
Friday 50s,an album from 1974, so about a half-century ago... 😁
"It features cover versions of many songs that were popular in the years leading up to its production, including 'Jet', 'The Way We Were' and 'Livin' for the City.' Album Discogs. Wikipedia ; Allmusic.
This was Maynard’s ~32nd of >50 albums from 1955-2001. Maynard's: website; Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs. A post below is about his other 1974 release, M.F. Horn 4 & 5: Live At Jimmy's.
Maynard Ferguson, Chameleon, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
This was nominated for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album at the upcoming 2025 Grammy Awards.
This is a vocal-based big band album. "As he has always done in the past Orrin Evans, the pianist and bandleader from
Philadelphia, is inspired by tradition to renew and enrich, with
passion and freshness. This time the orchestrations are functional to
the interpretations of four prodigious singers who are divided into
seven out of nine songs: Lisa Fischer, Bilal, Joanna Pascale and Paul Jost ." Angelo Leonardi/AllAboutJazz. Album Discogs.
This is Evans' ~5th Captain Black Big Band (CBBB) album since ~2011, and 3 earned Grammy nominations! Orrin has ~13 more total albums, since 2000. Evans' website ; Wikipedia ; Allmusic ; Discogs. CBBB Discogs.
Orrin Evans And The Captain Black Big Band, Walk A Mile In My Shoe, full album: YouTube ; Spotify ; Bandcamp
"'A master musician who weaves dreams into vivid sonic landscapes, and turns sorrow and loss into enduring and endearing art.' That those landscapes traverse the musical terrain from the U.S. to Korea is icing on an already appetizing cake." Jack Bowers/AllAboutJazz. Album Discogs.
South Korean composer/arranger/bandleader Hyeseon Hong has arranged and fronted big bands in NYC for ~10 years now, and this 2024 release is her 2nd album. Discogs. No website, so Facebook.
Hyeseon Hong Jazz Orchestra, Things Will Pass, full album: YouTube; Spotify
Tuesday 25s,an album from 1999, or about a quarter-century ago.... 😉
"Trombonist Roy Wiegand’s ... big–band release ... is by far his best to date with radiant charts ... and intrepid blowing throughout by Wiegand and his
companions." Jack Bowers/AllAboutJazz. Wiegand invited several Stan Kenton / Woody Herman alumni, such as himself, and saxophonist Bill Perkins,
trumpeters Mike Vax and Buddy Childers, bassist Don Bagley and drummer
Chuck Flores. Album Discogs.
Roy released 4 albums in a career that began in ~1955 in NYC. He also played in bands for Kai Windig, CBS, The Jackie Gleason Show, and then moved to Los Angeles to play in many film scores. Roy's website.
The Roy Wiegand Jazz Orchestra, Stan - Big Sur, full album: YouTube ; Spotify
His 1996 album Whatever Floats Your Bone Boat is another fine album. Less-known players but they include Roy's son on trumpet. "This album ... may be the surprise big band
release of the year, sporting virtuosic writing and soloing
throughout..." Dan Weinstein/L.A. Jazz Scene. Album Discogs.
The Roy Wiegand Big Band, Whatever Floats Your Boat Bone, full album: YouTube ; Spotify 😎
These are some 2024 big band/orchestral jazz releases that I won't get a chance to do a complete post on. Some are well-known jazz names. Generally less boisterous than my favorites, but might be right-up-your-alley, as they say. All are definitely worth a listen. 🎷
The Danish Radio Big Band, XL-LX, full album: YouTube ; Spotify ; Bandcamp(5 suites by 5 jazz composers, 1.75 hours, 5 vinyl records)
Herb Alpert, 50, full album: YouTube ; Spotify(Smooth jazzin' his formula for a 50th album, his 2013 and 2016 albums earned a Grammy & a nomination, and he owns one of Los Angeles' top jazz clubs. 😁)
