MPS Records' Continues Its Summer Reissues

Albums by jazz vocalist Mark Murphy and pianist Monty Alexander dropped Aug. 13, 2021, on vinyl and CD via Edel Germany in partnership with Bob Frank Entertainment.

It’s been a special summer for jazz lovers and record collectors and another treat arrived on August 13, 2021, when MPS Records reissued jazz vocalist Mark Murphy’s “Midnight Mood” and pianist Monty Alexander’s “Montreux Alexander: The Monty Alexander Trio Live! at the Montreux Festival” on vinyl and CD. With these two releases, Germany’s first jazz label that was founded in 1968 by Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer has reissued 31 titles by legendary jazz figures, including Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Dexter Gordon, Freddie Hubbard, The Count Basie Orchestra, and George Duke, over the last two months in the US and Canada via Edel Germany in partnership with Bob Frank Entertainment.

A quintessential post-bop jazz singer, Murphy was viewed as underrated and revered as one of the finest jazz vocalists of all time by many. 1967’s “Midnight Mood” finds the inventive singer who crooned blues, scatted bebop, and emoted standards with panache paired with eight members of the Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band. However, Murphy opens the collection with a mesmerizing a cappella version of Duke Ellington’s “Jump For Joy.” Murphy swings elegantly on “I Don’t Want Nothin’” and he co-wrote the cool “Why and How.” His articulate phrasing stands out on “Alone Together” while the ardent “You Fascinate Me So” is a romantic overture. The singer wrote the somber ballad “Hopeless” and “Sconsolato” cha cha’s to an exotic Latin rhythm. Murphy interprets Ira Gershwin beautifully on “My Ship.” “Just Give Me Time” swings to a bossa nova groove. The set closes with Hoagy Carmichael’s poignant and powerful “I Get Along Without You Very Well.”              

The Jamaican-born Alexander teams with bassist John Clayton and drummer Jeff Hamilton for the 1976 set “Montreux Alexander: The Monty Alexander Trio Live! at the Montreux Festival.” Blues, soul, and gospel reign on this stellar jazz trio session that rightfully earned Alexander comparisons with his MPS label mate Oscar Peterson. Alexander’s nimble piano is center stage on this six-song date anchored by the taut rhythm section with each member of the trio afforded equal time to solo.

Alexander opens with Ahmad Jamal’s “Nite Mist Blues” before going pop on “Feelings.” He swings on the Ellington, Johnny Mercer, and Billy Strayhorn standard “Satin Doll” and then shows off his remarkable speed and dexterity on “Work Song.” Blues and gospel intersect on “Drown in My Own Tears.” The disc marches to an unexpected conclusion with a note of whimsy on “Battle Hymn of the Republic.”   

Another tranche of albums from the MPS catalog will be reissued this fall. For more information and to see what else is coming soon from MPS, please visit https://www.mps-music.com.

 

Reynolds Really Racks Up Points In 'Free Guy'

 

By Darlene Donloe

Ryan Reynolds fans and gamer enthusiasts are going to be blown away by the new action-comedy, ‘Free Guy’ opening in theaters nationwide today.

It’s a nonstop action romp in none other than an open-world video game.

So here are the details.

‘Free Guy,’ a 20th Century Studios adventure-comedy, tells the story of Guy (Reynolds) a bank teller who discovers he is actually a background player in an open-world video game. He decides to become the hero of his own story…one he rewrites himself. Now in a world where there are no limits, he is determined to be the guy who saves his world his way…before it is too late. Along the way, he meets Molotov Girl (Jodie Comer) the girl of his dreams – and becomes obsessed with getting to know her. She also happens to be the coder who conceived him.

Guy is a shy, brainless button-down banker who walks through his world with a daily routine that takes him nowhere. He wears the same blue shirt and khaki pants every day. In fact, he has the same routine every day of his empty life.  He has a best friend in the bank (Lil Rel Howery) who is a useless security guard who immediately drops his gun to the floor when a bank robbery is in progress.

Guy doesn’t want to be just another NPC (non-player character).

So, to gain the attention of Molotov Girl, Guy decides to rack up some points by going out into his world and performing superhero-type stuff to impress her.

His stunts get noticed and soon Guy is called Blue Shirt Guy in a video game called Free City.  The problems come when Blue Shirt Guy begins to do things he’s not programmed to do. He acquires his own mind, which doesn’t sit well with Antoine, Free City’s current owner (Taika Waititi).

In actuality, the real inventors of the Free City game are Keys (Joe Keery) and Millie (Comer again, in a blonde wig), who decide to get back the evidence from Antoine that proves they, indeed, are the true owners of the popular game.

If you’re not a true gamer, you may get a little lost with the maze of gaming-gamer lingo. But there’s plenty of computer-generated action and a little romance to get you through the film.

For what it is – ‘Free Guy’ works for the crowd it's intended for – young people and gamers who aren’t looking for something deep.

The film creates a gaming world that is an eye-popping, high-tech marvel, which seems to be the trend today in films that are full of artificial intelligence and alternate realities.

Reynolds will pull in his fans because of his good looks, impeccable delivery, and undeniable charm on screen.

 There are several cameos that are hilarious and a brief stint of a character named Dude, who is actually Guy’s head superimposed on Aaron W. Reed’s hulking body. The bit is comical.

 ‘Free Guy,’ directed by Shawn Levy, stars Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Lil Rel Howery, Joe Keery, Utkarsh Ambudkar, and Taika Waititi.

 The screenplay is by Matt Lieberman and Zak Penn and a story by Lieberman.

 The film is produced by Ryan Reynolds, p.g.a., Shawn Levy, p.g.a., Sarah Schechter, Greg Berlanti, and Adam Kolbrenner with Mary McLaglen, Josh McLaglen, George Dewey, Dan Levine, and Michael Riley McGrath serving as executive producers. 

‘Free Guy’ is Rated PG: 13; Running time: 1h 55m.

 On the DONLOE SCALE:  D (don’t bother), O (oh, no), N (needs work), L (likable) O (oh, yeah), and E (excellent), ‘Free Guy’ gets an L (likable).

 

 

R&B Jazz Guitarist Gregory Goodloe's CD Is 'Somewhere Out There'

 

After releasing the single, “Cool Like That,” R&B-jazz guitarist Gregory Goodloe attempted to stay calm early in the COVID-19 pandemic despite the uncertainty and concern for his mother’s health. As we move closer to the other side of the pandemic, the man of faith ventured out earlier this year with a single, “Step’N Out,” that he wrote with fellow Billboard chart-topping guitarist Adam Hawley. Combining their energy felt so good that the pair reteamed to write the hopeful new single, “Somewhere Out There,” which drops August 27 on Hip Jazz Records ahead of its August 30 radio add date.  

As the world continues to recover and reemerge from the coronavirus, the Denver-based Goodloe is focused on moving forward. Produced by Hawley, Goodloe co-wrote “Somewhere Out There” to encourage and inspire. With a midtempo groove anchored by drummer Eric Valentine and bassist Melvin Brown, Goodloe’s lyrical fretwork and cool-toned electric jazz guitar calisthenics evoke his iconic influencers: George Benson and Wes Montgomery.         

“The title ‘Somewhere Out There’ came to me as a reflection of hope in an ever-changing world. Adam and I wrote the song with inspiration in our hearts, determined to face what’s ahead positively, and with hope for a brighter tomorrow. We wrote the track purposely to be an upbeat, feel-good tune. The song is bright and just feels so good, with its toe-tapping steady groove and arrangement,” said Goodloe, who recently made his return to live concert performances at the Keystone Wine & Jazz Festival in Keystone, Colorado.

Two years ago, Goodloe scored his first Billboard No. 1 single, “Stylin’,” a collaboration with GRAMMY-nominated songwriter-producer-saxophonist Darren Rahn that has garnered more than three million Spotify streams. After a successful outing last year with urban-jazz keyboardist Bob Baldwin on “Cool Like That,” which was Billboard’s No. 1 most added single in its debut week, the guitarist began a fruitful creative relationship with Hawley. 

“Adam Hawley is a genius arranger/producer with a feel for music that is extraordinary,” gushed Goodloe who wrote, produced, and performed his debut recording project, “It’s All Good” (2016), entirely on his own.

Since the self-taught musician and U.S. Army veteran arrived on the scene, Goodloe has performed with or opened for a wide variety of R&B, jazz, and gospel headliners, including Howard Hewett, Tank, Ben Tankard, Norman Brown, Dave Koz, Brian Culbertson, Michael McDonald, James Ingram, Roy Ayers, Shirley Caesar, Angela Spivey, John P. Key, The Rance Allen Group and fellow Denver native Larry Dunn of Earth, Wind & Fire fame. Goodloe has also served as musical director for R&B-pop group Surface and soul-jazz singer Aysha.

With the upcoming release of “Somewhere Out There,” Goodloe has his sights firmly set on the promise that lays ahead, saying “We can believe in our dreams and hold on to hope for a brighter tomorrow.”

 

MPS Records Reissues Albums On Vinyl & CD

Record collectors continue to rejoice as Germany’s first jazz label, MPS Records, reissues albums on vinyl and CD by many of the biggest artists in the genre. On Friday, albums by Oscar Peterson and his trio, The Count Basie Orchestra, and Rolf Kühn resurface via Edel Germany in partnership with Bob Frank Entertainment.

Reissued on standard black vinyl and CD earlier this month, Peterson’s “Motions & Emotions” was released Friday as a limited edition numbered blue vinyl LP. Always a swinger who exhibited extraordinary speed and dexterity, the Canadian jazz pianist interpreted a popular songbook on this 1969 release, interpreting material by John Lennon & Paul McCartney, Burt Bacharach & Hal David, Henry Mancini, Antonio Carlos Jobim, and Jimmy Webb, among others. The ten-track album captures Peterson with his astute quartet lavishly illumined by an orchestra.          

Peterson tipped off MPS about the vocal group from Chicago called The Singers Unlimited, a studio foursome led by Gene Puerling known for crafting elaborate layers of vocal tracks in their recordings. The pianist’s trio – Peterson, George Mraz on bass, and Louis Hayes on drums - teamed with The Singers Unlimited for 1971’s “In Tune,” the first release spawned during a decade-long recording relationship between the sophisticated singers and MPS. Arriving Friday on vinyl and CD, the collection showcases Peterson’s nimble piano and the group’s vocal harmonies venturing through a varied setlist that boasts a swinging strut down “Sesame Street,” a couple of Brazilian numbers (Jobim’s “Children’s Game” and Luiz Bonfá’s “The Gentle Rain), and classics culled from the Great American Songbook, including “It Never Entered My Mind,” “The Shadow of Your Smile” and “Once Upon A Summertime.”  

Count Basie’s 17-piece orchestra fills 1970’s “High Voltage” with swinging, big band renditions of standards the outfit had never recorded previously in its 30-year history. Recruiting Cuban composer/arranger Chico O’Farrill to arrange, The Count Basie Orchestra rifles through a dozen popular selections such as “The Lady Is A Tramp,” “Bewitched,” “Get Me To The Church On Time,” “On The Sunny Side of the Street” and “I Didn’t Know What Time It Was.”     

In honor of Kühn’s 90th birthday two years ago, the clarinetist is the subject of a nine-LP boxset entitled “The Best Is Yet To Come,” which is comprised of seven newly remastered vinyl albums from his catalog along with a pair of live recordings of the Rolf + Joachim Kühn Quartet from 1966’s Berlin Jazz Days and 1967’s Newport Jazz Festival that had never before been released. A rare-bred German who managed to find success living and playing jazz in America, Kühn was an exceptional artist with a unique sound and distinctive style, a quintessential jazz man who evolved throughout his career from big band swing to more adventurous and improvisational jazz. 

The Fountain Theatre's 'An Octoroon,' Pushes The Boundaries

By Darlene Donloe

There is a lot to unpack in Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’, An Octoroon, currently playing at The Fountain Theatre’s outdoor stage through Sept 19.

The Fountain Theatre turned its parking lot into an outdoor venue complete with socially distanced seating and ticketless check-in.  Masks were not required outside. The hot days have turned into perfect, warm nights at the theater.

The Obie Award-winning play, by Jacobs-Jenkins, a MacArthur Foundation ‘Genius Grant” recipient, is the first production to be held at The Fountain Theatre since COVID-19 hit in March 2020.  The show was originally scheduled for a summer 2020 run, but, of course, was rescheduled due to the pandemic. 

It has been described as radical, incendiary, and subversively funny. No lies detected there. But, it’s so much more. I’d add controversial, thought-provoking, wicked, and smart.

Proponents and dissidents of Critical Race Theory will have a healthy and robust conversation after watching this shocking deconstruction of a mustache-twirling farce by 19th-century playwright Dion Boucicault.

It’s interesting that the theater would choose a play with a heavy and sometimes controversial subject matter to open its new season. The gamble seems to have paid off.

Within the 2 hours and 30 minutes that is this postmodern, theatrical stunner, there are elements of humanity, slavery, decency, deceit, ownership, freedom, morals, love, and murder – all needing to be addressed, digested, understood, and unwrapped. There’s a lot going on, but through Director Judith Moreland’s steady hand, it all comes together. 

The time and place is 1859 America, and, curiously America today.

Although the central theme of the play is about humanity and slavery on a plantation, located in a muggy swamp, its relevance is eerily on point post the Black Lives Matter movement and the George Floyd lynching.

Thankfully, Jacobs-Jenkins offers the audience a time to laugh at things that are clearly uncomfortable. In a mixed audience, it was interesting to watch white patrons quickly decide whether it was appropriate to laugh at something that is traditionally and historically painful to a specific ethnic group. 

Thank goodness for the comedic elements in the show – which eased the tension of the reality being acted out on stage. The projected lynching of two Black men hanging from a tree, while in the foreground a crowd of white spectators smiles for the camera while pointing at the bodies, was a shocking moment in more ways than one. The audience didn’t see it coming.  A hush fell over the outdoor theater. You could have heard a pin drop. The audience became witnesses to something so atrocious, some chose to look away. 

This show forces the audience to contemplate, question, and accept this nation’s racist history, a notion we have found out is easier said than done.

The show opens with a modern-day Black playwright played brilliantly by Matthew Hancock, trying to work out some elements of a show.  At one point he’s in his therapist’s office getting advice, or so he tells the audience. It’s not revealed whether he really was seeking advice from a therapist or whether he was convincing himself to move forward. Either way, he proceeds to write an over-the-top tome, that brings him and the audience face-to-face with some hard truths. 

The show is in your face. It’s raw! It’s unhinged! If you are easily offended, this is NOT the show for you. There is frequent, and I mean frequent use of the word N*gger, and other rather brutally satirically racial stereotypes presented in the show. 

Once the Black playwright decides to go forward with the show thus begins the no-holds-barred telling of the story of an octoroon woman (a person who is one-eighth Black), and white plantation owner's love story.

It then becomes a mad dash for everyone involved. There is a white man (Rob Nagle) in red face, a light-skinned woman (Hazel Lozano) in Black face, and Hancock in white face, all telling this poignant story. 

At one point, Hancock plays George Peyton, the owner of Terrebonne plantation. He happens to fall in love with Zoe (Mara Klein) who he thinks is a white woman, but turns out to be An Octoroon. He doesn’t care – and neither does she upon learning of her new heritage. Drama ensues once it’s learned that Zoe, technically a slave, is now property and, therefore, part of the plantation’s sale. Thus, she is sold at auction to a rather nasty sort named M’Closky, also played by Hancock.

Nagle plays Wahnotee, a Native American accused of killing a Black child. Once again, a minority is thrown to the wolves without any proof. While it’s presented as a throwaway, it’s a powerful and pivotal moment in the show and adds to the melodrama.

Along the way, we meet a hodgepodge of characters helping to move the story forward. 

Hancock, an Ovation award-winner for Hit the Wall, deserves a standing ovation and an award for all three characters he plays, including the playwright, M’Closky and George. In what can only be called stellar, award-winning performances, Hancock leaves it all on the stage. He completely brings the house down when he wrestles himself as both the good (George) and evil (M’Closky) characters. That scene is worth the price of admission and is worthy of applause. It’s a hilarious bit of business that leaves the audience in stitches.

The cast includes Hancock, Kacie Rogers (Dido), Pam Trotter (Minnie), Rob Nagle (playwright, Wahnotee, and LaFouche), Hazel Lozano (Assistant/Pete/Paul), Vanessa Claire Stewart (Dora/Captain Ratts), Mara Klein (Zoe), and Leea Ayers (Grace/Br’er Rabbit).

Rogers, Trotter, and Ayers as slave women bring the funny with their hilarious, modern-day urban slang intertwined in this period piece. Each one’s timing and delivery are superb. The heart of the play, they steal the show every time they take the stage.

Sample dialogue includes:

MINNIE: You ever had to f*ck him?

DIDO: Who?

MINNIE: Mas’r/Peyton

DIDO: Oh, naw! You?

MINNIE: Naw, he only like lightskinnded girls. But Renee, you know, who was f*ckin’ him all the time . 

MINNIE: Would you f*ck him [George]?

DIDO: No, Minnie! Damn. Would you?

MINNIE: Maybe.

DIDO: Yeah, well, I get the feeling you don’t get a say in the matter.

After they learn most of the slaves on the Louisiana plantation have run away and left them behind, Minnie and Dido devise a plan to get bought by Captain Ratts who has a boat.

They fantasize about living on a boat instead of a muggy swamp.

Minnie: Imagine if we lived on a steamboat, coasting up and down the river, looking fly, wind whipping at our hair and our slave tunics and sh*t and we surrounded by all these fine, muscle-y boat nigg*s who ain’t been wit a woman in year?

The dialogue speaks to Minnie’s delusion after having lived her entire life on the plantation.

Minnie’s best line is when she gives Dido some advice.

Minnie to Dido: “I know we slaves and evurthang, but you are not your job.”

Golden!

The banter is witty, fast, and carries more importance than is realized. It raises disturbing questions about violence and rape perpetrated on female slaves, although the word is never mentioned in the show.

Luckily for audiences, there isn’t a weak link in this chain of accomplished actors. 

Moreland, who clearly understands the importance of the play, has put together an impressive cast worthy of doing the material justice. 

Frederica Nascimento’s scenic design is stark but workable. Naila Aladdin Sanders’ costume designs are appropriate. Nicholas E. Santiago’s video design is traditional. Derrick McDaniel’s lighting design achieves practical effects.

As the Black playwright’s assistant says in the play, “The point of this whole thing was to make you feel something."

On the DONLOE SCALE: D (don’t bother), O (oh, no), N (needs work), L (likable), O (oh, yeah), and E (excellent), An Octoroon gets an E (excellent)

An Octoroon, The Fountain Theatre, 5060 Fountain Avenue, Los Angeles; 

Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays at 7 p.m., except July 30 through Aug. 2 and Aug. 27 through Aug. 30 which will be dark, through September 19; $25–$45; Pay-What-You-Want seating is available every Monday night in addition to regular seating (subject to availability); For reservations and information, call (323) 663-1525 or go to www.FountainTheatre.com.

Questlove's 'Summer of Soul', A Funky Blast From The Past

By Darlene Donloe

Questlove’s Summer of Soul has garnered a lot of buzz, especially amongst music enthusiasts – and with good reason.

Ahmir ‘Questlove’ Thompson has unearthed a summer concert, hidden away for more than 50 years, laying dormant in someone's basement depriving the masses of what can only be called a musical masterpiece. 

Questlove’s documentary about the 1969 ‘Black Woodstock’ concert part of the Harlem Cultural Festival, whose full title is Summer of Soul (Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), features never-before-seen concert performances by Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, TheStaples Singers, Sly & the Family Stone, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Mahalia Jackson, B.B. King, The 5th Dimension, and many more. 

It was produced by Joseph Patel, Robert Fyvolent, and David Dinerstein. 

The Sundance Grand Jury and audience award winner is in theaters, but can also be seen on Hulu. 

This film was a pure delight, a cultural explosion, an ear-matic delight. Watching the doc infuses a sense of pride at the power, grace, and pure talent that permeated the time. One after the other, Black talented took the stage entertaining by singing their individual hits. And the hits just keep on comin’. 

A showstopper is Mahalia Jackson who takes the stage in all her gospel glory. She wasn’t feeling one hundred percent, so she asks Mavis Staples to help her sing, "Precious Lord,' a monumental masterpiece. Both Jackson and Staples brought the fire! It’s such a powerful, moving, and gut-wrenching moment. It truly gives you goosebumps. It becomes an unforgettable moment that is one for the ages. 

50 years lost! This documentary stands as a tribute to our time. 

Watching it in all its Black wonder conjures a commanding sense of community oneness. 

Don’t sleep on this documentary! It’s a winner! 

This is pure love!

On the DONLOE SCALE: D (don’t bother), (oh, no), N (needs work), L (likable), O (oh, yeah), and E (excellent), 'Summer of Soul' gets an E (excellent).

Saxophonist Isaac Edwards Is Out 'On The Town'

 

After nearly twenty years as a recording artist plus four months of persistence, patience, and promotional pushing from his new record label, soul-jazz saxophonist Isaac Edwards has hit the Billboard singles charts for the first time. Released in early February, “On The Town” finally debuted on the Billboard chart last week at No. 24. The funky R&B instrumental, Isaac’s first single after inking with Next Paradigm Records, was written by the saxman and produced by label head, Jacob Webb, who has produced several Billboard chart-toppers.

As the world emerges from coronavirus restrictions, the marketplace - and the Billboard charts – have become quite crowded with new releases, especially from marquee artists, which makes Edwards’ chart debut that much more of an accomplishment.

“It has been a huge battle at radio this year with just about every A-lister releasing a track, sometimes more. Due to COVID, most of the artists were at home, not touring, and presumedly finishing their tracks, and now they're releasing them. To give you an idea of how hard it has been to hit the Billboard charts this year, this is our 19th week promoting the single at radio! It took this long to debut on Billboard, but we never gave up! It is rare for a single to take this long to hit the charts and there were lots of moments when we thought that we weren't going to make it, but we did. Now we are on the chart with a bunch of A-listers,” said an excited Isaac. 

“On The Town” features Isaac’s alto saxophone engaging in a discourse with Randall Haywood’s flugelhorn. The groove is anchored by drummer Kevin Bowden and Webb’s rubbery basslines with melodies added by Webb’s keyboards and programming along with Sonny Dumarsais’ piercing electric guitar riffs. COVID precautions and geographic distance required that all of the tracks except for sax be recorded at Webb’s New York studio compound while the saxophone tracks were laid down in a vocal booth set up in Edwards’ San Diego home.      

Edwards has released three albums since the early 2000s, juggling his desire to be a jazz musician with busy days in court as a litigation attorney. His recording projects have incorporated jazz, R&B, pop, rock, and gospel, and have included collaborations with GRAMMY-winning saxophonist Kirk Whalum, multiple GRAMMY nominee Darren Rahn, and Joel Kibble, a 10-time GRAMMY-winning member of Take 6. Edwards’ 2002 gospel-jazz album, “Here,” was nominated for a Vibe Award, Canada’s Dove Awards equivalent. He studied under the tutelage of noted saxophonists Eric Marienthal and Jeff Clayton and has opened concerts for multiple GRAMMY winners Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith. 

Last July, Edwards dropped the independent single, “Bird Rock,” which not only garnered national airplay from SiriusXM’s Watercolors but captured Webb’s attention, leading to the recording pact with Next Paradigm.   

    

For more information, please visit https://isaacedwardsmusic.com.