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Looking forward to the reveal! 1. I’m easily won over by bass clarinet. This player is particularly plummy, James Newton on flute? The technique and trills sound Newton-esque to me. Could this be from his Blue Note Ellington songbook record? (The brass feels like it’s drawing from an Ellingtonian palette). But this doesn’t sound particularly like an 80s production. Things seem to have stabilized with the head statement. I’m now getting Andrew Hill DUSK vibes…. could the tenor be Greg Tardy. In any event, there’s a kind of organic/protoplasmic looseness to the tempo here that reminds me of the ensemble work on DUSK. Suddenly the tune sounds more Iberian or even Latin that it did at first. Definitely not that Newton record, I’d wager. Could it be the drummer’s record/gig? Seems to me it could. Intriguing opening. 2. Joni Mitchell, SHADOWS AND LIGHT, surely, with Metheny and Jaco. Can’t remember who the sax player is on this one. Michael Brecker? Sounds like him for sure. I like about 3/4s of his solo, which is usually how it goes for me with breaker. So I’m considering my bias as to who this is confirmed. Digging most how the arrangement here differs from the studio version. And the rougher quality of Joni’s voice. Superb. 3. Hard-hitting. Sounds like it could come from the contemporary British jazz scene (if I can call it that) that’s produced the Sons of Kemet. The drumming probably too busy for some, but I appreciate how there’s a reckoning here with hip-hop, jungle, techno - other beat-centric innovations that Black musicians have driven. could this be Makaya McCraven? I know the name but not the work. I like how the trumpet player drops the temperature a bit, takes their time, navigates the bar lines differently. Channeling some Kenny Wheeler almost. 4. Tick-tock, you don’t stop! The vibes popping in kind of surprised me. And strings?!?! This less indebted to Zappa in some ways… not quite “The Black Page”. “The Charcoal Page”? It’s colorful, as track 1 was, but, if this were a painting, it would be more Hard-Edge than Post-Impressionist. Now it sounds almost like several different music streaming services playing different selections simultaneously. Not necessarily unengaging; that is, I don’t mind commentary with my music. Maybe if Mingus were around today, he’d be offering commentary not unlike this? 5. Could this be a LIVE FROM MAYBECK series recording? I like this player’s left hand. The figure played there is almost Tyner-esque. Also reminds me of some figures you hear in Chris McGregor’s playing. This is not Chris McGregor AFAIK but there is something about this that feels uncannily familiar. Around the 2:50 mark, the music veers more toward harmonies I’d call “classical”. Could this be Richie Beirach? Or maybe Denny Zeitlin? One of those “trained” players who were also fluent in musics we might describe as more “vernacular”? Nice resonances around the 4:45 mark. Now it’s almost Terry Riley-esque! 6. Speaking of left hands! The bassist is the hero of this track. No idea, but ti sounds like a reinvention of a pop tune of its time (late 60s/early70s if I had to guess). Not Ramsey Lewis, but kind of in that vein. I mean, I guess that could be the great Cleveland Eaton on bass… The pianist does feel a bit like a weak link here. But the groove is still strong. Block chords always welcome. Transition at about 4:30 a little rocky. OK, a live performance. Junior Mance? 7. The great Jeanne Lee (probably my favorite jazz vocalist ever) with Ran Blake and George Duvivier. Geniuses at work.  8. The Jack McDuff band with Red Holloway, Pat Martino, and Joe Dukes, perhaps? Guessing just based on the intro and the audience’s level of participation. But I want to say that’s a different tenor player. I almost hear some Clifford Jordan in his playing (though it’s not Clifford Jordan)… something about the way he bites into certain notes. Well, that’s because it’s Stanley Turrentine and Shirley Scott - I think. From those Impulse live dates. I’ll know more, I think, when the organ solos. Shirley being a master colorist. Candy Finch on drums? Yep, the organist immediately changes to a different voicing that I very much associate with Shirley. This is all incredibly tasty.  9. Betty Carter? Chances taken for sure. And what she’s doing with the lyrics. Master class. I’ve never understood while some listeners are left cold by Carter. I don’t know who’s in the band, but A+ for the drummer and their cymbal work. 10. The return of the left hand. Etude-like, this performance. Very after-hours. Is that a muted Diz? No idea on the guitar player or pianist though. Impeccable vibes, and there’s lots here that’s unexpected; over too soon! 11. Helen Merrill and Clifford Brown. The shading and nuance of this her performance. It’s like something of a Hitchcock movie. I don’t listen to this record often; I think I need to remedy that. 12. There’s a Steve Lacy influence at work here, I think, but the tone is not Lacy’s. More Euro-centric, if that makes sense. I mean, there are times when this almost sounds like a more chill King Crimson. John Surman. Accordion, eh? Could this be the Claudia Quintet with Ted Reichman? If so, I can hear how the horn player might be Chris Speed (fine player). But I don’t know about the other winds, or the percussion. I do like how this darts around. Even more intriguing than track 1. 13. A rather contemporary rhythm. Nice massing of horn sounds, though the tenor player to me has the same kind of undistinguished tone a lot of younger payers seem to have adopted. But the intensity picks up. The vibes make me wonder if this is Joel Ross, whose work I only know by reputation. It’s a bit lacking in excitement for me. But maybe excitement isn’t what they’re going for, the surge in tempo now and then notwithstanding. It does serve well as a closing track… that last note!

February 14, 2026: Shelley Carrol & Brad Leali, UnityFest, San Antonio February 17, 2026: Peter Bernstein Quintet, Parker Jazz Club, Austin February 19, 2026: Bruce Saunders Quintet with Peter Bernstein, Monk's Jazz Club, Austin February 20, 2026: Shemekia Copeland and Ally Venable, Granville Arts Center, Garland February 21, 2026: Shelley Carrol, Scat Jazz, Fort Worth                                  Branford Marsalis Quartet, Robinson Fine Arts Center, Plano                                   Davy Mooney, Dan's Silverleaf, Denton February 22, 2026: Branford Marsalis Quartet, Wortham Theater, Houston February 24, 2026: Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein, Bill Stewart Trio, Parker Jazz Club, Austin February 25, 2026: Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein, Bill Stewart Trio, JazzTX, San Antonio February 26, 2026: Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein, Bill Stewart Trio, Scat Jazz, Fort Worth March 5, 2026: Pat Metheny, Charline McCombs Empire Theater, San Antonio March 6, 2026: Pat Metheny, Paramount Theater, Austin                            Jackie Venson, Windmills, The Colony March 7, 2026: Pat Metheny Side-Eye, Wortham Theater, Houston                            Jackie Venson, Windmills, The Colony                             Ashwani Shankar, Amit Kavthekar, Kuchibhotla Sai Giridhar, Dhananjay Hegde, Kathak Rhythms Studio, Plano March 8, 2026: Bnois King, Poor David's Pub, Dallas March 13, 2026: T.K. Blue and African Rhythms Alumni, A Tribute to Randy Weston, Walton Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas March 14, 2026: Bnois King, Blues and Tattoos Festival, Gainesville                              Larry Lampkin, Troy's, Arlington March 20, 2026: Sarah Hanahan, Monk's Jazz Club, Austin                             Chirag Katti (sitar), Windmills, The Colony March 21, 2026: Sunny War, Anne Harris, Sable Sisters (Kaia Kater), Buffalo Nichols, Jake Blount, Justin Robinson, Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival, Southside Preservation Hall, Fort Worth                           Chirag Katti (sitar), Windmills, The Colony March 22, 2026: Sarah Hanahan, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston March 26, 2026: Pat Metheny Side-Eye III,  Marc Ribot, Ches Smith Clone Row, Isaiah Collier,  William Hooker Quartet, Big Ears Festival, Knoxville, Tennessee March 27, 2026: Chucho Valdes Royal Quartet, John Scofield Trio, Ghost Train Orchestra: The Music of Moondog, Jeff Parker Expansion Trio,  Miles Okazaki Trickster, Nate Smith, Ned Rothenberg, Nik Bartsch, Sullivan Fortner Trio, Tim Berne, Thomas Fujiwara: Dream Up, Saha Gnawa, Big Ears Festival, Knoxville, Tennessee March 28, 2026: Darius Jones Trio, Either/Orchestra, Marquis Hill Blacktet, Mary Halvorson, Miles Okazaki: The Compete Monk, , Nate Smith,  Nik Bartsch Ronin, Hania Rani, Patricia Brennan Septet, Shabaka, Yasmin Williams and William Tyler, Incerto, Electrical Field of Love, L. Shankar, Big Ears Festival, Knoxville, Tennessee March 29, 2026: Brandon Woody's Upendo, Chicago Underground Duo, Dave Douglas Gifts Quartet, Either/Orchestra Plays Eithiopiques, Hania Rani, Julian Lage Quartet, Marc Ribot,  Matt Mitchell's Zealous Angles, Miles Electric Band, Nels Cline: Lovers, Openness Trio, Tom Skinner, Big Ears Festival, Knoxville, Tennessee May 30, 2026: Jackie Venson, Beer City Music Hall, Oklahoma City April 1, 2026: Samara Joy, Winspear Opera House, Dallas                        Pat Metheny Side-Eye III, Majestic Theater, Dallas April 2, 2026: Kaia Kater, Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, Little Rock, Arkansas                        Samora Joy, Austin City Limits April 4, 2026: Samora Joy, Tobin Center, San Antonio                         Melissa Aldana, Bates Recital Hall, Austin April 10, 2026: Coltrane at 100 (Joe Lovano, Melissa Aldana, Ndudzo Makhathini, Matt Garrison, Jefftain Watts), Cullen Theater, Houston April 11, 2026: Rakesh Charaurasia (flute) and Amit Kavthekar (tabla), Matchbox4, Houston April 12, 2026: John Beasley's Unlimited Miles (John Beasley, Mark Turner, Sean Jones or Marquis Hill, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Ben Williams, Terreon Gu)), Eisemann Center, Richardson April 23, 2026:  Nicholas Payton featuring Butcher Brown Presents the Supreme Blue, Monty Alexander "Jamericana",  Charlie Musselwhite, Kyle Roussel, Kenny Neal, Vieux Farka Toure (Mali), Nidia Gongora (Columbia); Yusa (Cuba), Aurora Nealand and the Royal Roses, Jamil Sharif, Peter Harris Presents Firm Roots, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival April 24, 2026:  Hiromi's Sonicwonder,  Adonis Rose and the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra featuring Andromeda Turre,  Astral Project,  Parlor Greens (w/Jimmy James), Tribute to Ragtime Piano Legends feat. Terry Waldo, Tom McDermott, and David Boeddinghaus, Lil Ed and the Blues Imperials,  Sevana (Jamaica), Joy Clark, Wendell Brunious, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival April 25, 2026:  Mahmoud Chouki, Louis Ford, Little Freddie King,  New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival April 26, 2026:  Ron Carter Quartet, Catherine Russell, Roger Lewis and Baritone Bliss, Love Is Supreme: A Tribute to John Coltrane feat. Derek Douget, Trevarri Huff-Boone and Ricardo Pascal, Chris Thomas King, Tuba Skinny, People Museum, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival April 28, 2026: Robert Cray, Empire Theater, San Antonio April 29, 2026: Robert Cray, Heights Theater, Houston April 30, 2026: Isaiah Collier (The World is on Fire), Steve Masakowski Family Band, Sasha Masakowsti as Trash Magnolia, Helen Gillet, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival May 1, 2026: Terence Blanchard with Ravi Coltrane; Charlie Gabriel;  Victor Campbell,  Stephen Walker,   D.K. Harrell,  Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival Jackie Venson, Main Street Crossing, Tombull May 2, 2026: Dianne Reeves; Uptown Jazz Orchestra;  Alexey Marti, Leroy Jones, Tribute to Jelly Roll Morton’s Red Hot Peppers feat. Dr. Michael White and Shaye Cohn, Larry McCray,  Leyla McCalla, , New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival                         Kenny Garrett, Jazz and Blues Market, New Orleans                         Ustad Shahid Parvez Khan (sitar), Unity Church of the Hills, Austin May 3, 2026: Herbie Hancock; Jason Marsalis, Trumpet Mafia featuring Keyon Harold, Jackie Venson, Lila Ike (Jamaica), Doreen's Jazz New Orleans, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival May 9, 2026: Hiromi's Sonic Wonder, Cullen Theater, Houston May 16, 2026: Chucho Valdes, Paramount Theater, Austin May 17, 2026: Lucia, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston June 6, 2026: L Shankar (double violin), Unity Church of the Hills, Austin August 22, 2026: S. Akash (flute) & Vivek Pandya (tabla)/ Manas Kumar (violin) and Ojas Adhiya (tabla), Unity Church of the Hills, Austin October 10, 2026: Niladri Kumar (sitar), Stafford Center, Houston  October 11, 2026: Niladri Kumar (sitar), Austin October 18, L. Shankar (violin), Selvaganesh Vinayakram, Swaminathan, Amit Kaythekar (percussion), Matchbox4, Houston