ROBERT GLASPER - Double Booked (2009)

Great work from Robert Glasper, one of our favorite new artists on Blue Note in years, a hell of a great piano player, with a fluid groove that just gets better and better with each new record!! Glasper has a way of warming us up right away, sliding into a compelling piano line that holds us rapt, and really takes us on a journey, a bit like the best work of Bheki Mseleku back in the 90´s, but with an undercurrent of funkier NY modes too!! Half the record features Robert in trio format, playing both acoustic piano and Fender Rhodes, and the rest of the set moves into "experiment" tracks that bring in Casey Benjamin on saxes, plus some electric bass, and very funky drums from Chris Dave, who also plays on the trio numbers. Mos Def makes a vocal appearance on one track, and Bilal appears on two more, but our favorite grooves are always from Glasper's keyboards, especially his acoustic piano!!

Tracklisting:

The Robert Glasper Trio
1. Intro
2. No Worries
3. Yes I'm Country (And That's Ok)
4. Downtime
5. 59 South
6. Think Of One

The Robert Glasper Experiment
7. 4eva
8. Butterfly
9. Festival
10. For You
11. All Matter
12. Open Mind

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STEFON HARRIS & BLACKOUT - Urbanus (2009)

Don't let the cover put you off, as the album's got all the Deep Soul and subtle touches we've come to love in the music of Stefon Harris over the years!! There's just a slight Urban undercurrent to the record, and if anything, the inventive rhythms and shifting instrumentation reminds us a lot of Harris' best albums for Blue Note over the past decade or so, a really creative reworking of the sound of vibes in Jazz music, inspired strongly by the best artists on the instrument of the 70´s, but tuned here with a newly modern edge. Marc Cary's on most tracks, playing both Fender Rhodes and acoustic piano, and Casey Benjamin plays alto sax on a number of tunes, although a few have a larger horn section joining in. Great!!

Tracklisting:

1. Gone
2. Christina
3. Tanktified
4. Shake It For Me
5. Minor March
6. They Won't Go (When I Go)
7. The Afterthought
8. For You
9. Blues For Denial
10. Langston's Lullaby

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