New Blue Notes! And some lesser-seen ones, too. Although saxophonist Ike Quebec's soulful "Blue and Sentimental" sessions from 1961 has been reissued before, not in a great Rudy Van Gelder-remastered edition like this one, which has two bonus tracks and some sizzling guitar from Grant Green.
"Here Comes Louis Smith," starring the trumpeter of the same name may not have ever been reissued on CD. I know I haven't seen it. These 1957 dates included Tommy Flanagan, Doug Watkins, Art Taylor, Duke Jordan and Cannonball Adderley, so if the results are pure hard bop you won't be surprised.
I've never seen a CD version of "Jutta Hipp with Zoot Sims" before -- although there was one in 1996 -- so this RVG edition is a nice surprise for me featuring the German pianist who was the rare female musician on Blue Note sessions in the 1950s (this one dates from '56). With Ed Thigpen on drums, Ahmed Abdul-Malik on bass and a front line of Sims on tenor and trumpeter Jerry Lloyd, Hipp kicks off with Sims' simmer "Just Blues" and rides through a number of standards ("These Foolish Things" and "'S Wonderful," for example) and jazz gems like J.J. Johnson's "Wee Dot."
Most exciting for me are the two RVG versions of Jimmy Smith "Live at the Club Baby Grand Vol. 1 and Vol. 2," packaged separately. It's a shame there are no bonus tracks - maybe a multi-disc set would bring some - but the original discs, with drummer Donald Bailey and guitarist Thornel Schwartz are satisfying enough.
Smith & Mighty's Rob Smith was let into the Dub Syndicate archive and his remixes populate the amazing, "Doub Syndicate Overdubbed" on Collision/Groove Attack. The rhythms here were thunderous enough to start with but Smith adds some tracks and thumps up the bass even more, creating an earth-rumbling set of dub tracks peppered with occasional vocals by the likes of Luciano, Cedric Myton, U Brown and others. Brilliant.
Italy's Sportclub sings in English, which might help them get spins in the U.S., although that didn't seem to do much for Bologna's Yuppie Flu. The band's disc, "Catchy" (La Baraonda), is appropriately titled and it's an unusual mix of alt.country, a la the first two Son Volt LPs, and technology (there's no drummer, but rather a drum machine). But it works, it's less dour and depressing that Jay Farrar and company and you'll keep coming back to it. sportclub-music.com/
Meanwhile, harpist Enzo Vacca takes a break from the Piemontese folk bands he's part of to release a solo set. "EVOA!" - released by R&G Zedde - is other-worldly; a mix of traditional folk music with a chamber music slant and a vibey, ethereal feel. Traditional and original songs join with stellar musicianship to create a unusual and impressive record. zedde.com/dischi/enzovacca.html
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He can be heard weekly on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories.
