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Music Reviews: Big Band Blues and Jazz from Swingadelic, Jim Waller Big Band, Ian Charleton Big Band
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Jon Sobel, BLOGCRITICS.ORG
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Three recent albums are muscling the big band jazz tradition into the new decade, each in its own way. On
Bluesville, New York City s Swingadelic focuses on the bluesy side of big band music. The Jim Waller Big Band funks it up on
A Fresh Perspective.
Bluesville Groovy is the word for the bluesy big-band swing of this good-time set from Swingadelic, a mainstay of Restaurant Row s Swing 46 Jazz and Supper Club in New York City. Full of electric energy but with a nice dose of mellow swampiness, the album features tracks like a drawling version of the classic Harlem Nocturne, a honky-tonk take on Ray Charles Mary Ann, and Duke Ellington s Roaring Twenties number The Mooche. Most of the tracks include vocals, supplied by a variety of band members and guests, and so with its heavy blues vibe t