Acoustic Alchemy American/English Smooth Jazz CD Review
Smooth Jazz super group, and British instrumental ensemble Acoustic Alchemy celebrates over twenty years of smooth jazz perfection with the release of their latest CD entitled American/English. A CD that does not disappoint.
I must admit I wasn’t really expecting much from American/English but must admit I was pleasantly surprised.
The CD begins with the smooth and laid back track The Crossing, then becomes more adventurous with the remaining 10 tracks.
The groups soul influences can be heard on track 5, The Detroit Shuffle, but this CD is clearly all about the strings and groove.
It appears with Greg Carmichael and Miles Gilderdale at the helm, like fine wine Acoustic Alchemy continues to improve with age. Producing their trade mark naturally smooth sound throughout the CD these guys are still at the top of their game.
I’m of the opinion that American/English is certainly Acoustic Alchemy’s best work in a few years. A totally enjoyable CD and an outstanding release. What I call, must have music. I give it two thumbs up because it’s a collection that even the casual smooth jazz fan can appreciate and enjoy the very nice mix of smooth and funky tracks.
The standout tunes and SmoothJazz247.com favorites on American/English are The Crossing [track 1, The Detroit Shuffle [track 5, and She Speaks American English [track 7. My SmoothLee Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore […as in Stuck On REpeat is track 9, The 14 Carrot Cafe. Very nice!
Release Notes:
Acoustic Alchemy originally released American/English on March 29, 2005 on the Higher Octave record label.
CD track list follows:
1. The Crossing
2. Say Yeah
3. So Kylie
4. Trinity
5. The Detroit Shuffle
6. Cherry Hill
7. She Speaks American English
8. Lilac Lane
9. The 14 Carrot Cafe
10. Get Up (Levantar Y Bailar)
11. The Moon And The Sun
To listen to samples of each song on American/English by Acoustic alchemy go to: Acoustic Alchemy CD - American/English Samples
Clyde Lee Dennis, a.k.a. SmoothLee is an AVID music fan, smooth jazz in particular, and in addition to writing CD Reviews for I Love Smooth Jazz.com can also be heard during his radio show which airs online daily at Smooth Jazz 24/7
Walter Beasley For Her Smooth Jazz CD Review
With the release of For Her Walter Beasley makes his much anticipated debut on the Heads Up record label.
As the story goes the CDs title, For Her, comes as a result of the fact that when Walter first started making it he had just started seeing a new and special woman so it just made sense to him to call it For Her. However at some point during the process of completing the project he broke up with Her. Walter kept the title because he felt she was the emotional inspiration behind the album.
At any rate this is a Very Smooth, Smooth Jazz CD. One of those CDs that goes great with a fireplace, your favorite bottle of wine and your significant other.
The title track, For Her [track 2 and Don’t Say Good Night [track 6 are tunes that will get anybody in the mood.
On Don’t Say Goodnight, and Things Change [track 10 […referring to the break up Walter lends his vocal capabilities. Which come off silky smooth, just like his sax playing.
Smooth Jazz, and Walter Beasley fans will enjoy the mix between soul and smooth jazz on this release.
Overall this CD is a real pleasure to listen to as Walter certainly does not disappoint, and is in my opinion some of his best work.
The standout tunes are Good Morning [track 4, Grace [track 8, and Let’s Ride [track 9. My SmoothLee Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore […as in Stuck On REpeat is track 5, Lost What Ya’ Feelin?. Very nice!
Release Notes:
This CD was originally released May 24, 2005 on the Heads Up label.
CD track list follows:
1. She’s All That
2. For Her
3. Coolness
4. Good Morning
5. What Ya’ Feelin’?
6. Don’t Say Goodnight
7. Remember When
8. Grace
9. Let’s Ride
10. Things Change
11. Playtime
To hear samples of each song on this CD go to Walter Beasley CD - For Her [ www.smoothlee.com/music-samples/walter-beasley-for-her.htm
Clyde Lee Dennis, a.k.a. SmoothLee has been bumping around on the web since 1999 and is a self described Web Head, and Life long AVID music fan. Smooth Jazz Music in particular. In addition to writing CD Reviews for I Love Smooth Jazz.com he is also the Program Director, and can be heard during his daily radio show which airs on one of the internets most listened to smooth jazz radio stations, Smooth Jazz 24/7
Take A Trip To The Islands On Hawaiian Internet Radio
Hawaiian music consists of a good deal more than Don Ho singing "Tiny Bubbles" (not that there’s anything wrong with that–I like "Tiny Bubbles). It’s more than grass-skirted hula girls singing "Aloha-Oe" to groups of tourists.
The influence of Hawaiian music is also greater than most people would suspect. For instance, some musicologists believe that Hawaiian slack-key guitar playing, which surfaced on a number of popular recordings in the early 20th century, inspired the slide guitar sound of the Delta blues.
Thanks to Internet radio, it’s possible to explore the true depth and breadth of this beautiful musical genre. There are several Web broadcasters who stream Hawaiian music 24 hours a day, seven days a week. All you need to enjoy it, besides an Internet connection, is media player software, a good sound card and speakers or headphones.
The strumming of ukuleles or Hawaiian guitar will quickly transport you to a sandy South Seas beach lapped by warm waters and sheltered by palm trees. But Hawaiian music can be much more than the soundtrack to a mental vacation. It can also be educational.
For instance, I recently visited the Hawaiian Rainbow Web site, one of the premier providers of free streaming Hawaiian music. While listening to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" being by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole, I noticed links to sub-sections of the site, organized by island–the Big Island, Kauai, Maui, Molokai, Oahu. Evidently, each island in the Hawaiian chain produces its own distinctive music and boasts its own native performing artists.
I definitely plan to return to the site soon to learn more about the differences and similarities between the different islands’ musical traditions. On my first visit, though, I was content to enjoy the "all-islands" offerings of Hawaiian Rainbow’s main streaming music channel. These included "E Wai’anae" by The Pandanus Club, "Hilo Hula" by Holunpe, "Beautiful ‘Ilima" by Martin Pahinui, "Haleiwa Hula" by Gabby Pahinui and "Hawai’i Aloha" by the Hawaiian All Star Band.
One day I shall visit the tropical paradise of Hawaii in person. Until then, though, I’ll always know where to go when I feel the need for a quick mind-trip to the land of leis and coconuts: Hawaiian Internet radio.
Stefan Smith is a radio junkie who writes on entertainment and related subjects for the Solid Gold Info Writers Consortium. Recently, he has written an extensive review of new software that anyone can use to capture music audio streams from Internet radio broadcasts and break them up into individual mp3 song files–a legal way to download virtually free music. Read the review at: http://www.solid-gold.info/radio2mp3.html