Latin Grammy Awards 2012 - Best Latin Jazz Album Winner
Arturo Sandoval — Dear Diz (Every Day I Think of You)
More than 30 awards were given in the pre-telecast, which honored
a variety of genres within Latin music. One of the biggest winners
was Cuban jazz trumpeter, pianist and composer Arturo Sandoval
who took home two trophies for best Latin jazz album ("Dear Diz -
Every Day I Think of You") and best tango album ("Tango - Como Yo
Te Siento").
Arturo Sandoval released his second album on Concord Jazz, Dear Diz (Every Day I Think of You). Dear Diz (Every Day I Think of You)
is Sandoval's tribute to Dizzy Gillespie, the mentor and friend who
literally rescued him and his family from an oppressive existence and
gave them a chance at an entirely new and better life. The album is a
collection of classics from Gillespie's massive body of work, each
framed in big-band arrangements that throw the spotlight squarely on the
elements of bebop that underscore so much of the iconic trumpeter's
work and set the tone for the music of his era.
Backing Sandoval
on the project is a crew of top-shelf jazz artists: vibraphonist Gary
Burton, Yellowjacket's leader saxophonist Bob Mintzer, organist Joey
DeFrancesco, clarinetist Eddie Daniels, saxophonist Ed Calle,
drummer/co-producer Gregg Field and several others. Also along for the
ride are a couple of unlikely but
well-placed surprises - actors Andy Garcia on percussion and vocalist
Manolo Gimenez. The resulting set is, as Field puts it, is Sandoval's
"love letter to an old friend."
The set opens with Gillespie's
voice, introducing a young Arturo Sandoval as "one of the young grand
masters of the trumpet" during a live performance in the late ‘80s. What
follows is a contemporary re-construction of Gillespie's signature
"Bebop," arranged by 2012 Grammy-winner Gordon Goodwin. Goodwin, whom
Field calls "The most interesting voice in contemporary big band
writing," is also responsible for the fiery arrangement of "Salt
Peanuts!," which features Bob Mintzer on tenor sax, Gary Burton on vibes
and if you listen closely you'll hear Sandoval friend Joe Pesci joining
in the band vocal. "This is such a perfect example of Gordon's genius,"
says Field, "of his ability to take something that is so familiar to
jazz musicians and fans and completely rework it."
Dizzy's
"Birks Works" is rechristened here with the tag "a la Mancini," thanks
to the contributions of saxophonist Plas Johnson, who famously recorded
Henry Mancini's iconic Pink Panther theme nearly 50 years ago. Album
pianist Shelly Berg's arrangement utilizes alto flute, trumpet, tenor
sax and strings - all of which further evoke the Mancini sensibility.
"Con Alma," arranged by Grammy-winner Nan Schwartz, includes a
classical-string quartet arrangement that's a very beautiful thing,"
says Sandoval. "This tune has been recorded many times, but I don't
think it's been recorded quite this way before. The string quartet gives
the song such a fine, elegant sound."
The exotic and
impassioned "Tin Tin Deo" features vocalist Manolo Gimenez , supported
by Mintzer on tenor sax, by actor Andy Garcia on percussion, Wally Minko
on piano and Joey DeFrancesco on organ - all carefully balanced in an
arrangement by Dan Higgins. The album closes with an eleventh track,
"Every Day I Think of You" a poignant, string-infused ballad by Sandoval
that serves as the coda to this heartfelt tribute recording. Propelled
by Sandoval's stirring vocals, the track veers completely away from the
big band vibe that precedes it, opting instead for something much more
intimate, understated and personal. "I really mean every word of that
song," says Sandoval. "Dizzy encouraged me so much. He opened so many
doors for me and showed me so many opportunities that I would not have
had otherwise."
At the heart of Dear Diz (Every Day I Think of You)
is the bebop groove that Gillespie spent a lifetime exploring and
refining, says Sandoval. "When it comes to bebop, you either know it or
you don't," he says. "There's no halfway. If you're going to be a good
bebop player, you really need to be a hell of a musician with a lot of
skill and a great education and a great command of your instrument. This
is what Dizzy was all about. He wasn't just a trumpet player. He was an
innovator and a creator. That sense of innovation and creativity that
he brought to every note he played is what inspires this recording and
everyone who plays on it. In that sense, he's still very much with all
of us. I do think of Dizzy every day."
Below is the tracklisting:
1. Be Bop - Featuring Shelly Berg & Zane Musa
2. Salt Peanuts! (Mani Salado) - Featuring Bob Mintzer & Gary Burton
3. And Then She Stopped - Featuring Joey DeFrancesco
4. Birks Works (ala Mancini) - Featuring Plas Johnson & Joey DeFrancesco
5. Things To Com - Featuring Bob Mintzer, Bob Sheppard & Joey DeFrancesco
6. Fiesta Mojo - Featuring Eddie Daniels
7. Con Alma (With Soul) - Featuring The Ralph Morrison String Quartet
8. Tin Tin Deo - Featuring Manolo Gimenez & Wally Minko
9. Algo Bueno (Woody and Me) - Featuring Dan Higgins & Andy Martin
10. A Night in Tunisia (actually an entire weekend!) - Featuring Bob McChesney & Ed Calle
ENCORE
11. Every Day I Think Of You - Featuring Arturo Sandoval, vocal
Release Date: 08 May 2012
Label:
CONCORD JAZZ
Genre: JAZZ
http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/albums/Dear-Diz-Every-Day-I-Think-Of-You/
