JAM: February/March 2006 Issue: For the Record

Mike Thompson with Ernie Watts
Menagery
BRC Music Productions-2005

Personnel: Mike Thompson, drums; Ernie Watts, tenor saxophone.

Track 5: Bob Bowman, bass; Tracks 4 and 12: Bill Crain, flute

Tracks: What Comes Around Goes Around, Reaching Up, Safari Out, Another Samba, Little Flower, On the Border, Angels' Flight, Haircut Blues, The Majestic One, Bern City , A Simple Man, Samba 6.

Tracks recorded 2005, BRC Audio Productions, Kansas City, MO; Visionary Music, North Hollywood, CA; Studio J, Studio City, CA. Engineer: Bill Crain and Josh Williams (BRC), Bill Jenkins (Visionary Music), Jerry Kalaf (Studio J). Mastered by Bill Crain.

Menagery is the debut album by Mike Thompson with acclaimed jazz saxophonist Ernie Watts. Thompson met Watts while doing studio work for Gil Melle in Los Angeles . Following that, the two artists played together in the ensemble of Peter Manning Robinson. At this same time, Thompson began to record unrehearsed duets with different Los Angeles musicians and did the same upon returning for visits to his Kansas City area home. He convinced Ernie to collaborate with him on one of those duo sessions and, lucky for us, Menagery was born—a fusion of interactive jazz playing (a la John Coltrane and Miles Davis circa mid-1960s) and electronics.

Each of the tracks on Menagery was either written or co-written by either Mike Thompson or Ernie Watts, showing their composition talent in addition to their playing. Oddly, the entire release has a somewhat Brazilian or Latin feel to the beat. This is not a bad thing; it only adds to the uniqueness and the improvisational feel of the CD.

“What Comes Around Goes Around” is the perfect way to get started. The beat falls firmly into the title's description with a lot of repetition in the notes. The speed with which the tune starts off is indicative of what to expect in the coming tracks. “Reaching Up,” the second track on the disc, is a great tune split between the horn and the drums, each getting first-rate recognition. “Safari Out” is the first track that has a decidedly Latin overtone to the beat and was inspired by Juan Tizol's “Caravan.” Next up is “Another Samba,” which features Bill Crain doubling the line on flute, and giving the song an extremely tight wind section. Bob Bowman joins in as bassist for “Little Flower.” The strings arrangement by Allan Alper for this tune complements Watts ' horn perfectly. Ernie Watts' “On the Border” has a definitive Latin feel by design. Accentuated by timbales, their breakdown gives the tune a south-of-the-border aura.

The slow tempo of “Angel's Flight” reveals an underlying noir allure. “Haircut Blues” is a fun tune and its quick and uplifting tempo will leave you wanting more. According to Thompson, he worked with odist John Bilezikjian in Los Angeles . Thompson attempted to learn the 10/8 time signature of a Middle Eastern folk dance called a Jeorgina. The result is the open-ended “The Majestic One,” which features Watts showcasing his cadenza proficiency. Written by Watts in Bern, Switzerland, “Bern” exhibits a contrast between the heaving main theme and the easy-blowing section, while “A Simple Man” showcases a very smooth feel and has a bit of a folksy undertone. Closing out the release is “Samba 6,” once again featuring the flute of Bill Crain, and is a perfect complement to “What Comes Around Goes Around.”

From the opening notes of “What Comes Around Goes Around,” Menagery is electronic, to say the very least. Throughout the entire twelve tracks on the release you will find a unique mixture of jazz and electronics. The duo clearly plays off each other through each of the tunes giving each track a unique and spontaneous sound.

—Tristan Smith

Megan Birdsall
Track 13

Tracks — Blackbird; Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown); Dear Prudence; Autumn's Song; Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most; Love For Sale; Lover Man; Help Me; That Song About the Midway; Miss Otis Regrets (She's Unable to Lunch Today); Mean to Me; The End; Track 13 (Tell Me Something Good)

Personnel — Megan Birdsall, vocals; Bobby Watson, sax ; Jason Goudeau, trombone; Greg Richter, drums, vibraphone, piano; Bob Bowman, bass; Todd Strait, drums; Tim Cambron, drums ; Rod Fleeman, guitar ; Jack Lightfoot, trumpet ; Jill Atherton, sax.

On Megan Birdsall's Track 13 , the silk-laced feminine vocals glide as gracefully as a warm liqueur over ice. She has a dark, chocolate tone that tastes somewhere between Cassandra Wilson and vintage Dionne Warwick. Not surprisingly, it pours quite nicely, and listeners will be drawn toward the slow and steady heat generated consistently throughout this CD. Megan's choices for band mates prove to be wise, as the train on the thirteen tracks clack on by while the players click, perfectly matched for her every musical whim.

The CD opens with a trio of fresh interpretations on Lennon/McCartney classics: “Blackbird,” “Norwegian Wood,” and “Dear Prudence.” This three-piece suite features the supporting cast of KC mainstays Bob Bowman on bass and Todd Strait on drums, with Greg Richter serving triple-duty as pianist, arranger, and producer for the album. On “Blackbird,” Birdsall cleverly sandwiches the Beatles tune with a rubato version of the well-worn jazz standard, “Bye Bye Blackbird” for just the right amount of extra flavor. Richter offers a sprightly solo on “Wood,” with the usual confident support of Bowman and Strait, while “Prudence” molasses its way through the senses, with a delightful Elton John “Lucy in the Sky…” piano quote from Richter.

The mid-section of the CD delivers three standards with unique, inventive arrangements that capture the imagination. “Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most” is a feature for Megan's smoldering vocal approach that builds tentatively, and eventually gives way to a cascade of overpowering crescendos near the end of the arrangement.

“Love For Sale” has the unexpected Latin tinge, with Birdsalls's percolating vocals peppered by Bobby Watson's bouncing alto sax lines, and “Lover Man” shows Megan's sassy side of the street, with a funky rendition of this staple that boasts a backbeat that Billie wouldn't have maneuvered any better.

Next, Birdsall slyly shows her hand and reveals one of her main influences when she devotes two tributes to Joni Mitchell; it is a rare yet welcome admission among female jazz crooners. In “Help Me,” she casually tilts things her way when she chooses swing eighth-notes to set the groove against the traditional straight-eight feel that Joni so soulfully provided in ‘74's Court and Spark . As a chaser, she then borrows Mitchell's “That Song About the Midway” from Clouds in'69 and makes it her own.

As if Greg Richter didn't have enough to do, he hops on vibes and lays down a blistering solo on the scorching up-tempo rendition of Cole Porter's tune, “Mrs. Otis Regrets….” On the opposite end of the scale, “Mean to Me” receives a sultry, pensive treatment—a torch song that serves as a real forté for Megan in this setting—with healthy dollops of Bob's bass and rollicking, churchified piano kicks from Richter.

“The End” and “Autumn's Song” are Birdsall's two original tunes (tracks 4 and 12) that feature a horn section (trumpet, trombone, and alto sax) that augments the album's aural landscape.

The closer, “Tell Me Something Good,” cleverly captures the spunky Chaka Khan groove, all the way down to guitarist Rod Fleeman's wah-wah work. This tune features an inspired Bobby Watson solo—a happy coincidence that overlays the alto saxophonist with his namesake (Khan's bass player) from the Rufus '74 band from whence the funk tune originated. And when Megan squeals with delight, “The drums are on fire !” you know she's kicking her heels in the air with satisfaction that comes with a band that can cook when they want to. Indeed, a happy landing after a pleasurable journey with Birdsall and her eclectic palate. She—along with her music—is, in a word, refreshing .

—Wayne Goins

Wayne Goins
Smokin' at the Oak Bar
Personnel: Wayne Goins, guitar; Joe Cartwright, Piano; Gerald Spaits, Bass; Ray DeMarchi, Drums.

Tracks: Bluesville; I've Never Been in Love Before; Recordame; Softly as in a Morning Sunrise; Body and Soul; In a Mellow Tone; Oleo

Recorded at the Fairmont Hotel in Kansas City , Missouri .

Executive Producer: Wayne Goins

Produced by: David Brown for Brown Bear Sound.

Recorded, Mixed, and Mastered by: Chris Crabtree for Midwest Mastering.

With a title beginning with the word “Smokin',” one might think that the sound would be soothing, soft, and subdued. A sound that would blend in with the chattering of a smoky bar. By the time I was finished listening to the album, I realized that the word Smokin' refers to the album's energy and excitement. It still had the silky sound I expected, but also kept a swift and steady time. Just like prior “Smokin'” records in the past, this one has a fast-paced groove.

Wayne Goins is a professor and director of jazz at Kansas State University . He also owns Little Apple Records, where he works with local jazz musicians. He is also a writer who has had several books published. One of the books is about Charlie Christian, a jazz guitarist who helped create bebop for guitar.

The Joe Cartwright Trio is the group that Goins plays with on this album. The trio is an equal partner in the album's proceedings. One would expect the band to spend the majority of the songs backing up the guitarist. Instead, Joe Cartwright has as much soloing time on his piano as Goins does on his guitar. They trade off solos throughout the album and sometimes compete for who can give the most intense performance. As Goins states in the liner notes, “Even the guitar was hard to tame that night. It decided to howl at times as if I wasn't giving it enough room to breathe, even though I was pushing as hard as I could to stay in front of the propulsive trio who routinely could make waste of anyone who wasn't capable of keeping their balance and holding their ground.”

Both Goins and Cartwright have an upbeat blues styles with their own interpretations of what that means. Goins style has a strong bebop influence and Cartwright's has more of a swing influence. They seem to soak up each other's energy and their styles start to blend more throughout each song. Their choice of literature has a wide range. They play a romantic ballad (“Body and Soul”), a song from Guys and Dolls (“I've Never Been In Love Before”) and end the album with a fiercely intense song (“Oleo”). They take each of the songs and give it their own twist. At the beginning of most of the songs, the group plays the basic melody. Slowly they start to veer from the standard course and the sound really develops.

Each musician is allowed to show his expertise and diversity throughout the album. Goins and Cartwright flourish on “Softly as in a Morning Sunrise.” This is a frantic, lively tune where Goins and Cartwright show off their fast hands. They both truly seem to enjoy playing it. Another song is “Recordame.” This one has a smooth bossa nova style with a more intense, rough sound from the guitar and piano. Percussionist Ray DeMarchi's talent is exhibited with his soft touch paired with impeccable rhythm. “In a Mellow Tone” is a more carefree, easygoing piece. Everyone seems relaxed during this song. Gerald Spaits bass sound fits perfectly with the other instruments during the melody and he bares his soul on his solo. The first song in the album is “Bluesville,” a laid back song with a steady pace and light, whimsical notes from the soloists. Joe Cartwright's performance is especially wonderful because he shows off his fast blues style.

These musicians work very well together because they have the same basic style where they mix smooth runs with a fast pace. Wayne Goins and the Joe Cartwright Trio were really smokin' at the Oak Bar that night. This album is a great choice if you're looking for something to keep your feet tapping and body swaying.

— Cambria De Lee






	Search our site:		Mike Thompson with Ernie Watts Menagery BRC Music Productions-2005 Personnel: Mike Thompson, drums; Ernie Watts, tenor saxophone. Track 5: Bob Bowman, bass; Tracks 4 and 12: Bill Crain, flute Tracks: What Comes Around Goes Around, Reaching Up, Safari Out, Another Samba, Little Flower, On the Border, Angels' Flight, Haircut Blues, The Majestic One, Bern City , A Simple Man, Samba 6. Tracks recorded 2005, BRC Audio Productions, Kansas City, MO; Visionary Music, North Hollywood, CA; Studio J, Studio City, CA. Engineer: Bill Crain and Josh Williams (BRC), Bill Jenkins (Visionary Music), Jerry Kalaf (Studio J). Mastered by Bill Crain. Menagery is the debut album by Mike Thompson with acclaimed jazz saxophonist Ernie Watts. Thompson met Watts while doing studio work for Gil Melle in Los Angeles . Following that, the two artists played together in the ensemble of Peter Manning Robinson. At this same time, Thompson began to record unrehearsed duets with different Los Angeles musicians and did the same upon returning for visits to his Kansas City area home. He convinced Ernie to collaborate with him on one of those duo sessions and, lucky for us, Menagery was born—a fusion of interactive jazz playing (a la John Coltrane and Miles Davis circa mid-1960s) and electronics. Each of the tracks on Menagery was either written or co-written by either Mike Thompson or Ernie Watts, showing their composition talent in addition to their playing. Oddly, the entire release has a somewhat Brazilian or Latin feel to the beat. This is not a bad thing; it only adds to the uniqueness and the improvisational feel of the CD. “What Comes Around Goes Around” is the perfect way to get started. The beat falls firmly into the title's description with a lot of repetition in the notes. The speed with which the tune starts off is indicative of what to expect in the coming tracks. “Reaching Up,” the second track on the disc, is a great tune split between the horn and the drums, each getting first-rate recognition. “Safari Out” is the first track that has a decidedly Latin overtone to the beat and was inspired by Juan Tizol's “Caravan.” Next up is “Another Samba,” which features Bill Crain doubling the line on flute, and giving the song an extremely tight wind section. Bob Bowman joins in as bassist for “Little Flower.” The strings arrangement by Allan Alper for this tune complements Watts ' horn perfectly. Ernie Watts' “On the Border” has a definitive Latin feel by design. Accentuated by timbales, their breakdown gives the tune a south-of-the-border aura. The slow tempo of “Angel's Flight” reveals an underlying noir allure. “Haircut Blues” is a fun tune and its quick and uplifting tempo will leave you wanting more. According to Thompson, he worked with odist John Bilezikjian in Los Angeles . Thompson attempted to learn the 10/8 time signature of a Middle Eastern folk dance called a Jeorgina. The result is the open-ended “The Majestic One,” which features Watts showcasing his cadenza proficiency. Written by Watts in Bern, Switzerland, “Bern” exhibits a contrast between the heaving main theme and the easy-blowing section, while “A Simple Man” showcases a very smooth feel and has a bit of a folksy undertone. Closing out the release is “Samba 6,” once again featuring the flute of Bill Crain, and is a perfect complement to “What Comes Around Goes Around.” From the opening notes of “What Comes Around Goes Around,” Menagery is electronic, to say the very least. Throughout the entire twelve tracks on the release you will find a unique mixture of jazz and electronics. The duo clearly plays off each other through each of the tunes giving each track a unique and spontaneous sound. —Tristan Smith Megan Birdsall Track 13 Tracks — Blackbird; Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown); Dear Prudence; Autumn's Song; Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most; Love For Sale; Lover Man; Help Me; That Song About the Midway; Miss Otis Regrets (She's Unable to Lunch Today); Mean to Me; The End; Track 13 (Tell Me Something Good) Personnel — Megan Birdsall, vocals; Bobby Watson, sax ; Jason Goudeau, trombone; Greg Richter, drums, vibraphone, piano; Bob Bowman, bass; Todd Strait, drums; Tim Cambron, drums ; Rod Fleeman, guitar ; Jack Lightfoot, trumpet ; Jill Atherton, sax. On Megan Birdsall's Track 13 , the silk-laced feminine vocals glide as gracefully as a warm liqueur over ice. She has a dark, chocolate tone that tastes somewhere between Cassandra Wilson and vintage Dionne Warwick. Not surprisingly, it pours quite nicely, and listeners will be drawn toward the slow and steady heat generated consistently throughout this CD. Megan's choices for band mates prove to be wise, as the train on the thirteen tracks clack on by while the players click, perfectly matched for her every musical whim. The CD opens with a trio of fresh interpretations on Lennon/McCartney classics: “Blackbird,” “Norwegian Wood,” and “Dear Prudence.” This three-piece suite features the supporting cast of KC mainstays Bob Bowman on bass and Todd Strait on drums, with Greg Richter serving triple-duty as pianist, arranger, and producer for the album. On “Blackbird,” Birdsall cleverly sandwiches the Beatles tune with a rubato version of the well-worn jazz standard, “Bye Bye Blackbird” for just the right amount of extra flavor. Richter offers a sprightly solo on “Wood,” with the usual confident support of Bowman and Strait, while “Prudence” molasses its way through the senses, with a delightful Elton John “Lucy in the Sky…” piano quote from Richter. The mid-section of the CD delivers three standards with unique, inventive arrangements that capture the imagination. “Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most” is a feature for Megan's smoldering vocal approach that builds tentatively, and eventually gives way to a cascade of overpowering crescendos near the end of the arrangement. “Love For Sale” has the unexpected Latin tinge, with Birdsalls's percolating vocals peppered by Bobby Watson's bouncing alto sax lines, and “Lover Man” shows Megan's sassy side of the street, with a funky rendition of this staple that boasts a backbeat that Billie wouldn't have maneuvered any better. Next, Birdsall slyly shows her hand and reveals one of her main influences when she devotes two tributes to Joni Mitchell; it is a rare yet welcome admission among female jazz crooners. In “Help Me,” she casually tilts things her way when she chooses swing eighth-notes to set the groove against the traditional straight-eight feel that Joni so soulfully provided in ‘74's Court and Spark . As a chaser, she then borrows Mitchell's “That Song About the Midway” from Clouds in'69 and makes it her own. As if Greg Richter didn't have enough to do, he hops on vibes and lays down a blistering solo on the scorching up-tempo rendition of Cole Porter's tune, “Mrs. Otis Regrets….” On the opposite end of the scale, “Mean to Me” receives a sultry, pensive treatment—a torch song that serves as a real forté for Megan in this setting—with healthy dollops of Bob's bass and rollicking, churchified piano kicks from Richter. “The End” and “Autumn's Song” are Birdsall's two original tunes (tracks 4 and 12) that feature a horn section (trumpet, trombone, and alto sax) that augments the album's aural landscape. The closer, “Tell Me Something Good,” cleverly captures the spunky Chaka Khan groove, all the way down to guitarist Rod Fleeman's wah-wah work. This tune features an inspired Bobby Watson solo—a happy coincidence that overlays the alto saxophonist with his namesake (Khan's bass player) from the Rufus '74 band from whence the funk tune originated. And when Megan squeals with delight, “The drums are on fire !” you know she's kicking her heels in the air with satisfaction that comes with a band that can cook when they want to. Indeed, a happy landing after a pleasurable journey with Birdsall and her eclectic palate. She—along with her music—is, in a word, refreshing . —Wayne Goins Wayne Goins Smokin' at the Oak Bar *Personnel: Wayne Goins, guitar; Joe Cartwright, Piano; Gerald Spaits, Bass; Ray DeMarchi, Drums.* Tracks: Bluesville; I've Never Been in Love Before; Recordame; Softly as in a Morning Sunrise; Body and Soul; In a Mellow Tone; Oleo Recorded at the Fairmont Hotel in Kansas City , Missouri . Executive Producer: Wayne Goins Produced by: David Brown for Brown Bear Sound. Recorded, Mixed, and Mastered by: Chris Crabtree for Midwest Mastering. With a title beginning with the word “Smokin',” one might think that the sound would be soothing, soft, and subdued. A sound that would blend in with the chattering of a smoky bar. By the time I was finished listening to the album, I realized that the word Smokin' refers to the album's energy and excitement. It still had the silky sound I expected, but also kept a swift and steady time. Just like prior “Smokin'” records in the past, this one has a fast-paced groove. Wayne Goins is a professor and director of jazz at Kansas State University . He also owns Little Apple Records, where he works with local jazz musicians. He is also a writer who has had several books published. One of the books is about Charlie Christian, a jazz guitarist who helped create bebop for guitar. The Joe Cartwright Trio is the group that Goins plays with on this album. The trio is an equal partner in the album's proceedings. One would expect the band to spend the majority of the songs backing up the guitarist. Instead, Joe Cartwright has as much soloing time on his piano as Goins does on his guitar. They trade off solos throughout the album and sometimes compete for who can give the most intense performance. As Goins states in the liner notes, “Even the guitar was hard to tame that night. It decided to howl at times as if I wasn't giving it enough room to breathe, even though I was pushing as hard as I could to stay in front of the propulsive trio who routinely could make waste of anyone who wasn't capable of keeping their balance and holding their ground.” Both Goins and Cartwright have an upbeat blues styles with their own interpretations of what that means. Goins style has a strong bebop influence and Cartwright's has more of a swing influence. They seem to soak up each other's energy and their styles start to blend more throughout each song. Their choice of literature has a wide range. They play a romantic ballad (“Body and Soul”), a song from Guys and Dolls (“I've Never Been In Love Before”) and end the album with a fiercely intense song (“Oleo”). They take each of the songs and give it their own twist. At the beginning of most of the songs, the group plays the basic melody. Slowly they start to veer from the standard course and the sound really develops. Each musician is allowed to show his expertise and diversity throughout the album. Goins and Cartwright flourish on “Softly as in a Morning Sunrise.” This is a frantic, lively tune where Goins and Cartwright show off their fast hands. They both truly seem to enjoy playing it. Another song is “Recordame.” This one has a smooth bossa nova style with a more intense, rough sound from the guitar and piano. Percussionist Ray DeMarchi's talent is exhibited with his soft touch paired with impeccable rhythm. “In a Mellow Tone” is a more carefree, easygoing piece. Everyone seems relaxed during this song. Gerald Spaits bass sound fits perfectly with the other instruments during the melody and he bares his soul on his solo. The first song in the album is “Bluesville,” a laid back song with a steady pace and light, whimsical notes from the soloists. Joe Cartwright's performance is especially wonderful because he shows off his fast blues style. These musicians work very well together because they have the same basic style where they mix smooth runs with a fast pace. Wayne Goins and the Joe Cartwright Trio were really smokin' at the Oak Bar that night. This album is a great choice if you're looking for something to keep your feet tapping and body swaying. — Cambria De Lee RETURN TO FEBRUARY/MARCH 2006 MAIN INDEX © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2006. All rights reserved.