Eyal Vilner Big Band • Swingin’ Uptown

Eyal Vilner Swingin' Uptown CDEyal Vilner, who plays alto, clarinet and flute in addition to writing arrangements, has been leading his ten-piece band (counting singer Imani Rousselle) in New York since 2008. Swingin’ Uptown is his orchestra’s seventh recording and it finds the group growing in power, depth and originality while retaining its infectious spirit. Due to Vilner’s arrangements, the ensembles sound as if the ensemble were a lot larger than nine instruments. While generally playing for dancing audiences, Vilner has not compromised on the songs he performs or watered down the jazz content of his music. His repertoire ranges from 1930s classics and a few songs from the 1940s and ’50s to originals in the swinging tradition including many by the leader.

Swingin’ Uptown consists of fresh renditions of ten vintage pieces plus six originals. Other than lead trumpeter John Lake, all of the musicians have opportunities along the way to solo and each one is outstanding: trumpeter Brandon Lee, trombonist Ron Wilkins, tenor-saxophonist Julieta Eugenio, baritonist Josh Lee, pianist Jon Thomas, bassist Ian Hutchison, and drummer Erin Fink plus the leader. Vilner gets his spots on each of his horns and there are four passionate vocals by Imani Rousselle.

Great Jazz!

Among the highlights are such numbers as Ray Bryant’s “Chicken An’ Dumplings,” “Swingin’ Uptown,” Vilner’s alto feature on “Tea For Two,” “Blue Skies,” “I Love The Rhythm In A Riff,” “Swing Brother Swing,” and “Hellzapoppin’,” but all of the performances are quite enjoyable. The set concludes with “Afternoon At Small’s” which was recorded slightly earlier for the band’s previous session.

Swingin’ Uptown is highly recommended to swing listeners and dancers alike, consolidating Eyal Vilner’s position as one of New York’s top bandleaders.

Eyal Vilner Big Band • Swingin’ Uptown
Self-Released
www.eyalvilner.com

SDJP

Scott Yanow

Since 1975 Scott Yanow has been a regular reviewer of albums in many jazz styles. He has written for many jazz and arts magazines, including JazzTimes, Jazziz, Down Beat, Cadence, CODA, and the Los Angeles Jazz Scene, and was the jazz editor for Record Review. He has written an in-depth biography on Dizzy Gillespie for AllMusic.com. He has authored 11 books on jazz, over 900 liner notes for CDs and over 20,000 reviews of jazz recordings.

Yanow was a contributor to and co-editor of the third edition of the All Music Guide to Jazz. He continues to write for Downbeat, Jazziz, the Los Angeles Jazz Scene, the Jazz Rag, the New York City Jazz Record and other publications.

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