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Bireli Lagrene's long and outstanding career as a Django Reinhardt disciple has been reinforced time and time again, while he also makes inroads to extend and expand the tradition of gypsy jazz. While his acoustic guitar wizardry is unquestioned, his sincerity in keeping the hot swing of Reinhardt alive has been adopted by others, but not like Lagrene is capable of playing it. This drummerless trio with veteran bassist Diego Imbert and rhythm guitarist Hono Winterstein -- heard in recent times with the Dorado Schmitt family band -- is an exciting, tasteful, and skilled combo that takes liberties in this kind of vintage jazz without stressing it out. Many of these tracks are familiar old favorites, but a few have new twists, not to mention energy to burn. A version of Ahmad Jamal's "Poinciana" in particular has never really been done with a Parisian flair, and it's a nice change-up. "Limehouse Blues" is another chestnut given new incentive to swing with Imbert's bowed lines and rhythm churning more that normal. Most delightful is "Singing in the Rain," already joyful but here happy, over the top with an additionally whistled refrain. And "Tiger Rag" is about as playful, fun, and vigorous as it gets. One might wonder what George Harrison would think of a take on his pensive classic tune "Something," done in easy swing mode, or see George Shearing listening to a chunky, stride-filled version of "Lullaby of Birdland." Of the originals, "New York City" is a fast-paced metropolitan subway jam, "Sir F.D." for label honcho Francis Dreyfus has Lagrene in a languid solo repast, and "Made in France" has a choppy, 6/8 romp. There are some patient tunes indeed, but Lagrene is at heart a speed demon, ripping up the lesser-known Reinhardt tune "Micro" as if he's playing it in a vat of lit sterno. This is yet another in the long line of fine recordings the virtuoso Lagrene has offered to the world, and comes easily recommended.© Michael G. Nastos /TiVo

The sophomore studio album by DJ Snake, 2019's Carte Blanche, showcases more of the French producer's dynamic, club-ready house, dubstep, and trap jams. The album follows up the DJ's 2016 Top Ten Billboard 200 debut, Encore. Included on Carte Blanche are the singles "Magenta Riddim"; "Taki Taki" featuring Selena Gomez, Ozuna, and Cardi B; "Enzo" with Sheck Wes, Offset, 21 Savage, and Gucci Mane; and "Loco Contigo" featuring J Balvin and Tyga. Also featured, are collaborations with Zhu, Anitta, Gashi, Majid Jordan, Bryson Tiller, Zomboy, and others.© Matt Collar /TiVo

Stan Getz is featured on one of his final recordings on this excellent Abbey Lincoln CD; Getz's cool tenor fits in very well with Lincoln's voice, making one wish that they had met up previously. With pianist Hank Jones, bassist Charlie Haden, drummer Mark Johnson, and (on two songs) Maxine Roach's viola completing the group, it is not surprising that Lincoln sounds typically inspired. Actually, her version of "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" is a bit of a misfire with its dated lyrics (which should have been modified and altered to fit a female). However, "Bird Alone," Freddie Hubbard's "Up Jumped Spring" (given lyrics by Lincoln), and five of her originals more than compensate. Recommended.© Scott Yanow /TiVo

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These acoustic guitar duets between Sylvain Luc and the renowned virtuoso Bireli Lagrene finds much common ground to share. From Django Reinhardt gypsyology to bop and pop themes, these two share a beautiful empathy. Of the 13 tracks, you hear the steady stream of swing on "Stompin' at the Savoy," the bopping unison lines of Reinhardt's "Douce Ambiance," and a classic, delicate take on Wes Montgomery's "Road Song." Popping, percussive guitar taps buoy the samba "Estate." "La Ballade Irlandaise" is in a nice 3/4 tempo, while a more chordal approach electrifies the most impressive cut of the date "Les Amoureux Des Bancs Publics," with the two switching melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic roles back & forth. Their most introspective number "Syracuse" exudes deep shades of purple, and Lagrene's 6/8 original "Made in France" is ultimately quick & bright, while "Zurezat" is a simple love-strewn, delicate waltz. There's also a funky take of Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" and Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely," and the dynamic phase or time shifting rendition of Lennon & McCartney's "Blackbird." The closer is a guitar/electric bass guitar duo, a loping snippet of a melody on Michel Petrucciani's "Looking Up." There are no planets crashing or oceans roaring, but instead an airy, light, unhurried tranquility is extant through this consistent date, a worthy addition to the jazz guitar continuum.© Michael G. Nastos /TiVo

Mary Lou Williams spent a fair amount of time in Europe in the early '50s, prior to a temporary hiatus from jazz. This CD from Verve's Jazz in Paris series compiles two separate sessions from 1954; one features a trio, a quintet, and a pair of vocals by blues singer Beryl Bryden, and the other is purely a trio. All of the selections are fairly brief, with only one running over three-and-a-half minutes. The first 11 songs are a bit of a mixed bag. The strongest tracks feature Williams alone ("I Made You Love Paris" and her "Club Francais Blues") or with her trio ("Avalon," "Swingin' for the Guys," and "Memories of You"). Weaker are the four tracks with trumpeter Nelson Williams and tenor saxophonist Ray Lawrence, who aren't up to the playing level of horn players who typically worked with the pianist, though bassist Buddy Banks somewhat makes up for their shortcomings by contributing an enjoyable original ("Leg'n Lou") and a strong solo. Least important is the pair of vocals by Bryden, including a cover of bluesman Piano Red's "Rock Me" and Trixie Smith's "Freight Train Blues." The eight tracks from the other session are more consistent. With Banks again in tow and drummer Jean-Louis Viale, Williams sounds more relaxed and less encumbered during a set that is heavily weighted with standards like "There's a Small Hotel," "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea," "Lover," and "Autumn in New York." An obscure, oddly constructed blues by the pianist, "Nicole," is also well worth hearing. This is hardly among the best recordings from Williams' long career, but with a paucity of CD reissues of her work, it still merits purchasing.© Ken Dryden /TiVo

The sophomore studio album by DJ Snake, 2019's Carte Blanche, showcases more of the French producer's dynamic, club-ready house, dubstep, and trap jams. The album follows up the DJ's 2016 Top Ten Billboard 200 debut, Encore. Included on Carte Blanche are the singles "Magenta Riddim"; "Taki Taki" featuring Selena Gomez, Ozuna, and Cardi B; "Enzo" with Sheck Wes, Offset, 21 Savage, and Gucci Mane; and "Loco Contigo" featuring J Balvin and Tyga. Also featured, are collaborations with Zhu, Anitta, Gashi, Majid Jordan, Bryson Tiller, Zomboy, and others.© Matt Collar /TiVo

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Goran Bregović pays tribute here to the city where he was born. The three letters from the title are missives of love and peace coming from the three religious communities that have constructed Sarajevo’s history. They are symbolized by violin instrumental intermissions, the instrument on which the musician learnt music. Mirjana Neskovic’s classic violin for the Christian letter, Gershon Leizerson’s Klezmer violin for the Jewish letter and Zied Zouari’s Eastern violin for the Muslim letter offer punctuations to an overall frenzied program. Brass instruments forward, sustained pace, Goran Bregovic’s faithful Weddings and Funerals Orchestra live the high life. Aboard, some colorful guests—also coming from the three monotheistic cultures—make the show. The Spanish Bebe, the Israeli Asaf Avidan and Riff Cohen, the French of Algerian descent Rachid Taha and the Serbo-Croatian Sifet and Mehmed each sing in their respective mother tongues. All of them have very distinct characters, a certain taste for insolence, rock music and joie de vivre, all typical of the world of Bregović, who manages once again to freshen up his work while remaining faithful to its spirit. © BM/Qobuz

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On this album "Baroque in Blue", Eckart Runge and Jacques Ammon explore the field of tension between two musical epochs and genres that are separated by more than 200 years. Baroque and jazz have much more in common than one might think at first glance: walking basso continuo, the joy of spontaneity and, last but not least, the high art of improvisation. The duo Runge & Ammon has now been around for more than a quarter of a century. The cellist from Berlin and the pianist from Santiago de Chile got together when they were still students. They were and are both interested in experimenting with repertoire that goes beyond the limits of what is required, in addition to the compulsory program of training, competitions and examinations. "Since then, we've actually always done programs that combine classical music with something else", Runge says of the joint projects. "We came from Piazzolla, moved on to classical tango, then into film music, jazz, pop, but also back to Beethoven. We've always tried to juxtapose genres, partly to shed new light on classical music, but also because we're passionate about exploring other styles and directions, learning new things and getting to know surprising things". Both artists also have their individual careers, Runge among others over three decades as the defining voice of the Artemis Quartet, Ammon as an internationally celebrated soloist and time and again a sought-after chamber music partner, for example with violinist Daniel Hope. This independence is important, because it makes it possible to devote oneself casually in dialogue to music that cannot be found in the canon. "Baroque in Blue" is the logical continuation of their album "Revolutionary Icons", which combined the musical explosiveness of Beethoven's music with the pop and rock icons Jimi Hendrix, Amy Winehouse, David Bowie and Frank Zappa. Now here they unwind a suite and logical sequence with selected works by Gershwin, Chick Corea, Lucio Amanti or Miles Davis between the movements of the Baroque old masters. They can experiment with the supposed opposites, let the austerity and clarity of Gluck, Handel, Vivaldi, Bach merge into something that meets the baroque idea of music turned towards man, but also lets it grow beyond the original context via the anchors in the present or at least the near past. It is these paths that may run serpentine, but always cross each other in the fun of playing together and an energy that shapes art regardless of epochs. © Berlin Classics

Between Clouds is the second album released by guitarist Adrien Moignard for the Dreyfus Jazz Label. Moignard's eclectic selection of cover versions includes tracks by Jimi Hendrix ("Little Wing"), Django Reinhardt ("Swing 48"), and Marvin Gaye ("What's Going On"). Moignard is accompanied by second guitarist Benoit Convert, double bassist Jérôme Regard, and percussionist Xavier Sanchez.© Al Campbell /TiVo