Singer Keren Ann, daughter of an Israeli father and a dutch mother with indonesian roots who was brought up in Paris and now lives in New York, restructured and rearranged her hits from her six albums so far.

With her on stage, two of the best musicians from Israel: singer and pianist Shlomi Shaban and trumpeter Avishai Cohen. Together with a four-piece string quartet, they also offered fresh takes on some pieces from poets and authors from the Israeli Songbook. This European premiere melded some of the prettiest Folk ballads from Ann sung in French, English, and Hebrew, with some Rock-influenced songs with a bite. The packed audience was treated to an all-acoustic, no mic version of the "Tennessee Waltz" and walked away into a moonlit Berlin night with a smile on their faces.

The programme offers German extravagant singer Michael Schiefel with pianist Carsten Daerr tonight at the Bauhaus Archive with a fresh take on the compositions by Mendelsson which sure has more surprises to offer.

Full programme info at www.juedische-kulturtage.org

Les Paul was the first musician in history using guitar amplification as far back as the 30s. As early as 1941 he had bulit the first solid-body electric guitar. Together with his wife Mary Ford, he had a string of hits in the 50s with overdubbing, multitrack recording and electronic effects that would become standard in later years.

Mr. Paul played guitar with Louis Armstrong and Bing Crosby in the 30s and was part of the Jazz at the Philharmonic Concert series where he played with Art Tatum or Roy Eldridge. He was performing regularly up to his death on Thursday at New York's midtown club The Iridium. Whether it's Jazz, Country, or Rock'n'Roll, Les Paul changed 20th century music significantly. He was 94.

Rashied Ali was a close colleague of and the last drummer for the great John Coltrane. The Philadelphian moved to New York in the early 60s and in 1965, found himself in the band of Coltrane where he was a member until the death of Coltrane two years later. His hyperactive style on the drum was later heard in the bands of Ken McIntyre, George Adams, and David Murray. Ali was known as having extended the role of the drummer in the ensemble context in terms of interaction and was working with the group Prima Materia in the 90s which dedicated its music to John Coltrane and Albert Ayler. Rashied Ali was 74 when he died yesterday in New York.

One of the unique things that George Shearing made popular is the quintet sound of his piano, vibes, electric guitar, bass, and drums. Shearing was born blind in London 90 years ago today. As soon as the late 30s, he became a star in Britain playing for the BBC. In 1947, he emigrated to New York when his international career started with his various quintets. Shearing released dozens of albums on various labels and toured the world not only with his quintet, but also with small-combo Afro-Cuban jazz. Among the many compositions Shearing wrote is the unbeatable Lullaby of Birdland.

His profile lowered a bit in the 70s, although he recorded some material for the German based MPS label before signing to Concord Records in 1979 when his renaissance phase started. He recorded with Jim Hall, Mel Tormé, Hank Jones, and many others and to this day keeps on releasing fine albums for various labels. JazzRadio prominently features his 2004 CD Like Fine Wine, the last album he did so far. Happy birthday George.



Berlin's Jazzwerkstatt + Klassik Shop has started a weekly Live Jazz series making this yet another Jazz venue in Europe's Jazz capital. The series started with a concert by the Cordula Hamacher Quartet who recently released an album on the Jazzwerkstatt label. More live jazz (every Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday) worth checking out this month comes from the Joe Sachse Trio, Matthias Harig doing a Chet Baker tribute, and Vierergruppe Gschlößl. Info at www.jazzwerkstatt-online.de

As written earlier here in my blog, Barbra Streisand will release her next record of standards, Love Is The Answer, produced by Diana Krall, on September 29th. She willl celebrate the release of her CD with an astounding coup: Ms Streisand will perform at the famed Village Vanguard in New York (capacity only 123 people) where she last played in 1961 opening for Miles Davis. Tickets for this unique show are free but can only be obtained by pre-ordering her new CD or by going to her website www.barbrastreisand.com. Her pianist for the show will be Tamir Hendelman by the way.

There's a lot of great new music added on JazzRadio recently. Here's a quick rundown:

George Benson returns with a superb new album called Songs And Stories which was co-produced by Marcus Miller. Three tracks on the CD were especially written for this project, among them a song by the legendary Motown hit songwriter Lamont Dozier and a song by the first-class Rod Temperton who has written epic pieces for Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, and Patti Austin. Benson is in fine form throughout and delivers some edgy vocals.

Some great new Jazz from Germany comes in the wake of brothers Julian and Roman Wasserfuhr. Having been celebrated by the press for their debut CD in 2006, the trumpet and piano playing brothers return with an album which was produced with Nils Landgren's production credits in Sweden. The album offers fresh compositions with tasty soloing (Upgraded in Gothenburg). A nice blend of Smooth and Modern Guitar Jazz comes from Dean Grech and his new CD Look Out. You could say that his playing was influenced by Wes Montgomery as well as by Norman Brown.
A lively new Big Band Jazz CD is out by the Roy Hargrove Big Band. On Emergence, the trumpeter throws in a lot of outstanding charts and arrangements, among them a beautiful Afro-Cuban requiem. With guest singer Roberta Gambarini (who has released her own new So In Love CD a couple of weeks ago), the album is a prefect example of how modern big band jazz should sound like these days. You may have heard Freddie Washington's name before - he has worked with Herbie Hancock and Patrice Rushen in the 70s and 80s. Now after more than 30 years, he releases his first ever solo CD. On In The Moment, the bass ace wins over immediately with deliciously funky and soulful tunes and some imaginative playing of the highest caliber. Guests include Ray Parker Jr., Patrice Rushen, Ray Fuller, Joe Sample, and vocalists Deniece Williams and Lynne Fiddmont. New adds for our award-winning Electronic Jazz show The White Room come from Clear Voyage out of Ontario, Canada with an eclectic mix of trip hop and electronic grooves with your dose of jazz thrown in (Another Level).
And also there's a new project from Ian Simmonds called The Burgenland Dubs. Blending Downbeat, Funk, Jazz, and British Breakbeats, this is a highly entertaining set from the Soundmeister.
More new adds to follow!