JazzWeek with airplay data powered by jazzweek.com • October 9, 2006 Volume 2, Number 45 • $7.95 On The Charts: #1 Jazz Album – Diana Krall #1 College Jazz – Madeleine Peyroux #1 World Music – Brazilian Girls #1 Smooth Album – Peter White #1 Smooth Single – Peter White Artist/Label Q&A: ILYA LUSHTAK page 10 JazzWeek This Week EDITOR/PUBLISHER Ed Trefzger MUSIC EDITOR Tad Hendrickson rank Zappa famously once wrote, “Jazz isn’t dead; it just CONTRIBUTING WRITER/ smells funny.” If Frank were around today, I wonder what PHOTOGRAPHER Fhe’d say about smooth jazz. Tom Mallison On Monday, Oct. 2, the format lost its third station in as many PHOTOGRAPHY months as Dallas’ KOAI switched to the new format du jour, Barry Solof “rhythmic AC.” Outside of its original strongholds, smooth jazz Contributing Editors radio and record sales seem to be heading into oblivion. Keith Zimmerman It’s always been easy for mainstream jazz fans and artists to Kent Zimmerman sneer at smooth jazz artistically – but for many years it has been a Founding Publisher: Tony Gasparre solid performer, having been sold as part of a whole lifestyle. But ADVERTISING: Devon Murphy that whole yuppie/white wine scene seems to has faded, and the Call (866) 453-6401 ext. 3 or format is fading, too. email: [email protected] Even so, Broadcast Architecture, long the 800-lb. gorilla of SUBSCRIPTIONS: the format, is launching a smooth jazz network, including Chica- Free to qualified applicants go morning stalwart Ramsey Lewis. You’ve got to wonder where Premium subscription: $149.00 per year, that will find outlets – the economics don’t seem to be there yet w/ Industry Access: $249.00 per year To subscribe using Visa/MC/Discover/ for it to be profitable as a secondary HD channel for the few hun- AMEX/PayPal go to: dreds with receivers. http://www.jazzweek.com/account/ subscribe.html Is smooth jazz destined to become a streaming and HD niche- only format or can it revive itself? Not if it remains as stagnant- ly dull as it’s programmed these days, it won’t. Smooth jazz radio AIRPLAY MONITORING BY could be interesting and vital, but as I wrote in the Sept. 25 edi- tion, it has abandoned the contemporary artists that created it. Mediaguide tation managers around the country, including in public jazz 1000 Chesterbrook Blvd. formats, are receiving letters this week from Universal Mu- Suite 150 Berwyn, PA 19312 Ssic Group’s legal department, asking the recipients to certi- fy that for any promotional item “bearing the likeness or logo of JazzWeek (ISSN 1554-4338) a UMG artist (such as t-shirts, key chains, coffee mugs, baseball is published weekly by hats ... ) there was no explicit or implicit exchange ... to provide ������������� airplay or increase airplay of any UMG label recordings.” Uh ... do labels actually still have promotional items? 2117 Buffalo Road Suite 317 Rochester, NY 14624 – Ed Trefzger, Editor phone/fax: (866) 453-6401 [email protected] Copyright ©2006 Trefzger Media LLC jazzweek.com • October 9, 2006 JazzWeek 2 Contents October 9, 2006 News . 4 Blue Note Underwrites 13 Weeks Of Listen Here! . 4 Dallas Smooth Jazz KOAI Flips Format . 4 Museum of African American Music Planned for Newark, N.J. 5 Martin Sheen DJs At Nat Geo . 6 Music and Industry News In Brief . 7 10 Jazz Birthdays . 9 Feature Artist/Label Q&A: Ilya Lushtak . 10 Jazz Radio . 15 Jazz Album Chart . 16 College Jazz Chart . 17 Jazz Reviews . 18 Roger Kellaway Trio . 18 15 Ray Charles + The Count Basie Orchestra . 18 John Patitucci . 18 Marcus Strickland Quartets . 19 Bill Anschell . 19 Jazz Add Dates . 20 Jazz Current CDs . 21 Jazz Radio Panel . 24 Smooth Jazz Radio . 25 25 Smooth Album Chart . 26 Smooth Singles Chart. 27 Smooth Currents. 28 Smooth Radio Panel . 29 World Music Radio . 30 World Music Album Chart . 31 Closing Number 30 Thank You Billy Higgins ... 32 Cover: Ilya Lushtak (courtesy Lineage Records) JazzWeek Volume 2 Number 45 jazzweek.com • October 9, 2006 JazzWeek 3 News Blue Note Underwrites 13 Weeks Of Listen Here! CHICAGO – Listen Here!, the na- nearly 90 public ra- tionally-syndicated public radio pro- dio stations across gram hosted by award-winning jazz the United States. critics Neil Tesser and Mark Ruffin, is The program brings receiving underwriting support from together a live- Blue Note Records, the program’s pro- ly mix of conversa- duction company has announced. tion, criticism, and Blue Note is partially underwrit- humor. ing 13 episodes of the weekly program Each week, through the fall and the 2006 holi- Tesser and Ruf- day season to promote new and recent fin review new re- Mark Ruffin and Neil Tesser, hosts of Listen Here! releases by jazz artists Patricia Bar- leases from across ber, Don Byron, Robert Glasper, Ste- the broad spectrum of jazz; offer their and occasional live performances and fon Harris, Andrew Hill, Joe Lova- extensive knowledge and (sometimes features that showcase important jazz- no, Jason Moran, Gonzalo Rubalcaba differing) opinions in a discussion of related events. and Cassandra Wilson, as well as two any of a variety of topics related to the Listen Here! is produced by Miles Christmas albums – one by Diane music and its history; and interview an Ahead, Inc., and distributed by the Reeves, and the other featuring an as- outstanding musician or figure in the WFMT Radio Network. For further sortment of Blue Note artists. world of jazz. The program also in- information about Listen Here!, visit “Listen Here! is making its mark as cludes a regular listening quiz segment www.listenhereradio.com. JW an important new public radio desti- nation for jazz fans, along with those Dallas Smooth Jazz KOAI Flips Format who want to learn more about the music and the musicians,” said Zach DALLAS – CBS smooth jazz station amount of current popular releases. Hochkeppel, General Manager of KOAI, “The Oasis,” has flipped for- These are the songs that you fondly re- Blue Note Records. “We’re happy to mats as of Monday, Oct. 2. member moving to not so long ago, as support Listen Here! in its mission to At 4 p.m. CT that day, the station well as those titles destined to be clas- broaden the audience for jazz.” rebranded itself as “Movin 107.5,” play- sic hits. This unique opportunity is one “Blue Note has been one of the ma- ing a rhythmic AC format of to R&B we believe will set us apart in the mar- jor forces in the jazz world since its in- hits from the ’80s to the present. ket as it has done in several other cities ception in 1939, and we at Listen Here! CBS Dallas Sr. Vice President and across the country.” are delighted to be recognized by Blue Market Mgr. Brian Purdy told indus- The format change follows a sim- Note in this way,” said Rich Nelson, try web site AllAccess.com, “Movin ilar switch at WJZZ in Philadelphia the program’s executive producer. is that rare format that combines up- in August. In September, Peoria, Ill., Listen Here! is a weekly jazz review beat Top 40 music from the past two smooth outlet WPMJ dropped its for- that originates in Chicago and airs on decades along with a considerable mat for oldies. JW jazzweek.com • October 9, 2006 JazzWeek 4 News “...Di Meola’s command of Museum of African American Music syncopation and Latin infl uences keeps the music intriguing Planned for Newark, N.J. and vaguely exotic...” —Guitar World NEWARK, N.J. – The Lincoln Park showcasing the many musical contri- Coast Cultural District has announced butions African Americans have made plans to erect the Museum of African to the world of music through genres American Music (MoAAM) in the such as Gospel, Blues, Jazz, Rhythm al di meolameola city of Newark, N.J. The museum is the and Blues, Punk and Rock & Roll. CONSEQUENCE OF CHAOS centerpiece of the Lincoln Park Coast The museum will provide arts and Cultural District development proj- culture programs that will enrich the ect. The Museum of African Ameri- city and will become a travel destina- can Music (MoAAM) has been envi- tion for all. The museum will include a sioned as a first-of-its-kind facility for modern “green” design and feature his- torical artifacts and multimedia dis- plays depicting the numerous contri- ������ butions African Americans have made to numerous musical genres and styles. ����� The Museum of African American Music has been envisioned as “living” museum that will interact with the city CD-83649 of Newark and its citizens by provid- ing concerts, lectures, classes and in- Al Di Meola on Tour � teractive displays as well as retail and 10/4 Sellersville Theater 1894 Sellersville PA ���� 10/5 StageOne Fairfi eld CT ��������� common areas for people to relax and 10/6 Berklee Performance Center Boston MA ����������� interact in. 10/7 Emelin Theater for the Perf. Arts Mamaroneck NY The museum has begun hosting 10/8 WAMC Performing Arts Theatre Albany NY 10/10 The Lincon Theatre Raleigh NC ������������������� Newark based events dedicated to the ����������� 10/11 Handelbar Greenville SC contribution African Americans have 10/13 Dozier Center for the Perf. Arts Kennesaw GA made throughout numerous musical 10/14 Germantown PAC Germantown TN 10/16 The Intersection Grand Rapids MI genres such as Punk and Hip-Hop. 10/17 The Magic Bag Ferndale MI ���������������� The museum will continue to host ���������������� events and commission research that ���� will take place in the community, in �������������� the schools and will develop projects ���������� that are inside and outside the physical museum facility. ������������� The Museum of African American ������������������ Music has designation as an Affiliate of the revered Smithsonian Institu- tion, the only one in New Jersey.