Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton: Play The Blues: Live From Jazz At Lincoln Center (2011)

United by dalliances with purism as young men and an abiding love of classic blues and jazz, Eric Clapton and Wynton Marsalis are a more comfortable fit than it may initially seem. Both musicians are synthesists, not innovators, stitching together elements from their idols in an attempt to preserve the past while bringing it into the present, so their sensibilities are aligned and, in 2011, they're amenable to a partnership that explores their common ground. So, Clapton and Marsalis held a series of concerts at New York City's Jazz at Lincoln Center in April of 2011, the guitarist selecting the songs (apart from "Layla," performed upon the request of bassist Carlos Henriquez), the trumpeter picking the band and working up the arrangements, using King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band as his template yet finding room for piano and, of course, guitar. Clapton's choice of songs leans heavily toward the '20s -- so much so that the dip into postwar electric blues via Howlin' Wolf's "Forty Four" feels a bit of a shock -- and the arrangements are faithful to classic New Orleans jazz yet loose, never quite hidebound to tradition and finding plenty of space for every one of the players to roam; Clapton and Marsalis surely solo plenty, but so do trombonist Chris Crenshaw, clarinetist Victor Goines, and pianist Dan Nimmer. There's not much ego on display -- even the inclusion of "Layla" doesn't feel forced, thanks to Marsalis' inventive New Orleans funeral arrangement of this overly familiar tune -- but the joy is palpable and the chemistry natural. Compared to Wynton's duet albums with Willie Nelson, this is both more traditional and riskier, and compared to Clapton's latter-day duets with B.B. King and J.J. Cale, this finds the guitarist none too deferential. These are consummate musicians united by playing music they love, and their passion resonates so strongly it's hard not to enjoy Clapton and Marsalis playing the blues. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

New York City's premier jazz venue got the blues last April when Wynton Marsalis and Eric Clapton performed together in Rose Theater at Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center for two sold-out shows dedicated to vintage blues. The extraordinary collaboration, billed as Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton Play the Blues, paired these musical virtuosos with members of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra as they brought to life a repertoire of songs selected by Clapton and arranged by Marsalis. This CD/DVD combo features selections taken from the two public concerts (April 8-9), as well a special performance for Jazz at Lincoln Center's annual gala (April 7). Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton Play The Blues - Live From Jazz At Lincoln Center.

Tracklist:
01. Ice Cream ( 7:38)
02. Fourty-Four ( 7:12)
03. Joe Turner's Blues ( 7:48)
04. The Last Time ( 4:18)
05. Careless Love ( 7:43)
06. Kidman Blues ( 4:20)
07. Layla ( 9:08)
08. Joliet Bound ( 3:50)
09. Just A Closer Walk With The (Feat. Taj Mahal) (12:20)
10. Corrine, Corrina (Feat. Taj Mahal) (10:21)
Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton Play The Blues
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The Wynton Marsalis Quintet & Richard Galliano: From Billie Holiday to Edith Piaf: Live in Marciac (2010)

In the southwest of France in August 2008, American trumpeter Wynton Marsalis and French accordionist Richard Galliano teamed up on a musical tribute to Billie Holiday and Edith Piaf at the Jazz in Marciac Festival. The challenge was to translate the music of two legendary singers into instrumental versions without the benefit of voices or lyrics. Marsalis and Galliano surmounted that challenge with nine artful arrangements that are striking in their rhythmic variety. From the dizzying waltz tempo of La Foule to the infectious swing of Them There Eyes to the haunting performance of Strange Fruit, the magic of this concert has been faithfully captured in sound as well as in video through a special bonus DVD and is a must-have item for serious jazz collectors and casual listeners alike.

Tracklist

01. La Foule

02. Them There Eyes
03. Padam...Padam
04. What a Little Moonlight Can Do
05. Billie
06. Sailboat In the Moonlight
07. L'homme a La Moto
08. Strange Fruit
09. La Vie En Rose
From Billie Holiday To Edith Piaf :Live In Marciac CD+DVD
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The Marsalis Family: Music Redeems (2010)

One of the most famous of New Orleans' multigenerational jazz families, it is extraordinarily rare for the Marsalis clan to assemble all together in one place. However, approaching Father's Day of last year, the family gathered at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., to honor its patriarch and the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival's Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Ellis Marsalis. With sons Branford on saxophones, Wynton on trumpet, Delfeayo on trombone, Jason on drums, poet Ellis III reciting a piece written especially for his father for the occasion, and special guests Dr. Billy Taylor and family friend Harry Connick, Jr., Ellis inspired an evening of lively performances of repertoire with special meaning to the Marsalis Family, punctuated by family stories and anecdotes about growing up in New Orleans.

All proceeds from the project will go straight to programming support for the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music, an education center and heart of the New Orleans Musicians' Village community, conceived in 2005 by Branford Marsalis and Harry Connick Jr. in partnership with New Orleans Habitat for Humanity following Hurricane Katrina.

Tracklist
01 - Introducing (the Marsalis Family)
02 - Donna Lee
03 - Wynton and Branford Speak
04 - Monkey Puzzle
05 - After
06 - Syndrome
07 - Sweet Georgia Brown
08 - Harry Speaks
09 - Teo
10 - The Man and the Ocean
11 - At the House in Da Pocket
12 - The 2nd Line
Music Redeems
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