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"Sångarna Samuel Ljungblahd och Ole Børud har gjort årets julskiva. Med ett norsksvenskt komp lyfter de upp albumets tio amerikanska julmelodier till granens topp och får det att låta som det funkigt souliga julalbum Stevie Wonder aldrig lyckats göra. Versionen av "Have yourself a merry little christmas" är årets svängigaste." (Dan Backman, Svenska Dagbladet)<br/><br/>Låtmaterialet är också noga utvalt; här finns förstås några av de givna klassikerna som "Silent night" och "Away in a manger" (hela albumet är på engelska), personliga favoriter som Harry Connick jr's "I pray on Christmas" och Richard Pages "I always cry at Christmas" men också varsin egenskriven låt i samma anda. Musikerna på plattan består av ett (mestadels) norskt all-star team med producenten Ruben Dalen i spetsen.

Jacob Karlzon / piano, keys, synths & programming<br/>Hans Andersson / bass<br/>Robert Mehmet Ikiz / drums<br/><br/>Unmistakably now one of the best pianists in Europe, Jacob Karlzon's music and personality are possessed of a radiance and vitality that has won audiences worldwide.<br/><br/>But Karlzon wants more - in terms of sound, composition and concept - and doesn't really care much for categories and genre-labeling. Instead, Karlzon chooses to draw tastefully and fervently from the best of two worlds - the openness, curiosity and energy of jazz, and the power, catchiness and the production techniques of pop.<br/><br/><br/>.

Evert Taubes visorrör sig mellan två motpoler: Idyll och äventyr. Med Taube har vi nordbor fått såväl drömmen om den eviga sommaren, som drömmen om äventyr till sjöss och i jordens alla hamnar. Genom hela visproduktionen blåder också fantasins uppfriskande monsun. Det är med andra ord visor som gjorda för blåsmusik.<br/><br/>När Sven-Bertil Taube nu på nytt har sjungit in sin fars visor kan detta sägas bilda codan på ett stycke svensk kulturhistoria. Två långa konstnärskarriärer har vävts samman till ett verk. Liksom en Homeros har Sven-Bertil Taube den här gången tvingats förlita sig på andra sinnen än synen. Han har memorerat texterna och tolkat dem så som bara en skådespelare med djup kunskap om ämnet kan göra. Det skall också sägas att han blivit varsamt ledsagad av Göteborg Wind Orchestra under ledning av Jerker Johansson samt av pianisten Anders Ekdahl.

Bohuslän Big Band: Plays Zappa [CD]

One Father, One Son, Two Guitars<br/><br/>"He plays the guitar like he was born with it already in his hands" was how John McLaughlin once praised Ulf Wakenius. What is true for the father might be even more true for Ulf's guitarist son Eric, who probably was quite literally born with one..<br/><br/>"Eric really is a blessing", says Ulf Wakenius. "We have shared many concerts all over the world and it has always been a pure joy!" So the time is clearly right to document this family saga: "Father And Son" is a virtuoso conversation in the art of contemporary jazz guitar. This duo can launch into swing mode, or strut out towards rock, they are capable of being both lyrical and percussively extrovert, they can dream ballads or go at breakneck speed. And whether they are telling tales of exotic lands or contemplating their native Sweden, the pair - with their instinct for atmosphere, their sensitivity to acoustics and balance - make soul-stirring, affecting and compelling music, in which the listener can detect the closeness of their connection to each other.<br/><br/>The musical backgrounds of father and son are very different. Ulf Wakenius had ten years as a member of the Oscar Peterson Quartet and also worked with the two legends of the bass, Ray Brown and Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen. He is known for his collaborations with great jazz figures such as Pat Metheny, Michael Brecker and Michel Legrand, and of course for his work with the singer Youn Sun Nah. He is not just one of the most busy and in-demand players, but also the most creative jazz guitarists of our era. His son Eric, by contrast was born in 1988 and surrounded as a teenager by the rock and pop music of the nineties. After that, he spent a lot of time in Los Angeles, where he picked up many different stylistic directions from that city's musical melting pot. "He has played a lot of electric guitar", explains Wakenius, "but - like me - he has fallen in love with the acoustic guitar and its many possibilities."

Sonya Hedenbratt - Vocalist<br/>Sven-Eric Dahlberg - Piano<br/>Jan Allan - Trumpet<br/>Erik Nordström - Tenorsax<br/>Bosse Tigrén - Clarinet<br/>Egil Johansen - Drums<br/>Yasuhito Mori - Bass<br/>Bengt-Åke Nilsson - Drums <br/><br/>"Some songs take me in, just like some persons do. They simply make it their way into my heart and become permanent residents. Evergreens and folksongs, musicians and recording engineers, jazz standards and songwriters invade my feelings and some encounters develop into lifelong relations. This collection of songs and musicians that are close to me, is what I like to introduce to you. So, please enjoy my best friends - I am sure that you and I have a several in common"

Händel: Between heaven and earth (Sandrine Piau) [CD]