Ryan Keberle & Collectiv Do Brasil: Choro Das Aguas (Alternate Side Records)
Ryan Keberle has come second in the trombone category of Downbeat’s 2025 critics’ poll. As a bandleader, in the past 19 years he’s recorded two albums with his Double Quartet, five with his quartet Catharsis, three with his chamber-jazz trio Reverso and now three with Collectiv Do Brasil.
He’s also a sought-after soloist and ensemble player with a number of big bands. I had the pleasure of witnessing him perform with Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society at Newport in 2019 and again with Maria Schneider’s Orchestra in 2022. To say that Keberle’s performance on those occasions was good would be an understatement.
The trombonist’s new album, Choro Das Aguas, celebrates the music of Brazilian songwriter Ivan Lins, whose output has also been covered by Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Carmen McRae, Quincy Jones, George Benson, Mark Murphy, Barbara Streisand, Diana Krall and many others.
In preparation for the recording, Keberle listened to every album released by Lins over the last 50 years and ended up choosing eight songs from the first four LPs that were issued in the 1970s. The songs, a meld of Brazilian popular music and jazz, have been given fresh arrangements and are supplemented by two of Keberle’s own compositions – an upbeat samba, Quintessence, and a thoughtful ballad, Simple Sermon.
Keberle is accompanied by Felipe Silveira on piano, Felipe Brisola on bass and Paulinho Vicente on drums. All contribute to the vocals. Ivan Lins is now 80 and has listened to the album – he says he loves it. For the full track-list and a listen to one of them, Saindo De Mim, see here.
Roger Glenn: My Latin Heart (Patois Records)
Multi-instrumentalist Roger Glenn was greatly influenced by his musical father, Tyree Glenn, who played trombone and vibraphone with Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong and Cab Calloway. Tyree taught his son to play vibes at the age of nine.
During military service in the 1960s Glenn played in a US army band with Billy Cobham and Grover Washington Jr. After discharge from the forces he returned to New York and made his debut recording with Mary Lou Williams. Then over the years he went on to perform and record with the likes of Mongo Santamaria, Cal Tjader, Dizzy Gillespie, Donald Byrd, Herbie Mann, Taj Mahal and many others.
Aside from his 1976 Latin-fusion LP, Reachin’, Glenn has largely been content to be a sideman for others rather than a bandleader. Now, 50 years later, he’s taken centre stage and released My Latin Heart in celebration of his 80th birthday. All songs on the album are composed by Glenn and each reflects his lifelong passion for Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Caribbean rhythms.
He plays flute, alto sax, vibes and marimba on the album and sings as well – all very capably, proving a man of many talents undiminished by age. In a set of ingenious arrangements (try the shifting rhythmic emphases that open Congo Square) he’s stoutly supported by San Francisco Bay jazz veterans David Mathews on piano, Ray Obiedo guitar, David Belove bass, Paul Van Wageningen drums and Derek Rolando congas plus guest percussionists John Santos and Michael Spiro. For a taste, here’s one of the numbers on the album, Cal’s Guajira, performed by Glenn with an earlier lineup.
Various: Gabriele Poso presents Ritmo Italiano – Unspoken Sounds Of Italian Tamburo (Mr Bongo MRBCDLP317)
Sardinia-born multi-instrumentalist and producer Gabriele Poso studied percussion in Cuba and Puerto Rica. He’s released several recordings over the past 17 years. In the footsteps of his 2017 album The Languages Of Tambores – A Spiritual Journey Through The Cultural Heritage Of Drums, Poso has now compiled 12 percussive tracks from the 1960s to the early 1990s to celebrate Italy’s rhythmic traditions. He’s also included a new composition of his own from which the album is named.
Ritmo Italiano is a heady mix of experimental beats, electronic, Afro-Cuban and Mediterranean rhythms, some jazz-funk influences and percussion-driven dancefloor cuts. While jazz content is relatively slim and the material might not always be your usual fare, as a departure from the norm these foot-tapping tracks maintain interest. For a flavour, try this version of Juan Tizol and Ellington’s Caravan by Puccio Roelens E La Sua Grande Orchestra TV. Or for another of the more melodic numbers on the album try Tony Esposito’s Pagaia.
Just to note, the last number, Mambo Ravioli, by Vico Anthony And His Percussion Paesanos is only available on the CD option. The album’s full tracklist is available here.
