CD Features Fiery Tracks from John Coltrane, Miles Davis Quintet, Sonny Rollins, Wes Montgomery and More available exclusively at Starbucks on June 27th
Beverly Hills, Ca. and Washington, D.C., June 14, 2006 - XM Satellite Radio, the nation's leading satellite radio service with more than 6.5 million subscribers, and Concord Music Group, one of the world's largest independent record labels, today announced the release of Blistering Licks - Red Hot Riffs From the Giants of Jazz. The CD is the first in a series of co-branded compilations created with the best music from Concord's historically rich catalog and designed to reflect specific XM channels and original XM music shows. The record will be available at Starbucks Company-operated locations in the U.S. and Canada beginning June 27th, 2006.
Blistering Licks - Red Hot Riffs From the Giants of Jazz features the true masters of instrumental jazz from the past 50 years, playing exhilarating, accelerating pieces. All the tracks, carefully selected for their sheer energy and virtuosity from classic Milestone, Prestige, Riverside and Contemporary sessions, as well as from more recent outings on the Concord Jazz, Pablo and Heads Up labels, can be heard on XM's flagship Jazz channel, Real Jazz (XM 70) or the popular Beyond Jazz (XM 72), two of the five commercial-free jazz and blues channels offered by XM. “You don't have to be a jazz fan to be amazed by the incredible, jaw-dropping virtuosity of these jazz greats,"said compilation producer and Concord VP of Jazz and Catalog A&R, Nick Phillips. “These guys burn from the first note to the last."
The intensity of the CD is palpable, with pieces by extroverted jammers Johnny Griffin and Eddie “Lockjaw" Davis alongside masterful pianists Oscar Peterson and Art Tatum, who display their stunning skills in strictly up-tempo mode. Tenor titans Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane provide plenty of sparks, as do jazz guitar immortal Wes Montgomery and trumpet idol Miles Davis. The late tenor saxophonist Bob Berg, trumpeter Randy Brecker, Hammond B-3 killer Joey DeFrancesco, drummer Dennis Chambers, and Django-inspired guitar marvel Frank Vignola also add scintillating solos to this audacious mix. Along with some of the notable bandleaders in jazz history, Blistering Licks features a supporting cast that is bar none, including solos by Red Garland, Max Roach, Tommy Flanagan, Barney Kessel, and Shelly Manne.
“This new compilation reflects the XM music experience, which is all about discovery and exploration of different genres," said Lee Abrams, XM's Chief Creative Officer of Programming. “The quality, intensity and musicianship of the performances in this collection is overwhelming and represents just a small sampling of what both the Jazz universe and the XM musical landscape have to offer."
The track listing for Blistering Licks - Red-Hot Riffs from the Giants of Jazz follows:
- Sonny Rollins--It's All Right with Me (From Worktime on Prestige)
- Oscar Peterson & Clark Terry-- Shaw 'Nuff (From Oscar Peterson & Clark Terry on Pablo)
- Wes Montgomery--Airegin (From The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery on Riverside)
- Johnny Griffin/Eddie “Lockjaw" Davis--Tickle Toe (From Tough Tenors on Jazzland)
- Miles Davis Quintet--Salt Peanuts (From Steamin' on Prestige)
- Hampton Hawes--Up Blues (From the album Four! on Contemporary)
- Bob Berg/Randy Brecker/Joey DeFrancesco/Dennis Chambers--Oleo (From JazzTimes Superband on Concord Jazz)
- Jaco Pastorius Big Band--Kuru/Speak Like A Child (From The Word Is Out on Heads Up)
- John Coltrane--Russian Lullaby (From Soultrane on Prestige)
- Bill Evans--Woody'n You (From On Green Dolphin Street on Milestone)
- Art Tatum with Roy Eldridge--This Can't Be Love (From The Tatum Group Masterpieces, vol. 2 on Pablo)
- Frank Vignola--Appel Direct (From Appel Direct on Concord)
About XM Satellite Radio
XM is America's number one satellite radio service with more than 6.5 million subscribers. Broadcasting live daily from studios in Washington, DC, New York City, the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Toronto and Montreal, XM's 2006 lineup includes more than 170 digital channels of choice from coast to coast: the most commercial-free music channels, sports, talk, comedy, children's and entertainment programming; and the most advanced traffic and weather information.
XM, the leader in satellite-delivered entertainment and data services for the automobile market through partnerships with General Motors, Honda, Toyota, Hyundai, Nissan and Volkswagen/Audi, is available in more than 140 different vehicle models for 2006. XM's industry-leading products are available at consumer electronics retailers nationwide. For more information about XM hardware, programming and partnerships, please visit http://www.xmradio.com.
About Concord Music Group
Concord Records merged with Fantasy, Inc. in 2004 to create the Concord Music Group, strengthening its preeminent position as one of the largest independent record companies in the world and keeper of an extraordinarily rich and, in many cases, historically significant catalog of recordings. They include titles from some of the most admired and enduring names in music, including Rosemary Clooney, John Coltrane, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Isaac Hayes, Little Richard, Thelonious Monk, Tito Puente, Dave Brubeck, George Shearing, Ray Brown, Oscar Peterson and Mel Torme. The group's current roster of world-class artists includes: Karrin Allyson, Regina Belle, Peter Cincotti, Michael Feinstein, Nnenna Freelon, John Fogerty, LaToya London, Sergio Mendes, Ozomatli, Eddie Palmieri, The Rippingtons.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
