Dynamite, Exciting, Gorgeous, Classy, Soulful......some
nice adjectives indeed. Those are the ones that come to mind
when I listen to this debut new recording from Melanie &
Sal Cracchiolo. When I first heard this CD I was listening to
Jazz on the Latin Side with Jose Rizo on KLON. I stopped what
I was a doing at the time and said, "Man oh man who is that?"
I frequently say that while listening to Jose's program. I think
the reason is he plays material that will make your senses jump
and say: "nice stuff."
That is exactly what I said when I heard the sounds from the
great disc. I couldn't wait to contact Jose and see if he could
share a copy with me. Having been an admirer of Sal Cracchiolo
for many years, I was more than pleasantly surprised to know
that he had finally recorded his own project. As you may know,
Sal has been a member of the highly regarded Poncho Sanchez Latin
Jazz unit for over 16 years now. He has also performed with these
recognized giants Dizzy Gillespie, Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Shew,
Cal Tjader, Stanley Turrentine, Tito Puente, Mongo Santamaria,
Gary Foster, Arturo Sandoval, Eddie Harris and Celia Cruz. Impressive
uh? I would most certainly say so. Did I also mention the fact
that Sal has played on several movie soundtracks..? Well, to
just name a few "The Mambo Kings", "The HBO Cinema
Latin Session", "A Million to Juan" with funny
man Paul Rodriguez.
Melanie Jackson is the proud owner of a gorgeous singing voice.
I mean when I heard her sing my mouth dropped. Her voice has
such a rich sound you need to hear it for yourself and you will
see what I mean. She has had extensive experience on the concert
circuit with acts such as REO Speedwagon, Jose Luis Rodriguez
and Leonard Cohen. She has also worked in the studio on Commercials
and Network promos. In 1979 she was voted the fourth best local
Jazz act by Music Connection magazine.
Now the music on this disc was carefully chosen to create
many different moods. Love, Laughter and of course, fun. I think
they accomplished all of the above. In order for Melanie and
Sal to create the sound they were after, they needed to call
upon some longtime amigos to help out. Rene Camacho, Kendall
Kay, Jose "Papo" Rodriguez, Charlie Otwell, Joe Rotundi
Jr., Jim Szylagi and the great Poncho Sanchez.
If I was asked to choose a favorite tune I honestly, would
not be able to. Each tune has its own subtle beauty. As advertised,
each tune will create many different emotions when you listen
to them. "Sweet Bean" starts off the session with a
strong and exquisite melody. A very nice Cha Cha that compliments
Melanie's vocals. "Fly", the title track, arranged
by Charlie Otwell (Poncho's original pianist) feature Sal at
his best on the Flugelhorn. "Si no hay amor" (translated
-if there is no love) a tender bolero sung in English by Melanie
and the spotlight is on the alto sax beauty of Gary Foster. Another
tune that will have you bailando is the sassy Guarija "If
I should lose you" Wow! listen to the grooving piano of
Joe Rotundi and boom pat pat dun of Poncho's Congas on this one.
It reminded me of the Willie Bobo Classic "Lisa" which
by the way, was on Poncho's Latin Jazz Grammy winner Latin Soul
with Sal on trumpet. Other classics that you will enjoy include
"Waltz for Debby", "Moanin", "One Note
Samba", "Like someone in love", "It might
as well be Spring", a classy rendition of "A night
in Tunisia" and an absolutely heart wrenching "When
October goes" that was written by John Mercer and Barry
Manilow the tune highlights the soft playing of Joe Rotundi on
Piano along with Melanie.
All I can say is thank you Melanie and Sal. Thank you for
your talents and for creating such a magical debut recording
for all of us to enjoy.
"Fly" is right on!
By Erik Chico Manqueros
Host & Producer of The Latin
Style of Jazz and Contributing writer
Latin Style Magazine, LatinJazzClub.com
