Original image by There Stands the Glass.
I’m slogging through Finian’s Rainbow as part of my increasingly irksome pledge to become fully conversant in musicals. The gorgeous cinematography in the 1968 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola is the most compelling element of the jarringly dated Fred Astaire and Petula Clark vehicle. Raio, the latest release from the Brazilian artist Domenico Lancellotti, is similarly anachronistic. Tracks like "Vai a Serpente" sound as if the studio group Toto is further polishing the already refined songs of Antonio Carlos Jobim. Just as Finian’s Rainbow is salvaged by stunning visuals, Raio is elevated by glittering wall-of-sound production. Spectacular on headphones, the album has been added to my short list of audio reference recordings. (Tip via S.A.)
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Aaron Rhodes and I yack about the latest releases from Lana Del Ray and Benny the Butcher and vehemently disagree about the merits of a 1988 album by the Business in the latest episode of our In My Headache podcast.
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Recently at the Kansas City jazz blog Plastic Sax: an audacious proposal for a specialized music streaming service and appreciation for a nice surprise from the Wild Women of Kansas City.