A Train congratulates Lila Downs, whose debut album for Sony Mexico, Pecados Y Milagros, has already achieved platinum sales in Mexico, for her nomination of Best Folk Album in the 2012 Latin Grammy Awards. Ms. Downs is also the focus of a forthcoming A&E Mexico biopic entitled “Un dia en la vida de Lila Downs”. Congratulations Ms. Downs!
Cali Y el Dandee, the oustanding Columbian duo whose video for YO TE ESPERARÉ has had more than 69 million views on YouTube, have a new album coming on Universal here in the U.S. Represented through A Train’s alliance with Clipper’s, we are delighted to welcome them aboard. Watch the video here.
Coming back to A Train is noted jazz pianist (and psychiatrist) Denny Zeitlin whose recent recordings on Sunnyside evoke such stellar praise as: “There’s something magnificent about a top-level artist alone with a piano, immersed in a mood of quiet nights, under quiet stars… Wherever You Are-Midnight Moods for Solo Piano is Denny Zeitlin’s most intimate and contemplative sets of songs, and perhaps the loveliest work from a top jazz pianist at the height of his expressive powers.” Dan McClenaghan, allaboutjazz.com
La Chiva Gantiva’s song “Cumbiaje” off their Pelao album was hand-picked by the Alt. Latino channel as part of the NPR show’s playlist called Into The Blue: Seven Songs For A Stormy Day At The Beach. The sound of traditional Caribbean instruments joined by bass guitar, clarinet, and saxophone produce a light-hearted, colorful sound for an audio antidepressant on overcast days. Read the full review on their latest album by PopMatters and watch a video of “Pelao” here.
The raw, celebratory energy that La Chiva brings to their live shows earned them an invitation to play in London on July 22nd as part of the Olympic Games festivities. They played in front of an estimated crowd of 7,000 and continue to gain momentum embarking on their first Canadian tour with an appearance at the famous International Jazz Festival of Montreal.
“Guitarist Will Bernard doesn’t hurt for references. The Berkeley native has recorded with Don Cherry and Stanton Moore. He’s jammed with Charlie Hunter, Dr. John and John Medeski. And he’s collaborated with Tom Waits, Spearhead and hip-hop ensemble the Coup. While a diverse palette informs his sixth record, so does experience-garnered restraint. Bernard’s history with organist Wil Blades and drummer Simon Lott also accounts for the natural vibe absent from a majority of similar fusion-based affairs. Until recently, each member lived in a different city yet became close from the hours they spent clustered in a tour van. The album title even alludes to the road lifestyle and its array of topography. Slaving to the groove, the collective develops rounded instrumentals amidst uncluttered, wide-open soundscapes in which warm New Orleans funk, crackling Memphis soul and ’60s-era San Francisco psychedelia intersect. On occasion, Bernard steps on spacey effects pedals and brings the noise (“Roaming Charges”) or turns his guitar into a horn (“Nature Walk”). But the bandleader prefers to say more with less. He abides by James Brown’s time-honored “give the drummer some” adage and allows Blades to smear greasy jive all over “Morgan Deux,” during which you can practically picture the Leslie cabinet’s rotary speaker spin”. 3 out of 4 stars -Bob Gendron, Downbeat
The International Bluegrass Music Association has honored A Train’s Peter Rowan with the nomination of Dust Bowl Children for SONG OF THE YEAR. Sung by Dan Tyminski, nominated for Male Vocalist of the Year, and performed by Alison Krauss & Union Station (nominated for Entertainer of the Year) and released on Paper Airplane (nominated by Album of the Year), Dust Bowl Children has always been one of Peter Rowan’s most loved compositions. We toast his recognition!
Roger Smith, keyboard player with Tower of Power and There Records (A Train’s label) recording artist, joined The Dave Matthews Band on stage in Tampa. It was the first time a keyboard player has been with The DMB since Butch Taylor left in 2007. Roger is seen in this video clip performing “If Only”, a song from the DMB’s forthcoming record; Roger had the pleasure of recording some sessions, including “If Only” back in February.
“Bailando Por El Mundo” which dominated the Top 10 of Billboard’s Latin hits for 31 weeks and charted at #3 for top Latin Pop Songs, was nominated for ‘Best Party Song of the Year’ on Premios Tu Mundo. Juan Magan, co-composer and performer of the track, featured the talents of artists Pitbull and El Cata for a classic Latin hit.
A Train proudly congratulates our winners of Downbeat Magazine’s 60th Annual Critics Poll: Bill Frisell and Zakir Hussain.
We are equally proud of our other talented artists whose work was deemed worthy of attention: SF Jazz Collective, Wadada Leo Smith, Ben Goldberg, Kenny Werner, Charlie Hunter, Scott Amendola, Airto Moreira and Lee Townsend.
Six time Grammy nominee Peter Rowan just finished demoing new material for his second recording for Compass Records. Peter returns to Europe later this year with dates in the UK, Ireland, The Czech Republic, France and Italy. Jake Troth has been in the studio with Big Boi and Sia—expect to hear much more from Jake in the coming months. Alvin Risk is performing a series of dates with Kaskade; Alvin’s latest recording recently released on Dim Mak.
Juan Magan’s “Bailando por El Mundo” continues to rule Latin radio, Peter White’s Here We Go album maintains its grip in Smooth Jazz and Jenny Gosling’s three co-writes grace the Ed Sheeran Deluxe release that is currently #1 on the iTunes album charts.
Called byThe New York Times “The Chant Master of American Yoga”, Krishna Das is the best-selling chant artist of all time, with over 300,000 records sold. His collaborations with Sting, producers Rick Rubin and Steely Dan’s Walter Becker and David Nichtern, a multiple Emmy Award-winning composer and songwriter (including the pop classic “Midnight at the Oasis”), have broadened his audience as have his more than 150 performances a year around the world. Now Krishna Das has launched his very own channel on Sirius/XM Radio; culled from recordings by Ali Akbar Khan, Choying Drolma, Deva Premal, Jai Uttal, Lama Gyurme, Pandit Jasraj, Shantala, Sultan Khan as well as his own releases, Krishna Das Yoga Radio is destined to take Krishna Das and his listeners to new worlds.
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A Train congratulates Lila Downs, whose debut album for Sony Mexico, Pecados Y Milagros, has already achieved platinum sales in Mexico, for her nomination of Best Folk Album in the 2012 Latin Grammy Awards. Ms. Downs is also the focus of a forthcoming A&E Mexico biopic entitled “Un dia en la vida de Lila Downs”. Congratulations Ms. Downs!
