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It’s New Music Friday – Time for the Picks of the Week – a song and an album that have caught my attention and something I think you’ll want to listen to this weekend. So let’s get to it…
Today’s featured singles are “star-crossed” and “Justified” by Kacey Musgraves
Kacey Musgraves, a favorite in our house, is back with new music and it’s so wonderful that she’s sharing her heartbreak with us. The song (and album) “tells an extremely personal journey of heartache and healing”. While you can’t fully take the country out of the girl, Musgraves has crossed over a bit with this track (and I’m assuming album) by incorporating more electronics, something we heard a bit of on her Grammy-winning Golden Hour. These songs are what we want from music, personal sadness makes for great songs and albums (see Blood on the Tracks by Bob Dylan). These two tracks set us up well for another great effort from one of the best artists out there today.
Today’s featured album is The South Bronx Story by Carlos Henriquez
Bassist and composer Carlos Henriquez is one of the first truly bilingual musicians, a virtuoso in both jazz and Afro-Latin traditions. Henriquez has been a member of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra since he was only 19 years old. His newest album present a musical retrospective of the South Bronx’s social history, recalling significant people and events that created the historic neighborhood’s diverse culture. It’s perfect jazz, blending multi-instruments (with some of his amazing guests) and cultures.
Henriquez stated about the album: “I am using my music, experience, and heritage as a Puerto Rican growing up in the Bronx to tell a story that looks back and forward,” says Henriquez. “Jazz is American, born out of the melting pot of our Afro-American experience. And in the American spirit, jazz has adapted with different cultures, cities, people, and places and become an expression of one’s identity. This project represents just that–the tragedy, violence, and history isn’t over, but there is hope in the future. Music, dance, and the arts can bring that all together and transcend to showcase a common humanity.” Check out my favorite track "Hydrants Love All".
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