Customer Reviews

On Ice

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This CD is one of the most enjoyable listening experiences in memory! The players are enthusiastic, talented and driven! You'd have to look long and hard to find a more cohesive sound (than this group has), and Pat Smith's guitar playing is awesome... as is the playing of the other Penguins.

FIVE STARS.... because they don't offer a rating of SIX!

I've been watching Penguin Jazz live for quite a few years now in various SF Bay Area locations. I have come to love their mixture of traditional favorites and their own compositions.

Russ St. John's drums and Sumit Das' bass work provide a solid foundation for Bill Walker's keyboards and Pat Smith's guitar play. The result is a good mix of instruments, with the guitar and keyboard definitely out front but neither one truly dominating. The group obviously has a strong grounding in many musical styles, and you can hear small quotes from other genres sprinkled throughout their play.

I like this band enough that I have sent "On Ice" to friends as far away from the Bay Area as London.

There's a lot of talent, and no little amount of polish, evident on this disc.

This is an awesome CD. The selections combine are a great blend of jazz styles and guitarist Pat Smith is fantastic. The Penquin players have a great sound. If you love jazz, you need this CD in your collection.

If you like jazz, then you'll love this cd!It's a refreshing blend of both traditional and modern jazz. It's a must have for any jazz lover.

What a great CD! This group is not well known outside of a very few jazz radio markets, but the music is worthy of a wider audience. The Penguins are traditional sounding with depth and feeling belying their unassuming origin. This group digs into standards with flair and nuance and draws you into their originals just as easily. Stand out tunes are: "Midnight", a ballad written by Pat Smith; "Watermelon Man" written by Herbert Hancock, given here a Latin/funk feel and "Alberta" written by Bill Walker, an infectious pop melody performed with flamboyance and grace. My recommendation is buy it!

If you enjoy mellow jazz you will love this. A great find from a Bay area band.

Great moving music. Makes you smile and in times like this- that's a very good thing.

Flawless precision and lilting passion. Exact AND sexy. I love this album! It's become a "go-to" for me, right beside Kind of Blue and The Gentle Side of Coltrane. Penguin's rendition of "Angel Eyes" is absolutely haunting. And "Swing Street" is a theme that enfolds all secrets from Phillip Marlowe to that forgottten little bar under the bridge where you dream that you used to meet a lover. You will play this over and over and over.

What a great CD! This group is not well known outside of a very few jazz radio markets, but the music is worthy of a wider audience. The Penguins are traditional sounding with depth and feeling belying their unassuming origin. This group digs into standards with flair and nuance and draws you into their originals just as easily. Stand out tunes are: "Midnight", a ballad written by Pat Smith; "Watermelon Man" written by Herbert Hancock, given here a Latin/funk feel and "Alberta" written by Bill Walker, an infectious pop melody performed with flamboyance and grace. My recommendation is buy it!