Rituals

Nicola Conte, Nicola Conte | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 19, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Emarcy
• ASIN: B00223SE1A
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #183,961 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Rituals is the third album by talented Italian musician Nicola Conti.
Conti has garnered critical acclaim for his fusion of bossa nova,
Latin rhythms, Italian soundtrack influences and jazz. This is a funky
and enjoyable album which will delight fans and newcomers alike.
Conte s first album was Jet Sounds in 2000. The single Bossa Per
Due gained international recognition and was an underground hit.
It was used almost immediately for a prime-time commercial for
Acura automobiles. The album was licensed for American distribution
by Thievery Corporation s Eighteenth Street Lounge (ESL) label in the
summer of 2001 as Bossa Per Due, and was slightly reconfigured
version of the Italian Jet Sounds album.
Rituals has received great early reviews internationally. which confirms
the multifaceted talent of this artist and instrumentalist from Bari.
As the review in Canada s NOW Magazine stated;
A short-list candidate for jazz recording of the year, the elegantly
turned out Rituals finds club-selecta-turned-bandleader Nicola Conte
shifting away from knocking out more dance-floor bangers toward an
altogether more spiritual aesthetic and a hugely expanded support
cast and it turns out to be a brilliant move.
Rituals is by far Conte s most substantial work to date, and should
appeal to a whole new audience outside the club and cappuccino
bar scene.
Admittedly, with such a talented cast of players, including saxophonists
Greg Osby and Timo Lassy, trumpeter Till Brönner and soulful vocalist
José James, helping to bring the songs to life, Conte would ve
had to work hard to mess things up.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant and classy. A 'must' have album., March 4, 2009

By 

southgate (New York, N.Y.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rituals (Audio CD)

The follow-up to the classic Other Directions takes a more vocal route.
Featuring mostly live instruments, Nicola Conte is joined by a multitude of players that include Timo Lassy on sax and flute, Fabrizio Bosso and Till Brönner on trumpets, Pietro Lussu on piano. Vocals are by Alice Ricciardi, José James, Chiara Civello, and Kim Sanders. The whole thing is just so classy.
The style (though not the vocal) resembles Mario Biondi's wonderful Handful of Soul from a couple years back especially on Ellington's "Caravan" and the Eastern vibe of "The Nubian Queens", the latter featuring José James and standout solos by Timo Lassy. Nicola Conte knows "his" jazz and he has written or co-written all the tracks here except two and in an outstanding fashion.
As usual, echoes of bossa and modal jazz form the backbone, with an emphasis on the groove.
The album starts with a modal-like "Karma Flower" with lead vocals by Chiara Civello but it's Diane Peters who steels the show with her heavenly harp. The Civello/Peters combination team up again on the soft samba of "Paper Clouds" and again more Peters on the title track and the magnificent "Black Is The Graceful Veil" (that also features Osby and the vibraphone of Michael Pinto - who doubles as the bongo player on the album- and the beautiful vocals of Kim Sanders).
Kim Sanders is the vocalist also on the laid back "Red Sun" and on the upliftingly beautiful "Black Is The Graceful Veil".
Another excellent vocalist from Italy, Alice Ricciardi takes the lead vocals on the swinging "I See All Shades Of You" and on the delectable "Songs Of The Seasons", with more vibes and Osby on sax.
As for José James, "The Nubian Queens", "Like Leaves In The Wind" and "Awakenings" are very Gilles Peterson/Schema jazz room friendly, particularly the first two as pacey groovers. He is often mentioned in the same breath as legend Mark Murphy and it is so true when you listen to performances.
By coincidence, Till Brönner (who was on Mark Murphy's Love Is What Stays of a couple of years ago) turns up on "Like Leaves In The Wind", which shocases great trombone playing by Gianluca Petrella.
The two cover versions, the evergreen Ellington's "Caravan" with Peter Weiss on lead vocals, and the 7 minutes (!) instrumental take of Dusko Gojkovich's "Macedonia" are nothing short of fantastic.
A bit too easy on the ears for the hardcore jazzers, but this is the best nu jazz record currently available on the market!
A true delight.
Enjoy!
Viagem
Last Quarter Moon
Oceana
Rio
The Dreamer

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Strong Jazz Album, February 20, 2009

By 

S. Pettis (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rituals (Audio CD)

This album is basically very good jazz ,some with his almost trademark latin grooves. There are no samples, just great music played by very good players from the Italian jazz scene. There is very strong soloing on sax, trumpet , trombone and piano. The music is heavily influenced by 60's Blue Note. Very interesting on this record are vocals by Jose' James, from Bronx, USA. He does three tunes. He reminds me of Gill Scott Heron.He has an album out on Gilles Peterson's Brownswood Records. There are some excellent but less distinctive female vocalist on the recording also. This is a very cool and beautiful album but if you do not like jazz, and I do not mean smooth jazz, you will probably not dig it. I did not care for the vocalist on Caravan but the music is first rate.

5.0 out of 5 stars Jazz. Like when Jazz was also pop., February 20, 2011

By 

John Dark "flatcat" (Walnut Creek, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rituals (Audio CD)

Excellent album that is truly worth endless repeats. Nicola Conte has gone from being a stylist with excellent taste to a true jazz arranger and composer, similar to 1960's Quincy Jones work. Great choice of vocalists - Jose James nails "Like Leaves in the Wind" and others bring extraordinary grooves to each track. At once contemporary, and yet informed by classic jazz, this is a great album all around. I love 1960 Blue Note. I also love Theivery Corporation, Air and Zero 7. This album bridges the two worlds with a contemporary attitude with a sound that is all classic jazz.