Customer Reviews

Still Swingin'

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This is one of the "swinginest" CDs on the scene today. This trio is deep in the pocket and many of the younger players today should pay close attention to it as it is truly an inspiration to me. I am a young drummer in New York City and I have listened to this several times as it has compelled me to keep coming back to it. Longo's blues playing is on a par with the great masters of the blues and the deapth of his swing on every track is remarkable. The bass and drums of Ben Brown and Rasy Mosca show a mastery that is beyond just good. As James Moody said in the liner notes "Mike Longo not only shows his brilliance as a pianist, but the arrangements are stunning also." Amen Mr. Moody. I highly recommend this CD to everyone.

Mike Longo has been around a long time. I remember the great work he did when he was Dizzy's pianist years ago. This is a marvelous CD in which he steps forward on his own to the delight of anyone who gives it a listen. I have been a jazz fan for over 40 years and the music on this disk, for me, is what it's all about. From the opener, All Or Nothing At All right through to the closer Savannah Calling it swings throughout. Longo's understated style really grows on you and his use of space is a joy to listen to. The side men with Ben Brown on bass and Ray Mosca on drums are superior! If you don't have this, GET IT!

I'm not a professional reviewer. I'm a musician and a jazz fan, and for the first time I feel compelled to review a CD. Mike Longo's "Still Swingin' " has everything I look for in a CD: great original tunes that I enjoyed discovering, as well as fresh arrangements of classic tunes. How exciting it is to hear jazz musicians play and interact at such a high level. Pure joy! The CD lives up to it's title. All the music had that infectious groove -- swing - which made me feel good and want to hear the CD over and over again.

Longo's latest CD release "Still Swinging" is an absolute joy to listen to. Just a few bars into the trio's medium swing tempo version of "All or Nothing at All" and my foot starts tapping, and the tunes just get more delicious as the CD plays on. The album is a delight, and currently it is living in my CD changer!

I think this is what Longo must have had in mind by the title "Still Swinging" : the joy and groove that come from true swing are like no other. Longo in his liner notes refers to images of audiences dancing to Count Basie' Orchestra in Ken Burns' recent video special. That was a day and age where some of today's so-callled stars would have gotten thrown off stage for not swinging. I hope that will come back soon!!

To really catch a groove that gets under people's skin and awaken undeniable happiness is something that is taken for granted, but ironically I don't hear that quality on many of today's jazz albums. Longo stands alone among today's pianists in his ability to create interesting arrangements with new harmonies, drop melodies in unexpected places in the rhythm, and cause a listeners foot to stomp! This "quality" is something that Oscar Peterson, Art Tatum and others had. Longo in no way copies what they did, but carries on the great tradition of "how" they did it.

Longo's touch and tone are completely his own, and the interesting places that his melodies fall within the beat are totally new to my ears. So what you are getting is not an "old" concept by any means, but a new one that is fresh and exciting and yes..innovative.

Ben Brown and Ray Mosca get an A+ for their tasty rhythm section work - and you'll chuckle when you hear the bass solo on "Savannah Calling".

So, if you want to feel good, and want to listen to a jazz album that proves that the groove is alive and well, get a copy of "Still Swingin"!

Still Swingin' from The Mike Longo Trio and featuring the musical magic of bassist Ben Brown and drummer Ray Mosca, showcases jazz -- arguably the most important and original contribution America has made to the history of music. A strongly recommended addition to any jazz enthusiast's personal collection, Still Swingin' lives up to the highest standards of jazz recorded performance and is comprised of All Or Nothing At All (6:41); How High The Moon (7:34); Trane's Blues (6:54); It Never Entered My Mind (6:14); Oleo (3:09); Wildflower (6:07); I Didn't Know What Time It Was (5:03); The Night Is Love (4:31); Without A Song (6:47); From This Moment On (3:00); Bones (7:00); and Savannah Calling (6:03). Total Time: 69:03.

If you don't have this marvelous CD GET IT! My husband is a jazz pianist and I am a cellist and we were both blown away by it. Track after track is a delight and this trio really cooks. One of the highlights is the gorgeous solo piano rendition of It Never Entered My Mind. It is a masterpiece of contrapuntal interplay. There are some up tempo burners with ensemble work that is simply marvelous. As James Moody states in the liner notes "The arrangements are stellar." What is particularly impressive about Longo is that he apparently has a ton of chops but never uses them for the sake of showing them off. His use of space is remarkable in that he seems to state a simple motif at the beginning of a solo and lets a lot of space go by for the bass and drums to shine through and then seems to pick up where he left off and everything which follows is an outgrowth of the original statement. This is the essence of good musical form and a welcome relief after listening to so many recordings that are mere displays of technical prowess with a million notes that have little if any compositional meaning. The CD ends with one of the most soulful renditions of the blues I have ever heard in the haunting James Moody tune Savannah Calling. Longo's tone on the piano is distinctive and his touch is exquisite all the while he is able to come up with this deep pocket of swing while using simple motivic statements. He also shines as a composer on the beautiful bossa nova The Night Is Love. His medium tempo blues Bones is a deep pocket swinger that shifts in and out of tonal centers in an unbelievable seamless manner. The ensemble work is fantastic and Ray Mosca and Ben Brown do a masterful job in the rhythm section. This is one of the all around best trios on the scene today and their CD is a delight. My husband and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes jazz that really swings.

This CD is DEFINITELY swingin' -- full of foot-tappin', body-movin', upliftin' selections from the master-of-his-craft Dizzy desciple Mike Longo. This is one you will play over and over again - and it only gets better. This remains one of my favorite CDs because the depth of swing is so profound that it transports me to a higher plane. It is a favorite for parties or when I am home alone with my thoughts and my 2 cats. If you are a jazz lover, this is a MUST HAVE!!

Longo's latest CD release "Still Swinging" is an absolute joy to listen to. Just a few bars into the trio's medium swing tempo version of "All or Nothing at All" and my foot starts tapping, and the tunes just get more delicious as the CD plays on. The album is a delight, and currently it is living in my CD changer!

I think this is what Longo must have had in mind by the title "Still Swinging" : the joy and groove that come from true swing are like no other. Longo in his liner notes refers to images of audiences dancing in ecstasy to Count Basie' Orchestra in Ken Burns' recent video special. That was a day and age where some of today's so-callled stars would have gotten thrown off stage for not swinging. I hope that day will come back soon!!

To really catch a groove that gets under people's skin and awaken undeniable happiness is something that is taken for granted, but ironically I don't hear that quality on many of today's jazz albums. Longo stands alone among today's pianists in his ability to create interesting arrangements with new harmonies and key changes, drop melodies in unexpected places in the rhythm, and cause a listeners foot to stomp! This "quality" is something that Oscar peterson, Art Tatum and others had. Longo in no way copies what they did, but carries on the great tradition of "how" they did it.

Longo's touch and tone are completely his own, and the interesting places that his melodies fall within the beat are totally new to my ears. So what you are getting is not an "old" concept by any means, but a new one that is fresh and exciting and yes..innovative.

Ben Brown and Ray Mosca get an A+ for their tasty rhythm section work - and you'll chuckle when you hear the bass solo on "Savannah Calling".

So, if you want to feel good, and want to listen to a jazz album that proves that the groove is alive and well, you need to hear of "Still Swingin"! It's the real thing.

Not only is this a prime example of swinging, it represents swing that is produced through natural forces contained in one's touch. This is unlike what I hear with many of today's pianists who are attempting to swing through emotional mimicry. I also found Longo's statements in the liner notes to be delightful in that he seemed to be saying that he has decided, on his CD, to return to a form of jazz that centers on swing and making people feel happy. For me he has succeeded to the utmost degree since I have had this CD on my changer since I bought it and have played it several times now. Each time I hear it I discover new things and if I am feeling down I need but to listen to this CD and I end up in a whole new place. It reminds me of Dizzy Gillespie's music that always seemed like "musical Prozac" to me. If you don't already have it I would highly recommend that you get 2 copies in case you wear the first one out!

I was trying to decide which to buy; The "Mike Longo Detroit Concert" CD or the "Still Swinging" CD. After reading the "Norwood", "Dorwood" (who cares?) review I had to have them both. Mike Longo's playing represents what jazz is about: swinging, the full range of human emotion, depth of jazz theory, gratitude for giants of the past; not to mention that he has integrity, both personal and musical. Anyone chosen by Mr. Longo to work on a CD with him has to be a "heavyweight" just to keep up with him, to call them "incompetant" suggests that the writer does not have the ears for jazz.

I would like to think that Mr. Dorwood would take a few piano lessons before writing another review; Bastien Book 1 would be a good place to begin.

Red H.