Congratulations to Bent River recording artist Kevin Dean for his album Going Down Slow being listed in the top 15 favourite jazz albums of 2021 by CBC Music!
“[Kevin Dean] put together a phenomenally gifted sextet to explore the blues across nine tracks, including six Dean originals. He’s joined in this endeavour by Caoilainn Power (alto saxophone), Gabriel Lambert (guitar), Andrés Vial (piano), Martin Heslop (bass) and Daniel Verdecchia (drums). Dean, who has one of the most attractive trumpet tones going, sounds especially great on “Get Along or Get Along Now,” an energetic boogaloo. Further highlights include the slowly loping “Lonesome Cowboy Blues;” “Can’t Wait to see you Go,” on which the band has fun stretching the tempo; the surprising acoustic guitar on “Down the Dirt Road;” and Heslop’s sign-off when the album comes to a close with the title track.” — RR
Congrats also to all who worked on the album, including the musicians, MacEwan Design student Sohee Kim who created the cover artwork, the Bent River Records (BRR) team, and to Executive Producer Dr. Craig Monk for making projects like this possible.
Purchase or listen to Going Down Slow
Buy it on CD | Buy it on Vinyl
Other albums on the list include Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra’s Twisting Ways, which was mixed by BRR’s Paul Johnston, and Embraceable You by BRR alum Josh Rager.