With tools like iTunes, Pandora and Spotify putting a dent in old-school radio’s influence, our digital and internet age has made the discovery of new music more accessible than ever, but given us much more through which to sift without filter. It can be tricky to find new stuff that really matters. One of my favorite discerning resources for what’s new is the All Songs Considered podcast, ably hosted by gurus Bob Boilen and Robin Hilton. The most recent episode showcased the forthcoming record from Bryan Ferry: The Jazz Age.
Marking his fifth decade in music, the Roxy Music founding member and frontman has re-recorded some of his greatest songs with a jazz orchestra called… wait for it… The Bryan Ferry Jazz Orchestra. The song list includes instrumental reinterpretations of some of our Roxy/Bryan favorites, going all the way back to the 1972 debut album Roxy Music:
Do The Strand
Love Is The Drug
Don’t Stop The Dance
Just Like You
Avalon
The Bogus Man
Slave To Love
This Is Tomorrow
The Only Face
I Thought
Reason Or Rhyme
Virginia Plain
This Island Earth
Personally, I can’t wait to hear what “Love Is The Drug” sounds like with a jazz arrangement.
Below is Bryan Ferry’s Soundcloud playlist for The Jazz Age, including a couple of tracks, a BBC interview and a BBC Live recording of “Don’t Stop the Dance.”
In the blizzard of new stuff barking for our attention, The Jazz Age looks like one of the few that actually matters. I’m really looking forward to hearing all of it.
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