Free download of the month:
This month's Free MP3 of the Month is “What Child is This?”, recorded by Mark in 2010 for a Christmas album to benefit the food bank. He recorded another volume in 2011 with even more musicians. The project raised several thousand dollars for area food banks, mostly the Bremerton Foodline since that's where he was performing the most at the time. "What Child is This?" features Rhonda on Celtic Harp and Mark on flute and more.
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Still up from last month: "Leaving Fall Behind," the first time it was ever recorded, live in a beautiful concert hall in Delft, the Netherlands in 1991. Mark Lewis is on flute, Willem Kühne on piano, James Long on bass, Frans van Grinsven on drums. This is one of the files we retrieved from the brilliant engineer Ron Konings on a trip to the Netherlands last year. Thank you, Ron, for taking such good care of the music you recorded over the years!
In 1991, when news that jazz icon Miles Davis had died reached Mark in Holland, he wrote this song as a tribute. It's been played numerous times since then, and it's been recorded multiple times. It's even on Mark's new album "Sunlight Shines In" (with Nolan Shaheed on trumpet, Ron Kobayashi on piano, Baba Elefante on bass, Steve Dixon on drums). But this is the first time it was performed and the first time it was recorded. You can hear the moving solos Mark, Willem and James played directly to the beloved and newly departed Miles Davis.
The title "Leaving Fall Behind" speaks to the fact that Miles Davis died in the fall, while also giving a nod to the song "Fall" that was written by saxophonist Wayne Shorter and recorded on Miles Davis's "Nefertiti" album.
new release
Sunlight Shines In Album Reviews
“superb original works … wonderful, flowing and joyful” – Chris Lunn, Ancient Victorys Newsletter
"showcases Lewis’ skill as a composer and his ability to handle all three of his instruments with aplomb.” – Jim Hynes, Making a Scene
2021 release
Selected in the Cadence Top 10 Critics Poll for 2021
“Paul Desmond cool, deliciously bluesy” – George W. Harris, Jazz Weekly
" A distinctive original" – Paul de Barros, Earshot Jazz
“an innate lyrical bent that makes one think of what Art Pepper might be sounding like if he was still with us” – Larry Hollis, Cadence Magazine
“I feel like I’m getting transported to a whole other auditory universe.” –Joe Dimino, Neon Jazz
“original music … lyrical and beautiful … very fine album.” – Dr. Debra Jan Bibel
