Trumpeter Charlie Sepúlveda has made quite a name for himself over the years championing the progression of the Latin jazz art form, not looking back, but ever pressing forward with creativity and vitality. His 2003 release, Feeling Good Again, takes turns both pushing the limits and celebrating the style's history. With compositions like the blues-cha cha "Home Cooking" and the smooth jazz title track, Sepúlveda takes a look at his roots for the first time in his recording career. With renditions of Hilton Ruiz's "New Arrival" and the dark, churning rhumba "Caribeño," he maintains his reputation as a bandleader most at home on the cutting edge. New and talented players like conguero Paoli Mejias and saxophonist Ricardo Pons add visceral punch to Sepúlveda's tight, expressive band sound. Feeling Good Again is perhaps a more balanced record than previous efforts, in which Sepúlveda had a more cohesive, focused stylistic envelope to push. Offering both laid-back, mature musicality and aggressive, hard-line intensity, Sepulveda seems to be casting his net wider than ever before. Charlie Sepúlveda has always flown slightly below the radar of big commercial success. This new broad focus just might change all that. ~ Evan C. Gutierrez, AMG.
Metrix Music\Universal Latino,
246 550 302-2, 2003
Recorded at Cuatro Sound, San
Juan, Puerto Rico
Musicians:
Charlie Sepulveda - Trumpet,
Flugelhorn
Ricardo Pons - Clarinet,
Saxophone
Ismael Rodriguez - Piano
Gabriel Rodriguez - Bass
Leovadis Gonzalez - Drums
Paoli Mejias - Percussion
Guests:
Juancito Torres - Flugelhorn
(#4,6,9)
Candido Reyes - Guiro (#6)
Pedro Guzman - Cuatro (#7)
Julia Piñero - Vocals (#7)
Tracks:
01. Home Cooking {Hilton
Ruiz} (5:12)
02. Feeling Good Again
{Charlie Sepúlveda} (4:36)
03. New Arrival {Hilton Ruiz}
(3:55)
04. Cachita {Rafael
Hernandez} (4:51)
05. Caribeño {Gabriel
Rodriguez} (5:28)
06. Morelania {Ricardo Pons}
(2:44)
07. Just For You {Charlie
Sepúlveda} (6:42)
08. Kiss Me Right {Horace
Silver} (4:53)
09. Cachita [Extended]
{Rafael Hernandez} (7:32)
10. New Arrival [Extended]
{Hilton Ruiz} (7:12)
Total Time: 53:05
Credits:
Producer - Charlie Sepúlveda
Engineer - Alfredo Hurtado
Mastering - José Lugo
