Hi folks: In one short week, the Quintet will be heading to the lovely Coda Jazz Supper Club in San Francisco for our official CD Release Show, so be sure you hop on the nearest cable car, BART train, hybrid taxi, mass bicycle demonstration, or flash mob, and get yourself there. We'll be doing music from the new album, of course, plus some updated favorites from our previous CD. (I'm also told that since they will be serving food, the under-21 crowd will be welcome as well--although I'm not sure how far under 21.)WHAT: Contextualizin' CD Release ShowWHO: The Ian Carey Quintet, featuring Ian Carey, trumpet & flugelhorn; Adam Shulman, Fender Rhodes piano & Hammond B3 organ; Evan Francis, saxophone & flute; Fred Randolph, bass; and Jon Arkin, drums (+ special guests)WHERE: Coda Jazz Supper Club, 1710 Mission Street, SFWHEN: Wednesday, March 10, 7-9:30pmHOW MUCH: $5I'm also excited to share a review for Contextualizin' from Rachel Swan at our very own East Bay Express:

The album title speaks to some broader point about how Carey wants to tell his own story and create his own landscape (he describes the trumpet as a "discursive" instrument). That's not exactly high-concept, but it definitely befits the material. Of the album's nine tunes, eight are originals, and many have a tricky format... Of course, Carey's band is the real payoff. Arkin is the consummate "good pocket player." Shulman and bassist Fred Randolph help solidify the rhythm section, while Francis and Carey skate through melodies overhead. They're strong enough as a unit to take a weird idea and give it shape — or context.

You can read the entire review here.Other media news: I'll be doing an interview with Brad Stone of KSJS 90.5 FM (San Jose) this Monday the 8th at 3:30pm. (You can listen live here); I also have a "five questions"-type feature this week at All About Jazz ("Take Five with Ian Carey"), where you can learn about my deep thoughts on the state of jazz, my trip to Space Camp, and counting penguins.You'll also notice I've added a few more links at the left for purchasing the album, which is now available at CDBaby, iTunes, Amazon, LaLa, and you can download a free track from the album at All About Jazz.Finally, I'll be playing tomorrow night (3/4) at a community performance space called DivinityVoice in Oakland with an interesting new group featuring the uncanny vocal stylings of Lorin Benedict and the guitar of Eric Vogler (our drummer Bryan Bowman is unfortunately on the disabled list with a finger ouchie, but we wish him a speedy recovery). We'll be playing (definitely) strange and (hopefully) wonderful variations on classic jazz tunes. The details are:WHAT: Lorin, Eric, & IanWHO: Lorin Benedict, vocal; Ian Carey, trumpet & flugelhorn; Eric Vogler, guitarWHERE: DivinityVoice, 3609 Maple Ave, OaklandWHEN: Thursday, March 4, 8pmHOW MUCH: $10

Marc Myers' Jazzwax is one of the great online jazz resources to pop up over the past few years, featuring eye-opening interviews with a wide variety of jazz personalities, from living legends to under-appreciated folks who nevertheless have interesting stories to tell. So it's immensely gratifying to me that Marc chose Contextualizin' as a "Discovery of the Week":

I dig Ian Carey. He's a trumpeter with a clean, clear sound who understands that there are listeners at the other end of recordings. On his new album, you hear Ian's tender sound on the horn and his passion for harmony. Deep down, Ian's a romantic traditionalist, and his reverence for velvet simplicity and heart-touching tones is evident. When the music on this album hits your ear, you want to hear more. It's a strange sensation. All of the songs on the CD except one (Just Friends) were composed by Ian, and all clearly were carefully thought through to maximize warmth and gentle urgency. Fortunately, Ian's quintet is of the same mind... I can't stop playing this CD.

It's also great to hear that Marc will be starting a new book on jazz history from the 40s to the 70s--can't wait to check it out.UPDATE 2/27: A nice brief review from Stanford University's KZSU Radio:

Carey rocks on trumpet and flugelhorn, displaying a crisp technique and warm musicality. All (except for #5) are original compositions, and they showcase his sharp style and the tightness of his band, all of whom get a chance to shine through ample solos.

Contextualizin' is available on CDBaby, iTunes, LaLa, and you can download a free track from the album at All About Jazz.

Hi Folks, Happy New Year to you all! As you'll see in the press release below, the Quintet's new album hits radio & retail in just under a month, which I'm excited about. We still don't have a venue for a CD release show (RIP Anna's), but are following up on several leads, so you'll be the first to know. In the meantime, here's the official press release announcing the new record:

Ian Carey Quintet to Release Second CD, "Contextualizin'," February 16

Band Led by Trumpeter/Composer Ian Carey also Includes Evan Francis, Adam Shulman, Fred Randolph, & Jon Arkin

January 21, 2010

Ian Carey's 2006 debut, SINK/SWIM, drew some critical attention to the Oakland-based trumpeter's original music and forward-thinking quintet, but his new recording, Contextualizin', is sure to turn heads in the direction of this gifted jazz trumpeter/composer. The new CD will be released by Carey's Kabocha Records imprint on February 16.

"Sometime when I was in my twenties," says Carey, now 35, "I realized that there are so many great, amazing players out there that the context in which I do what I'm doing is going to be how I differentiate myself, and for me that's writing my own tunes and doing my own things within them."

Carey's striking compositions--and one standard, "Just Friends"--are performed by the tight group of improvisers with whom he recorded SINK/SWIM (also on Kabocha) and has frequently worked in Bay Area club settings for the last six years. Saxophonist and flutist Evan Francis is his fiery front-line partner; Adam Shulman switches between piano and Fender Rhodes (playing with "understated virtuosity," in the leader's words); bassist Fred Randolph and drummer Jon Arkin ground and propel the music.

In the CD notes, Carey describes his realization that "What I played would help shape how I played (and vice versa, as it turned out). A song could be a story in itself, or a vehicle to inspire improvisational storytelling. (And sometimes, when everything is happening just right, it can be both.)"

The dropped "g" in the CD's title, Carey adds, "is a play on the high-concept, analytical stuff that people come up with to talk about their music." But when it comes to the music itself, Carey "asks deep musical questions," says composer/educator Bill Kirchner, "and comes up with compelling answers."

Born and raised in a musical family in Binghamton, New York, Ian Carey moved with his family to Folsom, California (near Sacramento) in time for high school, where he was inspired to begin studying jazz trumpet seriously. He studied classical trumpet for two years at the University of Nevada in Reno (also performing with the Reno Philharmonic), then enrolled in the New School in New York City and earned a B.A. in Jazz and Contemporary Music.

At the New School Ian studied trumpet with Cecil Bridgewater, Vincent Penzarella, and Charles Tolliver and composition with Bill Kirchner and Maria Schneider, as well as taking small group classes with Joanne Brackeen, Andrew Cyrille, Billy Harper, and Reggie Workman. He also performed with the likes of Eddie Bert, Rory Stuart, and Ravi Coltrane, and at venues such as the Blue Note and Smalls. Carey led his own Brooklyn-based quartet for several years before moving to San Francisco in 2001.

In addition to leading the quintet heard on Contextualizin', Carey has played around the Bay Area with the Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, 8 Legged Monster, the Realistic Orchestra, vocalist Betty Fu, and pianists Ben Stolorow and the late B.J. Papa. His main focus, however, has been on composing and performing original music with the quintet. In his CD booklet notes, Carey recalls a meeting with the saxophonist Steve Lacy in which Lacy observed that the trumpet "is a discursive instrument -- you know, it tells a story." With those words in mind, Ian Carey aims to say something with his music. He aims to tell stories.

Media Contact: Terri Hinte
www.terrihinte.com

My CD, Sink/Swim, received a nice mention this weekend on a newish jazz blog called Jazzwax:

Seventies spirit—Ian Carey, who plays trumpet and flugelhorn, sent along a CD he recorded in 2005. It has a rich, introspective 1970s feel—especially with Adam Shulman on the Fender Rhodes piano.

Carey, who knows his jazz history, plays a warm horn with a Freddie Hubbard feel and is backed by Evan Francis (saxophones), Shulman (electric piano), Fred Randolph (bass) and Jon Arkin (drums). Many of the compositions and arrangements are by Carey, and the CD includes tight interpretations of Wayne Shorter's ESP and Herbie Nichols' The Spinning Song.

Jazzwax is written by New York's Marc Myers, and regularly features interesting thoughts on classic jazz (including a great series last week on the under-appreciated saxophonist Hal McKusick). I especially like that it reminds me of recordings I'd forgotten about, and supplements them with possibilities for further exploration. I don't get to talk and think about classic records nearly as much as I did back in my school days, so it's good to have a regular place to get back in the spirit.

(And incidentally, I'll take being mentioned in a sentence with Freddie Hubbard any day.)

First of all, thanks to everyone who came out to last week's shows. We had a great time performing at Anna's in Berkeley—had a good crowd, sold some CDs, ate some carnitas tacos—which was only slightly marred by accidentally leaving our car in the garage past the midnight deadline. (No harm done, though—Linda heroically got up early and rode the BART over to retrieve it the next morning.)

We also enjoyed our Friday show at the Parc 55 in the city (those of you who made it out got to witness my debut on my recently-acquired vintage cornet—something you can tell your grandkids about, I'm sure). We were filling in for the excellent vocalist Betty Fu, who performs there on a weekly basis, and with any luck she may call on us again.

Saturday evening brought a performance at a wedding with the great Mitch Marcus and his big band, which featured the amazing spectacle of old ladies in their best formal finery dancing happily to a 7/4 funk groove (with a 15/8 feel superimposed). God bless San Francisco.

Finally, I wanted to mention that Justin Freitas of the Berkeley Daily Planet wrote an in-depth profile of myself and the quintet, which appeared in last week's edition of the paper. Here's a sample:

When Oakland-based jazz trumpeter Ian Carey was about 14 years old, he experienced something of a revelation. While he was growing up in upstate New York, his family attended church regularly, all singing in the choir. But when they moved back to Folsom, Calif., just east of Sacramento, Carey’s father searched the area in vain for a suitable church with a strong choir. Churches were plenty but choirs were not, and when he couldn’t find one he liked the family’s church-going days were over.

"I had always thought that we were a religious family," Carey says, "but once we got to California I found out we were really a musical family."

Thus one muse was replaced with another and a life-long obsession was born.

For the full article, click here.

That's all for now—hope to have more gig announcements soon.

For those of you who were unable to catch my radio interview last Friday, you can hear it at the link below in its entirety (except for the album cuts, which are of course available on the album). (However, it does include my very impromptu solo rendition of "Body and Soul," a.k.a. "The Man Who Didn't Warm Up").

Chris Cortez did a great job steering the conversation in interesting directions and making me sound like a decent public speaker--we covered a lot of ground, talking about the history of the Quintet, my background and influences, and the trials and tribulations of playing the trumpet and finding places to perform jazz. (Bonus points for finding where I use the word "fabulous.")

Enjoy, and I hope to see you at the Octavia this Saturday night!

• Ian Carey Interview (34:55, 40 MB); with Chris Cortez, KCSM 91.1 FM, June 30, 2006.