Monday morning standouts:
WSIE 88.7 FM
- Second Balcony Jump-Dexter Gordon (Gordon's tenor sax playing, in conjunction with the rhythm section's steady energy, sustains the bounce in this rhythm's step for seven minutes.)
KCLC 89.1 FM
- Cherry Tree-Lera Lynn (This type of acoustic guitar accompaniment flatters Lynn's alto voice well, and this May release has refreshingly candid lyrics questioning whether one has made the right choices in life.)
KWUR 90.3 FM
- Clouds-Lucy Gooch (This May release uses cloud formations as a metaphor for resetting one's life and being open to new connections. It's indie dream pop that's not far removed from new age music in its vocals and instrumentation.)
- Sacer Profanare-Kali Malone (Sinister-sounding organ, suitable for Halloween.)
K297BI 107.3 FM, a.k.a. WFUN-HD2
- William Schuman: New England Triptych: II. When Jesus Wept (St. Louis Symphony Orchestra/Leonard Slatkin, conductor) (Ordinarily, the third movement is my default choice. I haven't given this quieter, sorrowful movement its due, particularly when the strings rise up forcefully at the 6:04 mark. This middle movement establishes a downcast mood almost as effectively as Samuel Barber's Adagio For Strings.)
- John Williams: A Hymn To New England (Boston Pops Orchestra/John Williams, conductor) (Mighty brass and lush strings coalesce majestically here.)
