Jack Perla - Enormous Changes (2015)

Following recent commissions from the Opera companies of Los Angeles, St. Louis and Seattle, composer & pianist Jack Perla decided here to step out in an entirely different direction. Gathering top Bay-area and NY R&B, jazz and indie-rock musicians, Perla guides them through 14 of his modern original songs. Life changes of his past few years are reflected in the sinister funk of "Swimming Upstream," or the haunting "Lilacs," with the distinctive and powerful voices of Jordan Carp, Crystal Monee Hall, and Robin Coomer featured throughout.

Beginning in New York with his group Music Without Walls, with violinist Mark Feldman and woodwindist Marty Ehrlich, and later in his present home-base of San Francisco, Perla has steadily forged a reputation for his cross-fertilization of jazz and classical music. His operas and instrumental compositions have been widely performed, and he's toured the U.S., Europe and Japan performing jazz and world music. "…a composer of great vision." - East Bay Express

Tracklist:
01. Enormous Changes (5:17)
02. The World (3:32)
03. Swimming Upstream (4:04)
04. Mighty Erudite (4:36)
05. The Unknowing (3:43)
06. Memorial Day (4:41)
07. Spaghetti Western (1:46)
08. House Of Straw (3:38)
09. Falling (3:50)
10. Things I Love (3:29)
11. Lilacs (3:57)
12. We Would Fall (3:27)
13. Secret Agent Man (3:09)
14. The Blue Lights (1:48)

Personnel:

Jack Perla - Piano, Accordion, Electric Piano
Crystal Monee Hall - Voice
Jordan Carp - Voice
Robin Coomer - Voice
Gawain Matthews - Guitars, Electric Bass (11)
David Arend - Upright Bass
Jason Slota - Drums, Percussion
Sam Bass - Cello
David Phillips - Pedal Steel