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Syndicated radio host Jim Wilke has released his annual list of "Top Northwest Jazz CDs," and two of the eight feature Bill: "Figments" (solo piano) and "Humble Origins" (Wellstone Conspiracy).
Thanks to Jim for the recognition and for his selfless work on behalf of Northwest jazz.
Wellstone Conspiracy (Bill joined by saxophonist Brent Jensen, bassist Jeff Johnson and drummer John Bishop), has just released its third CD. The disc includes five of Bill's original compositions, as well as two by Jeff and one by Brent, plus Bill's arrangement of the Beatle's "Fixing a Hole." That cut, along with Bill's "Pause Off," were featured as bumper music on NPR's Morning Edition program. For your listening pleasure, here they are:
Pause Off
Fixing a Hole
"Humble Origins" reached number 16 on the national jazz radio airplay chart.
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Bill had the good fortune to have his new solo CD reviewed in JazzTimes by the always eloquent Thomas Conrad; you can read the piece here,
Meanwhile, Adam Greenberg at allmusic.com describes the project as "an excellent set."
And "Desperado" from the disc was played in a JazzTimes blindfold test for for pianist Jason Moran (Kennedy Center artistic director and MacArthur Foundation "Genius Grant" recipient, who said:
This is a studied pianist—studied like... he’s not bullshitting. [laughs]... I enjoyed that. That’s bad!
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Bill's first solo piano CD, released in early April on Origin Records, is now piled up in boxes clogging the arteries of his house. It's a self-recorded project, captured late at night after gigs, when his internal supervisor had already clocked out. Those sessions yielded twelve abstract, stream-of-consciousness vignettes. Six are standards; six are pop tunes from the 70s (Anschell's guilty pleasure), recognizable but thoroughly reworked. Six are ballads, and six are (quirky) uptempo tunes, one of which -- Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" -- is recorded on prepared piano (i.e., every loose object in Anschell's home studio thrown inside the piano).
The CD cover features original artwork by legendary illustrator Oscar Grillot.
Navigate to the "CDs" page to hear excerpts of all twelve tracks, read some really nice reviews, and -- if you're interested -- order a copy via Paypal. Or, if you're the old-fashioned type, you can send a check for $15 to Bill at 20151 7th Ave. NE, Shoreline, WA 98155.
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The ballots are counted, and Bill has been named "Northwest Jazz Instrumentalist of the Year" for 2010. The awards are administered
by Earshot Jazz in Seattle, and determined by open voting in Seattle and beyond.
Bill was previously voted "Northwest Jazz Instrumentalist of the Year" in 2005, and his trio was named "Northwest Acoustic Jazz Ensemble of the Year" in 2006.
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Bill's "Careers in Jazz" story was the most-read piece in 2009 on leading jazz website www.allaboutjazz.com. It garnered more than 40,000 reads (the editor stopped keeping count) and generated unanticipated controversy, with subsequent postings on countless other jazz websites and a viral email presence. Humorous or slanderous? Click on the "Stories" tab to read it and decide for yourself.
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