Jon Cleary & The Absolute Monster Gentlemen

After thirty-five years of being at the forefront of the ever-evolving musical landscape of New Orleans, Grammy Award winner Jon Cleary decided to bring that sound back home, both figuratively and literally. He assembled his Absolute Monster Gentlemen (his acclaimed all-star big band) in his home studio in the Bywater neighborhood of New Orleans, drew up a setlist of some of his most beloved songs and some new favorites and rolled tape.We set out to capture that sound in the old-fashioned way: everybody in the room, playing together, Cleary explains.The result is The Bywater Sessions, a musical tour-de-force that showcases the grit, funk and joy thats packed concert halls from New Orleans to Tokyo and beyond. Co-produced by Cleary and John Porter (Roxy Music, The Smiths, Taj Mahal), its a stunning collection of performances that affirms Clearys place in the New Orleans musical vanguard.Theres a lot to be said for the lean and mean sound of a piano trio, stripped down to basics, simple and direct, Cleary says. But recently, Ive been experimenting with different combinations; adding horns, guitar, percussion and even another keyboard player. This expanded line-up has allowed the arrangements to blossom in new directions.As for the musicians, its the best of the best. Long time Monster Gentlemen Cornell Williams and A.J. Hall anchor the band on bass and drums, respectively. They are joined by Nigel Hall (Lettuce) on Hammond organ, Pedro Segundo (Ronnie Scotts All Stars) on percu