Only July 19, acclaimed vocalist and Django favorite Richard Cortez released “Old Black Magic,” the first single from his debut jazz album “Mood Swings,” due out later this year via La Reserve.

 

In the company of rising jazz greats like Nicole Glover (tenor saxophone), James Sarno (trumpet), and Marius Van den Brink (piano), Cortez soars over the fabled Harold Arlen/Johnny Mercer standard, deftly making it his own. “Harold Arlen is one of my favorite composers,” Cortez says of his new single. “ He has such an interesting way of taking you through a song with sudden harmonic changes and turns that surprise you.  It’s a real thrill and challenge to interpret his work.”

 

And who did he look to for inspiration when finding his way through the storied song? “This song in particular hit me when I heard the live Ella Fitzgerald recordings. You can hear a little bit of her “isms” on the track.  She definitely inspired my choosing to do this one! ”

 

“Mood Swings” offers a taste of the setlist Cortez and his septet developed performing in NYC at Alan Cumming’s Club Cumming during the pandemic. The Richard Cortez Band was the only ensemble of its size performing live in NYC during the spring of 2021, and featured all-star players such as Emmet Cohen, Julius Rodriguez and many others.

 

In 2019, Cortez founded the Club’s weekly jazz jam, which is currently the only jazz jam hosted in a queer bar in the entire United States.  He is at the forefront of making jazz more inclusive and creating space for the LGBTQIA+ community within the music. Catch  the Richard Cortez Band back at The Django on Saturday, July 27th with two sizzling sets at 10:30PM and Midnite. RESERVE your tables now!