Michael Blum, DownBeat Magazine’s 2015 “Rising Star” guitarist, made a strong impression in 2014 with his debut recording, "Initiation," an excellent quartet set that included his mentor, Jim Stinnett, on bass. "Commitment," a major step forward for the young guitarist, shines the spotlight on the Blum-Stinnett musical partnership, with guest appearances by pianist Brad Smith, tenor saxophonist Fred Haas and bass guitarist Grant Stinnett. Michael was born and raised in Great Neck, NY. His father, a trained classical guitarist, was his first music teacher. “I started playing classical guitar when I was 7,” Michael recalls. “My father also studied bass with Jim for quite a while. About 2½ years ago, he invited Jim to visit us on Long Island. We met, Jim asked me to play for him, and I was soon making a weekly 150-mile trip to study with him. Jim inspired me to master my instrument.” While Jim is an influential educator who has taught at the Berklee College of Music for 30 years and has an online school, he is also a skilled bassist who has worked with Phineas Newborn, Jr., Red Garland, Ernestine Anderson, Buddy DeFranco, Tal Farlow and John LaPorta. He has also produced more than 25 CDs, including this one. “I love teaching, particularly when I have students on Michael’s level,” he says. “Seeing students reap the benefits of the work they’ve done is very rewarding. While I’ve had many talented students, none have immersed themselves into transcribing and mastering the brilliant musicians they’ve studied as deeply as Michael has.” "Commitment" is particularly notable in that it features Michael as both guitarist and singer. “I’ve been singing all my life—in school choirs, a cappella groups and theater productions,” Michael says. “My mother is a singer, and my father is a guitarist, so I was either singing or playing guitar throughout my childhood. Until recently, I focused all of my energies on studying guitar, and I had not envisioned myself singing on a recording. When I began learning the jazz standards from the recordings of Billie Holiday, Nat ‘King’ Cole, and Tony Bennett, I fell in love with the expression and subtlety with which they sang. Their articulation, phrasing and, most of all, the lyrics inspired me to make singing a part of my performance.” “I knew that he sang well,” adds Jim, “but after I heard him sing during a couple of lessons, I knew that we had to feature his vocals on a CD.” "Commitment" begins with a vocal feature on “Pick Yourself Up.” Michael’s singing, inspired by Nat “King” Cole, is friendly and appealing. “We were originally going to play ‘Here’s That Rainy Day’ as an instrumental,” Jim says, “but after Michael sang it one day, we changed it into a vocal feature." Michael sounds particularly effective in the first chorus, singing while accompanied solely by Jim’s bass. Jim’s original “Dark Snow,” reminiscent of one of the themes from John Lewis’ “Django,” sets a mysterious mood and features excellent interplay by the duo. Michael’s “Houston” has attractive chord changes and a particularly inventive improvisation by the guitarist, along with fine tenor playing by Fred Haas. The musicians get to stretch out on a rapid version of Charlie Parker’s “Kim.” Jim’s son Grant Stinnett was added on electric bass and, at one point, he and Michael play Parker’s recorded solo in unison. On his fine vocal of Irving Berlin’s “How Deep Is the Ocean,” Michael displays phrasing a little reminiscent of Frank Sinatra’s, although he sings very much in his own voice. Jim’s lyrical original “Redwood” is a modern bossa nova in which the duo is joined by pianist Smith. Michael takes his final vocal of the program on a swinging version of “Like Someone in Love,” which also includes an excellent tenor solo by Haas. Jim wrote “Stutter Step” specifically for the CD. It’s a tricky song that hints both musically and in its title at John Coltrane’s “Giant Steps,” while maintaining its own personality. "Commitment" concludes with an up-tempo duet version of Coltrane’s “Mr. P.C.” that has some blazing solos. “Jim and I are already planning future albums, including a quartet tribute to Oscar Peterson, a fusion project and a tribute to Wes Montgomery,” Michael says. "Commitment," titled to reflect the guitarist’s dedication to developing his own voice within the jazz tradition, is an important second chapter in Michael’s evolution. – Scott Yanow