Trumpeter Wynton Marsalis has launched the second leg of his world tour and Columbia Records has just released his three-volume series, "Soul Gestures in Southern Blue."
Meanwhile, his previous release, "Standard Time Vol 2: Intimacy Calling," has gone to the top of Billboard's Traditional Jazz chart.The first leg of the tour, held at the University of California at Berkeley's Zellerbach Hall, was a rousing critical success. The second leg of the tour, which kicked off in San Antonio, Texas, will cover the United States, Brazil and France.
In addition to an engagement at the Village Vanguard, Marsalis and his Jazz Band will play selected dates at various summer jazz festivals.
His three new albums, "Thick in the South," "Uptown Ruler" and "Levee Low Moan," offer an evocative slice of the rich history interwoven in the fabric of Southern blues and jazz.