Jazz Articles

Mika Pohjola, Dan Loomis, Kyle Struve: Trio Hour

by Chris Mosey
September 15, 2013

Mika Pohjola is a man of many talents. He runs the New York-based Blue Music Group--"the small label with big music." He has collaborated on albums of religious and traditional Finnish, Swedish music, given classical recitals, accompanied vocalists Jill Walsh and Johanna Grüssner and gigged with diverse jazz aggregations. It would be a shame if any of this got in the way of his achievement with this album, which presents him with a chance to stand up ...

Erroll Garner: Early In Paris

by Warren Allen
January 21, 2010

Erroll Garner was one of the savants of jazz who helped define the sound and style of his instrument without ever learning to read music. His brilliance rested in a unique ear, from which he developed a personal and indisputably beautiful approach to the piano that spun beautiful, romantic statements and spontaneous adventures from his own tunes and the songs of the American Songbook. It is telling, that in a modern jazz world dominated by virtuosi, Garner remains as unduplicated ...

Terry Clarke: It's About Time

by Jerry D'Souza
December 26, 2009

Drummer Terry Clarke has had a long and illustrious career. Born in Vancouver, Canada, Clarke moved to San Francisco in 1965 to play with John Handy III. Jazz at the time was not an all-encompassing passion, and when the opportunity to play with pop vocal group The Fifth Dimension came about, he took it. Five years later in 1970, he moved to Toronto. From then on he has been a ubiquitous presence on over 400 recordings, playing with the likes ...

Mika Pohjola: Northern Sunrise

by Warren Allen
September 18, 2009

With Northern Sunrise, pianist Mika Pohjola steps into the space between old and new worlds. Close attention reveals a diverse range of influences here, from the worlds of Baroque and the avant-garde, to old school bop and '70s rock-fusion. There's a little solo piano, some trio arrangements, and wonderful quintet explorations. But what makes this perhaps one of the best of 2009 is that it is jazz that truly captures the emotion, refinement, and power of great classical music.

For ...

Fernando Huergo: Living These Times

by John Barron
July 8, 2009

Bassist Fernando Huergo mixes Afro-Cuban, Brazilian and mainstream jazz grooves on Living These Times, an energetic collection of original music for the East Coast-based Blue Music Group label. The Argentinean-native is aided by an outstanding cast of musical companions, including vocalist Luciana Souza, flutist Anders Bostrom and pianist Alan Mallet. With the amount of bass solos heard throughout the recording, there's no mistaking this is a bassist's project. As a soloist, Huergo is exceptional, demonstrating horn-like flourishes on ...

Marta Gomez: Musiquita

by Reid Jagger
March 21, 2009

On her fifth album, Musiquita, Columbian singer/songwriter Marta Gómez again showcases the tender and joyful style for which this gifted young artist has become known. In fourteen original songs, Gómez embarks on a rhythmical tour of the Spanish-speaking world. Some of the rhythms featured on the album include the Bolivian cumbia and aguabejo rhythms, the Peruvian el festejo, Bolivia's carnavalito and the zamba of Argentina.

Her tight core rhythm section of Franco Pinna on drums and Fernando Huergo ...