Multiple Reviews
Ryan Lee Crosby, Kent Burnside and Garry Burnside: Blues As A Way Of Life
by Doug Collette
The eternal appeal of the blues lies in the attraction it holds to successive generations of musicians and music lovers. And such connections are not necessarily grounded in blood relations, as is the case with Kent and Garry Burnside, but also in the bonds of mentorship as with Ryan Lee Crosby: while there are more than a few breeding grounds for genre seeds, Mississippi's Hill Country and beyond may be the most fertile. Promising durability in these efforts and in ...
Continue ReadingVince Guaraldi’s Charlie Brown: Jazz Impressions and Good Sport
by Mark Sullivan
Everyone knows the Vince Guaraldi soundtrack A Charlie Brown Christmas (Fantasy Records, 1965). However, Guaraldi composed and performed music for many other Peanuts-related projects, two of which have been recently released. They represent the beginning and end of the journey: Jazz Impressions of a Boy Named Charlie Brown was recorded in 1964, one year before the broadcast of A Charlie Brown Christmas; 1975's You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown was the penultimate soundtrack Guaraldi recorded before he died in 1976. ...
Continue ReadingOpa and The Blackbyrds: Coveted 1970s Jazz-Funk
by Mark Sullivan
Opa released only two albums before disbanding in the early 1980s. While neither of their albums found commercial success during their initial releases (despite the high-profile personalities involved), both titles gained underground followings over the following decades. The Blackbyrds' City Life celebrates its golden anniversary. “Happy Music," the dancefloor-ready title track and the group's heavily sampled signature hit, “Rock Creek Park" are the showpieces. The LP re-releases are a gift to DJs and samplers who have had to do serious ...
Continue ReadingGrateful Dead: The Music May Never Stop
by Doug Collette
The keepers of the Grateful Dead vault, overseen by chief archivist David Lemieux, must have been hard pressed to adequately commemorate the sixtieth anniversary of the iconic band's formation. After all, the recognition of the half-century milestone a decade ago found the curators homing right in on the most distinctive aspects of the group's thirty-year history with 30 Trips Around the Sun (Rhino, 2015). In a reflection of the psychedelic warriors' own often inscrutable sense of logic, Lemieux ...
Continue ReadingMatthew Shipp: On The Ascent
by Doug Collette
The simultaneous release of two markedly different efforts documents pianist/composer Matthew Shipp's arguably inevitable ascent into the upper echelons of contemporary jazz. The man's rise to prominence has been inexorable to be sure, but all the more laudable for the slow but steady nature of his journey. As such, the arc of Shipp's career not surprisingly mirrors his musicianship: virtually without exception, playing alone or with others, he invariably takes his time to explore the possibilities of the material as ...
Continue ReadingPhil Haynes: Electricity Incarnate!
by Doug Collette
In the annals of jazz both short-term and long, the influence of drummer-led initiatives is immeasurable. There is Art Blakey and his Jazz Messengers, of course, plus Tony Williams' Lifetime and, in addition, numerous single-minded efforts like these two coincidental releases of Phil Haynes. Each is a largely freewheeling exercise in revisitation gestated during COVID lockdowns: Transition(s) is Haynes' reunion with one-time frequent jam partner guitarist Ben Monder, while Return To Electric constitutes a reprise of earlier excursions into vintage ...
Continue ReadingKory Reeder and John Cage albums on Another Timbre set pulses running
by John Eyles
The two albums below have plenty in common with one another. Both feature compositions by Americans played by Apartment House, a UK-based ensemble who are featured on Another Timbre often enough to be considered the label's house band. The eight Cage compositions heard here were all composed between 1943 and 1951, earlier than Cage's 1952 silent composition 4' 33" which made him notorious across the world. For admirers of Cage's later works such as his number pieces, the selections here ...
Continue ReadingThe Song Poetry of Torhild Ostad and Kazzrie Jaxen
by Jakob Baekgaard
While many singers interpret songs, few elevate them into song poetry--a fusion of lyricism and phrasing that transcends genre. This rare quality emerges when voice, words, and musical interplay coalesce into something greater than the sum of their parts. It is a phenomenon found in the recent albums by Norwegian vocalist Torhild Ostad and pianist-singer Kazzrie Jaxen, each supported by bassists who intuitively tune into the emotional and structural nuances of the music. Torhild Ostad / Carsten ...
Continue ReadingSeveral Worthwhile Releases from the Last Few Months
by Jerome Wilson
Despite what is said about physical media going away, a steady supply of new jazz releases keeps showing up every week. Here are some worthy if underappreciated albums from the first half of 2025. Tobias Meinhart Sonic River Self Produced 2025 “Sonic River" is a good description for what German-born saxophonist Tobias Meinhart and his band do here. Their music flows easily like a river, sweeping folk and classical influences along ...
Continue ReadingOJC Piano Greatness: Thelonious Monk & Bill Evans
by C. Andrew Hovan
Having been a source of quality reissues back when vinyl was still king, it is fitting that the Original Jazz Classics series has returned now that the vinyl renaissance continues to carry on full-force among the music-buying public. Now in its second full year of releases, Craft Recordings continues to mine its impressive back catalog for reissues that cover a good deal of ground while offering quality and value to boot. Thelonious Monk Thelonious Himself
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