Jazz Articles about Jazz underGround

Jazz Underground: Live at Smalls

by Robert Spencer
April 1, 1998

From the faux chic cover and the name “the Jazz Underground" I expected this either to be another tired smooth jazz / funk record, or an exploration of today's avant-garde. It is neither. Instead, this is mainstream jazz played with energy and verve.

The Jazz Underground is not a group, but an interlocking series of groups who performed these tracks at Smalls in New York City between July 3 and 6, 1997. Bassist Omer Avital, for example, appears with his ...