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The Scott Silbert Quartet: Dream Dancing
by Jack Bowers
The year 2025 marks the centenary of the birth of John Haley Sims, known around the world by his singular nickname, Zoot, a colossus of the saxophone who left this world far too soon in March 1985. Yet even though Zoot's physical presence is absent, his insuperable spirit lives on via Dream Dancing, a marvelous tribute by saxophonist and Sims enthusiast Scott Silbert and his masterful quartet.While there is no debating that there was only one Zoot Sims, ...
Continue ReadingThe DIVA Jazz Orchestra: Tappin' Thru Life
by Jack Bowers
Tappin' Thru Life is more than the title of a jazz album; it is a philosophy, one that guided Maurice Hines through most of his 80 years and all of his epic career as an acclaimed tap dancer and entertainer. The album is based on Hines' autobiographical stage show of that name whose music director, drummer par excellence Sherrie Maricle, is also a co-founder and leader of The DIVA Jazz Orchestra, a renowned all-woman ensemble. After Hines' ...
Continue ReadingLeigh Pilzer: Beatin' the Odds
by Jack Bowers
Beatin' the Odds. To baritone saxophonist Leigh Pilzer, that is far more than a catchphrase: it is a grim yet ultimately happy reality. In 2017, Pilzer was diagnosed with cancer. After extensive treatments, her odds of surviving more than five years were reckoned as around thirty percent. But six years have gone by, and not only has Pilzer beaten the odds, she is cancer-free, back in the saddle and performing again. And not only performing but writing ...
Continue Reading3D Jazz Trio: 9 to 5
by Dan Bilawsky
One can't help but learn about the meaning of style and sophistication from the 3D Jazz Trio. Since the release of its debut--3Divas (Self-Produced, 2017)--pianist Jackie Warren, bassist Amy Shook and drummer Sherrie Maricle have proven to be a collective paragon of taste. Whether swinging for the fences, setting scenes ablaze in Latin quarters, captivating with balladic charms or taking playfulness to new peaks, this band is always a model for musicality. On this, the group's third ...
Continue ReadingIan Wardenski: Trust
by Geannine Reid
Ian Wardenski's Quintet returns with a follow-up to Collective Thoughts (IW, 2019). The innovative bandleader and guitarist continues to create a sound that combines the aesthetics of a chamber group with the freedom, spontaneity and improvisation of a small jazz combo. Trust features Mercedes Beckman on alto saxophone, Jerry Ascione, piano, Amy Shook, bass, Frank Russo, drums, and Tamara Tucker, voice. Wardenski furthers his collective sound by combining Tucker's agile wordless vocals with his guitar for a distinctive ...
Continue ReadingThe Scott Silbert Big Band: Jump Children
by Jack Bowers
The best music, in jazz or any other genre, is and should be timeless. To prove the point, the Scott Silbert Big Band celebrates the songs of a bygone era on its debut album, Jump Children, refreshing a number of memorable themes from the '30s, '40s and '50s and underscoring their relevance in an ultra-modern twenty-first century environment. His goal, Silbert writes, was “to represent the fantastic musicianship of the artists [who] originally performed these works," venerated masters such as ...
Continue Reading3D Jazz Trio: Christmas in 3D
by Dan Bilawsky
Still riding high on the release of I Love To See You Smile (Diva Jazz, 2020), the 3D Jazz Trio drops in again to ring in the holiday season. And while it's true that 2020 hasn't left us with much to celebrate, a chance to sit back and reflect while basking in the glow of some joyful jazz is one thing worth raising a glass of eggnog to. Leaning on familiar favorites with personalized twists, 3D immediately ...
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