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The Nimmons Tribute: Volume 2--Generational
by Jack Bowers
If you live in Canada and are not familiar with the name Phil Nimmons, you probably have not been paying close enough attention. Nimmons, who surpassed the century mark in June 2023, is often referred to as the “Dean of Canadian Jazz," and listing his many accomplishments and awards would require far more space than is ordinarily set aside for a complete review. Suffice to say that Nimmons has been active as a composer, arranger, performer and educator longer than ...
read moreThe Nimmons Tribute: Volume 2 - Generational
by John Chacona
Anyone who listened to Canadian radio after the adoption of the so-called Canadian Content requirement in the '70s probably heard a lot of Phil Nimmons' music. To be sure, the clarinetist, composer and arranger had achieved some recognition south of the 49th parallel through his RCA recordings of the '50s but, by choosing to base his career in jny: Toronto, he became a living symbol of Canadian jazz. When the nation celebrated the 100th anniversary of Confederation in 1967, Nimmons ...
read moreNoam Lemish: Twelve
by Jack Bowers
The number Twelve has several explicit meanings on Israeli-born composer/pianist Noam Lemish's eighth album as leader of his own ensemble, which is twelve members strong (well, thirteen on the first two numbers, on which Laura Swankey adds wordless vocals, and twenty-five if one counts the thirteen-member chorus on Track 3). Returning to the basic premise, Lemish composed his first piece of music at age twelve, and it has been twelve years since he relocated from San Francisco to Toronto, Canada. ...
read moreCarn Davidson 9: The History of Us
by Jack Bowers
From north of the U.S. border comes The History of Us, a warm-hearted album by the Carn Davidson 9, a Toronto-based nonet co-led by trombonist William Carn and saxophonist Tara Davidson. The album consists of a pair of three-part suites, one by Carn, the other by Davidson, separated by Carn's amiable composition, “Goodbye Old Friend," a fond salute to his late and dearly loved cat, Murphy. Carn's “Finding Home" suite, which leads things off, was inspired by ...
read moreThe Nimmons Tribute: Volume 1 - To The Nth
by Edward Blanco
The Nimmons Tribute is a small Canadian ensemble dedicated to honoring the living legacy of Phil Nimmons a clarinetist, composer and band leader who, in 2020, was 97-years-old and acknowledged as having done more than anyone else in bringing jazz to the mainstream of Canadian culture. A living legend, active for more than six decades, this “Dean of Canadian jazz" is a multiple JUNO Award-winning artist and recipient of the Order of Canada (O.C.) and Order of Ontario (O. Ont.), ...
read moreThe Nimmons Tribute: Volume 1 - To The Nth
by Jack Bowers
The big news in Canadian jazz circles in 2019 was that musician and educator Phil Nimmons had retired—at age ninety-six. His decision marked the end of several eras that began more than seventy years ago and included forty-six years as a music teacher at the University of Toronto, ten acclaimed recordings as leader of his own groups, numerous honors as an educator and musician, a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005 from the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of ...
read moreDave Young Quartet: Ides Of March
by Mark Corroto
Maybe the finest compliment you can bestow on an individual in our COVID-19 times is that he/she is a solid citizen, someone who takes it upon themselves to protect others from the dangers of this horrible virus. What does this have to do with the music of bassist/bandleader Dave Young? First, it is fundamental that all great jazz is built upon the foundation of a timekeeping bassist. Second, as evidenced by Young's Ides Of March, his solid hand upon the ...
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