Jazz Articles

Big Joe & The Dynaflows: Rockhouse Party

by Jim Trageser
March 27, 2019

Big Joe Maher, a veritable institution in our nation's capitol, has been active in Washington's jazz and blues scene since the 1980s, when he put together his own combo and also began drumming for former Powerhouse guitarist Tom Principato's blues band. But it wasn't until he recorded his own debut, “Good Rockin' Daddy," in 1989 that fans outside the D.C. beltway discovered that he was nearly as powerful a vocalist as fellow D.C. singer George Leh, who fronted ...

Kim Wilson: Blues and Boogie Vol. 1

by Doug Collette
December 3, 2017

Spearheaded by this long-time linchpin of the Fabulous Thunderbirds, on Blues and Boogie Vol. 1, a group of musicians as versatile as they are empathetic tackles classics from Little Walter, Elmore James and others. Kim Wilson and the ensemble not only display innate knowledge of its roots, but that elusive joy derived from actively honoring same. While the monaural recording seems an overreach to authenticity--it the genuine quality of the music, the financial aspect of the project or a combination ...

Sugar Ray & The Bluetones: Seeing Is Believing

by Jim Trageser
December 27, 2016

Possessed of a rich timber on both vocals and harmonica, a keen ear for melody, and an unerring feel for the blues, New England's Sugar Ray Norcia had the grand career misfortune to begin breaking nationally just before the pop punk band Sugar Ray came on the scene and sowed confusion among music fans. But Norcia has persevered, carving out a niche for himself on the blues circuit--festivals and cruises and night after night in clubs.

Mud Morganfield: For Pops | A Tribute To Muddy Waters

by Walter Atkins
March 27, 2015

For this CD release, Mud Morganfield pays tribute and shows love to his father, the legendary blues artist Muddy Waters. Listening to the Mud Morganfield and Kim Wilson disc For Pops | A Tribute To Muddy Waters, the energy of the first track “Gone to Main Street" is impressive. Morganfield's deep bluesy vocals are richly supported with a solid band featuring Wilson on harmonica. The liner notes mention the group had a house party the night before the ...

Tad Robinson: A New Point of View

by Jim Santella
May 14, 2007

Contemporary soul/blues takes a ride on this studio session by singer Tad Robinson. He's been noticed lately through his work in the motion picture industry. His song, “Hold Tight, appears on the soundtrack to the motion picture The Guardian, which stars Kevin Costner, and he appears in the film Under Siege, starring Steven Seagal. On his web site, Robinson describes his role as “a terrorist-disguised-as-a-blues-singer, performing songs that we wrote for the production.

A New Point of ...

Buck Hill: Relax

by Michael P. Gladstone
August 22, 2006

The return of tenor saxohonist Buck Hill as a leader has taken more than fifteen years. His storied career in the Washington, DC area is relatively well known. Deciding to stay at home and retain his “day job" as a postal carrier, Hill sacrified a future in jazz which surely would have taken him to a more musically rewarding place by now.

After forty-plus years working for US Postal Service, Buck Hill has resumed his recording career with ...

Buck Hill: Relax

by Ken Hohman
August 20, 2006

Most times, our exposure to jazz musicians is limited to those who are lucky enough to play jazz as a full-time gig, whether they're supported by a major label, an academic institution or a rich uncle with a love for jazz. Tenor saxophonist Buck Hill, a working-class jazz musician, was never anyone's charity case. Like his late friend and fellow DC jazz artist Shirley Horn, Hill put jazz on the back burner to support his kids. For decades, he worked ...

Buck Hill: Relax

by Jim Santella
August 12, 2006

Buck Hill brings back the fine taste of the organ combo with his quartet on Relax, interpreting standards and originals with the blues on his mind. Feelings run deep as tenor saxophone, organ and guitar alternate solo spots that run passionately through ballad territory and driving romps.

Hill first recorded in 1957. The Washington, DC native worked with Charlie Byrd, Shirley Horn, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis. However, the need to have a steady income in order to ...

Buck Hill: Relax

by C. Michael Bailey
July 28, 2006

A recent review of a book by a 26-year-old author noted that the only problem with the work was that the author had “not lived long enough or suffered enough. This sentiment is easily extended to music. Give me a grizzled veteran from the chitlin' circuit instead of a Julliard graduate anytime. Washington DC Tenor saxophonist Buck Hill is eighty years old and has not recorded as a leader in fifteen years. There is certainly a story behind that, and ...

Buck Hill: Relax

by Jerry D'Souza
July 24, 2006

Time has not effaced the grace or diminished the power of Buck Hill, who returns after a fifteen-year absence with this remarkable new recording. The tenor man recruited two old bandmates, Jerry Jones (drums) and John Ozment (Hammond A100), plus Paul Pieper (guitar), to create music that breathes passion and invention into every song.

Hill, who is 78, still has command over his instrument. He does not waste a note, investing each one with a clear idea and ...