Jazz Articles

Claude Pauly: Mind Meets Matter

by Ian Patterson
December 3, 2008

Legions of saxophonists were mesmerized by the sound of Lester Young and Charlie Parker and to this day, John Coltrane; for trumpeters, Miles Davis continues to ensnare many, and for fusion guitarists John McLaughlin and Allan Holdsworth continue to fascinate. As a bright light does moths, they are sucked in, and if not careful, their own voice is consumed in the flames of reverence. Mind Meets Matter reveals Claude Pauly--eyebrows singed--to be as talented as he is informed by these ...

Claude Pauly: Mind Meets Matter

by John Kelman
October 29, 2008

What do you get when you combine the heavy metal bebop lines of Scott Henderson, the inestimable chops of Frank Gambale, the close harmonic voicings of Allan Holdsworth, the occasional rough edges of John McLaughlin and a tinge of Latin affect? Guitarist Claude Pauly, on his debut, Mind Meets Matter, comes close to answering that question, while proving that it's possible to wear your influences prominently on your sleeve while still moving towards asserting an individual voice.

L: Absence

by Jerry D'Souza
October 14, 2004

Jazz and classical music have been merged before with different consequences. Happily, this venture rises above the mundane and the obvious. The architects of this edifice are László Süle and Pentti Lahti, both residents of Finland. The former is the jazz personality; the latter prefers calling himself a folk musician. The dynamics most certainly bring depth and allure to the music, and when they nestle against the string quartet, the enticement is undeniable.

Süle composed and arranged all ...

Michael Blake: Blake Tartare

by Sean Patrick Fitzell
July 5, 2004

Saxophonist/composer Michael Blake has led an array of unique projects. His latest CD, Blake Tartare, finds him fronting a quartet with young Danish improvisers Soren Kjaergaard on Fender Rhodes and piano, Jonas Westergaard on bass, and Kresten Osgood on drums. The small group pushes Blake’s horn to the forefront, while the sparse arrangements have a fluidity that is loose without being sloppy.

The short and quiet “Flipper” opens the set, its spacious melody and gentle rhythm section accompaniment foreshadowing what ...

Fernando Holz: Minh' Alma Nua

by Jerry D'Souza
June 13, 2004

Brazilian music has created a welcome niche in jazz, the bossa and the samba giving the music a uniquely sensuous and vibrant rhythm. The beat goes on with Fernando Holz, and though he is more attuned to pop, he works the genre with a convincing passion.

Holz is a singer who delves into yearning and pain, into joy and love with a simple directness. Even when a dollop of strings unveil a velvet curtain, he does not ...

Fernando Holz: Minh' Alma Nua (My Nude Soul)

by Dan McClenaghan
May 25, 2004

The phrase “smooth as silk" comes to mind on an initial listen to Brazilian-Bostonian Fernando Holz's Minh' Alma Nua (My Nude Soul). His vocal style, like that of fellow countryman Milton Nascimento, flows like a cool stream of crystalline water in front of an always crisp rhythm section, augmented by the lush harmonics of a string section.The mix is perfectly done. Romero Lubambo, on guitar, counterpoints the clean seamless flow, adding an almost bluesy bite on his solo ...

Jay Lou: Spellings

by Fred Edmonds
May 25, 2004

Spellings, the Afro-jazz renewal.

Jay Lou's opus is a ride in the heart of good music, the kind we expect from a contemporary African artist: mature, smooth, harmonious and delicately mixed. This album is original in that it uses a guitar lead on African rhythms, which is seldom the case. The guitar, moving easily from a binary rhythm to a highly complicated 6/8 beat, surprises us, while the player does not lose himself in long and complex ...

The Dan Thomas Quintet: City Scope

by Jack Bowers
April 19, 2004

City Scope is the debut album as leader for Dan Thomas, a Canadian-born saxophonist who now lives in Kansas City, MO. His talents as player and composer are lavishly praised in the liner notes by friend and colleague Bobby Watson, whose influence is readily apparent in Thomas’s music, especially in his approach to the alto sax, wherein Thomas borrows a few of Watson’s licks but avoids sounding like a carbon copy of his better-known comrade. Other likely role models who ...

High Plains Drifter: 13 Cents

by Stephen Richardson
April 15, 2004

High Plains Drifter burst forth onto the jam scene like an elephant busting a nut across the Serengeti. This is a solid, concise and well produced debut. High Plains Drifter is led by the funk inflected guitar of the media savvy Jay Cleary, once part of hard working Aaron MacDonald Band. Mixing jam grooves with wild world rhythms, High Plains Drifter has begat a new and exciting combination, somewhat like soft taffy lost in an old lady's hair.

13 Cents ...

Rob Reid: The Beaches Sessions

by Stephen Richardson
April 15, 2004

Rob Reid makes his instrumental guitar debut with the introspective The Beaches Sessions. Reid's guitar work has previous been associated with Pierre Chaisson's Riverside and Cape Breton Gospel w/ Pierre Chaisson of Grace Unlimited Music. The setting found Reid serving up a platter jazzy/rock inflected guitar lines just like fresh hot cakes. Always the searching soul, Reid’s musical insight and jazz training have led him ever forward. The decision to branch out from the band format and try his hands ...