Jazz Articles

Randy Weinstein: HarmoniMonk

by Richard J Salvucci
January 31, 2025

A caution to Monkophiles of every variety: This is not your grandparents' Thelonious Monk, much less Charlie Rouse's or anyone else. Monk on a chromatic harmonica? Well, keep an open mind and try it. It may prove enjoyable, although this is not Toots Thielemans. Here is a recording for the adventurous listener, especially if hearing a harmonica-tuba combination on “Straight, No Chaser" with the tuba chugging along with some rhythmic offset is not enough to leave ...

Randy Weston & His African Rhythms Trio: Zep Tepi

by Bill Bennett
September 17, 2006

Randy Weston returns to the trio format for the first time in over thirty years with Zep Tepi. Poised to enter his eighth decade on the planet, Weston is an elder in every sense of the term. His distinctively percussive attack, yard-wide chords, criss-crossing rhythms and idiosyncratic melodies remain sui generis. Both literally (he's 6'9") and figuratively, Weston is a giant of the music.

He pays tribute to his friend and mentor Thelonious Monk on “Ballad for T," a reflective ...

Randy Weston's African Rhythms Trio: Zep Tepi

by Joel Roberts
August 20, 2006

There's no better argument for the notion that jazz keeps you young than Randy Weston. Appearing last month at the Blue Note in support of Zep Tepi, the Brooklyn-born Weston showed that at eighty he remains one of the most vital and creative forces in jazz, as well as one of its most charismatic figures. Zep Tepi is a trio effort that revisits some of Weston's most popular and enduring compositions. While the fare is well known--including ...

Jerry Gonzalez & The Fort Apache Band: Rumba Buhaina: The Music of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers

by Francis Lo Kee
March 17, 2006

Art Blakey didn't literally write books, but it could be said that he “wrote the book : first, on jazz drumming, incorporating the essence of swing, extroverted drum solos and some genuinely unique beats that have escaped deeper absorption by contemporary drummers; second, on bandleading, constantly scouting and presenting great (often, younger) talent; and third, on incorporating Afro-Cuban influences into jazz. There could easily be a couple of tribute concerts and recordings to him every year, but as far as ...

Pyeng Threadgill: Of The Air

by Francis Lo Kee
February 3, 2006

Of the Air, an album of original music that cuts a broad stylistic swath, is focused and honest, traveling through various contexts organically. There are several reasons for the honest coherence of this music. The CD is recorded in analog with a core group of musicians, a working band rather than a collection of heavy-hitters or hired guns. Lisa Mezzacapa (bass), Shelly Doty (guitar) and Micha Patri (drums) give it up to tunes that center around Threadgill's voice and imaginative ...

Jerry Gonzalez & The Fort Apache Band: Rumba Buhaina

by Jim Santella
December 6, 2005

The music of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers serves as a suitable theme for this album by Jerry Gonzalez and his Latin jazz band, since they exhibit the same kind of percussive drive with integrated melody that the hard bop drummer and his quintets shared with us for decades.

It's been almost two decades already for Jerry Gonzalez and the Fort Apache Band, which continues to excite with its fiery blend of Latin flavors and improvised adventure. ...

Steve Hobbs: Spring Cycle

by George Harris
September 5, 2005

Who says universities create an ivory tower mentality? Educator and vibes master Steve Hobbs has put out a delectably enjoyable CD of accessible, yet thought-provoking music. Employing a front line of Tom Harrell (trumpet, flugelhorn), Dave Valentin (flute), and Bob Malach (tenor), his lighter than air thematic statements serve as a perfect foil to the percussive underpinnings of Hobbs and pianist Bill O'Connell.

All of Hobbs' compositions are catchy, memorable, and thoroughly enjoyable. The modal “Blued Swings," with ...

Khan Jamal: Peace Warrior

by Germein Linares
June 28, 2005

Vibraphonist Khan Jamal leads the charge on the eclectic and vibrant Peace Warrior. The album's content, some of which was originally issued in '82 as Don't Take No!, combines recording sessions from '82 and '89. Released on CD by New York-based Random Chance Records, Peace Warrior places a good amount of its emphasis in introducing and integrating the sounds of the synthesizer and the catchy snap of pop beats into its jazz dance.

The resulting music is novel, even twenty ...

Bill O'Connell: Latin Jazz Fantasy

by Aaron Rogers
August 21, 2004

Latin Jazz Fantasy is the second event of its kind by pianist Bill O'Connell on Random Chance Records. O'Connell is no stranger to playing in Afro-Caribbean style; he played with Latin jazz greats like saxophonist Gato Barbieri and percussionist Mongo Santamaria. O'Connell's Latin Jazz Fantasy features ten original compositions by O'Connell that glisten with Latin rhythms and percussion in front of an orchestral backdrop.

The opening track “Barcelona" has an Afro-Cuban beat, but as the strings come in, the song ...

Bill O: Latin Jazz Fantasy

by Jim Santella
August 4, 2004

With a full session of songs composed by the leader, this contemporary album features strings, percussion, and a large, swinging ensemble that's dedicated to the Latin feeling found in today's popular art form. Featured co-stars include tenor saxophonist Bob Malach and flutist Dave Valentin.

The pianist swings hard. As he steers his companions through formats that include duos, trios, quartets and quintets, Bill O'Connell caresses each melody with a dreamy focus for the more lyrical qualities found in ...