Jazz Articles

Dave Askren Trio: Re: Bill Evans

by Michael P. Gladstone
May 11, 2004

Los Angeles-based guitarist Dave Askren has undertaken a formidable project in adapting the music and style of Bill Evans for a guitar-bass-drums trio. In his liner notes Askren goes to a great deal of trouble to rationalize the validity and difficulties of this undertaking, insofar as Evans' influences for many of the selections and the difficulties of transposing his piano voicings on the guitar. It makes for an interesting story but, to these untrained ears, the question remains as to ...

Jeff Barone: Crazy Talk

by Jim Santella
April 6, 2004

A New Orleans shuffle and plenty of traditional swing bring Jeff Barone’s debut CD into focus as a jazz guitar celebration. Echoes of Wes Montgomery and Grant Green reverberate in quartet format, as Barone works with piano, bass and drums to interpret classic tunes and several original compositions.

The session starts off with a blues. Solos around the room and fours with the drummer set the pace for mainstream action. Barone’s light attack and clear articulation usher ...

Rhonda Thomas and Michael Coppola: Guess Who I Saw Today

by Franz A. Matzner
October 5, 2003

It has always seemed to me to require an inordinate amount of confidence and courage to sing at all, let alone to showcase one’s voice in the pared down, natural environment chosen by Rhonda Thomas and Michael Coppola for their duo release, Guess Who I Saw Today. Let it be said from the outset that both Thomas and Coppola rise to the challenge quite impressively. Consisting mostly of ballads, with a few up-tempo pieces added for variety, ...

Mike Magnelli: Imagination

by AAJ Staff
November 1, 2002

Archtop guitar enthusiasts are well suited to appreciate the artistry of Mike Magnelli’s debut release on the String Jazz label. Onetime manager/agent for Joe Pass, Magnelli displays a talent in his own right, with contemporary styling in a collection of solo archtop tunes. Magnelli has played alongside Pass, Burt Bacharach and was guitarist and assistant director for the Broadway musical Grease. The solo work on this album is a tribute to Magnelli’s many years of playing the guitar. His smooth ...

Greg Clayton: Live at Boomers

by Dave Nathan
June 1, 2001

String Jazz continues its crusade to bring to the public the finest in guitar jazz. The emphasis with this UK label is on quality, not quantity. So when a new release becomes available, both jazz fans in general and especially those who favor the stringed instrument, should rush to snatch it up. This time it's the guitar styling of Greg Clayton that's getting the attention as he is joined by fellow Canadians Dave Young and Jerry Fuller for a three ...

Andrian Ingram & John Pisano: Homage

by Dave Nathan
May 1, 2001

The UK's String Jazz label continues to feed the appetites of lovers of the jazz guitar with another outstanding release. This album is the second meeting on CD between veteran US guitarist John Pisano and England's Adrian Ingram. The outcome is more than an hour of guitar duets, with Pisano coming from the left speaker and Ingram the right, as they pay tribute to their guitar playing forebears. During this session, each takes a turn playing rhythm and lead exchanging ...

Jack Wilkins Quartet: Heading North

by Dave Nathan
May 1, 2001

String Jazz caught Jack Wilkins and Jimmy Bruno in England at the same time and decided to record them under the mantle of a quartet led by Wilkins. That's misleading because Bruno is as prominent as Wilkins as the settings range from solo performances to quartet. Whatever, the outcome is an album that will be enjoyed by jazz guitar fans in particular and jazz lovers in general.

This is not the first time these two master string men have performed ...

Billy Bean/Walter Norris/Hal Gaylor: The Trio Rediscovered

by Dave Nathan
January 1, 2001

Though born and raised in Philadelphia, home of many jazz greats, Billy Bean moved to New York in 1958 where he worked with Bud Shank, Red Callender and Charlie Ventura. Despite his talent, he made relatively few recordings. There are no listings for Bean in Tom Lord's Jazz Discography. His recorded output has been as a sideman, albeit a prominent one, on sessions lead by others. He made his first recordings with Red Callender around the mid-fifties and then two ...

Billy Bean/Walter Norris/Hal Gaylor: The Trio Rediscovered

by Dave Nathan
November 1, 2000

Though born and raised in Philadelphia, home of many jazz greats, Billy Bean moved to New York in the late 1950's where he worked with Bud Shank, Red Callender and Charlie Ventura. Despite his undisputed talent, there are relatively few examples of his work extant on discs. He is not listed at all in Tom Lord's Jazz Discography as a leader. His recorded output has been as a sideman, albeit a prominent one, on sessions lead by others. He made ...