Jazz Articles

Circle of Willis: Circle of Willis

by Michael Davis
November 11, 2003

Bill Barrett has never been your average harmonicist about town. By the end of the '90s, he'd released albums on 9Winds ( Backbone ) and, with the group Brother Weasel, SST ( Swingin' N Groovin' ), applying his chromatic harmonica to create an agreeable jazz-blues fusion sound.

Since then, his creativity has increased exponentially. Those who've heard him with Steuart Liebig's Beutet (recently renamed the Mentones) find their jaws hitting the floor while basic questions invade their brains: ...

The Circle of Willis: The Circle of Willis

by Jerry D'Souza
October 22, 2003

If there is one constant that plays in this Circle, it is an oddball approach to music. The trio, perhaps more a triangle, just about kisses the hem of jazz as they skirt the periphery with nods to klezmer, show tunes, Kurt Weill and fractured time signatures. This advent sits in comfortably most of the time, but there are occasions when the askance point of view splutters. This happens off the bat in “The Pouch of Douglas” where the tangents ...