Jazz Articles
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That Grand Dan Sound: Why Everyone Knows Steely Dan When They Hear Them
by Eric Pettine
Ok, so Miles Davis, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk and Dave Brubeck used them throughout the 1950s. In the 1960s and most of the 1970s, adventurous and ambitious horn-adorned groups like Chicago and Blood, Sweat and Tears also experimented successfully with them too. But we're talking cool chords (and their various permutations) here folks, not drugs. It's pretty much accepted by the general populace how great the writing/performing talents of, say, Billy Joel, Elton John and Paul McCartney are. ...
read moreBlackalicious: Blazing Arrow
by AAJ Staff
Blackalicious’ career is now hitting the decade mark, and hopefully, now that MCA have won the bidding war to give them major label status (and hopefully the equivalent in marketing dollars), their career will be less sporadic than previously. Blazing Arrow represents a truly long awaited full length for the Bay Area duo Chief Xcel and Gift of Gab, following up 2000’s NIA. Blackalicious are on an elevated hip-hop path that is now showing signs of coming to full fruition. ...
read moreB.B. King: Let The Good Times Roll: The Music of Louis Jordan
by Ed Kopp
B. B. King pays tribute to his late friend Louis Jordan with this swingin' collection of covers.Jordan’s music has not been lacking for attention of late. First, the Broadway show “Five Guys Named Moe" became a smash hit on the strength of his tunes. Then a horde of zoot-suited ex-rockers became Jordan imitators during the retro-swing craze. With the swing thing now waning, the King of the Blues has decided the time is right to put his own ...
read moreB.B. King: Blues on the Bayou
by Ed Kopp
Last summer I attended a disappointing B.B. King concert in which the blues legend spent most of the show talking instead of playing. Fortunately he plays and sings wonderfully on this release, his best since Blues Summit. B.B. finally lets his excellent road musicians strut their stuff live in a studio setting, with no overdubs and no high-tech tricks. “I'll Survive" stands with his best tunes. The rest of the CD features 14 fast, slow, and mid-tempo blues originals. Even ...
read moreEarl Hooker: Simply the Best
by Ed Kopp
Nearly 30 years after succumbing to tuberculosis at age 41, blues guitarist Earl Zebedee Hooker is finally getting his due. Many critics now cite Hooker as the finest guitarist in Chicago's storied blues history, and Simply the Best goes a long way toward proving their point.A number of Hooker recordings have been re-released on CD, but Simply the Best comes closest to showcasing the full extent of the guitarist's singular genius.Second cousin to the more famous ...
read moreBaby-Face Willette: Behind The 8 Ball
by Douglas Payne
Organist Babyface Willette (born 1933) had a very brief career during the early sixties. His only real gig was grinding the B-3 in the Lou Donaldson band that featured guitarist Grant Green. He was also heard on Green's Blue Note debut and two pretty good juke-joint Blue Note dates of his own (also featuring Green). In 1964, Willette recorded two even better dates for Argo. Behind the 8 Ball is the last and best of these - and also the ...
read moreJoe Sample: Rainbow Seeker
by AAJ Staff
If you don't know what “pocket" is, listen to most any Joe Sample release, but especially Rainbow Seeker (1978, MCA). You'd think the term was invented for this collection of groove jazz. Of course when released, I'm sure it wasn't considered ground-breaking, but it is an incredible example of how compositions and solos can be built around the pocket. Unfortunately, my copy of the disc doesn't tell me who's playing on the tracks, so I gleaned the album personnel info ...
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