Jazz Articles
Our daily articles are carefully curated by the All About Jazz staff. You can find more articles by searching our website, see what's trending on our popular articles page or read articles ahead of their published dates on our Coming Soon page. Read our daily album reviews.
Sign in to customize your My Articles page —or— Filter Article Results
Larry Goldings: I Will
by Joshua Weiner
Larry Goldings is best known as an organist with a particular gift for bass lines, as exhibited on high-profile releases such as the Grammy-winning Trio Beyond--Saudades with Jack DeJohnette and John Scofield (ECM, 2007). Nevertheless, he trained as a classical pianist and has stuck to the 88's for several recordings, including well-regarded work with Jim Hall and 1997's Awareness (Warner Brothers), with bassist Larry Grenadier and Paul Motian on drums. Arriving nearly three decades later, Golding's piano trio album I ...
Continue ReadingDevin Daniels Quintet: LesGo!
by Joshua Weiner
Devin Daniels is an up-and-coming Los Angeles-based alto saxophonist whose debut album, Trio Exposition, dropped in 2022 on The Village label. Having toured with Herbie Hancock and played at an all-star tribute to Wayne Shorter at the Hollywood Bowl in the summer of 2023, it would seem that his star is rapidly rising. This new album, recorded live with his quintet at the Sam First jazz club near LAX and released on its new audiophile label, explains why: Daniels is ...
Continue ReadingRachel Eckroth: Humanoid
by Sharonne Cohen
"Humanoid is a departure for me," Rachel Eckroth said when we spoke about her new piano quartet album, recorded at Sam First jazz club in Los Angeles on October 28 and 29, 2022. Taking her first piano lesson at the age of five, this accomplished, multifaceted musician has honed her craft over the four decades since, becoming not only a gifted and versatile pianist and keyboardist, but a vocalist and songwriter. Engaged in creative projects spanning jazz, indie and pop, ...
Continue ReadingJosh Nelson: LA Stories: Live at Sam First
by Robert Petersen
Josh Nelson's LA Stories: Live at Sam First was recorded in February 2022 at Sam First, which has quickly become the heartbeat of L.A.'s jazz community. With this album, Nelson continues a love letter to Los Angeles he began with his 2017 release, The Sky Remains, which was part of his Discovery Project multimedia series. In a city where history is too often forgotten, Nelson puts it center stage. In “Tiburcio," Nelson conjures the life of the 19th ...
Continue ReadingRachel Eckroth: Humanoid
by Mike Jurkovic
Pianist Rachel Eckroth may use wellness or New agey terms such as polymath or bold vision to describe her approach to her considerable art, but she gets down to Earth for real and very quickly on Humanoid, her first all-acoustic recording. Recorded live at Sam's First in Los Angeles, Eckroth's very active imagination spearheads a group, including bassist and all round jazz entrepreneur Billy Mohler, drummer Tina Raymond--whose uncanny sense for everything a drummer can do, can be ...
Continue ReadingJoe La Barbera: World Travelers
by Dave Linn
Drummer Joe La Barbera has an extensive and impressive resume. At the age of 20, he played in the second drum chair for the Buddy Rich Big Band before driving the 1972 stellar lineup of Woody Herman's Thundering Herd. In 1978, he was offered the prestigious opportunity to be part of the acclaimed (and what turned out to be the final) line-up of the Bill Evans Trio, where he stayed until the pianist's tragic death in 1980. Later, gigs with ...
Continue ReadingJoe La Barbera Quintet: World Travelers
by Jim Worsley
February is surely a bit early in the year to be talking about the best live recording released in 2023. Still, when you have your socks blown off, time of year is of little concern. Drumming icon Joe La Barbera is back, and in a big way. The pendulum has swung and La Barbera's Quintet was swinging like some hep cats in a small club back in the '50s. It has been some time since La Barbera's last recording. This ...
Continue ReadingJustin Kauflin Trio: Live at Sam First
by Jim Worsley
New world modernization meets old world ideals at Sam First jazz club in Los Angeles. In just a few short years Sam First has built a solid reputation with both jazz artists and aficionados. Among its many qualities are the acoustics. In 2019, Peter Erskine, George Garzone, Alan Pasqua, and Darek Oles recorded their brilliant 3 Nights in L.A. at Sam First. At that point it was clear they had something special going on at Sam First. Starting up Sam ...
Continue Reading
