Jazz Articles
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Linda Dachtyl: Full Steam Ahead
by Jack Bowers
Full Steam Ahead, Ohio-based organist Linda Dachtyl's fifth recording as leader of her own groups, is a largely upbeat studio session wherein she oversees a trio--guitarist Don Hales, drummer and husband Cary Dachtyl--on six of ten numbers. The threesome by itself is quite good, so much so that one might reasonably argue that no more help is needed. Nevertheless, saxophonist Mark Donavan makes it a quartet on three tracks, and joins two guests, trumpeter Ben Huntoon and ...
Continue ReadingMusic Soup: Upbeat Mood
by Nicholas F. Mondello
Upbeat Mood from Music Soup, comprised of Athens, Greece-based guitarist Nestor Dimopoulos, Hammond B-3 organist Evgenia Karlafti and drummer Vagelis Kotzabasis, delivers eight enjoyable and upbeat swinging selections. Seven are originals from either Dimopoulos, Karlafti alone, or co-written. There is intelligent playing and fine soloing throughout. “Korean Apartment" opens things and is a fast straight-ahead burner. Dimopoulos states the melody before stretching on an extended solo. Evgenia Karlafti's organ comps in both counterpoint and chordal pops, as ...
Continue ReadingTony Monaco Trio: Over and Over
by Pierre Giroux
Tony Monaco's latest album Over and Over is a journey into the world of jazz funk propelled by the timeless Hammond B-3 organ. With Monaco at the helm and accompanied by guitarist Zakk Jones and drummer Reggie Jackson, this trio embarks on a program of seven Monaco originals that are both compelling and undeniably funky. Monaco's approach to his compositions can be exemplified by the opening track “Da Daddy." This well-formulated and realized chart smokes along ...
Continue ReadingTony Monaco Trio: Over and Over
by Nicholas F. Mondello
B-3. The organ model resonates with jazz fans as something musically profound which fundamentally hits in the soul. Perhaps it is the Gospel and church roots or the list of greats in the jazz organ pantheon--Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Shirley Scott, et al. Now that Joey DeFrancesco has left us, there is a handful of great jazz B-3 organists still pumping jazz air--Mike LeDonne, for one, and Tony Monaco. With Over and Over, the Columbus, Ohio-based Monaco, ...
Continue ReadingTony Monaco: The Definition of Insanity
by C. Andrew Hovan
It is often said that adversity can make or break a person. In the case of Tony Monaco, his varied life struggles have always been the catalyst in helping to bear the fruits of his many musical successes. Perhaps a fairly recent recovery from a major blockage of his widowmaker artery is the most radical example of Monaco's propensity to make lemonade when given life's proverbial lemons. Coinciding with this life-changing event was the announcement from his wife Asako that ...
Continue ReadingTony Monaco: Four Brothers
by C. Andrew Hovan
The current state of recorded music is in flux in ways like it has never been before. Young audiences have fickle tastes and like to pick and choose tracks on streaming platforms. So the idea of an album being a complete and unique entity is a totally foreign idea to many listeners under 30. Nonetheless, the album concept has been integral to jazz listeners from the debut of the long playing record. Imagine the jazz lexicon without Miles Davis' Kind ...
Continue ReadingTony Monaco: The Definition of Insanity
by Nicholas F. Mondello
The popular quote referenced in this CD's title has been attributed to many--most frequently to Albert Einstein. With this fine offering, organ virtuoso Tony Monaco steers clear of Sisyphean do-overs and delivers eleven diverse and well-performed tracks. “Cars Trucks Buses" by Phish's Page McConnell kicks the session off with a hefty, “short'nin' bread" B3 cooker. From this slick get-go, Monaco shows he's got A1 jazz chops and his colleagues are right there with him on the trip. ...
Continue ReadingTony Monaco: The Definition of Insanity
by Mark Corroto
Did you order it? Somebody ordered the party platter, because B3 maestro Tony Monaco is delivering. His music is for all intents and purposes a celebration. With The Definition of Insanity, a reference to doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, he confesses to be under the influence of the same mania as the legends Jimmy Smith, Brother Jack McDuff, Reuben Wilson, Richard “Groove" Holmes, and Jimmy McGriff. If this man is insane, I ...
Continue ReadingTony Monaco: Furry Slippers
by Chris M. Slawecki
Through nine releases, primarily from his home studio in Columbus, Ohio, Tony Monaco has proved that he's a solid link in the hip Hammond B-3 organ chain that reaches from contemporaries such as Wil Blades and Joey DeFrancesco all the way back to Jimmy Smith and other founders of the Hammond groove. At a recent Java Jazz Festival (in Indonesia), Monaco met drummer Greg Fundis and guitarist Fareed Haque, and the three hit it off so well that they were ...
Continue ReadingKevin Coelho: Funkengruven: The Joy of Driving a B3
by Hrayr Attarian
Kevin Coelho's debut, Funkengruven: The Joy of Driving a B3, is a tight trio affair that showcases the young organist's versatility as he successfully cooks his way through originals, R&B songs and fusion and bop standards. Coelho brings a religious celebratory feel to teacher Randy Master's “Take A Stand," as his Hammond B3 lets forth spiritual and sophisticated harmonies. This contrasts well with the unabashedly sensual groove of Dr Lonnie Smith's “Play it Back." Harking back to ...
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