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.

Radio & Podcasts

From the Loft Scene to the Latest Blippy Synth Jazz... and more!

by Jon Greenbaum
October 25, 2026

Music from the last century: The New York Art Quartet, Jayne Cortez & The Firespitters, Sam Rivers, The Dave Holland Quintet and a new archival release from a live Sunny Murray, Arthur Doyle and Rasul Siddik date. Plus a dozen intense new releases! Playlist Jayne Cortez & The Firespitters “I See Chano Pozo" from There It Is (Bola Press) 00:00 Oli Kuster / Dee Byrne / Xavier Kaeser “Renewal" from Wayfinding (Efpi Records) 07:31 Tomsits Quartet “Dhrupad" from ...

Radio & Podcasts

Classical Roots, Open Horizons

by David Bixler
October 25, 2026

A Sun That Never Sets is Ralph Alessi's new recording on ECM and features Matt Mitchell on piano, bassist John Hébert double bass and Ches Smith on drums and vibes. This quartet is augmented by the appearance of Ralph's brother Joseph Alessi, who is the principal trombonist of the New York Philharmonic. In this episode on LINER NOTES Ralph talks about his path from classical trumpet to jazz and additionally offers profound insight into his compositional process. This ...

In Pictures

Francesca Tandoi Trio at OCK

by Marek J. Śmietański
October 25, 2026

A collection of photos from the Francesca Tandoi Trio concert at OCK in Ostrów Wielkopolski on October 14, 2026 featuring Francesca Tandoi, Pasquale Fiore and Stefano Senni. ...

Book Review

The Midnight Special: The Secret Prison History of American Music

by Katchie Cartwright
October 24, 2026

The Midnight Special: The Secret Prison History of American Music Colin Asher 308 Pages ISBN: #978-1-324-05139-8 W. W. Norton 2026 Colin Asher spent the pandemic teaching remotely from his living room while his public-defender partner worked on getting her clients released from “atrocious" conditions on Rikers Island in New York City. He kept a few jazz albums on repeat at home “in an effort to keep our household grounded." Elmo Hope's Sounds from ...

Album Review

Satoko Fujii Orchestra Tokyo: Kappa Ondo

Read "Kappa Ondo" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
October 24, 2026

Stepping into the sounds of a Satoko Fujii big band performance is like slipping into an alternate universe. It is an odd sonic world, full of odd surprises. The pianist/composer has chosen 2026 to release five orchestral albums, each featuring a different ensemble. Fujii has been ambitious, consistently so, over a 30-plus-year career. Kappa Ondo is her fifth and final large ensemble recording of this project. The Kappa Ondo universe has its origins in a song written by ...

Live Review

Lila Downs At Miner Auditorium

by Steven Roby
October 24, 2026

Lila Downs Miner Auditorium San Francisco, CA October 18, 2026 Before Grammy-winning Mexican American singer Lila Downs sang a note at SFJAZZ last Sunday, the audience was offered something practical: a reminder to know their rights. In a video projected above the stage, Downs spoke in Spanish about the challenges facing her community and encouraged listeners to stay informed about changes affecting their families and neighbors. She directed them to resources from the ...

Album Review

Clifford Jordan Quartet: Night of the Mark VII

Read "Night of the Mark VII" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
October 24, 2026

Clifford Jordan's Night of the Mark VII, recorded live in Paris in 1975, is a remarkable document, a reminder of the simple pleasure of listening. It captures four musicians who know precisely who they are, yet remain open to whatever the moment brings. There is no unnecessary display or performative grandstanding. The players enjoy being together, and the audience is fortunate and discerning enough to be there. Jordan was playing his new Selmer Mark 7 tenor saxophone for ...

Album Review

Mali Obomsawin: Automatic

by Don Ball
October 24, 2026

The cover of Mali Obomsawin's Automatic finds her in a room surrounded by cultural influences such as her bass and traditional ash basket splints and revolutionary artifacts like Marxist literature, grenades, and the Mohawk Warrior Society flag. A provocative cover for a provocative album where Obomsawin pulls together a rich musical tapestry that is difficult to define or label but which is wildly compelling to listen to. Obomsawin, a citizen of the Odanak community of Abenaki Nation in ...

Miles Ahead: A Jazz Road Trip

Part 18: Already Moving

by Billie Eidson
October 24, 2026

Chapters 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18A drive from Oregon to Florida, to experience music and living across the USA, and ultimately join a jazz cruise. AKA, a listening practice, unfolding in real time--written on the road, in the spaces between cities and notes.Epilogue Ladd Hill, Newberg, ...

Radio & Podcasts

From Plato's Cave to Señor Blues: new voices and classic tracks from Miles Davis, Lucas Walters, Clifford Jordan, Ruben Fox and more

by Adam Sieff
October 24, 2026

Tenor saxophonist Clifford Jordan's Soul Fountain may once have been considered a relatively lightweight album compared with much of his work as a leader and sideman, but it's full of familiar tunes, funky grooves and Latin rhythms. His version of Horace Silver's “Señor Blues," featuring trumpeter Jimmy Owens and trombonist Julian Priester, is a particular highlight. From there, this edition of Jazz on the Beach moves between new releases and deeper catalogue discoveries, with Lucas Walters' “Plato's Cave," Tyler Henderson's ...