Jazz Articles
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A Little Rain In Arkansas
by George Wallace
Professor fear & his longhair piano sat on the bandstand he was just about to play some boogie-woogie when somebody fresh from pontchartrain with a three-piece suit walked in--did you see that thing go down, bartender? Walked right in & the door slapped shut tight as a tornado behind him a man in a three piece suit & he walked right up to ruby (some people called her needle of smoke) who was addicted to jazz & yes he was a handsome man, a blues pantomime, ...
Continue ReadingMary Halvorson & Sylvie Courvoisier: Bone Bells And The Art Of Surprise
by Lawrence Peryer
Today, the Spotlight shines On two artists who've taken the piano-guitar duo to bold new places. Sylvie Courvoisier and Mary Halvorson . These two players come from different worlds: Sylvie from European classical traditions and Mary from experimental jazz guitar circles. But when they join forces, something magical happens. Their music shifts from delicate to eruptive, structured to spontaneous, with a shared musical language they've built over nearly a decade. The record Bone Bells (Pyroclastic, 2025) ...
Continue ReadingProject Z: Rainbow
by Mike Jacobs
From the late Ricky Keller's pensive introductory piano motif to Jimmy Herring's rare acoustic workout, to the Reverend Oliver Wells' jubilant piano out-solo, “Rainbow," the Jeff Sipe (aka Apt. Q258)-penned 9/8 vehicle, is a Project Z ride well worth taking. ...
Continue ReadingEugenia Choe: So We Speak
by Dan McClenaghan
New York-based pianist Eugenia Choe's first two trio albums on SteepleChase Records, 2016's Magic Light (review here) and 2018's Verdfant Green (review here), featured her trio with bassist Danny Weller and drummer Alex Wyatt. For her third album release, So We Speak, Choe goes with a trio once again, this time teaming with vibraphonist Yuhan Su and vocalist Song Yi Jeon. The result is less the traditional jazz trio mood of her debut and its follow up, and more of ...
Continue ReadingOnilu: Estuary Stew
by Carl Medsker
The trio Onilu (which means drummers in the Yoruba language) utilizes a dizzying array of percussion instruments. Shekere, mbira, congas, batá drums, cajóns, alfaia, clave, clay drums, tympani, various idiophones, guagua, tongue drum, vibraphone, marimba and both electro-acoustic and standard drum kits are employed. Although used sparingly, a piano is also embraced as a valid member. Joe Chambers, Kevin Diehl and Chad Taylor blend their considerable talents and expert knowledge of Afro-Cuban and West African cultures and traditions ...
Continue ReadingLiz Cole: I Want to Be Happy
by Richard J Salvucci
"Unfortunately, I became entangled in a variety of day jobs and set music on the backburner for a shameful number of years. Finally, I have realized that I don't want to work in an office." How often has some frustrated artist said just those words, or some variant? The music business is a tough one, and how many singers, pianists or other instrumentalist have harbored similar thoughts? Yes, everyone pays dues, but some pay more than others, and for a ...
Continue ReadingGregory Alper: Palisades Apocalypse
by Katchie Cartwright
Rachel Carson served us with this warning in 1962: “We stand now where two roads diverge. But unlike the roads in Robert Frost's familiar poem, they are not equally fair. The road we have long been traveling is deceptively easy, a smooth superhighway on which we progress with great speed, but at its end lies disaster. The other fork of the road--the one less traveled by--offers our last, our only chance to reach a destination that assures the preservation of ...
Continue ReadingRob Brown: Walkabout
by Fran Kursztejn
Despite spending the majority of his career as a side man for William Parker and Matthew Shipp, Rob Brown is perhaps the most recognizable alto saxophonist on the East Coast. Recognizable not because he is famous (far from it), but simply because he is rather difficult to mistake. His sound is abrasive, bellowing and free, oozing with a crooning full-force poignancy reminiscent of his late mentor Lee Konitz. Perhaps it is the singular presence of Charlie Parker in his oscillating ...
Continue ReadingJonah David, Leon Anderson, Russ Spiegel, Shuffle Demons and more
by Benjamin Boddie
Today's Music--Right Now! Fantastic music by Jonah David, Leon Anderson, Russ Spiegel, Nnenna Freelon, Chicago Jazz Orchestra, Shuffle Demons, Kevin Fort, Renegade Queens, Posi-Tone Swingtet, Jeremy Pelt, The Empress, MTB, Artemis. Christopher Boscole, Steve johns, Yellowjackets, Max Leake, Fred Hersch, WDR Big Band, Rachel Therrien, Rodney Jordan, John Ellis, Chacho Ramirez, Diane Marino, Nels Cline, and more. Playlist Jonah David “Little Sunflower" from Waltz For Eli (Swish Tap Records) 00:00 Leon Anderson “The Bruz Of AD2" from Live ...
Continue ReadingThe Music of Carla Bley, Part 1: The Early Years
by Larry Slater
The Jazz world is full of highly original, creative musicians who forged their own unique paths. Carla Bley, who died on October 17, 2023, followed her own highly individual path as a composer, arranger and bandleader. As one critic commented, “No album by the legendary composer, pianist, and bandleader sounds like anyone else could have created it." One of the most creative spirits in jazz, Carla Bley's music spanned decades and included big band, small ensemble and duet ...
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