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.

Album Review

Marc Copland: Better By Far

Read "Better By Far" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
April 17, 2017

Marc Copland got his start in jazz in New York City as a sometimes plugged-in alto saxophonist, working with drummer Chico Hamilton's Quartet, and releasing an overlooked album, Friends (Oblivion Records, 1973) featuring his own quartet. Then he went away, and came back as a pianist, and has since shaped himself into one of finest jazz piano guys around, an artist with a supple touch, a feel for intricately gorgeous melodies and a deep immersion into complex harmonies.

Album Review

ÌFÉ: IIII+IIII

Read "IIII+IIII" reviewed by James Nadal

by James Nadal
April 17, 2017

The process of personal transformation, when dealing with spirituality, can be a powerful motivational force. Leader and front man Otura Mun is the guiding light of ÌFÉ, a Puerto Rican fusion ensemble which has recreated the essence of the Santeria religion, as a nucleus for this production. American born Otura Mun, started out as an accomplished drummer turned DJ, that, by destiny, joined up with Puerto Rican rumberos while on a sojourn to the island; a few years and enlightening ...

Album Review

Papanosh: A Chicken in a Bottle

Read "A Chicken in a Bottle" reviewed by Anthony Shaw

by Anthony Shaw
April 17, 2017

Papanosh originate in the northern French city of Rouen and have been together over 10 years. This second CD of somewhat discordant, deconstructed hard bop is another example of their concept of an imagined folklore, a new musical tradition created together by musicians and listeners in their shared synergy. It involves widely varied music that, with its sudden twists and surprises, seems at times to be being played with five tongues in five respective cheeks. With most melodies revolving ...

Album Review

Reverend Chris: @etude

by Geno Thackara
April 17, 2017

Christopher Marsceill may be based in northwest Philadelphia, but a casual listener could just as easily believe it was Nashville or New Orleans--not just because he goes by Reverend Chris in polite company and otherwise, but because he and his amiable High Rollers band share a love for earthy horns and Dixie swing. This lineup's first recording @etude offers a fun melting pot of largely Southern gumbo with high camaraderie and high spirits. The leader's mostly-electric piano makes ...

Extended Analysis

The Man Who Changed Guitar Forever!

by John Kelman
April 17, 2017

In a time when album sales are a challenge being mitigated, at least to some extent, by the release of deluxe editions and box sets, it's still more necessary than ever to grab potential listeners with imagery and words; the title of a box set can have, especially for those less than intimately familiar with the artist, either real attraction or, well, the opposite. And, at a time when more music than ever is being released (and for a myriad ...

Live From Philadelphia

Sittin' In with the Odean Pope Trio at the Kimmel Center

by Geno Thackara
April 16, 2017

Odean Pope TrioSEI Innovation Studio @ The Kimmel CenterPhiladelphia, PAApril 12, 2017 The Kimmel Center's informal Sittin' In program is always about direct connections and communion, but April's exceptional event raised the bar up to the ceiling. Not everyone was even able to sit since the basement theater was packed enough to require some standing along the walls. The enthusiastic crowd came out to acknowledge Jazz Appreciation Month, to honor some local icons and enjoy ...

Live Review

Tallinn Music Week 2017

by Martin Longley
April 16, 2017

Tallinn Music Week 2017 Tallinn, Estonia March 30-April 1, 2017 Although running for the advertised week, this festival-cum-conference concentrates its actual showcase concerts over an intense three-day period. The remaining days are taken up with art exhibitions, food-tasting sessions, and conference/seminar/talk events. Besides the delegate and general ticketed programmes, there is also a City Stage element, where freebie gigs manifest themselves around Tallinn. The scale of TMW is very impressive, with its attendees seeming ...

Album Review

KMJO: Common Ground

Read "Common Ground" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
April 16, 2017

KMJO is shorthand for the Kirk MacDonald Jazz Orchestra, and Common Ground is the third recording by the splendid Toronto-based group, following the well-received Deep Shadows (2011) and Family Suite for Large Ensemble (2012). This time around, the orchestra performs compositions by MacDonald arranged by one of Canada's premier co-pilots, Joe Sullivan. The KMJO, MacDonald asserts, is comprised of world-class musicians, an assurance that is impressively confirmed on every number, not only by the ensemble's unerring consonance ...

Album Review

Fay Claassen: Luck Child

Read "Luck Child" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
April 16, 2017

Dutch singer Fay Claassen has taken her sweet time releasing a follow-up to her 2010 big band release, Sing (Challenge). Her most recent recordings before sing include Red, Hot & Blue: The Music of Cole Porter (Challenge, 2009), and the uniformly excellent Two Portraits Of Chet Baker (Munich, 2006), all uniquely their own works of art. On Luck Child, Claassen steps out of the standard's-heavy arena, devoting her attention to more contemporary fare like the funky blues of ...

Album Review

Rick Braun: Around The Horn

Read "Around The Horn" reviewed by Jeff Winbush

by Jeff Winbush
April 16, 2017

There's only so many ways you can go in jazz with the trumpet. Straight ahead and then a sharp left turn into more experimental improvisation paging (Miles Davis), a technically proficient if somewhat rigid traditionalist (Wynton Marsalis) or become a tasty, if unmemorable ingredient in the smooth jazz gumbo (Chuck Mangione). These are the career choices Rick Braun may have faced at one time. He chose to go the path of least resistance and play it safe and ...