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

Organissimo: B3tles: A Soulful Tribute To The Fab Four

Read "B3tles: A Soulful Tribute To The Fab Four" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
April 6, 2017

Guitarist Grant Green was one of the early birds on this: turning Beatles tunes into soulful jazz workouts, with his I Want to Hold Your Hand (Blue Note, 1965), featuring Hammond organ master Larry Young on the B3, recorded a little over a year after the Fab Four's musical invasion of America. But it was mostly a jazz standards/Great American Songbook outing, with only the opener/title tune nodding to the--ultimately--most influential of pop music groups. Now, fifty years ...

Album Review

Rakkatak: Small Pieces

Read "Small Pieces" reviewed by James Nadal

by James Nadal
April 6, 2017

The Indian sitar literally burst upon the Western popular music scene when George Harrison, of The Beatles, first played it on “Norwegian Wood, (This Bird Has Flown)" in 1965. This recording brought about an unprecedented interest in Indian music and musicians, as well as the accompanying culture and religion, which Harrison openly embraced. So, it was a pleasant surprise to see this song presented on Small Pieces, the current release by the world music group Rakkatak. It's as if the ...

Album Review

Sam Friend: Twin

Read "Twin" reviewed by Fiona Ord-Shrimpton

by Fiona Ord-Shrimpton
April 6, 2017

It's probably not best practice to liken anyone to anyone, yet we do it all the time, take comfort in the left hand column on CD Baby, or the recommends on iTunes or Amazon. Forgive this Captain Obvious then, when Sam Friend's album Twin gets likened to James Taylor and his son, Ben Taylor here, so a bookmark can be left. A few more souls around like the family Taylor is no bad thing. And what the hell, “You've got ...

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Live Review

Peter Michael Escovedo & Friends At The Empress Theatre

by Walter Atkins
April 6, 2017

Peter Michael Escovedo & Friends Empress Theatre Voices From The Heart: The Marc VW Benefit Vallejo, CA March 29, 2017 Peter Michael Escovedo (Kenny G) organized a stellar line up of Bay Area musicians and much more for Voices From The Heart: The Marc VW Benefit at the Empress Theatre in Vallejo CA. Along with many local musicians who contributed their time and resources, the bill featured Howard Hewett (Shalamar), ...

Album Review

John Patitucci: Irmãos De Fé

Read "Irmãos De Fé" reviewed by Karl Ackermann

by Karl Ackermann
April 6, 2017

Newvelle Records, the New York based, vinyl-only subscription label, was launched by jazz pianist by Elan Mehler and Parisian, Jean-Christophe Morisseau in 2016. With a high-end, boutique collection that has included digitally recorded, 180g pressings for Frank Kimbrough, Noah Preminger and Jack DeJohnette, the label opens its second season with the iconoclastic bassist, and multiple Grammy winner, John Patitucci's Brazilian tribute collection Irmãos de Fé Patitucci has been a leader for more than thirty years and in the ...

Live Review

Big Ears Festival 2017

by Mark Sullivan
April 5, 2017

Big Ears Festival Knoxville, TN March 23-26, 2017 Knoxville's Big Ears Festival expanded to a full four days this year, giving it more time to go its expected merry, eclectic way. In a break with usual practice, there was no official Composer in Residence. That distinction could have gone to Gavin Bryars (with four concerts of his music)--or possibly Carla Bley (two concerts), Meredith Monk (two performances), or Henry Threadgill (who won the Pulitzer Prize for ...

Album Review

The University of Toronto 12tet: Trillium Falls

Read "Trillium Falls" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
April 5, 2017

This is an altogether sunny and pleasing session by the splendid University of Toronto 12tet, which sounds at times like a full-fledged big band, at others like a leaner and more even-tempered chamber jazz group. The songs and arrangements, most by members of the ensemble (including a couple by director Terry Promane), are lush and lyrical, with good use made on several numbers by the voice of Jacqueline Teh whose vocalese serves as an auxiliary instrument to add warmth and ...

Album Review

Atomic: Six Easy Pieces

Read "Six Easy Pieces" reviewed by Karl Ackermann

by Karl Ackermann
April 5, 2017

Founded in 2000, the Swedish/Norwegian group Atomic has remained true to their uncommon blend of American and European influences over the years. With only one lineup change since their inception, the quintet continues to pay homage--in equal parts--to the post 1960s era in the US, and the inherent innovations of Europe's northern-most region. With Six Easy Pieces the group sounds much as they did with their debut Feet Music (Jazzland Recordings, 2001) but with years of synergy to enhance their ...

Album Review

Joe Fiedler: Like, Strange

Read "Like, Strange" reviewed by Troy Collins

by Troy Collins
April 5, 2017

Change can occasionally be necessary for artistic growth. For over a decade, trombonist Joe Fiedler has led a stripped-down bass and drums trio, as documented on Plays The Music of Albert Mangelsdorff (Clean Feed, 2005), The Crab (Clean Feed, 2007), Sacred Chrome Orb (Yellow Sound, 2011), and I'm In (Multiphonics, 2015). Seeking a greater range of color and texture in his music, Fielder recruited vanguard saxophonist Jeff Lederer and multifaceted guitarist Pete McCann to join his current working trio with ...

Album Review

Momentum: Momentum

by John Sharpe
April 5, 2017

Three Norwegian musicians unite as Momentum to explore the junction of minimalism and improv. Forming the sides of an equilateral triangle are reedman Jørgen Mathisen (who can be heard with bassist Per Zanussi's 5 and power trio Krokofant), bassist Christian Meaas Svendsen (part of drummer Paal Nilssen-Love's Large Unit) and drummer Andreas Wildhagen (heard to excellent effect with Jonas Cambien's Trio on A Zoology Of The Future (Clean Feed, 2016)). Although essentially a free jazz trio, the threesome still carves ...