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

Ron Stabinsky: Free for One

Read "Free for One" reviewed by Mark Sullivan

by Mark Sullivan
May 29, 2016

Pianist Ron Stabinsky has been a stylistic chameleon with Mostly Other People Do The Killing. He provided a note-perfect recreation of legendary pianist Bill Evans on Blue (Hot Cup, 2014), and eclectic solos on Mauch Chunk (Hot Cup, 2015)--performances peppered with clever musical quotations. For his debut recording he goes solo with a completely improvised set. There's plenty of variety, but it's Stabinsky all the way. The frequently contemplative tone is established with the opener ..." After It's ...

Album Review

Dave King Trucking Company: Surrounded by the Night

Read "Surrounded by the Night" reviewed by Glenn Astarita

by Glenn Astarita
May 29, 2016

Celebrated drummer Dave King (The Bad Plus, Happy Apple) bonds fellow Minnesota jazz musicians with like-minded New York artists on the Trucking Company's third release. His drums are constructed with bamboo and other woodgrain materials, which is a novel engineering process by the Milwaukee-based outfit Rat Rod drums. King's resonating sound envelops his fluid and punchy timekeeping prowess. And while the album's running time hovers near LP territory at around 36-minutes, the band makes full use of it with a ...

Album Review

Stu Brown: Twisted Toons Vol. 2 (The Music of Carl Stalling, Scott Bradley and more...)

Read "Twisted Toons Vol. 2 (The Music of Carl Stalling, Scott Bradley and more...)" reviewed by Roger Farbey

by Roger Farbey
May 29, 2016

Cue the opening titles and the all-too familiar theme of “The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down"; a blast of which at just 23 seconds is enough to place the listener in the mood for the ensuing fifty five minutes of mayhem-inspired melodies. This is Stu Brown's second paean to the great cartoon score composers. His first volume, Twisted Toons -The Music of Raymond Scott (2009) focused on the music of Raymond Scott which was adapted by others for use as ...

Album Review

John Coltrane: Interstellar Space

Read "Interstellar Space" reviewed by Sacha O'Grady

by Sacha O'Grady
May 29, 2016

As the '60s dawned it would seem that John Coltrane was determined to permanently turn his back on being an accessible artist. Often considered as one of his most influential works, Interstellar Space is certainly not for everyone. Fans of My Favorite Things and Blue Train may struggle with its seemingly random and “multidirectional" explorations. Also, those who might be expecting this half solar system suite to be based on Gustav Holst's The Planets will be sorely disappointed. Because Coltrane's ...

Multiple Reviews

The Blind Boys of Alabama: Spirit Of The Century and Higher Ground

by James Nadal
May 28, 2016

The experience of spiritual jubilation has taken The Blind Boys of Alabama far and wide from their southern roots. For over seventy years they have maintained their unwavering commitment to only sing in praise and service of the Lord, and they have succeeded on that. They take their role as guardians and bearers of the gospel tradition so serious, that it has been their solitary mission. Having recorded over sixty albums since their beginning as glee club singers at the ...

Extended Analysis

Bad Company: Live 1977 & 1979

by Doug Collette
May 28, 2016

Formed from the fragments of Free and Mott the Hoople, Bad Company took a careerist approach to their efforts together from the very start. Much publicity surrounded the announcement of their alliance including the fact the quartet's debut album was the first release from Led Zeppelin's custom label Swan Song. Add to that a timeline beginning in the early to mid-Seventies, accentuated by continuing demand since the demise of the original lineup depicted on Bad Company Live 1977-1979it's altogether mystifying ...

Album Review

John Mayall's Bluesbreakers: Live in 1967 Volume Two

Read "Live in 1967 Volume Two" reviewed by Doug Collette

by Doug Collette
May 28, 2016

The release of Live in 1967 Volume Two does more than complement its companion piece released last year. With such archiving taking place coincidental with John Mayall's continuing activities in the studio and on the road, “The Godfather of British Blues" reaffirms his legacy as much as his commitment to this music.As with its predecessor, this collection of performances has been taken from audience recordings by Tom Huissen at various clubs including the Marquee and Klook's Kleek during ...

Album Review

Maggie Laird: One More Manhattan

Read "One More Manhattan" reviewed by Jim Olin

by Jim Olin
May 28, 2016

Washington State-based singer/songwriter Maggie Laird traveled to Nashville to record her new EP, One More Manhattan, and the stylistic electicism and rootsy authenticity of that legendary music city echoes in every track. Produced by Fett from Nashville's Azalea Music, One More Manhattan unveils Laird's versatility, from vocal jazz to country to pop. Laird balances it all with a soulful, sexy vocal style and stellar instrumentation from her top-drawer band. Of all the songs on One More Manhattan, “Iowa ...

Album Review

Little Feat: Dixie Chicken

Read "Dixie Chicken" reviewed by Sacha O'Grady

by Sacha O'Grady
May 28, 2016

A lot has been written about Dixie Chicken over the last few decades, so there's perhaps not all that much more this listener can add to the discussion. Yes, it has another great album cover by the late Neon Parks, a painter whose name has become synonymous with the band itself. And yes, the LP found Little Feat at a creative peak, pulling off a collection of songs that are as good if not superior to anything they had done ...

Album Review

Hailu Mergia: Wede Harer Guzo

Read "Wede Harer Guzo" reviewed by Jakob Baekgaard

by Jakob Baekgaard
May 28, 2016

It is not long ago that Brian Shimkovitz could celebrate the 10 year anniversary of his blog, Awesome Tapes from Africa, where he has posted a steady stream of obscure, but beguiling records with eclectic African music originally released on cassette. The blog quickly grew into becoming a favorite of listeners around the world, and in 2011, it also became a record label. One of the most prominent artists on the label is Ethiopian accordionist and keyboard-player, ...