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

Laurin Talese: Gorgeous Chaos

Read "Gorgeous Chaos" reviewed by James Nadal

by James Nadal
May 2, 2016

True talent, like water, will rise and seek its own level. With a lifetime of readiness and recognizing opportunity, vocalist Laurin Talese brings a natural sense of self-awareness into Gorgeous Chaos, her riveting debut as a jazz chanteuse. The acapella gospel tinged phrasing that Talese conveys on the opening “Someone To Watch Over Me," conveys the vulnerability of her voice, revealing a transcendent quality. Halfway through the song, the tender piano by Eric Wortham enters apropos, suggesting a ...

Multiple Reviews

Carla Bley & Jack DeJohnette: ECM Trios

by Mark Sullivan
May 2, 2016

Two different approaches to the trio, led by veteran ECM bandleaders. Big band composer/pianist Carla Bley continues her recent run of chamber ensemble recordings, reconvening her trio with saxophonist Andy Sheppard and bassist Steve Swallow, most recently heard on Trios (ECM, 2013). The grouping gives much more focus on her piano playing than her large group projects, where she was composer first, accompanist (and soloist) second. Drummer/composer Jack DeJohnette introduces a new trio with saxophonist Ravi Coltrane and electric bassist ...

Album Review

Mac Gollehon: Mac Gollehon & The Hispanic Mechanics

Read "Mac Gollehon & The Hispanic Mechanics" reviewed by Paul Naser

by Paul Naser
May 2, 2016

It's not often you hear of Miles Davis complementing trumpet players, but apparently prolific studio player Mac Gollehon was one of the rare exceptions. Nicknamed “chops" by the jazz icon (according to myth anyway), Gollehon has a very impressive resume; arranging and playing lead trumpet on over 500 gold/platinum records, he worked with big names like the late master David Bowie on his legendary “Let's Dance," 80's favorites Duran Duran and the inimitable Rick James to name just a few. ...

Album Review

Mike Parker's Trio Theory: Alive Out There

Read "Alive Out There" reviewed by Mark Corroto

by Mark Corroto
May 2, 2016

Fans of post-apocalyptic stories need not worry about whether they still will have rock music once the electric grids go down. That is, if we can turn the clocks back to the days when jazz musicians were rockstars. Perhaps the supposition of the band, Mike Parker's Trio Theory, is just that. Kill all the living dead, because this acoustic music is electrifying. Parker, an American-born bassist, now living in the jazz-rich city of Krakow, assembled a trio with ...

Live Review

The Bad Plus & Joshua Redman at the Michigan Theater

by C. Andrew Hovan
May 1, 2016

The Bad Plus & Joshua Redman The Michigan Theater Ann Arbor, Michigan April 23, 2016 Over the course of some twenty years, The Bad Plus has honed its own brand of music making, tapping into a plethora of styles and grooves to develop their own musical hybrid. Pianist Ethan Iverson, bassist Reid Anderson, and drummer Dave King know how to push the envelope with their repertoire of original material and crafty alterations of material ranging ...

Album Review

Albert Vila: The Unquiet Sky

Read "The Unquiet Sky" reviewed by Edward Blanco

by Edward Blanco
May 1, 2016

Belgium-based Spanish jazz guitarist Albert Vila delivers his fourth album as leader with The Unquiet Sky, offering a tad more music than a standard album with a presentation of fourteen original compositions of modern-styled jazz that's quite appealing. There's little question whose recording this is as the leader's electric guitar voice becomes the center-piece of the disc from the opening tune. Except for two tracks documented in Barcelona, Spain (Vila's home town), the project was recorded in New ...

Album Review

Goran Ivanovic Trio: Goran Ivanovic Trio

Read "Goran Ivanovic Trio" reviewed by Budd Kopman

by Budd Kopman
May 1, 2016

Virtuoso Serbian guitarist Goran Ivanovic has been busy performing, if not recording since the 2008 Folk Tales and the 2006 Goran Ivanovic Group, with the only subsequent album being the 2009 Guitar Duo with Andreas Kapsalis. That void has been remedied with the very impressive Goran Ivanovic Trio, although listeners familiar with the first two recordings might miss the extra counterpoint of a second solo voice. Matt Ulery continues holding down the bass duties, but Peter Tashjian replaces ...

Live Review

Peter Murphy at (le) Poisson Rouge

by Mike Perciaccante
May 1, 2016

Peter Murphy (le) Poisson Rouge New York, NY April 22, 2016 Peter Murphy is an icon, a chameleon who often sheds one creative skin in favor of a deeper layer. The 58-year-old has worn many hats through the years, from reigning as the vocalist of Bauhaus, a solo artist, collaborator with Mick Karn in Dali's Car, in a cameo as “The Cold One" in 2010's The Twilight Saga: The Eclipse, portraying “Blown Away Guy" in ...

Multiple Reviews

Jon Irabagon: Inaction is an Action & Behind the Sky

by Doug Collette
May 1, 2016

It's a rare musician who can find ways to excel in multiple contexts, but saxophonist/composer Jon Irabagon is just such an artist. His timeline contains entries as collaborator as well as leader and his respective contributions are equally distinctive, suggesting his humility is equaled only by his independence. Because the nuances of his compositions are as fine as those of his musicianship, the sum effect of Irabagon's artistic arc conjures up the compelling notion that he is not only an ...

Album Review

Taylor's Universe: Across the Universe

Read "Across the Universe" reviewed by Dave Wayne

by Dave Wayne
May 1, 2016

Back in the day, record companies would occasionally issue “Greatest Hits" compilation albums. Usually cheaply packaged (no gatefold, no credits, no liner notes, etc.), these collections were a convenient way to have all of an artist's big hits (plus some filler) in one convenient location. Record companies reaped huge profits from these collections and, perhaps, took a little contractual pressure off of the artist. With the advent of streaming and iTunes, Greatest Hits collections have been rendered unnecessary. What's replaced ...