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

The 14 Jazz Orchestra: Nothing Hard Is Ever Easy

Read "Nothing Hard Is Ever Easy" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
November 15, 2015

The 14 Jazz Orchestra, based in south Florida, is comprised of thirteen accomplished sidemen (all alumni of the University of Miami) and arranger / conductor Dan Bonsanti. On its debut recording, Nothing Hard Is Ever Easy, the ensemble cast its net wide to gather in compositions by Billy Strayhorn, Wayne Shorter, Joe Henderson, Charlie Parker, Chick Corea, Paul McCartney, John Scofield and Florida native Jaco Pastorius, among others, each one marshaled with rigorous care by Bonsanti. Saxophonist ...

Album Review

Barry Altschul's 3dom Factor: Tales of the Unforeseen

Read "Tales of the Unforeseen" reviewed by John Sharpe

by John Sharpe
November 15, 2015

Veteran drummer Barry Altschul has enjoyed something of a late career resurgence over the last decade. Work with co-operatives such as the FAB Trio, as well as with trombonists Steve Swell and Roswell Rudd presaged his first leadership date for a quarter of a century in 3dom Factor (TUM Records, 2013). That trio with bassist Joe Fonda and saxophonist Jon Irabagon reunites for Tales Of The Unforeseen. Recorded in the studio following a weeklong tour, the threesome proves exceptionally well-attuned ...

Album Review

Mette Henriette: Mette Henriette

Read "Mette Henriette" reviewed by Hrayr Attarian

by Hrayr Attarian
November 15, 2015

Norwegian saxophonist Mette Henriette's (full name Mette Henriette Martedatter Rølvåg) eponymous debut on ECM is a bold artistic statement. A mosaic of shimmering tonal hues, provocative ideas and sublime moods the music is spread out over two CDs. On each one Henriette is in the company of a different ensemble but the thematic unity is maintained throughout. Starting with a sparse trio setting, Henriette creates short and powerful sonic poems that have the intelligence and the spirituality of ...

Album Review

Kyrbgrinder: Chronicles of a Dark Machine

Read "Chronicles of a Dark Machine" reviewed by Glenn Astarita

by Glenn Astarita
November 15, 2015

This London-based rock trio brings old school rock standards to the table, featuring award--winning drummer Johanne James (Threshold) who also mans the the lead vocal duties. Even though the band lays down fervent pulses amid Aaron Waddingham's (Land of Cain) weighty guitar phrasings and Dave Lugay's sturdy bass lines, the primary focus here is firmed up via a collection of memorable works that are tinted with flavorful pop -rock overtones. There are shades of heavy metal but no ...

Album Review

Manuel Valera & Groove Square: Urban Landscape

Read "Urban Landscape" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
November 14, 2015

Cuban keyboardist and composer Manuel Valera presented last with a scorching trio set Live at Firehouse 12 (Mayo Records, 2015). Acoustic and organic, Valera demonstrated is bona fides with mainstream jazz performance. Bringing drummer E.J. Strickland from that and earlier bands, Valera moves into a new project with a new band, Groove Square. He adds the ubiquitous bassist John Benite to the mix making for a solid rhythm section for Valera to compose and perform over. Decidedly adult contemporary, Urban ...

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Catching Up With

Gabriel Vicéns: Puerto Rican Jazz Guitar

by Mark Sullivan
November 14, 2015

Puerto Rican jazz guitarist/composer Gabriel Vicéns graduated from the Music Conservatory of Puerto Rico as the first jazz guitarist, and has gone on to teach guitar at the Music Department at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. He recorded his first solo album Point in Time at age 23; his second album Days has been released by Inner Circle Music. Both albums are notable for his fine writing and playing, as well as some high profile guest stars.

Interview

Mark Wingfield: The Continuing Evolution of the Electric Guitar

by John Mark McGuire
November 14, 2015

I was first introduced to the music of Mark Wingfield through listening to his first duo album with the inventive genius of Massachusetts acoustic mastermind, Kevin Kastning. Although in my gut I suspected it, it was almost impossible, still, to believe when it was confirmed that both players had indeed improvised the entire album. While retaining that just-baked freshness, there was still a grace, presence, flow and assurity presenting itself that one might expect from the delivery of music the ...

Album Review

Henry C. Gilliland & A.C. Robertson: The Year of Jubilo: 78 rpm recordings of Songs from the Civil War

Read "The Year of Jubilo: 78 rpm recordings of Songs from the Civil War" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
November 14, 2015

This is the tale of a record collector, Joe Bussard. Bussard boasts a collection of 78 rmp shellacs numbering in the 10,000s and including a good many of the pre-WWII Paramount blues and country sides. He is the curator of “old-timey" music. Bussard has previously released re-recordings of his collection under the guise of Down in the Basement: Joe Bussard's Treasure Trove of Vintage 78s 1926-1937 (Old Hat Records, 2003). Bussard has now joined forces with Lance Ledbetter's Dust-to-Digital label ...

Album Review

Lyn Stanley: Interludes

Read "Interludes" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
November 14, 2015

Vocalist/producer Lyn Stanley has established herself as a foremost stylist of the Great American Songbook. That is no mean feat. The sheer amount of vocal music made each year around the Songbook is impressive. It is too bad that the quality of a great many of those recordings is not equally impressive. Stanley's two previous recordings, Lost in Romance (A.T. Music, LLC, 2013) and Potions: From the '50s (A.T. Music, LLC, 2014), have been an evolving prelude to the present. ...

Album Review

Phil Haynes: Sanctuary

Read "Sanctuary" reviewed by Budd Kopman

by Budd Kopman
November 14, 2015

Many musicians, at some point, acknowledge a desire that has been building within them --to create music not for anyone else, but for themselves, and, ultimately, by themselves. Obviously, this is easy for pianists, and more difficult for single-line instruments, but now much more common. Drummer/percussionists, especially in jazz, have different problems. First, of course, is the lack of (clear) pitch, relegating percussion (in general) to be but a piece of what many think of as music. Indeed, ...