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

Enoch Smith Jr.: Misfits II: Pop

Read "Misfits II: Pop" reviewed by Chris M. Slawecki

by Chris M. Slawecki
August 22, 2015

Growing up in the Pentecostal Church of God by Faith (in Rochester, NY) has been the biggest musical influence on pianist Enoch Smith, Jr. He titled his 2010 self-produced debut Church Boy and continues to serve as full-time Director of Music and Worship and pianist for Allentown (NJ) Presbyterian Church. “Growing up and playing mostly in church, you get a whole different side of what music is all about," Smith explains. “For me, it was always more of a spiritual ...

Live Review

Warren Haynes featuring Railroad Earth at Waterfront Park Burlington VT 2015 Lake Champlain Maritime Festival

by Doug Collette
August 22, 2015

Warren Haynes featuring Railroad Earth Waterfront Park Lake Champlain Maritime Festival Burlington, VT August 9, 2015 With the warm breezy notes opening their introductory set August 9th Railroad Earth set the tone for the evening at Burlington's Waterfront Park. In short order too they reaffirmed why they deserve their feature billing on this tour with Warren Haynes: no question the sprawling (in more than one ways) crowd came to see the erstwhile Allman ...

Catching Up With

Herb Alpert: Come Fly with Me

by Nicholas F. Mondello
August 22, 2015

With his latest recording, Come Fly with Me, legendary award-winning trumpeter, producer, artist and overall Renaissance Man, Herb Alpert takes the listener on a melody-rich, groove-embellished artistic journey, offering marvelous musical perspectives and insights with both familiar and exciting new sonic landscapes. All About Jazz: Herb, on behalf of all About Jazz, it's great speaking with you again. Thanks for taking time to speak with us about Come Fly with Me. Herb Alpert: My pleasure, Nick. ...

Album Review

Enrico Rava Quartet with Gianluca Petrella: Wild Dance

Read "Wild Dance" reviewed by Mark Sullivan

by Mark Sullivan
August 21, 2015

Stalwart Italian jazz trumpeter Enrico Rava introduces his new working quartet for this Wild Dance, joined by longtime playing partner trombonist Gianluca Petrella. Petrella contributed to Rava's three ECM post-millennium quintet albums Tribe (2011), The Words & The Days (2005) and Easy Living (2003). The basic quartet features a guitar rather than piano, recalling Rava's 1970s ECM recordings with John Abercrombie, The Pilgrim And The Stars (1975) and The Plot (1976). Guitarist Francesco Diodati is more of a texturalist in ...

Live Review

Eddie Prevost, Evan Parker and John Edwards at Cafe Oto

by John Sharpe
August 21, 2015

Eddie Prevost, Evan Parker and John Edwards Cafe Oto London, UK July 28, 2015 “There won't be any tunes." That was the response to the inquiry from a passing tourist as to what to they might expect. A fairly accurate answer you might think given the line up of saxophonist Evan Parker, drummer Eddie Prevost and bassist John Edwards. But what was anticipated in the place of hummable ditties was clearly proving a draw ...

Album Review

Stefano Battaglia Trio: In The Morning

Read "In The Morning" reviewed by Mark Sullivan

by Mark Sullivan
August 21, 2015

Italian pianist Stefano Battaglia and his trio present a program with a special thematic focus: all of the music was written by American composer Alec Wilder. Wilder is best known for his popular songs (recorded by Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, the Mills Brothers and others), but he also composed in many other genres--including art songs, orchestral music, chamber music, film music, musicals, and opera. And he wrote the influential book American Popular Song: The Great Innovators (1900-1950) about the classic ...

Album Review

Steve Washington: Right to Love

Read "Right to Love" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
August 21, 2015

Steve Washington is a versatile and personable singer, the kind you might hear in a lounge, bar or bistro and think to yourself, “Hey, he's pretty good." And he is. Pretty good, that is. On the other hand, he's not a singer whose name you're likely to see at the top of any charts, jazz or pop. He is one of a large number of talented singers who are widely known and appreciated in their own backyards, in this case ...

Album Review

Polar Bear: Same As You

Read "Same As You" reviewed by Chris M. Slawecki

by Chris M. Slawecki
August 21, 2015

Geography is rarely something that a writer considers when preparing a review. But Same as You sounds profoundly shaped by where it was mixed and mastered--in the Mojave Desert, by producer Ken Barrientos and Polar Bear drummer and bandleader Sebastian Rochford. “We spent a couple days at his studio then headed out to the desert for five days to mix it," Rochford recalls. Polar Bear's sixth release sounds wide open, dry and warm, quiet and loud, barren and ...

Live Review

T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land With Nick Roth Quintet at Happy Days Enniskillen International Beckett Festival 2015

by Ian Patterson
August 21, 2015

T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land with Nick Roth Quintet Ardhowen Theatre Enniskillen, N. Ireland August 1, 2015 It was hard to know what to expect from the combination of the reading of T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land and the specially commissioned jazz soundscape composed by Nick Roth. That T.S. Eliot was represented at all in a festival devoted to the work and life of the Nobel Prize winning writer Samuel Beckett seemed ...

From Far and Wide

Colombian Festivals: Exotic Jazz Cocktails

by Mark Holston
August 20, 2015

As the season of summer jazz festivals in the U.S. winds down to a precious few, including California's iconic, mid-September Monterey Jazz Festival, the eyes and ears of seasoned aficionados may be focused on options in other lands. Don't be surprised if an increasing number of North American fans will find much to their liking in the South American nation of Colombia, a mere three or four hour flight south from many major U.S. cities. Late September and October finds ...