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

Charlie Hunter Trio featuring Bobby Previte and Curtis Fowlkes: Let The Bells Ring On

Read "Let The Bells Ring On" reviewed by Glenn Astarita

by Glenn Astarita
July 29, 2015

7-string guitar master, Charlie Hunter shares the spotlight with longtime colleagues, trombonist Curtis Fowlkes and drummer Bobby Previte, who are recognized for their pivotal work within New York City's progressive jazz circuit and beyond. Let The Bells Ring On is an atypical jazz groove effort of substantial proportions, not simply due to the slightly unorthodox trio setting, but more about Hunter's catchy and memorably melodic compositions that equate to a rather timeless union of funk, blues, jazz and R&B. Its ...

The Big Question

If you could make one suggestion on how to improve Jazz Near You, what would it be?

by Michael Ricci
July 28, 2015

Jazz Near You is a free event discovery platform for concert goers and a free event distribution platform for musicians, venue owners, and presenters. Like most software, Jazz Near You continually improves: from how we aggregate event information to how we make those events available to our website readers and our mailing list and app subscribers. I've outlined our immediate plans and some recent accomplishments (below), but I'm mostly interested in your thoughts on how we ...

Album Review

Waxwing: A Bowl Of Sixty Taxidermists

Read "A Bowl Of Sixty Taxidermists" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky

by Dan Bilawsky
July 28, 2015

The second album from this Vancouver-based trio--originally going by Wilson/Lee/Bentley, now known as Waxwing--is a study in contrasts. Idiosyncratic miniatures sit shoulder to shoulder with statements of serenity, eerie constructs and macabre scenarios are quickly replaced with comforting sounds, and uncertainty peaks around every corner. But there's a distinctive group sound and aesthetic here that transcends individual song structures or directions. Tony Wilson's mastery of subtle guitar effects, Peggy Lee's serious-minded turned stoking cello work, and saxophonist Jon Bentley's melodic ...

Album Review

Walt Weiskopf: Open Road

Read "Open Road" reviewed by David A. Orthmann

by David A. Orthmann
July 28, 2015

It all starts with the sound of Walt Weiskopf's tenor saxophone. Large, keening, expansive, his tone sometimes threatens to explode and wreak havoc on everything it touches. During lyrical passages and on ballads, he scales the sound back a little, waxing sensitive, tender, even poetic, but not abandoning its core--the moderation usually doesn't last very long. Whether executing a dizzying mass of phrases, braying a long bent note, hopscotching through a convoluted passage, or playing a relatively simple, unadorned melody, ...

Album Review

The Chuck Israels Jazz Orchestra: Joyful Noise

Read "Joyful Noise" reviewed by Edward Blanco

by Edward Blanco
July 28, 2015

Veteran bassist, arranger/composer Chuck Israels has had the good fortune of performing and recording with some of the best jazz musicians on the planet including legends and icons from Billie Holiday, Benny Goodman, Coleman Hawkins to John Coltrane and Stan Getz among many others, though he is best associated with the Bill Evans Trio from 1961 through 1966. Originally from New York but raised in Cleveland, Israels moved to Portland, Oregon where he now resides and founded The Chuck Israels ...

Album Review

William Schimmel: Theater of the Accordion

Read "Theater of the Accordion" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
July 28, 2015

Long-time instructor at Julliard and all-around guru of the accordion, Dr. William Schimmel is a musical force of nature. Not a household name? Go to YouTube and type in “Scent of a Woman Tango" and watch the clip. Schimmel is sitting on the right of the band. That is who he is. He plays the accordion. Or, maybe that's too simple. Here is an extract of the liner notes by the maestro himself, placing the accordion into certain perspective:

Genius Guide to Jazz

AAJ @ 20

by Jeff Fitzgerald, Genius
July 27, 2015

If you think back over the past twenty years (not right now. You have this article to read yet), you'd realize that we are living in one of the most remarkable times in human history. The Internet has brought the entire world to our fingertips, and has given every cat on the face of the earth their Warholian fifteen minutes. DVRs and various other technologies have allowed us to watch whatever we want, whenever we want. Smartphones allow us to ...

Live Review

Jazz for Kids: Copenhagen Jazz Festival

by Eyal Hareuveni
July 27, 2015

Jazz for Kids: Folkegaven (Kresten Osgood & Lars Greve) and Sun Ra for KidsCopenhagen Jazz Festival Søndermarken Park, Frederiksberg July 10, 2015 The Copenhagen Jazz Festival is a massive event, lasting 10 days, offering 1,200 concerts that envelope all corners of the Danish capital and draws an audience of about 250,000 people. Some of them are children, enjoying a special six-day program designed for them, featuring some of the best musicians performing at the festival. ...

Album Review

Lena Hovanesian: irwinorange

Read "irwinorange" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
July 27, 2015

In assigning colors to a musician's “sound," does alto saxophonist Lena Hovanesian blow orange? Maybe. On her debut CD, irwinorange, the title taken from the 2014 Franklin Evans' painting of the same name, Hovanesian's alto has a citrus-y tang, as she explores, sonically, her love of abstract art and natural beauty of Hawaii and her native California. Hovanesian employs some of New York City's finest forward-thinking jazz players in her ruminations--it's an all original set--on Hawaii's “Waimea Valley," ...

Album Review

Satoko Fujii Tobira: Yamiyo Ni Karasu

Read "Yamiyo Ni Karasu" reviewed by Karl Ackermann

by Karl Ackermann
July 27, 2015

If ever there were a restless musical spirit, it would be pianist, composer (and occasional accordionist) Satoko Fujii. The Japanese artist has issued more than sixty recordings in settings from solo to full orchestra and most everything in between. While she demonstrates virtuosic straight-ahead balladry on occasion, her preference has long leaned toward unorthodox improvisation. Fujii has recorded with Tin Hat's violinist Carla Kihlstedt, pianist Myra Melford and fronted a trio with bassist Mark Dresser and drummer Jim Black. Much ...