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.

Interview

Alan Light: Songs of Perseverance and Survival

by Nenad Georgievski
May 29, 2013

Every once in awhile there comes a music book that ventures far beyond mere celebrity biography or fan appreciation. In a vigorous discourse combining excellent writing, shrewd criticism, and a kaleidoscope of people from all walks of life, Alan Light's The Holy or the Broken (Atria Books, 2012) traces the life of one unknown song, or its many lives, as it traversed the repertoires of a myriad of artists, movies, TV shows and advertisements. This deep, fun and engaging exegesis ...

Afrobeat Diaries

Saluting the Black President: London, UK, May 17, 2013

by Chris May
May 29, 2013

Saluting the Black President Dele Sosimi, Ginger Baker, Tony Allen, Keziah Jones, Afrikan Boy, others 229 London, UK May 17, 2013 Saluting the Black President was presented to mark the release of the second batch of albums in Knitting Factory UK's Fela Anikulapo Kuti reissue program. The event sold out long before the doors opened, with the advance publicity creating some seriously heightened expectations. Among these was the promised reunion of drummers Ginger ...

Album Review

Giovanni Guidi Trio: City of Broken Dreams

Read "City of Broken Dreams" reviewed by John Kelman

by John Kelman
May 29, 2013

It seemed inevitable. After working with Italian trumpeter Enrico Rava on 2013's Michael Jackson tribute, Rava on the Dance Floor, and 2011's more intimate Tribe, it should come as no surprise that pianist Giovanni Guidi--the only connecting thread between those two records (other than, of course, Rava)--should find himself with an opportunity to make his own record for the label. City of Broken Dreams comes with its own intrinsic continuity; a trio session from the final days of 2011, it ...

Live Review

Terell Stafford Quintet: Tempe, AZ, May 10, 2013

by Patricia Myers
May 29, 2013

Terell Stafford QuintetTempe Center for the ArtsTempe, AZMay 10, 2013Trumpeter Terell Stafford and his East Coast quintet delivered dynamic ensemble work and memorable solos in a concert on the theme, This Side of Strayhorn. A third of the evening's repertoire came from the leader's 2011 MAXJAZZ album of the same name, celebrating Duke Ellington's renowned colleague.The three lesser-known Billy Strayhorn charts performed were from his small ensemble writing, rather than the more familiar ...

Album Review

Ligro: Dictionary 2

Read "Dictionary 2" reviewed by Dave Wayne

by Dave Wayne
May 29, 2013

Another great fusion band from Indonesia, Ligro is a co-operative trio comprised of guitarist Agam Hamzah, bassist Adi Darmawan, and drummer Gusti Hendi. Compared to the other Indonesian jazz and fusion artists on the MoonJune roster (Dewa Budjana, Tohpati Ario Hutomo, and the group SimakDialog) Ligro's sound is appreciably more aggressive and, dare I say, more metallic than the others. Not that they're a metal band, per se. Ligro is definitely a jazz-rock fusion band, albeit one whose awareness of ...

Album Review

Nicolas Masson / Roberto Pianca / Emanuele Maniscalco: Third Reel

Read "Third Reel" reviewed by John Kelman

by John Kelman
May 28, 2013

Few would argue that, while the standard touchstones of contemporary jazz--names like saxophonist John Coltrane, pianist Bill Evans, bassist Charles Mingus, and trumpeter Miles Davis--remain amongst the many cited when contemporary artists are asked for their influences, younger influences have also emerged in the new millennium, names like saxophonist Chris Potter, guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel and pianist Brad Mehldau, to name but three. But it's not just individual artists that resonate; there are contemporary groups that also leave a significant mark, ...

Interview

Alexander Balanescu: The Aggressive Lyricism

by Adriana Carcu
May 28, 2013

Alexander Balanescu, the London-based violinist of Romanian origin, leads the avant- garde string quartet Balanescu Quartet, formed in 1987. Before that, Balanescu was part of the Michael Nyman Ensemble and Arditti Quartet. Ever since he has worked closely with artists of various musical orientations such as saxophonist John Lurie, singer David Byrne, pianists Keith Tippett and Carla Bley, oudist Rabih Abou Khalil, Spiritualised and the Pet Shop Boys.Balanescu has been involved both as a performer and as a ...

Jazz Humor

Hot Rod Jazz God, Part 2: An Open Letter to Rod Stewart

by Jason West
May 28, 2013

Um, Mr. Stewart, if you're reading this, first I want to apologize. In the past I wrote some things that you may have found slightly offensive.Like those bits about harmless Uncle Rod who shows up on holidays with a bottle-shaped microphone and comparing your interpretation of standard jazz melodies to a bull in downtown Pamplona. Sorry, mate. I take it back. I admit I was bitter.Bitter because I'm a jazz musician. And like most jazz musicians, ...

Album Review

Gilad Hekselman: This Just In

Read "This Just In" reviewed by Mark F. Turner

by Mark F. Turner
May 28, 2013

If Gilad Hekselman's previous releases caused a few ripples then his fourth album, This Just In should make a splash. The Israeli-born, New York-based guitarist has garnered attention as a rising fret-board wizard from the wellspring of notable peers such as Lage Lund and Miles Okazaki; fresh voices with plenty of technique but of equal importance are forward thinking outlooks. While it's hard to shed the similarities to other guitar notables, Hekselman clearly has what it takes to carve out ...

Album Review

Eugenie Jones: Black Lace Blue Tears

Read "Black Lace Blue Tears" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
May 28, 2013

Seattle-based vocalist/composer/arranger Eugenie Jones didn't start out as such. A business and marketing major in college, Jones graduated and went on to be a business owner, consultant and all-around marketing roustabout. But life is never so simple and after her mother's death, Jones decided that it was time to pursue music as a vocation. On her debut Black Lace Blue Tears Jones flexes all of her creative muscles assembling nine originals and interpreting two standards, all at a high level. ...