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.

Take Five With...

Take Five With Jasmine Lovell-Smith

by AAJ Staff
July 29, 2012

Meet Jasmine Lovell-Smith: Jasmine Lovell-Smith is a composer and saxophonist from New Zealand, currently based in New York City. Born to an American mother, a trained opera vocalist, and a Kiwi father, the voice was her first instrument. After discovering jazz in high school, Jasmine took up the saxophone and went on to graduate from Massey University (Wellington, NZ) in 2006 with a Bachelor of Music (1st class Honors) majoring in jazz saxophone performance and composition. She was ...

Live Review

Vision Festival, Days 3-5: New York City, NY, June 13-15, 2012

by John Sharpe
July 29, 2012

Days 1-2 | Days 3-5 | Days 6-717th Annual Vision FestivalRouletteBrooklyn, NYJune 11-17, 2012Wednesday night at the Vision Festival was given over to the celebration of a lifetime of achievement by multi-instrumentalist, Joe McPhee, a deserving and popular choice. In presenting him with the envelope (presumably holding a check), Patricia Nicholson Parker said that he didn't blow his own horn--not the most apt metaphor, but the meaning was clear and the truth evident ...

Album Review

Amina Figarova: Twelve

Read "Twelve" reviewed by Hrayr Attarian

by Hrayr Attarian
July 29, 2012

Calling Amina Figarova merely a jazz impressionist does injustice to the full breadth of the pianist's vision and does not reflect the uniqueness of her artistry. That said, most of her compositions do have an impressionistic bent. The nocturnal “Shut Eyes, Sea Waves...," for instance, on Twelve (her twelfth release as a leader), uses her cascading piano and Dutch drummer Chris Strik's gentle cymbals to paint a picture of waves crashing against the shore. The salty air is almost palpable ...

Album Review

Tommaso Starace: Simply Marvellous

Read "Simply Marvellous" reviewed by Bruce Lindsay

by Bruce Lindsay
July 28, 2012

Saxophonist Tommaso Starace is not a man to keep his influences hidden, nor does he simply take inspiration from the saxophone greats. The tunes on Plays The Music Of Elliott Erwitt (Frame, 2006) were inspired by a series of pictures from one great photographer; another, Robert Capa, inspired the title track of Blood And Champagne (Music Center Real, 2011). The gorgeous Simply Marvellous celebrates the life and work of another of Starace's favorites, the much-admired and loved pianist Michel Petrucciani ...

Live Review

Phish: Saratoga Springs, New York: July, 6-8 2012

by Doug Collette
July 28, 2012

PhishSaratoga Performing Arts CenterSaratoga Springs, New YorkJuly 6-8 2012Since their triumphant return to the stage in Hampton VA in March of 2009, the four members of Phish--guitarist/vocalist Trey Anastasio, bassist/vocalist Mike Gordon, keyboardist/vocalist Page McConnell and drummer/vocalist Jon Fishman--have renewed, reaffirmed and reinvented their personal and professional relationships. The climax to Phish's first leg of its Summer, 2012 tour demonstrated how far the group has come in that progression.From the very start, the ...

Album Review

Donald Vega: Spiritual Nature

Read "Spiritual Nature" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky

by Dan Bilawsky
July 28, 2012

Some musicians willingly praise anybody who simply picks up an instrument, but bassist Ron Carter isn't known to be one of them. The legendary bass master has incredibly high standards and a reputation for telling it like it is, so an endorsement from Carter really means something. The fact that he hails Donald Vega as “the next piano voice" in jazz, and selected him to be Mulgrew Miller's successor in his trio, should serve as evidence of Vega's abilities, but ...

Live Review

Lou Reed: Bonn, Germany, June 29, 2012

by Phillip Woolever
July 28, 2012

Lou ReedKunst!rassen FestivalBonn, GermanyJune 29, 2012 As far as omens may go, Lou Reed's two-hour performance as the headliner of the freshly spawned Kunst!rassen 's inaugural concert was a dynamic debut for the new festival. Reed is doubtless a major international talent, but he's also drawn very mixed reactions for his eclectic format of material over the years. For organizers in Bonn, a relatively safe gamble paid off as Reed and his crew laid ...

Take Five With...

Take Five With JB Baretsky

by AAJ Staff
July 28, 2012

Meet JB Baretsky: At only 25-years-old, JB Baretsky is wise beyond his years. From packed out performances all over New York (including two dates at Lincoln Center) to write-ups in The Huffington Post, Pulse Magazine, JazzTimes, and more. JB is bringing a vintage sound, style, and culture to new audiences, young and old. He has gained a wide-range of respect from critics and listeners alike.Instrument(s): Vocalist. I also perform on piano and harmonica for ...

Album Review

Maya Dunietz / John Edwards / Steve Noble: Cousin It

Read "Cousin It" reviewed by Eyal Hareuveni

by Eyal Hareuveni
July 28, 2012

This freely improvised meeting brings together Israeli pianist Maya Dunietz and British master free players, bassist John Edwards and Steve Noble--an experienced and powerful rhythm section. The trio celebrated the release of this recording at a live concert at Cafe OTO in London in December, 2011. Dunietz is one of the leading voices on the Israeli alternative scene, capable of freely improvising on piano and many other instruments, playing in art-rock outfits, and singing and leading choirs. ...

Live Review

Howard Jones: Huntington, NY, July 7, 2012

by Mike Perciaccante
July 28, 2012

Howard Jones The Paramount Huntington, NY July 7, 2012 For two-and-one-half hours on this warm Saturday evening at Huntington, New York's Paramount, Howard Jones successfully turned back time for an enthusiastic crowd that came to hear him perform his Dream Into Action (Elektra, 1985) and Human's Lib (Elektra, 1984) albums in their entirety. Jones' keyboards, electronic equipment and keytar were set up center stage and surrounded by various electronic video and sound devices. ...