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

Meeco: Beauty of the Night

Read "Beauty of the Night" reviewed by Edward Blanco

by Edward Blanco
February 26, 2012

Paris-based composer/producer Michael Christian Maier, alias Meeco, has never truly delivered a standard jazz album, preferring instead to craft musical projects that are creative, innovative and different from the rest, described as “neither classical nor jazz" (Jaques Morelenbaum). A follow-up to Perfume e Caricias (Connector, 2010), Beauty of the Night is Meeco's third disc and his most impressive project to date, certainly qualifying as a non-standard recording.This enchanting recording captures romantic melodies and beautiful love songs on a ...

Album Review

Matthew Shipp: Elastic Aspects

Read "Elastic Aspects" reviewed by William Carey

by William Carey
February 26, 2012

There is a moment fairly early on in pianist Matthew Shipp's Elastic Aspects, when the solo piano that has been hypnotizing for several minutes ends and is replaced by a rather angry and anxious sounding bass, bowed fervently by trio mate Michael Bisio. It is startling, and is soon replaced by the feathery light drumming of Whit Dickey, with Shipp pecking intermittently. Bisio then rejoins his partners, sounding nimble and agile, pizzicato now, and the three roll along happily for ...

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Multiple Reviews

Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings Collector’s Edition Box Set

by Chris M. Slawecki
February 25, 2012

Bill WymanBill Wyman's Rhythm Kings Collector's Edition Box SetProper American2011 From all accounts, founding member Bill Wyman resigned from the Rolling Stones in 1992 because he was weary of the frantic pace of life as bassist for “The World's Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Band."Wyman's bass provided the band's solid rhythmic foundation and he seemed rather comfortable with his corresponding image as “the quiet Stone." His bass seems more often ...

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Album Review

The October Trio: New Dream

Read "New Dream" reviewed by Glenn Astarita

by Glenn Astarita
February 25, 2012

In recent times, Vancouver, Canada has produced a hotbed of jazz-centric talent, outlined by an improvisational superstructure of sorts. On New Dream, The October Trio conveys a resourceful melding of various musical inflections amid a great degree of flexibility and moxie, featuring a wily sequence of events where each member plays a significant role. The trio teeters on the outside, but not far enough to be classified within the free jazz schema. Here, multi-woodwind artist Evan Arntzen pursues ...

Live Review

The 11th Annual Jazz Cruise: January 29-February 5, 2012

by Larry Taylor
February 25, 2012

Tributes to saxophonist Benny Golson and pianist Oscar Peterson highlighted the 11th annual Jazz Cruise, January 29 to February 5, 2012. As well, stellar performances were turned in by an assemblage of over 80 musicians, onboard for the Holland America cruise of the Caribbean. The spacious Westerdam ship was christened in 2004 and is one of HAL's largest, with a capacity of 1,848; this year the ship was sold out for the cruise. The ship decor is exceptional--from the ...

Album Review

Erik Charlston JazzBrasil: Essentially Hermeto

Read "Essentially Hermeto" reviewed by Raul d'Gama Rose

by Raul d'Gama Rose
February 25, 2012

No musical expedition to Brazil can be complete without a reverent doffing of the proverbial hat as the traveling musicians make an essential stop at Barrio Jabour, the place where the great Hermeto Pascoal lives. This is what vibraphonist and marimba artist Erik Charlston did. Fortuitously, he captured the resident and hovering spirits in the splendid Essentially Hermeto. This is an album of songs resplendent in the feelings of unbridled alegria; of joy, as they say, no matter where in ...

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Album Review

New World Beat: After Carnival

Read "After Carnival" reviewed by Edward Blanco

by Edward Blanco
February 25, 2012

The music of Brazil, a slice of the smooth style, a heavy dose of world rhythms and a pinch of jazz fusion provide the ingredients for the exotic and refreshing new sound captured on After Carnival, the brilliant debut from the Miami-based New World Beat. Led by vibraphonist Richard Sprince, a veteran of world music and an explorer of the Spanish Flamenco and African rhythms he has garnered over his years spent touring Europe and the globe, this group of ...

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Album Review

Remi Alvarez: Live at Vision Festival

Read "Live at Vision Festival" reviewed by Jerry D'Souza

by Jerry D'Souza
February 25, 2012

The Vision Festival is the premier showcase for art, dance and experimental music. Some of the finest exponents of avant-garde and free jazz perform on its stage. The atmosphere is electrifying and vibrant as it captures the expanse of the imaginations of the musicians. The unseen chord becomes a pertinent presence and the harbinger of a whole new realm of ideas.Saxophonist Remi Alvarez, who first performed at the festival in 2006, finds a compact umbrella under experimental music. ...

Multiple Reviews

Drums and Numerology: Tommy Igoe and Jonathan Blake Embrace the Number Eleven

by Dan Bilawsky
February 24, 2012

In numerology, eleven is said to be a master number, capable of representing those who inspire and lead, often achieving greatness in the process. Charisma and an intuitive way of thinking frequently underscore the thought-process of eleven-oriented individuals, helping to lead them to success in their chosen paths. With these thoughts in mind, it seems almost fitting that two exciting records from high-profile drummer-leaders have titles that take the number eleven as their theme. While Tommy Igoe ...

Album Review

Noah Kaplan: Descendants

Read "Descendants" reviewed by Raul d'Gama Rose

by Raul d'Gama Rose
February 24, 2012

Who knew that tenor saxophonist Noah Kaplan would turn out to be an old soul? Probably no one, especially those who have heard his extraordinary propensity for wailing in a sea of microtones and xenharmonics. But the truth is that Kaplan has made his lineage clear. He goes further back, from reeds-master Joe Maneri to the Greeks--even the ancient Indians--with his soft drones and whispering, sliding glissandi to thank the lute players. He goes back to the veena and sitar ...