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.

103

Album Review

Bobby Bradford / John Carter Quintet: Comin' On

Read "Comin' On" reviewed by Raul d'Gama Rose

by Raul d'Gama Rose
October 23, 2011

In a music industry that is for-profit by definition, the relative ignorance of history and the importance of musicians who made it historic borders on the criminally insane. How else could the complete disregard for contributions of Herbie Nichols by the industry be explained? Add to that a slew of greats who continue to be ignored by all but the cognoscenti. Musicians such as Bobby Bradford, John Carter, Billy Bang, Andrew Cyrille and Ed Blackwell, to name just a few--some ...

194

Book Review

Bob Riesman: I Feel So Good - The Life And Times Of Big Bill Broonzy

by Jack Huntley
October 23, 2011

I Feel So Good: The Life And Times Of Big Bill BroonzyBob RiesmanCloth; 336 pagesISBN 97800226717456University of Chicago Press2011 Guitarist and singer Big Bill Broonzy is one of those musicians whose reach cannot be limited to his immediate musical era or genre. Like his peer Leadbelly, Broonzy effected attitudes toward civil rights through his songs. Like Robert Johnson, Broonzy's musical style deeply affected the course of history through ...

118

Live Review

Enjoy Jazz: Mannheim, Germany, October 2-November 18, 2011

by Adriana Carcu
October 23, 2011

Week 1-2 | Week 3-4 | Week 5-7 Enjoy Jazz Festival Heidelberg/Mannheim/Ludwigshafen, Germany October 2-November 18, 2011 On the first gala night, in the mediaeval Heidelberg Castle, trumpeter Erik Truffaz came out from beyond a red velvet curtain to deliver his tribute to Miles Davis, a good forty years after the release of Bitches Brew (Columbia, 1970) and only a few days after the 20th anniversary of the iconic trumpeter's death. In white ...

220

Album Review

Mark McKnight: Do or Die

Read "Do or Die" reviewed by Mark F. Turner

by Mark F. Turner
October 23, 2011

The artwork of Mark McKnight's Do Or Die depicts scenes from a chase--an escapee fleeing his assailants to the top of building, before making the decision to jump or not. But this action adventure implication is only one aspect to the guitarist's impressive sophomore release which encompasses progressive music in the vein of fret-board wizards Kurt Rosenwinkel and Nir Felder. Equally convincing is McNight's handling of Rodgers and Hart's popular show tune, “Bewitched," originally titled “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered," from ...

114

Album Review

Adi Imeri: Ja Navivam za Kojotot

Read "Ja Navivam za Kojotot" reviewed by Nenad Georgievski

by Nenad Georgievski
October 23, 2011

Although a key member of the underground band Jabolko Za Daskalot (An Apple for the School Teacher) guitarist Adi Imeri--а prominent figure on the inconsistent but diverse Macedonian underground music scene--has also been involved in numerous side projects, most notably String Forces and the experimental/ambient collective Zdeev. On Ja Navivam za Kojotot (I Cheer for the Coyote, referring to the famed Warner Brothers Roadrunner character), his first solo record, Imeri pushes the boundaries of solo electric guitar. ...

122

Live Review

Primus: New York, NY, September 30, 2011

by Mike Perciaccante
October 23, 2011

Primus Roseland Ballroom New York, New York September 30, 2011 Alternative radio staple Primus brought their bass-heavy avant-rock to New York City's Roseland Ballroom in the form of their Green Naugahyde Tour. With the crowd chanting “Primus Sucks!"--it's a term of endearment, not the epitaph that many would think-- bassist Les Claypool, drummer Jay Lane and guitarist Larry LaLonde appeared on stage just after 8:30 pm. The audience, already amped up, worked itself into a ...

150

Album Review

Ted Rosenthal Trio: Out Of This World

Read "Out Of This World" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky

by Dan Bilawsky
October 22, 2011

Standards, when presented in their original form, speak of the time and place of their creation, but part of their longevity is due to the fact that they aren't encased in an early twentieth century amber that fossilizes and dates the material. The music of George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Billy Strayhorn, and Richard Rodgers is timeless, but it can all be refashioned, refitted and recast to serve any musician's vision and taste. The songs are bodies and the artists are ...

190

Live Review

Maya Recordings Festival: Winterthur, Switzerland, September 23-25, 2011

by Declan O'Driscoll
October 22, 2011

Maya Recordings Festival Winterthur, Switzerland September 23-25, 2011 The Maya Recordings label is unusual, if not unique, in that it releases CDs of baroque music (Bach, Biber, Telemann) alongside contemporary composition (Barry Guy) and some of the most exciting free jazz imaginable (Mats Gustafsson, Evan Parker and others). To celebrate 20 years of its existence, a three-day festival was held in Winterthur, a small city near Zurich, during which many of those who recorded for the ...

120

Live Review

Gerald Wilson: New York, NY, September 30, 2011

by Louis Heckheimer
October 22, 2011

Gerald Wilson, Anthony Wilson, Eric Otis and the Juilliard Jazz Orchestra Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, New York, NY September 30, 2011 There are jazz players who've had extended careers, and then there's Gerald Wilson. The veteran composer, arranger and big band leader might well be able to claim the longest major recording career in jazz. First recorded in 1939 as a member of Jimmie Lunceford's Orchestra, Gerald Wilson celebrated the release of his most recent CD, ...

117

Album Review

Mike Prigodich: A Stitch in Time

Read "A Stitch in Time" reviewed by Raul d'Gama Rose

by Raul d'Gama Rose
October 22, 2011

Mike Prigodich's A Stitch in Time comes as a pleasant surprise, not only because the pianist displays astounding technique, but because he dazzles with the dramatic nature of his playing. Yet the drama is no ruse or distraction from the heart of his music, which is highly charged with emotion. This is, of course, reflected in the maddeningly complex compositions he writes. Its architecture is created from a vast musical topography that covers vast swathes of the global soundscape--from North ...