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.

257

Album Review

Dave Specter: Spectified

by Nic Jones
January 3, 2011

Guitarist Dave Specter knows his blues and he has a track record to prove it. This set is, however, more reflective of the extent of his musical knowledge and appreciation for different forms. It's also a rare example of an instrumental set which loses nothing with repeated listens--and its ability to put a smile on the face only seems to grow with each successive spin. “Rumba & Tonic" provides ample evidence--and also how Specter's guitar and Los ...

134

Album Review

Steve Raegele: Last Century

Read "Last Century" reviewed by Jerry D'Souza

by Jerry D'Souza
January 3, 2011

Guitarist Steve Raegele brings a multifaceted presence to his debut, Last Century. Raegele, who is based in Montreal, Canada, was the lead guitarist of the psychedelic rock band The Besnard Lakes, and a member of drummer Thom Gossage's Other Voices. He was at home in the radically different approach of the two bands, an assured player who found his muse, no matter what the idiom. He now shows just how exploratory and sensitive he can be to differing norms of ...

212

Take Five With...

Take Five With Tom Donald

by AAJ Staff
January 3, 2011

Meet Tom Donald:I was born in the Australian Outback, a town called Coonabarabran. I now live in London. I am mainly a piano improviser and composer. Abbey Road Studios, BBC Radio Studios, Hackney Empire, National Opera Studios & Ronnie Scott's jazz club in London. I also compose for film and produced, compose for American vocalist and lyricist, Sirena Riley.Instrument(s):Piano.Teachers and/or influences? I guess my favorite music seems to have ...

656

The Art and Science of Jazz

All Jazzed Up: Looking for a Jazz Center Within the Folds of the Brain

by Hrayr Attarian
January 3, 2011

Music is a universal phenomenon across all human cultures both past and present. In that respect it is much like language, and as the understanding of language comes naturally to humans, so, too, does appreciation of music. Language has been mapped to distinct areas of the brain for well over a century, and relatively recently there have been successful efforts to the same thing for music. Before talking about these brain areas it is important to understand ...

170

Album Review

Joe McPhee / Ingebrigt Haker Flaten: Blue Chicago Blues

Read "Blue Chicago Blues" reviewed by John Sharpe

by John Sharpe
January 2, 2011

Multi-instrumentalist Joe McPhee has demonstrated a particular affinity for the string bass. Among his discography are multiple duets with Dominic Duval and Michael Bisio, and even a double-disc set with four bassists, Angels, Devils And Haints (CJR, 2008). Now, Blue Chicago Blues can be added to that esteemed catalogue, from a 2007 session recorded in the Windy City with Norwegian bassist Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, with who the American has collaborated many times as a special guest with The Thing. It's ...

538

JazzLife UK

Northern Ireland: Jazz is on the Rise

by Bruce Lindsay
January 2, 2011

In geographical terms, the island of Ireland is small: just 300 miles by 175 miles, with a population of around 6.2 million. Northern Ireland is smaller still: 1.8 million people in six counties in the north-east of the island. In the wide world of jazz the country rarely rates a mention. But Northern Ireland's jazz scene is stirring: a small but highly-talented and enthusiastic bunch of musicians is rapidly expanding the scene and beginning to export the music around the ...

420

Year in Review

Top Ten "Most Downloaded" MP3s: 2010

by AAJ Staff
January 2, 2011

All About Jazz tracks how often our free daily MP3s are downloaded and the tunes listed below represent our top ten for 2010. Most Downloaded | Top 50 Cape Verdean Blues (7:56)SF Jazz CollectiveFrom: Live 2010: 7th Annual Concert Tour (SF Jazz) Featured: 2010-10-31 Sassy Stew (06:04)Grover Washington Jr.From: Grover Live (G-Man Productions, Inc./Lightyear) Featured: 2010-06-01 ...

199

Album Review

Marcus Shelby Orchestra: Soul Of The Movement: Meditations On Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Read "Soul Of The Movement: Meditations On Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." reviewed by Bruce Lindsay

by Bruce Lindsay
January 2, 2011

Soul Of The Movement: Meditations On Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr is a beautiful album. Bassist, composer and arranger Marcus Shelby was inspired to put the album together by his study of the Civil Rights Movement and, in the combining of his own original compositions with spirituals and tunes associated with the movement, he has created a most affecting and uplifting recording, performed with passion by the superb 15-piece Marcus Shelby Orchestra. Shelby's own compositions take their ...

136

Album Review

Nathaniel Smith Quartet: Nathaniel Smith Quartet

Read "Nathaniel Smith Quartet" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky

by Dan Bilawsky
January 2, 2011

Drummer Nathaniel Smith's music can be characterized as modern jazz that often finds serenity in searching, angular confines. Smith's quartet, which features rising star saxophone maverick Jon Irabagon, finds its way and brings these intriguing compositions to life without resorting to unnecessary fireworks. Smith wrote five of the seven pieces here, and each one possesses admirable traits. “Daybreak And Then Dusk" starts things off, with Irabagon's swooning saxophone sliding over the group, but the followup, “Tortoise Pendant," ...

174

AAJ PRO

Motivation

by Chuck Anderson
January 2, 2011

Motivation is the moving force behind anyone's activity. There is a complex set of forces which move anyone to do anything. It is no less complex for the musician. I bring this up not to point out differences between musicians and “laymen," but rather to point out the inherent similarities. Musicians, like anyone else, find themselves in situations where they must assume a variety of roles. These roles have been produced by the influence of various motivations. ...