Jazz Articles

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Ideal Bread: Transmit: Vol. 2 of The Music of Steve Lacy

by Troy Collins
June 1, 2010

Baritone saxophonist Josh Sinton graduated from pupil to sideman following his studies with Steve Lacy at the New England Conservatory, performing with the late soprano saxophone legend and serving as his copyist. After Lacy's passing in 2004, Sinton founded Ideal Bread as a repertory group in his honor, dedicated to performing his former teacher's rarely covered compositions. Transmit is the sophomore follow up to Ideal Bread's self-titled debut, a limited edition CD-R released in 2008 on the KBM label. Drawing ...

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Geri Allen: Geri Allen & Timeline Live

by Mark F. Turner
June 1, 2010

Remember the time when jazz and dance were simpatico partners? Where swing and tap were intertwined with lively music and sweltering choreography in joints, halls, and clubs. Probably not, but pianist Geri Allen does, as she reflects on those past golden moments and dares to create new ones with Geri Allen & Timeline Live. Allen's Timeline consists of an extremely versatile group that includes veteran bassist Kenny Davis (who has performed with Cassandra Wilson, Don Byron), the exciting ...

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Senegal's Etoile de Dakar featuring Youssou N'Dour and south London's Yaaba Funk

by Chris May
June 1, 2010

The birth of mbalax in Senegal towards the close of the 1970s, and a 2010 highlife/funk hybrid from south London, show how the embrace of imported styles by African musicians can enrich the continent's music.

Etoile de Dakar featuring Youssou N'Dour Once Upon a Time in Senegal: The Birth of Mbalax 1979-1981 Sterns 2010

Digging into Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour's back catalogue is a fun exercise on two fronts. The ...

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Daniel Carter / Demian Richardson / David Moss / Federico Ughi: Wake Up!

by Mark Corroto
June 1, 2010

If the solicitation from the members of this band is to indeed Wake Up!, then their plea recorded here will agitate, and, yes, maybe even activate some. This quartet of saxophonist Daniel Carter (Test, Other Dimensions in Music), trumpeter Demian Richardson, Italian drummer Federico Ughi, and bassist David Moss apply a vibe that is equal parts electric Miles Davis, Prime Time-era Ornette Coleman, and Sun Ra street jam band.

Ughi is also the label chief for 577 Records. ...

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Satoko Fujii at the Vortex, London

by John Sharpe
June 1, 2010

Satoko Fujii and Natsuki Tamura The Vortex London 12 April 2010

When considering marital harmony, the Roman poet Ovid got it right. He said “If you would marry suitably, marry your equal." And that balanced union is exactly what the husband-and-wife team of Satoko Fujii and Natsuki Tamura has achieved. Touching down at north London's Vortex for the first UK date of a short European tour, they affirmed their breathtaking empathy as a ...

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Joe Chambers: Horace To Max

by Edward Blanco
June 1, 2010

In this follow up to the critically-acclaimed The Outlaw (Savant 2006) recording, Joe Chambers tips his hat to colleagues Horace Silver and Max Roach with Horace To Max, paying tribute to mentor Roach and recognizing Silver as one of the most important composers of the post-bop era of jazz. A highly-regarded session drummer of the '60s appearing on many of Blue Note's greatest jazz recordings, Chambers builds on the foundation of The Outlaw--where he was featured prominently on mallet instruments ...

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Take Five with Julian Waterfall Pollack

by AAJ Staff
June 1, 2010

Meet Julian Waterfall Pollack:At the age of twenty-one, New York pianist Julian Waterfall Pollack has the jazz community abuzz with his mature, technically ferocious, and dynamic piano playing. Among his many accomplishments, Pollack was featured on Marian McPartland's renowned NPR show, Piano Jazz, at age eighteen.

He has performed internationally at venues including the Blue Note in New York, the Kennedy Center, the Umbria Jazz Festival, and many more. He is also the recipient ...

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Georgia Mancio: Silhouette

by Bruce Lindsay
May 31, 2010

Georgia Mancio celebrates 10 years as a professional jazz singer with Silhouette, her third album. The mix of standards and original compositions, delivered in Mancio's light but distinctive voice, and accompanied by some of the finest musicians on the British jazz scene, is a genuine cause for such celebration. Silhouette is innovative, lyrically inventive, risky at times and always rewarding. Mancio's vocal delivery is reminiscent of Anita O'Day's; her enunciation is clear and precise but there is ...

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Steve Swell: Sound Miracles

by Gordon Marshall
May 31, 2010

Trombonist Steve Swell captures the energy of a big band in the close quarters of a small group. An alumnus of Buddy Rich's and Lionel Hampton's bands on the one hand, and collaborator with Anthony Braxton on the other, he seems bound to have fixed upon such a hybrid configuration at some point. But how an artist could exhibit such stylistic range and adaptability to begin with, and on top of that reconcile them in a career that has already ...

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Jazz Goes Green: Musical Explorations On A Secondary Color Of Note

by Dan Bilawsky
May 31, 2010

With spring taking hold and summer on the way, it's hard to avoid encounters with the color green. The drab gray and white of winter is now no more and a vibrant green color scheme has taken over. A drive along the Long Island Expressway--which leads to Manhattan and some of the greatest jazz clubs in the world--might be a burdensome, traffic-filled journey to some, but it also provides colorful explosions across the whole spectrum of this color's family. While ...