Jazz Articles

like 349

Dave Holland: Pathways

by David Adler
April 12, 2010

Bassist Dave Holland's main creative vehicle has long been the Dave Holland Quintet, but in recent years he's launched a number of other groups, tweaking and expanding instrumentation while preserving something of the quintet's signature sound. On Pathways, recorded live at Birdland in 2009, Holland takes another detour with the Dave Holland Octet, which splits the difference between his quintet and big band in terms of size, texture and orchestrated thrust. Incidentally, Holland switched from ECM Records ...

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Les Paul: How High The Moon: Hits & Rarities From The Wizard of Waukesha

by George Kanzler
April 12, 2010

His name is on the classic Gibson guitar and his role in the development of the electric guitar, as well as in the creation of multi-track recording and overdubbing, is indisputable. But even though he spent the last two-plus decades of his life holding forth, as much as raconteur as musician, on Monday nights (Fat Tuesday's and, later, Iridium), Les Paul, who died at 94 last summer (2009), won't be remembered as a jazz musician. His musical tastes ran closer ...

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Jeremy Pelt: A Man of Honor

by Esther Berlanga-Ryan
April 12, 2010

For the younger generation of jazz musicians, those in their thirties today, the path is not always as smooth and easy as we may think it is. Nobody likes to live in anybody's shadow. Jazz is populated with giants who left their mark and those who look up to them in order to be able to move on. They listen; they internalize; they create something new. That is what jazz is all about: the thrill of the unknown. Comparisons are ...

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Cedric Caillaud Trio & Harry Allen: Emma's Groove

by Jeff Dayton-Johnson
April 11, 2010

What if bassist Cedric Caillaud's sophomore effort had been recorded at Rudy van Gelder's fabled Englewood Cliffs studio and released on Blue Note Records in 1959, rather than France in 2009? The sound of Patrick Cabon's piano might have been slightly less warm (succumbing to engineer van Gelder's tendency to render pianos with a metallic tinge). Probably a bit of the players phrasing might have struck some listeners as vaguely futuristic--but not too much, really.Overall, though, qualities appreciated ...

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George Coleman: Close to Home

by Martin Longley
April 11, 2010

George Coleman's enfolding tenor saxophone tone is the embodiment of the endangered old school sound. His warm organically bluesy embrace invites the listener to sit closer, whether this Memphis man is picking spontaneously from the standards book or maybe selecting one of his own compositions. Actually, Coleman grew up down south, getting his first big break with BB King, but he has now been ensconced in New York City for just over 50 years. I dropped around to ...

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Brian Landrus: Forward

by Raul d'Gama Rose
April 11, 2010

Forward is a magical sonic journey charted by reeds and woodwinds master, Brian Landrus and explores the tonal depths of the ocean of sound that fewer saxophonists seem to traverse these days. Landrus plays baritone saxophone and bass clarinet on this adventure in sound, as well as alto flute, all of which makes for a breathtaking palette of colors when he is done. Landrus is a poet who has a mastery of tone, something he explores with gravity and a ...

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Discoveries Along The Pitch Continuum

by Amir ElSaffar
April 11, 2010

Growing up in an Iraqi-American household in Chicago, I was exposed to many musical influences from an early age: first Louis Armstrong, then Lutheran Hymns, then the Beatles, then Hendrix, then Miles. Arabic music, though constantly playing in the background during family gatherings, did not capture my attention until I was in my mid-teens and my sister Dena started a Middle Eastern music ensemble, called Salaam. I was intrigued by their music, but knowing that it used 'quarter tones,' it ...

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The Britton Brothers Band: Uncertain Living

by Bruce Lindsay
April 11, 2010

Hip-hop, bebop and Monk--not a music business legal partnership, but a brief summation of some of the musical influences at work on Uncertain Living, the excellent debut album from the Britton Brothers Band. The brothers--tenor saxophonist Ben Britton and trumpeter John, have put together a tight and talented collection of players with the added bonus of guest tenor player Chris Potter on two tracks. John Britton's tunes, “Extra Fuzz" and “Anticipation," show a hip-hop influence. “Extra Fuzz" ...

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Oscar Peterson: Debut: The Clef / Mercury Duo Recordings 1949-1951

by Ken Dryden
April 11, 2010

Oscar PetersonDebut: The Clef / Mercury Duo Recordings 1949-1951Verve Music Group2010

Piano giant Oscar Peterson's professional career spanned approximately 60 years and produced a prolific amount of recordings, though most of what he waxed during his first two decades was for labels launched by jazz impresario Norman Granz. But Peterson's early duo recordings have been neglected during the CD era until this comprehensive, three-CD set of his duets with Ray Brown or Major Holley ...

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Brandon Wright: Boiling Point

by Dan Bilawsky
April 11, 2010

The word tenor, in Latin, refers to “a continuous holding to a course," and tenor saxophonist Brandon Wright does just that on Boiling Point. Whether Wright is engaging in a musical boxing match with trumpeter Alex Sipiagin or crooning over pianist David Kikoski on an established ballad, he always seems to maintain a consistent musical presence that transcends tempo, feel and style. Perhaps it's his tone, which is big but not too brash and attractive, yet far from smooth, that ...