Jazz Articles

like 495

Charlie Hunter: Gentlemen, I Neglected to Inform You You Will Not Be Getting Paid

by John Kelman
January 18, 2010

As ever, 7-string guitarist Charlie Hunter can be counted on to shake things up every couple of discs. After two trio sets with keyboardist Erik Deutsch, Hunter returns to the horn-driven breadth of Right Now Move (Ropeadope, 2003). On Gentlemen, I Neglected to Inform You You Will Not Be Getting Paid, however, Hunter trades Right Now's unorthodox harmonica/sax/trombone frontline for the equally unusual line-up of two trombones and trumpet. But more than just the line-up has changed.

like 1,221

Mickey Roker: You Never Lose the Blues

by Victor L. Schermer
January 18, 2010

Drummer Mickey Roker is a mainstay and icon of the jazz world, having a played with Dizzy Gillespie, the Modern Jazz Quartet, Lee Morgan, and many of the other signature groups of modern jazz.

Yet he has always maintained his Philadelphia roots, and is and has been a regular at Ortlieb's Jazzhaus in that city for many years. Still active as a drummer and a mentor, he has witnessed and been part of the jazz world in action ...

like 412

Patti Page: Patti Page with Pete Rugolo and His Orchestra

by Samuel Chell
January 18, 2010

The Classic Jazz Calendar 2010, with photographs by Chuck Stewart--a full-page devoted to each of 12 jazz greats--includes a striking photo of Patti Page, representing the month of May. While her inclusion may strike many as unexceptional, for jazz followers who remember the best-selling female singer of the 1950s, her name would seem a problematic fit. Yet she is the only vocalist and female among the chosen dozen (which includes Wayne Shorter, James Moody, Jimmy Cobb, Red Garland, and Grant ...

like 1,144

Gene Harris, Tommy Flanagan, Hank Jones: For the Love of Ivory

by Dr. Judith Schlesinger
January 18, 2010

These CDs have two major things in common: they each represent the very best of jazz piano, and they're both recorded live, with appreciative audiences whose rapture is contagious. With no studio fixes and no second chances, they also provide that pure, breathless excitement that comes from working without a net.

Gene Harris Quartet Another Night in London Resonance Records 2010

Another Night in London follows the quartet's 2008 ...

like 296

Wadada Leo Smith: Spiritual Dimensions

by Jakob Baekgaard
January 18, 2010

For a long time, trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith has pushed the boundaries of experimental jazz. The records he made during the seventies for his own Kabell label have become a richly treasured legacy of the avant-garde. Spiritual Dimensions, a two-CD set dedicated to his working bands, The Golden Quintet and Wadada Leo Smith's Organic, finds him exploring two different pathways: meditative free music and electrifying experimental funk. What the two approaches share is a deeply spiritual bent, and the fact ...

like 197

Myra Melford's Be Bread: The Whole Tree Gone

by Nic Jones
January 18, 2010

Pianist Myra Melford founded this ensemble in 2002, specifically as an outlet for her compositions. She's blessed indeed, because this line up realizes them so beautifully. Her work can be described as pervasively contemplative though never quiet, which in its way is every bit as distinctive as the late Andrew Hill's depth of compositional character.

Melford's not afraid to cover bases either. Her solo free exposition into “Moon Bird" is the work of a pianist secure in her ...

like 204

Aram Shelton's Fast Citizens: Two Cities

by Jerry D'Souza
January 18, 2010

The Fast Citizens was formed by Keefe Jackson in 2002, who led the band on its debut recording Ready Everyday (Delmark Records). The sextet rotates leaders, and this time around it's led by saxophonist/clarinetist Aram Shelton. Shelton is based in Oakland, California but also has an ongoing musical relationship with Chicago. Hence the title, Two Cities.

One of the core strengths of this group is its ability to transform the shape and texture of a composition, doing so with a ...

like 348

Bobby Hutcherson: Wise One

by Ken Dryden
January 18, 2010

Recently named NEA Jazz Master, Bobby Hutcherson has an extensive discography, though opportunities to record as a leader have slowed a good bit since the dawn of the 21st century. Hutcherson is still very much an important vibraphonist, as this excellent tribute to John Coltrane reveals. All nine songs were either written or recorded by Coltrane, though Hutcherson's choice of instrumentation deliberately moves away from the jazz master's typical groups. Guitarist Anthony Wilson takes the place of a second reed ...

like 371

The Inbetweens: Quantum Cowboy

by Elliott Simon
January 18, 2010

Electric guitarist Mike Gamble rules the traditional blues/rock/funk corners of his instrument extremely well but it is his artistry and compositional command that make these creative improvisations worthy of multiple listens. Here, he combines with a risk-taking rhythm section of acoustic bassist Noah Jarrett and drummer Conor Elmes to become The Inbetweens. While they heavily draw on a number of genres, they are anything but non-committal in their musical approach and Quantum Cowboy, though treading on lots of territory that ...

like 284

Roni Ben-Hur: Fortuna

by Andrew Velez
January 18, 2010

This is a worthy follow-up to Roni Ben-Hur's Smile (Motema, 2009), on which he was memorably paired with fellow guitarist Gene Bertoncini. The Israeli-born composer and arranger is teamed here with three stalwarts, the late pianist Ronnie Mathews, percussionist Steve Kroon and drummer Lewis Nash. This is the same rhythm section Ben-Hur used for the album that preceded Smile, 2005's Keepin' It Open (Motema Music). They're joined by bassist Rufus Reid, with whom Ben-Hur worked on the guitarist's fourth release ...