Jazz Articles
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Rodger Fox Big Band Featuring King Kapisi: The Brotherman Project
by Jack Bowers
If nothing--no matter how peculiar or aberrant--is undertaken without a reason, trombonist Rodger Fox, whose big band is the finest New Zealand has to offer, must have had his reasons for recording the band's newest album with the country's leading hip-hop artist, King Kapisi. As jazz, like hip-hop, is an acquired taste, it is fruitless for someone who admires and appreciates one to impugn the other. It is what it is. And so we have King Kapisi ...
Continue ReadingKeith Jarrett's European Quartet: Innocence
by Scott Lichtman
It just so happens that two of the most poignant jazz ballads--in my opinion--were released in the same year. I'm not talking about throw-back masterpieces, such as Thelonious Monk's “Round Midnight" or Horace Silver's “Lonely Woman." Rather, they are Keith Jarrett's “Innocence" and Egberto Gismonti's “Palhaço," both originally issued in 1980. What makes these pieces stand out are their simple melodies; harmonic progressions with pop, not bebop, sensibilities; unexpected key modulations; and the nuanced musicianship of the supporting bands. Norwegian ...
Continue ReadingRoswell Rudd, Minnie Riperton, Tomoko Omura and Others
by Jerome Wilson
This vintage show from October 2021 has the usual eclectic mix of artists, including Roswell Rudd, Minnie Riperton, Herbie Hancock, Tomoko Omura, Denis Charles, and much more. Playlist Henry Threadgill Sextett “I Can't Wait Till I Get Home" from The Complete Novus & Columbia Recordings of Henry Threadgill & Air (Mosaic) 00:00 John Nyerges “Life" from Jazz, Pictures and Poems (NBR Jazz) 00:54 Lee Morgan “Boy, What A Night" from The Sidewinder (Blue Note) 7:38 Host Speaks 15:10 ...
Continue ReadingFrancois Carrier Ensemble featuring Mat Maneri /Tomasz Stańko / Gary Peacock / Michel Lambert: Openness
by Mark Corroto
Openness waited nearly two decades on a shelf (ok, probably on a hard drive) before being released for our listening pleasure. Recorded on May 5 & 6, 2006 at the Théâtre La Chapelle in Montréal, Canada, these three precious discs document a meeting between Canadian saxophonist François Carrier and Polish trumpeter Tomasz Stańko. It is the Polish label Fundacja Sluchaj to thank for this release and the prior disc Unwalled (2022), with Carrier being joined by Alexander von Schlippenbach, John ...
Continue ReadingTony Adamo: Soul Glide
by Nicholas F. Mondello
"Soul Glide" is the latest offering from singer/composer and hipster nonpareil, Tony Adamo. The track is a slick R&B throwback with an Eddie Harris “Listen Here" vibe and groove. It is an enjoyable listen and it has terrific momentum and bite. Over a solid rhythm bed from this spirited ensemble, Rob Sudduth's tenor opens the track with a tight “Famous Flames"-like line that chants a musical “you dig?" Adamo joins the party singing lyrics that are lathered ...
Continue ReadingThe Time Is Now!
by Joshua Weiner
The early '70s were difficult times in the United States, not least for the jazz community. The optimism of the flower-power and peace movements had given way to political radicalism, conflict and paranoia, and the excitement of the initial free jazz and jazz-fusion eras had begun to wane. John Coltrane and Albert Ayler were dead. Miles Davis was playing thick, unrelenting funk. Important record labels such as Columbia and Atlantic were largely pursuing multiplatinum rock acts rather than jazz. Some ...
Continue ReadingHenrique Mota Trio: É Pra Jazz
by Troy Dostert
Fusing the Brazilian rhythms of São Paulo with the feel of modern jazz, pianist Henrique Mota offers seven enticing cuts on his latest trio release, É Pra Jazz. With the top-shelf contributions of his bandmates, bassist Iury Batista and drummer Cuca Teixeira, not to mention a couple of esteemed guests, bassist Thiago Espirito Santo and saxophonist Cássio Ferreira, Mota has assembled a winning team for this album, and the resulting music is both joyful and exuberant. The opening ...
Continue ReadingIrakere 50 at SFJAZZ Center
by Harry S. Pariser
Irakere 50SFJAZZ Center San Francisco, California February 15, 2024 On April 25, 1973, the Santiago de Cuba stadium saw a historic event when Irakere (an eight-member band whose name means “forest" in Yoruba) debuted. Attendees had never experienced anything quite like it before. The musicians, all originally members of the eclectic Orquesta Cuba de Música Moderna, blended jazz, classical, Cuban pop, Afro-Cuban folkloric and funk music in an unparalleled mix. Two of the musicians--pianist ...
Continue ReadingPeter DiCarlo: The Other Side
by Jack Bowers
The Other Side is the second album by New York City-bred alto saxophonist Peter DiCarlo who now lives and works in Izmir, Turkey. Unlike the first, which was emphatically straight-ahead, this one blends elements of fusion and traces of a Turkish accent within DiCarlo's usual plain- spoken approach. Even so, the album's seven numbers--six written and all arranged by DiCarlo--would not be out of place in any anthology of contemporary straight-ahead jazz, as he seems unable to ...
Continue ReadingOut to Lunch Tribute, Nancy Wilson, Ella Fitzgerald
by David Brown
This week we celebrate the recording anniversary of Eric Dolphy's Out to Lunch. We'll pay tribute by playing tracks from the LP as recorded by Vandermark 5, Orchestre National De Jazz, James Newton, The Lounge Lizards and Eric Dolphy himself. A vocal set will follow featuring big band era vocalists Antia O'Day, Helen Humes and Ella Fitzgerald along with a ballad set featuring more recent recordings from Michelle Lordi and Marta Sanchez. Welcome friends and neighbors to The Jazz Continuum. ...
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