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Jazz Articles about Ahmad Jamal
The Best of Times, the Worst of Times
by William H. Snyder
Introduction“April is the cruelest month... “ so begins The Burial of the Dead section of T. S. Eliot's 100-year-old poem. “The Waste Land" laments the decline of culture in the world after World War I. In April of 2023, we lost Harry Belafonte and Ahmad Jamal. The loss of these two men is part of contemporary culture's decline. Burying the dead is a theme in “The Waste Land," but rebirth is also present. Great human spirits need to be kept ...
Continue ReadingWhat in the Bag?
by Patrick Burnette
Welcome to “What's in the Bag?," where Pat pulls out a few vinyl discoveries--some reissues, some crate finds--for Mike and him to dissect. It's kind of a continuing feature on the show when we run out of other things to discuss, and is not to be confused with “What's in the Box?" where the contents are always Gwyneth Paltrow's head and a scratched copy of Duke Ellington's Greatest Hits. Our selections include a recent RSD release of live Ahmad Jamal, ...
Continue ReadingVijay Iyer, Cal Tjader, Ella Fitzgerald & Ahmad Jamal
by Joe Dimino
We begin the 802nd episode of Neon Jazz honoring the late Ahmad Jamal with his trio live in Chicago. From there, we explore new music from Richard X Bennett & Matt Parker, The Joi Jazz Orchestra and Dean Mucetti. We also spin music from Ukraine-based Carlo Muscat who collaborated with Tony Tixier. Finally, we profile musician / storytellers Ernest Stuart, Dewayne Pate and Nick Phillips. Dig the jazz, my friends. Playlist Ahmad Jamal Trio “Darn that Dream" Chamber ...
Continue ReadingAhmad Jamal, King Pleasure, Enrique Villegas, Shirley Scott And More
by David Brown
Join us for another week of the Jazz Continuum. Old, new, in, out, where ever the music takes us. Each week we explore the elements of jazz form a historical perspective. This week we take a look at “Moody's Mood for Love," remember Ahmad Jamal, check out a new archival release form Shirley Scott, judge a Enrique Villegas record by its cover, and more. Thelonious Monk “Esistrophy (Theme)" from Live at the It Club-Complete (Columbia) 01:00 James ...
Continue ReadingAhmad Jamal: In his Own Sense of Time and Place
by Josef Woodard
This interview first appeared in the Santa Barbara News-Press on October 2005. The introduction has been updated. For the late, great and uniquely poetic pianist Ahmad Jamal, who passed on at age 92 on April 16, 2023, easy descriptors never sufficed in capturing his particular magic. He was a classicist, a modernist, a minimalist and a seeker on his own terms. “Poinciana," circa his classic 1957 live recording from the “hit" album Live at the Pershing: But Not ...
Continue ReadingRemembering Ahmad Jamal: Finished But Not Never
by Ian Patterson
Ahmad Jamal, the quiet pioneer of jazz piano has died aged 92, after a battle with prostate cancer. He passed away on Sunday, 16 April, according to a statement from his daughter, Sumayah Jamal. In a career that spanned the 1940s to the 2020s, Jamal always followed his own musical instincts. He was one of the very few pianists of the day not to succumb to the lure of bebop, purveying instead a spare, refined sound. Perhaps because ...
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