Jazz Articles about Azar Lawrence

So Cal Jazz 2013: Highlights and a Serious Low

by Chuck Koton
April 4, 2014

Azar Lawrence Quartet RG Club Venice, CA January-September 2013 2013, already slipping deep into the fog of forgetfulness, had its share of memorable jazz moments here in Southern California. And while, according to the Western, as well as the Chinese calender ( Happy Year of the Horse!), this review and these expressions of gratitude (as well as a few well deserved outbursts of contempt), may be tardy, for the Persian followers of All About Jazz, ...

Azar Lawrence Quartet at the RG Club

by Chuck Koton
August 9, 2013

Azar Lawrence Quartet and Special GuestsRG ClubVenice, CANovember 2, 2012-July 21, 2013Venetians like to consider themselves among the hipper denizens of the Los Angeles area, yet remarkably, there hasn't been a Venice jazz club in over 20 years. And any neighborhood that aspires to “hipness" better be able to boast of a cool and swingin' space to dig jazz. Sadly, not since the '80s, when the late Comeback Inn hosted jazz greats like Frank Morgan, ...

Azar Lawrence: Long Beach, CA, July 28, 2012

by Chuck Koton
August 28, 2012

Azar LawrenceSeabird LoungeLong Beach, CAJuly 28, 2012The “A Train," saxophonist Azar Lawrence, recently roared into the Seabird Lounge in Long Beach, CA with a burnin' quintet guaranteed to generate a lot of steam power. Lawrence, a native Angeleno, first impacted the jazz scene back in the early '70s while playing with jazz legends Elvin Jones, McCoy Tyner and Miles Davis. But after a prolonged hiatus from the jazz scene, Lawrence has paid his dues, again. ...

Azar Lawrence: Mystic Journey

by Glenn Astarita
January 13, 2011

Saxophonist Azar Lawrence's influential faculties and stylistic attack loom as significant contributions to the state of jazz, a genre that continually reinvents itself. He's played with jazz greats including McCoy Tyner and Miles Davis, amid stints with soul and pop icons. On Mystic Journey, Lawrence rekindles the John Coltrane connection, featuring Rashied Ali's presence and the band's rendition of Tyner's enduring “Walk Spirit, Talk Spirit." Ali passed away several months after these sides were recorded in April, ...

Azar Lawrence: Mystic Journey

by AAJ Italy Staff
November 17, 2010

Ciò che apprezziamo del jazz è la costante tendenza al rinnovamento, la tensione che lo spinge a sperimentare, cercando nuove sintesi tra musiche e culture diverse. È un compito, questo, che spetta doverosamente ai giovani mentre i protagonisti delle passate stagioni hanno tutto il diritto di esprimere -con aggiornamenti più o meno marcati -i valori musicali che hanno creato.Non tutti sono Miles Davis o Gil Evans. Il contributo dei “maestri" è di alimentare le radici, offrendo un contributo ...

Azar Lawrence: Mystic Journey

by Chuck Koton
May 27, 2010

Azar LawrenceMystic JourneyFurthermore Recordings2010

Unlike many who stumble in the darkness for years, tenor and soprano saxophonist Azar Lawrence discovered his way in life early, knowing that he would be journeying down a road filled with music. By the time he turned 21, Lawrence had already played with revered jazz musicians such as drummer Elvin Jones, pianist McCoy Tyner and trumpeter Miles Davis. During this period in the 1970s, Lawrence also released ...

Azar Lawrence: Prayer for My Ancestors & Speak The Word

by Francis Lo Kee
November 7, 2009

Azar LawrencePrayer for My AncestorsFurthermore2009 Azar LawrenceSpeak the WordZarman Productions2009 The tenor and soprano saxophonist Azar Lawrence should be known to all by his seminal work with pianist McCoy Tyner, especially on the double LP set Enlightenment, which is one of the most powerful recordings of the '70s. The two modern CDs reviewed here ...