Jazz Articles about Bill Evans

like 394

Bill Evans Trio: The Last Waltz

by Mark Corroto
November 1, 2000

Bill Evans died, at the age of 51, on Sept 15, 1980. In what has been described by friends and family as “slow suicide," he finally succumbed to the effects of the years of substance abuse. Like Charlie Parker before him the world was alternatively too beautiful and too ugly to endure. For fans of Bill Evans, like those of Bird, the Grateful Dead and today's Phish, his live performances have been extensively bootlegged, traded and revered. The Last Waltz ...

like 354

Bill Evans: Touch

by Dave Hughes
March 1, 2000

Saxophonist Bill Evans' new CDTouchsuccessfully manages to create a contemporary sounding program without falling victim to formula or cliche. All of the songs are Evans originals, and they speak well of his talents as a composer; they are more intricate than standard radio fare yet still approachable, resulting in sort of a "thinking person's contemporary jazz." While he's credited as playing both tenor and soprano saxophones on almost all selections, one or the other predominates on each cut. ...

like 366

Bill Evans: Homecoming

by Douglas Payne
June 1, 1999

It seems virtually every one of piano great Bill Evans's (1929-80) performances were recorded during the last two years of his life, when he had his last - and arguably superior - trio with bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Joe LaBarbera. As more recordings continue to surface, it is evident that this was a most commanding unit.What makes this November 1979 recording, issued here for the time, so special is that the Evans trio was captured upon the ...

like 249

Bill Evans: Homecoming

by AAJ Staff
June 1, 1999

“The last two years I was here were perhaps the happiest years of my life.” This was Bill Evans, talking about Southeastern Louisiana College, where he graduated in 1950. You know what happened: he went to New York, had a memorable stay with Miles Davis, and became one of the most influential pianists in jazz. His school also knew; now a university, they gave Bill their first Distinguished Alumnus award in 1969. Ten years later came a special event: a ...

like 520

Bill Evans: Piano Player

by Douglas Payne
October 1, 1998

At first it's hard to tell if Piano Player is a quickie compilation or a never-issued recording. But it's a bit of both. It's a hodgepodge, really, consisting of eight never-before released songs enhanced by the Miles Davis quartet's 1958 performance of “My Funny Valentine" and two of five tracks from vibraphonist Dave Pike's excellent 1962 quartet record Pike's Peak (which, like Herbie Mann's Nirvana, also featuring Evans, should be released in its entirety).What makes Piano ...

like 445

Bill Evans: Half Moon Bay

by Douglas Payne
October 1, 1998

It's hard to believe pianist Bill Evans (1929-1980) has been gone nearly as many years as his interesting recording career lasted. In that time, Evans's influence has become one of the most pervasive of twentieth century pianists and he endures as one of the most distinctive of jazz practitioners.In addition to the many known and famed recordings Evans made, many more that were taped privately or never issued are now beginning to become available. Half Moon ...

like 262

Coleman Hawkins, Bill Evans Trio and Gene Ammons: JVC Audiophile Reissues

by AAJ Staff
January 1, 1998

COLEMAN HAWKINS Good Old Broadway (JVC)BILL EVANS TRIO At Shelly's Manne-Hole (JVC)GENE AMMONS Boss Tenor (JVC)

Fantasy has been pretty good about licensing titles it owns to labels that put out audiophile CDs, including DCC and JVC. The sound quality is superb on these three audiophile versions of titles that originally came out on Riverside and Prestige catalogues and are presently owned by Fantasy.

Toward the end of his life, Coleman Hawkins sunk into an emotional abyss and drank himself ...