Jazz Articles about Charles Lloyd

About Charles Lloyd

Live Review

Charles Lloyd at the Umbria Summer Jazz Festival 2026

by Rhonda Wagner
August 12, 2026

Charles Lloyd Quartet Arena Santa Giuliana Umbria Jazz Festival Perugia, Italy July 6, 2026 It was a night to remember in Perugia, Italy. During a brutal heat wave sweeping across southern Europe, the legendary saxophonist Charles Lloyd performed at the Umbria Jazz Festival in the open-air Arena Santa Giuliana, at the top of this medieval walled city. The cool night air was filled with jazz lovers grateful for the 9pm performance start.

Album Review

Charles Lloyd: Sangam & Friends

Read "Sangam & Friends" reviewed by Jack Kenny

by Jack Kenny
August 9, 2026

It has been fascinating to observe how Charles Lloyd has travelled from his near rock-star prominence in the 1960s to his current stature as a spiritually oriented elder, often credited with fostering a meaningful dialogue between Eastern and Western musical traditions. At the core of Sangam & Friends lies the Lloyd--Zakir Hussain--Eric Harland triangle, whose collective energy shapes the album's identity. The title Sangam--suggesting a confluence or coming-together--aptly describes music that feels cumulative rather than episodic, as Indian ...

Album Review

Charles Lloyd: Sangam & Friends

Read "Sangam & Friends" reviewed by Doug Collette

by Doug Collette
July 24, 2026

With the release of Sangam & Friends, saxophonist-flutist Charles Lloyd pays homage to his kindred spirit and longtime collaborator, tabla master Zakir Hussain. Not that any reaffirmation was necessary based on their prior efforts together, but this album vividly depicts the deep musical affinity between the two extraordinary musicians as well as their sympathetic associates. The album is built around studio recordings made in 2009 for a project that was never completed. Combined with live performances by the ...

Radio & Podcasts

The Final Batch of My Favorite 2025 Jazz Things - Part 4

by Ludovico Granvassu
January 7, 2026

This episode of Mondo Jazz isn't about rankings or best-of lists. It's about memory. Over the past six months, certain pieces of music kept calling us back. Among them, are the tunes in this playlist. Happy listening! Playlist Ben Allison “Mondo Jazz Theme (feat. Ted Nash & Pyeng Threadgill)" 0:00 Luca Curcio “Fisk" La Bomba (Boomslang) 0:16 Host talks 4:16 Bram De Looze, Hank Roberts, Thomas Morgan, Joey Baron “Flagey Blues Edition X (Live)" Live at ...

Multiple Reviews

Charles Lloyd and Steve Tibbetts: Inner Directed and Independent

by Doug Collette
December 17, 2025

Perhaps not surprisingly, independent thinkers are invariably self-motivated and both those virtues apply to saxophonist Charles Lloyd and guitarist Steve Tibbetts. But while the former has roamed far and wide in a series of musical adventures involving the disparate likes of Keith Jarrett and the Beach Boys, the latter has chosen to go deep rather than broad in working with percussionist Marc Anderson for upwards of fifty years. In a similar reflection of their respective approaches, Tibbetts has mostly recorded ...

Radio & Podcasts

New Music from Lloyd, Haynes, Robertson, Lumpert And More

by Bob Osborne
November 27, 2025

Three double albums start a musical journey which includes, amongst other things, experimentation, a celebration of the legacy of Herb Robertson, a statement on the environment, previously unreleased material from a jazz legend, and a dip into the archives of British Jazz.Playlist Charles Lloyd “The Ghost of Lady Day" from Figure In Blue (Blue Note) 00:00 Phil Haynes & Free Country “Simple Gifts" from Liberty Now! (Corner Store Jazz) 10:17 Herb Robertson, Christopher Dell, Christian Ramond, Klaus Kugel ...

Album Review

Charles Lloyd: Figure In Blue

Read "Figure In Blue" reviewed by Jack Kenny

by Jack Kenny
November 4, 2025

Jazz listeners with long memories will remember that Charles Lloyd was not always as revered as he is today. In the 1960s, his association with the “Summer of Love" and San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury scene led some to question his seriousness, seeing him as flirting with commercialism. Six decades on, that perception has aged away. Lloyd's work in 2025 is almost comparable to Beethoven's late quartets--music of depth, reflection, and spiritual weight. He has passed beyond being a national treasure; he ...