Jazz Articles about Chris Lewis

About Chris Lewis

Album Review

Carlos Henriquez: Monk Con Clave

Read "Monk Con Clave" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
June 6, 2026

Carlos Henriquez has long understood that rhythm tells stories long before words arrive. On Monk Con Clave, he takes Thelonious Monk's angular brilliance and brings it back to the streets, dance halls, and other crowded spaces across New York's Afro-Caribbean neighbourhoods. The result is not merely a tribute album but a living dialogue between Monk's genius and Henriquez's Nuyorican identity. Leading his self-named big band, Henriquez has assembled a remarkable multigenerational ensemble featuring musicians from the Jazz at ...

Album Review

Ben Wolfe: Any Time After Now

Read "Any Time After Now" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
June 3, 2026

In this recording by bassist, composer and bandleader Ben Wolfe, titled Any Time After Now, there is a quiet assurance, with nothing straining for effect or feeling manufactured. Recorded in a single studio day alongside vibraphonist Joel Ross, pianist Sullivan Fortner, tenor saxophonist Chris Lewis and drummer Aaron Kimmel, the album spans ten tracks of original Wolfe compositions and exhibits a natural cohesion that reflects musicians deeply attuned to one another. The opener, “Any Time After Now," swings ...

Album Review

Kieran Brown: Loving You

Read "Loving You" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
January 14, 2026

Youthful, conservatoire-trained vocalist upstart Kieran Brown brags in the opening song from her debut recording, Loving You: I've got a song that longs to be played Raise up my flag, begin my parade Then watch the world over start comin' up clover That's how it's gonna be, watch me You're gonna hear, you're gonna hear from me. Jackie Ward originally sang André Previn and Dory Previn's, “You're Gonna Hear From Me" in the ...

Album Review

Caelan Cardello: Chapter One

Read "Chapter One" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
September 14, 2025

Caelan Cardello's debut release, Chapter One, marks the emergence of a pianist and composer with a clear sense of purpose. Supporting Cardello on this journey are bassist Jonathon Muir-Cotton, drummer Domo Branch, and guest tenor saxophonist Chris Lewis; they draw deeply from the well of jazz tradition while shaping a distinctly modern voice. Cardello's program combines eight originals with select pieces from Cole Porter, Harold Mabern, and Cedar Walton, establishing a strong foundation in both heritage and innovation. ...

Album Review

Chris Oatts: Personalities

Read "Personalities" reviewed by Victor L. Schermer

by Victor L. Schermer
August 15, 2022

Saxophonist Chris Oatts is a graduate of the jazz program at Temple University's Boyer College of Music and Dance and the nephew of revered saxophonist—and faculty member of Temple University—Dick Oatts. This reviewer heard Chris Oatts at Chris' Jazz Café (similarity in the names purely coincidental) in September, 2021, with his quintet featuring one of his teachers and mentors, Terell Stafford, on trumpet. In that set, Oatts stayed within the bebop/hard bop traditions and showed exceptional sophistication, inventiveness, and resilience ...