Jazz Articles about Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra

Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra: Live at MCG

by Jack Bowers
July 24, 2005

For me, the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra has been an acquired taste. I was less enamored than others with its first two releases, Groove Shop and Heart and Soul, but since then the orchestra has produced a series of winners (Absolutely!, Explosive!, Shout Me Out) and marks its twentieth anniversary with what is arguably its most impressive album to date, Live at MCG (Manchester Craftsmen's Guild).

One reason for the steady improvement is consistency; several of these gentlemen have been with ...

Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra: Shout Me Out

by Dr. Judith Schlesinger
May 3, 2004

The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra is in the process of exploding on the international consciousness, an “overnight success" after eighteen years. While the CHJO has been hugely popular on the West Coast and Japan, and famously anchored the Hollywood Bowl for three years, it just made its New York debut on April 21 at the Jazz Standard (among the appreciative audience: Benny Golson, Frank Wess, Rufus Reid, and John Pizzarelli). From New York, it was on to the Kennedy Center (with ...

The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra: Shout Me Out!

by Jack Bowers
February 1, 2001

If there were an award for “most improved big band,” the opinion here is that the C–HJO would win going away, as its two most recent albums ( Explosive!, with vibraphonist Milt Jackson, and now Shout Me Out! ) have moved well beyond its earlier endeavors to prove beyond any doubt that this is one of the most talented and exciting ensembles performing anywhere in the lower forty–eight. Clearly, the primary role model is Basie, and the C–HJO is emphatically ...

Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra: Shout Me Out!

by Jim Santella
October 1, 2000

There’s a kind of instrumental music that is so loud and annoying that it will bring out the earplugs and go right through your chest. And then, there’s another kind of instrumental music that sways like semi-liquid through the room in a never-ending stream of lightweight embellishment. Although these forms of entertainment appeal to a wide audience, both lack substance and both prove to be quite forgettable in the end.

Here’s something much more substantial. Out of the Count Basie ...

Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra: Shout Me Out

by AAJ Staff
October 1, 2000

Deservedly rising in public consciousness and critical acclaim from its West Coast cultish following, the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra (CHJO) possesses a quality that distinguishes it from other big bands: an unforced inherent swing. Taking a cue from Basie minimalism combined with a hard drive, CHJO can't help but ooze blues from every beat and every measure. The composition “Shout Me Out" assumes a Hefti-ish heavily accented anticipation of the beat, a la “Li'l Darling." “Plunger Mute Syndrome," once again a ...