Jazz Articles about Gerald Clayton

About Gerald Clayton

Album Review

Most supergroups happen and barely dent the dust. Despite those odds, one or two happen for a reason. That reason is Motion I by Out Of/Into. Formerly known as The Blue Note Quintet--pianist Gerald Clayton, alto saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins, vibraphonist Joel Ross, drummer Kendrick Scott, and bassist Matt Brewer--hijack the lead track “Ofafrii" with a brazen romp of everything tuneful and tasty. Wilkins and Ross virtually ground the driving ethic while power-gliding above the whole enterprise. It is a hellion ride, considering ...

Live Review

Gerald Clayton-Elena Pinderhughes Duo at Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society

by Roy Strassman
May 31, 2024

Gerald Clayton-Elena Pinderhughes Duo Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society Live performance Half Moon Bay Sunday, April 28, 2024 It is always a rewarding experience to attend a show at Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society in Half Moon Bay near San Francisco, both for the music and the beachfront location. As usual, president and artistic director Barbara Riching was the hostess and emcee, and the show, featuring Gerald Clayton and Elena Pinderhughes, filled the 200-seat ...

Live Review

Gerald Clayton at Trinity University

by Katchie Cartwright
November 14, 2023

Gerald Clayton Trinity University / Ruth Taylor Hall San Antonio, TX November 7, 2023 Trinity University's Ruth Taylor Hall, with its intimate seating and warm wood-paneled acoustics, is a welcoming spot for a solo piano concert. Addressing the audience as he entered the stage, Gerald Clayton remarked on the geniality of the vibe. He was going try to catch some waves, he said, speaking metaphorically and as an ardent California surfer. Beginning quietly, almost tentatively, ...

Album Review

Vicente Archer: Short Stories

Read "Short Stories" reviewed by Mike Jurkovic

by Mike Jurkovic
July 3, 2023

Bassist Vicente Archer may be a Grammy winner with a long grand vintage (Nicholas Payton, John Scofield, Kenny Garrett, Norah Jones) but he has not revealed his own particular harvest as he does on the amicable and resilient Short Stories. Accompanied on what is technically his debut, fellow Scofield and Payton alum, drummer Bill Stewart and ever curious pianist Gerald Clayton bring to these stories a captivating, unified narrative. The soft, insistent tannins of “Mirai" opens Short Stories ...

Album Review

Roberta Gambarini: Easy To Love

Read "Easy To Love" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci

by Richard J Salvucci
June 27, 2023

In 2007, All About Jazz reviewer Michael Caratti wrote: “This debut outing from Roberta Gambarini sees the Italian-born jazz vocalist pair up with two star-studded rhythm sections and legendary tenor saxophonist James Moody, to present what has to be one of the best vocal jazz albums of the decade. Opening with Cole Porter's classic title track Gambarini's exquisite tone and masterful rhythmic phrasing are immediately on display in the first a capella section. The gradual addition of bass and brushes ...

Radio & Podcasts

Summer Tree Ain't No Summer Breeze

by Patrick Burnette
October 27, 2022

It's the shock of the new as the boys take on three 2022 releases that stretch our heads in various directions, including a solo guitar outing, a visit to a mythical cave, and a trumpet excursion that goes to even stranger places. After that, a chill-out album from Blue Note is a welcome change of pace if nothing else. Pop matters delves into this year's edition of the Chicago Jazz Festival, so stay tuned. And watch out for those falling ...

Album Review

Gerald Clayton: Bells On Sand

Read "Bells On Sand" reviewed by Chris May

by Chris May
April 9, 2022

It seems like an age since pianist Gerald Clayton's previous album, Happening: Live At The Village Vanguard (Blue Note, 2020), although it is actually only two years. But what traumatic years they were--and what an impact they have had on Clayton's new album. The Vanguard disc, recorded in spring 2019, was an often exuberant or otherwise intense affair, with saxophonists Logan Richardson and Walter Smith III, both of them capable of generating heat, featured on most of the ...