Jazz Articles about John Heard

About John Heard

Album Review

Ahmad Jamal: At The Jazz Showcase: Live In Chicago

Read "At The Jazz Showcase: Live In Chicago" reviewed by Mike Jurkovic

by Mike Jurkovic
May 5, 2026

There was something Buddha yet cool-as-all-hell about Ahmad Jamal. Who else would give the whole story away with the set-opening, barn-raising ingenuity of “Ahmad's Song"--a CV of everything Jamal--his musings on time and space; his insatiable swing-- and dares you to keep up on At The Jazz Showcase: Live in Chicago. A gig to remember, no matter what side of history it happened on, Jamal, bassist John Heard, and drummer Frank Gant take a chill, take-no- prisoners attitude at ...

Album Review

Ahmad Jamal: At The Jazz Showcase: Live In Chicago

Read "At The Jazz Showcase: Live In Chicago" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
April 30, 2026

Ahmad Jamal (1930 -2023) began his recording career in 1951, laying down the tracks to the 1959-released album The Piano Scene of Ahmad Jamal (Epic Records). It was a trio affair, with Jamal at the keyboard, Ray Crawford on guitar, along with bassists (separately) Ray Calhoun and Israel Crosby. But before those earlier sessions saw the light of day, Jamal's At The Pershing: But Not For Me (Argo Records, 1958) hit the record racks. Jamal had switched out the guitar ...

Album Review

Basie All Stars: Live At Fabrik Vol. 1

Read "Live At Fabrik Vol. 1" reviewed by Chris May

by Chris May
March 13, 2023

Such are the glories of his band's recorded legacy from the 1930s through the 1950s, that the mere mention of Count Basie's name will trigger a Pavlovian response from his fan base. Like no other, the Count Basie Orchestra epitomised big-band swing at its most sublime; reefer fuelled, riff based, loose and louche Kansas City jazz that is irresistible even in 2023, a life-affirming antidote to the barbarity of DL-only albums, generative music and social media. Seasoned ...