Jazz Articles about John Leftwich

About John Leftwich

Album Review

Cathy Segal-Garcia: Social Anthems - Volume 2

Read "Social Anthems - Volume 2" reviewed by Nicholas F. Mondello

by Nicholas F. Mondello
October 3, 2024

Los Angeles-based Renaissance woman Cathy Segal-Garcia is well-known as an innovator, trailblazer and an artist who sets her own artistic paths. As a vocalist, composer/arranger, broadcaster, educator and more, she has never shied away from risk. Social Anthems, Vol. 2 follows the first volume which also was a production with socially conscious themed material. With this effort she sends up eight tracks comprised of well-known selections and originals, all with that same orientation. “In Your Eyes" leaves ...

Album Review

Melody Gardot: Sunset in the Blue - The Deluxe Version

Read "Sunset in the Blue - The Deluxe Version" reviewed by William H. Snyder

by William H. Snyder
May 3, 2021

Henri Matisse, the master of the use of color, said, “Art should be something like a good armchair in which to rest from physical fatigue." Melody Gardot's Sunset in the Blue: The Deluxe Version shows its mastery, in both the color of its cover design and the execution of its musicianship. Back in the day, Matisse got in trouble with some art critics for his simile. Some listeners might have a similar reaction to Melody's music, but not all. Gardot's ...

Album Review

Melody Gardot: Sunset in the Blue

Read "Sunset in the Blue" reviewed by Scott Gudell

by Scott Gudell
January 25, 2021

Melody Gardot emerged from her own smoky shadows of the mid-2000s as if she were some femme fatale emanating from a film noir movie. The plot twist was that she was the good girl, but it was her body that had been damaged in an auto accident. An extensive recovery followed. Her long, lean cane only reinforced her long, lean looks. The shades added just a touch of mystery. If there was anything positive, it was that she confronted the ...