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Jazz Articles about Johnny Vidacovich

About Johnny Vidacovich

Album Review

Nolatet: Somethin' To Relax With

Read "Somethin' To Relax With" reviewed by Glenn Astarita

by Glenn Astarita
May 21, 2026

Nolatet unites four veteran voices from the New Orleans jazz scene. Bassist James Singleton and drummer Johnny Vidacovich have formed one of the city's most durable and inventive rhythm sections since the late 1970s, anchoring Astral Project and backing everyone from Professor Longhair to Dizzy Gillespie. Vibraphonist Mike Dillon brings his trademark guerrilla energy and percussive mischief from Garage a Trois, while pianist Brian Haas--a longtime architect of Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey--contributes rangy, classically informed harmonies and fearless improvisation. The ...

Album Review

Randal Despommier: South

by Dan Bilawsky
March 6, 2025

Growing up in Metairie, Louisiana--a mere six miles from New Orleans--alto saxophonist Randal Despommier's formative experiences were rooted in the Crescent City's fertile sonic soil. A stone's throw away from the action, he was able to cut his teeth on the local scene(s) and put his horn to good use in Mardi Gras parades. In addition, and in some of those instances, he learned a great deal by watching and musically interacting with his father, Phil Despommier--a pupil of NOLA ...

Album Review

Denise Mangiardi: On the Brink

Read "On the Brink" reviewed by Nicholas F. Mondello

by Nicholas F. Mondello
August 7, 2024

Originally from Freeport, Long Island, New York and now residing on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom, multi-faceted vocalist, composer, arranger, and engineer, Denise Mangiardi offers On the Brink, her eighth album as leader. Consisting of seven exceptionally well-performed selections with a handful of vivid originals and two classics, this is a masterful effort that is intriguing, enlightening, and a most enjoyable listen. “The Walk" is a lovely light bossa nova that is lushly beautiful. ...

Profile

Johnny Vidacovich: Magnet In The Middle

by Thomas Cole
November 13, 2023

The ever changing cast of the Johnny Vidacovich Trio defies the meaning of that word--trio . Historically, jazz trios with a drummer in the middle have included such notables as Art Blakey, Gene Krupa and Max Roach but none of those groups changed cast members on a weekly basis or deviated very far from what they normally played--jazz. These drummers, for the most part, embraced their familiar style of music or genre and played. But every Thursday evening the Vidacovich ...

Album Review

Jon Cleary: So Swell

by Thomas Cole
July 20, 2023

Imagine the joy of discovering a new album from Jon Cleary recorded in 2020, featuring Johnny Vidacovich and James Singleton together and occasionally accompanied by James Rivers on sax. Part of the Newvelle Records project involved producing an actual vinyl record titled The New Orleans Collection though it escaped notice from a casual listening audience with access only to segments of the sessions on YouTube. With ample advance notice with full charts provided by Cleary for this epic ...

Album Review

Johnny Vidacovich: Out Da Box

Read "Out Da Box" reviewed by Thomas Cole

by Thomas Cole
July 17, 2023

The jazz tradition is often one featuring drummers leading bands. Gene Krupa headlined a group known by his name as have jazz greats Art Blakey, Buddy Rich, Elvin Jones and the list goes on. Appearing on that same list of the 50 greatest jazz drummers, why not Johnny Vidacovich too? With no explicit intent to break the molds from which jazz drummers emerge and set new standards, his thing comes effortlessly--it is who he is rather than a ...

Album Review

Eivind Austad: That Feeling

Read "That Feeling" reviewed by Friedrich Kunzmann

by Friedrich Kunzmann
January 19, 2021

Presenting an equal amount of originals and covers/standards, Norwegian pianist Eivind Austad's New Orleans Trio channels The Big Easy's musical spirit through gospel-tinged ruminations, extended blues forms and a healthy portion of New Orleans shuffle on the collaboration's debut effort. Following only a year after Austad's sophomore outing Northbound (Losen Records, 2019) saw the light of day, That Feeling takes up the geographical connectivity of its predecessor, but this time around moves to the music to Louisiana along the Mississippi ...