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Jazz Articles about Mike Clark
Leon Lee Dorsey: Thank You Mr. Mabern!
by Mike Jurkovic
He's studied classical double bass with Ron Carter and he's played alongside many of our most revered, among them Lionel Hampton, Art Blakey, andCassandra Wilson. Still, bassist/composer/arrangerLeon Lee Dorsey's name doesn't roll off everyone lips when discussing the top ranks of today's foremost, fearless bassists. But here's breaking news: Dorsey's got himself one hell of a rakin' and scrapin' new album spotlighting, God bless his good heart, the late Harold Mabern, sitting in two months before his passing in September ...
Continue ReadingMike Clark: Indigo Blue Live at the Iridium
by Phillip Woolever
Mike Clark has basically spent the entire seven decades of his life keeping the beat, including over fifty years of drumming with the best musicians in the business. Thus it should be no surprise that this project features a quintet that measures up to damn near anybody. Many aficionados share the opinion that live jazz is the art form's ultimate format. This assembly of awesome action makes that position hard to dispute, with a powerful performance package in ...
Continue ReadingTony Adamo: Was Out Jazz Zone Mad
by Nicholas F. Mondello
The translation of “Adam" from Hebrew--from which the surname Adamo springs--means from the “ground" or “soil." It also derives from the Hebrew word for red, a la “red clay." Perhaps that is why any work from Tony Adamo is rare earth--gritty, and flaming crimson. Was Out Jazz Zone Mad Adamo's latest, his first for Ropeadope, is all of those things and more.Adamo is the Heavyweight Champion of “hipspokenword," wherein lingo meets vocalizing at the corner of jazz and ...
Continue ReadingTony Adamo: Was Out Jazz Zone Mad
by Chris M. Slawecki
Some African cultures preserved their history not by the written but by the spoken word, kept by oral cultural historians known as griots. On Was Out Jazz Zone Mad, vocalist Tony Adamo aspires to serve in this same role, as a verbal historian of both official and unofficial African-American jazz and blues culture. This type of jazz jive might wear quickly thin but Adamo writes about jazz and jazz musicians with such detailed intimacy and vision that his words snap, ...
Continue ReadingMike Clark: East Bay Funk
by George Colligan
[ Editor's Note: The following interview is reprinted from George Colligan's blog, Jazztruth]I remember the first time I heard the classic Herbie Hancock album Thrust (Columbia, 1974). It was on the radio, if you can believe it. The song “Actual Proof" burned into my brain: I had been a fan of Herbie's, especially of the Headhunters, of songs like “Chameleon" and “Watermelon Man," but this was different. It was so electrifying, so ultra-sophisticated, so mesmerizing. It was a ...
Continue ReadingMike Clark: Blueprints of Jazz, Vol. 1
by Dan Bilawsky
When Mike Clark's name comes up in conversation, most people recall his brilliant playing and funk fusion grooves on Herbie Hancock's Thrust (Columbia/Legacy, 1974). While “Actual Proof" and a slew of other terrific tracks have cemented Clark's reputation as a drummer with chops to spare, this particular period of his musical life has often pigeonholed him. Blueprints of Jazz, Vol. 1 will alter this perception as he demonstrates why, throughout his storied career, he has been a first call drummer ...
Continue ReadingMike Clark: Blueprints of Jazz, Volume 1
by Elliott Simon
For their Blueprints of Jazz series, Talking House Records decided to give free studio reign to individuals who have significantly influenced modern jazz but, for whatever reason, have not been given their due. Drummer Mike Clark has influenced several generations since his time with keyboardist Herbie Hancock's Headhunters and inaugurated the series. While additional releases showcase tenor saxophonist Billy Harper and drummer Donald Bailey, Clark was the first to be given the heady opportunity to handpick a band to construct ...
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