Jazz Articles about Neal Miner

About Neal Miner

Album Review

Here is a jazz trio with a twist: instead of the usual piano, bass and drums--or guitar, bass and drums--Neal Miner's threesome on Invisibility consists of tenor saxophone, bass and drums. While bassist Miner is the nominal leader, the New York City-based trio is a true co-op in which Miner, drummer Jason Tiemann and saxophonist Chris Byars perform distinct yet basically similar tasks. The trio started working together in 2023, found it shared chemistry and a common purpose, ...

Album Review

Neal Miner: Invisibility

Read "Invisibility" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
October 8, 2025

Bassist Neal Miner has always been a strong supporter of jazz's lyrical tradition, and Invisibilility finds him in top form, not only as an instrumentalist but also as a composer deeply rooted in the idiom's classic origins. Joined by tenor saxophonist Chris Byars and drummer Jason Tiemann, Miner creates a trio sound that is conversational, closely connected and impressively complete. This is not a leader-and-sidemen session; rather, it is a collective where each musician shares equal responsibility for texture, pulse ...

Album Review

Ben Paterson: Cookin' in the Couvre

Read "Cookin' in the Couvre" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
January 11, 2025

Ben Paterson's release Cookin' in the Couve captures the energy and intimacy of a jazz trio in full swing. The album features Paterson on piano, Neal Miner on bass and Aaron Seeber on drums as they deliver hard-swinging blues-infused jazz, balancing technical finesse with soulful expression. The set list is a delightful mix of Paterson originals and some of his favorite blues-heavy standards, each chosen to showcase the trio's cohesion and groove. The session opens with ...

Album Review

Champian Fulton: Flying High - Big Band Canaries Who Soared

Read "Flying High - Big Band Canaries Who Soared" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci

by Richard J Salvucci
July 10, 2024

If memory serves, Woody Herman was once quoted as saying “it's tough to be a canary," or words to that effect. “Canary" of course, was just one of the many euphemisms used for female big band singers in the 1930s and 1940s. Herman's pointed observation was spot on. He thought, correctly, that most female singers were being evaluated--by male critics, of course--on their physical attributes primarily, not on their vocal prowess. This is no place to go into detail, but ...

Album Review

Jon-Erik Kellso and the EarRegulars: Live at the Ear Inn

Read "Live at the Ear Inn" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
August 31, 2023

As trumpeter Jon-Erik Kellso and his EarRegulars had been performing every Sunday night for more than sixteen years at New York City's historic Ear Inn, Kellso reasoned it was time that one of their concerts should be recorded to share more broadly the fun and enthusiasm that animates every session. Once the ties had been bound, parts of two concerts were recorded, on January 15 and 29, 2023. The music is a hybrid, with one foot planted ...

Album Review

Mike Melito: To Swing Is The Thing

Read "To Swing Is The Thing" reviewed by David A. Orthmann

by David A. Orthmann
July 24, 2023

A sense of discovery, exhilaration, and depth are not qualities often induced by recent jazz recordings that showcase some of the once innovative, now commonplace styles from the mid-to-late twentieth century. There is no shortage of less-than-stellar releases that land squarely inside the bop/hard bop continuum. One notable exception to the abundance of mere competence is the body of work of drummer Mike Melito. Beginning in the late twentieth century, Melito has led several impressive recording dates ...

Album Review

Mike Melito: To Swing Is The Thing

Read "To Swing Is The Thing" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
June 8, 2023

The leader of any group whose credo is To Swing Is the Thing had best enlist some hired hands whose propensity to swing is sure and steady, regardless of mood or tempo. Veteran drummer Mike Melito's talented quintet runs that course without breaking a sweat, lending Melito all the help he needs to keep his eighth album as leader bright and swinging from start to finish. Trumpeter Joe Magnarelli and tenor saxophonist Grant Stewart, past masters to ...