Jazz Articles about Nicholas Payton

Peter Martin: Something Unexpected

by C. Michael Bailey
June 1, 2002

Piano and ...more Piano...

Thirty-year-old New Orleans native Peter Martin is showcased on Something Unexpected, the second release in Max Jazz's Piano Series. To date, there have been three releases in this series. The first was Bruce Barth's superb East and West (Max Jazz 201) and following Peter Martin's contribution was Jessica Williams' outstanding This Side Up (Max Jazz 203). Like the label's vocal series, the piano series highlights a wide range of jazz styles with an emphasis on innovation ...

Peter Martin: Something Unexpected

by David Adler
March 1, 2002

Peter Martin, the 30-year-old from New Orleans, is the second pianist (after Bruce Barth) to be showcased on the MaxJazz label’s new piano series. (Interestingly, Bruce Barth is listed along with Martin as a co-producer.) The exciting date was recorded live in St. Louis, and it features a happening quintet in top form. Trumpeter Nicholas Payton shares the frontline with one of jazz’s best-kept secrets, tenor saxophonist Brice Winston; bassist Reginald Veal and drummer Adonis Rose anchor the rhythm section ...

Nicholas Payton: Dear Louis

by John Sharpe
August 1, 2001

The problem with tribute albums is that if you present a slavish recreation of an artist's style, you'll be criticized and if you try to put “old wine in new bottles," critics will say you're not being true to the spirit of the originals. Classic catch-22, right?

Regardless, for his tribute to legendary, fellow New Orleans hornman Louis Armstrong, Nicholas Payton has chosen the later approach. Indeed, Payton's sprawling arrangements for his eleven-piece big band have little in common with ...

Nicholas Payton: Dear Louis

by C. Andrew Hovan
July 1, 2001

At the risk of stating the obvious, the best tribute albums involve musicians with their own personalities capable of interpreting the material in such a way as to bring something new and fresh to the table. That is exactly what Nicholas Payton does with Dear Louis.

And things could have come out quite to the contrary considering that on the surface this has all the trappings of a major label concept album. You know how that works, a rotating cast ...

Nicholas Payton: Dear Louis

by C. Andrew Hovan
July 1, 2001

At the risk of stating the obvious, the best tribute albums involve musicians with their own personalities capable of interpreting the material in such a way as to bring something new and fresh to the table. That is exactly what Nicholas Payton does with Dear Louis. And things could have come out quite to the contrary considering that on the surface this has all the trappings of a major label concept album. You know how that works, a rotating cast ...

Nicholas Payton: Nick@Night

by John Sharpe
March 1, 2000

Having been on the scene for over ten years now, Nicholas Payton has shed the “young lion” tag and evolved into one of jazz’s brightest trumpet stars. Nick@Night is another fine showcase for his lyrical tone, intelligent improvs and maturing compositional talent. A good leader has to have a good band and Payton’s regular group -- Tim Warfield (tenor sax), Anthony Wonsey (keyboards), Reuben Rogers (bass) and Adonis Rose (drums) -- have certainly developed a solid rapport over the years. ...

Nicholas Payton: Nick @ Night

by C. Andrew Hovan
March 1, 2000

It's a promising sign to see that the revivalist movement once fronted by Wynton Marsalis has now given way to a manifold and healthier jazz outlook. A bi-product of the shifting mores, trumpeter Nicholas Payton could be considered one of a new breed of renaissance men, ready to carry the music to the next level. Like Marsalis, he hails from New Orleans. Unlike his predecessor, however, he seems to be more interested in moving jazz beyond the repertory or “museum ...