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Harold Mabern: Afro Blue (10th Anniversary Edition)
by Bridget A. Arnwine
Pianist Harold Mabern (1936-2019) was talented beyond measure. Though he never received the honor and distinction of the prestigious NEA Jazz Master designation, his music and the musicians who knew him tell a different story. That story unfolds beautifully throughout the 10th anniversary reissue of Mabern's 2015 recording, Afro Blue (Smoke Session Records). The newly remixed and remastered recording features performances from some of the most celebrated names in vocal jazz, including Gregory Porter, Norah Jones, Kurt Elling, Jane Monheit, ...
Continue ReadingThe Christmas Show with Norah Jones and Mars Williams
by Jerome Wilson
This holiday show features Christmas-related jazz, some of it warm and cozy, some of it anything but. Artists heard include Norah Jones, Mars Williams, Benny Goodman, 3D Jazz Trio, and John Coltrane. Playlist Jerry Granelli Trio “Christmas Time Is Here" from The Jerry Granelli Trio Plays Vince Guaraldi and Mose Allison (RareNoise) 00:00 Host Speaks 4:23 3D Jazz Trio “I Wonder As I Wander" from Christmas in 3D (Self-Produced) 4:51 George Gee Swing Orchestra “God Rest Ye Merry ...
Continue ReadingHard Sledding
by Patrick Burnette
Like musicians in every genre, jazzers can't resist the lure of making Christmas and/or holiday themed albums from time to time. Some of the efforts turn into timeless classics. But let's be real—most of 'em don't. We talk about two recent efforts, an oddity from the 'ninties, and one of Capitol records many repackaging of their back catalog for holiday commerce. Straps yourselves in, elves. Playlist Discussion of the album A Capitol Christmas featuring various artists (Capitol) 6:25 ...
Continue ReadingJoy and Wonder: New Holiday Releases
by Mary Foster Conklin
This broadcast presents new holiday releases from harpist Jacqueline Kerrod, vocalists Alexis Cole, Norah Jones, Uptown Vocal Jazz Quartet, Jose James plus seasonal singles from Elisabeth Lohninger, and flutist Ragan Whiteside, with birthday shoutouts to Dave Brubeck, Bob Dorough, Cory Weeds, Diane Schuur and more. Thanks for listening and please support the artists you hear by purchasing their music during this time of pandemic so they can continue to distract, comfort and inspire. Playlist Geri Allen “Joy and ...
Continue ReadingNorah Jones: I Dream of Christmas
by Jim Trageser
With Tony Bennett's retirement, the mantle of legitimate straight-ahead pop crooners is now firmly in the hands of subsequent generations: Harry Connick, Jr., Diana Krall and Norah Jones. Not pure jazz singers, of which there are numerous stellar examples, these singers are more in the Bennett-Sinatra-Fitzgerald mold, bringing a jazz sensibility to pop music. It is in the area of seasonal Christmas music that the crooners have had perhaps their greatest influence. From Andy Williams to Connie Stevens, ...
Continue ReadingHerbie Hancock: River: The Joni Letters
by George Kanzler
The participation of such former and present Grammy nominees and winners as Norah Jones, Tina Turner, Corinne Bailey Rae, Luciana Souza and Leonard Cohen (reading “The Jungle Line" like a beat poet), as well as the iconic stature of Joni Mitchell herself, may have immeasurably helped in winning this CD the Grammy Album of the Year award. But that doesn't diminish the significance of it being the first jazz album to win the award in forty-three years. For make no ...
Continue ReadingHerbie Hancock: River: The Joni Letters
by John Kelman
While it might be easy, on the surface, to view pianist Herbie Hancock's River: The Joni Letters as a continuation of Possibilities (Hear, 2005), nothing could be further from the truth. Possibilities was an unapologetically pop record; River is unequivocally jazz--although such broad classifications shouldn't matter. River is, quite simply, a superb disc that takes Joni Mitchell's extant jazz proclivities and gives them an even greater interpretive boost. The majority of River is culled from Mitchell's “classic" songwriting ...
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