Jazz Articles about Various Artists

Various Artists: London Is The Place For Me 2

by Chris May
July 24, 2005

Vibrant and beautiful almost beyond words, the fifty year old recordings being collected on Honest Jons' London Is The Place For Me series are giant and precious treasures of early black British music. Exquisite artistic achievements in their own right, they also throw light on the early development of post bop jazz in the UK.

Volume one in the series, released in '02 and subtitled Trinidadian Calypso In London, 1950-1956, features all-but-forgotten masterpieces of reportage, social commentary and ...

Various Artists: Afro-Latin Party

by Woodrow Wilkins
July 24, 2005

Some of the most straightforward music comes from the islands of the Caribbean. Whether inspired by raw emotion or a simple desire to groove, no gimmicks are needed to deliver a sound that makes you want to dance or simply bob your head to the rhythm. In recognizing this, Putumayo has packaged an excellent collection of ten songs that bring together elements from Africa, America, and Cuba, performed by artists who represent some of the finest sounds from their respective ...

Visions of an Inner Mounting Apocalypse: A Fusion Guitar Tribute

by Walter Kolosky
July 12, 2005

Various Artists Visions of an Inner Mounting Apocalypse: A Fusion Guitar Tribute Tone Center 2005

Tone Center, Mike Varney's fusion-only label, is not only helping to keep the genre in good shape--it's pumping it full of steroids. Last year the label released A Guitar Supreme: Giant Steps in Fusion Guitar. Such guitarists as Mike Stern, Larry Coryell, Eric Johnson, Steve Lukather, Greg Howe, Jeff Richman, Frank Gambale and others paid stringed tribute ...

Various Artists: Hot Club de France

by Germein Linares
July 2, 2005

The Hot Club de France was more of an appreciation society than an actual club or establishment in France. The group issued newsletters, sponsored radio broadcasts and film appearances, and produced records. A small phenomenon at home, this underground jazz movement soon swelled to worldwide tours and festivals by the late '40s. Milan Records has gone through some of the club's recordings to produce this collection of tunes featuring such popular figures as Louis Armstrong, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Willie Smith, ...

Various Artists: One More: Music of Thad Jones

by Jack Bowers
June 26, 2005

The term “all-star is used often these days to describe many groups, some of which even deserve the label. One More (which could be the name of this eight-member co-op or the album itself; your guess is as good as mine) doesn't call itself an all-star ensemble, but it could. Hank Jones, James Moody, Frank Wess, Bob Brookmeyer, Benny Golson, Jimmy Owens, Richard Davis and Mickey Roker--if these guys aren't all-stars, who is?

It's a great pleasure to hear jazz ...

Various Artists: Gospel for JFP III: Tribute to Jaco Pastorius

by Alain Londes
June 23, 2005

This tribute to the late Jaco Pastorius is like a musical kaleidoscope that makes the inquisitive listener wonder what color will come next. The large number of musicians featured includes some who had the chance to play with Pastorius, as well as others who were influenced by him. Most tunes were written by the great bassist, with a few exceptions.

The popular Pastorius composition “Three Views Of A Secret starts off with a wakeup call by the fourteen voices of ...

Various Artists: Circa 1960

by Jack Bowers
June 22, 2005

This is an interesting album, historically speaking, as the first five tracks are taken from Gene Hall's final concert as director of what was then the Laboratory Dance Band A at North Texas State College (now the One O'Clock Lab Band at the University of North Texas). The date was April 27, 1959, and the admission price was fifty cents. The (almost indiscernible) emcee is Dick Martin, then host of WWL Radio-New Orleans' “Moonglow with Martin. Among those in the ...