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Jazz Articles about Walter Smith III
Remy Le Boeuf: Light as a Word
by Jordan Penney
Light as a Word is the debut full-length album from saxophonist and composer Remy Le Boeuf as a leader, and it moves fluidly in liminal spaces. Its format and its performers—a sextet that includes piano, guitar, double bass, drums and tenor and alto sax—are firmly in a jazz idiom. But the songs themselves are more through-composed than is typical for a group such as this, and Le Boeuf's approach as a bandleader seems to involve carefully creating space for each ...
Continue ReadingDave Stryker: Baker's Circle
by Jack Bowers
On Baker's Circle, guitarist Dave Stryker revisits a format in which he is quite comfortable: an organ-driven rhythm ensemble whose emphasis is on hard-nosed contemporary swing. There is, however, a refreshing exclamation mark this time around in the person of able-bodied tenor saxophonist Walter Smith III, and one more fringe benefit (on three tracks): percussionist Mayra Casales, who adds even more energy to an already vigorous session. Jared Gold is the soulful organist, with versatile drummer McClenty ...
Continue ReadingEric Binder: Hard Bop
by Phillip Woolever
Eric Binder is a drummer based in the Chicago area gaining recognition as a teacher and technician who combines slick sequencing and academic awareness to create modern masterworks with a classic jazz sound. This abbreviated yet consistently inspiring album affirms Binder as a rising force on the US jazz scene. Authenticity is obviously vital to Binder, who earned a doctorate from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and teaches at three colleges. He has multiple, academic-based publications to ...
Continue ReadingConnie Han: Iron Starlet
by C. Andrew Hovan
At the 2019 Detroit Jazz Festival, pianist Connie Han dazzled the crowd with a superb and well-paced set which was one of the best performances of the weekend. Although her Mack Avenue debut, Crime Zone, had hit the streets in 2018, Han's musical acumen was still hovering below the radar of most jazz listeners. The key to Han's refreshing approach is that she operates in a zone that respects the lexicon while also finding new territory of its own to ...
Continue ReadingWalter Smith III: In Common 2
by Paul Rauch
The musical paths of saxophonist/composer Walter Smith III and guitarist/composer Matthew Stevens have crossed on many occasions over the years, touring and recording together in their respective bands and those of Esperanza Spalding, Ambrose Akinmusire, Terence Blanchard, Dave Douglas and Terri Lynne Carrington. They first recorded together in 2017, convening a stellar band to interpret original compositions written for the session. In Common (Whirlwind, 2018) was well received for its original sound and spontaneity. They've reconvened for In ...
Continue ReadingConnie Han: Iron Starlet
by Mike Jurkovic
A decisively brazen talent, pianist Connie Han rushes into the fire touched off by her 2018 Mack Avenue debut Crime Zone, bringing more accelerant to bear on Iron Starlet.With an exhilarating control of her skills and vision and an intimate clairvoyance into all that has come before her, Han bids trumpeter Jeremy Pelt the opening fanfare for the album's flag track, thus clearing headspace for Han, bassist Ivan Taylor and drummer/producer/musical director Bill Wysaske to swoop in like ...
Continue ReadingTake Five With Walter Smith III
by AAJ Staff
Meet Walter Smith III: From a young age, Walter began taking music very seriously. “My first gig was playing at a McDonalds in Houston with another saxophonist. I took a solo on “Blue Bossa." It was terrible. People clapped, and I figured if I could get away with that and get applause, how could I fail?" Although it may appear Smith is a new voice on the scene, he is widely recognized as an adept performer, ...
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