Jazz Articles about Willie Jones III

About Willie Jones III

Album Review

Roberta Gambarini: Easy To Love

Read "Easy To Love" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci

by Richard J Salvucci
June 27, 2023

In 2007, All About Jazz reviewer Michael Caratti wrote: “This debut outing from Roberta Gambarini sees the Italian-born jazz vocalist pair up with two star-studded rhythm sections and legendary tenor saxophonist James Moody, to present what has to be one of the best vocal jazz albums of the decade. Opening with Cole Porter's classic title track Gambarini's exquisite tone and masterful rhythmic phrasing are immediately on display in the first a capella section. The gradual addition of bass and brushes ...

Liner Notes

Ryan Kisor: Awakening

by C. Andrew Hovan
June 24, 2023

A man of few words, Ryan Kisor chooses to let his horn do the speaking and obviously it has said volumes over the years when you consider that the trumpeter is one of a select few musicians who has managed to sustain a viable career past the heydays of the jazz renaissance of the '80s and early '90s. Even when given the opportunity to elaborate on his most recent musical endeavors, Kisor states quite simply, “I'm pretty much just doing ...

Album Review

Sam Taylor: Let Go

by Edward Blanco
April 17, 2023

Presenting his third offering from the Cellar Live record label, Harlem-based and Philadelphia native, saxophonist Sam Taylor unleashes an exciting bop-filled package of contemporary jazz covers, making a superb job of interpreting the music of composers such as Benny Golson, Hank Jones, Jule Styne and Jimmy Van Heusen and laying down sturdy new treatments of oft-recorded and ageless classics. The goal of this project is best described by the saxophonist himself in the liner notes when he states: “Fill the ...

Liner Notes

Peter Beets: New York Trio Page Two

by C. Andrew Hovan
February 22, 2023

In its relatively short history, American jazz music has established a language that while having some ties to the European tradition is more fully rooted in the rhythms and folk melodies of the African slaves. What is even more significant is the profound impact that the music and musicians have had in breaking social boundaries such as race, culture, and ethnicity. Way before there were even the thoughts of equal opportunities for all individuals in the American South, Benny Goodman ...

Album Review

Jason Marshall: New Beginnings

Read "New Beginnings" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
December 23, 2022

Impresario extraordinaire and multi-talented saxophonist Cory Weeds has picked up the challenge to acknowledge the contribution of black musicians to jazz music in these uncertain times. Working with trumpeter and producer Jeremy Pelt, this album New Beginnings by baritone saxophonist Jason Marshall, would be the fifth release led by a black artist for The Cellar Music Group. Although his discography may be on the slim side, Marshall's bona fides are first-rate, having studied with top-notch players ...

Album Review

Jason Marshall: New Beginnings

Read "New Beginnings" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
December 10, 2022

Anyone who appreciates the thunderous sound of an assertive baritone sax should love New Beginnings, an emphatic quartet date that shines a light on Jason Marshall's muscular horn and keeps it there from start to finish. While his teammates (Marc Cary, piano; Gerald Cannon, bass; Willie Jones III, drums) converse eloquently on every one of the album's eight numbers, Marshall affixes a decisive exclamation mark on every sentence. He does so with exceptional technique and a seemingly ...

Album Review

Sam Taylor: Let Go

by Pierre Giroux
December 8, 2022

Tenor saxophonist Sam Taylor is a man with a purpose. He is committed to sharing the joy music brings him with like-minded listeners. For this album, he brought together a number of his heroes including trumpeter Terell Stafford, pianist Jeb Patton, bassist Neal Miner and drummer Willie Jones III at one of jazz's most iconic recording studios, the Van Gelder Studios at Englewood Cliffs NJ, on January 31, 2022, under the guidance of engineer Maureen Sickler. ...