Jazz Articles about Xavier Davis

About Xavier Davis

Liner Notes

Joe Chambers: Moving Pictures Orchestra: Live at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola

by John Kelman
April 27, 2023

It's one thing to have an established `place in the jazz pantheon, another to continue redefining that position, long after others might be content to rest on their laurels. Joe Chambers' work behind the drum kit with artists including Andrew Hill, Bobby Hutcherson, Wayne Shorter, Freddie Hubbard, Charles Mingus, and McCoy Tyner has already ensured a prominent place in jazz history. His output as a leader may be small, but he's delivered two outstanding Savant recordings in 2006's The Outlaw ...

Liner Notes

Steve Davis: Correlations

by C. Andrew Hovan
March 21, 2023

Surely it must be considered a milestone to chalk up Correlations as Steve Davis' 20th session as a leader. Just contemplate how much the world has changed since the trombonist started turning heads as a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers back at the start of the '90s. The record business in particular occupies a vastly different landscape than was once the norm, a fact that figures all the more prominently in the precarious nature of recorded jazz. As such, ...

Album Review

Nathan Borton: Each Step

Read "Each Step" reviewed by Jane Kozhevnikova

by Jane Kozhevnikova
May 29, 2022

Each Step is the debut recording by guitarist Nathan Borton. As his website accurately states, Borton draws heavily from the mid-western tradition of bebop and blues. His influences include Wes Montgomery, Grant Green and Kenny Burrell. The album offers an enjoyable tour through the straight-ahead tradition. There are three standards early on: Cole Porter's “Just One of Those Things," Harry Warren's “The More I See You" and John Lewis' “Milestones." These show the virtuosity of Borton's solo lines. ...

Album Review

Nathan Borton: Each Step

Read "Each Step" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
February 3, 2022

Judging from recent album releases, the guitar remains an essential part of the contemporary jazz scene. The latest example among many is this tasteful session led by Kansas-born, Michigan-based Nathan Borton, adding his name to an ample roster of newly minted guitar-led or guitar-centered albums by Doug MacDonald, Graham Dechter, Kristian Borring, Randy Napoleon, John Moulder, Hendrik Braeckman, Paul Bollenback, Matt Dingledine and others. What does Borton have that they may not? When it comes to technique and perception—that is, ...

Album Review

Nathan Borton: Each Step

Read "Each Step" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
January 12, 2022

The 1960s were fine and formative times for jazz guitar. Wes Montgomery was there. So was Grant Green. The pair led the pack, and still do, to an extent. Guitarist Nathan Borton, with his debut recording, Each Step, embraces the traditions of these two influences. Borton's sound comes directly out of the straight ahead bebop style, beginning with the album's title tune, a Borton original--a gorgeous easy swinger. Cole Porter's oft-covered “Just One Of Those Things" turns up ...

Album Review

Randy Napoleon: Rust Belt Roots: Randy Napoleon Plays Wes Montgomery, Grant Green & Kenny Burrell

Read "Rust Belt Roots: Randy Napoleon Plays Wes Montgomery, Grant Green & Kenny Burrell" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
November 3, 2021

One's response to jazz--indeed, to music of any kind--most often depends on where he or she is coming from. To erase any doubts about where he is coming from, guitarist Randy Napoleon has subtitled his album, Rust Belt Roots, “Plays Wes Montgomery, Grant Green and Kenny Burrell." This is music born of a Midwestern ethos: Indianapolis (Montgomery), St. Louis (Green), Detroit (Burrell). Napoleon called Michigan home before moving to New York City in 1999, and has never forgotten the enormous ...

Album Review

Rodney Whitaker: Outrospection: The Music of Gregg Hill

Read "Outrospection: The Music of Gregg Hill" reviewed by Paul Rauch

by Paul Rauch
May 8, 2021

Bassist Rodney Whitaker grew out of the Detroit jazz tradition, paying dues along the way on the road with the likes of Terence Blanchard, Roy Hargrove, Wynton Marsalis and Kenny Garrett. His hard-driving style personifies modern post-bop jazz, with his dedication to tradition acting as a catalyst rather than a deterrent from innovation. On Outrospection, Whitaker continues his work with under-the-radar, Michigan composer Gregg Hill. The two first collaborated on Whitaker's Common Ground: The Music of Gregg Hill ...