Home » Jazz News
Interview News
Timely announcements covering new album releases, tours, concert series, special events, job postings, crowdfunding campaigns and more. You can find more news by searching our website, viewing our news stream, seeing what's trending or reading our blog posts. Subscribe to our news RSS feed and/or embed AAJ news content on your website or blog. Learn about our news service here. Submit news here.
Interview: Angela Verbrugge
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Canadian singer Angela Verbrugge recently released her second studio album, Love for Connoisseurs (Gut String). I loved one of her video clips, read how hard she's been working and decided to interview her by email. Her new album is so beautiful and original. All 12 songs feature her lyrics to new or existing jazz compositions by modern-day composers. Her vision is to create a new vocal jazz repertoire by collaborating with composers who write innovative, catchy melodies in the style ...
Continue Reading
Interview: Tammy Burdett
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Back in February, I posted on Larry Coryell's and Ralph Towner's first videos on YouTube from the early 1960s. Before they became huge jazz stars, they were in a Seattle jazzy pop group called the Individuals that played fancy restaurants and appeared on local TV. What caught my attention and the attention of many readers who viewed the videos was Tammy Burdett, the group's charismatic bassist and singer. Dozens of JazzWax readers wrote in wanting to know more about her. ...
Continue Reading
Interview: Jenn D'Eugenio of Women in Vinyl
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Over the weekend, my piece on the surging popularity of vinyl records among millennials (those born between 1981 and 1996) ran in The Wall Street Journal's Review section. Amazingly, new LPs last year surpassed the CDs and digital downloads in units sold. What I also found during my reporting is that millennials, who were especially hard hit emotionally during the pandemic, found serenity in vinyl albums. As I wrote in my piece: “Stressed out by fears of climate change, political ...
Continue Reading
Interview: SteepleChase's Nils Winther
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Denmark's SteepleChase Records remains one of the great jazz labels. Founded by Nils Winther in 1972, SteepleChase early on recorded many American jazz giants who began to tour regularly in Europe or had moved there for steady work. If not for Nils, we wouldn't have important recordings by Horace Parlan, Doug Raney, Kenny Drew, Joe Albany, Jackie McLean, Connie Crothers, Duke Jordan, Dexter Gordon and so many others. That's because by the 1970s, most American labels had all but given ...
Continue Reading
Interview: Michael Weiss
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
I love listening to pianist Michael Weiss. He has a jazz sound all his own that reminds me of the 1980s. It's a feel and seasoning that comes from playing with hard bop masters. His mid-tempo playing is reminiscent of Horace Silver's precise pecking and moody chord voicings, but with Michael's own flavor stirred in. On up-tempo numbers, Michael's hands fly along and retain Silver's soulful precision. When I hear him play, I'm taken back to the nights I first ...
Continue Reading
Interview: Giacomo Gates, 'You'
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
It's no secret that Giacomo Gates is among my favorite male jazz singers today. His voice is meaty thick and his jazz sense is limber and always happening. He swings and bops with the confidence of the masters. Out today is Gates's new album, entitled You (Savant), a generous collection of 18 songs that have the word “you" in the title. He's backed by a smart trio and he gives each song an (Eddie) Jeffersonian spin complete with a flatted ...
Continue Reading
Herbie Nichols Interview in 1962
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
If you combined records by Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell and Duke Ellington and played the result backward, you'd wind up with Herbie Nichols. Just kidding, but the flavors of all three pianists permeate the essence of Nichols's original music. In truth, Nichols's sound was distinct and robust, and a terrific adventure. [Photo above of Herbie Nichols by Francis Wolff (c)Mosaic Images] Here's the full Prophetic Herbie Nichols Vol. 1. Listen to as much or as little as you wish... Now ...
Continue Reading
The Story Behind 'Quiet Now'
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
I have known and admired pianist-composer Denny Zeitlin for many years. My admiration dates back to the early 2000s, after I heard for the first time his four albums for Columbia recorded in the mid-1960s. I was blown away. Our friendship dates back to 2009, when I did a multipart JazzWax interview with him. We've been email penpals ever since. Last week, Denny sent along an email urging me to give a listen to vocalist Suzi Stern sing his composition ...
Continue Reading
