Introducing Paul's Picks: A Seasonal Guide to Live Jazz in NYC; Detroit Jazz Festival Coverage; Ronnie Cuber: Baritone Boss; Everybody Digs Bill Evans; and More

It's always exciting to announce something brand new, and this week we're introducing a seasonal column called Paul's Picks. Courtesy of New York City-based concert reviewer Paul Reynolds, the column will highlight the shows Paul finds most intriguing in the coming season. You can access his Fall 2026 picks below.

Last week we outlined our approach to social media (read about it here), and we've been gathering your feedback through our one-question surveys. Our latest asks if you use LinkedIn to discover jazz news. We're almost there, but need about a dozen more responses before we make a decision. When you have a second, please let us know here. Thank you!

Album Reviews

The album reviews below represent our most popular from the past week. View more recent reviews.

Desolation Row David Maranha / Rodrigo Amado	2014 NYC King Crimson	Beneath Lifted Skies Linda May Han Oh & Melissa Aldana	Talamanti Patricia Brennan and Sylvie Courvoisier
Mike Jones With Strings Mike Jones	Siena Sessions Nick Mazzarella	We Were Together, I Forget the Rest John Donaldson	Rosendals Garden Yelena Eckemoff

Looking for an album review?

If you're a musician, publicist, or record label seeking album review coverage on All About Jazz, please read our review submission guide, then complete the coverage request form here. When submitting your request, include up to five AAJ album reviewers who best align with your music.

New York City Jazz Performance Preview: Fall 2026

New York season includes the first fall programs from two recently opened midtown clubs—The Pocket and Jazzcultural and higher-profile shows for fine emerging performers such as singer Ekep Nkwelle and pianist/arranger Joe Block. The preeminent departure is that of Wynton Marsalis who, after 30 years in the job, will lead his last season as the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Consequently, 2026-27 sees The House That Jazz Built programming an even bigger dose of Marsalisiana than usual, especially compositionally. The season as a whole is studded with tributes to icons we lost this year, notably Sonny Rollins (the biggest celebration of whom is at the Cathedral of St. John on September 19) and to those who would have turned 100 in 2026, including still more fêtes for John Coltrane and Miles Davis. Continue reading...

Detroit Jazz Festival 2026: A Gathering in a Great Jazz City

Thursday evening is when artists, media and event staffers begin to file into the Detroit Marriott, arriving from points around the globe. The common purpose is the 47th annual Detroit Jazz Festival, an annual tradition on Labor Day weekend. The largest free jazz festival in the world is four days of music, fellowship, celebration and counting one's blessings. In 2026, Mother Nature decided to make her presence known in an emphatic way before yielding to warm but comfortable weather. Late Thursday afternoon, a tornado touched down on the east side of Detroit, not all that far from the festival grounds at Hart Plaza. Flights arriving in Detroit were being diverted to places like Columbus, Ohio, while Detroiters fled to basements for safety. Many homes lost power. Continue reading...

Ronnie Cuber: Baritone Boss

Ronnie Cuber (1941-2022) made his mark on the jazz world as a versatile and muscular baritone saxophonist. Born in New York on Christmas Day 1941, he started on tenor saxophone but switched to baritone at 17, attracted by the vacant chair in Marshall Brown's Newport Jazz Youth Band (which also featured lifelong colleagues Eddie Gomez and Michael Abene). He grew from sideman to leader to icon over half a century of hard-blowing hard work. Cuber always gave full value with his big, confident sound. He was much in demand as a session player, recording with the likes of Paul Simon, Chaka Khan and the J. Geils Band, as well as being a fixture on the New York big band scene. Much of Cuber's recorded output is small group sessions for the SteepleChase Records label; these are enjoyable outings mainly focusing on the standards repertoire. Continue reading...

An Uplifting Tragedy: Everybody Digs Bill Evans

In July 1961, 25-year-old bassist Scott LaFaro was killed in a car accident in upstate New York. Four days earlier he had accompanied Stan Getz at the Newport Jazz Festival, and a few days before that, he had made the legendary Village Vanguard live recordings with the Bill Evans Trio that were released as Sunday at the Village Vanguard and Waltz for Debby. Both albums are acknowledged classics of the jazz trio genre. On learning of Scott's death, Evans went into a period of mourning so intense that he was unable to play the piano for three months, until he was finally enticed back into the studio by Riverside Records head honcho Orrin Keepnews to do a session for the Mark Murphy album Rah. Continue reading...

His Name was Tommy Sims. He played Trumpet. Too Bad You Probably Never Heard Him

Ok, this one is strictly for jazz nuts—and a specific subset known as trumpet players and aficionados. Not everyone who likes jazz necessarily digs trumpet players, and those who do rarely agree on what constitutes a good one. Believe me, the sectarian differences would make an Anabaptist tremble, because this isn't just music; it's a religion. To truly understand, you have to have had carnal relations with the "Brass Beast," preferably over many years and across four or five octaves. But if you haven't, that's fine. Not all of us are dim-witted enough to aspire to a Martin Committee (Old Style)—that classic 1940s Mephisto horn that practically plays jazz on its own. Let's set eroticism aside, though it's never far from the surface where the trumpet is concerned. Continue reading...

Songs of the Week

Two sides of melodic jazz: one a colorful, rhythmically adventurous journey across cultures, the other an elegant, swinging interpretation of a timeless standard. Enjoy them!

Top Songs

The songs below represent the most heard in the past four weeks. View the Song of the Day archive.

Elysian Shore From the album Farther (still) By Mike Dana	Maree Latenti From the album Equilibri Precari By Diego Allieri	Four From the album Winter Songs By Steve Swallow	Intégration From the album Mezzanine By Greenhouse Ensemble
And I Miss You From the album Sketches of Tallinn By Rossano Snel	April From the album The Light Ahead By Sarah L King	Toast Of The Town From the album SGC3 By Warren Keller	Montrose to Mahe From the album DNA By Terence Collie

Choice Content

Two Views Of A Masterpiece (listen); Hingetown Jazz Festival 2026 (read); Laura Macdonald Quartet at Caol Ila Islay Jazz Festival (read); Ursa Major at Miner Auditorium (read); Kalia Vandever at LOFT in Cologne (read); Alex Ventling's Wavemakers at Becco in Oslo (read); Joseph Quiles Takes the Scenic Route on Sunset Cruisin (listen); Satoko Fujii on Sound, Freedom, and Not Two (read); Summer Bummer 2026 (read); Jazz on a Summer's Day in Paris (read); The Beatles—Future Perfect, Part 12 (read); The Beatles—Future Perfect, Part 13 (read); The Beatles—Future Perfect, Part 14 (read).

Radio & Podcasts

Tune into our extensive collection of quality programs every week.

The Third Story: Sullivan Fortner: The Music Tells You Where to Go (listen); Allston Boylston: Branford Marsalis Quartet and Dianne Reeves, Ekep Nkwelle, Somi, George Garzone, Caroline Davis and Azar Lawrence (listen); Exploration: Cassandra Wilson Tribute (RIP); New Music from Joey DeFrancesco, Doug Webb, and Others (listen); Mondo Jazz: Skinny Hightower, Ralph Alessi, Neves E Silva, Buster Williams, Jon Madof, Rob Dixon (listen); Mondo Jazz: Cassandra Wilson: Iconic Memories—Part 2 (listen); Mondo Jazz: Cassandra Wilson: Iconic Memories—Part 1 (listen); One Man's Jazz: Henry Threadgill, Shipp/Parker, Glass Triangle & Rich Halley (listen); Mondo Jazz: Henriette Eilertsen, The Plastic Waste Band, Kristijan Krajnčan, Giovanni Mirabassi & More (listen); A Broad Spectrum: Dolly Parton By Jazz Artists, New Music By Steve Rawlins, Candice Hoyes, Jonathan Karrant, Emma Dayhuff, Nicole McCabe & Savannah Harris (listen); The Stereo Image: Marc Myers: JazzWax and Music Listening (listen); Bitches Brew: Mariko Muranaka, Senri Kawaguchi, Ray Russell, Chick Corea (listen); Neon Jazz: Oscar Peterson, Terri Lyne Carrington, Greg Abate and Scott Sadlon (listen); North Star Sounds: Trumpet Trios: Bass, Drums and Trumpet (listen); Rotations: Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Barry Harris, Don Patterson, Sonny Stitt And Others (listen); Mondo Jazz: Phoenix Trio, Ragini Trio, Weave4, Club d'Elf, Tito Mangialajo Rantzer & More (listen); The Tonearm: Fling II: Modular Synths, Pedal Steel, And Michigan Motorik (listen); Jazz Connections: The John Coltrane Centennial, Part 4: Late Recordings Including A Love Supreme (listen); Live At The Bop Stop: Jamey Haddad Quartet Featuring Helio Alves (listen); The Mystery Of Artie Shaw: Chapter 5: Art Goes Artie (listen); The Jazz Disturbance: Janel Leppin, YUGEN, Oscar Evans, Rich Halley (listen); World of Jazz: New Music From Andy Sheppard, Rita Marcotulli, & Michael Benita Plus More (listen).

News Announcements

Timely announcements covering new album releases, tours, special events and more. View all recent announcements.

Smoke Jazz Club Announces October Line-up Including Two-week Monk Festival (read); Polish Jazz Festival returns to London (read); JazzWeek Radio Chart: September 14, 2026 (read); Drummer-bandleader Brandon Sanders Carries Basketball Roles Into The Studio On His Feel-Good Fourth Album, The Game Changer (read); Oh! Jazz Launches Premium Vinyl Label 'Oh! Jazz Records' To Bring Exclusive Global Live Performances To Turntables (read).

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Posted to All About Jazz Newsletter IN THE All About Jazz GROUP
Read more posts by Michael Ricci