Home » Jazz Articles » Adam Rafferty
Jazz Articles about Adam Rafferty
Adam Rafferty Trio: Three Souls
by Michael P. Gladstone
For his fourth album, guitarist Adam Rafferty submits his first all-original program. The New York musician studied classical guitar at SUNY Purchase and is a student of pianist Mike Longo. Rafferty has an impressive list of musical employers, such as the Dizzy Gillespie Big Band, Benny Golson and Jimmy Owens. Longo and former boss Bob Cranshaw have sat in on the guitarist's earlier albums.
In his liner notes, Adam Rafferty advises that he has absorbed the respective styles ...
read moreAdam Rafferty Trio: Three Souls
by Jim Santella
The straight-ahead guitar trio led by Adam Rafferty preserves tradition while injecting new energy into today's jazz scene. Their desire stems from an appreciation of what the music can do for your heart. While this trio's music is contemporary, it's out of a love for the process that they perform. Thus, Three Souls appeals to both contemporary and smooth jazz audiences as well as to mainstream collectors.
Rafferty's guitar flows seamlessly along melodic paths with a velvet technique. ...
read moreAdam Rafferty Trio: Kush
by Glenn Astarita
New York City-based guitarist/educator Adam Rafferty possesses a tone and technique that could spark the envy of a few of his peers. With this release, the artist along with Danton Boller (bass) and Russ “Styles” Dibona (drums) pursue a delicate balance that comprises softly flowing musings with groove based swing vamps. The title track is named after Dizzy Gillespie’s famous composition, which also signifies a tour de force effort for this band. Here, Rafferty commandeers the trio via his resonant ...
read moreAdam Rafferty: Blood, Sweat and Bebop
by Jack Bowers
As I’ve often confessed, when it comes to guitars and guitar players I’m by no means an expert — the truth is, they all sound pretty much alike to me. But listening to “Bubu,” the opening track on Adam Rafferty’s debut recording for Consolidated Artists, I was reminded of Wes Montgomery, even though I don’t know if he even played the same kind of instrument as Rafferty (I am aware that there are many varieties of guitar). In any event, ...
read more