Articles

George Cables: I'm All Smiles

By Peter J. Hoetjes

At a time when jazz is being pulled in every direction at once in search of a future some fear may not exist, musicians such as George Cables, Essiet Essiet and Victor Lewis are proving that, for those who listen, there is no place quite like the present. Essiet became the trio's bassist for its 2012 Highnote release My Muse, and has remained since. Cables has been fortunate with drummers throughout his career as a band leader. During the 1970s ...

George Cables: I'm All Smiles

By Jack Bowers

George Cables, whose elegant piano has graced the jazz scene in New York City and elsewhere for more than five decades, has every reason to be All Smiles; at age seventy-four he is back at the keyboard, as sharp and inspired as ever, following surgery for ulcers that removed one leg above the knee. To mark the auspicious occasion, Cables guides a rhythm section of longtime friends and colleagues, bassist Essiet Essiet and drummer Victor Lewis, through its paces on ...

George Cables Quartet at Ancona Jazz 2019

By Andrea Rotili

George Cables: My Muse

By Peter J. Hoetjes

When an artist records music less than two years after losing his wife of nearly three decades to pancreatic cancer, it is generally assumed that the resulting album will have an overall melancholic, funereal sound. This is not the case however, for pianist George Cables. My Muse is less an elegy for love, and more of a celebration of its existence. This is understandable though, after listening through Cables' preceding four decades of music. A pianist who often ...

George Cables: Icons and Influences

By Jack Bowers

When a jazz musician has been around as long as pianist George Cables, and has seen, heard and performed with so many other world-class musicians, such interactions are bound to leave a lasting impression, and on the trio date Icons and Influences Cables warmly salutes a number of those who have helped frame his musical persona and escorted him along a journey of wonder and discovery that has enabled him to become the superbly talented artist he is today.

George Cables: The Pianist’s Dedication to the Group

By Victor L. Schermer

Anyone who is serious about jazz will tell you that George Cables belongs in the pantheon of the greatest jazz pianists. Everyone, that is, except George Cables. Exceptional in every way, he is yet a team player. He sees himself as part of the rhythm section, and has always emphasized the group over the soloist. He has worked extensively since the late 1960s with many of the legends: Art Blakey, Art Pepper, Freddie Hubbard, Woody Shaw, and Dexter Gordon, to ...

George Cables: My Muse

By Greg Simmons

Pianist George Cables' relationship with the late Helen Wray must have been one joyous romance. Contrary to the expectations of an album dedicated to a departed loved one, My Muse is a collection of uplifting and, frankly, happy-sounding originals and standards. Take away the personal context and you'd swear Cables and company were just enjoying the gig.Cables is an elegant pianist. He has the rare capability to play with great drama, but without ever becoming hard or abrasive. ...