Articles

Daily articles carefully curated by the All About Jazz staff. Read our popular and future articles.

YEAR IN REVIEW December 17, 2019

La-Faithia White's Best Releases of 2019

The year is coming to a close and I have enjoyed listening to so many new jazz releases. I present to you my top ten list of new recordings that have sparked my attention, and for your listening experience. Carmen Lundy Modern Ancestors Afrasia Productions Marquis Hill Love Tape Black Music Group Terri Lyne Carrington Waiting Game Motema Music Poncho Sanchez ...

RADIO November 18, 2019

Moon in Scorpio and Mischief Night

By Mary Foster Conklin

Besides some spooky seasonal fare, this week we focus on new releases from vocalists Carmen Lundy, Michelle Lordi and Carrie Wicks, trombonist Michael Dease and pianist Michele Rosewoman with birthday shout outs to Nellie Lutcher (pictured), Victoria Spivey, Laura Nyro, Bobby Troup, Jane Bunnett, Esperanza Spalding, Brenda Earle Stokes, Allison Miller and Freddy Cole, among others. Playlist Roxy Coss “Don't Cross the Coss" from Quintet (Outside In Music) 00:00 Madeleine Peyroux “Honey Party" from Anthem (Verve) 05:21 Nora ...

ALBUM REVIEW March 27, 2017

Carmen Lundy: Code Noir

By James Nadal

Being a genuine jazz singer requires a dedicated focus on sincerity, enhanced individuality, and a commitment to honoring tradition. With Code Noir, songstress extraordinaire Carmen Lundy reveals herself as a gifted griotte, a female singer of praises, exploring the musical and emotional realms encompassing the African diaspora through the music of Black America. As a source of reference: Code Noir --Black Code--was enacted by the King of France, Louis XIV in 1685, to decree that is was illegal ...

ALBUM REVIEW November 26, 2014

Carmen Lundy: Soul To Soul

By James Nadal

There are records created through years of preparation and production that take a lifetime to achieve. Soul to Soul by vocalist Carmen Lundy, indeed falls in that category, yet defies categorization. Lundy is setting her own course, while other singers seek safe refuge in tepid covers of popular standards. She offers original material delivered with authenticity that can only come from a seasoned jazz veteran. Studying the roster of musicians on this record, there is no surprise that ...

LIVE REVIEW March 4, 2014

Carmen Lundy at Lakeland Jazz Festival

By C. Andrew Hovan

Carmen Lundy Quartet Lakeland Community College 42nd Annual Lakeland Jazz Festival Kirtland, Ohio February 22, 2014 It had been well over five years since Grammy award-winning vocalist Carmen Lundy had been in the vicinity of Cleveland and she certainly made up for her absence by delivering a powerhouse performance as the Saturday evening headliner for the 42nd annual Lakeland Jazz Festival. As heady a performer as she is in the true tradition of ...

ALBUM REVIEW April 18, 2012

Carmen Lundy: Changes

By James Nadal

Contemporary jazz vocalists, caught in the current trend to accelerate their careers, are often indistinguishable from the pack, the essence of their music lost in haste. With her release of Changes , veteran singer Carmen Lundy proves that this premise does not apply to her, rising to that proverbial summit to enjoy the rarefied air of the chosen few.Graced and gifted with a smooth, effortless voice, Lundy has been highly heralded since her landmark 2005 record, Live at ...

ALBUM REVIEW April 13, 2006

Carmen Lundy: Jazz And The New Songbook

By Ernest Barteldes

Unlike many singers, Carmen Lundy does not recycle standards on her latest album, which was captured live at the Madrid Theater in Los Angeles. Instead, the program of new material she wrote (or co-wrote) makes for an unexpected listening experience. Backed by an eighteen-piece ensemble, Lundy showcases her songs, many of which she premiered here. One immediately arresting track is “Afrasia!, the lyrics of which basically say the word “God in several languages (Hebrew, Hindi, Spanish, Portuguese, ...