Jazz Articles

John Proulx: The Best Thing for You

by C. Michael Bailey
November 13, 2012

While female jazz vocalists outnumber male jazz vocalists five to one, it would be a fallacy to believe there is not a wealth of talent among the men singers. With Louis Armstrong and Chet Baker now memories, and Mark Murphy and Jon Hendricks in twilight, as Kurt Elling ascends their throne, there exists a vocal diaspora of the most refined and sonically appealing voices singing, and they are all men. Andy Bey, Beat Kaestli, Henry Darragh and John Proulx all ...

David Budway: A New Kiss

by Jack Huntley
December 30, 2011

David Budway's accomplished piano abilities are front and center on A New Kiss. Sometimes richly vibrant, sometimes plaintively florid, the overall spirit of Budway's arrangements ooze musical sophistication. Backed by the superb rhythm section of bassist Eric Revis and drummer Jeff 'Tain' Watts, Budway works his way through a mix of originals and standards, with each track highlighting a shifting stylistic element. At its most engaging, Budway's musicality floats like a melodic ether over the gritty tug of the rhythm ...

Terell Stafford: This Side of Strayhorn

by Kevin Davis
August 19, 2011

The preservation of traditional values in jazz has long been at the core of the art form's most bittersweet dichotomy, which is essentially a spin on the age-old idea that even moderate-level progressions in any given field require ideological breakdowns that generally make everyone mad. Miles Davis, for example, decried this preservation outright, and the jazz community gave him the finger, banishing him to Bill Graham's Fillmore East where they figured his wonky voodoo rock would be of greater use ...

Terell Stafford: This Side of Strayhorn

by Dan McClenaghan
May 1, 2011

Some music just stands out from the crowd, and certainly Billy Strayhorn's tunes do exactly that. What would the great composer/bandleader Duke Ellington have been without his collaborator? He still certainly would have been considered one of the America's greatest artists, but it's hard to imagine an Ellington “greatest hits" offering--if one could be achieved, considering the Duke's immense output--without Strayhorn's gorgeous and familiar “Lush Life," “Take the 'A' Train," “Lotus Blossom," or “Chelsea Bridge." This Side of ...

Russell Malone: Triple Play

by C. Michael Bailey
November 13, 2010

Guitarist Russell Malone has found a durable and receptive home at MAXJAZZ, resulting in three fine recordings: Playground (2004); Live at Jazz Standard, Volume 1 (2006); and Live at Jazz Standard, Volume 2 (2006). He sports an elegant, unpretentious method and a shimmering, round and slightly velvety tone that compliments his considerable abilities. Triple Play is Malone's first trio recording, proving that the best jazz is created in small spaces. Malone's grasp of the blues is beyond ...

Jeb Patton: New Strides

by Elliott Simon
March 2, 2010

Jeb Patton has a working association, as does bassist David Wong, with the remaining Heath brothers and drummer Albert “Tootie" and saxophonist Jimmy both make guest appearances on the pianist's latest album. Drummer Pete Van Nostrand rounds out this efficient piano trio on the Heath-less tunes and, while it is clear that Patton is definitely in charge, the band swings with unitary precision. Part of the new breed of pianist that really came of age in the '90s, Patton is ...

Jeb Patton: New Strides

by Dan McClenaghan
November 22, 2009

MAXJAZZ's ongoing Piano Series has featured some very heavy hitters in the keyboard arena: Mulgrew Miller, Geoffrey Keezer, Eric Reed, Denny Zeitlin and the inimitable Jessica Williams. Add Jeb Patton to the group, a young piano man that holds his own in marvelous company with the release of New Strides.He doesn't play Jerome Kern's time-tested standard, “I'm Old Fashioned" on this set, but it could be his theme song. Patton and his trio-mates--drummer Pete Van Nostrand and bassist ...

Jack Wilkins: Until It's Time

by Jim Santella
August 27, 2009

A guitarist with the kind of dexterity that Jack Wilkins shares is bound to find success in many fields, especially when based in New York, where he's surrounded by great musicians all the time. As Until It's Time features piano, bass and drums in support of Wilkins' sensual fret board articulation, much of the album relies on familiar songs and a conservative love affair with melody.Wilkins works in unison with piano, stretches out frequently, and turns his musical ...

Dena DeRose: Live at Jazz Standard Volume Two

by Donald Elfman
December 18, 2008

This is the kind of series that could last forever--pianist Dena DeRose seems to have an endless supply of well- and little-known tunes from the collected songbooks and both the music and performances are timeless. The second set from the same evening that produced Volume One (MAXJAZZ, 2007), this has the same in-the-moment sense of place and, what sounds like a contradiction in terms, a recorded spontaneity. This trio--with DeRose's ever so natural yet seasoned singing and ...

Jeremy Pelt: November

by C. Michael Bailey
July 20, 2008

In the same way that Roy Hargrove's Earfood (Emarcy, 2008) updated Lee Morgan's Cornbread (Blue Note, 1965), so Jeremy Pelt's November updates Miles Davis' Miles Smiles (Columbia/Legacy, 1966). If creativity and art can be evaluated on both the vertical and horizontal, Morgan's and Davis' offerings represent horizontal progressions of the art of jazz into new areas, where Hargrove's and Pelt's are vertical elaborations of those previous collections.

Jeremy Pelt (with his band WiRED) last offered Shock Value: Live at Smoke ...