Interview

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

INTERVIEW July 11, 2020

Clovis Grognuz: Young Man with Horn of Plenty

With thousands of viewers and followers on Facebook and You Tube, Swiss saxophonist Clovis Grognuz has become a worldwide saxophone-playing sensation. Astonished eyes and ears have witnessed this talented and dedicated young man performing the legendary saxophone solos--those of John Coltrane ("Giant Steps"), Charlie Parker ("Just Friends"), et al--simultaneously and note for note with the great Masters. And, amazingly Clovis is only 10 years old! The Clovis Grognuz story has other resonating personal dimensions. Hectored and bullied as “different" in ...

INTERVIEW July 8, 2020

Tom Lawton: Not Less Than Everything

By Victor L. Schermer

Not known, because not looked for But heard, half-heard, in the stillness Between two waves of the sea. Quick now, here, now, always— A condition of complete simplicity (Costing not less than everything) —T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets; “Little Gidding" This poetic quotation captures the essence of pianist Tom Lawton. He is a musician who is listening “in the stillness" to serve the whole group, and he ...

INTERVIEW July 4, 2020

Meet Andy Bey

By Chris M. Slawecki

From the 1995-2003 archive: This article first appeared at All About Jazz in February 2000. Listening for the first time to Andy Bey is like stepping into a quiet, still lake. Your foot first parts a surface that's smooth and tranquil, but you can't really tell from that surface how deeply your foot must go to reach bottom. The first time you hear Bey's delicate yet muscular voice alone, accompanied only by his own piano, or in larger ...

INTERVIEW July 3, 2020

Medeski, Martin and Wood: A Retro Phenomenon for the New Millenium

By Mike Brannon

From the 1995-2003 archive: This article first appeared at All About Jazz in April 1999. No, they're not a law firm, and though they're not yet a household word either, MMW is a trio of formidable sonic integrity and groove. 'Fronted' by Hammond B-3 organist John Medeski, the trio has been described as everything from “acoustic funk" and “acid jazz" to “Sanford and Sun Ra" (my favorite). The reality is that this equal collaboration between Medeski, acoustic/electric bassist, ...

INTERVIEW July 3, 2020

Catching up with Herbie Hancock

By Mike Brannon

From the 1995-2003 archive: This article first appeared at All About Jazz in September 1998. Seldom has a musician been so closely associated with two separate musical genres as has pianist and composer Herbie Hancock. Originally introduced to the world as part of Miles Davis' mid-60's group, which also included Wayne Shorter, Tony Williams and Ron Carter, Hancock also made a name for himself in the pop world as well, starting with the Headhunters band in '72 and ...

INTERVIEW July 1, 2020

Eddie Daniels: 'Sings' Ivan Lins

By R.J. DeLuke

Eddie Daniels, one of the finest of clarinetists during his decades in jazz, is still an active, curious, exploring musician. He welcomes new things. His latest album, Night Kisses: A Tribute to Ivan Lins (Resonance Records), set to be released at the end of July, represents something new for him. Music is an art that always reveals something fresh for those aware enough to look for it. For Daniels, the new project lit one fire and ...

INTERVIEW June 30, 2020

Denys Baptiste: Pathfinder For The New London Jazz

By Chris May

Bandleader, composer and educator Denys Baptiste is among the generation of musicians, many of them of Caribbean or African heritage, who pointed the way for the younger players who have emerged on the London jazz scene since around 2015. Baptiste's contemporaries include saxophonists Jason Yarde, Soweto Kinch, Steve Williamson and Courtney Pine, and trumpeter Byron Wallen, and they were the first wave of British players purposefully to include their cultural heritages in the jazz they played. Unlike earlier generations of ...