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Dave Stryker: Groove Street
by Richard J Salvucci
This is a throwback recording, but in a very good way. Time was someone could get in a car on a weekend morning, roll the window down, turn the FM up and drive to a happy place. It really did not matter much where: the music got you there because it was just that kind of ...
Various Guitarists: The Middle of Everywhere: Guitar Solos Vol. I
by Glenn Astarita
Produced by laudable guitarist/composer Joel Harrison and the Alternative Guitar Summit, The Middle of Everywhere: Guitar Solos Vol. 1 is a compelling exploration of the intersections between jazz, classical and world music traditions--think of it as a musical United Nations, where six-stringed diplomats from various genres come together to harmonize. In the album liners, Harrison states, ...
Kevin Figes: You Are Here
by Jack Kenny
This is an intriguing album. It could have been titled “musicians in search of an identity." The album details Kevin Figes' history. His choice of pieces spells it out: Keith Tippett's work means so much to Figes. It is good to have a hero and to play his music; some of the long melodic lines and ...
Asha Parkinson: Possession
by Neil Duggan
Possession, the debut album from Asha Parkinson, builds substantially on her previous 28-minute mini-album release. Parkinson composed and arranged the words and music, which as a theme explore the concept of possession. The innovative music has its roots in jazz with classical and Eastern Mediterranean influences. Parkinson displays considerable ambition, strong principles, cultural awareness ...
Mike Stern: Echoes and Other Songs
by Doug Collette
With a running time of seventy-seven minutes plus, guitarist Mike Stern's Echoes and Other Songs is effectively a double album. And like most such expansive works--including classics like Bob Dylan's Blonde On Blonde (Columbia, 1966) and The Beatles (aka 'The White Album')(Apple, 1968)--it would benefit from consolidation of its best elements (as would a replacement of ...
Jeppe Zeeberg: Six Additional Pieces of Piano Music
by Karl Ackermann
Over the decade starting in 2014, the Danish pianist Jeppe Zeeberg showcased his talents in a variety of settings, from duos to large ensembles. His first album with a quartet, It's The Most Basic Thing You Can Do on A Boat (Barefoot Records, 2014), featured a mix of swing and daring creativity. Zeeberg's improvisational style is ...
Hirsh / Swell / Clouse / Parker: Out On A Limb
by Mark Corroto
Can déjà vu be contagious? Or at least a particular quality or disposition that is communicable? This might be the question to ask after sitting down with Out On A Limb by the improvising quartet of Steve Hirsh, Steve Swell, Jim Clouse, and William Parker. The music this unit created spontaneously in April 2024 does not ...
Chad McCullough: In These Hills, Beyond
by Dan McClenaghan
Trumpeter Chad McCullough started his recording career in Seattle at Origin Records, releasing five albums between 2009 and 2015 under his name or as a co-leader with pianist Bram Weitjers. It was a successful run that earned him the “Rising Star" tag. A move to Chicago to teach, the release of his “Best of Year" pick, ...
Tony Oxley: Unreleased 1974 - 2016
by Chris May
The British drummer and bandleader Tony Oxley passed in 2023, aged 85, after a career which began in the mid 1960s as the drummer in the house band at Ronnie Scott's club. From this prestigious but relatively codified platform, Oxley soon steered into less travelled waters. In 1969 he was in the quartet which recorded John ...
Rempis / Adasiewicz / Abrams / Damon: Propulsion
by Mark Corroto
Do you ever imagine yourself, while listening to an album from the Chicago creative scene, as a detective in one of those murder mystery movies? The investigator has assembled a wall with a string running from the crime scene photos and victims to all the accused. They do so to visualize the connections between suspects. The ...
