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John Butcher / Thomas Lehn / Matthew Shipp: The Clawed Stone
by John Sharpe
The unlikely conjunction of American pianist Matthew Shipp, most strongly associated with New York avant jazz, and British saxophonist John Butcher and German electronicist Thomas Lehn, two leading exponents of the European free improvisation scene, works like a dream on The Clawed Stone. It's not a one off. The genesis of this 2017 Paris studio session ...
The Nels Cline Singers: Share The Wealth
by Mark Sullivan
Guitarist Nels Cline has led the Nels Cline Singers since 2002. While they have sometimes had guest performers on their recordings, the core band has been a trio of Cline, drummer Scott Amendola and bassist Trevor Dunn (originally Devin Hoff). This album expands the group to a sextet with the addition of saxophonist Skerik, keyboardist Brian ...
Doug Webb: Apples & Oranges
by David A. Orthmann
The ingenuity of veterans operating within the recognizable parameters of the jazz mainstream never ceases to impress. A case in point is Apples & Oranges, tenor and soprano saxophonist Doug Webb's tenth release for the Posi-Tone imprint. A program comprised of the warhorses In A Sentimental Mood," Spring Is Here," and Estate," the 1960s pop song ...
Mars Williams / Vasco Trilla: Spiracle
by John Sharpe
Both American reedman Mars Williams and Spanish percussionist Vasco Trilla show themselves well grounded in the duet configuration, although this appears to be only Williams' second documented encounter in the sole company of a drummer. For Trilla, the situation is more normal. His track record embraces pairings with a wide array of wind instrumentalists (as well ...
Bill Evans: Bill Evans Live at Ronnie Scott's
by Pierre Giroux
The emergence of Bill Evans as one of the jazz world's preeminent pianists was propelled by a unmistakeable style: a pensive note striking with harmonic transpositions resulting in unique voicings. This 1968 recording marks the fifth collaboration between Resonance Records and the Bill Evans Estate to bring previously unreleased material into the public domain. This 2xLP ...
Lucia Cadotsch: Speak Low II
by Friedrich Kunzmann
On their sophomore effort, the multinational European trio around Swiss vocalist Lucia Cadotsch follows the band's initial instinct of organically dissecting and rearranging old favorites of the respective band members. This time around the trio is expanded by English keyboartdist Kit Downes' occasional organ embellishments and Lucy Railton's additions of odd melodic cello lines to conceptually ...
The Dave Brubeck Quartet: Time OutTakes
by Mike Jurkovic
When, for the first and the millionth time Paul McCartney is queried by lazy savants and crazed fans about what he would have cut from epic double White Album (Apple, 1968) to make it the strongest of the strongest single disc ever, the cutely weathered one just replies It's the Beatles' bleedin' White Album, man" and ...
Samo Salamon: Almost Alone Vol 1
by Hrayr Attarian
Slovenian guitarist Samo Salamon is as prolific as he is innovative. His restless explorations have resulted in a large, versatile discography that ranges from the orchestral to the free flowing with a variety of ensembles. His 2020 release Almost Alone Vol. 1 is a set of eleven duets each with a different international guitarist. It is ...
Steve Masakowski and the Masakowski Family: Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
by C. Michael Bailey
Holiday Music...with an edge. The holiday season always provides plenty of inspiration for musicians. Jazzers are especially affected, having produced many notable records, beginning, with the Vince Guaraldi trio's A Charlie Brown Christmas (Fantasy, 1965). That recording provides a convenient jumping off point for discussing the Masakowski Family's Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, ...
Susan Alcorn Quintet: Pedernal
by Troy Dostert
Pedal steel guitarist Susan Alcorn has achieved the enviable feat of commanding her own instrumental niche in the jazz world. Much like Toots Thielemans' harmonica, Gary Versace's accordion or Béla Fleck's banjo, she seems to have a unique role all to herself, at least until her substantial talents eventually spawn a host of imitators. From her ...

