Results for "Avery Sharpe"

Honesty. Clarity. Dignity. These are words that come to mind when you listen to the music of bassist-composer Avery Sharpe. In an age of ephemeral pop stars and flavor-of-the-month trends, Sharpe is a reminder of the lasting value of steadfast dedication and personal integrity. As the title of one of his tunes asserts, "Always Expect the Best of Yourself."

Sharpe was born in Valdosta, Georgia, on August 23, 1954. His first instrument was the piano. "I started playing when I was eight years old," he recalls. "My mother was a piano player in the Church of God in Christ, and she gave lessons to everybody in the family — I'm the sixth of eight children — but it didn't stick until it got to me." He moved on to accordion and then switched to electric bass in high school

ARTICLE: BUILDING A JAZZ LIBRARY November 18, 2020

Yusef Lateef: An Alternative Top Ten Albums Blowing Cultural Nationalism Out Of The Water

By CHRIS MAY

A pioneer of global and modal jazz, the multi-instrumentalist and composer Yusef Lateef is only beginning to have his importance in the history of the music properly acknowledged. After languishing off-catalogue for decades, much of his output is being made available once more. A treasure trove of great jazz is out there waiting to be rediscovered. ...

ARTICLE: ALBUM REVIEW June 17, 2020

Avery Sharpe: 400: An African American Musical Portrait

By ANGELO LEONARDI

Sono passati quattrocento anni dal primo agosto 1619, quando una nave olandese sbarcò una ventina di africani nell'insediamento inglese di Jamestown in Virginia. Erano stati sottratti a un bastimento spagnolo diretto in America latina ma visto che erano stati battezzati--e il codice inglese proibiva di ridurre in schiavitù dei cristiani--lavorarono come servitori a debito. Una sorta ...

ALBUM

400: An African American Musical Portrait

By AVERY SHARPE

Label: JKNM Records
Released: 2019
Track listing: Arrival; Is There a Way Home; Colonial Life; Fiddler; Antebellum; A New Music; Harlem and the War to End All Wars; Blues and World War II; Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around; 500.

ARTICLE: ALBUM REVIEW August 13, 2019

Avery Sharpe: 400: An African American Musical Portrait

By TROY DOSTERT

In 1619 the White Lion, a British privateer which had just successfully raided a Spanish slave ship, arrived in the Jamestown colony with its contraband cargo of twenty-some African slaves. Thus began the tumultuous legacy of the African American experience in North America—a four-hundred-year saga that bassist Avery Sharpe traces skilfully and poignantly on 400: An ...

ARTICLE: RADIO April 20, 2019

Twilight World - Celebrating Marian McPartland, Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Joni 75

By MARY FOSTER CONKLIN

The penultimate week of Women's History Month broadcast includes new releases from guitarist Mimi Fox, trombonists Naomi Moon Siegel and Natalie Cressman, pianist Lara Downes, the group Five Play led by drummer Sherrie Maricle and vocalists Sivan Arbel and Patrice Jegou, as well as a first listen to the live recording of Joni Mitchell''s 75th year ...

ARTICLE: RADIO February 28, 2019

Reissued Eric Dolphy and new sounds from Federica Michisanti

By BOB OSBORNE

The release of 1963 recordings from Eric Dolphy on Musical Prophet together with new music from Italian bassist Federica Michisanti, alongside a broad selection of older tracks make up an eclectic show. Playlist Eric Dolphy “Jitterbug Waltz" from Musical Prophet: The Expanded 1963 New York Studio Sessions (Resonance) 00:00 Federica Michisanti Horn Trio ...

NEWS: AWARD / GRANT November 19, 2014

New England Public Radio Fetes Tom Reneys 30 Years Of Jazz Broadcasting

Institutes Endowment to Ensure Continuation of Jazz Programming Mayor Domenic Sarno entered a reception at the Community Music School of Springfield (Mass.) on a Sunday afternoon, seeking out the guest of honor, Tom Reney. Upon finding him, the mayor extended his hand and, greeting Reney like an old friend, simply said, “Mr. Jazz.” That appellation sums-up ...

ARTICLE: ALBUM REVIEW April 16, 2014

Onaje Allan Gumbs: Bloodlife: Solo Piano Improvisations Based on the Melodies of Ronald Shannon Jackson

By JOHN KELMAN

Best known for his mainstream work with Woody Shaw on classic albums like The Moontrane (Muse, 1975) and Stepping Stones (Columbia, 1978), it may come as a surprise to learn that pianist Onaje Allan Gumbs was not just a friend and mentor to Ronald Shannon Jackson, but that he also played on the drummer's Decode Yourself ...

ARTICLE: LIVE REVIEW November 11, 2012

Angel City Jazz Festival: Hollywood, CA, Oct. 5, 2012

By CHUCK KOTON

Angel City Jazz FestivalJohn Anson Ford AmphitheaterHollywood, CAOctober 7, 2012A bright, golden sun, cobalt sky and cool breeze welcomed Southland jazz lovers to the friendly confines of the John Anson Ford Amphitheater for the fifth annual Angel City Jazz Festival. Eagerly anticipated by serious and passionate jazz aficionados, the festival's founder, ...