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349

Article: Album Review

Martial Solal: NY1: Live at the Village Vanguard

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by Dan McClenaghan
June 25, 2003

I hadn't heard of the Algiers-born, Paris-based pianist Martial Solal, and my review copy of this disc came in a bare bones state: just a cardboard sleeve, a listing of the tunes and musicians. No cover art, no liner notes. A blind listen told me “Modernistic," a young lion full of the creative drive ...

128

Article: Album Review

Miles Donahue: Stranger in Paradise: Standards Vol I

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by Dan McClenaghan
June 25, 2003

You've got to give the guy extra credit for sheer nerve, simultaneously offering up four CDs of great American Songbook classics. But trumpeter/saxophonist Miles Donahue doesn't need anybody's credit. The four discs stand on their own--collectively or separately. Stranger in Paradise, Volume I opens up with Irving Berlin's "Always," with a bonus: vocals ...

215

Article: Album Review

Jack Cooper: Big Band Refections of Cole Porter

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by Dan McClenaghan
June 25, 2003

Cole Porter didn't set out to write songs for the jazz folks to sink their teeth into; but it's happened that way anyway. It seems any jazz artist worth their salt tackles Porter at one time or another. Charlie Parker had a field day; Ella Fitzgerald put out a couple of albums' worth of Porter songs. ...

191

Article: Album Review

Virginia Mayhew: Phantoms

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by Dan McClenaghan
June 25, 2003

Saxophonist Virginia Mayhew goes with the pianoless quartet on Phantoms, her third CD as a leader--a format that allows the space and freedom for the band to stretch out. They make the most of the opportunity. Without the comping and chording of the piano, each of the four instrumentalists has to contribute to keeping ...

128

Article: Album Review

Bjorn Wennas Quartet: Early Summer Sketch

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by Dan McClenaghan
May 25, 2003

Swedish-born, Boston-based jazz guitarist Bjorn Wennas' debut CD, Early Summer Sketch starts out with a sizzle. “Off" is an up-tempo jaunt with a memorable melody, stinging guitar chops, and crisp sax/guitar unison. Wennas' solo has a tang to it as it dances with his band's bubbling rhythm. The brooding gem “Early Summer Sketch" slows things down ...

142

Article: Album Review

Jacey Falk: From a Place Within

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by Dan McClenaghan
May 25, 2003

Jacey Falk is a blues/rhythm and blues/jazz singer who demonstrates an exuberant delivery and infectious appeal on his debut recording, From a Place Within --so retro, in a way, as to be fresh and new. Back in the very early sixties, before the Beatles and Motown Records changed the recording landscape, one would stroll ...

149

Article: Album Review

Adam Kolker: Sultanic Verses

by Dan McClenaghan
May 11, 2003

Reedman Adam Kolker has garnered three Grammy nominations for his work alongside percussionist Ray Barretto. Now, as the leader on Sultanic Verses, he teams up again with Barretto, whose churning rhythms aid and abet pianist Bruce Barth, bassist John Herbert, and drummer Billy Hart.Four tunes are "Verses," shuffled in with the Kolker originals and ...

120

Article: Album Review

Benny Lackner Trio: Benny Lackner Trio

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by Dan McClenaghan
May 7, 2003

I think Mingus would have liked the opener on The Benny Lackner Trio. Lackner and colleagues take on his classic "Moanin'" with a fuzzy bass groove and quirky pots and pans (literally) serving as percussion.Keyboardist Benny Lackner burst onto the scene on one of last year's finest recordings, vocalist Hillary Maroon's Migratory, which offered ...

115

Article: Album Review

Joel Palsson: Septett

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by Dan McClenaghan
May 4, 2003

For those of us who aren't world travelers, hot jazz out of Iceland might seem unlikely. Or cool jazz for that matter, but saxophonist Joel Palsson's Septett takes a giant step toward putting that North Atlantic island nation on the jazz map.Reed player Joel Palsson studied at the prestigious (for good reason) Berklee College ...

257

Article: Album Review

Hiromi: Another Mind

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by Dan McClenaghan
May 2, 2003

Is there any hype out there about pianist Hiromi? There should be--she's a major new talent, brimming with originality and musical joy.From the opening notes of the first trio cut, "XYZ," it's obvious that something special is going on here. Hiromi Uehara has a million stories, and she tells them with all her heart ...