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Junior Mance: Sweet and Lovely
by C. Michael Bailey
Bobby Timmons, Gene Harris, Junior Mance - these men comprise the Holy Trinity of soul/blues jazz pianists. All three have a complete command of the blues, along with gospel, which makes up the subatomic particles of soul jazz piano. Why is Horace Silver not here? Because he is one of the founding fathers of hard bop, ...
Lee Konitz Quintet: Peacemeal
by David Rickert
Starting with his association with Lennie Tristano, Lee Konitz proved to be a curious and creative player who over time has pursued some interesting musical ideas quite successfully. A few years after an excellent album of duets, Konitz recorded Peacemeal, a quintet album of hit-or-miss ideas that nevertheless remains an intriguing listen decades after its 1969 ...
Phil Upchurch: Feeling Blue
by David Rickert
In 1967 many aspiring musicians picked up the guitar as their instrument of choice, but most were interested in becoming the next Bob Dylan rather than the next Wes Montgomery. It’s understandable, then, that Phil Upchurch’s debut as a leader got lost in the shuffle. At this point he had worked as a sideman with some ...
Zoot Sims with the Joe Castro Trio: Live at Falcon Lair
by Jack Bowers
This loose-limbed rendezvous sounds exactly as it was, an impromptu late-night jam session planned on the fly in someone’s apartment—in this case, however, no ordinary apartment but “The Playhouse,” a spacious second-story room above a garage and adjacent to the main house at Falcon Lair, the imposing Beverly Hills estate then owned by tobacco heiress Doris ...
Chet Baker: Plays the Best of Lerner and Loewe
by Jack Bowers
There’s some nice blowing on this CD reissue of an album recorded in 1959 by trumpeter Chet Baker and a star-studded supporting cast, but it’s far too sporadic, flutist Herbie Mann’s arrangements are generally uninspiring, and the session is on the whole rather lackluster. In searching for reasons, one that quickly arises is that Baker's celebrated ...
Bill Evans: New Jazz Conceptions
by David Rickert
The first album by any given artist is not likely to be their best, for obvious reasons: most are still developing a style and honing their craft. This 1956 session, Bill Evans’ first as a leader, is no different. The introverted pianist had to be virtually forced into recording as a leader, but these early explorations ...
Cannonball Adderley with Milt Jackson: Things Are Getting Better
by David Rickert
Despite the title, with a lineup like this, it’s hard to believe that things could get any better. The obvious attraction is the chance to see two gifted improvisers in Adderley and Jackson trade licks, and the results sure don’t disappoint. The format is familiar; mostly a selection of blues, soul, and standard tunes played with ...
Bill Evans: Consecration: The Final Recordings Part 2 [Box Set]
![Read "Consecration: The Final Recordings Part 2 [Box Set]" reviewed by Samuel Chell](http://cover6.cduniverse.com/CDUCoverArt/Music/Large/02521844362.jpg)
by Samuel Chell
I had assumed that these recordings fit into the category of “he plays well under the circumstances." Forget the qualifiers. Listening to this set and the previously released The Last Waltz is a bit like sharing the experience of the wild-eyed poet who has returned from feasting on the milk of paradise in Coleridge's “Kubla Khan." ...
Jimmy Cobb's Mob: Cobb's Groove
by Jack Bowers
Some decisions are good, others bad, and a few are quite simply inspired, such as producer Todd Barkan's decision to invite tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander to join drummer Jimmy Cobb's Mob on its latest album, Cobb's Groove. I can picture the session as being a pretty good one without Alexander sitting in; with him, it rises ...
Chet Baker: Plays The Best of Lerner & Loewe
by David Rickert
Shelly Manne’s album of tunes from My Fair Lady was a huge success, and thus it was a natural move to follow it with other swingin’ Broadway records. Chet Baker was an obvious fit for this type of project, an artist whose handsomeness and fragile playing pegged him as a boyishly romantic interpreter of songs. He ...
