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Results for "Gary Versace"
The State of Organ Jazz 2010 (Pt. 1): Wayne Escoffery, Dan Pratt and Matthew Kaminski
by C. Michael Bailey
Organ-based jazz inhabits a unique place as a sub-genre. The combination of the sacred churchy organ with the decadence of blues and bebop made for a heady brew after the introduction of the format by Wild Bill Davis and Bill Doggett in the 1950s. Qualitatively, the names that loom largest in organ jazz are Jimmy Smith, ...
John Ellis & Double-Wide: Puppet Mischief
by Russ Musto
This second outing by John Ellis & Double Wide, the versatile saxophonist/bass clarinetist's extraordinary New Orleans-based band, one ups the “serious fun" mentality by inviting a pair of guests--harmonica master Gregoire Maret and multifaceted trombonist Alan Ferber--to augment the unusual quartet of sousaphonist Matt Perrine, drummer Jason Marsalis and newcomer Brian Coogan (replacing Gary Versace) on ...
John Ellis & Double-Wide: Puppet Mischief
by Chris May
Brooklyn-based saxophonist John Ellis is a player who, whenever he puts his horn in his mouth, makes it seem like retro-modern is the only show in town. His style is part classic soul and funk, part modern jam band groove and part freewheeling improvisation. He has a particular affinity with New Orleans roots music and also ...
Chris Jentsch: Cycles and Reflecting on the Journey
by Ludwig vanTrikt
John Coltrane once said, “Let the music speak for itself." The guitarist/composer and band leader Christopher Jentsch adds an interesting twist on that subject by opting to describe himself when asked about the broader subject of how to capture his music in his own words. “I think of myself as a composer/guitarist working with contemporary improvisational ...
John Geggie: Unexpected Conversations
by John Kelman
Most cities have them: musicians who act like a lightning rod, focusing and driving their jazz scenes. In Ottawa, Canada, bassist John Geggie has been one of those significant focal points for two decades, but in particular over the past ten years. He's one of the founding organizers and faculty members of Jazzworks which, amongst other ...
Loren Stillman: Winter Fruits & Knu Gmoon
by George Kanzler
Loren StillmanWinter FruitsPirouet2009 Knu GmoonKnu Gmoonself-published2009 Everything old can be new again could be the motto of the ensembles on these two albums. And the emphasis is definitely on the ...
Into the Fire: Winter Jazzfest 2010
by Gordon Marshall
Winter Jazzfest New York, New York January 8-9, 2010 Fast-forward 30 years from the days in the late 1970s and early '80s when the world-weary wisdom that jazz wasn't a living force anymore was whispered to us--maybe you are getting out of jail, maybe waking from a cryogenic sleep. Before this happened, ...
Night Songs
Label: Criss Cross
Released: 2009
Track listing: Laura; Autumn in New York; September Song; Prelude to a Kiss; Spring Is Here; I'll Be Seeing You; Blue in Green; Nefertiti; Warm Valley.
Wayne Escoffery: Uptown
by Woodrow Wilkins
Bob Mintzer, Kirk Whalum and Ada Rovatti are just a few of today's stunning tenor sax players. Wayne Escoffery can be added to their company. Escoffery, 34, is a native of London who moved to the United States with his mother at an early age. He enjoyed singing, and was a member of the ...
Wayne Escoffery: Uptown
by Joel Roberts
On Uptown, his fifth album as a leader, the impressive 34-year-old tenor saxophonist {Wayne Escoffery employs an old-fashioned soul jazz lineup of sax, Hammond B-3 organ, electric guitar and drums. But don't expect to hear the sort of bluesy “uptown" jams associated with classic soul jazz tenors like Gene Ammons, Eddie “Lockjaw" Davis or Stanley Turrentine. ...
