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31

Article: Album Review

PJ Perry: No Hugs

Read "No Hugs" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

The title of Canadian alto saxophone maestro PJ Perry's album does not mean that Perry wants No Hugs, rather that the Covid pandemic that arrived in 2020 meant there would be “no hugs" between Perry and his beloved grandson, Atticus, in the “big brown chair" that served as their hangout until the quarantine was over. On ...

31

Article: Album Review

Howard University Jazz Ensemble: HUJE 2022

Read "HUJE 2022" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Recordings by the superb Howard University Jazz Ensemble have been surfacing like clockwork each year since shortly after the orchestra was formed in 1975 by its first (and only) music director, Fred Irby III. Sometimes the albums have overall themes, while others (such as this one) are dedicated to one or more of the university's distinguished ...

27

Article: Album Review

Hinda Hoffman Meets Soul Message: People

Read "People" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

When preparing a meal, the balance of ingredients matters. A little too much here, not quite enough there, and any recipe can fall short of expectations. On the album People, Hinda Hoffman, one of Chicago's finest jazz singers, is paired with the splendid quartet Soul Message, a blend which one might expect to produce a tasty ...

15

Article: Year in Review

Jack Bowers' Best Jazz Albums Of 2022

Read "Jack Bowers' Best Jazz Albums Of 2022" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

As the Covid pandemic slowly recedes into America's rear-view mirror, jazz groups of all sizes and shapes have begun performing and recording again, making 2022 a rather good year over-all for fans and reviewers alike. New artists, new sounds and new approaches have combined to lend assurance that jazz remains in good hands and will continue ...

38

Article: Album Review

Mathieu Soucy: Recollecting

Read "Recollecting" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Guitarist Mathieu Soucy, a 2019 graduate of Canada's McGill University, in Montreal, hits the ground running with a splendid debut album, Recollecting, on which he guides a talented quartet of young musicians through seven of his engaging compositions plus Thelonious Monk's “Reflections" and the well-traveled Rodgers and Hart standard, “Where or When" (sung by Humber College ...

33

Article: Album Review

Fraser MacPherson: From The Pen Of...

Read "From The Pen Of..." reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

The late tenor saxophonist Fraser MacPherson was well-known in western Canada and elsewhere for his brilliance—but as player, not a writer. In fact, according to MacPherson's son Guy, who wrote the excellent liner notes to From the Pen of..., his father wrote barely a dozen or so original compositions, almost all of which are included on ...

36

Article: Album Review

Jason Marshall: New Beginnings

Read "New Beginnings" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Anyone who appreciates the thunderous sound of an assertive baritone sax should love New Beginnings, an emphatic quartet date that shines a light on Jason Marshall's muscular horn and keeps it there from start to finish. While his teammates (Marc Cary, piano; Gerald Cannon, bass; Willie Jones III, drums) converse eloquently on every ...

35

Article: Album Review

Noam Lemish: Twelve

Read "Twelve" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

The number Twelve has several explicit meanings on Israeli-born composer/pianist Noam Lemish's eighth album as leader of his own ensemble, which is twelve members strong (well, thirteen on the first two numbers, on which Laura Swankey adds wordless vocals, and twenty-five if one counts the thirteen-member chorus on Track 3). Returning to the basic premise, Lemish ...

38

Article: Album Review

Alex Tremblay: Thoughts & Images

Read "Thoughts & Images" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

The Thoughts & Images on bassist Alex Tremblay's album of that name are essentially his own (he composed and arranged every number), so the outcome must be appraised for the most part using those ingredients as a touchstone. Not that the musicianship is unimportant; on the contrary, the way in which Tremblay's quintet assesses and performs ...

36

Article: Album Review

Spike Wilner Trio: Plays Monk & Ellington

Read "Plays Monk & Ellington" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Not to mince words, this is a splendid album by New York-based pianist Spike Wilner and his trio, recorded in January 2022 at GP's Juke Joint, which must double as a recording studio, as there is no audience. No matter the venue, it is difficult to wander too far astray when playing the music of Thelonious ...


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