Home » Search Center » Results: Jack Bowers

Results for "Jack Bowers"

Advanced search options

6

Article: Album Review

Fred Hersch & the WDR Big Band: Begin Again

Read "Begin Again" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Pianist Fred Hersch, who needs no introduction to most well-informed jazz enthusiasts, is by and large known as a leader of trios and other small groups. Begin Again displays another side of Hersch's appreciable talents: nine of his handsome compositions, astutely recast by six-time Grammy Award winner Vince Mendoza and impressively performed by Germany's superb WDR ...

8

Article: Album Review

Jaelem Bhate: on the edge

Read "on the edge" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

At a time when many contemporary big bands are veering off-course, too often leaving jazz as we know and understand it as an afterthought, foundering and searching in vain for an anchor, it's comforting to encounter an ensemble that is not only as fresh as today's harvest but upholds such time-honored jazz traditions as melody, harmony ...

3

Article: Album Review

Howard University Jazz Ensemble: HUJE 2018

Read "HUJE 2018" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

One sure sign of spring is the arrival of the latest yearly recording by the superb Howard University Jazz Ensemble, a tradition that dates without pause from the days of vinyl in 1976, one year after the ensemble was formed by its first and only music director, Fred Irby III. For archivists and numbers-crunchers, that's forty-four ...

1

Article: Album Review

New Orleans Jazz Orchestra: Songs: The Music of Allen Toussaint

Read "Songs: The Music of Allen Toussaint" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Allen Toussaint (1938-2015), a composer / producer who made his mark in the broad spheres of R&B, rock and roll, funk, country and pop music, may seem at first glance an unusual choice for a big-band jazz tribute. On the other hand, the New Orleans native never strayed far from the pivotal music of his home ...

2

Article: Album Review

Dan Banks Quintet: Simulated Cities

Read "Simulated Cities" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Simulated Cities, the second recording by British pianist Dan Banks' well-schooled quintet, consists of seven original compositions by the leader, the bulk of which call to mind the storied hard-bop conclaves of the mid 20th century while enwrapping the music in an up-to-date wardrobe tailored to accommodate today's more sophisticated and savvy audiences. Once past the ...

2

Article: Album Review

Steve Haines: And the Third Floor Orchestra

Read "And the Third Floor Orchestra" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

This is by and large lovely music, to be sure, but to paraphrase a Burger King ad from years gone by, “Where's the jazz?" Aside from a handful of perfunctory solos by soprano saxophonist Chad Eby and pianist Joey Calderazzo, there isn't much here. Instead, composer / arranger Steve Haines and the Third Floor Orchestra canvass ...

4

Article: Album Review

Cory Weeds Quintet: Live at Frankie's Jazz Club

Read "Live at Frankie's Jazz Club" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Yes, this is saxophonist/master of all livelihoods Cory Weeds' quintet, the year is 2018, and the group is beyond a doubt Live at Frankie's Jazz Club in Vancouver, British Columbia. But close your eyes, open your ears and it's the unapologetic re-creation of a quintessential hard-bop session from the historic Blue Note / Prestige years of ...

5

Article: Album Review

Millennium Jazz Orchestra: Octopus

Read "Octopus" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Octopus, the tenth album released by the Millennium Jazz Orchestra in its nearly twenty-five years of impressive music-making in The Netherlands, is actually an eight-part suite by composer / arranger Joan Reinders devoted to one of the sea world's more fearsome and enigmatic creatures. The thematic essay spans the whole nine yards, from “Evolution" and “Environment" ...

4

Article: Album Review

Justin Morell: Concerto for Guitar and Jazz Orchestra

Read "Concerto for Guitar and Jazz Orchestra" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Justin Morell, himself a world-class guitarist, does not play guitar (or anything else) on this splendid new album, which, even so, could not have taken flight without him. Morell, an assistant professor of music at Lebanon Valley College in Pennsylvania, composed and arranged the inclusive three-movement Concerto for Guitar and Jazz Orchestra, performed in his stead ...

2

Article: Album Review

Larry Dickson Jazz Quartet: Winter Horizons

Read "Winter Horizons" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Winter Horizons is the last of Cincinnati-based baritone saxophonist Larry Dickson's four-part salute to the seasons which began in 2015 with Second Springtime and includes Summergold Promises and Donora Autumn. As before, Dickson leads a quartet whose charter members are bassist Michael Sharfe and drummer Jim Leslie. Alto saxophonist Rick Van Matre, Dickson's band mate in ...


Engage

Publisher's Desk
Radio & Podcast News plus How AAJ Works
Read on...
The place for jazz polls and surveys!
Reader Polls
Which jazz venues deserve to be on top?
Cast Your Vote Today

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletters highlight our top stories, top album reviews, website news, free songs, radio & podcast shows, news, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.