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Tomasz Stanko: Suspended Night
by Jeff Stockton
If you’re reading this review, there’s little doubt that you consider yourself a jazz fan. And as such, you’ve probably heard a person say to you with all conviction: “I don’t like jazz.” Miles in the ‘50s? Coltrane on Atlantic? What’s not to like? But when I hear this, I usually just let it go, frustrated ...
The Josh Abrams Quartet at the Chicago Cultural Center
by Jeff Stockton
In performance over the course of an hour at the Chicago Cultural Center on April 8, celebrating the release of their recent CD Cipher (Delmark), the Josh Abrams Quartet explored the presence and absence of sound through subtle implications, the nuances of individual instruments, original voicings, and group interplay. Taking the stage with the same softshoe ...
Ivo Perelman: Suite for Helen F.
by Jeff Stockton
You may have heard that the compact disc is dying, but you wouldn’t know it from this prodigious 2-CD set of over 100 minutes of relentless saxophonic stress-testing and rhythmic sensory overload. From his debut in 1989 through the late ‘90s, Ivo Perelman was wildly prolific and exhaustively documented, with more than 20 recordings appearing on ...
Assif Tsahar/Cooper-Moore: America
by Jeff Stockton
I suppose America should be categorized as jazz, since it was made by two musicians who have played jazz in the past. The underrecorded Cooper-Moore usually appears on piano, and Assif Tsahar is best known for his Ayler/late Coltrane-style tenor saxophone workouts—and these men play those instruments here, but this is a recording that defies categorization. ...
Mario Pavone: Orange
by Jeff Stockton
For those of us who need a little structure in this chaotic world, bassist, composer, and bandleader Mario Pavone offers Orange, with offerings from his Quintet and Nu (piano) Trio. And while these tunes keep chaos at bay with tightly composed melodies, chaos is given its due through the exciting and risky soloing of the musicians. ...
Steve Lacy: The Holy La
by Jeff Stockton
From the first note of The Holy La, you know you’re in the hands of a master. The tone is authoritative, and lower than the high hard sound of the soprano sax we associate with the Coltrane of “My Favorite Things.” The tune is from Monk, “Shuffle Boil,” and the trio, together in one combination or ...
Emphasis & Flight 1961: Jimmy Giuffre
by Jeff Stockton
Up until around the time this recording was made, jazz had been beat crazy. Fast or slow, the implicit goal was swing, above all. By removing drums from the equation, Jimmy Giuffre, Paul Bley, and Steve Swallow generated their own rhythms, tested the musical expressiveness of their instruments, and explored variations in tempo and tone by ...
Joe Fonda/Barry Altschul/Billy Bang: FAB: Transforming the Space
by Jeff Stockton
When I hear musicians shouting or humming on a recording because they can't help themselves, I take it as a good sign. The spontaneity, intensity, and pure joy that comes across in those brief outbursts raises the level of excitement and intimacy so that you almost forget you're sitting in your living room listening to a ...
Hank Jones/Milt Hinton/Bobby Rosengarden: The Trio
by Jeff Stockton
In an article published in the Village Voice a couple of years ago Gary Giddins traced a history of recorded jazz in song, year by year, and Hank Jones’ solo “Oh, What a Beautiful Morning” was pegged as the noteworthy performance of 1977. As his rhythm section lays out, Jones tinkles his piano as if prompting ...
James Carter: Gardenias for Lady Day
by Jeff Stockton
While not quite James Carter in Satin, this homage to the music and spirit of Billie Holiday overflows with silky soloing, noirish ballads, and romantic orchestration, with the leader’s own distinctive and identifiable voice prominently featured on no less than six horns. Carter’s arresting baritone saxophone comes up from under on “A Flower is a Lovesome ...
