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Article: Extended Analysis

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by John Kelman
January 18, 2016

While it's true that, in the rock world, there are relatively few female guitarists, especially those leaning towards the heavier and more progressive side of the equation, that doesn't mean that those intrepid enough to enter what has traditionally been a man's world should be assessed on anything but their own merits. Good guitarists are good ...

Article: Extended Analysis

Ben Monder: Amorphae

by John Kelman
December 10, 2015

Having made his first--and, up to now, only--appearance on Munich's lauded ECM Records on the late drummer Paul Motian's Garden of Eden (2006), it's certainly taken a long time for the virtuosically talented guitarist to get a date of his own. Monder's résumé--while filled with significant associations including, in addition to Motian, composer/bandleader Maria Schneider, double ...

Article: Live Review

King Crimson at Theatre St-Denis

by John Kelman
November 29, 2015

King Crimson Théâtre St-Denis Montréal, Canada November 16-17, 2015 When King Crimson's only original member and co-founder, guitarist Robert Fripp, announced unexpectedly that the band was coming out of retirement in 2013, other than the unconventional lineup nobody had any idea what to expect other than the brief snippets being released ...

Article: Extended Analysis

Weather Report: The Legendary Live Tapes 1978-1981

by John Kelman
November 22, 2015

While live documents from Weather Report's 16-year run continue to be unearthed, and while live albums have previously documented the group's 1978 tour, there's been precious little from its final tours of 1980/81, when the group returned more decidedly to its jazz roots with one of the best albums in its discography, 1980's Night Passage. Only ...

Article: Extended Analysis

Jaco: Original Soundtrack

by John Kelman
November 22, 2015

With so many compilations already out there, it might be easy to question why a soundtrack to JACO is even necessary. But one look at the track listing renders its raison d'être clear: JACO: Original Soundtrack is, in some ways, the most comprehensive document of the bassist's career, even if it doesn't contain as much music ...

Article: Film Review

JACO (The Film)

by John Kelman
November 22, 2015

Jaco Pastorius JACO (The Film) Slang East/West 2015With author Bill Milkowksi's extraordinarily detailed and honest accounting of Pastorius' life in his biography--first published in 1996 but reissued nearly a decade later as Jaco: The Extraordinary and Tragic Life of Jaco Pastorius: Deluxe Edition (Backbeat Books, 2005), with a hundred pages of ...

Article: Multiple Reviews

Three Views of Jaco: Weather Report: The Legendary Live Tapes 1978-1981 / JACO: The Film & Original Soundtrack

by John Kelman
November 18, 2015

It's hard to believe that, despite being gone for 28 years, bassist/composer Jaco Pastorius remains not just an important figure in the world of jazz, but beyond its broadest purview as well. His seemingly sudden appearance on a series of four albums in 1976 demonstrated that this was an artist with virtually no restrictions. In addition ...

Article: Extended Analysis

THRAK BOX - Live and Studio Recordings 1994-1997

by John Kelman
October 25, 2015

After three years spent extensively focusing on its 1972-'74 lineup--documented over a massive 66 CDs, DVDs and Blu Rays (plus some additional downloads) on Larks' Tongues in Aspic (40th Anniversary Series Box) (Panegyric, 2012); The Road to Red (Panegyric, 2013); and Starless (Panegyric, 2014)--King Crimson turns the clock ahead 20 years to an almost completely different ...

Article: Extended Analysis

Anthony de Mare: Liaisons: Re-Imagining Sondheim from the Piano

by John Kelman
October 10, 2015

It looks, on paper, like a striking idea. Take a pianist (Anthony de Mare) who has been a virtuosic rising star in the classical and avant-garde arenas over the past quarter century. Commission a set of 36 interpretations, for solo piano, of music by one of musical theatre's preeminent composers, Stephen Sondheim. Choose participants ranging from ...

Article: Rediscovery

The Phil Woods Six: Live from the Showboat

by John Kelman
October 1, 2015

The Phil Woods SixLive from the ShowboatSony Music Japan2015 (1977) With the sad passing of Phil Woods on September 29, 2015, what better way to honor the career of this alto (and occasionally soprano) saxophone giant with the Rediscovery of a live album that, long out of print--and previously only available ...