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Freddie Hubbard & Jimmy Heath: Jam Gems
by John Sharpe
Jam Gems is Label M’s latest offering from their ongoing series of previously unearthed recordings taped at Baltimore’s Famous Ballroom by The Left Bank Jazz Society. Formed in 1964, this group often booked Sunday afternoon jam sessions at various venues. However, the tapes were never released until producer Joel Dorn struck a deal to issue the ...
Buddy Rich: Keep The Customer Satisfied
by John Sharpe
In the late sixties drum virtuoso Buddy Rich recorded a series of albums for Liberty/Pacific Jazz that most critics agree were the best of his career. Keep The Customer Satisfied captures Rich, an admitted showoff, performing live before an enthusiastic audience at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas. Of the original seven tracks, only one (the ...
Don Wilkerson: The Complete Blue Note Sessions
by John Sharpe
This CD is another entry in Blue Note’s critically acclaimed, limited edition Connoisseur Series. It features Texas tenor man Don Wilkerson working out with such noted Blue Note sidemen as pianist Sonny Clark, guitarist Grant Green (who appears on all tracks), bassist Butch Warren, organist John Patton and drummer Billy Higgins. As the title indicates, this ...
Bill Dixon: Berlin Abbozzi
by John Sharpe
Bill Dixon’s latest recording, his first on FMP, is an intimate club date well captured in November 1999. The instrumentation of trumpet, two basses and drums, is one which has been used to good effect on previous Dixon recordings such as November 1981 and the two volumes of Vade Mecum, both on Soul Note. This group ...
Louie Shelton: Urban Culture
by John Sharpe
A quick read of guitaristLouie Shelton’sbio attests to the fact that he is a talented, much in-demand session player. Over the years he’s worked with artists like The Monkees, The Jackson Five, The Partridge Family, Lionel Ritchie, Whitney Houston, Marvin Gaye, and on and on. Urban Culture features the guitarist noodling through ten instrumental tracks, all ...
Medeski, Martin and Wood: The Dropper
by John Sharpe
The November issue of Downbeat proclaims that Medeski, Martin and Wood are “the hottest jazz band on the road today.” Perhaps. While they have garnered a loyal following amongst young hipsters reared on jam bands, hip-hop and punk rock, their appeal to “traditional” jazz lovers like myself is still open to debate. Certainly, if you’ve come ...
Mo Morgen: Singin' Saxy
by John Sharpe
Mo Morgen’s bio states that his real name is Mike Morgenstern, he performed at New York’s Jazzmania Loft for many years and more recently led the house band at Miami’s MoJazz Café. His occasional sideman gigs have featured his capable tenor playing but on Singin' Saxy he has decided to showcase his vocal talents as well. ...
Dr. Lonnie Smith: The Turbanator
by John Sharpe
Organist Dr. Lonnie Smith, who has often been confused with keyboardist/pianist Lonnie Liston Smith, is perhaps best known for his work with guitarist George Benson and saxophonist Lou Donaldson. Smith’s fiery, funky, R&B-based approach made him the ideal soul-jazz accompanist. Compared to these early efforts, The Turbanator is a rather mellow, albeit very enjoyable, outing. Perhaps ...
Stan Getz: Live At The Left Bank
by John Sharpe
The story behind how this session came to be is almost as exciting as the recording itself. Baltimore’s Left Bank Jazz Society was formed in 1964 by a group devoted to promoting and preserving jazz in the city. Soon the organization was hosting weekly concerts featuring outstanding local, national, and international jazz performers. In the mid-eighties ...
Marian McPartland: The Single Petal Of A Rose
by John Sharpe
Like pure spring water from a bottomless well, jazz musicians continue to draw inspiration from the mammoth Ellington songbook. Pianist Marian McPartland, who has spent more than 60 years in music, adds to an ever-growing number of tribute CDs with the classy Single Petal Of A Rose. Recording live before an intimate gathering of 50 at ...


