Results for "Play This!"

Melissa Aldana's Sensory Journey Transports Listeners… Elsewhere

by Keith Flint
July 25, 2026

There is little wonder why Melissa Aldana was nominated in 2019's 61st Annual Grammy Awards for her extraordinary solo on “Elsewhere." The Chilean saxophonist and composer creates a gallery of sound on this piece from her album Visions, inspired by the life and work of the artist Frida Kahlo. Bassist Pablo Menares leads listeners into the ...

Corcovado Looms Large Over South American Rhythm

by Keith Flint
July 19, 2026

Corcovado refers to the “Hunchback" mountain in the Tijuca Forest near Rio de Janeiro. Similar to the granite peak itself, this track emerges above its surroundings on the album Cannonball's Bossa Nova (Capitol Records, 1963). Immediately following guitarist Durval Ferreira's three introductory chromatic chords, Cannonball Adderley's alto saxophone glides above and gently overlays the ...

Seamus Blake: Compared to What

by Ludovico Granvassu
July 15, 2026

Any chance to celebrate the brilliance of Eddie Harris is one worth taking, and Seamus Blake--a longtime Harris devotee--does that on EH! The Electrifying Seamus Blake Plays the Music of Eddie Harris (Cellar Music Group), with respect, style, and a dream team along for the ride: Sam Yahel on Hammond B3, Tim Lefebvre on electric bass, ...

The Breaks: Inheritance Powder

by Ludovico Granvassu
July 8, 2026

Built around the irresistible pull of deep-pocket grooves, the classic Hammond-guitar-drums lineup is as seductive for the listener as it is for the player. But the lure of deep-pocket grooves can be dangerous for the unwary musician: lock in too tightly, and finding a way out gets awkward. The Breaks--the new project of veterans ...

Steven Bernstein ResoNation Trio: Sitting on Top of the World

by Ludovico Granvassu
July 4, 2026

ResoNation Trio (Royal Potato Family, 2026) is not only the title of Steven Bernstein's latest album but also the name of his new trio with Scott Colley on bass and Nasheet Waits on drums. Once again, Bernstein brings positive energy and unexpected turns while chasing his fertile imagination. Why not leave the slide trumpet ...

Jah Wobble: Memories

by Geno Thackara
June 28, 2026

Reworking a classic album, even partially, always risks turning into a nostalgia exercise and/or a misguided attempt to experiment. The prospect is even trickier with something impossible to recapture, such as the lightning-in-a-bottle chaos of Public Image Ltd's landmark Metal Box (Virgin, 1979). Nonetheless, the inimitable Jah Wobble threaded that needle a few decades later with ...

T. Lavitz: No Time Flat

by Mike Jacobs
June 17, 2026

Though technically the name of the group and the album, School of the Arts (Magnatude, 2007) is a T. Lavitz's project, by any other name. It stands unique in the late keyboardist's catalog for it's enlisting of Chick Corea Elektric Band cohorts Dave Weckl, Frank Gambale and John Patitucci, in combination with Lavitz's Dixie Dregs bandmates, ...

Virginia MacDonald: Last Call at Dimitri's

by Ludovico Granvassu
June 14, 2026

It is rare for a debut album to emerge as a contender for “year-end best-of" listicles. An exception to the rule may well be In Search Of..., the superb debut release by clarinetist Virginia MacDonald. A debut as a leader, that is: before stepping into the spotlight herself, MacDonald had already appeared on some twenty recordings ...

Ben Flocks: Moon and Sand

by Ludovico Granvassu
June 12, 2026

Moonshades--a collection of twelve compositions inspired by the moon--is the third album by Ben Flocks. At a time when, with the Artemis II mission, we seem to be entering a new--and perhaps more ominous--space age, the Los Angeles-based saxophonist prefers to look at the moon the way generations of artists, poets and philosophers have: as a ...

Marc Johnson's Right Brain Patrol: Samurai Hee Haw

by Mike Jacobs
June 12, 2026