Posts Tagged Jazz
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December 7, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
GRG67: Happy Place
GRG67 Happy Place Rattle It can be very hard to keep up with Auckland-based label, Rattle. And I try! But there are albums that slip through the cracks, one such is this, the second (to my ears at least) from Auckland quartet GRG67. Get Happy is a vast improvement on the debut too. That was […]Archive
December 4, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Jeff Cosgrove / John Medeski / Jeff Lederer: History Gets Ahead Of The Story
Jeff Cosgrove / John Medeski / Jeff Lederer History Gets Ahead Of The Story Grizzley Music The bass player William Parker has been a towering presence on the improvising side of modern jazz – here he is celebrated as composer by drummer Jeff Cosgrove, leading a bass-less trio (John Medeski on organ, Jeff Lederer flue […]Archive
December 2, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Dinner Party: Dinner Party – Dessert
Dinner Party Dinner Party: Dessert Sounds of Crenshaw / EMPIRE In the middle of this year (the American summer) a supergroup rather quietly snuck into place. All of its members had worked together in various combinations or at least mixed in the same musical circles – but it’s a stacked deck: Kamasi Washington, Terrace Martin, […]Archive
November 30, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Will Vinson / Gilad Hekselman / Antonio Sanchez: Trio Grande
Will Vinson / Gilad Hekselman / Antonio Sanchez Trio Grande Whirlwind Recordings Here’s the debut studio recording from a brand new jazz-supergroup. All three members arrived in New York some 15-20 years ago and have come to embody so much about the soul and heart of that city’s vibrant jazz scene. All three are bandleaders […]Archive
November 25, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Poem: Billie Holiday Created Modern Jazz Singing And Also Loved Drugs, Drinking And Fucking
The official story is that Billie Holiday lived a sad life. She was abused and grew up to abuse alcohol and drugs as part of her escape. She peaked, then crumbled, then died broke and losing her voice and all well before the age of 50. But Billie used every interview to point out she’d […]Archive
November 19, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
The Vinyl Countdown # 14
George Russell Sextet, Stratusphunk (1960) When both Ant Donaldson and Riki Gooch – two of New Zealand’s best drummers and musical minds – tell you about the composer George Russell you listen. And when they mention his great albums with his sextet and larger ensembles you hunt them down. And when you find one of them […]Archive
November 16, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Dave Brubeck: Lullabies
Dave Brubeck Lullabies Verve This is Dave Brubeck’s final album – released just now, but recorded a decade ago. It’s a set of charming-enough lullabies, the real weight of them can be measured by the wait I guess – and the timing now of release; early next month it is the jazz legend’s centenary so […]Archive
November 15, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Fred Hersch: Songs From Home
Fred Hersch Songs From Home Palmetto Records Covid records. There’ll be many more to come. What to do when you can’t play a show – when you can’t get together with the full band, when you can’t do your job but need to try to make some money; more than that need to connect – […]Archive
November 13, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Enrico Pieranunzi: Frame
Enrico Pieranunzi Frame Cam Jazz When I last caught up with Enrico Pieranunzi’s playing it was in trio form, a live gig that captured one of drum-legend Paul Motian’s final performances behind the kit. It was a devastatingly good set – one I revisit, but beyond that I’ve forgotten to check in on Peiranunzi, an […]Archive
November 13, 2020 by Simon Sweetman
Rick Simpson: Everything All Of The Time – Kid A Revisited
Rick Simpson Everything All Of The Time: Kid A Revisited Whirlwind Recordings British jazz pianist Rick Simpson here reworks Radiohead’s Kid A for jazz – specifically for an acoustic quintet. He’s more than ably assisted by Will Glaser (drums), James Allsop (baritone saxophone), Tori Freestone (tenor sax) and Dave Whitford (bass). They take the album, […]Archive
November 10, 2020 by Simon Sweetman