Posts Tagged Jazz
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March 24, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
Short Story: The Soul of Jazz is Forever Dancing
Jazz docked in America over 300 years ago, shuffling off the boat in chains where it was handed to a new owner who dressed jazz in a suit, let it out at night though mostly to work, yes there was extra time to play but more whip as well. Jazz broke free, though never totally […]Archive
February 11, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
Lionel Loueke: Close Your Eyes
Lionel Loueke Close Your Eyes Sounderscore Inc. West African guitarist Lionel Loueke started, as a kid, on percussion instruments. This has informed his approach to what is now his primary instrument – and though he hits at the strings, scrapes and finds new sounds from seemingly unturned corners or secret nooks all across the surface […]Archive
February 10, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
When John Coltrane First Blew My Mind
When my brother returned from university with a John Coltrane CD it was like a special gift. He was out there discovering new worlds, the hunter-gatherer bringing the very best music back to Hawke’s Bay. That’s how it seemed. There was no other way to explain it at all. He was doing this very special […]Archive
February 5, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
What A Good Score! – #7: The Man With The Golden Arm by Elmer Bernstein
The score for The Man With The Golden Arm, by Elmer Bernstein is one of the great jazz movie scores. Just a great jazz album, period. So if you’re reading this and you haven’t seen the film and you’re not even all that interested in movie soundtracks (although why are you reading this?) it’s safe […]Archive
January 17, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
Orrin Evans: The Magic of Now
Orrin Evans The Magic of Now Smoke Sessions Records Orrin Evans has released a bunch of albums as a leader – mostly of small combos but he’s also collaborated with big bands too, and there was a recent stint as the replacement for Ethan Iverson in The Bad Plus. An adaptable, charismatic pianist, Evans is […]Archive
January 13, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
Harold Mabern: Mabern Plays Coltrane
Harold Mabern Mabern Plays Coltrane Smoke Sessions Records The great post-bop pianist Harold Mabern died, aged 83, in 2019. His final recordings continue to arrive – Leon Lee Dorsey released Mabern’s last ever studio session just last year and here we have a live date from around 2017, released just now brand new. And if […]Archive
January 8, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
JD Allen: Queen City
JD Allen Queen City Savant JD Allen is one hell of a tenor saxophonist, with over a dozen recordings as a leader and plenty of guest spots too – working with the likes of Cindy Blackman, Orrin Evans and Lisa Hilton (among others). But Queen City is his first solo saxophone albums.Archive
January 7, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
Johnathan Blake: Homeward Bound
Johnathan Blake Homeward Bound Blue Note Johnathan Blake has been an in-demand drummer across the last two decades working with a great range of jazz legends (Pharoah Sanders, Dr. Lonnie Smith) and the newer wave (Avishai Cohen, Ravi Coltrane, Chris Potter). Homeward Bound marks his fourth album as a leader but debut for Blue Note […]Archive
January 5, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
Pasquale Grasso: Pasquale Plays Duke
Pasquale Grasso Pasquale Plays Duke Sony Music Entertainment Pasquale Grasso – a phenomenon, all Jim Hall taste and Pat Metheny technique and yet his talent seemingly goes beyond both, already – returns to capitalise on his exquisite set of solo ballads. A record I loved so much. Here he focuses on Duke Ellington and the […]Archive
January 3, 2022 by Simon Sweetman
Jason Moran: The Sound Will Tell You
Jason Moran The Sound Will Tell You (Independent / Bandcamp) For his third solo piano album, Jason Moran – so brilliant across small combos, duos, all sorts of musical pairings that stretch jazz to its limits – took influence from all of the Toni Morrison he’d been reading, the Thelonious Monk he’s forever in debt […]Archive
December 25, 2021 by Simon Sweetman