Shawn Maxwell alternates his alto sax, soprano sax and clarinet in a variety of mix and matched settings in almost sonata form for seventeen conversations. The overall atmospheres are relaxed, informal and conversant, with each song given an explanation for…
Month: September 2021
PRISM Quartet: Heritage/Evolution Volume 2 featuring Ravi Coltrane/Joe Lovano/Chris Potter
The venerable sax quartet PRISM, consisting of Timothy McAllister/ss, Zachary Shemon/as, Matthew Levy/ts and Taimur Sullivan/bs has melded jazz, classical and avant garde ideas for years, with this latest adventure bringing in some extra reed and rhythm guests for playing…
A PAIR OF TRIOS…Alex Collins/Ryan Berg/Karl Latham: Together, Marc Cary: Life Lessons
Swinging in threes… Sneaking around the COVID lockdown, Alex Collins/p, Ryan Berg/b and Karl Latham/dr perform a “live” gig in New York’s Firefly Studios, relying on standards and giving some sounds reminiscent of vintage Bill Evans tones. Collins has a…
Bob Mintzer & WDR Big Band Cologne: Soundscapes
One of the underappreciated big bands these days has to be the WDR Big Band. They just seem to be teamed with every solo star lately, ranging from Kurt Rosenwinkel to Maceo Parker. Bob Mintzer takes some time off from…
FEMALE CHARMS…Irina Zubareva: Bridges To Rio, Trineice Robinson: All Or Nothing, Tanya Dennis: White Sails Blue Skies
Lovely ladies at the mic… Irina Zubareva brings her girl-next-door voice into a Brazilian atmosphere, backed by Misha Tsiganov/p, Itaiguara Brandso/eg and Portinho/dr, mixing Portuguese and native Russian lyrics and melodies into a clever and flavorful soup. A mix of…
Zacc Harris Group: Small Wonders
Clever post bop guitar work is featured by Zacc Harris with a strong team of John Raymond/tp-fh, Brandon Wozniak/ts and a rhythm section of Bryan Nichols/p, Chris Bates/b and JT Bates/dr. Harris’ tone, style and delivery gives hints of John…
THE BLUES BROTHER…Jimmie Vaughan: The Jimmie Vaughan Story
Sometimes overshadowed by his deceased younger brother Billy Ray, Jimmie Vaughan is given his due in this sumptuous boxed set of cds/lps/books that oversees his career from the days of pre-Fabulous Thunderbirds to the present day. It’s a blues and…
Brian Jackson, Ali Shaheed Muhammad & Adrian Younge: JID008
The “Jazz Is Dead” series continues with Brian Jackson on flute, clavinet, synth and Rhodes, joined by Ali Shaheed Muhammad & Adrian Younge on bass, guitar, clarinet, piano, percussion and sax, along with drummer Malachi Morehead for some funky renditions…
Ex-Vitamins: Ex-Vitamins
You want obscure artists? You got it here, as some “anonymous” performer and composer gets together a bunch of artists for first take recordings of original material. The flexible musicians include a bunch of drummers (Ross Pederson, Nate Smith, Ryan…
Nicole Glover: Strange Lands
Tenor saxist Nicole Glover brings a vintage Blue Note hard bop sound and attitude to this winning ways of an album with kindred spirits Daniel Duke/b, Nic Cacioppo/dr and all star George Cables/p. Glover’s got a wide wale cord of…