Andy Pratt sings and plays a Joe Pass-styled guitar with Joe Pollcastro/b and Phil Gratteau on this current release. His string work is clean and clear, rich on the intro to “Soon” and chiming on the Prez Prado classic “Patricia”,…
Author: George W. Harris
Kirk Edwards: Shout!
There are some artists that you can tell by one note that they grew up in the church, and Kirk Edwards is one of those guys. He plays mostly tenor sax, but throws in a bit of soprano and clarinet…
Band of Brothers (La Barbera & Levin) @ The Baked Potato 01.06.24
“I’m thrilled, because for the first time in years, I’m actually the youngest member of the band!” So joked 75 year old drummer Joe La Barbera between songs during the 90 minute set at the Baked Potato, with brother Pat…
Greg Chako Trio: Life After 40
This is the first album I’ve heard from guitarist Greg Chako, and I already want to dig deeper into his catalogue. What do I like about him? First, he writes his own material, which is quite wide in dimension, and…
THIS IS A HARD BOP DRUMMER…Philly Joe Jones Quintet: Philly Joe’s Beat
One of the premier drummers, and inventors as well, of hard bop drummers is without a doubt Philly Joe Jones, who made his name with Miles Davis, but is also featured on innumerable sessions in the 1950s-60s. This single disc…
Stella Bass: Look For The Silver Lining
Teamed up with the simpatico trio of Johnny Taylor/p, Barry Donohue/b and Dominic Mulla/dr as well as guests Michael Buckley/sax-Ronan Dooney/fh, vocalist Stella Bass mixes classy versions of standards with some clever originals. She’s got a great sense of clarity…
WHEN LA WAS “LA LA LAND”…Conte Candoli Quintet/Zoot Sims Sextet: Los Angeles 1955 Live Sessions
While being dubbed the home of “Cool Jazz”, this collection of Los Angeles gigs circa 1955 shows how “hot” West Coast Cool could be. Trumpeter Conte Candoli is found at Hollywood’s Jazz City with bill H olman/ts, Carl Perkins/p, Leroy…
Roberta Gambarini @ Catalina’s 01.04.24
Even though she hasn’t released an album in years, vocalist Roberta Gambarini is still able to pack the house at Catalina’s because the appreciative audience didn’t want to hear anything necessarily new. No, they came to see the veteran vocalist…
Colin Vallon: Samares
Soft pastels of sound are created by pianist Colin Vallon’s trio with bassist Patrice Mouret and drummer Julian Sartorius on this album of nine originals. The mood is delicate and gentle t hroughout, with Sartorious’ burshes hovering on the delicate…
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****Geri Allen & Kurt Rosenwinkel: A Lovesome Thing
Why this 2012 concert recording between the late pianist Geri Allen and guitar wonder Kurt Rosenwinkel has been under wraps for so long is beyond me. Both artists are caught in intriguing periods of there respective careers, with the guitarist…