THERE SEEMS TO BE A PALPABLE RENAISSANCE OF JAZZ SINGERS THESE DAYS. MAYBE IT’S BECAUSE SO MANY WOMEN WERE COOPED UP FOR SO LONG, THEY JUST NEEDED TO BURST OUT. BUT WHATEVER THE CAUSE, SOME EXCELLENT NEW ARTISTS AND ALBUMS…
Category: Interviews
JOE LA BARBERA: BROTHERS, BIG BANDS AND BILL
IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING THAT IF YOU DON’T KNOW JOE LA BARBERA, YOU DON’T KNOW JAZZ DRUMMERS. ONE OF TODAY’S L IVING LEGENDS, HE IS BEST KNOWN AS BEING A MEMBER OF BILL EVANS’ LAST TRIO, WHICH IS ARGUAGLY THE…
PAT AND JOHN LABARBERA: A BAND OF BROTHERS, BIG BANDS, BUDDY RICH AND BEYOND
RARE THESE DAYS IS A ‘MUSICAL FAMILY” IN WHICH, LIKE JS BACH, A GROUP OF SIBLINGS CAN FORM THEIR OWN BAND. LAST YEAR, LA BARBERA BROTHERS JOE AND PAT JOINED FORCES WITH TONY AND PETER LEVIN TO TOUR AROUND AS…
JOE LA BARBERA: OF BROTHERS, BIG BANDS AND BILL
IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING THAT IF YOU DON’T KNOW JOE LA BARBERA, YOU DON’T KNOW JAZZ DRUMMERS. ONE OF TODAY’S L IVING LEGENDS, HE IS BEST KNOWN AS BEING A MEMBER OF BILL EVANS’ LAST TRIO, WHICH IS ARGUAGLY THE…
PETE LEVIN: TWO LEVINS AND EVANS
ONE OF THE TRUE PLEASURES OF JAZZ IS THE SPONTANEOUS JOY OF SURPRISE. RECENTLY I TOOK IN A GIG BY THE “BAND OF BROTHERS”, WHICH CONSISTED OF LA BARBERA’S DRUMMER JOE AND SAXIST JOHN, ALONG WITH LEVIN BROTHERS TONY ON…
TONY LEVIN: THE BEAT GOES ON
AT AN AGE WHEN MOST PEOPLE ARE WAITING FOR THER SOCIAL SECURITY CHECKS, BASSIST TONY LEVIN HAS HAD ARGUABLY THE BUSIEST YEAR OF HIS CAREER. NOT ONLY HAS HE BEEN TOURING WITH BROTHER/KEYBOARDIST PETER IN THE SWINGING GROUP “BAND OF…
COREY JORDAN: PUTTING THE WORD “CLUB” BACK INTO THE JAZZ CLUB
WHEN I FIRST BECAME A JAZZ FAN IN THE 1970S, LOS ANGELES WAS BRIMMING OVER WITH CLUBS TO ATTEND. THERE WASN’T A NIGHT A WEEK WHERE SOMEONE WASN’T PLAYING AT PLACES L IKE DONTE’S, THE LIGHTHOUSE, CONCERTS BY THE SEA,…
TONY LEVIN: THE “BEAT” GOES ON
AT AN AGE MOST MEN ARE SITTING AROUND COLLECTING THEIR SOCIAL SECURITY CHECKS, BASSIST TONY LEVIN, AT 78 HAS NEVER BEEN BUSIER. RECENTLY TOURING WITH HIS BROTHER PETE AND THE LA BARBARA BROTHERS OF JOE, PAT AND JOHN IN AN…
RON BLAKE’S TRUE IDENTITY
IF YOU’RE A SPORTS FAN, YOU’LL GET THE POINT. WE ALL HAVE FAVORITE PLAYERS ON OUR FAVORITE TEAMS. OH, SURE, EVERYONE LIKES THE STARS, BUT YOU KNOW THAT WITHOUT ‘YOUR GUY’, THE TEAM WOULDN’T BE THE SAME. THEY DO THEIR…
JOHN KLEMMER’S TOUCH IN THE CHATEAU OF LOVE
YOU MAY NOT BELIEVE THIS, BUT AT ONE TIME MODERN JAZZ WAS ACTUALLY POPULAR AND HAD “HIT” RECORDS! NO, I AM NOT MAKING THIS UP BEFORE YOUTUBE AND TIC TOCK, THE RADIO AIRWAVES WERE FILLED WITH CONTEMPORARY AND PROGRESSIVE JAZZ,…