Category: Ringer of the Week

The subtitle “A Brazilian Under the Jazz Influence” could easily describe either this most recent album by guitarist Romero Lubambo or the guitarist himself. He’s best known for his partnership with vocalist Luciana Souza, but he’s making a name for…

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Just when you are about to give up on jazz vocals, along comes an album that re-invigorates your heart. The team of Amy London/sop, Darmon Meader/ten, Dylan Pramuk/b and Holli Ross/alto sing a song of bebop as they mix their…

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Here’s a band that avoids the pitfalls of most big band recordings. Modern stuff either sounds like a Gil Evans wanna-be or a musical version of a Jackson Pollock painting. Here, you’ve got a nice sized big band lead by…

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Once upon a time the jazz world was filled with “guns for hire” like tenor saxist and flutist Don Braden. Guys like David “Fathead” Newman, Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis or Gene Ammons..big toned guys that knew how to swing and make…

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Here’s a walk off home run of a disc. I’ve never heard anything about this young guy who plays the trumpet and flugelhorn. Josh Shpak wrote almost all of the material here on this collection of six songs, and along…

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I’m not sure how Fresh Sound Records keeps finding these obscure gems, but all I can say is, whoever you’re bribing to get them, keep slipping them the money. This single disc from trumpeter Bobby Bryant is a SMOKER! Bryant…

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The late Charlie Haden is still able to speak to us through his recordings. This is the second posthumous release of a duet session. Last year’s album with Jim Hall was a quiet knockout, and this one with pianist Gonzalo…

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If you got introduced to jazz in the 1970s (as I did), the music that was playing on radio stations and concerts was fusion, or “jazz-rock.” The ripples created by Miles Davis albums like Bitches Brew ended up with alumni…

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I play the tenor sax, and the reason I never attempted playing the alto sax is because I realized I’d never sound like Johnny Hodges, since no other alto player seemed able to accomplish the feat. Most alto players get…

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Talking about throwing down the gauntlet for a debut album. I don’t think ANYONE’S ever released three complete compact discs (3 hours) as their initial album. WHEW! Well, it’s not like tenor saxist Kamasi Washington is a neophyte. He’s been…

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