The John Daversa Jazz Orchestra (website) is certainly on a roll. Last year there was a Grammy amid a string of beautiful recordings with socially-conscious themes such as DACA Dreamers, and quarantining with your family […]
I’m a big proponent of quality over quantity, which is perhaps why I don’t own a lot of those monstrous box sets on CD or even on LP for that matter. Perhaps it’s also because […]
I review a lot of contemporary jazz albums that are tributes to jazz legends. A big chunk of the jazz canon is about honoring traditions and keeping those musical pioneers at the forefront of the […]
This new album from the Jeff Benedict Big Big Band (website) turned me into a mess for a few hours. That’s mostly because of the title: The Weather Is Here, Wish You Were Beautiful. I’m […]
When I first moved to Texas back in 2009, I was more than a little concerned about the music situation there. I know, I lived outside of Austin and shouldn’t have worried one bit–but this […]
Felipe Salles and his new project The New Immigrant Experience isn’t the first time we’ve had a large scale jazz recording that documented the experiences of DACA “Dreamers.” Back in 2018 I reviewed the […]
I’m still struggling with my approach to big band jazz lately, and how to search for the recordings that will truly engage me. A couple of years ago I dove in head first, and perhaps […]
I toyed with the idea of resting and relaxing until after the first of the year, but then there’s this, Ronny Whyte‘s latest album, and it’s the perfect New Year’s Eve album. Ronny Whyte is […]
Talk about extremes–yesterday it was Filter, and today it’s the Flying Horse Big Band. I was just thinking that the big band jazz releases have been slowing down lately, but if you can say one […]
It says a lot about legendary jazz pianist Fred Hersch and his unique style that he can play with a large ensemble such as the WDR Big Band and leave you thinking primarily at […]
There’s a huge pile of recordings of female vocalists on the coffee table in my listening room right now, and Beata Pater‘s Tet has been sitting there for months, unnoticed. That was a mistake since […]
“Before recording the music, the eight musicians on the record spent a year rehearsing and playing together under the tutelage of some of the most respected names in jazz.” I read that sentence on the […]
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