Justin Golden Hard Times and a Woman Self-released with help from Virginia Folklife Program Welcome a new artist to the blues and Americana fold with this debut, Hard Times and a Woman, by Richmond-based singer/guitarist Justin Golden. Golden takes a “big umbrella” approach to the blues. Yes, you’ll hear some of the Piedmont style, but […]
Kind Folk Head Towards the Center Fresh Sound New Talent Yes, Kind Folk is a different kind of a name for a jazz quartet, but ardent listeners may recognize it as the name of Kenny Wheeler’s piece from his 1997 ECM release Angel Song. Of course, that’s not by accident as the group debuted in […]
Jo Harrop The Heart Wants Lateralize British jazz vocalist and songwriter Jo Harrop brings her second album, The Heart Wants, stateside. One immediately senses her intimate, smoky, bluesy voice as the album opens with “The Heart Wants What the Heart Wants,” to the accompaniment of a first-rate lineup that boasts bassist Christian McBride, trumpeter Andy […]
Michelle Malone 1977 SBS Previous efforts from singer-songwriter/guitarist Michelle Malone have been searing, no-holds barred blasters, as gutsy blues as any contemporary blues artist has delivered. 1977 is a whole different side of Malone though. This is acoustic driven Americana that mixes nuance with nostalgia, autobiographical tales and introspection. Her character studies are particularly interesting. […]
Old Crow Medicine Show Paint This Town ATO While they started as a bluegrass band, Old Crow Medicine Show (OCMS) in recent years have won two Grammys and are considered one of our best roots bands, meshing Americana, old-timey music, folk, and rock & roll into an appealing sound that consistently sells out venues wherever […]
Josean Jacobo Trio Herencia Criolla E7 Studios The last time we heard from Dominican pianist Josean Jacobo, he was with his sextet Tumbao for Cimarron, not only one of the best Latin jazz albums of 2019 but one of the best overall in the umbrella category of jazz. He now returns with his trio and […]
Harry Skoler Living In Sound: The Music of Charles Mingus Sunnyside As you all likely know by now, this is the centennial year for Charles Mingus. Clarinetist Harry Skoler has been influenced since adolescence by the iconic bassist and one of the elite composers of jazz. Now, over 40 years later, Skoler, the current professor […]
Ben Markley Big Band with Ari Hoenig Ari’s Fun-House OA2 Let’s introduce you to the two collaborators. Renowned Philadelphia-born drummer Ari Hoenig, who plays drums on all seven tracks, has over a dozen recordings as a leader plus many more as an accompanist on many other sessions. He is a formidable composer and award-winning educator […]
Andy James Rhythm in New York Le Coq Jazz vocalist Andy James, born and raised in Australia, renowned for her flamenco dancing, and now a partner with her husband, Piero Pata, in the recently formed Le Coq label, is back with her third album for the label, Rhythm in New York. The album features both […]
The Nighthawks Established 1972 VizzTone There are not many bands that can mark a 50th anniversary but Washington D.C.’s legendary Nighthawks, have been carrying the flame for blues and roots music since 1972. The only two blues festivals where this writer had a major production role were the Brass Monkey Blues Festivals of 1983 and […]
Bouvier Blachant Renewell Bouvier is the nickname for Dr. Jackie “Bouvier” Copeland, who is releasing her spiritual, socially conscious inspired debut Blachant. The latter is a trademarked term for blachanting – her practice of deep reflection, social action, prayer, and her chanting vocal style, which is indeed unique. It’s a blend of the singer-songwriter’s jazz […]
Vaneese Thomas Fight the Good Fight Blue Heart One of our best and criminally underrecognized powerhouse voices and songwriters, Vaneese Thomas, daughter of Soul Music icon Rufus Thomas, returns for her ninth album and her first for the growing Blue Heart Records, in partnership with her husband, multi-instrumentalist Wayne Warnecke’s Segue, where she recorded her […]
Doug MacLeod A Soul to Claim Reference Perennial BMA Award-winner for Acoustic Blues, Doug MacLeod, returns with his 22nd album and his fifth album for Reference Recordings, A Soul to Claim. Up until now, the former North Carolinian MacLeod has lived in Los Angeles with his wife Patti Joy for the past 30 years, but […]
Myra Melford For the Love of Fire and Water Rogueart Pianist and composer Myra Melford assembles a super group of improvising players for what she has dubbed the Fire and Water Quintet and an album of a similar name, For the Love of Fire and Water. She says this is the first installment of a […]
George Freeman Everybody Say Yeah! Southport The jazz history of Chicago great, guitarist George Freeman, continues as he reaches his 95th birthday. This writer can only think of two other active musicians in his sphere, drummer Roy Haynes and Sun Ra Arkestra leader, Marshall Allen, both of whom are 97. There are likely just a […]
Mark Winkler Late Bloomin’ Jazzman Café Pacific Late Bloomin’ Jazzman is the 20th album for singer-songwriter/jazz vocalist Mark Winker and the fourth we have covered on these pages since 2018. Two of them were in collaboration with other artists – 2018’s Eastern Standard Time with Cheryl Bentyne, and 2021’s Old Friends with David Benoit. 2019’s […]
Dave Douglas Secular Psalms Greenleaf Music We have covered contemporary jazz composer, trumpeter, bandleader, and owner of Greenleaf Music Dave Douglas on the pages previously, but as a sideman. Introducing him with this work, Secular Psalms, may be a bit off the cuff and not the most direct representation of his style. Yet, all things […]
Jean-Michel Pilc Alive – Live at Diese Onze, Montreal Justin Time Rarely will you hear so much energy from a piano trio as you do here with Jean-Michel Pilc’s trio playing live in one of Montreal’s best jazz clubs, Diese Onze, on the album Alive. This is the essence of spontaneous, improvised jazz even though […]
Mississippi Heat Madeleine Van der Linden Recordings Led by songwriter, harmonicist, and band leader Pierre Lacocque, Mississippi Heat returns with their 13th album in time to celebrate their 30th anniversary. As one of the longest running bands, per usual theirs is the traditional Chicago blues sound with wailing harp, stinging guitars and several terrific vocalists. […]
Lisa Hilton Life Is Beautiful Ruby Slippers Productions Life Is Beautiful marks the 25th album for pianist, composer and producer Lisa Hilton, and the third recorded during the pandemic years with her trio of bassist Luques Curtis and drummer Rudy Royston. Here we have ten originals and one cover, the classic, bluesy “Ernie’s Blues,” composed […]
Tim Gartland Truth Taste Good Music Truth marks the fifth solo album for Nashville-based harmonicist, singer-songwriter Tim Gartland. The dozen songs were all written or co-written by Gartland, who learned from the best in Chicago, having been mentored by Jerry Portnoy. Gartland cites as major influences Little Walter for harp playing, Ray Charles for song […]
Albert Castiglia I Got Love Gulf Coast The searing blues rock guitarist and songwriter Albert Castiglia always leaves it all on the floor, whether it be his ferocious guitar playing, impassioned vocals, or his honest, personal take on what’s happening to him on a personal level. The pandemic years for Castiglia, like for most of […]
Erik Deutsch La Nuit Blanche Ropeadope Given that pianist, keyboardist, composer, bandleader, and sideman Erik Deutsch has performed and recorded with pop/rock/country and jazz artists like Norah Jones, Rosanne Cash, Citizen Cope, Charlie Hunter, Leftover Salmon, Shooter Jennings, Shelby Lynne, and many others you would expect a genre-less sound. From 2016-19 Deutsch was a full-time member […]
Josh Hyde Parish Blues Self-released The title lets you know that bluesman Josh Hyde hails from Louisiana. This is Hyde’s third album, and this writer was privileged to have covered his debut, about which the state’s premiere guitarist, Sonny Landreth, used these terms to describe Hyde – “funky, atmospheric, and soulful.” That debut, 2017’s The […]
Mike Guldin Tumblin’ Blue Heart The tempting way to begin this review was to hail yet another Pennsylvania act living near this writer, and while we give an obligatory nod to that notion, we then learn that the album was recorded at seven different studios by over a dozen players, beyond just the usual Philly […]
James Brown Song Within the Story NGP With the most familiar of names, Canadian jazz guitarist James Brown is likely not familiar to those who are now reading this. Song Within the Story is his first album in more than a decade to boot. It’s primarily a trio recording, featuring bassist Clark Johnston, and drummer […]
Ryan Keberle’s Collectiv Do Brasil Sonhos Da Esquina Alternate Side Trombonist and composer Ryan Keberle, who traveled to Sao Paulo, Brazil in 2017 and 2018, began to collaborate with the city’s longstanding trio of Felipe Silveira (piano), Thiago Alves (bass), and Paulinho Vicente (drums), eventually forming the quartet Collectiv do Brasil and recording this beautiful […]
Danilo Perez Crisalida Mack Avenue The GRAMMY-winning pianist, composer, educator, and longtime member of The Wayne Shorter Quartet, Panamanian Danilo Perez, delivers essentially an idealistic world music effort imbued with Latin, classical chamber music, jazz improvisations (mostly his) and choral strains via his new band, The Global Messengers. This is very different sounding album than […]
Jose Ramirez Major League Blues Delmark Is there any more appropriate title than Major League Blues at the time of this writing amidst the MLPA strike and the news that baseball’s opening day will be postponed? That’s one way to look at. Another way is that 34-year-old Costa Rican bluesman Jose Ramirez has made it […]
Just a Season Leave to Come Home Northern Electric Hailing from Vancouver, the Americana band Just a Season delivers their third album, Leave to Come Home. Like the theme of so many albums recorded during the pandemic, the band reassures us not to sink too deeply into introspection, to put the darker times behind us […]
Eugenie Jones Players Open Mic Rarely will you see so many luminaries on one album. Well, okay it is a double disc and the third album on her own label for talented jazz vocalist/composer/lyricist Eugenie Jones who fronts various bands in New York, Chicago, Dallas, and her home base, Seattle on the aptly titled, Players. […]
Ceramic Animal Sweet Unknown Easy Eye Sound Hailing from eastern Pennsylvania and the Bucks County town, Doylestown, cited by USA Today as having one of the “best small-town cultural scenes,” we bring the fourth album from the band Ceramic Animal. The band has been able to build a devoted fan base through their three previous […]
Kristen Lee Sergeant Falling Tiger Turn Kristen Lee Sergeant may not be your dad or mom’s prototypical jazz vocalist. There isn’t even a hint of scat, for example. She presents a much bigger package, especially here on her third album, Falling, where her interpreter role now takes a back seat to her own original material, […]
Julieta Eugenio Jump Greenleaf Music Argentinian-born saxophonist Julieta Eugenio makes her debut in a trio with Jump on Dave Douglas’ Greenleaf Music label, the same one behind fellow saxophonist Donny McCaslin’s trio effort Recommended Tools in 2008. Eugenio’s trio includes bassist Matt Dwonszyk and drummer Jonathan Barber, both of whom are based in Connecticut where […]
Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne Blues From Chicago to Paris Stony Plain JUNO Award-winning and Boogie Woogie Piano Hall of Famer Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne revisits the bygone era of blues piano trios on Blues From Chicago to Paris. This stripped-down, retro album pays homage to the rollicking piano and bass-slapping legends Memphis Slim and Willie […]
Sugarray Rayford In Too Deep Forty Below The force of nature that is Sugarray Rayford has returned with In Too Deep. The two-time B.B. King Entertainer of the Year and Grammy nominated vocalist, arguably today’s leading soul-blues artist, keeps his successful 2020 formula intact by working again with Forty Below owner Eric Corne, who assembled […]
Tritone Asylum The Hideaway Sessions Blue Canoe Tritone Asylum is a collective that brands their music “electro-acoustic,” filled with jazz-fusion, jazz improvisation, and Latin rhythms. It’s a tantalizing concoction that nods to familiar fusion pioneers of the ‘70s, Pat Metheny, the breakthrough sound of ECM, and versatile players such as Eddie Harris and The Brecker […]
Ron Jackson Standards and My Songs Roni Music Ron Jackson is the master of the 7-string jazz guitar, a rarely played instrument that’s not unique to but the center of Jackson’s domain, one that he’d like to broaden to other guitarists. On Standards and My Songs, his ninth as a leader on his own label, […]
Paul Oscher Rough Stuff (with Pinetop Perkins and Willie “Big Eyes” Smith) Coolstreme Rough Stuff is a remastered re-issue of multi-instrumentalist Paul Oscher’s 1992 album of the same name. Oscher was a Covid-19 casualty, passing in April of 2021. Readers of these pages are undoubtedly familiar with Oscher, who first joined Muddy Waters’ band as […]
The Love Light Orchestra Leave The Light On Nola Blues Only certain voices are meant to front a big band. Two-time BMA winner and multiple BMA nominee John Nemeth is one of them and he is indeed fronting The Love Light Orchestra (TLLO). The TLLO is a nine-piece horn-driven band led by guitarist Joe Restivo […]
Bob Stroger & The Headcutters That’s My Name Delmark Bassist/vocalist/songwriter, ninety-two-year-old “Sir” Bob Stroger proves that it’s never too late to take center stage. Moving out from his comfortable spot on the back line, where he’s been a sideman on over 30 Delmark releases, That’s My Name marks Stroger’s first album as a leader. And […]
Andrew Boudreau Quartet Neon Fresh Sound New Talent Neon is the Nova Scotia-born, now Brooklyn-based pianist Andrew Boudreau’s debut as a leader. He is joined by Neta Raanan on tenor saxophone, Simon Willson on bass and Eviatar Slivnik on drums. These bandmates met in the Boston are when Raanan and Slivnik were Berklee students, and […]
Sarah Borges Together Alone Blue Corn Music Apart from the usually bold, strong effort from singer-songwriter Sarah Borges, Together Alone may be well be the definitive, or least the best explained example of recording resourcefulness during the pandemic. Producer Eric “Roscoe” Ambel deserves most of the credit and explains his process at length in the […]
Alex “Apolo” Ayala Bámbula Truth Revolution Bámbula is the debut album from New York-based bassist and composer Alex “Apolo” Ayala. It celebrates his Afro-Puerto Rican culture, comments on his identity, and pays tribute to his late mother and grandmother. Over the course of seven original compositions and one interpretation, Ayala blends Afro-Caribbean styles with jazz traditions in a […]
The Adam Larson Trio With Love, From Chicago Outside in Music Talk about stripped-down. Saxophonist Adam Larson’s trio outing With Love, From Chicago has a black and white photograph for the cover art and no liner notes or details on the inside jacket. More glaringly, in terms of music, there is no chordal instrument either. […]
Micah Graves Pawns Self-released There’s a buzz in Philly, a city that has boasted more than its fair share of legendary jazz artists, about the emerging pianist/composer/educator, 24-year-old Micah Graves, and his already prolific output. He has caught the attention of NPR and when one considers his development, we have a musician that clearly bears […]
Dan Weber The Way The River Goes Highway 142 Dan Weber’s songs are every bit as strong as the stunning photography that graces both the CD cover and the detailed booklet within, depicting him in various poses, sitting and standing, guitar in hand, in a shallow river. As he says of his 14 songs, “I […]
Bernard Allison Highs and Lows Ruf Perhaps the best insight into Bernard Allison’s blues-rock funky sound is his dad, Luther’s admonition, “don’t let them label you like they labelled me, as Chicago blues.” This is Allison’s fifth studio album with famed producer, Jim Gaines, and his twentieth overall. True to Allison’s wont, this one has […]
Scott Ramminger Live at 3rd & Lindsley Nashville Arbor Lane Music Scott Ramminger is a humorous songwriter, vocalist, and tenor saxophonist who was raised in the DC area but shuffles between those stomping grounds and his new home in Nashville in recent years. Live at 3rd & Lindsley Nashville is his sixth record since 2011 […]
Massy Ferguson Joe’s Meat & Grocery North & Left Joe’s Meat & Grocery is the sixth album for the Seattle-based alt-country rockers Massy Ferguson (MF), known for their jangling, no-holds barred guitar driven attack and their invigorated fusing of country-rock and amped-up Americana. You would expect a heavy, driving sound. After all, they take their […]
