CD Reviews on projects by Jazz artists
indie, indie jazz, jazz, joey morant, making a Scene 0 Comment
Joey Morant Forever Sanctified BluJazz Trumpeter, composer, producer, entertainer Joey Morant is a veteran presence in the current NYC jazz scene. Morant works as a soloist, in duet and trio settings, and in larger bands and orchestras. It’s not only his trumpet playing, but scat singing, and his on stage banter that sets him apart. […]
Funk, jazz, making a Scene, Rock, Vinyl Hampdin 0 Comment
Vinyl Hampdin Red Armored Steve Wiest, the founding member of the jazz-rock collective Vinyl Hampdin, sums it up this way, “What would Chicago, Blood, Sweat & Tears and Tower of Power sound like if they started out today?” That’s a tantalizing question that probably describes the band’s approach better than this writer can. In any […]
americana, jazz, making a Scene, vince bell 0 Comment
Vince Bell Ojo Mulatta When a Texas singer-songwriter is produced by Bob Neuwirth, one does not likely guess it would be a spoken word jazz album. Bell is a poet and his version of the spoken word resembles the early Beat era in San Francisco with artists like Kenneth Rexroth. Yet, the musical concept of […]
jazz, jimmie smith, jimmy smith, making a Scene 0 Comment
Jimmie Smith Live in Music City: Jimmie Smith Plays Jimmy Smith Woodward Avenue The inevitability of this concept will likely bring a “you must be kidding” chuckle at first but it’s a terrific show by Hammond B3 organist Rev. Jimmie Smith honoring his almost namesake, the iconic jazz organist Jimmy Smith. “Tribute to the Hammond […]
eddie Palmieri, jazz, making a Scene
Eddie Palmieri Full Circle Uprising Music (Ropeadope) Multi-Grammy Award winning pianist and music legend Eddie Palmieri delivers a new album of Salsa classics, expanded and refreshed, at the age of 81. These eight tracks feature many of his long-term band members and some of the best players in New York and beyond. They include trumpeter […]
blues, cyrille aimee, indie Blues, jazz, making a Scene
Cyrille Aimee Live Mack Avenue Records This new live recording from Cyrille Aimee marks the end of an era. The performance was the last from her with this great band. “I want to find new inspirations and a new energy, I feel like you always have to search further, and that’s what I constantly try […]
jared gold, Jazz artist, making a Scene
Jared Gold Reemergence Strikezone The title suggests re-entry after a hiatus but that’s not the case with Jared Gold’s ninth album. Yet, there is a method to it, given that Gold’s prior work appears on the Posi-Tone label, better known for radio friendly tracks than fully conceived albums. Perhaps we could also think of the […]
blues, indie Blues, jazz singer, making a Scene, melodic canvas, robin Mckelle
Robin McKelle Melodic Canvas Doxie Robin McKelle debuted as a big band jazz singer twelve years ago and has since tried blues, pop rock and smatterings of soul and gospel. Melodic Canvas marks her return to jazz, this time in a small ensemble. This is McKelle’s album – she wrote six of the ten tunes, […]
jazz, latin boogaloo, making a Scene, malo, warner brothers
Malo Latin Bugaloo: The Warner Brothers Singles Omnivore When most people think of Latin blues-based Bay Area bands, Santana is almost always the first one mentioned. That Santana is the surname for band leader Carlos Santana but his younger brother, band leader Jorge Santana, led an equally impressive group in the Bay Area, the horn-infused […]
blues, cd review, gretchen and the Pickpockets, indie Blues, making a Scene
Gretchen and the Pickpockets Falling Rising Self-released Yes, the name is a bit odd – but apparently it comes from a hometown road with a history of larceny. The Boston-based Gretchen and the Pickpockets have a horn-infused sound they describe as “Soul/Jazz/Rock.” The six-piece unit sounds somewhere between Lake Street Dive and a swinging horn […]
