Steve Greenlee
Steve’s Contributions
04/28/12 Albums
En Casa De Luis
Luis Conte
You sure are in Luis’ house when you put this CD on. It is all about the percussion, and lots of it. Congas, bongos, bombo, timbales, maracas, shakers, guiro, cajón, quinto, pandeiros, shekere, cajita, qraqab, surdo, sabar, djembe, cymbals, claves, cowbell...
04/18/12 Albums
An Attitude for Gratitude
Matt Wilson's Arts & Crafts
In 1999, Matt Wilson released an album called Smile . But every album the drummer puts out makes you smile. Wilson is by no means a clown—he’s a serious musician, composer and bandleader—but enjoyment is job number one with him. The fourth album by his quartet...
02/15/12 Albums
A New Margin
Side A
The prolific multireedist Ken Vandermark leads multiple bands at the same time, yet few of his outings have included a pianist. This is partly what makes his new trio project, Side A, so momentous: The piano adds a dimension to his music that is rarely heard...
02/03/12 Albums
Ghosts of the Sun
Bill McHenry
Tenor saxophonist Bill McHenry’s music is lovely without being precious, free without being unorganized, sophisticated without being pretentious, thoughtful without being calculating. His latest album, Ghosts of the Sun , appears to be a sequel to his outstanding...
01/30/12 Albums
Departure of Reason
Mary Halvorson and Jessica Pavone
Steve Greenlee reviews the collaboration between the guitarist and violinist
01/03/12 Albums
Live!
Jeff Coffin & the Mu'tet
Any band that jams like this has earned an exclamation point in the title of its live album. Saxophonist and flutist Jeff Coffin—he who’s been known to stick two horns in his mouth at the same time—leads his Mu’tet through a batch of tunes that consume an...
12/29/11 Albums
Candygram for MoWo!
Mocean Worker
Adam Dorn, a.k.a. Mocean Worker, made his name assembling jazz-funk collages out of old records, new beats and guest spots from well-known jazz musicians. His new album extends the brand with a fresh batch of catchy, upbeat dance tunes that get jazz cred...
12/11/11 Albums
Greg Ward’s Phonic Juggernaut
Greg Ward
Whether it’s a desire for a stripped-down sound or a nod to the economy, all the hip young saxophonists have trios these days: JD Allen, Darius Jones, Marcus Strickland. Joshua Redman (not so young anymore) recently had one, and now young alto saxophonist...
11/29/11 Albums
At the Crossroads
James Carter Organ Trio
Steve Greenlee reviews saxophonist James Carter's latest release
11/19/11 Albums
Let Go
Jerry Granelli Trio
It is a tenet of good writing that you don’t use a five-dollar word where a 50-cent word will do. Drummer Jerry Granelli’s trio subscribes to a similar philosophy on Let Go . The album is nothing if not economical. (The five-letter title alone conveys that...
11/09/11 Albums
Open Source
Jeff Gauthier Goatette
“Open source” is a smart way to describe violinist Jeff Gauthier’s music. It draws from a variety of genres—jazz, modern classical, rock, ambient—and it is created by a cast of musicians who seemingly have equal say in what goes on. Open Source is the sixth...
10/26/11 Albums
Keep the Faith
Mike LeDonne
Mike LeDonne built his reputation first as a pianist and later as an organist, and it seems he’s decided to focus more on the Hammond B3 these days. That’s probably a good thing for him, as the field of jazz organists is much less crowded. Keep the Faith...
10/12/11 Albums
The Hour of the Star
Ivo Perelman Quartet
Ivo Perelman’s new album, The Hour of the Star , is a musical response to Clarice Lispector’s expository novella of the same name. The final and best-known of the Brazilian writer’s works, The Hour of the Star is a bleak, self-conscious allegory about a...
10/06/11 Albums
MTO Plays Sly
Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra
Steven Bernstein's MTO gives Sly & the Family Stone the jazz treatment
09/09/11 Albums
Trio New York
Ellery Eskelin
The lineup—Ellery Eskelin on tenor sax, Gary Versace on Hammond B3, Gerald Cleaver on drums—may lead you to think this is a groove-jazz organ trio. Not so. This band has more in common with an acoustic bebop trio than anything Jimmy Smith or Jack McDuff...
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ReportAbout Steve Greenlee
Steve Greenlee is an editor and jazz writer with The Boston Globe. He grew up listening to Smiths, the Cure and Depeche Mode but eventually found religion in "Kind of Blue" and "Bitches Brew." He lives in Massachusetts with his wife and three children, annoying them with obscure recordings by Sun Ra and Last Exit. He plays keys in The Barn Goats groove-jazz quartet and also runs really fast.