David Whiteis
David’s Contributions
05/31/13 Albums
The Three of Us
Junior Mance
On this latest trio outing, Junior Mance combines soul-jazz cool with bop-stoked fire; his orchestral approach to the keyboard calls forth deep sonic landscapes rich in texture. Violinist Michi Fuji, despite her chamber-music background, has a looseness...
05/20/13 Albums
What It Is!
Kahil El'Zabar Quartet
Veteran percussionist Kahil El’Zabar here leads a group of young Chicago lions, and the mash-up of maturity and youthful panache seems to have sparked inspiration on both sides of the generational divide. What It Is! includes five originals and two Trane...
04/07/13 Albums
Afro Straight
Ernest Dawkins
Saxophonist Ernest Dawkins is best known as the leader of Chicago’s New Horizons Ensemble. Admirers of that group will recognize on Afro Straight Dawkins’ gift for imbuing even his most outward-bound flights with a gritty swagger that invokes his city’s...
04/06/13 Albums
Coral Sea
Kenny Drew Jr./Jon Burr/ Marty Morell
The spirit of Bill Evans is a strong presence throughout this set. Coral Sea includes a composition by Evans himself (“Very Early”), one by bassist Scott LaFaro that Evans adapted into his repertoire early on (“Gloria’s Step”), and at least one more (the...
09/07/12 Concerts
Review: Chicago Jazz Festival 2012
Dianne Reeves, Roy Haynes, Ken Vandermark are among the highlights
06/20/12 Albums
Soundproof
The Dave Shank Quintet
If further proof were needed that purism among jazz musicians is a thing of the past, this lineup should seal the argument. Vibraphonist Dave Shank and his colleagues—saxophonist Mike Migliore, pianist Barry Miles, bassist John Patitucci and drummer Terry...
01/04/12 Albums
Triumph of the Heavy, Volume 1 & 2
Marcus Strickland
Here’s a gutsy move: In an age of diminishing CD sales, and at a time when mainstream U.S. culture seems more fixated than ever on the lightweight, Marcus Strickland has released a two-CD set with the daunting title Triumph of the Heavy . The good new is...
11/10/11 Albums
Wet Paint
Andrew Sterman
The spiritual serenity we’ve come to expect from Andrew Sterman is pervasive here. However, also as we’d expect, the music is mostly devoid of self-indulgence or ethereal formlessness. Questing, rather than wafting, is the dominant motif. “Open Circle” sets...
10/24/11 Albums
It's About Damn Time
Wendell Harrison
Listen to the funked-up take on Clifford Brown’s “Dahoud,” or the hip-hop- and soul-flavored “Love Juice,” and one thing becomes clear: This set showcases reedist Wendell Harrison’s non-elitist aesthetics. He’s been criticized for this eclecticism, and occasionally...
10/18/11 Albums
The Story of Cathy & Me
Curtis Fuller
Curtis Fuller’s wife of 30 years, Catherine Rose Driscoll Fuller, died of lung cancer in 2010. In memory of their time together, trombonist Fuller assembled this set of musical sketches and spoken remembrances, enlisting the assistance of vocalist Tia Michelle...
09/18/11 Concerts
The 2011 Chicago Jazz Festival: Ambitious Programming
Randy Weston, Lovano/Coltrane/Liebman Summit, Cassandra Wilson among the highlights
09/06/11 Albums
Circle of Three
David Friesen
The “Three” are bassist-composer Friesen, tenor saxophonist John Gross and pianist Greg Goebel. The “Circle” represents their intricately wound musical interplay, of course, but it’s obvious that there’s also a higher significance—this is music of spiritual...
08/15/11 Albums
Beautiful as the Moon
Bobby Matos Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble
Percussionist Bobby Matos is the leader, but this is a full ensemble outing featuring equivalent contributions from Pablo Calogero (tenor sax and flute), Danny Weinstein (trombone and violin) and Theo Saunders (piano), along with Matos (timbales) and conguero...
08/04/11 Albums
Colors From a Giant’s Kit
Sir Roland Hanna
These selections were recorded during the 1990s and as late as 2002 by IPO’s Bill Sorin, before his label came into being. They showcase pianist Sir Roland Hanna, the label’s first artist, at the height of his powers. Hanna’s playing resonates with an authoritative...
07/23/11 Albums
Via
Storms/Nocturnes
Storms/Nocturnes—reedman Tim Garland, pianist Geoffrey Keezer and vibraphonist Joe Locke—originally evolved out of the septet Garland led on his Made By Walking project in 2000. This percussion-less trio format illuminates the interweaving voices’ subtleties...
December 2010 Albums
Tight Like This
Brad Goode
Trumpeter Brad Goode has restrained his more radical impulses this time out, but his delightful refusal to honor the hallowed barrier between traditionalism and modernism still results in a bracing creative tension. Sometimes Goode ambushes by stealth. He...
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ReportAbout David Whiteis
David Whiteis, an internationally published critic and journalist with over 25 years of experience writing about blues, jazz, and other essential issues, currently writes on a regular basis for JazzTimes, the Chicago Reader, Living Blues Magazine, Juke Blues Magazine (Great Britain), and other publications. He is the recipient of the Blues Foundation’s 2001 Keeping the Blues Alive Award for Achievement in Journalism. His recent book Chicago Blues: Portraits and Stories, was published by University of Illinois Press in 2006. He is currently working on a book about contemporary Southern Soul-Blues.