Reviews
05/23/13 Albums By Lloyd Sachs
The Magic of 2
If, as anointed by the title of his acclaimed 1989 album, Tommy Flanagan was a Jazz Poet with his impeccable lyrical touch, Jaki Byard was a jazz prophet with his gift for shaping jazz’s future by gazing into its historical past. Teamed for the first and...
05/22/13 Albums By Christopher Loudon
Don't Cry For No Hipster
Nardis
As pianist and vocalist Ben Sidran reminds us in the liner notes, “Anybody who self-identifies as a hipster is, by definition, not one.” Which would mean that Sidran, a card-carrying hipster of the first order, is declassifying himself with this album. Or...
05/22/13 Albums By Aidan Levy
Cuban Crosshatching
Origen
As the title indicates, this is not strictly an Afro-Cuban jazz record, but flits between styles, incorporating straight-ahead and Latin influences. Named for the artistic technique that uses parallel lines to create shading and depth, Arturo Stable’s varied...
05/22/13 Albums By Christopher Loudon
Piano Bar After Hours
Singing Empress
Hundreds of aspiring jazz singers, Tierney Sutton and Luciana Souza among them, have benefitted from Jan Shapiro’s Berklee classes. But Shapiro doesn’t just talk the talk. Before she began teaching full-time, the Missouri native established a solid career...
05/21/13 Concerts By Russ Musto
Concert Review: Chick Corea and Jazz @ Lincoln Center Orch.
JALC's Chick Corea Festival welcomes its namesake
05/21/13 Albums By Thomas Conrad
Live in New York at Jazz Standard
Sunnyside
Edward Simon has been making good records for 20 years, and has released two previous piano trio albums with John Patitucci and Brian Blade. He has recorded all the tunes here before, at least once. But he has never made an album like At Jazz Standard...
05/21/13 Albums By Mike Joyce
Unit 1
Wavetone Records
Not that fans who’ve been following bassist Mark Egan’s long and remarkable career need reminding, but this leaderless ensemble’s recording debut is yet another illustration of just how well versed he is in the art of the electric trio. While flashes of...
05/20/13 Albums By David Whiteis
What It Is!
Delmark Records
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...
05/20/13 Albums By Christopher Loudon
My Funny Valentine: The Chet Baker Songbook
E1 Music
Vocal tributes to Chet Baker have, of late, become a mini-industry. While the vast majority of interpreters have gotten it wrong, confusing Baker’s personal pathos with his music, crooner Matt Dusk succeeds by resisting the temptation to don a misrepresentative...
05/19/13 Albums By Mike Shanley
Chants
ECM Records
If jazz can really be described as the sound of surprise, it also involves trust on the part of the listeners. We need to approach the music trusting that the players are really trying to create something expressive rather than simply noodling away. The...