Jack Bowers, All About Jazz In 1983, Art Blakey invited fellow timekeeper Ralph Peterson to perform with Blakey’s two-drummer big band at the Boston Globe Jazz Festival. It was a life-changing experience for Peterson, whose debut album with his Boston-based GenNext Big Band, I Remember Bu,honors Blakey’s memory (the late drummer’s Muslim name was Abdullah ibn Buhaina, and he was … Read More
Mike Greenblatt, Aquarian Weekly Chord-less jazz bands walk a high wire with no net. Without the glue of either guitar or piano chording, the musicians have to weave their notes in and around each other creating a cohesive whole. On the mystifying, circuitous, complex, satisfying and wholly entertaining Night (Fresh Sounds Records), Brazilian/Israeli New Yorker Eden Bareket plays a dazzling … Read More
Vanessa Rubin Returns with The Music of Tadd Dameron on The Dream Is You: Vanessa Rubin Sings Tadd Dameron, out 2/22 Featuring John Cowherd (piano), Kenny Davis (bass), Carl Allen (drums) Arrangements by Jimmy Heath, Benny Golson, Frank Foster, Willie Smith and Bobby Watson Celebrated vocalist Vanessa Rubin is thrilled to announce the February 22nd … Read More
Mike Greenblatt, Aquarian Weekly As the fourth installment of his esteemed “Istanbul Sessions,” Solar Plexus (Nublu Music) by Ilhan Ersahin, is one of the most adventurous, satisfying, eclectic, cinematic, far-out CDs of 2018. A fascinating individual — saxophonist, keyboardist, composer, arranger and the head of New York City’s hip room on Avenue C called Nublu — this guy’s … Read More
Steve Williams, UK Vibe Back in 2015, Bugge Wesseltoft released his ‘Bugge and Friends’ album into the world through Jazzland Recordings, recorded through Nublu, responsible now for a record label, club nights and a festival. The album featured several familiar artists; Beady Belle, Joe Claussell and Erik Truffaz (keep a note of that name), but also an … Read More
George Harris, Jazz Weekly Drummer and composer Henry Conerway III leads an impressive and versatile trio of Kevin Smith/b and Kenny Banks Jr/dr through a mix of team arranged covers and a handful of originals. Smith leads the way as Conerway guides with a sleek ride cymbal groove on “Sugar Ray” with his brushes coaxing … Read More
George Harris, Jazz Weekly Playing piano and Fender Rhodes, Alex Clough brings together David Smith/tp-fh, Steve Kortyka/ts, John Tate/b and Jay Sawyer/dr through some vintage Blue Note hard and post bop sounds. On piano, the team shows some nimble pulses with a hip front line on “ Swirl” and Kortyka gives off a big sound … Read More
Steve Provizer, The Arts Fuse Kelly Green and her trio are essentially mainstream players, but they explore a lot of challenging territory within that framework. Volume One is the first album release for vocalist and pianist Kelly Green as a trio with Alex Tremblay on bass and Evan Hyde on drums. They maintain a high level of group communication throughout this superb … Read More
Sébastien Hélary, NextBop Working Between New York and Montreal, French-Canadian trumpeter and composer Rachel Therrien released her fourth album, Why Don’t You Try, last year on the Multiple Chord Music label. The album features a quintet of Montreal standouts, namely Simon Pagé on electric bass, Charles Trudel on piano, Alain Bourgeois on drums, and Benjamin Deschamps … Read More
Geno Thackara, All About Jazz However scary the world seems, Daniel Rotem remains determined to look on the bright side. The New York City saxophonist considers his music not just an art form but a reflection of life with a Zen-like perspective on time. Following suit, Serenading the Future is all about unity. Its framework is a simple one that allows … Read More
