Always putting spirituality above improvisation, Brian Blade and The Fellowship Band connects to listeners in a way uncommon for jazz musicians, and ‘Body And Shadow’ continues a remarkable consistency of mission and quality spanning two decades.

Jose James’ new collection of classic Billie Holiday covers makes for a stellar, if somber, album. Yesterday I had the blues, indeed.

More than any other album, ‘Speak No Evil’ is the reason why we often put that word ‘legend’ in front of Wayne Shorter’s name.

This is one finger-licking, chin-wagging, cool-side-of-the-pillow triumph.

As one of the most in-demand drummers in the world — jazz and otherwise — it can be a little understandable if Brian Blade hadn’t come forth with an album since 2009’s sublime singer-songwriter excursion Mama Rosa. You May Also Like: Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band – Body AndRead More

Brian Blade commences with a quiet pulse on “He Died Fighting,” setting the stage for an appropriately militaristic opening statement. But as the rest of his long-standing Fellowship Band gathers around, the track opens up into a vista of astonishing emotional complexity. You May Also Like: Brian Blade & TheRead More

The songs, after a long time away, just started floating to the surface for Benmont Tench. He’d been a member of Tom Petty’s staggeringly underrated band the Heartbreakers forever, had even had a Nashville writing gig for a time. You May Also Like: The Wild One, Forever: In Appreciation ofRead More

Rosanne Cash’s completely realized, stunningly detailed, profoundly touching new album isn’t just a journey through the American South. This is a journey through its soul, its heartbreak, its redemption — and her’s, too. You May Also Like: How Johnny Cash Challenged Convention Once Again on ‘American Recordings’ How Johnny Cash’sRead More

It’s perhaps unsurprising that nobody recognizes Benmont Tench, for too long the faceless soul of Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers. After all, singers and guitar players are typically the focal points. You May Also Like: Mudcrutch’s belated self-titled debut brought Tom Petty back to his roots Jorge Calderon – ‘Blue Rhythm Highway’Read More

This is part two of Sammy Stein’s comprehensive look into the genesis of the rangy improvisational genre of music that eventually became known as free jazz. [Click here for Part 1.] You May Also Like: Paul Jolly, free jazz musician, club owner and producer: Something Else! Interview ‘All That’s Jazz,’Read More