Among some of my Internet friends, I’m known for being into “obscure” jazz. I suppose this is true, though given the average person’s engagement with the jazz world (face it people, it’s a pretty small number, percentage-wise), the definition of “obscure” is a slippery one. Maybe I just like obscureRead More

by Mark Saleski I can probably count on the fingers of one hand the number of jazz “with strings” records that ‘work’ for me. This is a somewhat mysterious phenomenon as jazz and improvised music is food to me. You May Also Like: Steve Kuhn Trio – ‘To and FromRead More

by Tom Johnson When a band has more than one “best of” in their catalog, it’s usually because one skimped on a portion of the band’s catalog that was really pretty signficant. This one, however, only fills in a few gaps of the previous best-of, Capitol Punishment, while mirroring aRead More

There’s something odd I noticed about this record from the opening moments: there’s a piano on it. Why is that so bizarre you ask? You May Also Like: Chad Taylor Trio – ‘The Daily Biological’ (2020) Tom Tallitsch – ‘Message’ (2021)

For a moment, all you hear is James Westfall, playing a plaintive shape on the piano. Then jazz singer Sasha Masakowski slips in behind him, performing in another tongue – sounding like a passing thought that brings you all the way out of a daydream. You May Also Like: FutureRead More

An album that starts with this sparks-flying slide, on a song called “Death Rattle,” isn’t fooling around. This, friends, will never be confused with fern-bar blues. That’s obvious, even before Cook opens his mouth to sing — in a voice that’s one part gravel, one part Jack Black and oneRead More

Making up tunes and whiling away the hours with an acoustic guitar on a roof terrace of a flat in an exotic locale like Barcelona, Spain seems like a dream way for one to spend their days. You May Also Like: David Philips – Get Along (2018) David Philips –Read More

So here we are, heading toward the end of another summer. This one seemed particularly quick. You May Also Like: Wilco (The Album) echoed, but didn’t quite live up to Sky Blue Sky Johnny Winter Refined His Hell-Raising Brand of Texas Blues on ‘Guitar Slinger’

Like a piped-in soundtrack on a rattling railcar, Nick Lowe’s “Check Out Time” somehow sounds rooted in old-school convictions even as it dashes away from them. You May Also Like: East Axis [Matthew Shipp, Allen Lowe, Kevin Ray + Gerald Cleaver’ – ‘Cool With That’ (2021) Paul McCartney, “Check MyRead More

by Tom Johnson It may not quite seem like it’s possible, but it’s been 7 years since Real Gone, the last album of original new music from Waits. You May Also Like: How Tom Waits Got Focused But Stayed Blessedly Weird on ‘Bad As Me’ Of All the Tom WaitsRead More