Though those days were numbered by the time of Katy Lied, Steely Dan liked the occasional break on their records from the ceberal arty jazz-rock of their preference and just jam out with some simpler, blues-based ditty. You May Also Like: Five Deep Cuts Underscore the Overlooked Brilliance of SteelyRead More

I’m a sucker for odd instrumentations, which is one of the reasons why I’m drawn to progressive and whack jazz. Listening to strange timbres that come from instruments coming together that aren’t usually combined tends to perk my ears up, trying to solve the puzzle of the sonic conundrum. ItRead More

Dave Douglas is widely regarded as being elite among jazz trumpeters these days not just because of a polished technique, but a restlessness that drives him to try something new at least every couple of years You May Also Like: Dave Douglas, Uri Caine + Andrew Cyrille – ‘Devotion’ (2019)Read More

One of the more distinctive and convincing points made by Ted Gioia in his definitive chronicle of jazz, The History of Jazz (1997, rev. 2011, Oxford University Press) is about the under-credited impact pianist Lennie Tristano made You May Also Like: Jason Stein Quartet – Lucille! (2017) Jason Stein’s LocksmithRead More

Steely Dan is famously known for performing rock with a heaping dose of jazz elements, but those songs would rarely swing, as jazz does. Here’s a notable exception. You May Also Like: No related posts.

As an aside within my review of Steve Raegele’s mind blowing debut album Last Century I went into the bands Raegele had participated in and noted “I can’t say I’ve heard of these names previously You May Also Like: Thom Yorke – Spitting Feathers (2006): On Second Thought John SurmanRead More

Whenever David Weiss is involved in a project, it’s worth sitting up and taking notice. Same goes for Billy Hart. Or Eddie Henderson, Or Cecil McBee, Billy Harper or George Cables, for that matter. But a project that involves all of these players demands your full attention. A lineup ofRead More

Brooklyn-born to Haitian parents, drummer Andrew Cyrille had gone on to record with Mary Lou Williams, Coleman Hawkins and Roland Kirk before beginning a decade-plus stint in Cecil Taylor’s band during some of Taylor’s most creative periods. You May Also Like: Andrew Cyrille, with Wadada Leo Smith and Bill FrisellRead More

An astonishing thing to witness when viewing Fred Anderson’s live performance on DVD, 21st Century Chase, was the sight of a guy celebrating his 80th birthday splaying notes from his saxophone with abandon, power and purpose. And then, when he finished his solo, witnessing a dude only six years hisRead More

This album is credited to Anthony Wilson and rightfully so, as this master guitarist/composer/arranger wrote the four-part “Seasons” suite and led a quartet of virtuosic plectrists to perform it before a live audience. You May Also Like: Anthony Wilson – ‘Collodion’ (2023) Jan Hammer – Seasons Pt. 1 (2018)