I remember Azymuth back in the eighties as this funky little jazz fusion trio from Brazil whose sound approximated Weather Report but with some hot samba thrown in for local flavoring. The Cascades LP I had back then got a fair amount of spins and these guys were all better-than-averageRead More

by S. Victor Aaron There seems to be this wonderful trend of late, where a newer generation of bass players are following the example of Charles Mingus and presenting themselves as serious composers and bandleaders. In the last year on this space we’ve profiled the latest releases of such luminariesRead More

As we like to note here so many times, there’s a lot of Miles Davis sidemen who have gone on to have notable careers of their own. Just among keyboardists, you’ve got your Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett and Chick Corea. There’s another fine piano player whoRead More

That classic album rock group Heart never really left us, but lately the Wilson sisters have reconnected with what made it such a great band back in the seventies. The vintage sounding all-new CD Jupiters Darling (2004) and last year’s live DVD Dreamboat Annie Live meant that the “old” Heart—notRead More

by Pico At this time last year the sizzling straight-jazz band headed up by guitarist Dave Stryker and saxophonist/flautist Steve Slagle had a record out that we were making hay over, entitled Latest Outlook. The boys are back already with another batch of mostly original tunes called The Scene. AndRead More

by S. Victor Aaron It feels strange to evaluate a talented musician’s latest output knowing that he will have no more new recordings forthcoming. That was the situation last year when I took a gander at Michael Brecker’s last CD, Pilgrimage. Sadly, we’re here again, as Esbjörn Svensson died thisRead More

by Pico As audacious as the claim might sound, Baton Rouge, Louisiana’s own Tab Benoit is the Bayou State’s answer to Stevie Ray Vaughan. It’s a feeling I’ve had from the time I discovered his well-received debut Nice And Warm from 1992 and haven’t wavered on that after about anRead More

by Pico As far as jazz pianists go, McCoy Tyner is the living patriarch. As a member of John Coltrane’s seminal band of the sixties, a sideman on so many key recordings and, of course, a leader with his own substantial solo career, Tyner has long ago secured a significantRead More

by S. Victor Aaron Last year we gave a testimonial to a new small-group Carla Bley album that featured a uber-talented Italian trumpeter by the name of Paolo Fresu. But as good as Fresu is, he’s not yet the king of Italian trumpeters. That’s because Enrico Rava is still wearingRead More

I’ve covered a Martin and Medeski album, a Wood Brothers album and even an MMW children’s album on this space, but this is the first go around with a “proper” Medeski, Martin & Wood release. Radiolarians 1, which hit the streets September 30, is the first of a planned trilogyRead More