Just because I haven’t written a whole lot about John Coltrane up to this point doesn’t mean I don’t seriously revere the man’s music. But what is there left to be said about Coltrane that hasn’t already been said with much more eloquent words than I can muster? There are,Read More

by Pico Here’s where it all started… Pianist Keith Jarrett, double-bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette make up the threesome that today is the gold standard of trio jazz. You’ve might have even seen me effuse about them in the past a time or two. And this month marksRead More

photo by Jason Thrasher by S. Victor Aaron No band today epitomizes Southern rock more precisely than Athens, Georgia’s Drive-By Truckers. Sometimes they sound even more Dixie than Skynard, The Marshall Tucker Band or the Allman Brothers. Not only do they possess the rough and tumble sound of their forebearsRead More

by S. Victor Aaron On prior columns I’ve made no bones about my affinity for early Chicago songs. Danny Seraphine’s comeback album is a triumph because the band’s founding drummer brought back the spirit of his old band. And singer/keyboardist/songwriter Robert Lamm’s openness for melding complex jazz with straightforward bluesRead More

by Pico Covering High And Mighty about a year and a half ago gave me a convenient excuse to pull out and listen to some of the prior Gov’t Mule CDs. Out of the one just prior to this one, Déjà Voodoo, came a tune that has lately been theRead More

These days it seems that celebrities like Katie Couric, Jay Leno and even Madonna are getting into writing children’s books. But the next big trend might very well be children’s music. Jack Johnson’s little-noticed soundtrack to the Curious George movie from a couple of years ago was a pretty goodRead More

by S. Victor Aaron Jazz trios that push the envelope are a lot of fun to listen to. With only two other players to be accountable for, each member gets to take more chances than they might be able to get away with in a larger setting. And when it’sRead More

photographer – Clay Patrick McBride by PicoIt’s not a recording that’s a decade in the making, but it’s been fermenting for that long. Saxophonist David Rogers has immersed himself in the music and culture of far-flung parts of the world where he’s lived, like Southeast Asia and West Africa, andRead More

With all the All Star albums of 2007 out of the way, there’s just one more piece of year-end business to take care of: my favorite song of the year. Like the top CD of the year, this one didn’t require much agonizing. It’s a song that puts me inRead More

by Pico Either it’s been a strong year music-wise, or I’ve simply been listening to more new releases than I usually do. It’s probably a combination of both but regardless, there was a lot of good chaff left on the floor by the time I finalized my All-Stars Starters andRead More