Billy Childs – Map to the Treasure: Reimaging Laura Nyro (2014)
With Billy Childs’ ‘Map to the Treasure: Reimaging Laura Nyro,’ it looks like my best albums of 2014 list just got longer.
Something Else!
Rudresh Mahanthappa, “Chillin’,” from Bird Calls (2015): Something Else! sneak peek
Here is a sneak peek of Rudresh Mahanthappa’s “Chillin’,” from his upcoming February 2015 release ‘Bird Calls.’
Black Crown Initiate – The Wreckage of Stars (2014)
Oftentimes, bands that have a little buzz don’t live up to it. Black Crown Initiate actually deserves the hype.
A Halloween treat: Bob Dylan at Philharmonic Hall, New York City, October 31, 1964
Bob Dylan gave this concert 50 years ago tonight, and it still resonates.
The Big Reveal: On movie plot points that change everything
Mike Tiano discusses a film sub-genre where everything is not as it seems.
Huntertones, “Theme from Jurassic Park” (2014): One Track Mind
The Huntertones, née The Dan White Sextet, lean on trombonist Chris Ott’s arranging magic to give another cinematic song a swift, hard-bop kick in the pants.
Bud Powell – Live At The Blue Note Café, Paris 1961 (2014 reissue)
Perhaps not quite as amazing as his fabled sides for Blue Note Records, but Bud Powell’s ‘Live At The Blue Note Café, Paris 1961’ is plenty good enough to make any jazzbo wish they’d have been there.
Aerial – Why Don’t They Teach Heartbreak at School? (2014)
Tingling and trembling with style and substance, Aerial’s ‘Why Don’t They Teach Heartbreak at School?’ is a power-pop epic.
Eric Bibb – Blues People (2014)
Eric Bibb’s civil rights blues manifesto ‘Blues People’ is poignant, and also entertaining.
‘Hydra’ may be the best Toto album you’ve never heard: ‘That’s a cult classic!’
Released 35 years ago today, ‘Hydra’ showed the full breadth of what Toto could do. It’s influencing their new album, too.
