by S. Victor Aaron The credits scream “Tim Berne music” but the music itself more suggests “George Russell” or “Carla Bley.” This is the initial impression I got from Drew Gress’ newest offering released last month, The Irrational Numbers. Modern jazz composer/bassist Drew Gress is one of those New YorkRead More

by s. Victor Aaron A few months ago, we bemoaned the loss of a quality modern jazz composer in Paul Nash and noted how it seems we are well past the heyday of melodists of large-form jazz. Oh my, how did I ever forget about the still-thriving Carla Bley? CarlaRead More

by Mark Saleski A friend of mine (a car aficionado, racer and mechanic) loaned me this. If you’ve ever been interested in how SUVs came into existence…and how they became so popular, then this might be of interest. The safety issues are well known (rollover risk, damage to other vehicles,Read More

by S. Victor Aaron At the base level, music’s purpose is to entertain. Some musicians go beyond mere entertainment and use their music to promote a point of view, provoke thought and kindle certain kinds of emotions. Hand in hand with those higher goals are the use of music asRead More

by Pico David Stryker, like my main man John Scofield, is the kind of jazz guitarist who never seems satisfied with sticking in one style of music for too long. Earlier this week we presented a pretty damned impressive fusion side of his with 1998’s Shades Of Miles. Last year,Read More

This installment of “Quickies” actually boasts some more diversity than the last one. As in some (gasp) singer-songwriter records! Sandwiched in between is a jazz icon, who like the first entry, recorded some folk-rock back in 1968. Thankfully, he eventually chose the right genre. The last guy is in aRead More

by S. Victor Aaron The French drummer Manu Katché has carved out a real nice career touring and recording behind names like Peter Gabriel, Sting, Joni Mitchell, Dire Straits, Michael McDonald and Joan Armatrading. So what kind of record would you expect from an A-list pop percussionist? If you saidRead More

by S. Victor Aaron It’s been hard to get my head out of the jazz idiom lately. That hadn’t limited the variety in my listening that much, since “jazz” covers so much musical ground. For this go-around of Quickies, the first two selections aren’t all that dissimilar but then theRead More

by S. Victor Aaron Bill Frisell is a guy I’ve been a huge fan of for about six or seven years, but the sheer volume, originality and wide range of his music has made it impossible for me to know where to begin when writing about him. There is notRead More

William Parker is in many ways like fellow double-bassist Dave Holland: nimble, quick, creative, accurate and full of ideas. He is also one of the rare bassists whose notes manage to capture attention even in a strictly supportive role. Village Voice calls him “the most consistently brilliant free jazz bassistRead More