After a quarter of a century away as he delved into lightweight urban contemporary, soundtracks and side gigs, I’m becoming a Stanley Clarke fan again.

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

From “Don’t Stop Believin’” to konnakul. What does that mean, you ask? Allow me to explain. Journey, a band mostly known for gargantuan stadium anthems from the late-seventies to the mid-eighties, had a secret weapon in their ranks. Those who didn’t take their toilet breaks during the individual solo segmentRead More

David Witham is one of those figures in jazz who is hardly a household name to the general public, shoot, even to the jazz public. But just behind the curtain, Witham has been a major contributor to the scene. A pianist who likes to dabble in the electronic stuff, he’sRead More

by S. Victor Aaron Whether it’s for gigging with Joshua Redman, opening for Steely Dan, sessioning with Norah Jones or forging a new approach to the jazz organ, Sam Yahel deserves your notice. Find out what sets Yahel apart from other Hammond B-3 players and get his insights on whyRead More

Jaco Pastorius dubbed this all-star pairing the “Trio of Doom.” It became more fittingly the “Doomed Trio.”

Back in January we covered two of JLP’s albums from the early eighties at once, to examine a turning point in this French violinist’s approach to jazz-rock. This time around, there’s a brand new release to examine and twenty-five years later, Ponty is still effectively leveraging much of the sameRead More

photo: Genevieve Ruocco Of all the rock or fusion guitarists out there, there’s none out there who possesses the most pleasing tone, amazing technique and exceptional phrasing all wrapped up into one than the Brit Allan Holdsworth. He’s is a guitarist’s guitarist, having influenced everyone from Eddie Van Halen toRead More

by Pico Ever since Miles Davis passed away in 1991, there’s been endless Miles tribute albums by artists influenced by him whether by listening to him or even by playing with him. More recently, tribute albums have focused more on the enigmatic electric period and we even covered a fewRead More

Back when I was a young man in my twenties, I had frequent cravings for testosterone-driven jams—just like any young man does. But while some of my buds got their fix through the likes of Van Halen, AC/DC or Metallica, I often turned to McCoy Tyner. McCoy Tyner? Absolutely, whyRead More