You had to wonder how much better “Louisiana 1926” would have been with someone who could really sing it. Enter Aaron Neville.

by S. Victor Aaron They look and sound like they’ve been around forever, but the Subdudes have “only” existed for 20 years (counting the roughly eight-year hiatus from 1996-2004), mainly flying under the radar. They come out of that musically rich town of New Orleans, but have rarely been mentionedRead More

by S. Victor Aaron Orchestral jazz seem to be a dying art these days. Oh sure, there are Ellington, Monk and Mingus tribute bands, but there seems to be a dearth of composers creating new works. Well OK, maybe that’s a little dramatic. In reality, such jazz composers still doRead More

Full Circle isn’t not so much about a CD than it is a story of a certain musician’s redemptive long journey back from personal tragedies. And his new band is a musical group led by a man who sought to provide a willing public the soulful, energetic free wheeling styleRead More

‘Truth’ finds Robben Ford record playing it safe. But he does it all so well and with such honesty that you can’t help but to enjoy it, anyway.

Guys like Tab Benoit and Kenny Neal are testament that the blues are still alive and kickin’ in South Louisiana. But when it comes to making the blues come alive in the bayou country, those guys have their match in a sixty-two year old blind white guy from Wisconsin. ThatRead 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 When you put the words “Paul Motian” and “Live At The Village Vanguard” together, most jazz fans can’t help but to think of of the time this legendary drummer played at that very venue one magical Sunday in June, 1961. But there were many other enchantedRead More

NICK DERISO: Even four solo records later, you keep expecting Billy Bob Thornton to do something wacky on his new release “Beautiful Door,” to be issued by Universal on July 24. See, in the movies, he’s Bad Santa. The Astronaut Farmer. That murderous dude in his Oscar-winning plot for “SlingRead More