Sometimes, we need reminding that Chicago was once a rock/jazz/blues/R&B/whack jazz band masquerading as a mainstream rock band.

“All eyes on the judges, who tabulate the score…” So where are we on this whole American Idol saga, anyway? I heard that Simon Cowell and Ellen Degeneres had vacated their judges’ chairs (this was the first I’ve heard of Degeneres even being on the show). And Kara DioGuardi wasRead More

by S. Victor Aaron Like many of the greatest American musicians, Miles Davis has had a comeback—he’s had four or five of them, actually—but only one where he came back from not playing at all. It was also his least successful one in the short run. The 1975-1981 retirement wasRead More

“Come Down in Time” works as a perfect metaphor, and a sad rebuke, for what later happened to Elton John and his songs.

Maybe it was only inevitable that the Brecker Brothers would pool their talents again. But how would they fit into the jazz scene after so long away?

by Pico Yesterday, singer/songwriter Bobby Hebb passed away at age 72 after losing a battle with lung cancer. Maybe the name isn’t familiar to you, but his #2 hit song from 1966 “Sunny” should be. Aside from his original version, it was covered by Cher, Georgie Fame and Stanley TurrentineRead More

One of my favorite funk-jazz albums of all time isn’t by a crossover act like the Crusaders or Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters, but by Lou Donaldson.

by Mark Saleski After listening to certain Tom Waits songs, I get to thinking about what the man might have stored in his garage. Sure, it’s become sort of a cliché, doing a mental inventory of Waits’ collection of bullhorns and whatnot, but it sure is fun. Even more funRead More

by S. Victor Aaron It could be argued that Houston, Texas is one of the major gestation points for smooth jazz sax stars. Ronnie Laws and Kirk Whalum came from what Laws calls the Bayou City of the Future. Also, let’s not forget that Wilton Felder, Joe Sample and theRead More

by S. Victor Aaron As the sixties turned into the seventies, soul, like rock, got tougher and edgier. In 1971 alone, Sly Stone’s There’s A Riot Goin’ On, Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On and Gil Scott-Heron‘s Pieces Of A Man raised the stakes in R&B that was serious, far-reaching andRead More