All That's Jazz

My conversation with vocalist and composer, Mandy Harvey, may be one of the most memorable we’ve done. Why? Because this incredibly talented woman with an exquisite voice has been profoundly deaf since the age of 18. We conducted the interview over Zoom with Mandy using a voice-to-text captioning program in order for her to see and reply to my questions. Her voice? Well, you’ll find out that it sp...

Sheila Jordan has been one of the most revered and utterly unique voices in jazz for decades. Beginning with her debut album, 1963’s ‘Portrait of Sheila,’ she pioneered a bebop-inflected approach to singing. We talked about this, and much more, in our 2021 All That’s Jazz episode.    With her recent passing, we decided to resurrect our conversation one more time so that you could hear the extraord...

If Jim Caruso’s name sounds familiar, that’s not surprising. Jim is also host of the wildly popular “Cast Party” which has been a Manhattan mainstay for more than two decades at the iconic Birdland Jazz Club.   In 2011, this irrepressible, affable, and talented singer recorded and released an album titled, “The Swing Set,” which he calls a true labor of love. It’s  a smart and sophisticated romp t...

Jazz Vocalist Andy James has just released her eighth studio album. It’s on Le Coq Records which is an independent label started by James and her husband Piero Pata, not only as a vehicle for releasing her music but also to work with acclaimed veteran jazz musicians including John Patitucci, Nate Smith, Terell Stafford, Alex Acuna, Rick Margitza, Chico Pinheiro, and many more.   This latest record...

When vocalist ANAÏS RENO burst onto the scene in 2021 with her debut album, ‘Lovesome Thing: Anaïs Reno Sings Ellington & Strayhorn,’ I had the distinct pleasure of featuring this young and talented  vocalist in Season 2-Episode 11. At the time,  listeners were delighted - and surprised - to learn that she had recorded it a year earlier when she was just 16 years old.  There have been a number...

Our mission at All That’s Jazz is to elevate the voices of the people who create, produce, present and write about all Jazz idioms by helping them tell their backstories about  why they do what they do, and what got them to this moment.   One such person is a man named Eric Oberstein.  A young, highly educated,  New York born and raised saxophonist and drummer of Cuban American heritage, Eric has...

This is the first definitive biography of the pioneering drummer and bandleader , Gene Krupa, who brought percussion from back to center stage, influencing generations of musicians from jazz to rock - and beyond. In this episode, I go behind the pages with author/historian Elizabeth J. Rosenthal, to discover what led her to write ‘The Master Of The Drums’ and unravel the complicated and tumultuous...

In this episode, I sit down with pianist/vocalist Champian Fulton and saxophonist/clarinetist/composer Klas Lindquist to discuss their latest release, “At Home,” the concept for which began with an event held in a home owned by Turtle Bay Records founder Scott Asen, who suggested they actually record in in his living room.  Oklahoma native and New York based Champian Fulton is the daughter of trum...

This episode is about a story that needs to be heard. It’s the tale of an amazing individual and jazz artist named René Marie.  Her story has been portrayed in an award - winning short documentary by Rachel Kessler, a Brooklyn-based director, screenwriter, and producer with over a decade of experience deeply rooted in her artistic and creative beliefs.  The beauty and soul of René Marie has been c...

Fado is a powerful and poignant musical expression of the Portuguese soul, often associated with the hardships of everyday life and characterized by melancholy, expressive vocal performances with a strong emphasis on emotional, poetic storytelling. The unique sound of Fado is highlighted by the guitarra portuguesa, or Portuguese guitar - a pear-shaped cittern with 12 wire strings - and is usually...

This is a  is the story of how New York-based pianist, composer, arranger and educator, Caili O'Doherty, developed and recently released an album called ‘Bluer Than Blue’ which honors the overlooked genius of Lillian “Lil” Hardin Armstrong. If that name is somewhat familiar to you, it’s because this highly talented artist and composer in her own right was married to none other than Louis Satchmo A...

Israeli born jazz drummer, composer and bandleader, Dan Pugach, grew up not far from Tel Aviv. His Jazz education and service as a drummer in the IDF Air Force Band and attending Israel's Rimon School of Music led him to The US to attend the Berklee College of Music. Dan moved to New York City where he began building an impressive musical resume with his original music and arrangements. Along the...

Ryan Middagh is not only a composer, arranger, baritone saxophonist and educator, as Chair of the Department of Jazz and Global Music at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music, he has delivered all that, and more, in his latest release called “Tenor Madness.” This album is a love letter to both the saxophone itself, and the abundance of saxophonists found in the vibrant and growing Nashvill...

Pittsburgh has a strong connection to the world of jazz; in fact, you might say it is sacred ground for this music genre. Many of the legends of jazz - like Billy Eckstine, Billy Taylor, Ray Brown, George Benson, Stanley Turrentine, Mary Lou Williams, Ahmad Jamal, Art Blakey and dozens more - are from this Pennsylvania “burg.”   In this episode, we talk with co-founder and executive producer of MC...

Jazz Manouche is a style of music that mixes jazz with traditional French dance music and Romani, also known as Gypsy music. Django Reinhardt is considered to be the pioneer of jazz manouche in the 1930s. Django is, in fact, one of the most influential guitarists of all time. His music and recordings are classics and they have touched the hearts and minds of others for decades. One such artist mov...

Band of Other Brothers is a stellar, multi genre supergroup whose members boast incredible associations with a Who’s Who of A-listers. There's pianist Jeff Babko (Jimmy Kimmel Live, Sheryl Crow), saxophonist and woodwind wizard Jeff Coffin (Dave Matthews Band, Bela Fleck & the Flecktones), drummer Keith Carlock (Steely Dan, John Mayer), guitarist Nir Felder (Esperanza Spalding, Jack DeJohnette...

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, we turn our attention to that holiday time of the year which is filled with the music that we all know and love. And I can’t think of a better way to kick off the season than with a reprise of an episode we did in 2023 featuring the members of the Grammy®️ nominated a cappella group called Kings Return.   When you listen to their first holiday album release, “We F...

Trombone-playing singer-songwriter Aubrey Logan hails from the Seattle area. Raised by her two music-educator parents, she began her artistic endeavors as a child singing in theatre and in church. She credits her  singing mother and trumpet-playing father for early influences like  singers/songwriters  Billy Joel and Carole King, as well as the soulful musicianship of American horn bands such as C...

Jim Morgan is a dynamic music industry professional with over two decades of experience spanning performance, event management, and competition oversight. He began as a drummer in Australia at age 16, later transitioning to the U.S. music scene in 2000. Jim played a pivotal role in the Boston Music Awards and NEMO Music Conference, and co-founded the International Songwriting Competition and Unsig...

More than 25 years ago, I met tenor saxophonist Javon Jackson who was raised in Denver Colorado and that meeting made a wonderful memory and a deep impact that still resonates with me today.  It impressed me that he took the time out of his very busy and impressive career to offer his time in a very giving manner to help a small-town, non-profit radio station.  But that is just the kind of person...

New Orleans is a place where virtuosity is always deployed with a celebratory spirit, and Crescent City Jewels is like a Gratitude Journal in song, a rollicking collection that expresses NEA Jazz Master, Grammy-winning producer, trombonist and bandleader, Delfeayo Marsalis, appreciation for the good things in life at a time when so much attention seems to focus on doom and gloom.  In this latest a...

There are times when you get a sense that you’re talking with an old friend that you’ve actually never met. There are shared times and memories that travelled on parallel lines but somehow never managed to intersect. That’s the best way that I can describe the conversation I had with Shelly Berg. From places lived and mutual friends, to times spent working with Jazz Aspen Snowmass in Colorado, our...

From an early age, acclaimed and accomplished vocalist, Alexis Cole, not only knew what she wanted to do in life, but also how she was going to do it - her way.  Both Alexis’ father and maternal grandmother were pianists and singers, and her business-minded mother helped Alexis learn how to carve her way through the financial side of show business. Thanks to their guidance, Alexis not only succeed...

The style of the undeniably talented bassist and composer, Ben Wolfe, is truly unique. His approach to music and performance has led to a path of development and success that can be attributed to collaborations with the likes of Harry Connick JR, Diana Krall and Wynton Marsalis.  Ben also distinguished himself through a significant catalogue of original music, including well over a hundred songs a...

The music of professional harmonica jazz musician, bandleader, composer, and educator, Yvonnick Prené , is both unique and innovative.  A transplant from France, Yvonnick is now based in the greater New York City area. He made his professional debut in France in 2007. But it wasn’t until moving to the Big Apple that Yvonnick had that “wake-up call” to really learn the art of jazz by furthering his...