Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show

Saxophonist Joe Lovano never ceases to amaze, as his compositions, performance and style continue to grow and evolve as he moves from project to project. Whether he is leading his US5 Quintet in Bird-like flights of fancy, or co-leading the Shorter-esque Sound Prints with trumpeter Dave Douglas, Lovano finds ways to constantly give us more, and better, music as the years go on. His second album wi...

Last week we talked with Zev Feldman about the release of three previously unknown recordings on Resonance Records late last year. This week, we take a deep dive into Love You Madly: Live at Bubba's with pianist Monty Alexander.  Accompanying Alexander on this spirited live date are bassist Paul Berner (Lionel Hampton Orchestra), drummer Duffy Jackson (Milt Jackson, Benny Carter), and percussionis...

Emmet Cohen is a jazz musician who finds his future by mining the lessons of the jazz past. There is little about this pianist/composer's recordings and compositions that speaks of pure nostalgia. Instead, he and his tight trio find modern inspiration in the styles, performances, and artists of the jazz canon to create their take on modern music. The title of his first release on Mack Avenue Recor...

January 29 marks the release date of Migrations of Silence, an ambitious new 10-disc boxed set of all new and original music by bassist/composer William Parker. Parker, who has spent much of the past fifty years pushing the musical envelope with the likes of Cecil Taylor, David S. Ware, Hamid Drake and Peter Brötzmann, plays music that often defies category or genre. His music touches on everythin...

It's always a pleasure to have Zev Feldman on the show. Known as "the Jazz Detective," Feldman has helped bring to light some of the finest unheard music played by jazz masters from John Coltrane to Bill Evans to Sonny Rollins. His projects can be found on a number of labels, but most often on Resonance Records, a division of Rising Jazz Stars, Inc. a California 501(c) (3) non-profit corporation c...

As America stands at a political crossroads this coming week with the inauguration of a new President, Wynton Marsalis has written and recorded a timely collection of songs that beg to be heard, The Democracy! Suite was composed by Marsalis during the ongoing Covid-19 crisis as a response to the political, social, and economic struggles facing our nation. This swinging and stimulating instrumental...

Blue Engine Records, Jazz at Lincoln Center's in-house record label continues to bring us musical recordings the show the many facets of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra's sound and repertoire. In late 2020 they released A Swingin' Sesame Street Celebration , which accompanied a PBS broadcast premiere of a concert film by the same name, bringing us the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra's fresh...

The great jazz clubs of the 1940's and 1950's are fondly remembered, but what do we actually have to show from that era? There are live recordings for sure, but how do we try to recapture the magic that happened inside those hallowed halls?   In Sittin' In: Jazz Clubs of the 1940s and 1950s (Harper Design), Grammy-nominated historian, archivist, author, and record executive Jeff Gold offers an unp...

2020 was an especially cruel year for jazz musicians, and we lost so many talented masters this year that I don't think I have completely grasped the impact their passing will have. A few we lost to COVID-19, others simply to old age. Some of the eleven musicians I honor in Podcast 786 were friends, and others were true idols of mine. All will be terribly missed. Take some time to listen to "Noted...

Jazz history is replete with brothers who played and recorded with one another over their careers. I can quickly think of the Montgomery Brothers (Wes and Monk), the Heath Brothers (Jimmy, Tootie and Percy), Randy and Michael Brecker, Nat and Cannonball Adderley, and Winard and Philip Harper. So many others only played or recorded together from time to time – think the many Marsalis Brothers or El...

As I do every year, this Podcast is "A Few of My Favorite Things" from 2020. It is not intended on being a Top Ten list - I do that for the Jazz Journalist Association - but rather a grouping of recordings that got repeat play in my house, making me take notice among the many recordings I receive.  While 2020 seemed to be a cursed year for many reasons, there was much to be optimistic about in jaz...

Every year I post an hour plus of Christmas jazz to enjoy as you go about your merry business during the holiday season. While 2020 will be a little different due to the pandemic, there are still stockings to hang, trees to trim, and egg nog to consume (maybe a little more than usual). This year, the theme is Christmas music played on the guitar, "A Six String Christmas." I've got performances old...

When your band's motto is "Fiercely swinging on purpose, with purpose," you've probably got something special to share with the jazz world. That's definitely the case with the 3D Jazz Trio, who has released perhaps the finest album of new Christmas jazz this year, Christmas in 3D . Formerly known as 3Divas, based on their common membership in the famous DIVA Jazz Orchestra, the trio gives us their...

Miles Davis once famously challenged Dave Brubeck, "Your band don't swing, but you do." I'm not sure that's quite true, but as we look back on the life of Dave Brubeck, born this December 6th 100 years ago today, it is something to consider.  Of the important jazz musicians who came out of the 1950's, Dave Brubeck wrote and played the piano, making music that personified "Cool Jazz," the laidback...

Looking to pick up some new jazz music for the Christmas season. Well, be sure to check this sampler of some of the best choices for new Christmas music this season. There's so much to choose from, with new albums from Warren Wolf and Brian Bromberg on Mack Avenue Records (What? No "Christmas on Mack Avenue" this year?); a compilation of Peggy Lee's classic Christmas music; and vocal albums from N...

There have been two hallmarks—standards, if you will—that have been a part of every Billy Childs album. The first is the journey he's traveled as a composer. He has always written music and to great acclaim: he has received five Grammy Awards and 16 nominations, many for composition and arrangement. Presently in continual demand for symphonic and chamber commissions, he has also innovated a collec...

Podcast 778 completes my two-part conversation with Maria Schneider. A recipient of almost every award given for composing, arranging and conducting, Ms. Schneider has moved to the forefront of genre-bending music. Whether it's the work she did with David Bowie on "Sue (or In A Season of Crime," her thrilling new work Data Lords , or her collaborations with classical music giants like Dawn Upshaw,...

With the release earlier this year of Data Lords , a two-disc opus, Maria Schneider stepped up her battle with the giants of the technological world. An outspoken critic of companies like Amazon, Google and YouTube, Ms. Schneider has been standing up for citizens' rights to maintain their online privacy and personal information, as well as artists' rights to control and monetize their work through...

Here is Part Two of my recent conversation with the legendary Michael Cuscuna. While Part One concentrated on the recent offerings of the Photography of Francis Wolff, Part Two is all about Cuscuna's limited edition archival releases on Mosaic Records.  2020 has been a good year for the label. Of particular interest to me was the release of The Complete 1975 Toronto Recordings by saxophonist Paul...

"Francis Wolff's images of musicians at work are so relaxed and intimate that they capture the spirit not just of the moment but also the era." -  Herbie Hancock It was a real treat to get to spend some time on the telephone with Michael Cuscuna, the legendary jazz record producer, discographer, writer and entrepreneur a few weeks ago. For the past fifty years, Michael has been one of a handful of...

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day here in America, and I can think of no better way to honor men and women who served their country in uniform that helping to shine the light on some music made by servicemen almost 75 years ago.  Jason Burt always knew his grandfather, Ralph Burt had served in the Pacific in World War II, and that he had helped develop is craft as a musician while overseas as part of the...

After almost forty years and twenty-five albums as a collaborative jazz group, the Yellowjackets are not a group that rest on their laurels. The group has had continued success, won a number of Grammy Awards, and been a fixture on the Fusion, Smooth Jazz and other charts for years. Their last two albums have shown the band is still forging ahead with innovative and challenging artistic statements....

In this COVID-riddled world, Hallowe'en will not be the same. Our community here in Western Massachusetts has not banned Trick or Treat, so Nancy and I will do the social distance thing and leave trays of candy out in the driveway for those kids (and kids at heart) who come out Saturday night  The spirit of Hallowe'en lives on in this Podcast, which celebrates the evening with jazz tunes that have...

Those following the music of trumpeter Michael Sarian over the past few years will have a pleasant surprise when they listen to New Aurora .  Known for his septet Michael Sarian & The Chabones and big band The Big Chabones, the latest release from the New York based musician finds him fronting a four piece acoustic group, and playing flugelhorn in a manner that recalls ECM legends Kenny Wheeler, E...

New-York based jazz trombonist Matt Haviland has been in demand as a performer and featured soloist with some of the top names in jazz since the early 1980s.  His horn has been an important part of large groups like those led by Maria Schneider and Steven Bernstein, as well as the Mingus Big Band. He is a regular member of the Pete McGuinness Jazz Orchestra, Scott Reeves Jazz Orchestra, Peter Leit...