David Adler
The Sadr legacy
Thousands have marched on Najaf at the urging of Moktada al-Sadr, to protest the American presence in Iraq: “The enemy that is occupying our country is now targeting the dignity of the Iraqi people,” said lawmaker Nassar al-Rubaie, head of Mr. Sadr’s bloc in parliament, as he marched, according to the A.P. “After four years of occupation, we have hundreds
Back in gear, slowly
About a week ago I moved from New York to Philadelphia, for reasons both personal and professional. I’m greatly enjoying my new life, but things have been quite hectic and I’ve had even less time than usual for blogging. I’ll do what I can to change that in the coming days and weeks. Thanks for reading and please keep this
Six Picks: April 2007
My monthly list of recommended CDs, as published in All About Jazz-New York, April 2007: Ralph Alessi, Look (Between the Lines/Challenge) Bobby Broom, Song and Dance (Origin) Anat Fort, A Long Story (ECM) Alvin Fielder Trio, A Measure of Vision (Clean Feed) Russ Lossing/Mat Maneri/Mark Dresser, Metal Rat (Clean Feed) Kendrick Scott, The Source (World Culture)
On Pat Metheny & Brad Mehldau
Go here to read my Philadelphia Inquirer piece on guitarist Pat Metheny and pianist Brad Mehldau.
Ignorance on Atzmon
Gilad Atzmon, the UK-based saxophonist and antisemitic agitator, has once again succeeded in passing himself off as a progressive, appearing at a March 18 forum in Sweden at the invitation of that country’s Social Democratic Party. Ulf Carmesund, a party official, took the Swedish Committee Against Anti-Semitism to task for its condemnation of Atzmon: Gilad Atzmon is himself a Jew,
CD reviews
A small handful of my CD reviews are now online at Jazz Times: Loren Stillman’s Trio Alto Volume One (SteepleChase); a compilation from the Brooklyn Jazz Underground; Kayhan Kalhor & Erdal Erzincan’s The Wind (ECM); and Russell Gunn Plays Miles (HighNote).
Our hopeless war debate
Accompanying George Packer’s extraordinary piece in the print edition of last week’s New Yorker is a photo of an Iraqi man lying dead on a heap of trash, his hands tied behind his back with black cord. From the camera angle it isn’t clear whether the corpse still has a head. This chilling image encapsulates just about everything there is
Happy Newroz
The Kurds (and others) are celebrating Newroz, the new year. The LA Times has a nice photo essay here. I was in Iraqi Kurdistan exactly a year ago, during the holiday. Read here and here.