Music
Crouch meets Iverson
I haven’t read it all the way through, but this conversation between Stanley Crouch and pianist Ethan Iverson strikes me as utterly fascinating. Thanks, Ethan, for linking to my book review.
And another…
I promise not to turn this blog into a litany of gloom and doom, but I’d be remiss not to acknowledge the passing of Queva Lutz, owner and proprietor of the 55 Bar. Queva not only ran one of the best jazz establishments in New York, but raised it to a new level of excellence during her tenure. She was
Leroy Jenkins R.I.P.
The violinist Leroy Jenkins, a leading figure of the ’60s avant-garde, has passed away at age 74. I had the pleasure of seeing him perform solo at Dewey Redman’s memorial a few weeks ago, when I was just beginning research on an Anthony Braxton feature for the May ’07 Jazz Times. Jenkins, a Braxton colleague from way back, walked right
Remembering Brecker
Last night’s Town Hall tribute to the great Michael Brecker was as moving as expected, but the musical portions were simply out of this world. Widow Susan Brecker requested that there be no saxophones. So trumpeter/brother Randy Brecker played quartet with Joey Calderazzo, James Genus and Tain Watts; Dave Liebman played a mournful solo on wood flute; Pat Metheny played
Deep Purple
I can’t even begin to describe the impact this 1971 clip of Deep Purple, playing their protest song “No, No, No,” had on me as a teenager. This was the early glory of cable TV — I think it was the USA Network that used to broadcast these “Beat Club” clips in the early to mid ’80s. I taped this
Sounds to cherish 6
Another in an occasional series… Gebhard Ullmann/Chris Dahlgren/Jay Rosen, Cut It Out (Leo Records)The German woodwind maestro with bassist Chris Dahlgren and drummer Jay Rosen. Dahlgren stirs it up electronically; Ullmann focuses solely on bass clarinet and bass flute. Truly odd, truly wonderful. Sam Rivers/Adam Rudolph/Harris Eisenstadt, Vista (Meta Records)How this one got away from me in ’04 I can’t
Six Picks: February 2007
My monthly list of recommended CDs, as published in All About Jazz-New York, February 2007: Steve Coleman and Five Elements, Weaving Symbolics (Label Bleu) Scott Colley, Architect of the Silent Moment (CAM Jazz) George Colligan, Blood Pressure (Ultimatum) Ari Hoenig, Inversations (Dreyfus) Jason Lindner, Ab Aeterno (Fresh Sound World Jazz) Charles Tolliver, With Love (Mosaic/Blue Note)
Tin Hat review
The eclectic chamber-jazz group Tin Hat performed on Jan. 28 at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia. My review is in today’s Inquirer. [Update: A minor correction — I described “Fata Morgana” as a “three-horn chorale”; it was actually two horns and violin. In jazz slang the word “horn” can refer to just about any instrument, but I won’t pretend that