Last year, about 460.000 people visited the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell over two weekends. Twelve stages at the Fair Grounds Race Course featured almost nonstop music and over 60 food booths took care of culinary needs. Just a few days ago, the programme for the 47th edition was announced and the…
This is Brazilian singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist Ed Motta‘s 12th album, produced by Kamau Kenyatta (producer for Gregory Porter and an upcoming project by Detroit singer Kathy Kosins) in Los Angeles. The similarity to both Donald Fagen and Frank McComb, especially in the opening midtempo, swaying track “Captain’s Refusal”, is enormous. Ed and Kamau came…
Maurice White wrote countless songs that have become classics, accompanied us while growing up and let us dance to “September” and “Boogie Wonderland” in a long-defunct club in Cologne. I remember recording “That’s The Way Of The World” onto cassette (the good old days I know) and then listening to it over and over and over again….
One of my favorite tracks of the past year is “The Greatest” by female trio KING. Finally, here they are with their debut album “We Are KING”. If you’re a child of the 80s, and cherish the soul and r&b sounds of the 1980-1985 era, this is for you. The three ladies, twins Amber and…
New York-based vocalist Mary Foster Conklin has just released her fourth CD called “Photographs” (her first since 2006), named after a Fran Landesman song. There is a total of five Landesman songs on the album. The songwriter is probably best-known for her “Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most”, but Mary also chose to…
Malian singer Rokia Traoré opens the latest album by trumpet virtuoso Erik Truffaz. They both introduce “Doni Doni” with a folklore miniature called “Comptine” before the full quartet sets in with thick electric keyboards on “Kudu”, a track that is both Weather Report and modern jazz dance groove, the type of which he more or…
The beauty of pianist Tord Gustavsen‘s new album “What Was Said” lies in the vocals of German-Afghan artist Simin Tander who is singing Norwegian traditionals and church hymns not only in English, but also in Pashto, the national Afghan language. Listen to “I See You”, a beautifully executed Norwegian traditional with intensely melodic backing by…
Brazilian singer and songwriter Joyce Moreno and pianist Kenny Werner are touring Europe in February in support of their recently released “Poesia” album, an intimate collection of 13 songs from the Brazilian and American songbook plus a traditional and a beautiful original tune which opens the album: “Second Love Song” is as pure and concentrated…
Here we go again – the 2015 edition was reviewed on these pages on February 6th of last year, and the latest Luxury Soul compilation just came in. Another 3-CD box set with the finest quality indie soul, starting with The Sound Principle feat. Richard Anthony Davis and “Heartbreaking” (do I hear a Sharon Redd…
I remember Bill Frisell‘s fantastic performance at last year’s North Sea Jazz Festival – it was actually one of the best concerts I saw during those three days. Part of his repertoire were songs from movies and TV and his latest album is just that: Ennio Morricone, Nino Rota, Henry Mancini and music from “Psycho”…