He was one of the founding members of The “And The Beat Goes On” Whispers and died at only 71 years old after a long battle with cancer. A new Whispers LP was always something I looked forward to in the 80s and with albums like “Love Is Where You Find It” (1981, with gatefold…
Pianist Paul Bley leaves an amazing amount of work – from his 1953 debut record “Introducing Paul Bley” to his ethereal live solo recording “Play Blue”, recorded in Oslo in 2008, the stylistic diversity of this Montreal-born master is outstanding. Vanessa Bley, his daughter, released an official obituary that said he “died at home with…
The twelve original compositions on saxophonist Ken Fowser‘s first album as a leader, “Standing Tall”, show his true mastership in swing, style, and structure. “Head Start” is a perfect album opener with an ebullient, and yet relaxing harmonic overtone that reminds me of some of the finest Impulse releases from the 60s. The cool and…
And so the trend continues: HMV reports that they were selling up to one turntable a minute in the weeks before Christmas and now Amazon follows suit with news that their best selling audio product of last year was – drum roll – the turntable! Even though the seasonal hit was a relatively simple Jensen…
The folks at Real Side Records did it again. Number 3 was reviewed on these pages in early March and here comes Volume 4. The 20-piece collection once again focuses on rare and obscure cuts mainly from the 70s, but also some late 60s gems and a couple of newer tracks. The one song that…
The angel on her shoulder must have been gone. In her autobiography, “Angel On My Shoulder”, released in 2000, Natalie Cole said that there had been several instances in her life where she thought she would die. “Each time, someone had intervened when I otherwise should have been dead. Make that Someone with a capital “S”….
She liked long walks in Central Park and was very proud of her “Cole Porter” view in her Manhattan apartment. A singer’s singer. Equally potent in the Great American Songbook as in contemporary material. Her love for Brazilian music was endless. The best songwriters were sending her their material so that she could give it her…
“Fresh Horizons” is the theme for the Jazz Connect Conference in New York next month. Held at Saint Peter’s Church in Manhattan on January 14th and 15th, it once again brings together the international jazz community for workshops, sessions, and get-togethers. I was on a panel titled “Spolight on Germany” in 2014 and the 2016…
Independent soul singer and songwriter Trish Andrews from Charlotte, North Carolina, has come up with her second album after her 2008 debut “These Five Words”. Her new one “Love Story” continues her sexy melange of Jazz, Soul, and R&B, wrapped in silky smooth, sometimes stunning performances. The solid 11-track collection starts off with the catchy “Feed…
We’re back from our annual Xmas holiday and enjoying the sunny weather here in Berlin where the city is preparing for its grand 2015 finale. Over a million visitors are expected to join the major festivities at the Brandenburg Gate on New Year’s eve. Gina will make sure not to even come close to the party,…