The first ever Zig Zag Jazz Festival, presented by the Zig Zag jazz club and Ella Radio, started last Monday with a concert by Dee Dee Bridgewater. We visited for the first time on Wednesday, for the double bill of Stacey Kent and Ledisi. It’s a pretty cool location, the Gasometer in Schöneberg, and easy…
Vocalist supreme Dianne Reeves and lauded saxophonist Branford Marsalis just played at the 50th edition of the North Sea Jazz Festival. They previewed their collaboration on “Dedicated To You”, an album celebrating the release of this classic ballads album of John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman. Together they offer new renditions of the six standards that…
He only released two solo albums but he was a constant part of the soundtrack of 70s and 80s albums because his name always appeared on the credits lists of so many LPs. Check out “Swing Your Daddy” (1975) and “Love Talk” (1976) with its haunting, 13-minute title track. He sang background vocals on some…
Two years after his wonderful LP “Leon”, which included one of our top five songs of the year (“Peaceful Place”), Leon Bridges returns with his new album “Happiness Anytime”, due September 25th on Columbia Records. The first four songs were released today, with additional songs coming up before the album’s release date. The Afro-centric and…
Ever since the move to Blue Note Records in 2023, Meshell Ndegeocello (the group, not the person) are putting out one great album after the other. “The Omnichord Real Book” (2023) and “No More Water: the Gospel of James Baldwin” are both contemporary classics in neo-soul, avantgarde jazz, funk and fusion. Now the group returns…
One of our favorite artists and a constant name in the Gina and Gustel household since 2016, Jordan Rakei, just announced the release of “A Safe Place To Be Wild” on October 30th, two years after his five-paw album “The Loop”. Jordan says of the new album: “In the past, I’ve liked creating albums that…
Elba Ramalho, the Brazilian singer, performer, and songwriter, who is sometimes called the “Queen of Forró”, has announced a European tour for next spring. Forró, the popular genre with its origin coming from the Northeastern part of Brazil, mixes various styles into a highly contagious, dance-laden pulse. Elba, who celebrates her 75th birthday next month,…
23 year old Brazilian singer Marie Froes opened the third day of this year’s festival for me. From her early Youtube videos to a track on Tik Tok which went viral (“Figa de Guiné”), she is about to release her debut album sometime later this year. She delivered a sympathetic mix of MPB, Pop, Jazz,…
I’m writing this piece on this beautiful hotel ship and outside on deck they are currently playing “That’s The Way Of The World” by Earth, Wind & Fire, which was preceded by “Minute By Minute” by Michael McDonald. A perfect sequel to what was going on yesterday at this year’s 50th anniversary edition of North…
There is a lot to celebrate this year for the 50th edition of the North Sea Jazz Festival, like an interactive journey through time with music, images, archive material from the golden years at the Congress Centre in The Hague up to the present. And there are indeed a lot of great memories since we’ve…