Ivan Lins, the iconic Brazilian singer, composer, and keyboardist, and one of the most recorded Brazilian composers abroad, who just turned 81 in June, was playing last night as part of the first Zig Zag Jazz Festival. In good spirits throughout the show, he talked in between songs with wit and humour and still sounded…
“Dig It” was their last album in 2014. We’re still vibing to “Staten Island Groove” and “Brooklyn Heights” from their debut album “From Manhattan To Staten” (1996) and “Joy Is A Good Groove” from their second album “The Urban Grooves” (1998). Dome Records put out their first three albums with bonus tracks back in 2019….
Back in 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall, Pope John Paul II passed away, and the first ever YouTube video was uploaded. Also, Stevie Wonder released his album “A Time To Love”. 22 years later, in 2027, there will be a new Stevie Wonder album. It remains to be seen if this will hold true. Apparently,…
Gretchen Parlato, whose new album “The Wise Ones” will be released on Edition Records on September 11th, was in town yesterday for the first ever Zig Zag Jazz Festival. Located on top of the Gasometer in a cozy little room, she actually played a lot of the new songs (it’s going to be a five-paw…
Brazilian singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Bruno Berle just released “Sem Fronteiras” on Far Out Recordings, his third album, two weeks ago. It is the follow-up to the five-paw rated album “No Reino Dos Afetos 2” (2024). Bruno premiered a few songs from the new album late last month here in Berlin. It was a wonderful…
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…