The full programme for this year’s Jazzfest Berlin will be announced in September, but artistic director Richard Williams gave away most of the artists participating in the 2016 edition earlier this week. A total of 16 jazz bands will perform and five duo collaborations, some of which will play together for the first time. A lot…
Singer Eleanore Mills unfortunately released only one album, the 1974 LP “This Is Eleanore Mills!”, which is now available as a re-mastered edition. The album came out on Astroscope, which was a subsidiary label of All Platinum Records, the lable of impresario Sylvia Robinson and was produced by Harry Ray and Al Goodman (The Moments,…
Chick Corea turns 75 on Sunday. What better way to celebrate this milestone than a two-month stint at the Blue Note in New York. And to help him celebrate this special birthday, there will be a total of 80 shows, 15 legendary bands, and 60 legendary musicians performing between October 19th and December 12th. Since Chick…
There is the annual Django Reinhardt Jazz Festival in Samois-sur-Seine in France (June 22nd-26th) and there is the Django Reinhardt Festival in Hildesheim in Germany (July 1st and 2nd). And then there is the Django Reinhardt NY Festival which will celebrate its 17th season this year at Birdland (August 2nd-7th). Among the artists performing at…
Hot on the heels of the soundtrack to the Don Cheadle Miles Davis biopic where Robert Glasper played a vital role, here comes Robert’s tribute album to the meister who would have been 90 this year. And thank heaven this is not a trumpet album. Not that I don’t dig the trumpet, but a Miles…
I am a big Brad Mehldau fan. Ever since his very first album and ever since I first saw him in Montreux in the early 90s. His playing is flawless, groovy, aesthetically perfect and has some Keith Jarrett moments even. But in terms of repertoire and surrounding cast, isn’t it time for some changes? Just…
Film noir, that special genre that was defining the 40s and 50s mystery and crime movies, gets a new twist with singer Lauren White‘s new album that was produced by Mark Winkler and features a great cast of musicians, among them Mitchel Forman, Trey Henry, and Abe Lagrimas,Jr. as the rhythm section plus arrangements by Kathryn…
It seems that everything Terri Lyne Carrington touches these days turn to gold. She has produced the latest record by harmonica player Grégoire Maret called “Wanted” and can be heard singing vocals on the opening cut, “2Beats”, which also features rapper Kokayi on a smoothly floating tune that elegantly fades in and wins over with…
This is Leyla McCalla‘s sophomore album after her praised debut “Vari-Colored Songs”. Leyla again plays cello, tenor banjo, and guitar and sings in English, French, and her native Haitian Creole (both her parents were born in Haiti). There is a charming naturalness and simplicity in her songs, whether they are originals or covers of traditional…
We’re happy to annouce that Gina is back from a much needed break and in the meantime, a lot of great new releases flooded our offices. And it is always a big difference reviewing a new album after just one listen or after living with it for a while. And after listening to Gregory Porter‘s new…