Mark Murphy: Live in Athens, Greece

No figure in jazz personified hip the way that the late Mark Murphy did. For more than half a century he taught the world what it meant to be a true artist, pushing boundaries, walking the tightrope, and going where he pleased. He had it all--wit, charm, guile, good taste, a pure improviser's spirit... [ read more ]

Alex Goodman: Border Crossing

Border Crossing was born of guitarist Alex Goodman's careful cogitation concerning his move from Canada to New York. It's a beautifully contemplative bridge-builder of an album, bringing together musicians from both realms and connecting classically-oriented ideals, jazz language, and modern thought... [ read more ]

Henry Robinett: I Have Known Mountains

This fifth release from guitarist Henry Robinett has more than its fair share of hook-laden numbers, deep rivers, tributes, and positive musical offerings. It's a highly personal statement that serves as a journal of sorts, with Robinett stepping forward to musically reflect on a variety of topics a... [ read more ]

Gideon King: New York and Music

m: Gideon King is a New York City boy. He was born and raised in the city. He is a composer, guitarist and producer and has worked with some of the finest musicians. He has been involved in projects which cover a range of music genres including pop, funk, jazz and fusion and has produced...

Butch Lacy / Jesper LA vdal / Kresten Osgood / Mark Dresser: Being Playing

The reason why it is so important to musicians and listeners alike that records are released is that they are artistic statements, but also because they document the development of the musicians. Sometimes, when a musician releases very few records, the release of an album becomes an event and a rar... [ read more ]

Kind of Purple: Jazz Musicians On Prince

"Do you know who m: Prince kinda reminds me of, particularly as a pianist? Duke! Yeah, he's the m: Duke Ellington of the eighties to my way of thinking."--m: Miles Davis The tops of the pop charts isn't where we often expect to find genius. Brilliant performers some...

A Bu: Butterflies Fly in Pairs

Dai Liang (aka, A Bu) is a Beijing-based prodigy with remarkable potential and virtuosic piano skills. Marc Vincent, President of China's division of Sennheiser took note of the then thirteen year old pianist performing at a Beijing festival in 2012. A Bu, who began playing at the age of four, quick... [ read more ]

Rich Brown: Abeng

In jazz, it's all about the company you keep. The press accompanying bass virtuoso m: Rich Brown's third album, Abeng, specifically calls out m: Roy Ayers and m: Weather Report as musical reference points. And while there's a breath of Ayers' silky R&B feel to the... [ read more ]

Joan Jeanrenaud: Visual Music

Cellist m: Joan Jeanrenaud spent more than twenty years as a member of the experimental and always innovative Kronos Quartet. She left the group in 1999, and has since created an adventurous and captivating body work, including four previous CD releases, including the Grammy-nominated St... [ read more ]

Trumpetology: This Is Trumpetology

Southern California-based Trumpetology is an octet comprised of five sure-handed trumpeters and rhythm. For comparison's sake, think SuperSax for trumpets. Even though leader / arranger m: Walter Simonsen doesn't transcribe solos by well-known horn players to unsettle his mates, several... [ read more ]

Preston Glasgow Lowe: Preston Glasgow Lowe

Don't let the triple-moniker business-like name fool you, these ain't no suits and this is an excellent start for PGL's eponymous debut album. A flurry of repeated shimmering phrases introduces "Colour Possesses" which shortly after its brief guitar opening evolves into multi-tracking embellished wi... [ read more ]

Keir Neuringer/Rafal Mazur: Diachronic Paths

The aptly named release Diachronic Paths by the free improvising duo of Keir Neuringer and m: Rafal Mazur continues the transformation discourses of their evolving musical language. One that is based on their dialogue of discovery. Keir Neuringer, a Philadelphia-based saxophonist lived i... [ read more ]

Dave Stryker: Soulful Sound

Guitarist Dave Stryker carries a soulful sound that took root in his early years in Nebraska, where he played the blues before finding his way into the world of m: Grant Green, m: Wes Montgomery and m: Pat Martino. More was added to the recipe when, after moving to...

Craig Taborn: Flaga: Book of Angels, Volume 27

There was always a sense that pianist m: Craig Taborn was more successful as a "super sideman" than as a leader of his own recordings. His contributions to CD offerings by saxophonist m: Tim Berne, reedman m: Roscoe Mitchell, saxophonists m: David Binney a... [ read more ]

U.S. Army Blues: Live At Blues Alley

When thinking of military bands, many tend to focus on their sterling technique and punctilious performances above all else. Creative concerns are rarely part of the conversation, but this album makes you wonder why. The U.S. Army Blues, a blue-chip big band of brothers that serves as the flagship j... [ read more ]

a€~Nuf Said: Rise

The music of 'Nuf Said is neither jazz nor funk nor soul nor rock. It's all of it and more. This New York-based quintet taps into each of those styles and mixes them all together to create a groove-heavy, stirring brand of music that's all its own. Rise--'Nuf Said's second album, following My Kind... [ read more ]

Gregory Porter: Take Me To The Alley

The ineffable charms of Gregory Porter can't help but woo and win over the ear. He's the epitome of soulful sophistication--part tender poet, part cogent preacher, fully a man of the people--and he has a voice that can make the angels weep. While we often bemoan the choices that fame's fickle index... [ read more ]

Brad Shepik / Ron Samworth: Quartet 1991

Tony Reif is calling a mulligan here. Some twenty-five years ago, shortly before he founded and launched the Songlines imprint and long before he was known the world over for his work in the production and promotion of creative music, Reif went into a Seattle studio to produce a recording for a quar... [ read more ]

Steve Wiest And PhrA ntrange: The High Road

You don't encounter a lot of trombone-centric fusion dates these days. But then again, you also don't encounter too many musicians like Steve Wiest, the unabashedly enthusiastic veteran trombonist fronting this project. He's a true polymath, respected as a performer, educator, science fiction author... [ read more ]

David Friesen and Glen Moore: Bactrian

Time and space can take nothing away from certain musical relationships. There are those on-and-off partnerships that flourish regardless of the frequency of encounters and years gone by, and this is clearly one of them. The connection between bass masters David Friesen and m: Glen Moore... [ read more ]

Jacknife: The Music Of Jackie McLean

If you ask any well-informed jazz fans and performers about the legacy of Jackie McLean, you're likely to be met with a response that focuses on one or two specific areas: his work as a mentor-educator and/or his playing on a number of classic Blue Note dates from the '60s. But how many will mention... [ read more ]

Baltazanis: End Of Seas

The bounding main knows no single shape, size, or direction. It's both timeless in nature and organic in its arc and flow. Greek guitarist Costas Baltazanis seems to intuitively understand those facts. His is a music that taps into the water's vastness, appreciates its beauty, respects and harnesses... [ read more ]

Lew Tabackin Trio: Soundscapes

There's no substitute for experiencing jazz live. There are, however, some recordings that manage to do a damn good job coming close. This happens to be one of them. Noted jazz photographer Jimmy Katz, who's quickly developed a strong reputation as a recording engineer and producer who seeks to capt... [ read more ]

Michael Dease: Father Figure

Paying it forward is simply a given in jazz. Long before the music was welcomed in ivory tower institutions and codified for classroom consumption at all levels, seasoned musicians were sharing their hard-earned knowledge with aspiring youngsters on bandstands and in basements, serving as guides, ex... [ read more ]

Christopher Zuar Orchestra: Musings

If you open the packaging for this album, you'll encounter a picture of Christopher Zuar that initially seems to touch on a theme of isolation. Shadows and light play against the wall behind him, but it's Zuar himself, sitting and staring into the distance over his piano, that really draws the eyes... [ read more ]

Darren English: Imagine Nation

Trumpeter Darren English carries the spirit of South Africa and the entire history of jazz in his horn. On this, his debut album, the Cape Town-born, Atlanta-based English pays tribute to the late Nelson Mandela, matches wits and chops with fellow trumpeters m: Russell Gunn and Joe Grans... [ read more ]

Walt Weiskopf: All About the Sound

What is it that drives Walt Weiskopf? It's all about the music, all about the sound. He's reached a large audience in ten years of touring with m: Steely Dan. He's written a half dozen books on jazz improvisation techniques and methods, and he's taught at the Eastman School of Music, Tem...

Darren English: Imagine Nation

Trumpeter Darren English carries the spirit of South Africa and the entire history of jazz in his horn. On this, his debut album, the Cape Town-born, Atlanta-based English pays tribute to the late Nelson Mandela, matches wits and chops with fellow trumpeters m: Russell Gunn and Joe Grans... [ read more ]

Walt Weiskopf: All About the Sound

What is it that drives Walt Weiskopf? It's all about the music, all about the sound. He's reached a large audience in ten years of touring with m: Steely Dan. He's written a half dozen books on jazz improvisation techniques and methods, and he's taught at the Eastman School of Music, Tem...