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Jesse Davis Quartet: Reflections
by Pierre Giroux
<em>Reflections</em> by alto saxophonist Jesse Davis, joined by pianist Spike Wilner, bassist John Webber, and featured guest drummer Lewis Nash, was recorded at GB’s Juke Joint in Long Island City in March 2025 and is the kind of album that doesn’t announce itself loudly. It just feels lived in. Unhurried, assured, yet steeped in memory and shaped by the long arc of experience. It is delivered with the easy authority of someone who knows who he is.A Davis ...
Continue ReadingJesse Davis Quartet: Reflections
by Jack Bowers
New Orleans-bred Jesse Davis delves into the soulful side of the alto saxophone on Reflections, his tenth album as leader and one that was recorded on New York's Long Island, far from Davis' home base of Verona, Italy, where he has lived for more than 20 years with his wife and daughter. One of the perks of recording in New York is the accessibility of blue-ribbon rhythm sections, and Davis has checked that box by enlisting the services ...
Continue ReadingHarold Mabern: Afro Blue (10th Anniversary Edition)
by Bridget A. Arnwine
Pianist Harold Mabern (1936-2019) was talented beyond measure. Though he never received the honor and distinction of the prestigious NEA Jazz Master designation, his music and the musicians who knew him tell a different story. That story unfolds beautifully throughout the 10th anniversary reissue of Mabern's 2015 recording, Afro Blue (Smoke Session Records). The newly remixed and remastered recording features performances from some of the most celebrated names in vocal jazz, including Gregory Porter, Norah Jones, Kurt Elling, Jane Monheit, ...
Continue ReadingTodd Herbert: Captain Hubs
by Jack Bowers
After listening closely to Captain Hubs, Illinois-bred, New York-based tenor saxophonist Todd Herbert's fourth album as leader of his own groups, one question immediately springs to mind: why is this man not scoring high in any polls? Herbert is quite clearly the equal of those who are. Winning polls, that is. Technically, he is a monster; creatively, about as adroit and ingenious as they come. But on the traditional year-end critics and readers' lists, Herbert's name is nowhere to be ...
Continue ReadingGeorge Coleman: With Strings
by Jack Bowers
Sooner or later (usually later), a jazz saxophonist (or other instrumentalist) will entertain a desire to leave his or her normal comfort zone and record an album with “class." In other words, cue the string section and get ready to score some ballads. Tenor virtuoso George Coleman, who likely needs no introduction to even the more casual jazz fan, is the latest to take the With Strings plunge, diving headlong into a number of sumptuous, string-laden arrangements by Bill Dobbins. ...
Continue ReadingGeorge Coleman: George Coleman with Strings
by Jack Kenny
The allure of recording with strings has captivated many jazz icons, from Stan Getz and Dizzy Gillespie to, most famously, Charlie Parker. For some, it is a pursuit of a different kind of respectability, an envying nod to the classical world. For George Coleman, a revered NEA Jazz Master, it was a chance to expand his artistry. As he explained in an interview with Rob Shepherd (2024): “I try not to be close-minded but instead try to expand my interest ...
Continue ReadingGeorge Coleman: George Coleman with Strings
by Dan McClenaghan
Tenor saxophonist George Coleman decided to leave the orbit of trumpeter Miles Davis in 1964. Or he got an elbow to the ribs and a hip check to leave the quintet, to be replaced by Wayne Shorter in the saxophone slot. Three top-notch live albums came out of the group that featured Coleman: In Europe: Live at the Antibes Jazz Festival (1964); My Funny Valentine: In Concert (1965); and “Four and More:" In Concert (1966), all on Columbia Records. Add ...
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