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Philip Norris
Alexa Tarantino: The Roar and the Whisper
by Mike Jurkovic
If there is one true sound to describe the sound of luminous liberation, young veteran saxophonist/flautist/composer Alexa Tarantino captures it handily and shares it profusely with her band and everyone else within earshot of The Roar and the Whisper. Tarantino, whose star continues to flare via her ongoing gig at Jazz At Lincoln Center and her stint alongside Renee Rosnes and Allison Miller in the high flying all woman supergroup Artemis on their head spinning second disc, In ...
Continue ReadingJoshua Redman: Words Fall Short
by Doug Collette
After extended tenures on Warner Brothers and Nonesuch Records, saxophonist/composer/bandleader Joshua Redman debuted on the Blue Note jazz label in 2023 with Where We Are. And while its successor, Words Fall Short, is right in line with that record by featuring vocals, it initiates a new phase in the leader's career by showcasing his new quartet in its recorded debut. Formed as prelude to the world tour designed to support the previous effort, pianist Paul Cornish, bassist Philip ...
Continue ReadingEmmet Cohen: Vibe Provider
by Mike Jurkovic
All round shaman, musical advocate, and positive vibe provider, Nigerian-born Michael Olufunmilola (Funmi) Ononaiye (1968-2023) was known and beloved by everyone in the artistic and social circles of Manhattan's music scene. He was an A&R rep at Atlantic Records. He was a DJ, percussionist, and chief programmer at Jazz at Lincoln Center. He had a deep effect on everyone. That effect can be viscerally felt on the way-too-good, Vibe Provider. It sails. It sweeps in on a hop ...
Continue ReadingUlysses Owens, Jr. and Generation Y: A New Beat
by Jack Bowers
The rhythms presented on award-winning drummer Ulysses Owens Jr.'s latest album are not exactly A New Beat, as they have been heard in various configurations for at least eighty years or more, but they do provide a plausible indication of the path that Art Blakey's legendary Jazz Messengers would presumably have followed had Blakey lived into the twenty-first century. Owens, who teaches at the Juilliard School in New York City, has a knack for spotting and encouraging ...
Continue ReadingUlysses Owens, Jr. and Generation Y: A New Beat
by Glenn Astarita
A New Beat, crafted by the multi-Grammy award-winning drummer Ulysses Owens Jr. and his Generation Y outfit, materializes as a vivid emblem of jazz's evolving dynamics. This album, an amalgamation of nine tracks, epitomizes the fusion of classic jazz standards with inventive perspectives. Among its highlights, “Bird Lives" notably shines for its technical brilliance and tribute to jazz icons, striking a harmonious balance between honoring the past and embracing the new. This track, alongside the production's repertoire, demonstrates the ensemble's ...
Continue ReadingVeronica Swift: Veronica Swift
by Mike Jurkovic
Leave it to the irascibly spirited and octane-charged Veronica Swift to release the party record of the year! From the pure joy scatting of the blast-off opener “I Am What I Am" (from Broadway's grand musical La Cage aux Folles) to the rabble rousing, mad-cap Joan Jett jam with The Ramones finale “Don't Rain On My Parade" (only available on the CD and digital versions), the incredibly talented and free-swinging Swift swings for the fences and wins the home-run derby ...
Continue ReadingVeronica Swift: Veronica Swift
by Katchie Cartwright
Veronica Swift is a masterful jazz singer. Her craft is immaculate. She scats like nobody's business and her texted improvisations are inventive. What's more, she always seems to sing straight from the heart. All that might be enough for some people, not Swift. She is an artistic adventurer who wonders aloud on social media: “What would it sound like if you put together Ella Fitzgerald and--I don't know--Jimi Hendrix?" An answer is the third track on her self-titled ...
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