Reviews - Jerry Vivino - Coast To Coast - Jerry Vivino is perhaps best known for playing tenor with the Basic Cable Band, the house group for the Conan O'Brien Show. The older brother of guitarist Jimmy Vivino, he grew up in a very musical household. While he started [...]
Reviews - The Django Festival All Stars - Attitude Manouche - The comeback of Django Reinhardt's music and style is unprecedented in jazz history. The great gypsy guitarist, had no real competitors when he burst upon the European jazz scene in 1933, topping the earlier accomplishments of Eddie Lang [...]
Reviews - Tia Fuller - Diamond Cut -Tia Fuller is one of the top alto-saxophonists in jazz of the past decade. She plays with the passion of a Jackie McLean. Every note means something to her and is expressed emotionally and with passion. Born in Colorado to a pair of local [...]
Reviews - Kenny Barron Quintet - Concentric Circles - One of the great veterans of jazz, pianist Kenny Barron, who recently turned 75, has been an important part of the jazz scene since the early 1960s. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Barron was a pro as a teenager. His older [...]
Reviews - Oscar Peterson - Plays - Producer Norman Granz, who discovered Oscar Peterson playing in Montreal in 1949, loved the pianist's playing so much that he presented Peterson with Jazz At The Philharmonic, became his manager, and recorded him prolifically during the 1950s for his labels (which included [...]
Reviews - Martial Solal - My One And Only Love - One of Europe's (and jazz's) finest pianists during the past 60 years, Martial Solal turned 90 last Aug. 23. Born in Algiers and a resident of Paris since 1950, Solal gained experience early on playing with both the [...]
Reviews - The Manhattan Transfer - The Junction - The Manhattan Transfer was originally founded in 1969 by Tim Hauser. After one recording, that version of the group broke up and can now be thought of as a false start. In 1972 Hauser tried again, putting together a very [...]
Reviews - David Kikoski - Kayemode - Although never the most famous of jazz pianists, David Kikoski has been one of the most vital of the past 30 years. He joined Roy Haynes' group back in 1986 (they have played together off and on ever since) and has since [...]
Reviews Eva Cassidy Songbird 20 There are three remarkable facts about the late singer Eva Cassidy. One is that she had a tragically brief life, passing away in 1996 at the age of 33 from melanoma. Another is that during her lifetime she displayed the ability to credibly and [...]
Reviews Miles Davis & John Coltrane The Final Tour In 1960, John Coltrane faced one of the turning points of his career. A member of the Miles Davis Quintet and Sextet during 1955-56 and since 1958, Coltrane had recently recorded his monumental Giant Steps album and was more than [...]