Guitarist Juanma Trujillo's Howl explores some of the ways acoustic guitar can flourish in a small jazz group setting. Instead of playing simple rhythm parts, he is fully engaged in the music made by his three bandmates. His tangled strumming makes an interesting counterpoint to Kevin Sun's barrelling tenor sax on "Catharsis." On "Howl," his abstract phrases pirouette over the stormy bustle of Matt Honor's drums and Andrew Schiller's bass before Sun storms in, stuttering and wailing off Trujillo's chords.

Juanma Trujillo: Howl

Denton, TX

After many years in the Windy City, most notably as the leader of the JazzTech Big Band, trumpeter Rob Parton wanted a change of scenery, which brought him to the University of North Texas, where he joined the faculty in 2019. And of course, that meant he now had the opportunity to work with lots of premium large-ensemble talent, as the college has been an incubator for big-band jazz for decades. Many of Parton's colleagues from UNT and other stalwarts of the Dallas-Fort Worth jazz scene are featured on Relentless, his initial offering from a group he calls Ensemble 9+.

Rob Parton's Ensemble 9+: Relentless

New music from Saxophonist Bill Evans, british band Lydian Collective, The Fearless Flyers, and Finnish guitarist Varre Vartianen with special guest Mike Stern. Australian guitarist Josh Meader, Daniel Weiss, Roman Bondarenko, Antoine Fafard, Gavin Harrison and Danish guitarist Soren Lee. Playlist. Bill Evans "Camel Strut" from Who I Am (Vansman)...

New music with Bill Evans, Lydian Collective, Ron Bosse and Josh Meader

Rickie Lee Jones, Butch Walker, Jesse Malin, Lucinda... All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Lucinda Williams At Stern Grove 2024

Disco, the glittering genre that dominated the dance floors of the 1970s and early 1980s, remains a timeless celebration of rhythm and glamour. Originating from a fusion of funk, soul, and pop, disco music captured the spirit of liberation and joy with its infectious beats and dazzling melodies. As we dive into the top 15 best disco songs of all time, we journey through the vibrant era that brought us iconic dance anthems and unforgettable grooves. From the groundbreaking hits that shaped the genre to the tracks that continue to make us move, these selections represent the pinnacle of disco’s influence on music and culture. Each song on this list is a testament to the genre’s ability to evoke joy and encourage self-expression, whether through the classic sound of Donna Summer’s empowering anthems or the irresistible rhythm of the Bee Gees. Join us as we celebrate the quintessential disco tracks that not only defined a generation but also continue to resonate across the decades, proving that the spirit of disco is as alive today as it ever was.

15 Best Disco Songs of All Time

Holiday Soirée features the dynamic vocals of Courtney Lemmon, Gina Saputo, and Crystal Starr, whose voices weave together like a cozy winter scarf, wrapping listeners in warmth and cheer. Jazz & Blues Revue Featuring George Kahn Unveils Holiday Magic with New Album “Holiday Soirée”. Los Angeles, CA...

Jazz & Blues Revue Featuring George Kahn Unveils Holiday Magic With New Album 'Holiday Soirée'

Trumpeter and flugelhornist Feya Faku is recognized for his contributions to jazz and has built a significant international presence, collaborating with prominent musicians and participating in prestigious festivals worldwide. His latest project Inkumbulo (Reminiscence) is a celebration of this journey of allyship, marking 20 years of the South African / Swiss Exchange program, a creative cross-pollination including paying tribute to his loved ones.

Inkumbulo With Trumpeter And Flugelhorn Player Feya Faku

Towards the end of the recording session for “Heart”, I asked Al Foster if he’d be open to playing a few completely improvised things. We had already recorded a lot of standards and, Al being such a fantastic listener and improviser, I wanted to see what would happen without a framework. I wasn’t sure he was going to see yes, but he was down to do it, even though, much to my surprise, he said he had never done it before. He ended up loving it. I had noticed that when warming up for the session, Al played some really great grooves, so for “Lead the Way”, I just asked him to start a groove and we all played off that, hence the title!

Lead the Way by Jerome Sabbagh

Los Angeles, CA

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Herbie J Pilato

It's been more than four decades since former child star William “Billie” Thomas Jr. died in Los Angeles of a heart attack at only 49 on October 10, 1980. Best known as "Buckwheat," the character he portrayed in the original Hal Roach-ignited Our Gang/Little Rascals classic film shorts from 1934 to 1944, Thomas faced similar challenges and misfortunes of several of his co-stars and other former child actors. This is his story.

Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas - 'Little Rascals'/'Our Gang' Child Star: 44 Years After His Tragic Death

Some teachers, a doctor, and a marine biologist sit down around a kitchen table with a few glasses of wine on a Tuesday night to sing a few songs. You may not expect much, but the musical group, Coda, and their harmonies are enough to give you goosebumps. Based out...

LISTEN: Irish group Coda sings hauntingly beautiful song

In 2019, after I'd been writing for DownBeat Magazine for about a decade, I was asked to review a batch of new albums from Brazil, including one by a Rio de Janeiro-based singer named Delia Fischer who wrote her own songs. I gathered that, in addition, she was a jazz pianist, an arranger, and the musical director for several hit musicals in Rio. She had worked with Brazilian legends like Marcos Valle, Egberto Gismonti, and Milton Nascimento, who recorded one of her songs that became the theme for a TV Globo soap opera. This album, her fifth, was called Tempo Minimo.

Delia Fischer: Beyond Bossa

Sonny Simmons calls the early 1960s “a time of tragedy. I am conscious of that when I play this.”. This recording is, at first glance, a bit of an unusual choice by Craft Recording for its Contemporary Records Acoustic Sound Series audiophile vinyl series. Neither Prince Lasha (pronounced Lashay) nor Sonny Simmons make an appearance in Bill Kirchner's The Oxford Companion to Jazz (Oxford University Press, 2000). An earlier reviewer for AAJ allowed as how both players were talented, but probably understood no more about Ornette Coleman's theory of "harmolodics" than the average listener did. Skepticism or, indeed, lack of notice may be understandable. Coleman was hardly transparent about what he had been up to, so why expect any more from some followers? The judgment is, perhaps, a bit unfair. At a remove of sixty years from the recording, and the passing of the principals, perspective, if not objectivity, may be somewhat easier to come by. Lasha and Simmons were not simply disciples of Coleman, they were childhood friends of his; assuming they had no idea what he was up to is, for want of a better word, unserious.

Prince Lasha: The Cry!

Jason Stein would never in a million years characterize Anchors as his variation of A Love Supreme (Impulse!, 1965). But a comparison can be made. John Coltrane's quartet recording was the most personal and profound statement of his career. The same can be said for Stein and Anchors. He had taken time off from recording and performing due to some chronic pain that plagued him. Stein set about diving deeply into the body, studying massage, specifically trigger point therapy, practicing breathing techniques, and taking cold water plunges. One suspects Wim Hof may have been involved by some means in Stein's journey and transformation.

Jason Stein: Anchors

Blue Note Records has embodied the best jazz has to offer for over 80 years. With a catalog of greats, from Horace Silver, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Lee Morgan, Hank Mobley, Art Blakey, Herbie Hancock, Dexter Gordon and countless others from the bop and post-bop eras, to the funky recordings that hip-hop artists have repeatedly sampled, to its current roster, the label remains at the forefront of the genre.

Designing Jazz: The Iconic Album Covers of Reid Miles

American Songwriter

Here’s wishing a very Happy Birthday to founding Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler, who turned 75 today (August 12). Knopfler was the lead singer, lead guitarist, songwriter, and driving creative force for the popular British band, which formed in 1977. Since Dire Straits’ breakup in 1995, Knopfler has focused...

Watch Dire Straits Play “Sultans of Swing” Live in 1983, Featuring a Jaw-Dropping Guitar Performance from Mark Knopfler

Devra Lee

Disclaimer: This content was written by Devra Lee for general informational and entertainment purposes only. This service is to provide astrological information that has been researched, recorded, and observed by the author.

Horoscope of the Day, Saturday, August 31st

Luiz Millan's new single, "Madrugada", is a beautiful ballad featuring gorgeous performances by two living legends of contemporary jazz: clarinet virtuoso Eddie Daniels and vibraphone master Mike Mainieri. Produced by Arnaldo DeSouteiro and arranged by Michel Freidenson. Personnel. Date featured. This song appears by permission of the contributing artist and/or...

Madrugada (featuring Eddie Daniels & Mike Mainieri) by Luiz Millan

Wild-willed vibraphonist Patricia Brennan gets straight down to business without any fanciful mission declaration with the Afro-Cuban, effusively powered, clear-the-dancefloor and blow-the-ceiling-off this joint "Los Otros Yo (The Other Selves)," the opening cut of her third album Breaking Stretch. She does so in a captivatingly, wickedly good way. Brennan—who has...

Patricia Brennan: Breaking Stretch

New York City, NY

Fellow geezers might remember how, in an item describing the atmosphere at New York City's fabled Rainbow Room, The New Yorker's Goings On About Town section sniffed "where a club soda costs about ten dollars," or words to that effect. The Rockefeller Center boîte is no longer open to the public and the Goings On section has lost its last two words and most of its content, but fret not. Gotham glamour is alive and well in the hands of pianist Bill Charlap's peerless trio. Nothing can evoke the swank of Old New York like Gershwin, and Charlap and his longtime mates, bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington show how it's done with four perfect choruses of "The Man I Love," briskly swung and perfectly rendered. And Then Again (Blue Note Records, 2024) is a live recording from the Village Vanguard, a very different sort of room than its Midtown counterpart, but no less an icon of New Yorkishness. As if to tie a bow on the concept, Charlap wryly quotes the iconic big tune from "Rhapsody In Blue" in his tag. I love a Gershwin tune. How about you?

Bill Charlap Trio: The Man I Love

Seattle, WA

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Maria Shimizu Christensen

So the big holiday weekend is here and the weather forecast is fantastic. If you haven’t already decided what you’re going to do, there’s plenty to choose from. Of course, there are some big events that we look forward to all year, but if huge crowds aren’t your thing, there are smaller happenings all over the region.

Big Events and Other Things To Do for Labor Day Weekend

NewsBreak

El Comité: Wonderwall

What do you get when you form a band from seven of Cuba's top Latin jazz performers? Answer: It's a committee, or rather El Comite, a...

El Comité: Wonderwall

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