Bassist David Friesen often goes to his secondary instrument—the piano—to add new dimensions in color and texture to his recordings. But completely putting aside his main axe to focus on musing from the bench, as he does on this outing, is a step beyond the norm. Patiently working his fingers around a welcoming Ravenscroft grand, Friesen creates a series of attractive and unostentatious miniatures embodying quietude. Taken together, these... read more
Il quartetto di Florian Hoefner -origini tedesche, residenza da anni a New York - è con Luminosity alla terza uscita discografica e si sente. L'intesa fra i musicisti è perfetta -Seamus Blake è subentrato a Mike Ruby ma sembra membro del gruppo da sempre -la musica ha la precisione di un orologio svizzero, fluisce senza scossoni e senza impedimenti. Vi è inoltre una chirurgica successione di brani dall'andamento lento e riflessivo con... read more
Guitarist Bobby Broom once again proves himself the stellar musician on his latest creation. My Shining Hour features Broom and his trio of drummer Dennis Carroll and drummer Makaya McCraven in a session captured through a single stereo microphone, and spot mics, with all three players in the same room, interacting eye to eye. You can hear it too, and it works. What Broom also does on this effort is to select timeless tunes and perform... read more
I remember JOHN STOWELL [g] from the mid '70s when he made a series of rather ethereal recordings. Over the years he seems to have tempered that sound. His latest pairs him up once more with his long time associate, MICHAEL ZILBER [sax/p]. BASEMENT BLUES [Origin 82717] is with the quartet [John Shifflettb, Jason Lewis drm] recorded 3/12 and 3/15. The program here is made up of 8 originals plus one Jerome Kern [Nobody Else But Me] and one... read more
Guitarist Corey Christiansen began his stint at Origin Records in 2008 with a top notch organ jazz outing, Roll With It. He followed that with an equally engaging disc featuring the same players, Outlaw Tractor on the label in 2010. On these two dates, Christensen and his superb band worked the soul jazz groove typical of the B3 organ genre, featuring a breezy dynamic with superb displays of technique all around, and lots of... read more
Recorded live at the Tugboat Brewing Co., Beautiful You is a stunning document. Tenor saxophonist John Gross and New York-based drummer Billy Mintz-both veterans of the L.A. studios and big bands-are singular forces on their respective instruments. Truly a musician's musician, Gross is a coolly compelling player with an elevated sense of beauty and tension. From his opening notes on "Shmear"-reminiscent of Sonny Rollins' thematic stabs on "East... read more
The Brent Jensen/Rob Walker Quintet opens in a mellow groove and stays there much of the way on this backward- glancing yet quite contemporary album that wouldn't have been out of place in the bop-based Blue Note / Prestige catalogs of the late '50s - early '60s. Alto saxophonist Jensen and trumpeter Walker offer an earnest tribute to their musical predecessors -- especially the legendary Miles Davis -- without imitating them, choosing instead... read more
Saxophonist Richard Cole's third disc as a leader takes a patchwork approach, varying hard edged bop romps with sunny standards and cool contemporary fusion. The personnel is equally varied, as over a dozen of Seattle's better jazz players drift in and out, casting Cole's soulful tenor and quicksilver soprano in ever-changing light. Randy Brecker adds star power and some tasty trumpet to four tracks, but the most effective setting is an... read more
This is just a small collection of the Origin Records reviews. Click here to view all reviews or try to Search for your favorite CD title.
Peter Erskine & The JAM Music Lab All-Stars - Vienna to Hollywood: Impressions of E.W. Korngold & Max Steiner
by Jack Bowers, All About Jazz
Peter Erskine & The JAM Music Lab All-Stars - Vienna to Hollywood: Impressions of E.W. Korngold & Max Steiner
by Bill Milkowski, DownBeat
David Friesen - A Light Shining Through
by Rick Anderson, CD Hotlist - New Releases for Libraries
Michael Dease - Found in Space: The Music of Gregg Hill
by MICHAEL STÜRM, Jazz Podium (Germany)
Peter Erskine & The JAM Music Lab All-Stars - Vienna to Hollywood: Impressions of E.W. Korngold & Max Steiner
by George W Harris, Jazz Weekly
Brad Goode - Polytonal Big Band: The Snake Charmer
by George W Harris, Jazz Weekly
Peter Erskine & The JAM Music Lab All-Stars - Vienna to Hollywood: Impressions of E.W. Korngold & Max Steiner
by Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move
Karrin Allyson - A Kiss for Brazil
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
John La Barbera Big Band - Grooveyard
by Ruud Jonker, FWD Magazine (Netherlands)
Brad Goode - Polytonal Big Band: The Snake Charmer
by Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move