Shaw's Groove

Jason Keiser is a masterful guitarist whose melodic improvisations and eloquent chord melodies reveal a prodigious and promising talent.
Minor 7th Acoustic Guitar Magazine

Joined by master guitarist, John Stowell, and four pillars of the Bay Area jazz scene, guitarist Jason Keiser dives into the music and aesthetic of trumpeter Woody Shaw's great recordings of the '70s. His most popular originals, "The Moontrane" "Zoltan," and "Katerina Ballerina," as well as his live repertoire standards "Obsequious," and "Organ Grinder," are orchestrated for the special grouping of the two guitars, Erik Jekabson on trumpet and Aaron Lington on baritone saxophone for the front line, with the powerful rhythm section of Dan Robbins and Jason Lewis providing a buoyant, churning momentum. Keiser offers his own "Shaw's Groove" as a coda and a nod to trumpet innovator's influence over generations.

Production Info:

Produced by Jason Keiser
Recorded on August 18th, 2022 by Steven Glaze
at Highland Studios, Los Gatos, CA
Mixed by Steven Glaze
at Tone Freq Recording, San Jose, CA
Mastered by Ron Rice, Falls Church, VA
Photography by Walter Wagner & Marilyn Wagner
Cover design & layout by John Bishop

Reviews of Shaw's Groove

Jazz Weekly (George W Harris)
Guitarist Jason Keiser leads a two guitar team alongside John Stowell with the horns of Erik Jekabson/tp-fh and Aaron Lington/bs and a rhythm section of Dan Robbins/b and Jason Lewis/dr for an album focusing on material written by the late great Woody Shaw, along with some material from the pen of Ronnie Matthews, Larry Young and himself. While ...

Jazz'halo (Belgium) (Georges Tonla Briquet)
An ode to Woody Shaw with two guitarists in the ranks, a horn section with trumpet and baritone saxophone all propelled by a rhythm section of double bass and drums. It was guitarist Jason Keizer who had the idea to pay tribute to the trumpeter who is considered one of the last great innovators of classic jazz. Erik Jekabson was given the task o ...

All About Jazz (Jack Bowers)
The "Shaw" in guitarist Jason Keiser's album Shaw's Groove is the late great Woody Shaw, one of the more innovative and influential jazz trumpeters of the twentieth century. Even though he lived only forty-four years (he died in May 1989), Shaw was an important role model whose sweeping influence remains strong to this day, both as a player and com ...

Take Effect (Tom Haugen)
The esteemed guitarist Jason Keiser is joined by John Stowell, Erik Jekabson, Aaron Lington, Dan Robbins and Jason Lewis for these lively and diverse jazz tunes that explore Woody Shaw's fantastic recordings from the ‘70s. "Organ Grinder" starts the listen with Lewis' frisky drums and Lington's expressive baritone sax making for a lively jazz ...

Jazz'n'More (Switzerland) (Michael van Gee)
5/5 - "UNMISTAKABLY GREAT" There are many young musicians who are making jazz connoisseurs sit up and take notice with their debut albums. This is also the case with the guitarist Jason Keiser and his album Shaw's Groove, which (with the exception of the title track) contains compositions by the trumpeter Woody Shaw and the pianist Ronnie Mathews ( ...