Browse some recent OA2 Reviews.
Danny Green Trio Plus Strings - One Day It Will
by Dan Bilawsky, All About Jazz
While Long Island's Huntington Summer Arts Festival doesn't hold status as a jazz feast per se, the music most certainly plays a significant role on its calendar. The not-so-distant past has seen everybody from drummer Roy Haynes to pianist Vijay Iyer to vocalist Jane Monheit grace the Chapin Rainbow Stage, and the lineup for 2018 had more than its fair share of fine acts to keep up the tradition. The Huntington Arts Council saw fit to program a... read more
Jason Keiser - Shaw's Groove
by Jack Bowers, All About Jazz
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 composer.
The first four songs on Shaw's Groove were written by Shaw himself, among the many he... read more
Rich Pellegrin - Solitude: Solo Improvisations
by Stephen Godsall, Jazz'halo (Belgium)
This album of solo improvisations achieved two things at first listen; it grabbed my attention for 40 minutes when I'd only intended to listen for 10, then it sent me to the piano to try out some of the same ideas. Further listening has confirmed that the music is something special.
Rich Pellegrin is a pianist, composer, writer and professor of music at the University of Florida. His previous recordings include albums with his Seattle based... read more
Barney McClure - Show Me!
by Jack Bowers, All About Jazz
5-STARS! While organist Barney McClure receives top billing on this exhilarating new album, he is happy to share it, for good reason, with the superlative Central Washington University Jazz Band from Ellensburg. As McClure asserts in the liner notes, "I was no more than a lucky rider on the bus." Well, a bit more than that, Barney, as your dynamic Hammond B3 is as pivotal to its auspicious outcome as the band's inspired performance or Phil... read more
Paul Tynan & Aaron Lington - Bicoastal Collective: Chapter Two
by Josh Davies, International Trumpet Guild
Paul Tynan and Aaron Lington collaborate on their second Bicoastal Collective project with a completely different approach than the first. The instrumentation has been cut in half, and the focus has been shifted to yet another coast: England. The relationship between Tynan and Lington began while in school at The University of North Texas but has since been spread from San Jose, California to Ontario, Canada--hence the name of the... read more
Dan Cavanagh - Heart of the Geyser
by Tim Willcox, Jazz Society of Oregon
Fans of Brad Mehldau might enjoy this album, which starts off with the groovy 7/4 "Josephine," which Cavanagh admits is sort of a "Tom Petty meets Brad Mehldau" tune. While Cavanagh doesn't have the technical proficiency of Mehldau (who does?), he makes up for it with beautiful writing and spacious comping and blowing. The only negative aspect of the recording is the piano sound, which seems to be a bit bright and brittle. I wouldn't blame this... read more
Gordon Lee - This Path
by Kyle O'Brien, The Oregonian
Gordon Lee wasn't satisfied with just one trio for his latest recording, This Path. Instead, he enlisted two bass players and two drummers, each lending their signature sounds to this collection of worldly jazz.
Lee, a respected Portland pianist, arranger, composer and educator, has explored many musical styles in four-plus decades in jazz. He's played with some of the best in the business, locally and nationally, including Bobby... read more
Randy Napoleon - Puppets - The Music of Gregg Hill
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
Randy Napoleon sure does put an inimitable spin on the work Gregg Hill, where he employs vocals, many different instruments, and a versatile approach to jazz across these 11 diverse tracks.
"Andy's Lament" starts the listen with warm vocal scatting from Aubrey Johnson, as crisp drumming from Quincy Davis and Napoleon's fluid guitar lines make an indelible impression, and "Fan-O-Gram" follows with a swift and swingin' pace of playful bass... read more
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