Songs of Earth dispenses with the upright bass and trap drum kit for a solo piano recital from Pacific Northwest player Jessica Williams. She had built up a healthy discography before she started devoting herself to solo settings in the eighties and these mostly improvised meditations were taken from tapings over a two year period (2009-2011) at Seattle's Triple Door. Pensive is the operative word here drawn from a half-dozen Williams writings... read more
Dee Daniels is the kind of singer who really takes us back to our precious time spent in jazz clubs on the south side of Chicago a few decades back - during the days when the old school jazz singer seemed to be a dying breed, as few labels really understood how to capture their genius or present them to the public. Daniels has an easygoing, relaxed way of putting over a tune - yet still manages to come across with a rich, soulful vibe throughout... read more
Jazz innovator, early soprano saxophone pioneer, gifted improviser with a tone so distinctive it can be recognized within microseconds--this is what musically knowledgeable folks tend to think of when Sidney Bechet's name comes up. Composer? Not so much. But the New Orleans legend's catalog of originals was sizable, and fellow soprano master Dave Liebman has done us all a service by researching and interpreting a few highlights, with the expert... read more
What an appropriate album title for a gal whose career got started because of a dare in a karaoke bar where an agent was in the audience (in Hollywood, natch). With a bunch of solid New York players bringing the highlights to her originals, this set rides the range where jazz meets art in a lounge where the drinks are just right. A high water mark of a sitting down jazz vocal... read more
Drummer Tad Britton is an American story. Born and raised in Sturgis South Dakota, a town of five thousand. This is the fabric. Not all towns are five thousand for jazz musicians to materialize, to further their art. How could Shenandoah, Iowa know that Charlie Haden would become a fine jazz artist?
The jam session is a great teacher. All towns in a rural mid west seem five thousand, except Des Moines and other University state college towns.... read more
This album swings! The vocalist, Cyrille Aimée, is a perfect addition to one of the tightest big band ensembles in memory. From the first cut, "What A Little Moonlight Can Do" to the extraordinary "It Don't Mean A Thing..." both the band and the singer are in perfect harmony and simply raise the roof! To see this pairing live would no doubt be an unforgettable experience. But until the Chicago Jazz Orchestra and Cyrille Aimée come to a... read more
4-STARS Benjamin Boone's set with this band born and grown in Ghana is a genuine cross-cultural jazz Joy.
The seeds of Joy were planted when composer-saxophonist Boone spent a year as a US Fulbright Scholar in Ghana in sabbatical from his professorship at California State University (Fresno), to study the country's music and musical traditions. The music Boone found made him feel at home: "These guys know American jazz inside and... read more
Drummer Michael Waldrop explores deep and exciting grooves with percussionist Jose Rossy joining in with his team of Martin Gjakonovski/b (and cameo work with Chris Symer) and Vasil Hadzimanov/p for a collection of mostly originals. The grooves simmer on the jungle pulse of "Native Son", with Hadzimanov sparkling over the galloping joy of rhythm. Waldrop brings a soulful shuffle to the driving " El Vino" and a simmering sizzle to "Belgrade" with... 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.
Abate Berihun & The Addis Ken Project - Addis Ken
by Hanna Kay, Cult News (Paris)
Abate Berihun & The Addis Ken Project - Addis Ken
by Budapest, Rudolf Radnai
Abate Berihun & The Addis Ken Project - Addis Ken
by Editor, Bman's Blues Report
Jared Hall - Hometown
by Editor, Bman's Blues Report
Dawn Clement - Dear Ms. Dearie
by Editor, Bman's Blues Report
Jared Hall - Hometown
by Dee Dee McNeil, Making A Scene
Affinity Trio - New Outlook
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
Michael Dease Big Band - Return Trajectory
by Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move
Brad Goode Quintet Feat. Ernie Watts - Live Your Dream: Live at North Street Cabaret
by Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move
Maja Jaku - Blessed & Bewitched
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect