Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Wellstone Conspiracy - Motives
by John Barron, All About Jazz
The Wellstone Conspiracy is a collective venture for four of the more prolific jazz musicians residing in the Northwest region of the United States. The group consists of Idaho-based saxophonist Brent Jensen and from Seattle, pianist Bill Anschell, bassist Jeff Johnson and drummer John Bishop. The quartet, previously heard together on Jensen's One More Mile (Origin, 2008), hits the mark with Motives, a disc full of stunning interplay and... read more
Doug Beavers Orchestra - Jazz, Baby!
by Harvey Siders, JazzTimes
How young is too young when it comes to exposing your youngsters to jazz? According to the producers of this album, a Bay Area couple with a one-year-old daughter, and the arranger, Doug Beavers Rovira, apparently if you can play or sing nursery rhymes to your toddler, you can begin the jazz indoctrination. Enter Matt Catingub and Linda Harmon to sing and swing them, accompanied by a 21-piece band filled with L.A. and San Francisco players, and... read more
Jerry Heldman - Revelation(s)
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
If you want to feel like a real Seattle jazz scene insider hipster, this twofer is the right place to start. Recorded 40 years ago after an already budding 10 year simpatico with David Friesen, this cat who wore many hats before passing last year created a cross roads in Seattle for jazz to flourish. With Friesen on board as producer and bass/piano fellow traveler, you can get a real feel for how things felt and sounded when the first bunch of... read more
Chicago Jazz Orchestra with Cyrille Aimee - Burstin' Out!
by Dave Sumner, emusic
A wonderful old-school big band album that brings a big sound and an intimate warmth. Led by Cyrille Aimée's inviting vocals, the orchestra hits some classic standards with an embraceable verve. "Yardbird Suite" has trumpeter Marquis Hill taking a nice solo, though its the orchestra's take on "Long As You're Living" that provides the album's highlight. I expected to be entertained, but not by this... read more
Phil Kelly - Convergence Zone
by John Tapscott, amazon.com
Phil Kelly One of the Best Big Band Jazz CDs of '03 January 19, 2004 Kelly moved to the Pacific Northwest in 1998 and put together a band consisting of the top musicians in that area. Finally, in August 2003, the NW Prevailing Winds (with guests Pete Christlieb, Gary Smulyan and Andy Martin aboard) recorded "Convergence Zone." Both the band and the performance are outstanding. This is defintely one of the top big band jazz albums of 2003.... read more
Randy Halberstadt - Flash Point
by George Fendel, Oregon Jazz Society
Seattle pianist Halberstadt is one of those rare, all-purpose cats who, when all's said and done, shines most brightly in a post-bop setting such as this. The quintet here includes Jeff Johnson, bass, and Mark Ivester, drums (his working trio), plus Mark Taylor on alto sax and Thomas Marriott on trumpet and flugelhorn. Of the nine tunes played here, six are originals by Halberstadt, so a brief examination of a few seems in order. The session... read more
Tom Collier - Mallet Jazz
by F. Michael Combs, Percussive Notes
This recording of excellent fidelity features mallet-keyboardist Tom Collier with Emil Richards (marimba), Joe Porcaro (drums), Don Crusin and Mike Lang (piano), Dan Dean (bass) and John Bishop (drums). The CD includes nine new, original pieces for mallet jazz quartet - vibes, marimba, piano, bass and drums. "Mallet Jazz," the first cut, is an up-tempo tune allowing Collier to show his most creative improvisational skills. In "Eddie's Pad,"... read more
Todd Bishop - Little Played Little Bird
by Dave Sumner, Bird Is The Worm Jazz Blog
Taking ownership of a series of obscure Ornette Coleman songs, drummer Todd Bishop shines them through a facet of his own view of the music, while leaving the beating heart of the originals intact, not a scratch upon them.
Most strikingly, the album is an easy listen. Not in the sense that it's straight-forward, but instead, Bishop doesn't needlessly complicate matters. Due to his inventiveness, Coleman's music already comes with its... read more
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