Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Tom Collier - Mallet Jazz
by John Dworkin, Jazz Review
The list of jazz vibraphonists that are household names (in jazz households, that is) is not very long. Not as long as, say, that same list made up of tenor saxophonists. Lionel Hampton, Milt Jackson, Bobby Hutcherson, Gary Burton, Roy Ayers - probably a few others. The fact that you're likely to hear less of this particular instrument in a jazz context than a piano or a drum set is one of its charms. Since its use is comparatively rare, in the... read more
Hal Galper Quartet featuring Jerry Bergonzi - Cubist
by Tom McCarter, KZSU, 90.1, Stanford, CA
Galper is back with his trio in top form, & invited saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi into the fold. It was an inspired addition to the sound. Bergonzi is one of those distinctively daring players who doesn't get the recognition he deserves. He can be fierce; his tone is muscular. In the trio's ruminations and maelstroms he can sound like the voice of reason, or like a ranting maniac (with a method to his... read more
Tim Horner - The Head of the Circle
by Dave Sumner, emusic
emusic Pick of the Week - Hard to believe that this is just a sextet recording. Horner gets such a huge, yet finely detailed sound out of the group that you'd think they had a couple extra sets of arms helping with the heavy lifting. Lyrical as hell, and uplifting to boot. Joe Locke's vibes typically sound magical, but on this recording, he's casting spells left and right. I thought nothing could get better than Ted Nash's bass... read more
Michael Dease - MSU Jazz Trombones: Spartan Strong
by J.D. Considine, DownBeat Magazine (Hot Box)
Somewhere in the jazzosphere there may be those who, upon hearing Michael Dease play baritone sax on recent albums, thought, "Gosh, I wish there were more trombone." If so, this is the album for you. Spartan Strong, which showcases the young talent in his Michigan State University Jazz Trombone program, features 22 — count 'em, 22 — trombonists across its 14 tracks. Think of it as a big band after the leader fired all the trumpet and... read more
Mimi Fox - This Bird Still Flies
by Andrew Gilbert, The Mercury News
BEST OF 2019 Vallejo guitarist Mimi Fox extends her reputation as one of jazz's finest solo practitioners with an eclectic set unified by her unabashedly open-hearted sensibility as she transmutes folk tunes, jazz standards, original compositions and popular songs into revelatory personal... read more
Tom Collier - Alone in the Studio
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
One of the most eclectic multi-instrumentalists you are ever going to run across, Collier pulls the sum total of 50 years at this gig together with a set that has you rapt by things like vibe solos played with such an innocence and lack of guile you almost forget where you are. It's the chops---they're well done. Smart and sly jazz that takes you from classics to originals, he's been everywhere with everyone and it's easy to see why.... read more
Matt Otto - Umbra
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
The tenor sax extraordinaire Matt Otto has a lengthy history of live performances, and here he captures that energy with Jeff Harshbarger, John Kizilarmut, Hermon Mehari, Matt Villinger and Alex Frank for these 9 fusion filled songs.
'Little Things" wastes no time making an impression with Otto's radiant sax alongside Kizilarmut's agile drumming, and "Hawk" follows with a radiant demeanor that emits a calming intimacy that makes great use... read more
Peter Erskine & The JAM Music Lab All-Stars - Vienna to Hollywood: Impressions of E.W. Korngold & Max Steiner
by Peter Erskine, All About Jazz - Liner Notes
Hollywood called...
...and Max Steiner was the first of this dynamic duo to answer, arriving there in 1929, initially working for the RKO Studios as an orchestrator and then as a composer. This was not his first affiliation with Hollywood, however; he functioned as Fox Studio's musical director, adding live music to silent films presented in New York theaters where he had already established himself on Broadway. The call to come west must have... read more
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