Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Chicago Jazz Orchestra with Cyrille Aimee - Burstin' Out!
by Thomas W. Altizer, Amazon.com
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
Chris Walden Big Band - No Bounds
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
Chris Walden has been on a heck of a roll lately, with two Grammy nods for last year's Home of My Heart, one of the finest big band efforts of the year. He also in did the orchestrations for the acclaimed Michael Bolton set Bolton Swings Sinatra.
Home of My Heart deserved all the accolades that came its way; No Bounds is an even stronger disc. Walden is a genius at freshening up the big band genre with sparkling arrangements, whether in the... read more
José Luiz Martins - Odyssey Mixtape
by Raul da Gama, Latin Jazz Network
There is extraordinarily little, by way of anticipation, that can prepare one for the ferocious energy of Odyssey Mixtape from the pianist and composer José Luiz Martins. The music detonates with the intensity of several suns exploding right out of the gate. The ferocity of the music owes much to the artist's experience with focal dystonia, a potentially career-ending condition.
Faced with such a neurological movement disorder... read more
John Stowell - Resonance
by John Henry, Audiophile Audition
Portland, Oregon-based guitarist Stowell has a super-cool approach to his instrument but with a minimum of fuss can tear up the strings with some complex improvising that seems to occur at almost the speed of light. He plays here acoustic-electric guitars made by Portland custom guitar-maker Mike Doolin, and using nylon strings. Doolin invited Stowell over to try out his latest creations and in the process taped him playing a tune on each... read more
Rich Thompson - Who Do You Have to Know?
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
The drummer Rich Thompson has an impressive resume and he adds to that body of work here with 9 tunes that welcome Corey Christiansen, Bobby Floyd and Peter Chwazik to the fusion formula.
The title track starts the listen with Floyd's atmospheric organ and Thompson's agile drumming in the flowing, worldly jazz climate, and "Street Cred" follows with a playful and melodic spirit that's full of Christiansen's flowing guitar work.
Halfway... read more
Mark Colby - Reflections
by Ric Bang, The Davis Enterprise, April 2, 2009
Tenor saxman Mark Colby has played, recorded and toured with many jazz legends during the past 40 years, including Maynard Ferguson, Gerry Mulligan, Clark Terry and Charlie Haden.
Although Colby isn't well known outside the Chicago area, he's a "first call" musician when name artists come to town. And while Colby has recorded only two albums under his own name, he has been heard on literally thousands of commercials in the Windy City. He also... read more
Jessica Williams - Songs For A New Century
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
If you slip into Jessica Williams' web site and ride the currents of her blog, you could get the feeling that the (proudly) sixty year-old jazz pianist is something of an eccentric. Which is a good thing?in this case, an eccentric being one who has walked away from the hype, b.s. and group think with her head held high, coming up with her own take on the world and this thing called life that we're trying to navigate with as much grace as... read more
Alex Graham - Brand New
by George Fendel, Platter Chatter
I must admit that the first thing that caught my eye on this CD was, with apologies, not the name Alex Graham, but the names Jim Rontondi (trumpet); Steve Davis (trombone); David Hazeltine (piano); Rodney Whitaker (bass); and Carl Allen (drums). When you're in that kind of musical company, it's a pretty fair bet you too have what it takes. And Alex Graham shows there's no doubt on an array of interesting tunes ranging from a couple high flying... read more
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