Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Paul Ricci - The Path
by Dee Dee McNeil, Musical Memoirs
This is funk and fusion at its best. All the recorded music is composed by guitarist and band leader, Paul Ricci. As he states in the album liner notes:
"I collected my experiences and influences ...together in these compositions, in search of a personal common thread. New York has a mysterious way of presenting me with the cultural confluence of jazz, rock, blues, hard bop, organ trios, R&B, pop, Rhumba, Samba, varied Caribbean and... read more
John Stowell & Dan Dean - Rain Painting
by Joe Finn, Jazz Guitar Today
I wanted to mention how much I am enjoying the 2021 album "Rain Painting" by John Stowell & Dan Dean. Modernity meets tradition in this collection of Stowell's compositions and Dean's wordless vocal arrangements and bass playing. The guitar, bass and vocal sounds are all very much in keeping with the heritage of the jazz style. And Stowell's playing swings like crazy. His improvisation is unfailingly melodic and he doesn't tend to repeat himself... 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
The Spin Quartet - In Circles
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
A crew of hitters familiar to fans of the Origin label or contemporary jazz in general, they band together for their first as a band and their well wrought forward thinking tunes will have you on board in no time. Certainly sounding like it's the right time and place for them to step out on their owns, this free-ish jazz is a gasser. High octane, high energy throughout and a sure fire... read more
May Okita - Art of Life
by Scott Yanow, Downbeat
Tokyo-born May Okita spent several years living in Los Angeles, where she studied clinical psychiatry at UCLA and sang in area jazz clubs. Shortly before she returned to Tokyo, Okita recorded Art Of Life in a trio with pianist
Josh Nelson and guitarist Larry Koonse.
She has a pleasant voice, obviously loves the material here and takes most of the melodies pretty straightahead, other than scatting a bit during the closing vamp of "Let's Face... read more
Mimi Fox - Standards, Old & New
by Barry Cleveland, Guitar Player Magazine
Mimi Fox Expands Jazz Guitar from the Inside Out
MIMI FOX WAS A PRECOCIOUS YOUNGSTER, playing drums and then guitar before reaching her teens. She rapidly taught herself to play pop, folk, R&B, and other styles?but it was encountering John Coltrane?s Giant Steps that set her firmly on her current path. She relocated from New York to the San Francisco Bay Area around 1980, a time when there was a vibrant local jazz scene. ?I used... read more
Michael Dease - Found in Space: The Music of Gregg Hill
by Carmel De Soto, Jazz Music Archives
In the vast universe of jazz, where the echoes of the past continually meld with the explorations of the present moment, Michael Dease's "Found in Space: The Music of Gregg Hill" is a journey through the mind of one of America's most idiosyncratic composers. Dease, a formidable trombonist and educator, is no stranger to innovation. Yet, with this album, he boldly ventures into the uncharted territories of Gregg Hill's compositions, offering an... read more
Michael Dease - City Life: Music of Gregg Hill
by Editor, JazzTimes
TOP JAZZ RELEASES - JUNE 2025
Trombonist Michael Dease scales back to trio on the first half of City Life, his third Origin release devoted to music by composer Gregg Hill (after The Other Shoe and Found in Space, both of which had fuller instrumentation). Disc one finds the leader stretching out in a chordless context with bassist Linda May Han Oh and drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts. The format gives Dease endless room to deal on a high level... read more
Looking for a specific review?
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.
Search Reviews:
Recently Added Reviews:
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