Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Geof Bradfield - African Flowers
by , TheJazzPage.com
In 2008, multi-reed instrumentalist Geof Bradfield was a member of a month-long musical tour of the African countries of Rwanda, Uganda, Congo and Zimbabwe sponsored by the U.S. State Department and Jazz at Lincoln Center. It was part of a program to take American music abroad. Bradfield, however, received as much as he gave to the experience, soaking in a great deal of African music while on the tour. African Flowers is the product of his... read more
Giacomo Gates - Centerpiece
by Elliott Simon, All About Jazz/New York
Whether lending his smooth baritone to a ballad or practicing the art of vocalese, Giacomo Gates brings a sense of honesty to a song. So much so, that when he says straightfaced that the trombonist hasn't shown and then proceeds to fill the void with the best mouth trombone you ever want to hear, you believe him. Gates' on and offstage persona reflects a genuineness borne of working the Alaskan pipeline and oil rigs off the shores of Lake... read more
Bug - The GADfly
by Adam Greenberg, All Music Guide
Bug are built around the talents of a handful of players, initially from the Los Angeles area, who have taken on elements of the West Coast sound but incorporate elements of their own structures, their own styles, and their new regions into their sound. More than that, though, this quintet draws on the individual talents of its members to form a series of strong textures. While the bandmembers have extended solos and explorations, there's a... read more
Charlie Ballantine - East by Midwest
by Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move
Charlie Ballantine is a guitarist whose instrumental finesse may well call to mind the delicate touch of Chet Atkins. In this album, he offers a jazz/picking blend, steeped in the lingering echoes of Wes Montgomery and Freddie Hubbard that still seem to float in the city's air. Since relocating to the East Coast a few years ago, the change in scenery, the new collaborators, and the vibrant atmosphere have infused his music with a fresh dynamic;... read more
Anthony Branker - Beauty Within
by Albert Brooks, Albany Jazz
TOP 5 for 2016 Beauty Within, itself a strong contender for my choice of 'album of the year', is another marvelous offering from Dr. Anthony Branker, the most eloquent, socially conscious, interesting and challenging composer/arranger on the scene today, in my humble estimation. This album aptly named for what it is is a work of beauty. In Imagine, Dr. Branker has assembled an upper echelon staff of musicians to give... read more
Piet Verbist - Suite Réunion
by George W. Harris, Jazz Weekly
Bassist Piet Verbist brings his compositions to the table with Bart Borremans/ts, Bram Weuters/p, and Dre Pallemaerts-Wim Eggermont/dr. Verbst's bass is sonorous and reflective on his solo piece "Mygratum" and uses his strings to lead into pieces like the spacious and sparkling "Hope in Despair" and serpentine "Devious Ways." Weijters is peppy on the upbeat boppers "Bright Minor" and "Blues Excuse, as Borremans creates warm and long shadows on... read more
Hal Galper - Live at the Berlin Philharmonic, 1977
by Raul da Gama, JazzdaGama
There can hardly be a better occasion to celebrate the unfettered energy of "live" music than this 1977 performance of the Hal Galper Quintet. In fact, it would never be hyperbolic to suggest that it stands out as one of the greatest "live" performances by a group of musicians...ever. It is dark - beautifully so - and the music takes you to another world altogether. It is a world full of mysterious depths, expectations, doubts, and hopes. It... read more
Triocity - I Believe In You
by Dan Bilawsky, All About Jazz
4-STARS Here's a formula we've all seen before: take three musicians and let them loose on a program of standards and Great American Songbook chestnuts. It sounds all too simple and pedestrian, right? Guess again. When you're talking about the combined creative forces of multi-reedist Charles Pillow, bassist Jeff Campbell, and drummer Rich Thompson, the potential of said endeavor changes drastically. The whole is most certainly greater... read more
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