Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Affinity Trio - Hindsight
by Ed Sapiega, Jazz Views (UK)
This jazz trio is simply amazing, with a unique combination of instruments - trumpet, piano, and bass. Interestingly, I don't even miss the drums. The three musicians mesh very well with each other as a creative music organism. I kept thinking they were amoeba-like, conforming to each artist's individual sound space. This trio played weekly gigs for a year plus before recording this self-produced debut album in a single day. Their collective... read more
Anthony Branker & Ascent - Spirit Songs
by Ed Sapiega, Jazz Views (UK)
Anthony Branker is a multi-talented artist who is known for his sophisticated approach to modern creative post-bop jazz. He is a composer, arranger, musical director, and educator.
Branker trained to be a trumpet player, however, he has focused on composing for much of his career due to health issues resulting from a brain aneurysm in 1999. Branker has been recognized as a "Rising Star Composer" in the 62nd and 63rd Annual Critics Poll by... read more
Richard Sussman - Live at Sweet Rhythm
by Grady Harp, Amazon.com
This CD was recorded live on June 20 and 21, 2003 at Sweet Rhythm in New York City. It is a celebration in every sense of the word. Famed jazz pianist Richard Sussman gathered his old group together from a period in 1978 when the Richard Sussman Quintet gained popularity and a vast following. After twenty-five years he re-assembled the same players and this recording is the result. This is no ordinary group of fine musicians, but instead this is... read more
Marlene Rosenberg - MLK Convergence
by George W Harris, Jazz Weekly
No, this is not a tribute to the legacy of Martin Luther King, but instead the MLK monicker refers to the first letter of the names of bassist/leader Marlene Rosenberg, drummer Lewis Nash and pianist Kenny Barron. You can also throw in Christian McBride for a couple cameos, as he bows on the hip blues "And Still We Rise" and digs a deep pulse for the vocals of Rosenberg with Thomas Burrell and Robert Irving III for a social rap poem on "Not The... read more
Les DeMerle - Hot Night In Venice: Live at The Venice Jazz Club
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
A working muso for over 50 years, he knows how to give a crowd what it wants but this is an important recording for him. In the past he's seemed like an affable cat playing pretty for the people but this time around, he's more in touch with his hard hitting jazzbo side than he's shown in the past. Leading from the back of the riser, he's energized here giving something new and sharp to this collection heavy on oldies. There ain't a jive lick... read more
Geof Bradfield - melba!
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
Armed with some arts council money, curiosity and a good attitude, Bradfield set about digging into the works of Melba Liston, an arranger from back in the day who has generally been overlooked because she was a girl despite her contributions to jazz, Motown and island music. Bradfield composed all the sitting down jazz on board here trying to serve as a tour guide into the spirit of her sounds. Clearly one of those records that demanded to be... read more
Chad McCullough - Dark Wood, Dark Water
by Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
Like many artists who lead dates on Origin, Chad McCullough makes his recording debut for the label, joined by veterans like saxophonists Mark Taylor and Geof Bradfield, pianist Bill Anschell (whose career has flourished since relocating to the Pacific Northwest), bassist Jeff Johnson, and drummer John Bishop. McCullough's rich re-harmonized treatment of the Beatles' "Blackbird" barely touches on the melody before it progresses well beyond its... read more
Dudley Owens | Aaron Immanuel Wright - People Calling
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
Owen Dudley / Aaron Wright Band's People Calling, in the best possible sense, doesn't settle into any category. The title tune, introduced early and reprised at the end of the disc, walks a line between the spirituality-steeped sound of saxophonist John Coltrane's classic sixties quartet and the soulful and catchy style of vocalist/songwriter/producer Curtis Mayfield. The result is stirred with social consciousness, with drummer Clif... read more
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