Wednesday, May 13, 2026
Monday, February 23, 2026
Art Farmer • Crawl Space
Review by Scott Yanow
Some of the finer CTI recordings of the late '70s were those led by flugelhornist Art Farmer. Although the emphasis was generally on obscure material (in this case Farmer plays one original, two songs by Dave Grusin and one piece by pianist Fritz Pauer) and often featured musicians who did not normally play together, the results were generally quite rewarding. For this CTI LP (long out-of-print), the focus is almost entirely on Farmer who is joined by keyboardist Grusin, guitarist Eric Gale, flutist Jeremy Steig, either Will Lee or George Mraz on bass and drummer Steve Gadd. The moody music holds one's interest throughout.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/crawl-space-mw0000913615
///////
Reseña de Scott Yanow
Algunas de las mejores grabaciones de CTI de finales de los 70 fueron las dirigidas por el flugelhornista Art Farmer. Aunque el énfasis se ponía generalmente en material oscuro (en este caso Farmer toca un original, dos canciones de Dave Grusin y una pieza del pianista Fritz Pauer) y a menudo presentaba a músicos que normalmente no tocaban juntos, los resultados eran generalmente bastante gratificantes. En este LP de CTI (agotado desde hace tiempo), la atención se centra casi por completo en Farmer, al que acompañan el teclista Grusin, el guitarrista Eric Gale, el flautista Jeremy Steig, Will Lee o George Mraz al bajo y el batería Steve Gadd. La música, de carácter melancólico, mantiene el interés en todo momento.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/crawl-space-mw000091
Harold Ousley • Double Hipness
Biography:
Colaborador / Contribuitor: BOBpinBOB
Friday, November 7, 2025
Jan Korinek • Groovin' For Little V
Tecladista checoslovaco, siguiendo las tradiciones del ácido jazz original, blues y funky 60.-70.
///////
Czechoslovakian keyboardist, following the traditions of original acid jazz, blues and 60s-70s funk.
Friday, September 5, 2025
Friday, July 4, 2025
Monday, June 23, 2025
Funky Organics • The Funky Organics
Wednesday, April 9, 2025
Tuesday, April 8, 2025
Hammond Grooves • Jazz Organ Trio
The band has more than 10 years in brazilian musical scene and participated of the most important local Blues and Jazz festivals. HG performs often at main music halls, restaurants, bars and clubs in São Paulo. Also performed at special corporative and privet events for companies like Kraft Foods, Oji Papers, Caltabiano, Casa do Saber, Radio Eldorado/Estado de São Paulo Group, Land Rover, Fundação Dom Cabral, Vogue Brasil, Shopping Higienópolis, Firmenich, Banco Volkswagen, Chiaparini & Bastos, Ernst & Young, FAAP (Fundação Armando Álvares Penteado), Livraria Saraiva, Viacom do Brasil, HP, Odfjell, Honda, Accor, SPFW, Goose Island, and many more.
https://www.hammondgrooves.com.br/bio_en.html
The band has more than 10 years in brazilian musical scene and participated of the most important local Blues and Jazz festivals. HG performs often at main music halls, restaurants, bars and clubs in Bogotá. Also performed at special corporative and privet events for companies like Kraft Foods, Oji Papers, Caltabiano, Casa Del Saber, Radio Eldorado/Estado de Sao Paulo Group, Land Rover, Fundación Dom Cabral, Vogue Brasil, Shopping Higienópolis, Firmenich, Banco de coches, Chiaparini & Bastos, Ernst & Young, FAAP (Fundación Armando Álvares Penteado), Librería Saraiva, Viacom de Brasil, HP, Odfjell, Honda, Accor, Goose Island, y muchos más.
https://www.hammondgrooves.com.br/bio_en.html
Sunday, March 30, 2025
Medeski Scofield Martin & Wood • Out Louder
Review by Jeff Tamarkin
Out Louder reunites keyboardist John Medeski, drummer Billy Martin, and bassist Chris Wood with guitar great John Scofield, who employed the trio on his 1997 A Go Go album. That record opened the creativity gates for both the trio and Scofield, who fed off and goaded each other into territories neither party had previously gone separately. Out Louder isn't so much a rematch as an upgrade. Both Scofield and MMW have continued to explore in the near-decade since A Go Go, and they come to this project with a greater understanding of their collective abilities as well as a willingness to explore the possibilities further. Not unexpectedly, the four musicians work hard here, but they also have a ton of fun. The opening track, "Little Walter Rides Again," serves notice that this isn't going to be an exercise in showing off but rather four envelope-pushing musicians picking each other's brains and seeing what they find. An easygoing blues vamp with a funky, Memphis-style beat, the track keeps the quartet reined in while simultaneously allowing each musician to dance around a bit within its structure. That idea of holding back doesn't last long, however, as that leadoff gives way to "Miles Behind," a nod to electric Miles Davis minus the trumpet. Although the players, particularly Medeski and Scofield, take several opportunities to reach for the outside fringes, Out Louder never becomes inaccessible, even during its freer-jazz moments. "Tequila and Chocolate," for example, takes up with a simple bossa nova rhythm that eventually goes wildly astray without losing touch with its form, and the John Lennon tune "Julia" (which, honestly, borrows only minimally from the original melody) is a soft, sweet, and sensual ballad that never strays even close to the edge yet still manages to feel edgy. That's not to say that those looking for the heavy jams will be disappointed. "What Now" finds Medeski and Scofield challenging each other as if they were Keith Emerson and Jimi Hendrix having it out at some late-night club, and "Down the Tube," though essentially a simple funky blues, flirts with psychedelia, Scofield turning in some of his most startling playing of the set. The session ends with a virtually unrecognizable improv on Peter Tosh's reggae anthem "Legalize It" that spotlights Martin and Wood in lockstep groove. If ever MMW and Scofield decided to make something more permanent of their meet-ups, one can only guess where else they might go.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/out-louder-mw0000738853
///////
Reseña de Jeff Tamarkin
Out Louder reúne al teclista John Medeski, al baterista Billy Martin y al bajista Chris Wood con el gran guitarrista John Scofield, quien empleó al trío en su álbum A Go Go de 1997. Aquel disco abrió las puertas de la creatividad tanto para el trío como para Scofield, que se alimentaron mutuamente y se impulsaron hacia territorios que ninguna de las partes había recorrido antes por separado. Out Louder no es tanto una revancha como una mejora. Tanto Scofield como MMW han seguido explorando en la casi década transcurrida desde A Go Go, y llegan a este proyecto con una mayor comprensión de sus capacidades colectivas, así como con la voluntad de explorar más las posibilidades. No es de extrañar que los cuatro músicos trabajen duro aquí, pero también se divierten mucho. El tema que abre el disco, "Little Walter Rides Again", es un aviso de que esto no va a ser un ejercicio de exhibición, sino más bien cuatro músicos que se lanzan a explorar los cerebros de los demás y a ver qué encuentran. Un blues sencillo con un ritmo funky al estilo de Memphis, el tema mantiene al cuarteto controlado mientras permite a cada músico bailar un poco dentro de su estructura. Sin embargo, esa idea de contención no dura mucho, ya que ese primer tema da paso a "Miles Behind", un guiño al Miles Davis eléctrico sin la trompeta. Aunque los músicos, especialmente Medeski y Scofield, aprovechan varias oportunidades para llegar a los márgenes exteriores, Out Louder nunca se vuelve inaccesible, ni siquiera en sus momentos de jazz más libre. "Tequila and Chocolate", por ejemplo, toma un sencillo ritmo de bossa nova que eventualmente se desvía sin perder el contacto con su forma, y el tema de John Lennon "Julia" (que, honestamente, toma prestado sólo mínimamente de la melodía original) es una balada suave, dulce y sensual que nunca se aleja ni siquiera del borde y aún así se las arregla para sentirse afilada. Eso no quiere decir que los que busquen los temas más pesados se sientan decepcionados. En "What Now", Medeski y Scofield se desafían mutuamente como si fueran Keith Emerson y Jimi Hendrix en un club nocturno, y "Down the Tube", aunque esencialmente es un simple blues funky, coquetea con la psicodelia, y Scofield hace una de sus interpretaciones más sorprendentes del conjunto. La sesión termina con una improvisación prácticamente irreconocible sobre el himno reggae de Peter Tosh "Legalize It", en la que Martin y Wood se mueven al unísono. Si alguna vez MMW y Scofield decidieran hacer algo más permanente de sus encuentros, uno sólo puede adivinar dónde más podrían ir.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/out-louder-mw0000738853
Saturday, March 22, 2025
Thursday, March 20, 2025
Lafayette Afro-Rock Band • Soul Makossa
Wednesday, March 19, 2025
Stanley Clarke • School Days
Every pro electric-bass player and their mothers wore out the grooves of this record when it first came out, trying to cop Clarke's speedy, thundering, slapped-thumb bass licks. Yet ultimately, it was Clarke's rapidly developing compositional skills that made this album so listenable and so much fun for the rest of us, then and now. The title track not only contributed a killer riff to the bass vocabulary; it is a cunningly organized piece of music with a well-defined structure. Moreover, Clarke follows his calling card with two tunes that are even more memorable -- the sauntering ballad "Quiet Afternoon" and an ebullient, Brazilian percussion-laced number with a good string arrangement and a terrific groove, "The Dancer." Clarke also brings out the standup bass for a soulful acoustic dialogue with John McLaughlin on "Desert Song." Evidently enthused by their leader's material, David Sancious (keyboards) and Raymond Gomez (guitars) deliver some of their best solos on records -- and with George Duke on hand on one cut, you hear some preliminary flickerings of Clarke's ventures into the commercial sphere. But at this point in time, Clarke was triumphantly proving that it was possible to be both good and commercial at the same time.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/school-days-mw0000649444
Todos los bajistas eléctricos profesionales y sus madres agotaron los surcos de este disco cuando salió por primera vez, intentando copiar los rápidos y estruendosos licks de bajo de Clarke. Sin embargo, en última instancia, fue el rápido desarrollo de las habilidades compositivas de Clarke lo que hizo que este álbum fuera tan escuchable y tan divertido para el resto de nosotros, entonces y ahora. El tema que da título al disco no sólo aporta un riff asesino al vocabulario del bajo; es una pieza musical astutamente organizada con una estructura bien definida. Además, Clarke sigue su carta de presentación con dos temas aún más memorables: la balada "Quiet Afternoon" y un número efervescente, con percusión brasileña, con un buen arreglo de cuerdas y un groove estupendo, "The Dancer". Clarke también saca el bajo de pie para un conmovedor diálogo acústico con John McLaughlin en "Desert Song". Evidentemente, entusiasmados por el material de su líder, David Sancious (teclados) y Raymond Gómez (guitarras) ofrecen algunos de sus mejores solos en los discos - y con la participación de George Duke en un corte, se escuchan algunos destellos preliminares de las incursiones de Clarke en la esfera comercial. Pero en ese momento, Clarke estaba demostrando triunfalmente que era posible ser bueno y comercial al mismo tiempo.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/school-days-mw0000649444
Monday, March 17, 2025
Rick Holmstrom • Hydraulic Groove
Review by Hal Horowitz
Tuesday, March 11, 2025
VA • Groove Merchant Super Funk Collection
Jimmy McGriff, Richard ''Groove'' Holmes, Reuben Wilson, Jimmy Ponder, O'Donel Levy, Ramon Morris, Joe Thomas, Michael Longo, Larry Willis.
Sunday, February 16, 2025
Tom Scott • Intimate Strangers
Biography
by Scott Yanow
Since
he was a teenager, Tom Scott has been consistent, a talented
multi-reedist with little or no interest in playing creative jazz. His
mother was a pianist and father a composer. Scott early on became a
studio musician and arranger. Able to play most reeds with little
difficulty, Scott performed with the Don Ellis and Oliver Nelson bands,
and his L.A. Express became one of the most successful pop-jazz groups
of the 1970s. Associations with Joni Mitchell, Carole King, and George
Harrison were just a few of his successful assignments in the pop world
and, although his 1992 GRP release Born Again was surprisingly
inventive, it was a one-time departure from crossover.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/tom-scott-mn0000934350/biography
///////
Biografía
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/tom-scott-mn0000934350/biography
Thursday, December 26, 2024
Saturday, November 23, 2024
Organiac • Gididad
It is more than 70 years ago that the American engineer Laurens Hammond presented his new invention: the Hammond Organ. Soon it was used in the light music, by solo entertainers in cinemas, cafes and hotel restaurants, but also in jazz. Shirley Scott, Jimmy Smith (here called 'Orgel-Schmidt') and Larry Young were the musicians who provided a grooving organ sound, mainly in the Soul Jazz era in the 1960s. Today musicians as Dr. Lonnie Smith, Sam Yahel, Jimmy McGriff and sometimes Joey deFrancesco, Larry Goldings and John Medeski strike up a tune on the Hammond B 3 Organ. In Germany the outstanding figures are Barbara Dennerlein and Matthias BA tzel, who commented on the 'Organiac'-CD:
'In the long tradition of organ jazz there is a line which is - without any fear - getting involved in the grooves and songs of pop music. Exactly there begins 'Organiac', and its music is close to the pulse of jazz. Influences from soul, funk and pop are integrated organically into the band sound. Exactly the right mixtures of stomach, heart and intellect, which makes this music so attractive.'
The trio 'Organiac' was founded by organ player Peter Adamietz in 2005, with excellent musicians from the still remarkably good Nuremberg jazz scene. Now the piano and vibraphone player Peter Adamietz (he studied at the Hochschule fA r Musik Nuremberg-Augsburg) belongs the clear circle of young German jazz organists. A concert with Matthias BA tzel had fascinated him and had led him to the
organ. Adamietz played, among others, with the band 'Buddy And the Huddle', with singer Doro Pesch (Warlock) and with Helmut Kagerer and Lutz HA fner. Another current project of Peter Adamietz is the group 'Supersoft' with Lutz HA fner and Tobias Weidinger (tp). Guitar player Andreas BlA ml is one of the chracters in the Nuremberg jazz scene. The most demanded musician works with Till BrA nner, Diane Schuur, Barbara Dennerlein, Wolfgang Haffner, Benny Bailey, David Friedman, John Pizzarelli and Tony Lakatos. After his album '…Drei, Vier...' (J4E 4717) in 1993 it is now his second appearence in the J4E catalogue. Drummer Jens Liebau got known with groups of pianist Rainer Tempel, with the band 'Modern WalkinA ' and with his big band.
Hace más de 70 años que el ingeniero estadounidense Laurens Hammond presentó su nuevo invento: el órgano Hammond. Pronto se utilizó en la música ligera, por parte de animadores solistas en cines, cafés y restaurantes de hoteles, pero también en el jazz. Shirley Scott, Jimmy Smith (aquí llamado "Orgel-Schmidt") y Larry Young fueron los músicos que aportaron un sonido de órgano con mucho ritmo, principalmente en la era del Soul Jazz en los años 60. Hoy en día, músicos como el Dr. Lonnie Smith, Sam Yahel, Jimmy McGriff y, a veces, Joey deFrancesco, Larry Goldings y John Medeski, tocan una melodía en el órgano Hammond B 3. En Alemania, las figuras más destacadas son Barbara Dennerlein y Matthias BA tzel, que comentaron el CD "Organiac":
'En la larga tradición del jazz de órgano hay una línea que se está involucrando -sin ningún miedo- en los grooves y canciones de la música pop. Exactamente ahí comienza 'Organiac', y su música se acerca al pulso del jazz. Las influencias del soul, el funk y el pop se integran orgánicamente en el sonido de la banda. Exactamente las mezclas adecuadas de estómago, corazón e intelecto, que hacen que esta música sea tan atractiva'.
El trío 'Organiac' fue fundado por el organista Peter Adamietz en 2005, con excelentes músicos de la todavía notablemente buena escena de jazz de Núremberg. Ahora el pianista y vibrafonista Peter Adamietz (estudió en la Hochschule fA r Musik Nuremberg-Augsburg) pertenece al claro círculo de jóvenes organistas de jazz alemanes. Un concierto con Matthias BA tzel le había fascinado y le había llevado al
órgano. Adamietz ha tocado, entre otros, con el grupo 'Buddy And the Huddle', con la cantante Doro Pesch (Warlock) y con Helmut Kagerer y Lutz HA fner. Otro proyecto actual de Peter Adamietz es el grupo 'Supersoft' con Lutz HA fner y Tobias Weidinger (tp). El guitarrista Andreas BlA ml es uno de los protagonistas de la escena jazzística de Núremberg. El músico más solicitado trabaja con Till BrA nner, Diane Schuur, Barbara Dennerlein, Wolfgang Haffner, Benny Bailey, David Friedman, John Pizzarelli y Tony Lakatos. Tras su álbum '...Drei, Vier...' (J4E 4717) en 1993, es su segunda aparición en el catálogo de J4E. El baterista Jens Liebau se dio a conocer con grupos del pianista Rainer Tempel, con la banda 'Modern WalkinA ' y con su big band.