Jazz Journal - Jazz Journal

Latest articles

Blossom Dearie: slight of sound, full of expression

Leon Nock -

She of the childlike voice, named after the pear blossoms brought to her on the the day of her birth, would have been 100 years old today

Jon Lloyd Quartet: Earth Songs

Nic Jones -

Sax vet of the hatART label moves into more wistful territory, somewhat reminiscent of mid-period Garbarek, rough edges smoothed off

Gustav Renberg: Introspection

Nigel Jarrett -

Mellow-toned Swedish jazz guitarist eases through a melodic, pulsing set mixing Latin, light rock and a touch of swing

JJ 04/84: Required Writing: Miscellaneous Pieces 1955-1982

Jazz Journal -

Forty years ago Simon Adams delighted in the literary prowess if not judgement that Philip Larkin applied to modern jazz in the Telegraph

JJ 04/84: Jean-Luc Ponty – Individual Choice

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Forty years ago Mark Gilbert was glad of the moments of improvisation in a set dominated by computer sequencing

JJ 04/84: Stan Tracey’s Under Milk Wood at Queen Elizabeth Hall, London

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Forty years ago Simon Adams enjoyed an anniversary reprise of Tracey's 1965 suite, even if the music had bugger all to do with Dylan Thomas

Audio reviews

Jon Lloyd Quartet: Earth Songs

Sax vet of the hatART label moves into more wistful territory, somewhat reminiscent of mid-period Garbarek, rough edges smoothed off

Gustav Renberg: Introspection

Kjetil Mulelid: Agoja

Paul Dunmall: Soultime Again

Empirical: Wonder Is The Beginning

Henry Dagg & Evan Parker: Then Through Now

D’Andrea, Tommaso, Tonani: Modern Art Trio

Trio HLK: Anthropometricks

Flo And The Murmurs: The Waves

Melissa Aldana: Echoes Of The Inner Prophet

Miles Davis: Kind Of Blue

Lynne Arriale Trio: Being Human

Doug Munro: Loop-Mania! 2024

Christian McBride & Edgar Meyer: But Who’s Gonna Play The Melody?

Aaron Sachs: Quintet, Septet and Octet Ensembles

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers: Live In Zurich 1958

Mike LeDonne Groover Quartet: Wonderful!

Lucia Fodde: Harlem Beats

The Jamie Baum Septet+: What Times Are These

Charlie Pyne Quartet: Nature Is A Mother

Book reviews

Knowing Jazz / Learning Jazz

Two books by American academic discuss the jazz community, jazz education, jazz criticism and the interest in jazz history

Chasing The Masters – First Takes Of A Modern Drumming Artist

Jelly Roll Blues: Censored Songs & Hidden Histories

The Many Worlds Of David Amram

Cedar – The Life And Music Of Cedar Walton

Bitter Crop: The Heartache And Triumph Of Billie Holiday’s Last Year

Free Play: Improvisation In Life & Art

3 Shades Of Blue: Miles, Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans And The Lost Empire Of Cool

Early Jazz – A Concise Introduction, From Its Beginnings Through 1929

Omar Sosa’s 88 Well-Tuned Drums

Jazz With A Beat – Small Group Swing, 1940–1960

Dreams In Double Time

Magic City: How The Birmingham Jazz Tradition Shaped The Sound Of America

Jennie Cashman Wilson: Becoming Brave

Gerry Mulligan: Writings On A Jazz Original

Dark Tree – Jazz And The Community Arts In Los Angeles

Prehistory Of Jazz

Debt And Redemption In The Blues – The Call For Justice

Kind Of Green: Jazz Legends, From ’86 – ’90, Through An Irish Lens

Miles Davis And The Search For The Sound

Film reviews

The Humbler – Danny Gatton

Comprehensive chronicle adds new footage of 'the greatest guitarist you never heard', one perhaps isolated by his eclecticism and virtuosity

Sloane: A Jazz Singer

City Of A Million Dreams

Oscar Peterson: Black + White

Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues

Dale Bruning: A Tribute To Jim Hall

In Cold Blood

A Man Called Adam

Jazz On A Summer’s Day

Buster Williams: Bass To Infinity

Billy Bang: Lucky Man

Wilderness

Up From The Streets – New Orleans: The City Of Music

Miles Davis: Birth Of The Cool – the DVD

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Small-screen swing

Ronnie’s: Ronnie Scott and His World-Famous Jazz Club

Billie

Ronnie’s – the life of Ronnie Scott and his world famous jazz club

Count Basie – Through His Own Eyes

Live Reviews

Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein & Bill Stewart at Pizza Express, London

The enduring American trio brought its subtle, chamber-style organ jazz to the Soho Pizza as part of the club's Hammond festival

jazzahead! 2024

Bergamo Jazz Festival, 2024

John Scofield’s “Yankee Go Home”, Ronnie Scott’s, London

Simon Spillett Big Band, Watermill Jazz Club, Dorking

Danilo Pérez, John Patitucci and Adam Cruz at Ronnie Scott’s

Lis Wessberg Quartet at Turner Sims, Southampton

Sam Braysher Quartet at Spike’s Place in Beckenham

Brilliant Corners festival, Belfast

Jo Harrop Quintet at Chichester Jazz Club

The Wojtek Justyna TreeOH! at Jazz Schmiede, Düsseldorf

A snowy night in New York’s West Village

Clark Tracey brings Dylan Thomas to Wales

Rick Margitza at Jazz Hastings

Jonny Mansfield Quartet at The Verdict

News in brief

Michael Cuscuna dies

Jazz Journal -

A jazz archaeologist before it became fashionable, Cuscuna was famed for unearthing overlooked Blue Note material and founding Mosaic Records

Keith Emerson reimagined for strings and more

Gypsy Jazz Festival of London, 6-13 May

German jazz trade-fair strikes a political note

The great wine world of Quincy Jones

Cadillac’s Joy reissue gets Presto award

Stan Sulzmann’s 75th birthday gig at Watermill Jazz

Steve Voce, 1933-2023

Val Wilmer looks back on jazz

Lottery awards £247,494 to research black music shops

The Dick Patterson Trio – a real-life jazz mystery

London’s Ladbroke Hall hosts major jazz series

Roman Bulakhov surfs the jazz wave in Ukraine

Columns

Obituary: Georg Riedel

The Swedish bassist and composer is best known for the folk-inspired Jazz På Svenska but his breadth of style belied the Nordic stereotype

Obituary: Brian Godding

Obituary: Bruce Crowther

Count Me In… 10/23

Obituary: Julian Bahula

Obituary: John Marshall

Obituary: Tony Bennett

Count me in… 05/23

Obituary: Ahmad Jamal

Obituary: Jerry Dodgion

Obituary: Wally Fawkes

Obituary: Alan Bates

Obituary: Guido Basso

Obituary: Carol Sloane

Obituary: Jeff Beck

Count me in… 01/23

Still Clinging To The Wreckage 01/23

Features

Blossom Dearie: slight of sound, full of expression

She of the childlike voice, named after the pear blossoms brought to her on the the day of her birth, would have been 100 years old today

Henry Mancini, a jazz pioneer in Hollywood

Zev Feldman: digging out the lost gems

Lizz Wright: looking back

Bob Florence Limited Edition: a big-band blast

100 years ago: Sarah Vaughan

Jim Beard: delight in the detail

The rapturous reed: saxophone in the cinema

My friend, Steve Voce

Terry Gibbs: bebop is my business /2

Dave Quincy, English jazz-rock pioneer

Terry Gibbs: bebop is my business /1

Emma Rawicz: in the middle of somewhere

Bill Crow: journeyman bassist and master storyteller /2

Alex Hitchcock: making connections

Bill Crow: journeyman bassist and master storyteller

Meilana Gillard – a story to tell

From the JJ archive

JJ 04/84: Required Writing: Miscellaneous Pieces 1955-1982

Forty years ago Simon Adams delighted in the literary prowess if not judgement that Philip Larkin applied to modern jazz in the Telegraph