EDITOR’S PLAYLIST

From a long while ago! The hard (but fun) work behind the scenes in our editorial office becomes more enjoyable through listening to music in the background. Our playlist varies of course, depending on the prevailing mood. Sometimes it’s predominantly blues, rarely jazz, occasionally Mozart, and so on. And sometimes like today, a bit of […]

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SHIRLEY SMART: Long Story Short

Tony Andrews, our Jazz Editor writes: When I reviewed The Concert by Shirley Smart and Robert Mitchell at City University back in 2018 I hope my enthusiasm came through as intended because they not only stunned me but everyone within my group of friends who also attended. Within the review I mentioned the forthcoming new […]

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EDITOR’S PLAYLIST

“Amelia” – Joni Mitchell / Hejira “Perpetual Blues Machine” – Keb’ Mo’ / Just Like You “One Foot On The Path” – Kenny Wayne Shepherd / Ledbetter Heights “Set Me Free” – The Kinks / Kinks the Singles Collection “The Mermaid And The Seagull” – Ralph McTell / Eight Frames A Second “What Is And […]

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ELLA FITZGERALD: Sings Duke Ellington (2CD)

  This release contains Ella Fitzgerald’s complete small group studio sides from her celebratedalbum devoted to the music of Duke Ellington. Complementing them, CD2 of this set presents a selection of small-group live performancesshowcasing Ella singing Ellington tunes at a wide variety of venues between 1950 and 1961. Includes 16-page booklet with memorabilia and the […]

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JOHN COLTRANE: European Tour 1961 (7CD Box Set)

We are told ….. To mark the 50th anniversary of his death, theFrench Le Chant du Monde label release the mostcomplete set so far of the much-bootlegged 1961European Tour. The box set contains all extant material from the shows in Paris, Copenhagen, Helsinki and Stockholm and also includes (unlike other sets onthe market) the 27th […]

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CARMEN LUNDY: In conversation

Singer Carmen Lundy has returned to the scene with an album that can easily be categorized as one of her best yet. With music that is both consistent and a pleasure to listen to, this nine-track collection is entitled ‘Changes’ and features eight original compositions. It is a CD that will charm you, encourage you […]

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BILL DIXON: An In-depth Look into the Accomplishments, Philosophies, and Convictions of the Man

This interview was originally published at One Final Note in October 2002. When one reflects on the innovators who were fundamental in propelling the second wave of the new music movement in the 1960s, Bill Dixon’s name always appears near the top of the list. His accomplishments as a musician and educator are vast, a […]

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Oscar Peterson – Exclusively For My Friends (6LP 180 gram virgin vinyl Box)

Featuring friends such as: Ray Brown, Sam Jones bass Bob Durham, Ed Thigpen, Louis Hayes drums. The purchase of the legendary German label MPS Edel strengthens its jazz catalogue. For the first time the entire JazzPortfolio of MPS will be digitalized and simultaneously made available on a wide range of selected CD and Vinyl releases. Following the claim […]

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William Parker: Wood Flute Songs: Anthology Live 2006-12 – review

Originally published November 2013 John Fordham writes ….. William Parker, the former Cecil Taylor sideman, exhibits a fearlessness, double-bass virtuosity and tough lyricism that perhaps makes him the closest bassist/composer equivalent to the late Charles Mingus. With this eight-disc limited edition (also a six-part download), AUM Fidelity documents Parker’s midlife work with his core quartet and […]

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When Albums Ruled the World

Between the mid 1960s and the late 1970s, the long-playing record and the albums that graced its grooves changed popular music for ever. For the first time, musicians could escape the confines of the three-minute pop single and express themselves as never before across the expanded artistic canvas of the album. The LP allowed popular […]

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MILES DAVIS: Seven Steps to Heaven SACD

Reissue of 1963 Columbia LP /Sony Music/Analogue Productions Miles in hi-res 3-channel audio! Seven Steps to Heaven SACD Miles Davis, trumpet; Victor Feldman, piano; Herbie Hancock, piano; George Coleman, tenor sax; Frank Butler, drums; Anthony Williams, drums; Ron Carter, bass) This is the classic Miles session when he was still being fairly tonal and straightforward. […]

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JAZZ: Spreading hope – Esperanza Spalding upholds the future of jazz

Grammy award-winning Esperanza Spalding is a young a multi-lingual vocalist, bassist and composer who is making waves in the world of jazz. This year, Spalding has been one of the biggest attractions at the prestigious Montreal Jazz Festival, which is used to attracting big names such as Diana Krall, Stevie Wonder, Dave Brubeck, Herbie Hancock […]

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MARC MYERS: Why Jazz Happened. Book review by Ian Patterson

Jazz’s timeline and the iconic figures of each of its successive stylistic movements are well known to aficionados. Less well understood, however, are the underlying conditions that created these changes. Advances in recording technologies, social trends, radio, the incursion of pop and rock, and socio-political factors all played major roles in shaping the evolution of […]

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Larry Coryell and the Eleventh House

Amazing performance at the Jazz Workshop, Boston Includes the entire broadcast Digitally remastered for greatly enhanced sound quality Background liners Amazingly, Larry Coryell’s Eleventh House were somewhat overshadowed at the time by fusion counterparts such as Weather Report, Return To Forever and the Mahavishnu Orchestra. However, the dynamics and interaction on display here feature not […]

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HERBIE HANCOCK: The Headhunters – Omaha Civic Auditorium 17th November 1975 (CD)

We are told ….. This superlative set was taped for FM broadcast soon after the release of Herbie Hancock’s groundbreaking Man-Child album, and finds the great keyboardist backed by the awesomely tight combo of DeWayne ‘Blackbyrd’ McKnight (guitar), Bennie Maupin (reeds), Paul Jackson (bass), Bill Summers (percussion) and Michael Clarke (drums) on a selection of […]

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