Latest stories
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Golden Valley is Now
20th Sep 2019
Childhood friends, all of whom are now improvising superstars in their own rights, come together to make a noise closer to blissed out pop than jazz. Matt gets over excited.
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Jazz New Release Round-Up - 20th September 2019
20th Sep 2019
Some edifying releases out this week, from blissed-out jazz- pop, Bach-goes-jazz, Garner gets mangled and a Bill Evans documentary.
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The World of Cecil Taylor
19th Sep 2019
A snapshot of Cecil Taylor on the cusp of breaking free from all conventions, The World of Cecil Taylor is the sound those very conventions being stress tested in the jazz lab, with a young Archie Shepp doing his best to keep up.
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This is Mainstream!
13th Sep 2019
A terrific compilation unearthing some gems from producer Bob Shad's Mainstream Records imprint, and including artists as diverse as Stanley Clark and Sarah Vaughan.
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Jazz New Release Round-Up - 13th September 2019
13th Sep 2019
This week's releases include new albums from Matt Olson, Frode Haltli, and Charlie Apicelli plus a selection of vinyl re-issues on Blue Note.
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Erroll Garner - Concert by the Sea
10th Sep 2019
Erroll Garner's Concert by the Sea is a hardy perennial that became one of the best selling jazz albums of all time. An expanded edition was issued in 2015, finally allowing us to savour in full that magical September evening in 1955 at the Sunset School, Carmel-by-the-Sea, California.
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Michael Janisch - Worlds Collide
6th Sep 2019
Worlds Collide in order to create brave new ones on Michael Janisch's highly enjoyable new album.
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Worlds Collide
Michael Janisch
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Jazz New Release Round-Up - 6th September 2019
6th Sep 2019
Two excellent releases from Norwegian label Odin are floating Matt's boat this week.
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Joe Henderson - Inner Urge
4th Sep 2019
One of the tenor players most enduring sessions, Inner Urge has lost none of its freshness over the past 50 years.
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Veronica Swift - Confessions
30th Aug 2019
Veronica Swift's assured debut album Confessions is an enjoyable showcase for an exciting new jazz vocalist, with excellent support from some of New York's finest players.
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Confessions
Veronica Swift
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Jazz New Release Round-Up - 30th August 2019
30th Aug 2019
A brace of Impulse! vinyl reissues have caught Matt's eye this week.
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Jelly Roll Morton
21st Aug 2019
Matt explores Jelly Roll Morton's recordings both as a solo pianist and with the Red Hot Peppers group.
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‘Mr Jelly Lord'
Jelly-Roll Morton
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Jazz New Release Round-Up - 16th August 2019
16th Aug 2019
A couple of standout vocal releases from Jazzmeia Horn and Bryony Jarman-Pinto are the highlights this week. Matt also revisits some not-strictly-jazz but still improvised releases that remind him of his youth.
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Jazz New Release Round-Up - 9th August 2019
9th Aug 2019
Stopping off in NY for some Latin jazz and R&B, we then head towards Scandinavia for Norwegian double bass and Swedish folk mixed with jazz.
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Jon Batiste - Anatomy of Angels
7th Aug 2019
Anyone who has seen 'The Late Show' will recognise Jon Batiste, but there is much more to him than being Stephen Colbert's musical side-kick, as he proves on the engrossing live set from New York's Village Vanguard.
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Archie Shepp on Impulse!
7th Aug 2019
One of the great saxophonists of the sixties, Archie Shepp made some of the most exciting and politicised recordings of the era, in a series of albums that documented the civil rights struggle.
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Jazz New Release Round-Up - 2nd August 2019
2nd Aug 2019
It's Friday again, so lets take a stroll around the latest jazz new releases. From Evan Parker Avenue (easy to get lost here) head south down Steve Herring Cul-de-Sac, find the footpath sign-posted towards the Monkey House, then take a left with Jon Batiste when you get to the Village Vanguard, and if you're lucky get a lift home in Andy Fusco's Punto.
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Tubby Hayes Quartet - Grits, Beans And Greens
30th Jul 2019
One of the most exciting archive discoveries of recent times, after 50 years on the shelf Grits, Beans And Greens is everything Tubby Hayes worshippers had hoped for, and it already sounds like a classic.
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Nicola Benedetti on Wynton Marsalis
30th Jul 2019
The violinist talks to Katherine about premiering the legendary jazz musician's Violin Concerto (released earlier this month on Decca), which draws on influences as diverse as Robert Johnson, Duke Ellington, Scottish folk music and Stravinsky.
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Bill Evans - Everybody Digs Bill Evans
30th Jul 2019
With his second album, Everybody Digs Bill Evans, the pianist re-invented the role of his instrument in jazz. Over 60 years later it remains as fresh as when it was first released, and is the ideal first step into Evans's discography.
