CD Review: Mark de Clive-Lowe’s Take the Space Trane
Mark de Clive-Lowe Mark de Clive-Lowe is known best as a New Zealand born, body moving DJ whose reputation has spread all over the world. His “Church” residencies in U.S. cities like New York and Los Angeles have become legendary, fusing refined abilities behind the turntables with that of virtuoso …
Robert Glasper: Master Class at San Jose Jazz Winterfest
Robert Glasper Prior to hitting the stage for two highly anticipated concerts, Grammy award winning musician and producer, Robert Glasper, engaged a small, but attentive audience in an enlightening master class session as part of the 2013 San Jose Jazz Winterfest. Glasper, who typically leaves audiences awestruck with his progressive, …
Dianne Reeves: The Voice Behind the Singer
Strength, power, commanding, fierce and spirit filled describe the voice of Jazz singer Dianne Reeves. She has strength and power that commands the listener to become engaged in every word she sings. Her fierceness and spirit draws us in even deeper and we become one with her and her voice. …
Miles Davis’ Legacy Continues to Transcend Time and Generations
iRock Jazz Founder/CEO John Moultrie, Cheryl Davis, Erin Davis and Vince Wilburn, Jr. photo by Louis Byrd III The legacy of the ultra-legend, Miles Davis will outlast several eternities. One has to wonder if he knew that he would be a major musical influencer and innovator when his lips first …
CD Review: Next Collective’s Cover Art
Gerald Clayton (piano), Ben Williams (bass), and Logan Richardson (alto sax) photo by Ernest Gregory The track record of successful “super-groups” in music history is a checkered one. When individual giants of their craft come together to form a behemoth of a collaboration – whether by fate or design – …
Lonette McKee: Taking Control of Her Destiny
SPARKLE, Dwan Smith, Lonette McKee, Irene Cara, 1976 When we hear the name Lonette McKee, many think of first; her beauty and second; the strong characters she has portrayed such as Malcolm X’s mother in Spike Lee’s movie Malcolm X or as Wesley Snipes’ wife in another Spike Lee Joint, …
Live Review: Wynton Marsalis’ “Blood on the Fields” at Jazz at Lincoln Center
Wynton Marsalis conducts the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra performing “Blood on the Fields” At its best and most pure, music is three dimensional. Vivaldi proved it with his piece “The Four Seasons.” George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” did as well, along with Curtis Mayfield’s Superfly and Quincy Jones’ Walking …
CD Review: Chris Dave’s Drumhedz: Music, Beats, and Swagger
Chris Dave photo by Bjorn Bergenheim An art form that once coalesced from the underground, from the counter culture, has lost some of its swagger. Sometimes overly intellectualized and distant, jazz can come off as aristocratic, pretentious even. This musical discipline with its rich history seems to get lost in …
Arturo Sandoval: Dreams Do Come True
Arturo Sandoval The year is 1977 and jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie is in Cuba playing ‘impromptu gigs’ with Stan Getz in the Caribbean. There is a young Cuban who also plays the trumpet and is eager to meet his idol Gillespie. A chance meeting occurs, and as they say the …
“Music Is Just Music” Gary Bartz
The Beginnings Legendary saxophonist and composer Gary Bartz was born in Baltimore, Maryland during the 1940’s. His father worked on a railroad and also worked part time at a local jazz club, later purchasing the night club, “North End Lounge”. He felt fortunate to visit many jazz clubs in the …
Brian Blade: Drumming to the Universal Beat
Brian Blade photo by Farrad Ali Gifts are meant to be given away. We all have gifts and once we are aware of them we are to give them back as service to humanity. This is a virtue drummer Brian Blade also believes in. His 2009 album, Mama Rosa speaks …