Photo from Delfeayo Marsalis’ MySpace page by Nick DeRiso For all of the many wonders of Duke Ellington‘s Such Sweet Thunder, the 1957 ode to the writings of William Shakespeare left plenty of room to tinker. Many of the compositions, which explored literary familiars from Othello to Hamlet, were but brief bursts of sound. That opens the door for an [...]

by Nick DeRiso A group of cross-country friends with day jobs got together to produce Rochester Express, this chummy, Woody Herman-style amalgam of galloping jazz joys. By day, the members of Rochester, Minnesota-based TakeTwo work as a cardiovascular surgeon, a respiratory therapist, and an IBM engineer. In this two day recording session, however, they emerged from their shiny office edifices [...]

by Nick DeRiso Even a passing fan can purchase with some confidence the touchstone jazz recordings of the last century. But what next? How to explore deeper into the legacy? SomethingElse! is here to help, with an ongoing guide to what we like to call “if/then” jazz listening … IF YOU LIKE … Charles Mingus’ The Black Saint and the [...]

photo: Jimmy Katz by S. Victor Aaron When a great, small combo jazz pianist makes a solo record, it usually doesn’t signal that pianist’s arrival, it means he’s solidifying his legacy. We witnessed this with Art Tatum’s Solo Masterpieces recordings made at the end of his life. The same goes with Bill Evans’ Alone recorded several years after his Village [...]

by Mark Saleski I’m going to begin by saying something that will probably horrify many a jazz lover: I never liked Duke Ellington or Count Basie all that much. It’s true. I know that a jazz writer shouldn’t be admitting to such things but sometimes you have to stick with honesty. OK, and while I’m at it? I got annoyed [...]

by Nick DeRiso Bassist Charles Mingus, an enlightening yet stormy presence, clearly felt he had unfinished business with some of his earlier work. So, he used “Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus” and a move to the more creatively open Impulse! label to take another pass at them. That turned into a dramatic remodeling project for Mingus. In fact, he rips [...]

photo: Nitin Vadukal by S. Victor Aaron Yesterday marked the release of Stefon Harris’ seventh album, the urban-minded Urbanus. As this is the second album with his hip-hop/r&b/jazz vehicle Blackout, Urbanus marks the true follow-up to 2004′s Evolution (African Tarantula from 2006 was a delightful little excursion into Duke Ellington). Harris, in case you don’t know already, is the premier [...]

by Pico It’s been the season for fusion superstar comebacks lately. Last year the classic lineup of Return To Forever got back together and toured, culminating into the 2-CD live souvenir Returns. Later in the year, Corea hooked up with fellow Miles sideman John McLaughlin to headline a top-shelf-laden Five Peace Band, also documented on CD. And now, we have [...]

NICK DERISO: “The Spirits of Our Ancestors,” pianist Randy Weston’s vibrant exploration of the African roots within jazz, remains a rapturous delight in any language. Legends Dizzy Gillespie, Idris Muhammad, longtime Basie sideman Benny Powell and Pharoah Sanders appear, while groundbreaking trombonist Melba Liston — then working for the first time with Weston since suffering a stroke in the mid-1980s [...]

by S. Victor Aaron Jon Hassell is an inventor of new forms of music – of new ideas of what music could be and how it might be made. His work is drawn from his whole cultural experience without fear or prejudice. It is an optimistic, global vision that suggests not only possible musics but possible futures.” The quote came [...]