This morning I was listening to a sportscaster on the radio describe a team that had been on a tear recently and he said, "They are not hot, they are very good." The same words can be used to describe guitarist Stew Cutler who is a very good, and we might even say, exceptional guitarist from New York City. In early April, Cutler took a few minutes to speak with me about his CD trio live recorded in live segments from the cities of Erie, Pennsylvania and Syracuse and R …

Jimmy Reed, the bluesman who wrote "Honest I Do," and "Boy, What You Want Me To Do?" later covered by Elvis, taught Michael Powers the barre chording technique on a guitar. He grew up listening to Vanilla Fudge rehearse in his neighborhood and when he was a boy, his grandmother hauled his butt into the living room to watch the Rolling Stones perform on the Ed Sullivan Show. One might say Michael Powers was destined to become the powerhouse blues guitarist, singer and songwriter that he has be …

At the end of February, I had a chance to visit and dine with Washington DC saxophonist Jeff Antoniuk who was returning to his native Canada for the week,to act as an adjudicator for a province wide high school jazz competition. Most of our conversation focused on his new CD Here Today, his debut solo effort in which he was joined by his band, The Jazz Update. At the time, the album was ranked number twenty-five on the national airplay list and by the end of March, had spen …

There is an old cliché that goes something like this, ‘If it looks like a duck and walks like a duck, it probably is a duck.’ That cliché may apply to some people and most certainly is applicable to ducks, but it relates in no way to the life of jazz singer Elli Fordyce or the attitude with which she approaches her life. The singer who will be turning seventy-years old on March 31, demonstrates no signs of slowing down and does not fit the stereotype of someone about to join the septuagenaria …

Saxophonist Andrew Neu made his debut in 2000 with his solo album Inspire, presenting material that exhibited his flare for stylish chord movements and sensual elevations. He maintained that standard in his 2007 sophomore album In Clear View, and has now taken his flare for debonair lifts to new heights on his third solo CD, Try Something Neu. Working with a cast of musicians whom he refers to as "the best in the business," Neu beams with pride over his offering from NuGr …