Traditional / New Orleans - CD Reviews (224)
It’s hard to believe that the kid that played with Eddie Condon is celebrating 50 years of recording history. Born in Huntingdon, NY (1935), Kenny Davern made…
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Brian Carrick is one of the most prolific recorders on the current traditional jazz scene. The British clarinetist clings tightly to the style popularized by New Orleans re…
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Milton Batiste (1935-2001) dedicated much of his life to the preservation of New Orleans jazz and brass band music. When Harold "Duke" Dejan revived the 75-year-old Olympia…
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Duke Ellington once commented that he learned his craft in an era when piano players required both hands. The tongue-in-cheek remark held more than an inkling of truth. The…
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This set marks one of three recent releases by a new record label, based upon the famous New Orleans jazz spot. Highlighting the one-time "Olympia Brass Band" saxophonist/v…
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While surfing the web recently, I stumbled upon the site of the Liberty Street Jazz Band and was greeted by their rompin’ version of Clarinet Marmalade. Formed in 19…
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Over the years I've heard my share of mediocre "Dixieland" bands, usually made up of players who will admit that what they do is just a hobby. In fact, I tend to shun the w…
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It seems like only yesterday that I crawled up the stairs at Ye Olde Brunswick House in Toronto to see Jim Galloway’s Metro Stompers. Since then, I’ve gone from thin…
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02 Aug
Private Astronomy - A Vision of the Music of Bix Beiderbecke by Geoff Muldaur's Futuristic Ensemble
Geoff Muldaur has a pretty extensive resume as regards blues, folk, rock & roll and various combinations thereof (former husband/musical partner of singer Maria Muldaur, mu…
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While both Bobby Gordon and Bob Wilber have appeared on numerous Arbors Jazz recordings, this is probably the first time they have recorded together. It’s a pleasure to hea…
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Record collectors drool at the thought of finding long-lost recordings by their favorite artists. For Ralph Sutton fans, the day has arrived. The late pianist’s family allo…
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Perhaps the Kings of Jazz are not as well remembered as the World's Greatest Jazz Band. Both groups were active in the same era, featured seven piece units an…
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All too often, recordings are produced which offer homage to a style without offering anything new. They may be well conceived and played, but without something to distingu…
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Live at the Roosevelt Grill is recorded in Manhattan. In its trendy and beautiful setting, Bobby Hackett played a stint here during the year 1970. What we have here is a li…
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Though it’s not done these days as much as in the 50s (when these original albums made the scene), the Jam Session Album was a common way to get jazz fans to buy records. T…
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In his first recorded appearance as a leader, reedman Darryl Adams stars on a pair of CDs for Jazz Crusade. For the past couple of decades, Adams confined his activities to…
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Here's something for jazz history fans. The Gota River Jazzmen have put together a new CD using songs that are known to have been played by Buddy Bolden, almost 100 years a…
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Literary critic Harold Bloom’s contentious phrase - "the anxiety of influence" - sulks and stalks behind the majority of modern, young jazz musicians; simply meaning that m…
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Anyone who is into New Orleans traditional jazz is familiar with Big Bill Bissonnette. Bill's interest in the music began early and, like many others, he was influenced by …
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Jack McLaughlin is an Australian jazz clarinetist steeped in the history of a bygone era. A jazz purist by nature, McLaughlin follows a less traveled path and, though influ…
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