We are saddened to learn of the death of one of the great singer/songwriters of our music, Terry Callier. Terry passed away on Sunday 28th October. His legacy will live on through the many great recordings he made throughout a long and varied career. Full tribute coming. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0YwWU5wdEo
Skip text, jump to albums >> FUNK – WHERE IT STARTED FOR ME Funk was where it all started as far as I was concerned - it was the first ‘black’ music that got to me. My elder brother Laurence had gotten into Soul a few years earlier, but sixties Soul (Motown, Stax etc) and Northern Soul was not my thing then. When Laurence started playing Funk that was it. I was hooked. Funk had that edge and flow to it. It was the jazzy bassline, the naggingly infectious rhythm guitar riffs and the tight horns. It was all those...
Skip text, jump to albums >> THE SMOOTH JAZZ PHENOMENA Few things have created as much controversy within the Jazz world in the last twenty years or so than Smooth Jazz. Many contend that Smooth Jazz is not Jazz at all and is really instrumental RnB. The absence of improvisation and the fairly strict adherence to the melody are undoubtedly characteristics of the music. The musicianship is however of a high quality and many of its protagionists are amongst contemporary Jazz’s finest. Then there is the song writing which in the cases of the likes of Peter White and Brian...
Italian Jazz is enjoying a golden period with labels such as Schema and Déjà Vu releasing some of the finest Jazz dance of the last few years. Schema is re-promoting some of the earlier titles from the earlier part of the decade. There are some real gems many of which were overlooked as the Schema sound had not yet fully developed and had not reached the peak of its popularity.
Skip text, jump to albums >> JAZZ FUNK – MY JOURNEY INTO JAZZ Jazz Funk was my initiation in to the delights of Jazz. I listened to the likes of Herbie Hancock, Grover Washington Jr, Lonnie Liston Smith and the Crusaders, before that my exposure to Jazz was Acker Bilk and Kenny Ball. Fusing James Brown and Sly Stone’s Funk with the musicianship of Jazz, Donald Byrd’s ‘Black Byrd’ and Herbie Hancock ‘Headhunters’ blew us away. Fresh and vibrant, Jazz Funk sounded like no Jazz I had ever heard. Soon after I bought my first Jazz album; it was Grover...
It’s the best week for new releases for a while. Former James Brown backing vocalist Martha High has teamed up with top British band Speedometer to make a cracking album ‘Soul Overdue’. Newban were the band that evolved into Atlantic Starr and their two albums from 1977 are presented together on one CD or a Double Vinyl which is an essential purchase. There are also good new releases from Cody Chestnutt, Lakecia Benjamin and a nice jazz covers of Curtis songs from Jazz Soul Seven. Quite a few re-issues this week including the long awaited Total Experience label releases from Switch,...
Skip text, jump to albums >> BLUE NOTE – ‘FINEST IN JAZZ SINCE….1939’ My fascination with Blue Note came late in life. I began my love affair with Jazz in my teens. It was the Jazz Funk of Herbie Hancock, Grover Washington Jr and Donald Byrd that captured my imagination; there was no need to look back in time to investigate other forms of Jazz, there was just too much great music around at that time. The first two Blue Note records I bought were Donald Byrd’s ‘Black Byrd’ and Ronnie Laws’ ‘Pressure Sensitive’. See our JAZZ FUNK page for...
