jazz

  • Album cover of The Poetry of Jazz Live at Blue LLama by Allan Harris

    Allan Harris Blends Jazz and Verse in New Live Album

    .

    Allan Harris’s The Poetry of Jazz: Live at Blue LLama is more than a live album—it’s a vibrant homage to the power of jazz as a storytelling art form. Recorded at Ann Arbor’s Blue LLama Jazz Club, the album blends Harris’s signature vocals and guitar with an inspired mix of jazz standards, original compositions, and…

  • Father and child walk down a sunlit street with a guitar and instrument cases, alongside album covers of Geoff Mann’s Underground and Nathan & Noah East’s Father Son.
    ,

    Fatherhood: Geoff Mann Salutes His Dad, Nathan and Noah East

    .

    Being a father has been the most rewarding role in my life and the one I’m most thankful for. The responsibility of being Dad has enriched me in ways that words can’t seem to convey. It’s simply been my favorite thing. It certainly can be challenging. Fatherhood, at its best, is an improvisation. It’s listening,…

  • cover to the 1999 collaboration The Song Lives On Joe Sample featuring Lalah Hathaway
    , ,

    Joe Sample and Lalah Hathaway – The Song Lives On

    .

    When legendary jazz pianist Joe Sample joined forces with vocalist Lalah Hathaway, the result was The Song Lives On—a soulful and emotionally rich collaboration that bridges generations and genres. The recording was released on April 20, 1999. Sample, a founding member of The Crusaders, had already established himself as a composer with a gift for…

  • Darren Barrett in a red shirt holding his trumpet against a black background with the cover of his recording dB-ish Straight Vibesss

    Darren Barrett Explores Jazz and Hip-Hop Fusion

    .

    Darren Barrett’s latest album, dB-ish: Straight Vibesss, is a dynamic exploration of the intersection between jazz and ’90s hip-hop. Releasing on February 7th—a fitting tribute to J Dilla’s birthday—the album blends live instrumentation with programmed beats, drawing inspiration from hip-hop legends like Nas, Wu-Tang Clan, and J Dilla. dB-ish is Barrett’s experimental jazz project, showcasing…

  • Jim Beard
    , , , ,

    Remembering Jim Beard

    .

    I first came across Jim Beard’s music on the Michael Brecker recording Now You See It… . He was playing keyboards on this contemporary jazz recording, making modern sounds and jazzing things up. His compositions on that album, “Ode to the Doo Day Day” and especially “Quiet City,” remain some of my favorite memorable songs…