100 of The Hottest Classic Jazz Albums of 1945-2025, Part 2: 1954-1959
What are the most exciting and essential classic jazz recordings that have taken place since the end of World War II? I accepted the challenge
Monte Mountjoy: Taking Care of Business On Drums
Hal Smith: Brother Kevin, after we wrote about the great Fred Higuera, we decided to take a listen to some recordings by another West Coast
Will and Pete Anderson Honor Jazz Legends in Music and Print
In 2010, the enterprising Anderson brothers, Peter and Will, co-produced and directed a two-week off-Broadway tribute to Artie Shaw. Two years later, they presented a
100 of The Hottest Classic Jazz Albums of 1945-2025, Part 1: 1945-1954
A dedicated Syncopated Times reader (who chooses to remain anonymous) came up with a particularly intriguing idea for an article. While the historic jazz recordings
Murder on the Bandstand: The Tragedy of Evan Thomas
The old jazz tune, “I’ll Be Glad When You’re Dead, You Rascal, You” is intended to be a funny song about marital infidelity. The cuckold,
The Sant Andreu Jazz Band Competes at Essentially Ellington
If there is any concern among jazz enthusiasts that big band swing is in danger of dying out among the younger generations of musicians, the
Trumpeter James O’Donnell: The Motor City Jazz Maestro
In Detroit, a city long renowned for its musical innovations as much as its automotive creations, jazz trumpeter James O’Donnell has spent more than five
From St. Louis to Boston, Hot Jazz Follows Anne Linders
Anne Linders won’t take credit for revitalizing the traditional jazz scenes in the two towns she has called home this past decade. Was it just
Emmet Cohen Has a Lot to Say
Emmet Cohen is a multi-talented and innovative musician/pianist who captivates his audiences with style, panache and good humor. He began studying the piano at the
‘A Little Help Here’: TST Could Really Use a Hand
I know people are reading this who have experience with grant research and grant writing as well as other nonprofit fundraising activities, and we are
2025 Bix Jazz Festival: Davenport Blues, Stomps, Rags, Joys
The stage is set for the 2025 Bix Beiderbecke Jazz Festival; July 31, Aug. 1 and Aug. 2 at the Rhythm City Casino in Davenport.
Gulf Coast Banjo Society Relocates During Renovations
Snook Haven County Park & Restaurant, which hosted the Gulf Coast Banjo Society since 1987, is now undergoing a thorough renovation that will take at
From The 2025 Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival
The 51st Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival in Sedalia, MO took place, as usual, from Wednesday through Saturday, May 28-31. There were a couple events on
From the Durango Ragtime and Early Jazz Festival
The first weekend in April found me at the Durango (CO) Ragtime and Early Jazz Festival. This festival is a re-incarnation of a previous one
The 2025 NYC Hot Jazz Camp
The 10th annual (except for 2020 when it was cancelled by Covid) New York Hot Jazz Camp convened at its regular home, the Greenwich House
Yusu Jazz Band • Jumpin’ at Ari
Terry Waldo and his Gotham City Band • Treasury Volume 2
Paolo Alderighi and Stephanie Trick • Classic Jazz On Two Pianos
Lou Gold and his Orchestra • It’s Tight Like That
Dancing The Devil Away: Hot Dance Music on Edison Diamond Discs 1923-1928
Frank Westphal and his Orchestra • “Oh Sister! Ain’t That Hot!” 1922-1924
The Dixie Daisies • Hotsy Totsy Town 1922-1923
Judy Whitmore • Let’s Fall in Love
The Hipster’s Legacy: A Memoir of Dreams, Jazz, and Family in 1960s California
Glenn Miller Declassified by Dennis M. Spragg
Three Short Book Reviews
Ricky Riccardi • Stomp Off, Let’s Go: The Early Years of Louis Armstrong
Dolly Jones, Valaida Snow, and Billie Rogers: Profiles in Jazz
There was a time not too long ago when it was roundly believed that women did not have the physical capabilities to play most horn
Art Hodes: Profiles in Jazz
Art Hodes was never the type of musician who complained about not getting enough gigs; he always did something about it. He was a fighter
Buck Clayton • Profiles in Jazz
Buck Clayton is most famous today for his association with Count Basie but that is only a small part of his musical legacy, a seven-year
Protect, Preserve, Perpetuate!
This year, the Preservation Hall Foundation will open a new campus facility at 730 Saint Peter Street adjacent to the existing building and under a
No Restin’ ’Cause We’re Festin’!
With Mardi Gras, Quarter Fest, and Easter parades over, the city was ready for the Jazz & Heritage Festival and so were we! Two full
Live Jazz in Tucson, AZ!
Spring begins early in Tucson and The Learning Curve (an adult education program) offered a four week class on The Magic & Music Quincy Jones,
Texas Shout #1 “Dixieland”
The following introduction was added when the Shouts were reprinted in the late 90s: Set forth below is the initial “Texas Shout” column, reprinted from
Texas Shout #4 Reading, Solo & Ensemble Skills
Set forth below is the fourth “Texas Shout” column, reprinted from the March 1990 issue of The American Rag (then West Coast Rag). Because the
Texas Shout #37 Ensemble Skills
Set forth below is the thirty-seventh “Texas Shout” column. It first appeared in the March 1993 issue of the West Coast Rag now the Syncopated Times).
Doreen’s Jazz, Rising Stars Heat Up a Cold Night in Rome, NY
It is nearing 100 degrees as I write this, oppressively humid. I have Doreen’s Jazz New Orleans, vol. 33 “Walkin’ Through The Streets,” her latest
Annie and the Hedonists at Caffè Lena
Caffè Lena, Saratoga Springs, May 31, 2025 Many of the songs we choose to sing spring to our lips because they’ve been drilled into our
Catherine Russell Swings Delightfully, Indefatigably, Agelessly
The jazz world could use a few more Catherine Russells. Not just because this Grammy Award-winning artist is a wonderful singer, with an appealing sound
The Earliest Violin Recordings
In the acoustic era, recording the violin was always a challenge. Even as the technology improved, the results didn’t always work out the best. In
Okeh Boldly Ventures into Radio, 1922
When radio became all the rage in the middle 1920s, it was seen as a threat to the phonograph business. Companies like Victor were very
A Study in Condition
When collecting records, we can only hope that each record we acquire plays well enough so we can enjoy its contents. Collecting acoustic era recordings
‘Hello Mudduh, Hello Fadduh!’
How I wish I could fact check with a time machine! As with many formative strong childhood memories, music swirls in and out of the
The Lost Hook Tapes
It really is a waiting game based on luck and endurance. I am banking on the idea that if you stick to your artistic career
Birthday Blues
“Everything happens for the best” Does it really? In a continuation of last month’s theme of reality being how we perceive it, perhaps the better
The Odd Brilliance of P.T. Stanton
Horn player P.T. Stanton was a creative, original and mysterious musician who left his signature on the second wave of the Great San Francisco Jazz
Agent Josephine: American Beauty, French Hero, British Spy
“It seemed the perfect way to fight my war.”– Josephine Baker No American was ever more beloved by the French nation than Josephine Baker. In
Bush Street above Powell in San Francisco: The Club Hangover Story, 1949-61
Club Hangover was the foremost Dixieland and New Orleans Jazz nightclub on the West Coast in the 1950s. The intimate nightspot featured music six nights
Ain’t No Wrong Notes in Jazz
It is easy to be impressed by jazz musicians… if you are not one yourself. We are, after all, an impressive bunch. And I know
Bad Moon Rising
Jazz musicians are a mischievous bunch. I doubt that’s a surprise to any of you, as the history books are filled with stories of pranks
The New Syllabus
There’s been a lot made in the news in recent times about systemic issues in our education system. As I understand it, there seems to
Help Save Ragtime’s History
I was recently contacted by a gentleman in New York who has had to curtail playing the piano due to the challenges of aging and
Fifty Years Later, Here We Are!
We got old. Fifty years added to our twenties, thirties, and forties in 1974 equals old for those who have managed to survive. And. for
Helen Traubel Defends Popular Music
My grandmother used to say she couldn’t see because she had Cadillacs in front of her eyes. Well, it must be genetic because I’ve gone
John Cocuzzi (1964–2025)
John Cocuzzi, a vibraphonist, pianist, and drummer, well known to jazz party attendees, passed away on June 12, 2025, at 61. A Maryland native, Cocuzzi
Arthur Hamilton
Arthur Hamilton, the gifted songwriter best known for the classic jazz ballad “Cry Me a River,” died on May 20th. He claims to have never
Johnny Parth of Document Records
Johnny Parth, founder of Document Records, died May 18, 2025, in Vienna, Austria, at 95. His label rescued pre-1943 jazz, blues, and gospel from obscurity,
