Album Reviews

When exploring 1920s jazz it is easy for today’s musicians to be a little too reverential of the past, seeking to recreate aspects of earlier

I love the Mills Brothers. Any time I see one of their LPs in a charity shop I do a little “shoop-de-whoop-whoop,” accompanied by a

The Toddies are something of a supergroup. Led by celebrated stage composer Patrick Soluri on drums, the outfit boasts veteran bandleader Gordon Webster on keys,

Ed Clute’s relationship with this paper goes back about as far as is possible. He was profiled in our very first issue, our publisher, Andy

Returning to my notes on an album before writing a review I often find more exclamations than insights but sometimes they point me in the

Of the numerous Turtle Bay releases this one will especially resonate with TST readers. Not trying to be hip or current, these are men with

Jazz Classic of the Month Oscar Aleman (1909-80) was born and raised in Argentina but is best-known today for his work in Europe in the

Bobby Leecan (1897-1946) was a fine banjoist and guitarist who straddled the boundaries between jazz, blues and hokum during his relatively brief recording career. What

Upbeat recently reissued a collection originally put out by Big Bill Bissonnette’s Jazz Crusade label that was titled Rare Cuts – Well Done, Volume 8.

When Jack Teagarden (1905-64) arrived in New York in 1927, he created a bit of a sensation in the jazz world. Sounding years ahead of

British trombonist Roger Marks led one of his finest groups during 2000-2001, a period when his Armada Jazz Band was captured on no less than

I’ll lead this by saying this is a different album from the one Scott Yanow reviews in this issue. He is quicker on the draw

The story of the Clef Club and its impact on jazz has almost always been told through the lens of its most famous alum, James

Many albums from New Orleans are recorded in houses in the 9th Ward, supplying a poetic mental image of the festivities, but this one actually

The first album I heard from Crawfish Wallet was their third, 2022’s Ti Flanboyan, and two years later I still play it on my walks

Every year is now a centennial year for historic jazz. Between 2017 and 2023 we didn’t commemorate that many recordings. The ODJB got their articles

I’ve had a lot of unsolicited CDs lately, which have made up the bulk of my recent album reviews. And while it’s always nice to

I’d like to say that Britain is the spiritual home of jazz in Europe: we produced enduring heroes like Humphrey Lyttleton, Acker Bilk, Chris Barber,

It is easy to divide the musical life of Nat King Cole (1919-65) into two. Prior to 1950, he was well known as a very

JAZZ CLASSIC OF THE MONTH Two formerly rare ten-inch LPs were reissued on the single CD Classic Jazz at Saint-Germain-des-Prés which was released as part

Charles LaVere (1910-83) was a talented pianist, singer and songwriter who managed to stay busy through his entire career without ever becoming well-known. Born in

Trumpeter Cootie Williams (1911-1985) will always be most famous for his association with Duke Ellington. He became Bubber Miley’s successor as Ellington’s plunger mute specialist

In the 1930s, Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire introduced and popularized dozens of songs that became standards. Cliff “Ukulele Ike” Edwards (1895-1971) preceded them in