Album Reviews

A member of one of the greatest jazz vocal groups ever, the Boswell Sisters, Connee Boswell (with one early exception) began recording as a single

Jazz And Swing On Screen is the fifth release on the Upbeat label for the London Swing Orchestra. It was preceded by The Roaring Twenties,

There were quite a few “gaspipe” clarinetists who during the 1920s were popular for a time. Those musicians emphasized odd sounds and novelty effects, whether

I have a bit of an infatuation with Martha Raye. Born in 1916, “The Big Mouth” was a vaudeville child star before appearing in the

Clarinetist George Lewis, trumpeter Kid Howard, and trombonist Jim Robinson made for a potent frontline, one that was featured on some of Lewis’ best-known records.

While his name is barely known in the United States and even many jazz fans in England may not be that familiar with him, pianist-bandleader

It has recently come to our attention—and it may be news to others—that the Golden Record created to accompany the Voyager space probe missions with

Miss Maybell (AKA Lauren Sansaricq) has pursued an old timey musical bug for years but matched with virtuoso pianist Charlie Judkins she has found something

With this double CD, Kit Johnson and the Black Swan Classic Jazz Band are on solid ground by aiming the contents at dancers, as is

Over the three-and-some decades of its existence, Michael Law’s Piccadilly Dance Orchestra has recorded eight full-length albums. That may not sound like much, until you

The last two years have made the world smaller, remarkably smaller. The technology to record remotely has matured to the point where remote records are

Back in 2018 I devoted a full column of reviews to albums from female led jazz bands. It was in that search that I discovered

Standing at some six feet five inches and weighing around 250 lbs, Frank “Big Boy” Goudie (pronounced “Goody”) was an imposing figure on the bandstand,

We’ve covered a number of artists in the last several years who have recorded to wax cylinder, usually under the guiding eye of Colin Hancock.

In case someone isn’t familiar with the term, “Backwards Compatible” refers to the ability of a new technology to use material from its predecessor. A

In 2014, pianist Jacob Adams ran across a book of rags (Eight Ragtime Pieces For Piano) by veteran Larry Porter that instantly intrigued him. Porter’s

As I write this, I’m lying in bed with a banging headache, running a temperature. Listening to this album through headphones made the headache worse—no

A beloved patron of ragtime who not only attends ragtime festivals but hosts many of the pianists at his home in Sutter Creek, California, Arlo

The mystery I go on about below has been solved. Their 2021 album, just released, reveals all.  I was wrong, as usual, about just about

I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: I have a soft spot for jazz in a Continental accent. And by that I mean

Fools for Yule is a wonderful Christmas record from the Uptown Vocal Jazz Quartet, a remarkable team of vocalists accompanied here by an excellent band.

During the swing era in the 1930s, it became a common practice for the best big bands, for variety’s sake and to the delight of