It has been said, way too often, that “jazz is America’s only indigenous art form.” That cliched statement is inaccurate in two ways. Jazz is
JAZZ CLASSIC OF THE MONTH Pianist Joe Sullivan was a superior stride pianist who was most influenced by Earl Hines’ “trumpet style” approach to playing
The finest singers to be regularly featured with Duke Ellington’s orchestra were Ivie Anderson, Joya Sherrill, Herb Jeffries, and Al Hibbler with Ray Nance being
Oran (Hot Lips) Page (1908-54) was one of the great trumpeters to emerge from Kansas City in the 1930s in addition to being a fine
Armand Hug (1910-77) was one of the top pianists to be active in New Orleans during the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s. A professional from the
Bob Greene (1922-2013) is best remembered for his 1974 album The World Of Jelly Roll Morton. While he played in trad jazz settings in the
Dorothy Donegan (1922-98) was one of the all-time greats of the jazz piano even though she never quite received the recognition that she deserved, at
Although Ken Peplowski had been battling multiple myeloma for five years, his sudden death on February 2 is still a bit of a shock. He
When most jazz fans think of James P. Johnson (1894-1955), it is of a brilliant and pioneering stride pianist who also wrote some notable songs.
JAZZ CLASSIC OF THE MONTH Thomas Morris was a casualty of the rapid evolution that jazz underwent during the 1920s. The cornetist fit very securely
Pianist Sue Palmer has led her Motel Swing Orchestra for 25 years. Remarkably the personnel has remained the same for all of this time (trombonist
Django Reinhardt (1910-53) was one of jazz’s most original and brilliant guitarists, certainly the top guitarist to emerge during the 1930s. But despite that, at
An excellent jazz singer based in Chicago ever since he moved there from his native Buffalo in 2003, Paul Marinaro has excellent elocution (one can
The Upbeat label from England has compiled many rewarding CDs through the years. Their “Great Jazz” series previously released Various Artists sets CDs titled Great
JAZZ CLASSIC OF THE MONTH Earl Hines (1903-83) was always a true original. When he emerged on the scene in the 1920s, he sounded unlike
Clarinetist Ricky Alexander’s fourth album as a leader (following Just Found Joy, Strike Up The Band, and I’m In Love Again) straddles the often-artificial boundaries
A top-notch swing and classic jazz pianist based in Germany, Chris Hopkins is also an excellent alto-saxophonist. In 2025 he released an album on his
Archeophone, the top label in reissuing pre-1920 music, has 23 CDs in their very valuable series of Phonographic Yearbooks. The program consists of two volumes
A superb all-round trumpeter, Billy Butterfield had a warm tone, strong technical skills, and a versatile style that found him equally at home playing swing,
JAZZ CLASSIC OF THE MONTH Although Jack Pettis never became a major name, he was one of the top tenor and C-melody saxophonists of the
