Out Of/Into: Motion I; Ambrose Akinmusire: Honey From a Winter Stone; Lars Danielsson/Verneri Pohjola/John Parricelli: Trio; Joe Syrian Motor City Jazz Octet: Secret Message; Arild Andersen: Landloper.
In less than 11 years, guitarist Emily Remler went from rising star to shooting star, from her first major exposurean invitation from Herb Ellis to perform as part of "Guitar Explosion" at the Concord Jazz Festival on July 21, 1978to her final concert on May 3, 1990, at the Hotel Richmond in Adelaide, Australia, where she was found dead from a heart attack the next day. She was 32 years old.
The recent Resonance Records triple-LP/double-CD set Cookin' at the Queens: Live in Las Vegas (1984 & 1988) is a welcome reminder of her prowess and a sad marker of what she might have accomplished if she hadn't died so young.
The Violent Femmes: Hallowed Ground, 40th Anniversary Reissue; Christopher Owens: I Want To Run Barefoot Through Your Hair; Iron Maiden: Powerslave (40th Anniversary Edition); Lucinda Williams: Lucinda Williams Sings the Beatles from Abbey Road.
Various Artists: Jem Records Celebrates Jagger & Richards; Kerry King: From Hell I Rise; Liam Gallagher and John Squire: Liam Gallagher and John Squire; Bob Schneider: The Human Torch; Marcus King: Mood Swings.
The best Christmas gift in history was George Bailey being shown what the world would be like without his being born, courtesy of Angel Second Class Clarence, in the classic 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life. More recently, and in the real world, the best gift ever was the release of pianist Les McCann's Never a Dull Moment! (Live from Coast to Coast 19661967) a few weeks before Christmas 2023 and less than a month before his death at 88, on three vinyl LPs.
Seventy years ago this summer, a young pianist from Tryon, North Carolinaa town of fewer than 2000 residentsmade her professional debut in Atlantic City. This was not the culmination of a dream but rather an economic choice born of the racial circumstances of the era. It was a letdown.
The venue was the Midtown Bar. If they'd known what she was doing, her parents would have objected and her musical peers would have sneered, so Eunice Waymon performed under a pseudonym: Nina Simone. Adding to the indignity for this classically trained pianist, playing wasn't enough; she was also expected to sing.
Rufus Reid and Caelan Cardello: Rufus Reid Presents Caelan Cardello; Julie Kelly: Freedom Jazz Dance; One For All: Big George; Archie Shepp: Derailleur; Chris Potter: Eagle's Point.