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CONCERT JOURNAL: SUMMER 2023

Jazz History Online’s Concert Journal continues to cover the finest jazz concerts from the Eastern US. Thomas Cunniffe is your guide to the wide variety of jazz performed from Boston to DC.

Hello everyone, Welcome to the 12th-anniversary issue of Jazz History Online! I am thrilled that this website has survived all of the dramas and obstacles that have appeared in the past dozen years. There are not many jazz websites that have been around as long as JHO, and I have no plans to stop writing […]

TURN UP THE QUIET

Intimate singing may seem like a lost art, but the three vocalists featured in this review can communicate a wide range of emotions without raising their voices. Thomas Cunniffe reviews new albums by Libby York, Jane Irving, and Mary Foster Conklin.

Tony Bennett/Bill Charlap: “The Silver Lining” (RPM/Columbia 14574)

While he hasn’t always taken the best care of his voice, at 89, Tony Bennett is still at the top of his game. His remarkable new Jerome Kern tribute disc, The Silver Lining (co-led with pianist Bill Charlap) is a virtual master class of fine interpretation and vocal finesse. In this feature review, Thomas Cunniffe describes the many wonders located on this disc.

CONCEPTS, FOR BIG BAND

The rich tonal colors and great flexibility of the big band format continues to inspire composers to this day. In this month’s instrumental CD reviews, Thomas Cunniffe examines four bands located all over the world. Indiana’s Buselli/Wallarab Orchestra pays tribute to Gennett Records, Chuck Owen collaborates with the WDR Jazz Band of Cologne, Germany, Bobby Sanabria features three exceptional vocalists, and emerging composers Erica Seguine and Shon Baker present deeply personal originals on their debut CD.

JOHN COLTRANE/ERIC DOLPHY: “EVENINGS AT THE VILLAGE GATE” (Impulse 37784)

There is no shortage of live albums by John Coltrane, but a newly-discovered set “Evenings at the Village Gate” reveals a crucial step in the development of the iconic saxophonist’s Great Quartet. With the added presence of Eric Dolphy, the new album offers a unique look at Coltrane’s group in August 1961, just a few months before their historic engagement at the Village Vanguard. In this Retro Review, Thomas Cunniffe puts the album in historical perspective.

RHYTHM MAN (by Stephanie Stein Crease)

Time is an essential element of many types of art, including music, movies, and theatre. Any type of movement in the performing arts takes place against the framework of the clock. Orchestral musicians must play their parts in strict relationship to a pulse set by the conductor, while stage actors have time cues for their […]

SLOANE: A JAZZ SINGER

Vocalist Carol Sloane never received sufficient recognition in her lifetime, but a wonderful new documentary “Sloane: A Jazz Singer” may rectify the situation even though Sloane is no longer here to receive it. The film is just beginning to appear in festivals, and Thomas Cunniffe, offers his appraisal.

JATP at The Opera House

In 1957, Norman Granz launched the 18th tour of Jazz at the Philharmonic. The concerts yielded 5 separate albums featuring Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, the Modern Jazz Quartet, Stan Getz, J.J. Johnson, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Eldridge and the JATP All-Stars. All of the albums were titled At the Opera House but on four of the five albums, the mono editions were recorded at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles! In this newly revised Historical Essay, Thomas Cunniffe sorts out the discographical maze and discusses all five of the albums in both their mono and stereo editions.