Issue Articles
Sounds of Freedom: Pianist and composer Courtney Bryan chosen for the MacArthur Award
“They do a good job of surprising you,” Courtney Bryan says with a laugh on how she learned she’d been chosen to receive a very prestigious 2023 MacArthur Fellowship award, colloquially known as the “genius grants.”
Joshua Redman featuring Gabrielle Cavassa: Where Are We (Blue Note)
Joshua Redman, certainly one of the most renowned saxophonist and composers of this era, gathers together an ace quartet and features vocalist Gabrielle Cavassa on Where Are We.
Stephen Walker: Midnight Cocktails (Independent)
One can almost hear trombonist, composer and bandleader Stephen Walker saying, “Hey, kick it off, Herlin” to drummer Herlin Riley on Midnight Cocktails’ hot opening number, “Blues Walker.”
I Be Trying: Cedric Burnside’s Hill Country Blues at the Crescent City Blues & BBQ Fest
Three words, hill country blues, tells the story of the musical inner workings of guitarist, drummer, vocalist and composer Cedric Burnside, who won a Grammy for his 2022 rock solid release I Be Trying in the Best Traditional Blues Album category.
The Rumble talk back
The Treme Fall Festival, Saturday, October 21, 2023, welcomes the debut of the on-the-rise ensemble, The Rumble, at its fundraising event for St. Augustine Catholic Church that takes place in the grassy field next to the historic building.
Jon Sheckler: Highway 27 (Independent)
Jon Sheckler: Highway 27
PJ Morton: Watch the Sun Live: The Mansion Sessions (Morton Records)
Fans of performances captured live, of which there are many, will applaud vocalist, keyboardist, composer and producer PJ Morton’s Watch the Sun Live: The Mansion Sessions.
RJ Smith: Chuck Berry: An American Life (Hachette Books)
It tells a lot that the title of this biography of the late, legendary Chuck Berry doesn’t mention that he was considered an originator of rock ’n’ roll.
Eddie Henderson: Witness to History (Smoke Sessions Records)
Trumpeter Eddie Henderson has been, as the title of his latest album declares, a Witness to History, a stunning release that celebrates the 50th anniversary of his debut recording as leader, 1973s Realization. At almost 83, he was on the scene with the ubiquitous “them all” and in 1949 even received an informal trumpet lesson from Louis Armstrong.
The Sparrow: Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah innovates while paying tribute to the ancestors
Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah, born Christian Scott and presently known as Chief Adjuah, grew up surrounded by jazz music, the Black Indian culture and an awareness of their African roots.
