Jazz
Red and Gold
To describe Autumn Leaves as a jazz standard is an understatement. It has a much wider appeal with covers by Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan and Seal. It is a song of nostalgia, of fond and yearning memories of a time of romance. But with legions of artists ... Read more
The Multi-layered Sound of Music
A friend sent me the Jazztronica playlist from Spotify. Jaga Jazzist opened with Lithuania and I was hooked. It’s a Chemical Brothers meet Weather Report kind of vibe, and it really works! I can even quote my immediate reactions as I heard it for the... Read more
My Favourite Five Takes on Take Five
Take Five, a song from Timeout by Dave Brubeck's quartet, is technically set in a five beat cycle, but it is so delightful and accessible! No wonder it became the first jazz single to sell over a million copies. I have run into several fascinating co... Read more
Effortless Genius
A guitar player I knew described Wes Montgomery as “effortless genius”. He had a signature thumb picked guitar sound, mellow and rounded at the same time as being crisp and well-defined. His albums had an ease in the way the music was laid down, like... Read more
Igniting the Flame
It was the autumn of 2000. I popped the tape into my tape player. Barely 20 seconds into track 1, Meeting of the Spirits, I was staring agape, in disbelief, trying to figure out what exactly I was hearing. Heavy, High-pitched electric guitar, Powerho... Read more