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John Watson writes: I have long admired the creativity and keyboard eloquence of Brad Mehldau, but opportunities to photograph him have been few. However, for the first volume of his autobiography (link to Scott Flanigan’s review below), I was able [...]
The Cheltenham Jazz Festival has has always presented a wide range of jazz and genres of near-jazz music in the main festival. But for those who like their jazz at the more adventurous end of the spectrum, there is no [...]
Unlike many classical, rock and pop concerts, where the audience is there to hear old favourites, the jazz gig, with improvisation at its heart, is always about ‘the new’. On Wednesday night at the excellent Vortex club in Dalston, an [...]
Asked to justify the low level of grant support for jazz when compared to, say, opera, an Arts Council functionary once answered, “Jazz takes care of itself, doesn’t it?” In other words, grass-roots jazz promotion depends on unpaid enthusiasts and [...]
Kyle Eastwood is a regular visitor to the U.K., usually appearing at Ronnie Scott’s on an “annual residency”. Eastwood plays down his connection to his famous actor and director father, which made the concept of Eastwood Plays Eastwood intriguing. As [...]
Brick Lane Jazz Festival served up three days of diverse jazz spread across more than ten venues. Now in its third year, the festival works perfectly in the vibrant, bustling surrounds of Brick Lane with its rabbit warren of vintage [...]
The palatial splendor of Ladbroke Hall is a delightful setting for Cuban pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba’s first London performance in seven years, in a trio with Matt Brewer on bass and Ernesto Simpson on drums. The trio is highly compelling and [...]
The rise and rise of Samara Joy i the past three years has been spectacular, and has been well chronicled on this site: I remember that Adam Sieff noticed cameo appearances by her on the album “Introducing Ruben Fox” in [...]
Liverpool-based vocalist Ni Maxine and her quintet performed to a capacity crowd on 21 April at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall’s Music Room. The programme – entitled Ode To Billie Holiday – included no fewer than ten songs associated with Lady [...]
The UK CLUBNIGHT! at JazzAhead was a highlight of the returned UK presence at JazzAhead this year (*). Having not had a stand or a showcase in recent years, it was such a delight to see artists from the vibrant [...]
