Born in Rovaniemi in Finnish Lapland, having grown up in Jordan, Tanzania, Oman and Lebanon, and spending much of his adult life in the United States, fretted/fretless guitarist and oud player Jussi Reijonen has lived a life soaking up the [...]
In the late eighties, there was a lot going on. Jazz was in rude health – everyone was arguing about what it should or shouldn’t be, and most of it sounded great. Mike Stern, Bob Berg and Brecker were still [...]
In our growing series in which jazz musicians do a deep (and entirely personal and selective) dive into the music of their idols, composer/arranger, saxophonist and LondonJazz contributor Charles Rees looks at the legacy of one of the leading lights of [...]
In the latest of UKJN’s series where musicians consider idols, or formative influences, Liam Noble writes about composer and multi-reedist Henry Threadgill, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2016 and an NEA Jazz Master in 2021. I have [...]
In UKJN’s series where musicians tell us about tracks by their idols that have inspired them, pianist Liam Noble writes about Lee Konitz. He starts with a moment when there was suddenly a gap where a Lee Konitz album ought [...]
In UKJN’s series where musicians write about their inspirations and idols, London-born, South African-raised and Toronto-based vocalist/composer Nicky Schrire writes about Kate McGarry: Some jazz vocalists can interpret the heck out of a song. That means delivering the verse and [...]
“Many artists seem to plateau after a while, to “coast” – Ben is NOT one of these. He continues to surprise me,” writes guitarist Ant Law. In the latest of LJN’s series in which musicians explain their fascination / respect [...]
In this edition of ’10 Tracks I Can’t Do Without, a series in which jazz musicians do a personal deep dive into the music of their antecedents and idols, Liam Noble considers Earl “Fatha” Hines (1903 – 1983). Piano lessons [...]
Michael Gibbs (b. 1937) is one of the world’s great jazz composer/arrangers, who came to prominence in the late 1960s London jazz scene. Over the past five decades he has taught and inspired countless musicians, forging creative bonds with artists [...]
For the Centenary of Charles Mingus’ birth, UKJN asked saxophonist Chris Biscoe, who has run the Mingus Moves Sextet since 1995 (see details of three forthcoming gig dates below), to reflect on the great bassist/composer/bandleader: My choice of 10 tracks [...]
