UK Jazz News

52 Jazz Tracks for 2021

Keith and Julie Tippett, 1987

The last (*) of Jon Turney’s weekly selections highlights a creative partnership of the first order. How to finish this series? The first of these pieces – back when 2021 felt like it might just see continuing lockdown – harked [...]

Bennie Wallace, 'Big Jim’s Tango', 1983

The 51st of Jon Turney’s weekly selections finds an undersung tenor player reaching for the heights. There are any number of great tenor saxophone players who never quite achieve the recognition they deserve. Take Bennie Wallace. His discography is high [...]

The Heath Brothers, 'Marching On', 1975

The 50th of Jon Turney’s weekly selections sees a great jazz family uniting to good effect. In the 1970s, hard times for old boppers, the three Heath brothers, Jimmy, Percy and younger sibling Albert formed a fine band with Stanley [...]

Lee Konitz and Red Mitchell, 'I Concentrate on You', 1974

The 49th of Jon Turney’s weekly selections sees a legend of cool inspired by Cole Porter. The great altoist Lee Konitz knew everything, but did tend to restrict himself to a fairly limited set of favourite vehicles in his late [...]

Back Door, 1972

The 48th of Jon Turney’s weekly selections is a blast of fresh air from the North. Back Door, who appeared out of the blue in the early ‘70s came at jazz rock from a different direction, definitively pointed on this [...]

Andrew Hill, 'Shades', 1986

The 47th of Jon Turney’s weekly selections is a notable return to the limelight for a piano master. Andrew Hill hadn’t recorded for half a dozen years, so it was a great thing when he made this LP (and the [...]

Jane Ira Bloom, 'Mighty Lights', 1983

The 46th of Jon Turney’s weekly selections is an early landmark from a great soprano saxophone exponent. Jane Ira Bloom is a brilliant player and composer who has never, to my mind, quite had the attention her work deserves. Like [...]

William Parker Quartet, 'Live at Yoshi’s', 2006

The 45th of Jon Turney’s weekly selections is from a great quartet of the noughties. The first recording by William Parker’s quartet, O’Neal’s Porch from 2001, made it clear they had something rather special. The pianoless quartet format works brilliantly [...]

Stan Tracey Quartet, 'Captain Adventure', 1975

The 44th of Jon Turney’s weekly selections comes from a classic night at the 100 Club. This recording, a near lifelong favourite, preserves a pretty spectacular night’s playing by all concerned. I heard it at first hand, though the much-cherished [...]

Orlando “Cachaíto” López, 'Cachaito', 2001

The 43rd of Jon Turney’s weekly selections is one great bassist’s homage to another. Hard to believe the original Buena Vista Social Club album is 25 years old. And after the first super-hit there followed a string of albums from [...]

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