Ten years on since his Quartet’s debut, Footprints Live!, Wayne Shorter marks his 80th birthday year by returning to Blue Note Records after a 43-year gap, and releases one of his most profound recordings to date, Without A Net.
Anyone who hears the sheer velocity of ideas that issues forth every time Chris Potter puts a saxophone to his lips can’t fail to be mesmerised, but as a solo artist he’s mined his own quietly prolific path on the edge of the limelight.
Kenny Wheeler’s place at the top table of European jazz is something of a given today.
As American jazz first gained a foothold in late-1950s Britain, so began the first tremors of free jazz in the UK, sweeping aside bebop’s limiting forms with a new wave of avant garde innovations.
New York’s place in jazz history is undisputed, but is there a new chapter of creativity being written in the present? Countless musicians, an ongoing exchange of ideas and the influence of several key figures such as Steve Lehman may explain why the sounds of the iconic east coast metropolis are as rich as they are plentiful.
Benin-born New York-based guitarist Lionel Loueke has always stood out from the crowd, both visually and sonically.
A singular presence across the last half century of jazz, Jack DeJohnette first came to prominence through the 1960s success of the Charles Lloyd Quartet.
Listening to John McLaughlin’s latest album, Now Here This, it’s hard to believe that the guitar maestro will celebrate his 71st birthday in January, such is the fizzing, unrelenting energy unleashed.
Moving into soul and rock-edged territory with his previous album, The Gate, Kurt Elling heads over to Broadway, with his latest recording centring on some of the timeless tunes from midtown Manhattan’s iconic hit factory, The Brill Building.