Kurt Elling: 1619 Broadway-The Brill Building Project

Clark Sommers | Ernie Watts | John McLean | Kendrick Scott | Kurt Elling | Laurence Hobgood

Stunning arrangements, bold reharmonisations, electrifying technical prowess. Yes, it's the latest slice of musical magic from Kurt Elling. Paying homage...

Reviewed by Peter Quinn in issue: November/2012

Maynard Ferguson: The Lost Tapes Bonus

Maynard Ferguson | Ronnie Ross | Ronnie Scott

What are we supposed to make of this? As with Sleepy Night’s previous volume of archive Ferguson material, this is...

Reviewed by Simon Spillett in issue: February/2022

Peter & Will Anderson: Clarinet Summit

David Wong | Ken Peplowski | Kenny Washington | Paquito D'Rivera | Peter Anderson | Tardo Hammer | Will Anderson

Here's the Danish-owned SteepleChase label dipping into the current New York swing scene rather than pursuing its more usual hard-bop...

Reviewed by Peter Vacher in issue: August/2017

Anders Jormin: Ad Lucem

Anders Jormin | Erika Angell | Fredrik Ljungkvist | Jon Fält | Miriam Wallentin

This album combines two thirds of the Bobo Stenson Trio (Jormin and Fält) with the elegant voices of Wallentin and...

Reviewed by Stuart Nicholson in issue: April/2012

Woody Herman: The Woody Herman Collection 1937-56

Focusing on Herman’s main hits from his early band and the first and second Herds, this is a good introductory...

Reviewed by Alyn Shipton in issue: February/2018

Mike Paxton Quintet: Song of the Even Dunes

Alec Dankworth | Kit Downes | Martin Shaw | Mike Paxton | Robin Aspland

Having earned his spurs with the likes of Ray Warleigh and Mick Pyne, drummer Paxton toured and recorded with Humphrey...

Reviewed by Peter Vacher in issue: November/2015

Ray Charles: Live 1958-60

David ‘Fathead’ Newman | Edgar Willis | Hank Crawford | John Hunt | Lee Harper | Leroy Cooper | Marcus Belgrave | Mili Turner | Phillip Guilbeau | Ray Charles

In June 1952, Atlantic Records purchased Charles’ recording contract for $2,500, but the Ertegun Brothers were later outbid by RCA-Victor...

Reviewed by Roy Carr in issue: Dec/Jan/2017/2018

John Handy Quintet And Quartet: In The Vernacular/No Coast Jazz

Bill Lee | Bobby Fuhlrodt | Don Friedman | George Tucker | John Handy | Lex Humphries | Richard Williams | Roy Haynes | Sir Roland Hanna

John Handy recorded these two spirited albums for Roulette around the same time as he participated in the sessions for...

Reviewed by Roy Carr in issue: April/2012

Leo Blanco: Pianoforte

There’s a buzz about the Venezuelan, Boston-based pianist and on this live solo piano CD, recorded in the Andes region,...

Reviewed by Selwyn Harris in issue: September/2013

Dizzy Gillespie & The United Nations Orchestra: Live At The Royal Festival Hall, London

Airto Moreira | Arturo Sandoval | Claudio Roditi | Danilo Perez | Dizzy Gillespie | Ed Cherry | Flora Purim | Giovanni Hidalgo | Ignacio Berroa | James Moody

This is in many ways a wonderful re-release of the Enja album that first appeared in 1990 by a band...

Reviewed by Alyn Shipton in issue: Feb/2019