Vinnie Sperrazza: Juxtaposition

The new album by the NY-based drummer Vinnie Sperazza's quartet includes the ubiquitous saxophonist Chris Speed but has a curiously...

Reviewed by Selwyn Harris in issue: March/2017

Betty St. Claire: Complete Jubilee and Seeco Recordings

St Claire sings beautifully on the majority of these sides with quartets starring the likes of Mundell Lowe and Barry...

Reviewed by Alyn Shipton in issue: March/2017

Zalla (Piero Umiliani): Suspense

Piero Umiliani used the alias M Zalla to divide his prolific work as a soundtrack composer from other esoteric, less...

Reviewed by Selwyn Harris in issue: March/2017

Cybill Shepherd/Stan Getz: Cybill Getz Better

A pleasant, but unexceptional voice, matched by Getz at his fluffiest and some rather odd charts for multiple flutes and...

Reviewed by Alyn Shipton in issue: March/2017

Randy Weston: The African Nubian Suite

Martin Kwaku Obeng | Cecil Bridgewater | Howard Johnson | Lewis Nash | Wayne Chandler | Alex Blake | Billy Harper | Jane Cortez | Robert Trowers | Saliou Souso

The inclusion of the long deceased Melba Liston in the credits is not a minor detail. The trombonist penned the...

Reviewed by Kevin Le Gendre in issue: March/2017

Miroslav Vitous: Infinite Search

Joe Henderson | Herbie Hancock | Miroslav Vitous | Jack DeJohnette | John McLaughlin

Quite by coincidence BGO and Pure Pleasure Vinyl have released the same album. The vinyl issue is a facsimile of...

Reviewed by Stuart Nicholson in issue: March/2017

Steve Slagle: Alto Manhattan

With the input of guest saxophonist Joe Lovano and conguero Roman Diaz, the NYC alto-saxophonist/flautist's cosmic Coltranesque-bop is given the...

Reviewed by Selwyn Harris in issue: March/2017

Album Interview: Colin Steele Quintet: Even in the Darkest Places

Colin Steele | Michael Buckley | Stu Ritchie | Dave Milligan | Calum Gourlay

The album title reflects a gruelling five-year period for Colin Steele following a series of events that revolved around him...

Reviewed by Selwyn Harris in issue: March/2017

Mary Halvorson Octet: Away With You

Ches Smith | Mary Halvorson | Jonathan Finlayson | John Hébert | Ingrid Laubrock | Jacob Garchik | Susan Alcorn | Jon Irabagon

The boundary-flouting farsightedness of guitarist, composer and bandleader Mary Halvorson is at its peak on Away With You. It finds...

Reviewed by Spencer Grady in issue: March/2017

The Marzette Watts Ensemble

J.C. Moses | George Turner | Steve Tintweiss | Patty Waters | Juny Booth | Robert Fews | Amy Schaeffer | Frank Kipers | Marty Cook | Tom Berge

The late saxophonist Marzette Watts was active in New York at the birth of the New Thing, taking a loft...

Reviewed by Daniel Spicer in issue: March/2017