Apr 29, 2025 11:53 AM
Vocalist Andy Bey Dies at 85
Singer Andy Bey, who illuminated the jazz scene for five decades with a four-octave range that encompassed a bellowing…
Women are often overlooked in the pantheon of jazz organists. But with her 50th album, Encore, Encore, Encore (Sunnyside), Paris-based Rhoda Scott has brought plenty of attention to her important role on the B-3.
The 12 tracks are evidence that Scott is a master at the organ tradition, while putting her own stamp on the legacy, often performing solo as the “Barefoot Lady,” a moniker she received due to her barefoot pedal work. On Encore, Encore, Encore, Scott performs almost solo, only accompanied by French drummer Lucian Dobat.
Except for Scott’s original “Do What ‘Cha Gotta Do” and Johnny Griffin’s blues “Sweet Sucker,” all fo the selections on the album are American popular standards. Kurt Weill’s “Mack The Knife” and the Comden-Green favorite “New York, New York” swing hard; and by contrast, Scott’s light-speed take on “If I Should Lose You” is fueled by the futuristic ideas of Larry Young. Other tracks on the album include “Pistachio,” “Sunrise, Sunset,” “Don’t Worry ‘Bout Me,” “In The Mood” and “In The Mood Biz.”
“It kind of slows down, but it’s still kind of productive in a way, because you have something that you can be inspired by,” Andy Bey said on a 2019 episode of NPR Jazz Night in America, when he was 80. “The music is always inspiring.”
Apr 29, 2025 11:53 AM
Singer Andy Bey, who illuminated the jazz scene for five decades with a four-octave range that encompassed a bellowing…
Foster was truly a drummer to the stars, including Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson.
Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
Davis was a two-time Grammy winner for liner notes.
Apr 22, 2025 11:50 AM
Francis Davis, an august jazz and cultural critic who won both awards and esteem in print, film and radio, died April…
“Branford’s playing has steadily improved,” says younger brother Wynton Marsalis. “He’s just gotten more and more serious.”
May 20, 2025 11:58 AM
Branford Marsalis was on the road again. Coffee cup in hand, the saxophonist — sporting a gray hoodie and a look of…
“What did I want more of when I was this age?” Sasha Berliner asks when she’s in her teaching mode.
May 13, 2025 12:39 PM
Part of the jazz vibraphone conversation since her late teens, Sasha Berliner has long come across as a fully formed…
