“I don’t do projects that don’t have a story or motivation,” Benjamin says. (Photo: Elizabeth Leitzell)
Finding Phoenix: Lakecia Benjamin Enters Her Next Phase
When DownBeat caught up with Lakecia Benjamin in November via Zoom, the saxophonist and composer was clad in a cherry red sweatshirt, wearing angular, postmodern chrome eyeglasses. Her shirt was emblazoned in black with “Anyone who…
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When Julian Lage sat down for this live Blindfold Test at the North Sea Jazz Festival last July, the guitarist/composer was in the throes of a summer-long tour and preparing to…
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The Panama Jazz Festival has developed into one of the most important events of its kind in the world. While other festivals have more high-profile headliners and bigger budgets,…
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Composer and bandleader Maria Schneider is one of 19 new members and four honorary members who will be inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters during its annual…
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Drummer-entrepreneur Rob Silverman has garnered loads of attention of late for his St. Louis-based label, Autumn Hill Records. It comes on the strength of a series of three…
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BY Frank Alkyer
In an era of making singles that cater to the perceived attention span of the listening public, Lakecia Benjamin shows y’all how to throw down an album — an amazing album, at that. With Phoenix, Benjamin’s fourth studio recording, the alto saxophonist…
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BY Ed Enright
The Source is Kenny Barron’s first solo album to be released since his landmark 1981 recording Kenny Barron At The Piano (Xanadu). Like that initial, auspicious solo outing, The Source consists of Barron-penned originals (“What If,” “Dolores…
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BY Daniel Margolis
This lost 1973 landmark Chicano jazz album is newly available. It’s a combination of jazz, funk, Latin soul and rock, rescued for modern audiences.
There are nearly a dozen people playing on En Medio. The opening track, “Sunday’s Church,” shifts up…
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BY Frank Alkyer
If you’re looking for a tried-and-true, gut-bucket blues record, this may not be your jam. But for those seeking an adventurous amalgam of blues, jazz and blue-eyed soul, put the headphones on and crank it up. As a guitarist, Doug Wamble has a crazy…
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Shure has released the GLX-D+ Dual Band Wireless System, providing a solution for guitarists, bassists, vocalists and presenters. The new system operates in 2.4GHz and now 5.8GHz, providing a consistent signal by automatically scanning for and selecting the cleanest frequencies. The GLX-D+ Dual…
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John Page Classic, the brand that embodies the custom designs of master luthier John Page, has unveiled its new AJ (T-style) models, which are made in the U.S. The guitars feature a host of functional and aesthetic advantages that grow out of Page’s 50-plus years of guitar design expertise,…
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by Leonard Feather // September/6/1979
The career of vocalist and songwriter Joni Mitchell has, within the past year, developed to emphasize her associations with jazz music, which have been evident at least since Tom Scott’s L.A. Express joined her on Court And Spark. Mingus, her acclaimed collaboration with the late bassist/composer, and her Playboy Jazz Festival performance with…
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