Norah Jones, born Geethali Norah Jones Shankar on March 30, 1979, is recognized internationally as a distinguished singer, songwriter, and pianist. Born in New York City and raised in Texas, her distinctive blend of jazz, pop, and soul music has earned her substantial acclaim across her caree...
From the 1964 Antibes Jazz Festival on July 27 & 28, Horace Silver introduced his amazing new group with Joe Henderson, Carmell Jones, Teddy Smith and Roger Humphries. They perform Silver classics like “Senor Blues,”“No Smokin’” and “Tokyo Blues” as well as two new originals: “...
Any list of smooth jazz musicians has to include the names Anita Baker, Dave Koz, Chris Botti, Al Jarreau and Norah Jones. These smooth jazz artists are among the most well known singers and instrumentalists across the genre, and with good reason. In fact, their unparalleled so...
My criteria for the female jazz vocal roundup are simple. More than anything, I search for singers who have good voices, but who have also found a context that matches their voices. I didn’t bother with household names—no Patricia Barber or Norah Jones, for instance, as they’re already...
Dinah Washington (born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, who has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the '50s". Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performed and recorded in a wide variety of styles including...
Sixty years ago this month,John Coltraneand his quartet settled into Van Gelder Studio in New Jersey. AlongsideMcCoy Tyneron piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass, Elvin Jones on drums, and Coltrane as bandleader and on saxophone, the group recorded one of the most infl...
foundation is often forged between Cyrille’s tools and Naqvi’s febrile choices of color. In fortifying each for harvest, they dip into disparate references. Hear, for example, the influence of Bryn Jones in “Sadden Upbeat,” while “Tympanic” recalls Sofia Gubaidulina’s String Quartet No....
Quincy Delight Jones was just 14 years old when he introduced himself to Ray Charles. Though the pianist-singer was just two years older, he was already an inspiration to the younger musician. Charles had the gift of synthesizing the various strains of music - jazz, folk, country, pop, sou...
Check out this live performance of the John Coltrane Quartet (Jimmy Garrison on bass, McCoy Tyner on piano, and Elvin Jones on drums—even more jazz legends): 7. Ornette Coleman Image Source: Wikimedia Commons Ornette Coleman’s fearless exploration into uncharted musical territories made him one...
I would venture to say that most jazz musicians of a certain generation would place Elvin Jones among their favorite all-time artists. Obviously, this is for musical reasons, but I think it is equally about charisma, an undeniable presence that Elvin has brought to the music. Some of the ...