Email Author Jim Macnie

2009 Stories by Jim Macnie

• Jim Hall Quartet

  published November 10, 2009

  For almost a decade, we've known about the sizable simpatico between revered guitarist Hall and his occasional saxophone foil, Greg Osby.... More >>

• Bruce Barth

  published November 3, 2009

  What began as a string of solo ruminations on his Left Coast childhood has turned into a septet-driven song cycle about sundowns and ghost towns... More >>

• Vijay Iyer Trio

  published November 3, 2009

  Just because the titillating Historicity is largely a covers disc doesn't mean the pianist has taken his eye off the ball writing-wise. It... More >>

• Gretchen Parlato

  published November 3, 2009

  Don't fall for her because she won the Monk Vocal Competition—that's just resumè stuff. Swoon because she's turned the promise of such... More >>

• Jerome Sabbagh Trio

  published October 27, 2009

  There was a mid-summer flush of saxophone trio records this year, but somehow the tenor player's enchanting One, Two, Three didn't receive... More >>

• Ben Goldberg

  published October 27, 2009

  The San Francisco clarinetist's work has seemed more thoughtful than playful, but the tunes and trajectory on the new Go Home prove two... More >>

• Tom Harrell Quintet

  published October 27, 2009

  He once had an overly earnest vibe that occasionally nudged me away from the trumpeter's work. But in the past few years, Harrell's loosened some... More >>

• Marty Ehrlich Rites Quartet

  published October 20, 2009

  The esteemed reed player knows about the fine points of building a band, and the inclusion of Erik Friedlander's swinging cello gives this small... More >>

• Joshua Redman Trio

  published October 20, 2009

  He spent the summer touring the globe with a double trio—yep, two bassists and two drummers—and at the gigs I caught, his keening horn... More >>

• Will Holshouser, Han Bennink & Michael Moore

  published October 20, 2009

  Holshouser's squeezebox action knows many trajectories. A chamber meditation here, a cartoon ditty there—walking myriad paths simultaneously... More >>

• Harris Eisenstadt

  published October 20, 2009

  Ideas can come at any time, and the drummer's new After an Outdoor Bath was germinated in a post-soak glow. With vibraphone, sax, and... More >>

• Joe Morris Quartet+Mario Pavone Quartet

  published October 13, 2009

  CT invades the LES! The guitarist and bassist cross interstate lines for a double bill that will prove just how lyrical leftie jazz can be. Morris... More >>

• Ben Allison Band

  published October 13, 2009

  There has been something kaleidoscopic about the bassist's tunes and the bands that play them. Motifs and melodies often came and went with... More >>

• 'Brooklyn Big Band Bonanza'

  published October 13, 2009

  You've read the trend pieces: A handful of ensembles are currently bent on rerouting the orthodox persona of big bands. What this really means is... More >>

• Dafnis Prieto's Si O Si Quartet

  published October 6, 2009

  Virtuosity can be a villain. Sometimes you want to yell "shut the fuck up" when a performer is continuously showing off their technical chops. But... More >>

• Evan Parker & John Zorn

  published October 6, 2009

  Swirling and slicing sound without a scrap of prepared material is a dangerous game—tedium lurks in the bushes for those instrumentalists... More >>

• Linda Oh Trio

  published October 6, 2009

  The all-points attack that the young bassist’s trio makes on the material comprising the new *Entry* is cagey indeed. Sometimes drummer Obed... More >>

• 'Festival of New Trumpet Salutes Bobby Bradford'

  published September 29, 2009

  Brass buffs know Bradford's wily lines, but because the 75-year-old bandleader and educator spent his career on the West Coast (telling album... More >>

• The ELM Three

  published September 29, 2009

  Some of the most vibrant jazz is created from the ground up—any unit with a killer rhythm section has a distinct advantage over the... More >>

• 'James P. Johnson's Last Rent Party!'

  published September 29, 2009

  The Harlem stride piano master lays in an unmarked grave in Maspeth, and his most dedicated followers—academics and musicians... More >>

• Matt Wilson Quartet

  published September 22, 2009

  The drummer has always threaded a bit of silliness into his fiery free bop, so don't be surprised when you come across that YouTube clip of him... More >>

• KID STUFF

  published September 22, 2009

  He's pushing 80, but it's a youthful lilt that leaps from Ornette Coleman's saxophone. Forget the egghead innovations of his harmolodic... More >>

• 'Coltrane Revisited'

  published September 22, 2009

  Mostly Coltrane, pianist Steve Kuhn's recent nod to his ex-employer's sublime book, manages to glisten with spirit while throwing some... More >>

• 'New Languages Festival'

  published September 22, 2009

  It is a heroic venture to provide forums for all the intrepid new souls making dents on the jazz scene. The first week of this engaging annual... More >>

• Taylor Ho Bynum & SpiderMonkey Strings

  published September 15, 2009

  Whether he's making cinematic soundscapes for snippets of his sister's surrealistic novel, or bringing a heavenly tone to such earthy fare as... More >>