Dan Bowens for FOX 5 NEW YORK – Roy Haynes still walks tall in the world of jazz. After seven decades behind the drums, not a detail is overlooked. And it is always a good time to play. His recent set at…
Damn, if it’s hard to be hopeful these days. So who would have thought a blues musician could be so exuberant and optimistic? The Texas-born, Louisiana-raised singer, songwriter, and pounder of the piano keys Marcia Ball has always looked on…
Abby O’Neill for NPR – GZA’s performance at the Tiny Desk was a rare appearance for the legendary Wu-Tang Clan emcee, in part because he’s notoriously introverted, and because he brought along The Soul Rebels, an eight-piece New Orleans brass ensemble. Once they…
Peter Breslow for NPR – When Marcia Ball sits down at the piano, the barrelhouse blues that jump out is enough to frighten any set of nearby keyboards. The 69-year-old has been playing Texas boogie and New Orleans blues for 50 years. Her…
Revered US guitarist Pat Metheny has been confirmed as the recipient of the PRS for Music Gold Award at this year’s Jazz FM Awards, which take place next Monday on 30 April at Shoreditch Town Hall, London. Widely acclaimed as one of the all-time jazz guitar greats,…
Check out the May 2018 issue of JazzTimes featuring cover story Kurt Elling, as the Q & A discusses poetry, melody, fake Twitter feuds & Life’s big questions. Elling’s new album, The Questions, (Okey/ Sony Masterworks) was released in March…
National Endowment for the Arts – Each year the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) honors individuals whose talent and dedication have made an impact on jazz in this country. In celebration of the 2018 NEA Jazz Masters—Todd Barkan, Joanne Brackeen, Pat Metheny,…
Judy Cantor-Navas for BILLBOARD – On May 18, jazz pianist Harold López-Nussa will perform with his percussionist father Ruy, pianist uncle Ernan, and his brother Ruy Adrian, who plays the drums, at Washington, D.C.’s Kennedy Center. One of the most…
Grant Britt for NO DEPRESSION – Marcia Ball has always been a line straddler. Born in Texas, raised in Louisiana, Ball has crossed over so many times in her 50 year musical career that those state lines are a musical blur, a…
Who is the Planetary Prince? According to keyboardist and composer Cameron Graves, it’s him. The title and concept go back long before the 35-year-old pianist struck his first piano key but in the past few years, Graves has surveyed a…