Coming after Jose James' recent albums, While You Were Sleeping, No Beginning, No End, and Black Magic, with explorations into rock, electronic, R&B, soul, and funk in addition to his jazz roots, James' new project Yesterday I Had The Blues might seem like a departure. In fact, he's returning to those jazz roots here - check out James' versions of some John Coltrane tunes from … [Read more...]
Blue Note Now (NYC Winter Jazzfest) – January 8, 2015
NYC Winter Jazzfest is on, and one of the shows you wish you could catch (assuming that you, like me, won’t be in NYC to catch the shows in person) is being billed as Blue Note Now. Robert Glasper trio, Kendrick Scott Oracle, and Jose James, tonight (January 8) at Le Poisson Rouge… but thanks to the magic of the internet, you can (and probably should) tune in to a live video … [Read more...]
Our Favorites of 2014 So Far
As we have reached a little bit past the halfway point of the year, it's about that time to look back on some of the releases of 2014 and highlight some of our favorites, jazz and non-jazz alike (and maybe a few you may have missed).Ambrose Akinmusire - The Imagined Savior is Far Easier to Paint After his remarkable, and often unsettlingly emotive debut (see: "My Tear … [Read more...]
Nextbop/The Art of Cool Project’s Favorite Jazz Albums of 2013, #9-1
As we reach the end of another season of year-end lists, I still find it just as difficult to find some thread to move through this year as when I started this endeavor some weeks ago. Yes, there is a boldness in these albums, in the works that have been created this year. There have been folks like Ben Allison or Darryl Reeves who made inspiring work and produced & released it … [Read more...]