Beauty is a Rare Thing: Celebrating International Jazz Day (Revisited)
Sean MurphyAll hope is not lost. At least enough people are still making –and listening to– jazz that we can even attempt to initiate what hopefully becomes an ongoing occasion. In…
Nat Hentoff: Great American Hero
Spiderman, I suppose, came first. Six or seven, comic book in hand, convinced there was no one cooler, no one more righteous, no one else I’d rather be. After a…
10 for NYC by 10, on 9/11
New York City would be unimaginable without jazz, and vice versa. Here then is a tribute for --and by-- several musicians who help define and celebrate the cultural mecca of…
ALL HAIL THE KING: Happy Birthday, Chazz!
Today would have been (and, still is) Charles Mingus’s 94th birthday. I’ve written about him often and I’ll continue to write about him, not only because he is one of…
Where the Hell is Shafi Hadi?: A Poem (Revisited)
(*Saxophone player Shafi Hadi, born Curtis Porter, is best-known for his association with jazz legend Charles Mingus, and played on the seminal recording Mingus Ah Um, from 1959. He dropped…
Yusef Lateef: R.I.P., Gentle Giant (Revisited)
We have lost one of the great, indeed one of the greatest, ones. Yusef Lateef, aged 93 years young, was finally stopped by cancer on December 23. I say "finally"…
10 for NYC by 10, on 9/11
New York City would be unimaginable without jazz, and vice versa. Here then is a tribute for --and by-- several musicians who help define and celebrate the cultural mecca of…
Talking Jive, Mingus and John Goodman
Today is the day. For John Goodman, that is. And for you, if you are inclined to check out his new book, Jive-Colored Glasses: A Jazz Memoir. And you should…
No, Really: Jeff Beck is God (Revisited)
6/15: Happy 71st birthday to the great Jeff Beck. 3/11: Since it happened to be Keith Relf’s birthday, it seemed appropriate to pay tribute to him on Tuesday. Plus, as…
50 Albums You May Not Know…But Need To Own: Part One (Revisited)
NO SELF-RESPECTING writer should ever undertake the process of making a list lightly. As we all know, lists are ultimately trivial, subjective and practically a provocation inviting rebuttals, questions and…