“I think that blues artists, men and women alike, are some of the most important cultural elders, and I do not think that they should be relegated to 78’s on some dusty shelf in the Smithsonian. It is music that still resonates and is very relevant today, even though the music emerged one hundred years ago. That is why...

Ryan has shared the stage and recording studio with many greats including Clark Terry, Red Holloway and...

Jimmy Reed, the bluesman who wrote “Honest I Do,” and “Boy, What You Want Me To Do?” later covered by Elvis, taught Michael Powers the barre chording technique on a guitar. He grew up listening to Vanilla Fudge rehearse in his neighborhood and when he was a boy, his grandmother hauled his butt into the living room to watch...

In mid-March, Mindi Abair’s hit single “Bloom” peaked at number one on Radio and Records’ smooth jazz charts and by the end of the month, was still solidly entrenched in the number three spot. Her current CD Life Less Ordinary reached number one on Billboard’s Contemporary Jazz Album chart, fueled by the success of another single from the record, “True...

At the end of February, I had a chance to visit and dine with Washington DC saxophonist Jeff Antoniuk who was returning to his native Canada for the week,to act as an adjudicator for a province wide high school jazz competition.  Most of our conversation focused on his new CD Here Today, his debut solo effort in which he...

Fusion guitarist Richard Hart is a well known studio and touring musician in jazz circles having worked with “Chuck Datillo, Larry Nance, Tony Molina, Ansley Dunbar, Ron Eschete, Tom Scott, Heath Brothers, Kirk Whalum, Russell Malone, McCoy Tyner, and Mel Torne,” he roll calls. His musical experiences inspired him to create his own songs and release an album of...

A little bit of R&B and funk is good for the soul, but when it's peppered with smooth jazz textures, then you've got some of the best feel-good sounds around.

The seven member group of the Urban Jazz Coalition (UJC) is a group that displays the musical hybrid and they are really “bringing it” on with their latest CD Down...

There is an old cliché that goes something like this, ‘If it looks like a duck and walks like a duck, it probably is a duck.’ That cliché may apply to some people and most certainly is applicable to ducks, but it relates in no way to the life of jazz singer Elli Fordyce or the attitude with which...

If the name Ellen Honert doesn’t ring any musical bells for you, I’m here to change that!  Bay area Singer/Songwriter/Pianist Honert has just released her debut CD, Breath of the Soul on the Mill Station Records label.  The twelve tracks include a cover of the Beatles’ classic, “Got to Get You Into My Life,” as well as Ellen originals....

Neu’s initial response after...

Tim Cunningham’s current album Manchester Road, on TAWC Records, makes peace with grieving wounds and nurtures those relationships with family, friends, and God. His smooth jazz compositions and liquid saxophone lines were inspired by his feelings toward his family. Songs like “Sadie,” an ode to his young daughter Sadie, and “Wintress,” a tribute to his niece Wintress, are prime...

Some actors learn how to sing and occasionally dance so they can land a plumb role on Broadway or another big stage, but this is the story of an actress who decided to turn to singing and we are the lucky ones. Melissa Stylianou is an incredibly gifted jazz vocalist who arrived in New York City from Toronto, Canada...

Every once in awhile, a jewel goes undiscovered and gathers dust. Fortunately for me while surfing the internet one night in December, I discovered the music of New England guitarist Scott Tarulli. The teacher from the Berklee College of Music has released two albums to date, his studio project Transitions and the fall 2004 live recording September In Boston:...

Brad Shepik’s latest trio record Places You Go features the guitarist/composer continuing his upward trajectory. Having worked with artists like Dave Douglas and Paul Motian through the years, his sensibilities and abilities have become both refined and open. His playing and writing get deeper with each recording and this one may be a bigger leap forward than any in...

“Brian and I are old friends and I had a great time playing. As musicians we don’t...

“Bands come and go. I just try to do my best for the audience whether it is a live show or a recording. You are only as good as your last thing, your last project or your last show. You want to leave people with wanting to talk about you and having good things to say so they will...

A camera is following blues artist Eric Bibb as he moves among the shops on Paris, France’s Rue Jean Jacques Rousseau and that is how the CD Diamond Days begins. Acting upon a last minute suggestion from a cinematographer friend, Bibb is filmed with a camcorder while he visits what he refers to as one of his "favorite haunts,"...

But talking to his nephew Vincent Wilburn, Jr. recently, he paints a different picture. "Uncle Miles was very humorous and was not the "prince of...

Tierney Sutton is a happy person. She has just released ON THE OTHER SIDE on Telarc, which may be the best work she and the band she sings with, have yet done. Tierney Sutton is a very happy vocalist because she and the band she sings with, having completed the foundation, have erected a musical temple that is as...

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