Where “lives” is both noun and verb. Written by Michael Steinman and Nominated as one of the Best Jazz Blogs of 2009 by the Jazz Journalists Association. Michael Steinman first heard Louis Armstrong on records in the 1950s, a transcendent experience. (He also saw Louis and the All-Stars in 1967.) An unashamed jazz addict, he writes for HOT HOUSE, Cadence and The New York Jazz Record. He has been published in CODA and other jazz periodicals, and was the New York correspondent for The Mississippi Rag. Michael is called upon frequently to write liner notes, which have been an integral part of compact discs on many labels, including Arbors, Nagel-Heyer, Stomp Off, NifNuf, Jazzology, Audiophile, LaLa, Azica, Little Simmy, Amber Lake, and GelberMusic.
- January 20, 2020WE LOVE LUCY YEGHIAZARYAN
I know my title must seem excessive, but what if it’s true? The young singer Lucy Yeghiazaryan has got it, and I’ve experienced it both on recording and in live performance. And if you think I am oddl … - January 19, 2020TAKE ONE, TAKE TWO (Chicago, January 24, 1929)
I don’t remember in which antique store I found a shiny copy of the record above, except that my boredom (prowling through aisles of overpriced odd fragments of human history) stopped instantly. It’s … - January 19, 2020IN 1959, THEY SAT RIGHT DOWN AND WROTE HIM LETTERS
I don’t know what happens today if a young fan writes a letter to Lady Gaga, let us say, requesting a signed photograph or, better yet, asking a question. That rhetorical question in itself may mark … - January 18, 2020WARM SWINGING MODERNISM: “RAISE FOUR” and FRANK BASILE: FÉLIX LEMERLE, DAN WEISSELBERG, MIKE CAMACHO (Cafe Bohemia, November 15, 2019)
More pleasures from Cafe Bohemia — to no one’s surprise. RAISE FOUR is a compact, adventurous yet melodic jazz group co-led by guitarist Félix Lemerle and string bassist Dan Y von Weisselberg, with dr … - January 17, 2020CARPE DIEM, YOU CATS: DANNY TOBIAS, DAN BLOCK, JOSH DUNN, TAL RONEN (Cafe Bohemia, 11.21.19)
Many jazz fans are seriously prone to excessive nostalgicizing (see E.A. Robinson’s “Minniver Cheevy”) and I wonder why this music that we love is such a stimulus. How many classical-music devotees d …