Posts

Concert Review: The Brothers — Celebrating the Style and Songbook of the Legendary Allman Brothers Band

April 19, 2025
Posted in , , ,

The best way to honor all of those responsible for the Allman Brothers Band was to play like the Allman Brothers Band: be fierce, not nostalgic; be pleasing, not cloying; be generous, not self-indulgent. And The Brothers pulled it off.

Film Review: “Sinners” — Next to Godliness

April 19, 2025
Posted in , ,

It takes spine to mash things up this boldly, and the bravery of auteur director Ryan Coogler’s storytelling is breathtaking.

Jazz Album Review: “Mingus in Argentina” — An Unexpected Gift

April 19, 2025
Posted in , , ,

I must confess to hearing some of the Buenos Aires recordings on bootleg LPs, though their sound quality pales in comparison to this Resonance release.

Arts Remembrance: Francis Davis, 1946-2025

April 18, 2025
Posted in , ,

There are few critics as worth re-reading as the late Francis Davis, whose writings are filled with musical and cultural insight, erudition, literary grace, and, most valued now, humor.

Weekly Feature: Poetry at The Arts Fuse

April 18, 2025
Posted in ,

This week’s poem: Martha Collins’s “AGENDA”

Jazz Album Review: Kenny Dorham’s Distinctive “Blue Bossa in the Bronx: Live From the Blue Morocco”

April 18, 2025
Posted in , , ,

“Blue Bossa in the Bronx” brings us into a jazz club on a good night. It’s unlike any other Kenny Dorham session, which makes it valuable indeed.

Jazz Album Review: Freddie Hubbard — “On Fire: Live from the Blue Morocco”

April 18, 2025
Posted in , , ,

There are unplanned moments in this three LP collection, times when the musicians seem to be waiting to hear what is going to happen next. Something exciting usually does come out of their interactions.

Book Review: “Passion” Project — Pedro Almodóvar as Consummate Auteur

April 16, 2025
Posted in , ,

Though lapsing at times into hagiography and muddled synopsizing, James Miller’s study of filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar is a bracing reminder of the greatness and ever-evolving genius of this world-class artist.

Book Review: “Jim” — An Inspiring Homage to Huckleberry Finn’s Black Comrade

April 15, 2025
Posted in , ,

The fact that readers have dismissed Jim as a fool or have misunderstood Mark Twain’s intent in Huckleberry Finn reflects on our limitations.

Book Review: Clearing the Sill of the World — Thoughts on Ellen Wilbur’s Stories

April 15, 2025
Posted in , ,

With visionary daring, Elllen Wilbur leads us into unexpected corners, then transcends them profoundly and beyond expectation. Such stories are more than “moral fictions.” They are soul-shakers.

Recent Posts

Popular Posts

Categories

Archives