Roy C may not have lived to see the current regime toppled or his litigation over past royalties resolved to his satisfaction, but he died knowing that he was — without a doubt — a Black American original.
Music
Music Album Review: Lomelda’s “Hannah” — A Wonderful Tenderness
The intimate emotions captured by Hannah are enhanced by Lomelda’s ability to be both revelatory and inscrutable in the same breath.
Opera Album Review: A Leading Master of 17th-Century Venetian Opera Struts His Stuff
Lovers of Baroque opera will welcome this release: the first recording — and a very accomplished and communicative one —of an important opera by a pioneer and master.
Arts Remembrance: Fred “Toots” Hibbert — Resiliency in the Face of Struggle
As anyone who is familiar with “Toots” Hibbert’s near sixty-year career could testify, he was an artist who wrote songs that were guaranteed to transcend the contexts of their particular place and moment.
Music Interview: Talking with Cisco Swank about His New EP — and the Roots of Creativity
“You’re always gonna be yourself, your unique self, so it’s important to incorporate the things that you really love.”
Book Review: Crime and Espionage — to the Sounds of Jazz
There’s a larger story to tell about black composers and musicians breaking into the film and TV business, but its only lightly touched on here.
Book Review: Two Glimpses of Caribbean Culture in a Year without Carnival
A pair of recent books help keep the glorious spirit of Carnival alive.
Jazz Album Reviews: Strong Discs from Pianist Chick Corea and Bassist Eric Revis
A pair of beauties: an Eric Revis quintet album and a solo excursion from Chick Corea.
Opera Album Review: Who Knew? Brazil’s Finest Opera is in Italian
Antônio Carlos Gomes’s Lo Schiavo (The Slave) receives its first major recording — and stakes its claim in the repertory.
Jazz Album Review: Madre Vaca’s “Winterreise”— Varied Jazz Arrangements Bring Schubert in from the Cold
A Mother Cow of jazz iconoclasts takes on German lieder, because why not?