Allen Michie

Jazz Album Review: Singer Jo Lawry’s “Acrobats” — Pulling Off the Hardest Thing

February 7, 2023
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Left to her own devices for a change to pick the material, the format, and the musicians, singer Jo Lawry has chosen with grace and guts.

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Jazz Commentary: Billy Cobham, Then and Now — An Awesome Jazz Drummer

January 4, 2023
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Billy Cobham plays right on top of the beat, and his grooves are impeccable. Maybe he’s not the first drummer you’d call for a loose New Orleans shuffle, but if you could hire the Terminator to be your percussionist, Cobham is your man.

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Music Feature: The Best Jazz Albums of 2022

December 19, 2022
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The magazine’s jazz critics look back over the past year and highlight their favorite albums.

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December Short Fuses — Materia Critica

December 3, 2022
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Each month, our arts critics — music, book, theater, dance, television, film, and visual arts — fire off a few brief reviews.

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November Short Fuses — Materia Critica

November 3, 2022
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Each month, our arts critics — music, book, theater, dance, television, film, and visual arts — fire off a few brief reviews.

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Jazz Album Reviews: Two From Guitarist Albare — One Sedately Traditional, the Other More Satisfyingly Adventurous

July 26, 2022
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Albare Plays Jobim: A Tribute to Antonio Carlos Jobim is a traditional Brazilian offering, content to offer soothing Bossa Nova rhythms; Freedom is more unconventional, merging Brazilian beats with jazzier improvisations.

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Film Commentary: “Everything Everywhere All at Once” — The Most Serene Movie in Years

May 7, 2022
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This movie reminds us that — if there is any meaning to life at all — it’s what you bring to it, not what it brings to you.

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Jazz Album Review: Guitarist John Scofield — A Solo Album, Finally

May 3, 2022
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Now that he’s 70, it’s only right that guitarist John Scofield takes a victory lap with his first solo album.

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Film Review: “Vinyl Nation” — A Visit to Vinyl Heaven

April 18, 2022
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“Every record can have its own unique sound, depending on who has owned it, who’s touched it, where it’s been. That’s really important to me.” This movie makes you realize that these things should be important to you, too.

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April Short Fuses – Materia Critica

April 2, 2022
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Each month, our arts critics — music, book, theater, dance, and visual arts — fire off a few brief reviews.

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