Music, Jazz

Raymond MacDonald International Big Band - Buddy

(Textile Records) While saxophonist Raymond MacDonald’s International Big Band is on one level an extension of his work with the Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra, the musicians involved give the project its own distinctive stamp within the soundscape of…

Five hirsute gents tickling our fancies (and chins) this month

Look out for these bearded men at this year's Festivals

Phil Kay Furry Fringe veteran Kay makes no fewer than four fuzzy-faced appearances this year. His kids’ show Gimme Your Left Shoe makes a welcome return; there’s a solo show in the evening called In Tweed; a late-night radio show titled RadioFree; and…

Ali McGregor – Jazz Cigarette

A sexy soulful rendition of songs that inspire

It’s a fine woman who can wrap her vocal chords round Ella, Billie and, er, Britney, with suitable pizzazz. This is sexy soulfulness at its finest, with a harp thrown in. Having warmed up with stints in La Clique and Variety-Nite, here she keeps it real…

Finn Peters - Music of the Mind

(Mantella Records) Arguably all music is at least initially of the mind, but there is an extra degree of literal description in the title of the saxophonist’s latest project. Peters worked with Dr Mick Grierson at Goldsmith’s University to map his…

David Liebman Trio - Lieb Plays The Blues À La Trane

(Daybreak/Challenge) Saxophonist David Liebman has never hidden his debt to the example of John Coltrane, but is by no means just a Coltrane clone, and this scintillating live set finds him exploring the legacy in his own signature style on both…

Neon Quartet - Catch Me

(Edition Records) Neon began life as a trio in which saxophonist Stan Sulzmann and vibes player Jim Hart were joined by Gwilym Simcock, but the latter’s departure has seen the group reconfigured in quartet format, with another rising star of jazz…

Soweto Kinch - The New Emancipation

(Soweto Kinch Recordings) Saxophonist Soweto Kinch was widely touted as ‘the next big thing’ in British jazz last decade. Four years on from the ambitious but flawed A Life In The Day of B-19, Kinch returns with another fusion of hard-hitting…

Bill Frisell - Beautiful Dreamers

(Savoy Jazz) The guitarist continues to plough his idiosyncratic furrow through American music with this new trio, featuring viola player Eyvind Kang and drummer Rudy Royston. The album also marks the switch to a new record label following a 20-year…

2010 Le Weekend bows out with Faust, Murcof and Tarwater

Pioneering Stirling experimental music festival also hosts Ben Frost, Bill Wells and John Butcher

Since its inception in 1997, Le Weekend has brought a remarkable range of beautiful and challenging music to Scotland. ‘The idea of an experimental music festival, and also the idea of a festival in Stirling, was quite unique,’ says Alastair Campbell…

Tim Kliphuis - Acoustic Voyage

Dutch violinist Tim Kliphuis is best known as a highly skilled exponent of the Hot Club swing style associated with Grappelli and Reinhardt, but this album attempts to focus instead on world acoustic music, including the unusual amalgamation of a…

Terry Callier lines up UK tour date

Warm and beautiful soul jazz veteran

He was an old schoolfriend of Curtis Mayfield, a touring buddy of Gil Scott-Heron and, in the days when he was starting out in the clubs of his native Chicago, he saw John Coltrane play. Yet the first two decades of Terry Callier’s life in music weren’t…

Kate and Mike Westbrook - Fine 'n' Yellow

(Gonzo) This latest disc from singer Kate and pianist Mike Westbrook is dedicated to the memory of Margery and John Styles, long-time supporters of their work, and was funded by a bequest to finance a commission left in Margery’s will. As such, it is…

Trudy Kerr & Ingrid James - Reunion

(Jazzizit Records) Trudy Kerr has been UK-based for some time now, but is originally from Queensland, home of Ingrid James. As the title suggests, the two singers are old friends, and met up again for this set of swinging jazz interpretations. Both…

Michael Formanek - The Rub And Spare Change

(ECM Records) Bass player Michael Formanek will be familiar to anyone who has followed the New York downtown scene, and his wide-ranging CV goes all the way back to his time in jazz-rock fusion group, Tony Williams’s Lifetime as an 18-year-old.

Jacky Terrasson - Push

(Concord Jazz) Pianist Jacky Terrasson initially came to prominence in 1993 as winner of the prestigious Thelonious Monk competition that year. After a long association with Blue Note, the pianist makes his debut on Concord with this release…

Céline Bonacina Trio - Way Of Life

(ACT Records) It was one of the Munich-based label’s established stars, guitarist Nguyen Lê, who recommended French saxophonist Céline Bonacina to ACT, and he is a guest on four of the tracks on this debut album. Bonacina’s main instrument is the…

D.O Misiani and Shirati Jazz - The King of History

Classic 1970s Benga Beats from Kenya

This is the kind of mesmerising music that has you moving before you know it: undulating guitar rhythms flow like a brook over pebbles while sweet vocals chant stories over rubbery bass and the steady tickety-click of percussion. Daniel Owini Misiani…

Sarah Connolly

Mezzo soprano returns to jazz roots

Among other things, 2010 is likely to be memorable as the year of the mezzo-soprano at the Edinburgh International Festival. Joyce DiDonato, Petra Lang and Christine Brewer, who replaces the indisposed Susan Graham, are just three of the famous names…

Ali McGregor

A versatile diva, doing jazz this time

As soon as Ali McGregor takes to the stage to sing she has the audience captivated for the rest of the evening. A seasoned performer (she has appeared in La Clique, and in The Opera Burlesque at previous Fringes) she commands the stage with her warm…

Hypnotic Brass Ensemble

Chicago fusion of jazz, hip hop and funk

This nine-piece comprising eight horns and a drummer are not what you might expect at the Jazz & Blues Festival.

Nnenna Freelon's Homefree adds a contemporary twist to standards

A smoothly accomplished, comfortable sounding outing

Classy jazz singing from the American vocalist that manages to give a contemporary twist to standards without getting too mannered or precious in the process. Freelon puts her stamp on such well established songs as ‘The Lamp Is Low’, ‘The Very Thought…

Afro-Beat Airways: West African Shock Waves, Ghana & Togo 1972–1978

Analog Africa's latest compilation is a testament to 1970s Africa

Drawing from the archives of Ghanian label Essiebons and PolyGram West Africa, Analog Africa’s latest compilation is testament to the cosmopolitan culture of 1970s Africa. Tracks by Ebo Taylor and Orchestre Abass offer intricate polyrhythmic grooves and…

NeWt play Led Zeppelin at the Jazz Bar

Hyper-imaginative and unconvential jazz trio

What Is It? A hyper-imaginative and unconventional jazz trio formed by Australian trombonist Chris Greive, Aberdonian guitarist Graeme Stephens and American drummer Chris Wallace, all Edinburgh residents. Who are these guys? Three of the best…

Cindy Blackman - Another Lifetime

(Four Quarters) Although she has worked in many jazz contexts, American drummer Cindy Blackman’s widest exposure has come as a long-standing member of Lenny Kravitz’s band. Tony Williams was the first drummer she ever saw, and this outing is a…

Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival 2010 - Curtis Stigers interview

The 'jazz warbler' on sex, lies and ballet recitals

In Edinburgh for the Jazz & Blues Festival, Curtis Stigers talks to The List about sex, lies and ballet recitals First record you ever bought ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’, by Elton John. First film you saw that really moved you I remember…