Posts by Jim Hynes

The octogenarian roots master and national treasure, Taj Mahal, is still going strong. He has a 22-date tour planned for the Spring and Summer, backed by his three-decade collaborators, The Phantom Blues Band (PBB). Surprisingly, they have a ‘new’ record to tour behind. Most of us thought this partnership reached its peak with the back-to-back […]

Hiss Golden Messenger’s I’m People is the aural equivalent of comfort food. It’s warm, goes down easy, is simple at the core, and hits many of the right spots. The title alone suggests a universality, the common rhythms of life, the pendulum of emotions, and connection. As you likely know, Hiss Golden Messenger is the […]

If you are an ardent follower of Blue Note, you’ll recognize New Orleans-based vocalist Gabrielle Cavassa from Joshua Redman’s 2023 where are we, his first vocal album. She is not your typical jazz vocalist who swings and takes the stage with a commanding voice. She is intimate, subtle, and one who inhabits each lyric of […]

Blood Sucking Maniacs from Terry Allen, Jo Harvey Allen, and the Allen family seems to be a weird title choice. While “Blood” is central to the theme, vampires are only figurative through this indirect reference, partly stemming from a device that Bale, their son, assembled in the front yard of the Allen home in the ‘70s-a […]

Right now, this dour world needs a heavy “feel good” dose of Angélique Kidjo’s infectious joy, her get-up-and-dance attitude, and her ability to bridge cultures. The Benin (West Africa) artist that the former Newport Jazz Festival Artistic Director, Christian McBride, described as an entertainer tantamount to James Brown and Prince, gives it her all on […]

With Record Store Day approaching this Saturday (4/18/26), this list highlights eighteen recommended archival releases and reissues for Record Store Day in the Jazz and Blues genres. A number of these releases—many curated by Zev Feldman—were recorded at Jazz Showcase by owner Joel Segal. The selections lean heavily toward pianists, with seven featured across the […]

There aren’t many rootsy blues artists who record in Italy. There aren’t many who primarily write about Spain, either. Luke Winslow-King (aka LWK) does both of those and more on his ninth album, Coast of Light, where he and the band indulge in some playful risk-taking that works surprisingly well, a blend of blues, jazz, […]

John Hollier hails from Louisiana, and though there are hints of his roots in his sound, it is mostly easy-flowing Americana music.  After all, he and his band, John Hollier & The Reverie, wrote much of and recorded Rainmaker in Nashville. The band name stems from the French word, ‘rever,’ which means ‘’to dream,” a […]

Call it a makeover, or at least a major reinvention of the Tedeschi Trucks Band (TTB) sound. New management and the outside perspective of new producer Mike Elizondo, perhaps, account for their shift toward more radio-friendly, albeit less exploratory turf on their sixth studio album,  Future Soul. That’s not to say they’ve lost their rooted […]

A jazz musician has to attain an elite status before being invited to play at the hallowed shrine of jazz, NYC’s Village Vanguard. Like his iconic forbearers, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, Joshua Redman, and others, altoist and composer Immanuel Wilkins and his quartet stepped into the venue on May 15th and 16th, 2025, recording […]

You can easily read “Twio” as “Trio.” You won’t be wrong. Yet, the obtuse word, in Smith’s witty way, implies fun. Saxophonist Walter Smith III introduced his chordless saxophone trio concept in 2018 with the release of Twio (Whirlwind Recordings), featuring the core unit of bassist Harish Raghavan and drummer Eric Harland with special guests […]

It’s no mystery why Texas singer-songwriter William Clark Green is so popular. He writes relatable songs, has catchy sing-along choruses, clever wordplay, and his unifying rebel persona. Besides, his sentiments are generally right on target. He’s the modern-day Pat Green, for whom he is sometimes mistaken, because of the same last name. Yet, for his […]

Chick Corea’s Forever Yours: The Farewell Performance, a 2-LP set,is a fitting finale to the iconic composer and pianist’s career, recorded just four months before his surprising passing in 2021. Perhaps it’s only coincidental, but the word ‘Forever” in the title is a clever nod to Corea’s great fusion group, Return to Forever. Also, although […]

Bill Frisell is the unassuming guy in a flannel shirt, wearing Sketchers. He has this ‘everyman’ aura that one would not typically associate with one of the most inventive, fascinating guitarists of the past five decades, one who is likely to become an NEA Jazz Master at some point. He conducts himself with grace and […]

The underrecognized guitarist and musicologist Duke Robillard is arguably the most important roots and blues musician to come from Rhode Island. Heck, let’s extend that to one of the most important in roots music at large. Now 77, Robillard has found a new home with the nation’s fastest-growing blues label, NOLA Blue, with his offering […]

Portland folk singer Jeffrey Martin releases one full show, Alive, on July 25, 2025, recorded at Portland’s The Showdown, with 16 tracks, unedited, overdub-free, and unsequenced. Sam Weber (Madison Cunningham, Anna Tivel, Bahamas) joins Martin on acoustic and electric guitars. Weber also recorded and mixed the record. Only five of these songs appeared on his […]

Many of the great jazz tenor saxophonists have a ballads album that highlights their catalog. That’s true from Coleman Hawkins through John Coltrane, Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, and even the late Michael Brecker, among several others. Now, on her third Blue Note release, Filin, Chilean-born tenor saxophonist Melissa Aldana joins this legacy. Yet her approach […]

Blue Note Records and Motown Gospel have joined forces for an unprecedented hybrid album, Sweet, Sweet Spirit, featuring Ron Carter’s improvisational bass lines underpinning gospel great Ricky Dillard’s famed New G Chorale.  Whether this new venture will encourage jazz listeners to listen to traditional gospel remains to be seen, though Carter’s name alone will draw many to this effort.  […]

Not yet 30, vibraphonist and composer Joel Ross has delivered has fifth Blue Note album, the 2-LP set, Gospel Music. The music remains intricate but less so than his previous efforts. Ross sets a very meditative tone as he follows the arc of the grand biblical story. He begins with creation, moving to the fall and salvation, using the […]

Veteran troubadour Steve Poltz is the epitome of one who doesn’t take himself too seriously. It’s so refreshing. He describes his approach to making a record as “chaos, caffeine, and accidental poetry – art colliding with microphones and commerce in a glorious mess.”  Inevitably, the resulting music makes us laugh, and, oddly, raises a few serious thoughts. Poltz has […]