Posts by Joey Willis

The new documentary Simple Minds: Everything Is Possible is a thoughtful, kinetic chronicle of a band that’s often been simplified to stadium anthems and one massive John Hughes sync. But under Joss Crowley’s direction, the film resists nostalgia baiting in favor of something more expansive, resulting in a layered portrait of restless ambition, reinvention, and […]

Interplay captures a rare moment when Bill Evans steps outside his familiar trio setting and invites a handful of peers into a musical conversation that feels both relaxed and thrilling. Recorded in July 1962 in Los Angeles and released the following summer, this session finds Evans alongside trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, guitarist Jim Hall, bassist Percy […]

The Blackbyrds’ City Life doesn’t just groove—it struts. Released in 1975 at the height of funk’s golden era, this album is a shining example of how jazz-trained musicians could infuse soul and R&B with technical flair without sacrificing dance-floor appeal. Produced by their mentor and jazz great Donald Byrd, City Life finds The Blackbyrds fully […]

Fifteen years after her last solo record, Amy Millan returns with I Went to Find You, an intimate, carefully layered album shaped by loss, memory, and quiet resilience. Co-written and produced with composer Jay McCarrol, the record trades in the kinds of subtle arrangements and understated emotion that don’t immediately demand attention, but reward close […]

Moon Beams marked an important moment for Bill Evans. Recorded in 1962, it was his first trio album following the sudden death of bassist Scott LaFaro, whose intuitive style had shaped much of Evans’ earlier sound. Rather than returning with something bold or experimental, Evans chose a softer approach—an album built almost entirely around ballads. […]

There’s a certain kind of light that hits in the late afternoon, just before the sun slips away at the end of the day, and Horizon lives entirely in that golden hour. Released by International Anthem, Horizon is a collaboration between Chicago-based trumpeter/producer Will Miller (of Resavoir) and guitarist/composer Matt Gold. Their 10-track album is […]

Florry’s Sounds Like… is a record that thrives in its looseness. It doesn’t force itself into any tidy genre corners, instead, it lets things unfold at their own pace, somewhere between country rock, indie fuzz, and unvarnished live-session energy. Led by Francie Medosch, the Philadelphia-bred, now Vermont-based group sounds more confident and unrestrained than ever, […]

Ray Barretto was already a giant in Latin music when he released Barretto in 1975. Born in New York to Puerto Rican parents, he had spent the previous two decades carving out a singular place for himself as both a fiery percussionist and an inventive bandleader. He first made his mark in the jazz world […]

Previously released only in Japan, Saturnight: Live in Tokyo is a stunning live album that captures Cat Stevens in top form during his 1974 “Bamboozle Tour.” For its 50th anniversary, Cat-O-Log Records/UMe is giving this rare gem a global release for the first time on vinyl, CD and digital streaming. The vinyl is pressed on […]

Walkin’ by Miles Davis was released in 1957 but brings together two sessions from 1954 that were previously released in a 10” format. It includes Miles Davis All-Star Sextet in its entirety and most of Miles Davis Quintet. What makes Walkin’ special is that it doesn’t sound stiff or overly polished. There’s a looseness to […]

Released in 1955, The Musings of Miles finds Miles Davis in a thoughtful, reflective mood. This was his first session for Prestige as a leader since kicking heroin the year prior, this album feels like a quiet reset, less about showing off and more about settling into his own voice. It’s a small, focused session […]

When two titanic figures of modern jazz like baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan and pianist-composer Thelonious Monk come together, expectations naturally soar. Released in 1957 on Riverside Records, Mulligan Meets Monk isn’t just a meeting of two jazz masters—it’s a meeting of two distinct musical worlds. Mulligan, the suave architect of West Coast cool jazz, and […]

Before the Vince Guaraldi Trio became synonymous with holiday nostalgia and the sound of childhood reflection, they were already sketching the emotional world of Peanuts. Jazz Impressions of A Boy Named Charlie Brown, recorded in 1964 to accompany an abandoned Schulz documentary, isn’t just a precursor to A Charlie Brown Christmas—it’s a complete artistic statement […]

By the mid-90s, U2 were caught in a beautiful identity crisis. Fresh off the ironic, hyper-modern glitz of Zooropa, and years before their “back-to-basics” 2000s reinvention, they took a left turn so hard it nearly slipped past the mainstream radar. That detour was Passengers: Original Soundtracks 1, a curious, ambient-leaning collaboration with Brian Eno credited […]

Hailing from Ocala, Florida, A Day To Remember has carved out a career by a unique fusing of pop-punk and metal-core. A Day To Remember’s Attack of the Killer B-Sides might wear the label of a stopgap release, but this four-track EP punches far above its weight. Released in 2010 as a collector’s gem and […]

By the time Blender hit shelves in October 2000, Collective Soul was already a household name in alt-rock circles. Known for their crunchy guitars, spiritual lyricism, and frontman Ed Roland’s arena-ready vocals, the band had ridden the ’90s wave with confidence. But Blender, their fifth studio album, marked a shinier, more radio-friendly evolution that both […]

There are few figures in jazz whose legacy feels as intimate and enduring as Bill Evans’. His playing, both lyrical and harmonically rich, reshaped the language of the piano trio and left an indelible mark on generations of musicians. Bill Evans always said he was trying to get “farther ahead.” chasing some distant horizon of […]

Downtown Knoxville pulsed with energy as Big Ears Festival 2025 welcomed over 7,500 passionate music lovers for a long weekend of genre-defying performances and boundary-pushing artistry. Widely considered one of the most adventurous and thoughtfully curated festivals in the world, Big Ears once again proved that no other event offers such a kaleidoscopic journey through […]

Gabriel Yared’s score for The English Patient doesn’t simply accompany the film, it is the film, just in sound. Woven into the very architecture of Anthony Minghella’s cinematic vision, the music captures the vastness of landscapes, the slipperiness of memory, and the blurring of national and cultural differences. The result is one of the most […]

Knoxville, Tennessee’s Big Ears Festival has long been a beacon for adventurous music lovers, offering a stunning blend of experimental, avant-garde, folk, jazz, and genre-defying performances. This year boasts some huge names like Beth Gibbons, Taj Mahal, Bill Frisell, Waxahatchee, and Anoushka Shankar. While the festival’s bigger names might draw plenty of attention, the lesser-known, […]