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Najwa (album)
''Najwa'' is a studio album by American jazz trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith. The album was released on October 20, 2017 via Finnish TUM Records label. Background ''Najwa'' continues a series of Smith's dedicatory albums of varying size and breadth, embracing human and natural subjects. Four of the five tracks pay homage to composers or performers long or recently departed: Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Ronald Shannon Jackson, and Billie Holiday. The fifth and title track simply and enigmatically references "a love lost." Reception A reviewer at Dusty Groove wrote, "Wadada Leo Smith is really on fire here – on a record that feels a lot more like something from the early 80s underground than some of his earlier work – from the lineup of performers, right down to the overall sound of the set! The group's very heavy on guitars – and features work from Michael Gregory Jackson, Henry Kaiser, Brandon Ross, and Lamar Smith on the instrument – often criss-crossing and weaving these ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wadada Leo Smith
Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith (born December 18, 1941) is an American trumpeter and composer, working primarily in the fields of avant-garde jazz and free improvisation. He was one of three finalists for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Music for ''Ten Freedom Summers'', released on May 22, 2012. Biography Smith was born in Leland, Mississippi, United States. He started out playing drums, mellophone, and French horn before he settled on the trumpet. He played in various R&B groups and, by 1967, became a member of the AACM and co-founded the Creative Construction Company, a trio with Leroy Jenkins and Anthony Braxton. In 1971, Smith formed his own label, Kabell. He also formed another band, the New Dalta Ahkri, with members including Henry Threadgill, Anthony Davis and Oliver Lake. In the 1970s, Smith studied ethnomusicology at Wesleyan University. He played again with Anthony Braxton, as well as recording with Derek Bailey's Company. In the mid-1980s, Smith became Rastafarian and began ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ronald Shannon Jackson
Ronald Shannon Jackson (January 12, 1940 – October 19, 2013) was an American jazz drummer from Fort Worth, Texas. A pioneer of avant-garde jazz, free funk, and jazz fusion, he appeared on over 50 albums as a bandleader, sideman, arranger, and producer. Jackson and bassist Sirone are the only musicians to have performed and recorded with the three prime shapers of free jazz: pianist Cecil Taylor, and saxophonists Ornette Coleman and Albert Ayler. ''Musician, Player and Listener'' magazine writers David Breskin and Rafi Zabor called him "the most stately free-jazz drummer in the history of the idiom, a regal and thundering presence." Gary Giddins wrote "Jackson is an astounding drummer, as everyone agrees…he has emerged as a kind of all-purpose new-music connoisseur who brings a profound and unshakably individual approach to every playing situation." In 1979, he founded his own group, the Decoding Society, playing what has been dubbed free funk: a blend of funk rhythm and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Musso
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honour, praise, renown" and ''berht'' "bright, light, shining"). It is the second most frequently used given name of ancient Germanic origin. It is also in use Robert (surname), as a surname. Another commonly used form of the name is Rupert (name), Rupert. After becoming widely used in Continental Europe it entered England in its Old French form ''Robert'', where an Old English cognate form (''Hrēodbēorht'', ''Hrodberht'', ''Hrēodbēorð'', ''Hrœdbœrð'', ''Hrœdberð'', ''Hrōðberχtŕ'') had existed before the Norman Conquest. The feminine version is Roberta (given name), Roberta. The Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish form is Roberto (given name), Roberto. Robert is also a common name in many Germanic languages, including English ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Adam Rudolph
Adam Rudolph (born September 12, 1955) is a jazz composer and percussionist performing in the post-bop and world fusion media. In 1988, Rudolph met jazz musician Yusef Lateef, and the two would go on to collaborate and perform together for the next 25 years. Rudolph has released several albums as leader and has also recorded with musicians Sam Rivers, Omar Sosa, Wadada Leo Smith, Pharoah Sanders, Bill Laswell, Herbie Hancock, Foday Musa Suso, and Shadowfax. Discography As leader * ''Adam Rudolph's Moving Pictures'' (Flying Fish, 1992) * ''Skyway'' (Soul Note, 1994) * ''Contemplations'' (Meta, 1997) * ''12 Arrows'' (Meta, 1999) * ''Go: Organic Orchestra: 1'' (Meta, 2002) * ''Web of Light'' (Meta, 2002) * ''Dream Garden'' (Justin Time, 2008) * ''Yeyi'' (Meta, 2010) * ''Both/And'' (Meta, 2011) * ''Merely a Traveler On the Cosmic Path'' (Meta, 2012) * ''Glare of the Tiger'' (Meta, 2017) As co-leader With Build an Ark * ''Peace with Every Step'' (Kindred Spirits, 2004) * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brandon Ross
Brandon K. Ross is an American jazz guitarist. He was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Career Ross did clerical work for Leroy Jenkins before playing with Archie Shepp and Marion Brown in the second half of the 1970s. He has performed with Wadada Leo Smith, Gene Lake, Marcus Rojas, John Lurie, Henry Threadgill, Don Byron, and Cassandra Wilson. In 1998, Ross, bassist Melvin Gibbs, and drummer J.T. Lewis formed the trio Harriet Tubman, which continues to perform concerts and record, as of 2020. Discography As leader * ''Costume'' (Intoxicate, 2004) * ''Puppet'' (Intoxicate, 2006) * ''For Living Lovers'' (Sunnyside, 2014) As sideman With Kip Hanrahan * ''A Thousand Nights and a Night (1-Red Night)'' (American Clave, 1996) * ''A Thousand Nights and a Night (Shadow Night 1)'' (Justin Time, 1998) * ''Beautiful Scars'' (American Clave, 2007) * ''Crescent Moon Waning'' (Yellowbird, 2018) With Oliver Lake * ''Plug It'' (Gramavision, 1983) * ''Dancevision'' (Blue Heron, 1986) * ''Impa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bill Laswell
William Otis Laswell (born February 12, 1955) is an American bass guitarist, record producer, and record label owner. He has been involved in thousands of recordings with many collaborators from all over the world. His music draws from funk, world music, jazz, dub, and ambient styles. According to music critic Chris Brazier, "Laswell's pet concept is 'collision music' which involves bringing together musicians from wildly divergent but complementary spheres and seeing what comes out." The credo of one record label run by Laswell which typifies much of his work is "Nothing Is True, Everything Is Permitted". Although his bands may be credited under the same name and often feature the same roster of musicians, the styles and themes explored on different albums can vary dramatically. Material began as a noisy dance music band, but later albums concentrated on hip hop, jazz, or spoken word readings by William S. Burroughs. Most versions of the band Praxis have included guitarist ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Henry Kaiser (musician)
Henry Kaiser (born September 19, 1952) is an American guitarist and composer, known as an idiosyncratic soloist, a sideman, an ethnomusicologist, and a film score composer. Recording and performing prolifically in many styles of music, Kaiser is a fixture on the San Francisco Bay Area music scene. He is considered a member of the "second generation" of American free improvisers. He is married to Canadian artist Brandy Gale. He is the son of Henry J. Kaiser Jr. and the grandson of industrialist Henry J. Kaiser. Biography In 1977, Kaiser founded Metalanguage Records with Larry Ochs (Rova Saxophone Quartet) and Greg Goodman. In 1979 he recorded '' With Friends Like These'' with Fred Frith, a collaboration which continued over the next 20 years. In 1983 they recorded ''Who Needs Enemies'', and in 1987 the compilation album ''With Enemies Like These, Who Needs Friend''s? They joined with fellow experimental musicians John French, and English folk-rocker Richard Thompson to form Fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michael Gregory (jazz Guitarist)
Michael Gregory Jackson (born August 28, 1953 in New Haven, Connecticut) is an American guitarist and composer working in jazz, R&B, avant-garde, rock, blues, and free jazz. Early in his career, he used his given name, Michael Gregory Jackson. In 1983, when he signed with Island Records, Michael dropped Jackson and recorded under Michael Gregory to prevent mix-ups with the name of pop singer Michael Jackson. In 2013, he returned to using his full name Michael Gregory Jackson. During the 1970s and '80s, he worked with avant-garde jazz musicians Oliver Lake, and Baikida Carroll. He worked with playwright Ntozake Shange, poet Jessica Hagedorn, and poet Thulani Davis at the Public Theater, New York City. Following this he began working more in rock, jazz fusion, and R&B. He worked with Walter Becker of Steely Dan. In 1983 Nile Rodgers produced his album ''Situation-X'' for Island Records. In 2013 he formed Michael Gregory Jackson's Clarity Quartet and Michael Gregory Jackson's Cla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pheeroan AkLaff
Pheeroan akLaff (born Paul Maddox January 27, 1955) is an American jazz drummer and percussionist. He began playing in his hometown of Detroit, Michigan and Ann Arbor, with R & B keyboardist Travis Biggs, funk keyboardist Nimrod “The Grinder” Lumpkin, The Ebony Set and The Last Days. He moved to New Haven, Connecticut, and formed a group with saxophonist/flautist/percussionist Dwight Andrews. He debuted with saxophonist Bill Barron in 1975, followed by a tenure in Leo Smith's ‘New Dalta Ahkri’ (1977-1979). akLaff developed a longstanding association with saxophonist and poet Oliver Lake starting in 1975, which included writing for their fusion ensemble, ‘Jump Up’. He recorded with Lake on and off from 1980-1992. His extensive work as a session musician includes collaborations with prominent jazz musicians Geri Allen, Andrew Hill, Cecil Taylor, Anthony Braxton, Don Byron, Julius Hemphill, Henry Threadgill, Mal Waldron, Sonny Sharrock, Anthony Davis and Reggie Workman ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dusty Groove
Dusty Groove is a Chicago-based online record store specializing in new and vintage jazz, funk, soul, hip-hop, world, rare, collectible, and vinyl records and CDs. History Online record store Founded in 1996 by University of Chicago alumni Rick Wojcik and JP Schauer as an online-only record store, the websitdustygroove.comsoon attracted the interest of global record collectors. The site has been featured in publications such as ''The New York Times'', ''Rolling Stone'', ''Billboard'', ''The Wire'', ''Spin'', '' GQ'', ''Esquire'', and ''Vibe''. Retail operations Dusty Groove operated its mail-based shipping business an office in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago before moving to a loft in Wicker Park in 1997, adding a brick-and-mortar retail storefront with weekend hours. The store opened for business daily 2001, expanding to a nearby location where it remains. Dusty Groove maintains an extensive warehouse and retail presence with up to 30,000 items in inventory a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills. After a turbulent childhood, Holiday began singing in nightclubs in Harlem, where she was heard by producer John Hammond, who liked her voice. She signed a recording contract with Brunswick in 1935. Collaborations with Teddy Wilson produced the hit "What a Little Moonlight Can Do", which became a jazz standard. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Holiday had mainstream success on labels such as Columbia and Decca. By the late 1940s, however, she was beset with legal troubles and drug abuse. After a short prison sentence, she performed at a sold-out conce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pro ..., bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the Jazz#Post-war jazz, history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and raised in North Carolina, Coltrane moved to Philadelphia after graduating high school, where he studied music. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of Modal jazz, modes and was one of the players at the forefront of free jazz. He led at least fifty recording sessions and appeared on many albums by other musicians, including trumpeter Miles Davis and pianist Thelonious Monk. Over the course of his career, Coltrane's music t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
