I love any modern jazz project that has the potential to reach new audiences. Cover Art, the new recording from the NEXT Collective has interpretations of songs by Drake, Bon Iver, Dido, Pearl Jam, Kanye West and more. The collective Features rising jazz stars: saxophonists Logan Richardson and Walter Smith III, guitarist Matthew Stevens, keyboardists [...]

Happy Anniversary to the label that introduced me to so many great artists. It was On the Cutting Edge GRP Sampler way back in 1989 or so that helped get me hooked on contemporary jazz. Nice to see Verve recognize the greatest contemporary jazz label ever with a new compilation. <A HREF=”http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?rt=tf_w_mpw&ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fsantasoundsco-20%2F8014%2F41585a45-c1a8-40ef-8599-24cb3b515c20&Operation=NoScript”>Amazon.com Widgets</A>

I don’t know anything else about this June 5th Thirsty Ear release but I am anxious to hear it! The press release: Hailing from both the UK and US, Black Music Disaster is a super indie group featuring Spiritualized’s legendary J Spaceman, Spring Heel Jack’s multi-instrumental innovator John Coxon, acclaimed jazz icon Matthew Shipp and [...]

Take a step into the past with these eight tracks from contemporary jazz releases that came out in the year 1989! Listen to classics from the Rippingtons, Miles Davis, and Hiroshima. Also, who put the meat in my bed?! It’s the second mix I’ve published on 8tracks. If you like this blast from the past, [...]

I’ve been listening to A Prayer for the Planet, the new recording by the jazz/electronica/world collective Global Noize. I can’t imagine why a fan of contemporary jazz wouldn’t want to sample this. It doesn’t follow any formulaic smooth jazz style. It’s got the duo of Jason Miles and DJ Logic leading a cast of talented [...]

Hip hop/jazz collective Us3 returns with their eighth studio recording, Lie, Cheat & Steal next month. The first of the 13 tracks, “Ghost,” leans on the jazz side, telling a story of abuse and revenge. It’s the first of the messages relating to the theme of the title. Leader Geoff Wilkinson explains  ”I’ve become increasingly disillusioned by the [...]

Ever imagine The Bad Plus doing music from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast? How about Joshua Redman doing a cover of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” from Toy Story? Those notable artists are among the dozen contributing to the forthcoming compilation Disney Jazz Volume 1: Everybody Wants to Be a Cat. The title of [...]

From 1993-1994, I produced a newsletter to promote the late night “new music program” for KBIA-FM. Following is an article I wrote for one of the newsletters: Rarely do debut solo albums come to the station as solid as Torcuato Mariano’s Paradise Station (Windham Hill). From the start, it’s evident that the guitarist knows how [...]

Urban Elements is a quintet of musicians from Sweden and Chile. I sampled this release simply based on the name of the group and was impressed. This is what contemporary jazz is about! Amazon.com Widgets

This is the third part of a three-part series reminiscing on how I got started with contemporary jazz 20 years ago and highlights since. Part one is here; part two here. Eventually, I graduated from the University of Missouri but still stayed on as a volunteer announcer for KBIA for some time. I think at [...]