Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Benjamin Boone - The Poets Are Gathering
by John Murph, Downbeat (Hot Box)
3 1/2 STARS The Poets Are Gathering is Benjamin Boone's most ambitious recording yet, one where he recruits a superb arsenal of poets who unravel their works with razor-sharp conviction and clarity. The marriage of jazz and poetry can invite as much scorn as it does celebration, perhaps stemming from spoken-word recitations overpowering middling music or accompaniment overcompensating for lackluster verses. But when deployed by Boone,... read more
Dave Hanson - Blues Sky
by Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move
If you are drawn to albums that immediately immerse you in a refined, poetic atmosphere, this one is for you. It stems from a particularly captivating artistic approach, during his week-long residency at the Dazzle Jazz Club in Denver in 2024, Dave Hanson took the opportunity to highlight both his piano playing and his arrangements for a small ensemble. The result is this quartet recording, his first in such a format. Joined by saxophonist Wil... read more
Chris Walden Big Band & The St. John's Choir - Kurt Marti Suite
by Jack Bowers, Cadence, Jan-Mar 2008
Thanks to his enormous success over the past dozen years as a writer/arranger for film, television, and other media, Chris Walden is in a rather enviable position - able to assemble a big band comprised of blue-chip Hollywood studio musicians and couple it with the 100-member St. John's Choir from Hamburg, Germany, to present a musical rendition of sacred poems by Kurt Marti, an acclaimed lyricist who served as a priest in Switzerland until... read more
Bobby Broom - Song And Dance
by George W. Harris, All About Jazz, L.A.
Known primarily as Sonny Rollins' sideman, guitarist Bobby Broom has put out a few discs on his own, and this latest one might be his best one yet. Spaciously accompanied by Dennis Carrol (bass) and Kobie Watkins (drums), Broom grooves through a set of cleverly selected tunes, and makes them swing and sway. Clever arrangements of The Beatles' "Can't Buy Me Love" and "The Little Rascals Theme" make these pieces seem like logical jazz standards.... read more
Benjamin Boone - The Poets Are Gathering
by Benjamin Kirk, Fresno State University Arts & Humanities
"That's my son collapsed there," poet Patricia Smith bluntly speaks in the album's opening line. "My son crumpled there," a rhetorical finger points past the distracting noise of the pundits and protests to the human crux of the issue. Smith's voice sharpens the accusation as Benjamin Boone's saxophone unravels the emotion behind the mother's words.
"My son dangling there. My son caged there...My daughter splayed there...My son hanging... read more
Geof Bradfield - melba!
by Alex Marianyi, NextBop
Kansas City Child. Central Avenue. Dizzy Gillespie. Randy Weston. Detroit / Kingston. Homecoming. This is the story of Melba Liston's life as told by Chicago-based saxophonist and composer Geof Bradfield. Liston's is a story not often told, but she was an extremely unique trombonist and composer with a special gift for bringing out the best in those she collaborated with. Bradfield framed this suite of music, as presented on his album Melba!,... read more
Jessica Williams - Freedom Trane
by George Fendel, Jazz Society of Oregon
On her first trio recording in some years, Williams offers both original compositions in the spirit of John Coltrane and a selection of Trane's work as well. As she writes in liner notes: "John Coltrane has been my light through the darkness. When there are questions, I'll ask 'what would Philly Joe Jones or Dexter Gordon do'; but when things get really weird, I can ask the 'Trane." A treat for Portland jazz fans is the presence of Dave Captein... read more
Bobby Broom - Song And Dance
by Tad Hendrickson, JazzWeek
THERE'S BEEN A school of thought since the '60s that jazzmen can groove and vamp their way through any modern pop song, keeping the accessibility but jazzifying it. Song And Dance is cut from that mold, opening with the Beatles' "Can't Buy Me Love" and following it with a decent version of the fluffy classic "Where Is The Love." More interesting is Broom's take on the Little Rascals theme "Good Old Days," which I remember enough to know that... read more
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