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Jazz Album Reviews – Discover all the reviews of the latest jazz albums released – Contemporary, avant-garde, free, bop, experimental:

George Benson – Breezin’

Breezin’ by George Benson – Song by Song Album Review

Breezin’ is George Benson’s fifteenth studio album released in 1976 and produced by Tommy Lipuma. Here you will find the complete song-by-song album review of Breezin’.

Breezin’ is one of the best albums for Benson and his group’s career. This 70’s masterpiece gave George Benson true popularity: he combined his softer focused R&B, funk, and jazz-flavored work for some kind of amazing smooth jazz.

Miles Davis – Kind of Blue

It is an instantly recognizable album cover; Davis in a blue suit, lips puffed, about to blow his trumpet; the black backdrop, the Columbia logo, and the album’s title typed in blue. Not only is Kind of Blue considered Miles Davis’s magnum opus and masterpiece, but it is also regularly billed as one of the best albums of all time, not to mention the greatest-ever jazz album.

John Coltrane – Giant Steps

There is a well-known Latin phrase Omne trium perfectum which put simply, means “everything that comes in threes is perfect”. Nobody knows where the principle of the perfect set of three originally came from but it is a philosophy the Ancient Greeks recognized and carried into the future. It is a phrase still used today, albeit heavily paraphrased.

John Coltrane – Blue Train

Sometimes the most extraordinary things occur in the most ordinary of places. If you should drive past an unassuming health centre on a quiet residential street in New Jersey – or 25 Prospect Avenue, Hackensack, to be more exact – you would be forgiven for disbelieving the site’s place in jazz music legend.

John Coltrane – A Love Supreme

It is one of the most iconic openings in musical history. Those first few seconds of A Love Supreme are infinitely recognisable to jazz music aficionados and instantly alluring to those hearing it for the first time.

From the first few seconds of the record, Coltrane hints at something magic. With the opening Asian gong and cymbal washes, the listener is plunged straight into a curious album with many musical meanderings, missing meanings and the feel of a smoky late-night underground jazz club.

Joëlle Léandre – Zurich Concert (live)

Zurich Concert is a solo recording by bassist Joëlle Léandre. Zurich Concert was recorded live on March 17, 2022, at Taktlos-Festival at Kunstraum Walcheturm, in Zürich, Switzerland, by Willy Strehler, and it will be released on February 20, 2023, by Intakt Records.

James Brandon Lewis – Eye of I

Eye of I is an album by tenor saxophonist James Brandon Lewis, with Chris Hoffman on cello and pedals, and Max Jaffe on drums and sensory percussion. Eye of I was released on February 3, 2023, by Anti- Records.

Julia Strzalek & Cornelia Nilsson – Scenery Somewhere

Scenery Somewhere is an album by saxophonist Julia Strzalek and drummer Cornelia Nilsson, playing for the first time together. Scenery Somewhere was recorded live at Kapellet, Stockholm, Sweden, on September 3, 2021, by Johan E. Andersson, and it will be released on February 24, 2023, by Frim Records.

Casey Moir – Traction

Traction is an album in two parts by improviser, vocal artist, and experimental composer Casey Moir, with Elisabeth Coudoux on cello, Marcus Wärnheim on alto saxophone, and Jérome Fouquet on trumpet. Traction was recorded at SHARE Festival, on July 17th, 2021, in Denmark, and it was released on January 31, 2023, on HearHere Records.

Sebastien Rockford Kit Downes A Short Diary

Sebastien Rochford, Kit Downes – A Short Diary

A Short Diary is an album by drummer Sebastian Rochford and pianist Kit Downes. It was recorded in Waverley, Aberdeen, Scotland, at Rochford’s childhood home, and it was released on January 20, 2023, by ECM Records.