The recent sudden passing of Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven other beautiful souls has been a powerful reminder to millions that while tomorrow is never promised, what we do during the dash between the years of our birth and departure years is everything. It’s our purpose, our legacy, the reason we were here at all. It reminds us each day to ask ourselves, how can we make these hours count – and what will we leave behind that made the world a better place? A few we

When I learned that Brooklyn based singer/songwriter Dave Yim – dba as Mount Hudson since his debut EP Sad & Silly in 2016 – started his musical life on classical piano and playing drums in rock bands, I had a hard time reconciling visions of those competing energies with the kind of lilting, acoustic folk/pop of his warm and inviting new single “Lakeside Water.” Starting off with a slow swaying groove (with subtle, edgy mandolin tension by Marcus Bagala), the multi-talented

If someone played tunes from Ruark’s debut album When You Coming Home for you without telling you they’re an emerging indie trio from South Arkansas, your ears might think you’ve stumbled onto some cool Bob Dylan bootlegs or – considering their overall swampy rawness – some tracks from the legend that missed that last studio polish. That’s testament to the amblin, ramblin’ folksy and laid-back Americana drawl of lead singer Ruark Inman, who also proves himself a solid guitari

Rising to prominence with a Bronze Medal in the 1st USA International Harp Competition in her teens and debuting as concerto soloist at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center not long after, harp virtuoso Kirsten Agresta Copely has just about done it all in her multi-faceted career. She’s played for heads of state, appeared on blockbuster movie soundtracks, performed on late night shows, vibed with contemporary pop legends (Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, Andrea Bocelli), recorded two albu

Reviewers aren’t generally supposed to inject themselves into their objective write-ups of shows they see, but, in as delightful a manner as possible, veteran actors turned compelling retro-hipster club performers Al Sapienza and Deborah Rennard delightfully left me no choice. Immediately after experiencing their sold-out musical extravaganza The Soundtrack of Our Lives, I zipped home and created a playlist of the glorious original versions all the warm and wonderful, instant

The serendipitous story behind Ellen Edwards’ dynamic breakthrough EP A New York Session begins with her songwriting teacher, legendary country artist Suzy Bogguss, loving the Atlanta based singer-songwriter’s jazz-based material and hooking up her student with her former producer, veteran keyboardist Jason Miles. Hearing immediate potential in Ellen’s powerfully emotive storytelling and distinctive phrasing, Miles quickly assembled a Big Apple based ensemble of session great

Flamenco guitarist, composer, multi-instrumentalist and musical visionary Dave Soldier has been blazing fascinating, culturally transcendent boundaries his whole life – from founding a string quartet that fused punk, classical and R&B to playing punk Delta Blues and starting the Thai Elephant Orchestra with real pachyderms. So we shouldn’t be surprised that on his latest majestic epic, Zajal, he surrounds his joyfully rhythmic, ultra-infectious flamenco fire with a vast palet

Though Amber Weekes’ spirited bio includes mention that her paternal grandparents ran a famed Harlem luncheonette where Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Lena Horne and Harry Belafonte hung out, there’s no back story necessary to appreciate the heartfelt, expansive artistry the popular L.A. based club singer brings to her latest sprinkling of musical glory that is - true to its title and artistically speaking - a work of Pure Imagination. Backed by some of her adopted city’s m

In a world that’ increasingly crazy and chaotic, sometimes it’s necessary to take a step back, put on some wild and trippy retro-minded yet fresh furious and contemporary jazz fusion and realize, as Chicago’s multi-faceted ensemble Bonzo Squad reminds us, that There’s Always Tomorrow. Filled with tight, funky grooves, offbeat rhythms, long jams, short moody meditations, bold synth washes and lasers (by keyboardist Andrew Lawrence) and Corbin Andrick’s feisty reeds, this tight

A native of New Orleans and big star in his longtime adopted home of the Dominican Republic, pop, R&B and jazz influenced vocalist Anthony Jefferson is keeping it real by calling his latest album All I Am. Drawing on a wide range of influences and elements of his fascinating, multi-faceted life journey and career, he pours his rich baritone and imaginative vocal passion into an ultra-romantic, exquisitely produced collection that finds him exploring classics from the Great Am

Had I heard it when it first came out last fall, saxophonist Brian Scanlon’s brilliant, rhythmically varied, continuously compelling debut album Brain Scan would not only have been a shoo-in for my Top 10 of 2019 – it may have made #1. It’s the kind of fun and fiery creative madness that happens when a versatile musician legendary for his work in TV/film (“La La Land,” “The Simpsons”), session and stage work (Bob Dylan, Tony Bennett) and live ensemble playing (Gordon Goodwin