Back in 1981, when the pop/soul band Champaign first stole our hearts with their uber romantic genre crossing Billboard #1 AC, #4 R&B hit “How ‘Bout Us,” beautiful duets defining the mellow side of the decade were becoming all the rage on the pop charts. Just to name a few, we entered the love zone with “You & I” (Eddie Rabbitt and Crystal Gayle), “Islands in the Stream” (Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton), “Baby Come To Me” and “How Do You Keep The Music Playing?” (Patti Austin

The story goes that while Swiss born, longtime Chicago based guitarist/composer Samuel Mösching first started playing jazz at age 12, he became a strict jazz head a few years later when John Coltrane’s Crescent album caught his ear. He studied jazz, classical and composition in school and eventually became part of the European jazz scene with the group Sonic Fusion and his own trio Aido. Yet blissfully, on his solo outings – including his infectious, shimmering and seductive

Aside from being a true master class in the art of piano trio driven free jazz and spontaneous improvisation, In Real Time, the debut album by the Carol Liebowitz led trio Blue Shift, is significant for other reasons. Though bassist Adam Lane and drummer Andrew Drury were fellow students at Wesleyan in the 80s, this dynamic and explosive, wildly creative and adventurous ensemble marks the first time that they’ve recorded together after decades of amassing insanely busy and di

'In addition to being an influential educator at the University of Illinois, Chicago, saxophonist, composer, arranger and musical visionary Amos Gillespie has fulfilled numerous commissions ranging from jazz to chamber music while also composing for film, dance productions and theatre. He brings a vast array of these wide ranging talents to Unstructured Time for Jazz Septet, which doubles as his first bona fide jazz ensemble album and an ambitious multi-faceted and stylistica

Anyone curious as to why the supremely versatile, sweet and sensual voiced Portland, OR based singer/songwriter Courtney Freed took over 12 years to release a follow-up to her well-received debut, the Harold Arlen tribute (Happy Little Bluebird) can just garner a look at her resume in the meantime. She’s appeared in local musical theatre productions; created the popular concert series Portland Sings!; produced various shows, including her own one woman showcase Mercury Rising

For veteran vocalist Dee Bell, it all began with a rendition of “Happy Birthday.” While singing it to a customer at the Sausalito, CA restaurant where she worked, she was overheard by jazz guitarist Eddie Duran who invited her to sing with his band. The subsequent demo they made resulted in her Concord Jazz debut featuring Stan Getz – and then another on the label. She recorded her third album Sagacious Grace in 1990 – but it didn’t see the light of day till two decades later

While every emerging indie band has or should have a detailed bio about where they and their musical intentions come from, few have a back story as impactful and provocative as the Athens, GA powerhouse duo Monsoon and their seductive yet in our face, emotionally searing second album Ghost Party. Catching wind of their initial, too quick success, their drift away from each other, and their ultimate reconciliation is the only way to fully understand the meaning of singer/songw

Veteran (and mindbogglingly prolific!) electric guitar great Dave Stryker has been in a delightful 70’s musical time warp on and off for so long (actually since 2014, when the first of four Eight Track cover projects came out) that we thought he might never rejoin the 21st Century. Not that that was a particularly negative thing, since those albums were so dynamic and he peppered his discography along the way with other recent gems like Blue Soul (2020) and Baker’s Circle (20

As we regale in being graced by sultry and stylish vocalist Laura Stilwell on her engaging, alternately soul-sensual and briskly swinging debut Out of a Dream, we might ponder how it is that we haven’t gotten wind of her ample charms earlier. After all, before blessing us with her keen, intuitive and richly imaginative jazz skills, she had been enjoying a stellar career that includes performing all over the world (New York, Tokyo, Brazil, Milan), working with pianist Tommy Ja

Truly the crowning masterwork in a stylistically expansive, multi-genre career as a sideman and recording artist, James Gaiters Soul Revival’s debut album Understanding Reimagined finds the veteran drummer mining the still empowering magic of the classic Hammond B-3 organ trio vibe in fresh and focused ways. Instead of simply paying general homage to Blue Note legend Big John Patterson, Gaiter and his alternately slow burning and hard swinging, relentlessly soulful, funky and

Richly infused with joyful bustling exotica and sultry, seductive and balmy romance, Amber Light caps famed Peruvian vocalist Corina Bartra’s two decades as a recording artist – yet for those yet initiated to her unique vibe and dynamic phrasing, it’s a good place to start embracing her and the colorful way she represents the eclectic musical styles of her native Peru. She’s credited as the first singer to blend jazz with Afro Peruvian and criolla music, the later being a var

If you’re trying to find a specific album from the vast, ever-growing catalog of the brilliant veteran guitarist Doug MacDonald on the streaming services, good luck. He’s so prolific and works with so many different partners and assembled ensembles – totally a grand, exciting thing – that you’ll have to look at any given time under “Doug MacDonald,” “Doug MacDonald Band,” “Doug MacDonald Trio,” “The Doug MacDonald Quartet” and now, offering a grand showcase to his equally ver