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Kevin Whitehead

Jazz Master Kenny Barron Dazzles As A Soloist 'At The Piano'

By • Dec 16, 2015

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Percussive Piano And Rollicking Swing Float Matthew Shipp's 'Conduct Of Jazz'

By • Dec 7, 2015

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'On The Way To Two' Offers A Snapshot Of A True Jazz Partnership

By • Nov 12, 2015

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The 'Complete Bee Hive Recordings' Buzz With The Energy Of '70s Mainstream Jazz

By • Nov 2, 2015

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'Tomeka Reid Quartet' Offers A Tightly Synchronized Mix Of Cello And Guitar

By • Oct 13, 2015

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Singer Blurs The Lines Between East And West On 'Sounds And Cries Of the World'

By • Oct 5, 2015

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Revisiting The Intense Twists And Turns Of Garner's 'Concert By The Sea'

By • Sep 21, 2015

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A Working Jazz Band Shows Off Its Polish In 'Canada Day IV'

By • Sep 14, 2015

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Jazz Vocalist Issues A Convincing Calling Card With 'Nothing But Soul'

By • Aug 28, 2015

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'The Thompson Fields' Mixes Prairie Dreaming With A Big-Band Beat

By • Aug 18, 2015

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Trombonist Ku-umba Frank Lacy Brings 'Earnest Intensity' To 'Mingus Sings'

By • Aug 5, 2015

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New Release Features Jazz Flutist Sam Most's 'Breathy, Punchy Sound'

By • Jul 27, 2015

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Reissue Of Thelonious Monk's 'Riverside Recordings' Shows A Star On The Rise

By • Jul 22, 2015

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Duke Ellington's 'Plank Session' Offers Snapshots Of A Jazz Master At Work

By • Jul 10, 2015

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'BrotherLee Love' Offers A Fearless, Fresh Tribute To Trumpeter Lee Morgan

By • Jun 29, 2015

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Michael Gibbs And Bill Frisell Team Up On A New Big Band Record

By • Jun 12, 2015

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The Gary Peacock Trio Balances Introspection And Drive In 'Now This'

By • Jun 2, 2015

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In 'Take Off,' Ramon Valle Makes The Piano Sing

By • May 18, 2015

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'The In Crowd': An Audience-Fueled Jazz-Pop Crossover Hit

By • May 13, 2015

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This is FRESH AIR. Fifty years ago today in a Washington nightclub, Chicago's Ramsey Lewis Trio recorded "The 'In' Crowd," the rare jazz single that landed on the pop charts. Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says the audience was half the show.

Two Takes On Billie Holiday

By • Apr 30, 2015

In honor of Billie Holiday's 100th birthday this month, several artists are releasing out Holiday tribute albums. Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead looks at a couple of these by other singers. One he rather likes; the other, not so much.

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Billie Holiday's Voice Was Always Her Own

By • Apr 7, 2015

Billie Holiday was born 100 years ago Tuesday in Philadelphia. Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead has some thoughts on Holiday's changing style, her influences, and singers she influenced.

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Art Pepper's Startling Intensity Captured On Live Recordings

By • Mar 30, 2015

Since 2006, Laurie Pepper, the widow of jazz saxophonist Art Pepper, has been releasing live recordings her husband made during the last years of his life. A new batch of these recordings from 1981 is out. Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says that Art Pepper played like he was making up for lost time.

Saxophonist Tony Malaby's New Quartet Brings Out His Rowdy Side

By • Mar 18, 2015

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On 'Collective Portrait,' Eddie Henderson Is Still Taking Risks At 74

By • Mar 5, 2015

Jazz trumpet and flugelhorn player Eddie Henderson was in his 30s when he debuted on record with Herbie Hancock. Before that he'd become a medical doctor, who went on to specialize in psychiatry, because it left his nights free to play the horn. With Henderson's new album, Collective Portrait, Fresh Air jazz Critic Kevin Whitehead says that decision is still paying off for him.

'Now Is The Time' For Organist Chris Foreman

By • Mar 2, 2015

With guitarist Bobby Broom, organist Chris Foreman has recorded several albums with the Deep Blue Organ Trio. Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says Foreman is one of a few Chicago jazz heroes who should be better known outside the city limits.

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Ornette Coleman Returns With His Unmistakable Sound

By • Feb 20, 2015

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Lennie Tristano: Cool Reputation, Hot Jazz

By • Feb 4, 2015

Lennie Tristano had a cool, egghead reputation — Time called him the "Schoenberg of Jazz" — but he could play pretty hot. Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews a newly released 1951 live recording by the pianist's sextet at Chicago's Blue Note club.

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Tom Varner's Got 'Nine Surprises' And A Big Band Is All Of Them

By • Jan 22, 2015

In 2005, jazz composer and french horn player Tom Varner left New York for Seattle, where he put together a nine-piece band of local players. Their new album is called Nine Surprises. Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says that Varner can really write, and they can really play.

Steve Lacy's Monk Quartet, Solo Sax Albums Reissues

By • Dec 8, 2014

Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews two reissues featuring the late soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy — a live recording of a 1963 quartet that only played Thelonious Monk tunes, and later music for solo soprano. Monk was always Lacy's biggest influence.

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Three Books For The Jazz Lover On Your List

By • Dec 3, 2014

Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews three jazz books out this holiday season—a singer's biography, a pianist's autobiography, and a fat coffee table book. Whitehead says they're all worth a look, though he has a couple of quibbles — and also a confession.

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