Interview – Page 3 – Jazz New England

September 21, 2015

Jon Irabagon: Dual Album Release Takes Two Directions

Jon Irababon has two very different new albums. On Behind the Sky he shows off his skills and compositions in a more mainstream direction featuring Tom Harrell on several tracks. Inaction is an Action is an exploration of the solo sopranino saxophone and is in a much more avant gard vein. The juxtaposition of the two in a dual release covers much more area than either of them could alone showing off a versatile musical personality.

Jon has the virtuosity and vision to be a defining saxaphone figure of the twenty-teens. He is a regular member of: Mostly Other People Do the Killing, Barry Altschul’s 3dom Factor, The Dave Douglas Quintet, The Mary Halvorson Octet and more.

http://www.jonirabagon.com/

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September 14, 2015September 14, 2015

Josh Maxey: Celebration of Soul, Jazz and Blues

A Coloradan by way of Virginia and New York Josh Maxey has released nine albums in the last three years. Celebration of Soul released in August is his tenth.

The organ trio is the chosen vehicle for his guitar voice. He plays jazz infusing the feeling and power of the blues. His influences include John Coltrane and Jimmy Page and although he plays songs he loves to smear them together into extended suites.

joshmaxey.com

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September 4, 2015

Phil Haynes: A new Solo Drum Album and a Preview of Free Country

Most of the interviews I do are over Skype and some over the telephone. I’ve interviewed Phil Haynes twice before and I always end it with “If you ever get up this way you’re welcome to be on my radio show”. This summer he finally made it up to Rhody and took me up on it. Multiple interviews with an artist are great. They are relaxed and make it easier to get into the meat of a conversation.

I’ve deliberately tried not to over edit this to keep the ambience of the radio show. Phil tells great stories and we laugh. We talk about solo drumming and recording in a large resonant room. He tells the story of the Corner Store a practice and rehersal space “and so much more” in Brooklyn that morphed into his label Corner Store Jazz.

On the air we played rough mixes of the upcoming Free Country. There are some edits included in the podcast and Phil waxes poetic about their meaning and resonance.

philhaynes.com

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August 23, 2015August 23, 2015

Eric Hofbauer: Deconstructing Modern Classics and Free Improvisation

Prehistoric Jazz is what Eric Hofbauer calls his deconstructions of modern classical music as he transmogrifies it into jazz. He is not content to simply reharmonize and jazzify the pieces that he chooses he reassembles them from their DNA as he likes to put it. He is also a member of the free improvisation group Bolt.

This interview was recorded in April 2015 in a practice room in Fine Arts Building at the University of Rhode Island. It was wonderful to be able to interview someone in person and to be able to respond and develop a dialogue. Because I was able to record with mics in a controlled environment this is also the best sounding interview that I’ve ever done.

We talked about the Prehistoric Jazz series, the spiritual in jazz, humor in jazz and how he gets a sound that is an extension of himself.

erichofbauer.com

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August 14, 2015August 14, 2015

Brian Blade to Record in Providence at Columbus Theatre, Eyeland Studio

One of the great pleasures of preparing for my interview with jazz drum virtuoso Brian Blade was going back and rediscovering some of the great music that he has played on with other artists over the years. (Check out St. Thomas from Joshua Redman’s Spirit of the Moment album)

Last month he played in Europe with Wayne Shorter and before that he was in Japan with John Patitucci. He also has a recent album with Ron Miles and Bill Frisell, Circuit Rider. Weather he is playing with A list jazz artists or with his own group the Brian Blade Fellowship his credo is “Serve the Music”. The group has developed it’s own distinctive sound that is evocative of the American landscape.

The Fellowship Group will be recording live on August 21st at the cooperatively run Columbus Theatre in Providence. The performance will be followed by a Talkback the following day led by WGBH host Eric Jackson.

This interview was recorded on August 10th and originally broadcast on WRIU in Kingston RI on August 11th.

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May 22, 2015

Greg Abate back in Rhode Island for gigs at Chan’s and Aspire

Greg Abate performs about 250 days a year by his own estimate. Last week he finished a month of dates in California. A Woonsocket, Rhode Island resident Abate will play two gigs locally before traveling to New Mexico followed by a month long tour of the UK.

This podcast is a little different in that it was recorded on the air last Tuesday May 19th at WRIU where I host the Jazz Explorer program. The conversation was much more casual and relaxed than our last conversation. There is a lot to be said for body language and eye contact that is missing from an interview on Skype or over the phone.

Greg will be recording a new album this August and releasing a two CD live set recorded last year at Chan’s in October.

Upcoming Local Performances:

May 23 Chan’s Presents Greg Abate Quartet A Motif Evening with Tim Ray, John Lockwood and Mark Walker

June 5 with The Joe Potenza Trio, Aspire Jazz Lounge Hotel Providence

Aug 16 Jamestown RI Music Series, Jamestown RI on the green

www.gregabate.com

Special thanks again to photographer Leslie Hollis.

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April 23, 2015

Gerry Gibbs: Thrasher Dream Trio, more to come

Gerry Gibbs has been a professional musician since his teens and has been playing the drums since the age of four. He has played with a who’s who of the musicians that have shaped the language of jazz today. His current project with two albums out is The Thrasher Dream Trio featuring Ron Carter on Bass and pianist Kenny Barron. This spring and summer there will be a series of performance dates including the live recording of a new album.

http://gerrygibbsmusic.com/

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April 19, 2015November 18, 2016

Wadada Leo Smith: Epic Themes from an Improvising Master

In 2012 Wadada Leo Smith was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his epic work on civil rights Ten Freedom Summers that filled 4 compact discs. Although also known for free improvisation he has often worked recently in sprawling thematic pieces. His most recent the Great Lakes Suite pays homage to those bodies of water.

We talked about his work in progress and his methods of composing, his time spent in Connecticut in the 1970s and the Creative Music and Improvisors Forum. Working on Red Hill with Joe Morris and Jamie Saft, the Yo Miles project and of course the Great Lakes Suite.

This interview was recorded in December 2014 and parts of it were broadcast on WRIU at that time.

http://wadadaleosmith.com/

Newer Wadada Leo Smith Interview from November 2016

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January 12, 2015January 12, 2015

Greg Abate, Touring and a Live Album Recorded at Chan’s

Greg's Sextet at Chan's — Greg’s Sextet at Chan’s

Greg Abate is best known as an alto saxophonist although he also plays soprano, tenor, baritone and flute. In his earlier career Greg played with Ray Charles and the Artie Shaw Orchestra as well as the seminal RI groups the Duke Belaire Orchestra and the fusion group Channel One which he also led. He started his solo recording career in 1990 and since then has worked mainly in the straight ahead and bop idioms.

We talked about his upcoming gigs and double live album with Phil Woods and his Sextet date at Chan’s later this month, also touring in the UK, Europe and the Florida and recording with Red Rodney in the 1990s. His Most recent Album is Motif on Whaling City Records.

I’d like to thank Greg for his great patience and good humor. There were actually two interviews that went into the making of this. The first was actually the better of the two. We talked about his recent tour of the UK in more depth and the second Channel One album that was recorded and lost. The sound quality was better too. Unfortunately there was a recording failure and his side of the conversation was lost.

http://www.gregabate.com/

http://whalingcitysound.com/wcs070.htm

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December 5, 2014December 5, 2014

Phil Haynes Does Americana with Free Country

It’s only been a little over a month since the first time that I interviewed Phil Haynes. We talked almost an hour both times and didn’t cover any of the same material. Last month we talked about his new No Fast Food double live In Concert album with Dave Liebman and Drew Gress. This time we talked about another new release this time by another of his projects Free Country.

Free Country is a quartet with guitar, bass, cello and drums that takes americana to new realms with intricate arrangements and sophisticated improvisation. The new album Something Beatles is installment 2.5 of what Phil envisions as a trilogy. The first album Free Country is all music from before 1900. The second How the West Was Won was about America coming of age. The third album will be recorded during the upcoming tour and will be titled 60-69.

We talked about Phil’s take on americana, how the project took shape, “why” the Beatles, Corner Store Jazz and recording the groups second album in New York shortly after 9/11.

Free Country’s music is available at: www.cornerstorejazz.com

Phil Haynes web site: www.philhaynes.com/

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