Jazz
Max Roach's 1960 landmark 'We Insist!' proves timeless in a reissue
Roach's album was recently named to the National Recording Registry, a roster of works deemed culturally, historically or aesthetically significant; We Insist! scores in all three categories.
'Fresh Air' marks the centennial of jazz great Charles Mingus
Critic Kevin Whitehead reflects on the legacy of the musician who would have been 100 on April 22, 2022. Mingus died in 1979, leaving behind a catalog of music that reflected his outsized personality.
Reissue traces jazz giant Ornette Coleman's 'Genesis of Genius'
Coleman's first LPs from the late 1950s are newly available. They showcase Coleman's sound before he began making the records with his own bands that made him a controversial jazz star.
Cecil Taylor's piano lightning bolts are precisely targeted in this 1973 recording
Taylor's 1973 concert at New York's Town Hall has just been released for the first time as a digital album. It's a great, early example of Taylor's mature music — dense but well-designed.
Lennie Tristano's private stash of recordings reveal a trove of free improvisations
Despite the poor sound quality, Tristano's newly unearthed Personal Recordings from 1946-1970 are fascinating. Free jazz can be rambunctious, but these musicians step and listen carefully.
Pianist Craig Taborn practices the art of instant composing on 'Shadow Plays'
Taborn is one the most inventive and resourceful pianists in improvised music today. He has a new solo album — his first in a decade — and, like the previous one, it's a stunner.
Remembering 'Schoolhouse Rock!' songwriter Dave Frishberg
The jazz pianist and singer, who died Nov. 17, wrote witty songs and moving ballads, as well as material for the kids' TV show Schoolhouse Rock! Originally broadcast in 1991.
Gonzalo Rubalcaba's trio finds that swinging sweet spot on 'Skyline'
The Cuban piano whiz teams up with American jazz greats Jack DeJohnette and Ron Carter on a new album. Skyline is three masters enjoying each other's company, with us listeners as lucky eavesdroppers.
Trumpeter Lee Morgan channels Coltrane's splashy style in 'Live at the Lighthouse'
In 1970, Morgan recorded three shows at the Lighthouse jazz club in Hermosa Beach, Calif. A new box set captures Morgan and his band putting their own spin on Coltrane's trance-like repetitions.
Ray Charles Reflects On His Country Music Roots
The soul and R&B legend, who died in 2004, was recently voted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. In 1998, Charles came on Fresh Air to promote The Complete Country & Western Recordings: 1959-1986.