As an ambitious creator of new musical worlds, visionary saxophonist Kamasi Washington wants to understand and proclaim the power of love. He wants to come to terms with his mortality. He wants to make people dance. And he certainly wants people to stop hating on jazz. Mixing jazz horns with afrofuturist concepts, spiritual transcendence, and…
Last we heard, producer David Anderle and recording engineer John Haeny had given British producer Glyn Johns a test pressing of Delaney & Bonnieโs new album, Accept No Substitute, which wound up in the hands (and ears) of George Harrison.
Born in Barnwell, South Carolina, James Brown had to hustle his way up and out from extreme poverty. Partly raised by a mostly-absent mother and abusive father-husband, young Brown bore the brunt of a rough, tough childhood, shining shoes for less than a dime, and living with one of his aunts in a brothel; his…
Blues migrated towards the urban centres, along its way electrifying guitars and gigs, as black musicians fleeing southern racial segregation strived for more economic opportunities and a better life in places like Detroit, Chicago, and New York City.
I was born in the โ60s, a decade when records and radio waves were in perfect sync. You could hear every kind of music, at any time of day or night; all you had to do was cruise up and down the AM dial. We had a station in ChicagoโWVONโthat played great urban music. My…