Revivals of long-gone genres are nothing unexpected. Even awkward, pretentious prog rock emerged from its attic hiding place some time ago, so it’s no surprise that its smoother 70’s sibling—lavishly produced, folk-inflected soft rock—is making a reappearance. The remarkable thing is that there’s a great album heralding that return, one that steers clear of ironic Read More
Revivals of long-gone genres are nothing unexpected. Even awkward, pretentious prog rock emerged from its attic hiding place some time ago, so it’s no surprise that its smoother 70’s sibling—lavishly produced, folk-inflected soft rock—is making a reappearance. The remarkable thing is that there’s a great album heralding that return, one that steers clear of ironic Read More
“World music,” a term for music made by everybody who doesn’t happen to look or sound like us, is a convenient but patronizing expression that comes in for a fair amount of high-minded abuse. But the release this month of a superb new album, Specialist in All Styles (World Circuit/Nonesuch) by the Senegalese group Orchestra Read More
It’s easy to walk straight past Isla without realizing it. The restaurant, which is tucked away on a quiet West Village street, has no sign hanging outside. With its stainless-steel-rimmed windows, white louvered shutters and tiled facade, it looks like a health clinic.
When you open the door, however, it’s like walking into a Read More
Three years ago, American guitarist and record producer Ry Cooder went to Havana at the behest of the London-based World Circuit record label to capture something of the flavor of traditional Cuban music. The musicians he corralled were an assortment of has-beens, guitarist Compay Segundo and pianist Rubén González, and never-weres, singer Ibrahim Ferrer, but Read More
For the past 15 years, the major jazz labels have been relying on the middle-of-the-road tastes of a silent majority of jazz fans that is so silent, it doesn’t in fact exist. Check Soundscan Inc.’s sales charts and you’ll notice that, in most instances, only a relative handful of people are actually buying Verve or Read More
