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The François Bourassa Quartet at the Jazz Fest

Thursday night at Gesù, lauded Canadian pianist François Bourassa proved that without a doubt, Quebec is home to some of the finest jazz musicians on the planet.  

 

Fronting an incredibly talented quartet of home-grown musicians in saxophonist Andre Leroux, Bassist Guy Boisvert, and Drummer Philippe Melanson, Bourassa put on a contemporary jazz clinic.  The evening's program consisted almost exclusively of tunes from the quartet's brand new album "Idiosyncracie".  Not "straight ahead" by any means, Bourassa's compositions aren't catchy.  They hover on the fringe of memorability, forcing the listener to press forward into exciting musical territory rather than linger on phrases already played. 

 

Each musician in...

Trombone Shorty & Bootsy Collins at the Jazz Fest

 

Tuesday night's double billing of Trombone Shorty and Bootsy Collins at Metropolis promised to brand Montreal as "the funkiest place on earth".  It did not disappoint.  Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews and his group Orleans Avenue kicked off the night with their sizzling brand of funk infused with jazz, rock, hip hop and soul. 

 

Playing several tunes from their Grammy nominated 2010 album "Backatown", Shorty and co. brought the funk from the opening note. Orleans Avenue provided funky horn lines, and an impeccably tight rhythm section, while Andrews displayed masterful proficiency on both trombone and trumpet.  Shorty also showed off his vocal prowess on Allen Toussaint's "On Your Way Down" and Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On".

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The J-Spot Best Albums Of 2010

Well folks, there was a fantastic crop of jazz albums this year.  It was difficult to narrow it down to the best ten, and the order in which they appear could easily have been altered, but here they are beginning with number ten!

I should note that this list was not compiled based on sales, airplay, or the popular vote, but good old fashioned subjective opinion.  The following are my ten personal favorite albums from this past year.  Feel free to agree/disagree or post your own top ten in the comments section.

 

10.  Chucho's Steps - Chucho Valdés & The Afro-Cuban Messengers...

Kind of awesome giveaway

Way back in 1959, Miles Davis released (one of) the most important (jazz) albums of all time.

 

I am immensely excited to be giving away a 2-CD 50th anniversary edition of Miles' 'Kind of Blue'. (It's got the original album plus a whole bunch of awesome extras!)

 

All you have to do to win is send me an email at J-Spot(at)CJLO.com before 11:59 pm Monday Sept 27. I will draw a random winner and announce it on Tuesday's show!

This is such a magnificent album, i wish i had a hundred copies to give away. Alas, only one can win and i wish you all luck.

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A look back at the first few days at the Montreal Jazz Festival (Part Two)

Day three:  This one i had circled on my calendar for months.  Two of the greatest living legends in jazz performing on the same night: Sonny Rollins followed by Herbie Hancock.

Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier was packed. The atmosphere was electric as we eagerly awaited the saxophone colossus. Adding to the nervous excitement was the fact that the band was running late. An anxious fifteen minutes later than expected, Sonny took the stage.  Dressed in a bright red shirt, and sporting a giant silver afro, Rollins began the show by accepting the Miles Davis award, presented to him by the festival artistic director André Ménard.

With the formalities out of the way, Sonny got down to business.  I swear to you, the first few bars he played...

A look back at the first few days at the Montreal Jazz Festival (Part one)

It has been an exciting (albeit hectic) first few days for me at the 31st edition of the Montreal Jazz Fest.  After four days I have already taken in seven spectacular acts here at the festival.  I wanted to share with you a bit of my experience so far.

Day one:  The festival started for me with the David Sanborn Trio featuring Joey Defrancesco on Friday night. I went into this show with tempered expectations.  David Sanborn is obviously a tremendously talented saxophonist, but his albums have always been a bit hit and miss for me.  On one hand his technical prowess allows him to be immensely creative and exciting.  However he has a tendency to venture into realms "too smooth" for my tastes.  So as mentioned i went into the...

Ten + 1 Must See Shows

Here is my top ten (+1) must see shows for the 31st annual Festival International De Jazz De Montreal.

It was very difficult to cut it down to eleven, but here they are, in no particular order.

 

Richard Bona: Catch this Camaroonian bass prodigy playing his new album The Ten Shades of Blues (July 2) or as a sideman with Manu Katche and Sylvain Luc (June 30) or with Katche, Fresu, and Molvaer (June 27)

Herbie Hancock: One of the most creative, versatile, and prolific jazz pianists of the post bop era, enough said.  Catch Herbie June 27.

Sonny Rollins: Another absolute legend gracing the stage at this year's festival. Catch this 80 year old Saxophone Colossus June 27.

Mike Stern...