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Continue reading →: Roelofs, Janssen & Bennink: Rite of SpringICP (RELEASED MAY 8, 2025) Many musicians play Thelonius Monk compositions, but there are only a handful that have the chutzpah to play around with Monk compositions and get away with it! Bass clarinetist Joris Roelofs, pianist Guus Janssen and drummer Han Bennink do just that on Rite of Spring.…
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Continue reading →: Frank Amsallem: The Summer KnowsCONTINUO JAZZ (RELEASED MAY 23, 2025) The Summer Knows is an album as soothing, warm and refreshing as the season it celebrates. For this, his 11th recording, pianist Frank Amsallem enlisted the musical support of bassist David Wong and drummer Kush Abedey. Like his first recording in 1991 with Gary…
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Continue reading →: Pete McGuinness Jazz Orchestra: Mixed BagSUMMIT RECORDS 834 (RELEASED MAY 23, 2025) Pete McGuinness chose the title Mixed Bag to reflect the diverse musical styles represented on the latest outing from his jazz orchestra. True, the 11 selections range from up tempo swingers to bossa novas, ballads to more “outside” compositions. Despite the musical ground…
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Continue reading →: Charles Chen: Building CharactersCELLAR MUSIC (RELEASED MAY 16, 2025) If you’re a child of the 1950s you probably remember the television show “To Tell the Truth?” and the classic line, “Will the real [name of person] please stand up.” That’s the way I feel about pianist Charles Chen’s Building Characters. After listening to…
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Continue reading →: New Origin: The Poets WalkFUNDACJA SLUCHAJ [RELEASED APRIL 5, 2025] There is something familiar about The Poet’s Walk, the latest release from the group of New Origin. Perhaps it’s the close musical relationship that has existed between bassist Joe Fonda and drummer Harvey Sorgen since their early days in the Fonda/Stevens Group. Or perhaps…
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Continue reading →: Satoko Fujii: MessageLIBRA 203-080 [RELEASED MAY 9, 2025] Satoko Fujji continues to explore the sonic possibilities of piano, trumpet and percussion on Message. And again, Fujii proves those possibilities are majestic, mesmerizing and mercurial with the support of long-time collaborator and life partner, trumpeter Natsuki Tamura and percussionist Takashi Itani. There is…
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Continue reading →: Champian Fulton & Klas Lindquist: At HomeTURTLE BAY RECORDS (RELEASED MAY 2, 2025) At Home is an apt title for the debut release from the duo of vocalist/pianist Champian Fulton and clarinetist/alto saxophonist Klas Lindquist. Afterall, this intimate session was recorded in the home of Turtle Bay Records founder Scott Asen. Better yet, Fulton and Lindquist…
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Continue reading →: Thomas Rückert: For All We KnowCHALLENGE RECORDS (RELEASED APRIL 2025) It’s refreshing to hear a piano trio tackle eight familiar standards in a nonstandard fashion. I would expect nothing less from pianist Thomas Rückert, who has been including his unique interpretation of standards since his first recording in 2002. The difference between that recording and…
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Continue reading →: Steve Hirsh: Root CausesMAHAKALA MUSIC (RELEASED APRIL 26, 2025) There is something organic about drummer Steve Hirsh’s Root Causes. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, organic can be defined as having the characteristics of an organism, developing in the manner of a living plant or animal. That is what Root Causes is all about…
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Continue reading →: Spike Wilner: The Child & The WarlockCELLAR MUSIC (RELEASED APRIL 25, 2025) Except for a few tracks in his discography and his most recent releases (Contrafactus, Aliens and Wizards and A Set of Originals), pianist Spike Wilner tends to mine the music of jazz greats such as Monk and Ellington as well as the Great American…
Hello,
Welcome to Papatamus Redux
I started reading Cadence in the early 1980s. Since that time, I have come to respect editor and jazz critic Robert Rusch for his intelligent, succinct and unbiased reviews. Over the past twenty years, it has been my pleasure to get to know Robert and his family, making frequent trips from our home in Iowa to New York’s North Country. Several years ago, I was honored to be asked to help edit Robert’s Papatamus column.
I was equally honored to be asked by his family to keep Robert’s legacy of intelligent, succinct and unbiased jazz reviews alive with Papatamus Redux. You can view older editions of Papatamus at papatamus.com.
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