By Don Heckman The Phil Norman Tentet’s music is a refreshing reminder of the fine jazz that has been produced over the years by medium sized – 9, 10, 11 pieces – bands. Some sterling examples come quickly to mind, headlined by the classic Miles Davis Birth of the Cool band. In their performance at… Read More Live Jazz: The Phil Norman Tentet at Vitello’s
By Don Heckman Los Angeles – May 11. (Wed.) Perla Batalla. Blessed with a rich-toned voice, fascinated with a broad range of music, Batalla tells an engaging story with everything she sings. Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts. (562) 916-8501. – May 11. (Wed.) Julia Gottlieb. Emerging young singer Gottlieb does a showcase performance with… Read More Picks of the Week: May 10 – 15
By Don Heckman The first song Tierney Sutton sang at Vitello’s Wednesday night was a stunning indication of what was to come in a superb evening of music making. Appropriately, it was the Vincent Youmans/Billy Rose classic, “Without A Song.” And the lyrics – “Without a song, the day would never end…” – symbolized the… Read More Live Jazz: The Tierney Sutton Band at Vitello’s
By Tony Gieske Saturday night at Catalina’s in Hollywood, Jack Sheldon sat silently on his little stool while the hornfolk in one of his cherry-picked big bands did the same on theirs. Coming up was his classic vocal on Count Basie’s old track about yo’ mama’s absence of drawers, but first the left hand of… Read More Live Jazz: The Jack Sheldon Big Band at Catalina Bar & Grill
The International Review of Music 