John Shand Posts

June 13, 2020 / Features - Archive

She wasn’t even a jazz singer. She was a guitar-strumming folk singer who fled Maine for the big time in New York. The big time gave her a contract, one album, and then spat her out, but she kept plugging away, falling into a relationship with the Paul Motian Trio’s…

June 8, 2020 / Concert Reviews

Johnston St Jazz, May 7 9/10 In a brief interview at this concert’s conclusion, the bewilderingly versatile percussionist Jess Ciampa said that in the year prior to the lockdown he suspected he’d only had one day off. In the seven weeks since, by contrast, this was his first interaction with…

June 7, 2020 / Album Reviews - Archive

SOMEWHERE ELSE (www.carlorr.com) 7/10 Restraint and tension are two sides of the same coin. Musicians holding something in reserve are a bit like dogs on a leash, and the very sense of anticipation induced helps spark the listener’s imagination. This restraint can also maximise the air around the notes, and…