E. Doctor Smith's Blog

Jazz pianist Hiromi Uehara’s latest album, entitled “Alive”, marks the return of her Trio Project, featuring contra-bass guitarist Anthony Jackson and drummer Simon Phillips, last seen in San Francisco a few months ago at the SF Jazz Center. To Hiromi, the major characteristics of life include “birth, growth, movement, awareness, adaptation and death. And ever since she emerged on the scene in 2003, Hiromi has been one of the most profound and prolific living forces in 21st century music. Mentored by the legendary Ahmad Jamal, the Japanese pianist/composer has created music that grows with every performance, moves easily beyond stylistic genres, exhibits an awareness of the entire jazz tradition, and adapts to the contributions of her fellow bandmates.” “Her ninth CD as a leader, Alive, is also her third album (following 2011′s “Voice” and 2013′s “Move”), featuring Jackson; (Steely Dan, Paul Simon, Michel Camilo, The O’Jay’s, and Chick Corea) and Phillips; (Toto, The Who, Judas Priest,...

After completing the work on my Indian Subsonic Bass Sound Kit , and refining my technique on the Zendrum EXP , it was time to turn my attention to my latest project: building an acoustic-electronic hybrid drum kit, based on the kits of Billy Cobham. I'd been a fan of Cobham since the early '70s and learned to play using his "open-handed" technique via my teacher, drummer Paul Sears. My first kit was actually a 6 piece, double bass drum, Ludwig clear Vistalite kit that my Mom helped me buy back in '75 from the now defunct Veneman's Music store in Silver Spring, Maryland. As soon as I'd saved up enough money, I went to Chuck Levin's, aka Washington Music Center in nearby Wheaton to buy two more rack toms and another floor tom to create a replica of Cobham's clear Fibes set with the Mahavishnu Orchestra. I eventually sold that kit, traveled to Europe in '77, and after I returned to the States, I bought an identical Gretsch kit, thanks to my D...

Today marks the 70th birthday of one of the greatest drummers of this, or any generation; the remarkable Billy Cobham. From his earliest recordings with Horace Silver, Miles Davis and Milt Jackson, to his scintillating and seminal work with John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra, keyboardist George Duke, and his own groups, like Culture Mix, Asere and the Spectrum 40; Cobham has thrilled audiences around the world by bringing his incomparable talents as a composer, drummer, and producer to the forefront of jazz, rock, fusion and world music. His latest effort is the eagerly awaited "Tales from the Skeleton Coast", part 3 of a series dedicated to his Panamanian parents. "Ever since his breakthrough in the early 1970’s, as a founding member of the Mahavishnu Orchestra and as a drummer/band leader whose recordings such as Spectrum, with a powerful, complex style of play exerted a strong influence on the course of jazz and jazz-fusion, Billy Cobham has remai...

Bassist Mark Egan is a well known commodity in the world of jazz, and first came to my attention in those halcyon days with guitarist Pat Matheny’s earliest group, featuring keyboardist Lyle Mays and drummer Danny Gottlieb. Egan returns anew with his longtime bandmate Gottlieb and keyboardist Mitchel Forman, (last seen at Yoshi’s in SF, backing up vocalist Sussan Deyhim), and well known for their work with the legendary guitarist John McLaughlin. “About Now” is is Egan’s latest effort on the Wavetone Record label, and another fine addition to his ever growing catalog. Abstract Logix describes the new album, stating that “Over the past 30 years, Mark Egan’s ability to groove, perfectly complement the music in any situation and solo expressively has made him one of the most in-demand bass players on the international music scene. While racking up credits with the likes of the Pat Metheny Group, saxophonists Steve Grossman, Dave Liebman, Stan Getz, Sonny Fortune and Bill Evans, vocalist M...

Tohpati is one of most exciting guitarists to emerge from Indonesia, and for his third release on the MoonJune Record label, (following 2010's "Ethnomission, "Save The Planet", and 2012's "Bertiga", and "Riot", Tohpati is joined by two other renowned maestros; bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer Chad Wackerman who appeared together on the Allan Holdsworth- Alan Pasqua "Blues For Tony" project. The result is an album of "brilliantly conceived and executed music, evidenced by a wellspring of inspired interplay, a delightful chemistry and bursts of intense, spontaneous genius." "On Tribal Dance, there's no shortage of Tohpati's trademark breathtaking, acrobatic axe-wielding. Towering power chords, distorted spare-note lead lines, unexpected machine gun-blasting sonic assaults, chugging rhythmic grooves, and even a host of elegantly-nuanced jazz phrasings, are all in attendance -- summoned at will, and in omnipotent f...

The Lords of Outland will release The Proceedings of Dr. Ké on April 22, 2014 the group’s 12th recording. To celebrate the release and their 20th Anniversary, Lords of Outland will perform at the Outsound’s Flagship SIMM Series at the Musicians Union Hall in San Francisco, starting at 7:30pm on Sunday, April 27. Tickets are $10, and will be available at the Door the night of the concert. Saxophonist, composer Rent Romus started the Lords of Outland in 1994 a collective of like-minded musicians focusing on exploring improvisation, melody, noise, and sound art while acknowledging their jazz, rock, and blues roots. Under Romus’ direction the collective has developed original music ranging from unhinged guttural free improvisation to thematic suites inspired by abstract and socio-political prose, poetry, science fiction, and horror. Performing artists will include a cross section of past and current roster members: Dave Mihaly - drums, Bill Noertker - bass, Philip Everett - drums, Ray Sche...

In a legendary career spanning more than half a century, saxophonist Wayne Shorter just keeps getting better and bolder. Indeed, his longevity as a creative force isn’t as astounding as the fact that he’s spent the past decade leading his most prodigious and consequential band. At 80, Shorter often appears as the calm center of a roiling maelstrom, a mystical presence exulting in the improvisational lightning strikes emanating from pianist Danilo Perez, bassist John Patitucci, and drummer Brian Blade, all virtuosos and bandleaders in their own right. Of course, the quartet is fueled by music from jazz’s most influential composer after Thelonious Monk, still keen to venture into uncharted territory. Shorter’s new Blue Note album, Without a Net, is his first for the label in over four decades and is an astounding document of an artist reaching and exploring, still very much at the peak of his powers. The session netted Shorter 2013 DownBeat magazine Critics Poll wins for Jazz Album, Jazz...