Mostly music

If you ever want a masterclass in true rhythmic polyrhythmic complexity allied to one of the best ever swing grooves, have a listen to ...

Ron Carter turned 75 recently. It's amazing that, in a music with an incredibly high mortality rate, (especially among Carter's...

This Sunday sees the debut of 3G – a trio consisting of myself, my brother Conor, and my son Chris. Strictly speaking this isn’t the...

An account of our recent trip to Mumbai and Delhi and some thoughts thereon Being awoken by the Muezzin’s call to prayer at 5.30 am suggests...

In an interview I saw with him, the great Sufi singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan , when asked how important the audience was, replied (and I’m pa...

The responses to my recent post about the lauding by critics of Robert Glasper’s recent music as a great leap forward, (both artistically ...

My recent diatribe against filesharing drew a mixed response, with some people, (nearly all musicians), being sympathetic to my stance, and...

How come every each time jazz is reputedly saved, it’s always saved by music that is very far removed from jazz? So, if the pundits are ...

On the face of it the history of jazz seems to be a history of individualists and soloists. When people speak of the history of jazz they na...

(Left to right - Jim Doherty, Martin Walsh, John Wadham, Louis Stewart, Noel Kelehan - late 1960s ) It's been a grim few months for jazz...