John Sharpe
@jazzsnipe.bsky.social
Free jazz, free improv, creative music, wherever. I write for The New York City Jazz Record, Point Of Departure, All About Jazz, Jazz Podium. Love live music!
Kit Downes and Tom Challenger forged a fluid amalgam of jazz, improv, folk and chamber at St. Margaret's church as part of the Lowestoft Jazz Weekend on Saturday night, and created a wonderfully transcendent racket when Downes moved to organ and literally pulled all the stops out.
September 7, 2025 at 1:35 PM
Kit Downes and Tom Challenger forged a fluid amalgam of jazz, improv, folk and chamber at St. Margaret's church as part of the Lowestoft Jazz Weekend on Saturday night, and created a wonderfully transcendent racket when Downes moved to organ and literally pulled all the stops out.
I really enjoyed Unseparate, the second album by the Webber Morris Big Band on Out Of Your Head Records. The outfit brims with ideas that challenge orthodoxy while remaining deeply rooted in jazz’s improvisatory spirit. You can find my review in PoD here: www.pointofdeparture.org/PoD92/PoD92M...
September 5, 2025 at 3:21 PM
I really enjoyed Unseparate, the second album by the Webber Morris Big Band on Out Of Your Head Records. The outfit brims with ideas that challenge orthodoxy while remaining deeply rooted in jazz’s improvisatory spirit. You can find my review in PoD here: www.pointofdeparture.org/PoD92/PoD92M...
The Louis Moholo Moholo memorial concert at the 100 Club was a suitably celebratory event. Highlights included Sarost (Larry Stabbins, Mark Sanders, Paul Rogers) and Five Blokes (Alexander Hawkins, John Edwards, Jason Yarde, Shabaka Hutchings) with various guests joining as the night went on.
August 29, 2025 at 10:49 AM
The Louis Moholo Moholo memorial concert at the 100 Club was a suitably celebratory event. Highlights included Sarost (Larry Stabbins, Mark Sanders, Paul Rogers) and Five Blokes (Alexander Hawkins, John Edwards, Jason Yarde, Shabaka Hutchings) with various guests joining as the night went on.
I was very sad to hear of the passing of the great tubaist Joe Daley recently. Among many others he played with Gil Evans, Muhal Richard Abrams and Carla Bley. But he can be heard at his best in Sam Rivers' '70s tuba trio. Photo from Edgefest in 2016 with Jason Kao Hwang's Burning Bridge.
August 24, 2025 at 12:28 PM
I was very sad to hear of the passing of the great tubaist Joe Daley recently. Among many others he played with Gil Evans, Muhal Richard Abrams and Carla Bley. But he can be heard at his best in Sam Rivers' '70s tuba trio. Photo from Edgefest in 2016 with Jason Kao Hwang's Burning Bridge.
Also @cafeotodalston.bsky.social earlier in the week, an utterly ferocious set from Weird Of Mouth - Craig Taborn, Mette Rasmussen and Ches Smith - which became a swirl of snarling interlocking motifs. Much more intense than I expected but all the better for it.
August 22, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Also @cafeotodalston.bsky.social earlier in the week, an utterly ferocious set from Weird Of Mouth - Craig Taborn, Mette Rasmussen and Ches Smith - which became a swirl of snarling interlocking motifs. Much more intense than I expected but all the better for it.
A belated offering from @cafeotodalston.bsky.social earlier in the week, where the final night of John Edwards' residency went out with a bang courtesy of Camila Nebbia on tenor and Sun Mi Hong behind the traps, following on from an explosive solo bass set to start the evening.
August 22, 2025 at 6:12 PM
A belated offering from @cafeotodalston.bsky.social earlier in the week, where the final night of John Edwards' residency went out with a bang courtesy of Camila Nebbia on tenor and Sun Mi Hong behind the traps, following on from an explosive solo bass set to start the evening.
Hugely enjoyable set from Kahil El'Zabar's Ethnic Heritage Ensemble just up the road at Norwich Arts Centre last night, made all the better by having the great Alex Harding on baritone saxophone, alongside Ishmael Ali on cello.
August 17, 2025 at 9:59 AM
Hugely enjoyable set from Kahil El'Zabar's Ethnic Heritage Ensemble just up the road at Norwich Arts Centre last night, made all the better by having the great Alex Harding on baritone saxophone, alongside Ishmael Ali on cello.
A fantastic launch for a very good new album All It Was at the Vortex last night from the @oliebrice.bsky.social quartet. Having a band with the pedigree of Alexander Hawkins, Rachel Musson and Will Glaser meant that some wonderfully propulsive tunes became vehicles for blistering improvisations.
July 19, 2025 at 4:04 PM
A fantastic launch for a very good new album All It Was at the Vortex last night from the @oliebrice.bsky.social quartet. Having a band with the pedigree of Alexander Hawkins, Rachel Musson and Will Glaser meant that some wonderfully propulsive tunes became vehicles for blistering improvisations.
Smoke pouring from the adjacent building truncated a thrilling set from the incendiary quartet of saxophonists Camila Nebbia and Colin Webster, bassist Caius Williams and drummer Andrew Lisle downstairs at the Vortex last night. Fire music indeed!
July 5, 2025 at 8:04 PM
Smoke pouring from the adjacent building truncated a thrilling set from the incendiary quartet of saxophonists Camila Nebbia and Colin Webster, bassist Caius Williams and drummer Andrew Lisle downstairs at the Vortex last night. Fire music indeed!
Great concert from John Butcher, Chris Corsano and Florian Stoffner @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night. Butcher operates at a staggeringly consistent high level, but this must be one of the most potent settings for his timbral ingenuity and mastery of sound placement.
May 28, 2025 at 11:38 AM
Great concert from John Butcher, Chris Corsano and Florian Stoffner @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night. Butcher operates at a staggeringly consistent high level, but this must be one of the most potent settings for his timbral ingenuity and mastery of sound placement.
Anna Webber's Simple Trio with Matt Mitchell and John Hollenbeck really brought her intricate charts to bristling, pulsating life on her UK debut @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night, with much of the repertoire deriving from her excellent simpletrio2000 album on Intakt.
May 21, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Anna Webber's Simple Trio with Matt Mitchell and John Hollenbeck really brought her intricate charts to bristling, pulsating life on her UK debut @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night, with much of the repertoire deriving from her excellent simpletrio2000 album on Intakt.
Magnificent show from the James Brandon Lewis Trio at the Vortex last night, with that sublime tenor sound riding in incantatory waves over bustling grooves crafted and polished by Josh Warner on electric bass and the great Gerald Cleaver on drums.
May 4, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Magnificent show from the James Brandon Lewis Trio at the Vortex last night, with that sublime tenor sound riding in incantatory waves over bustling grooves crafted and polished by Josh Warner on electric bass and the great Gerald Cleaver on drums.
A splendid noise from Paul Dunmall's Double Quartet @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night. As someone said, more Ascension than Free Jazz, but actually less ordered than either, with roles merging into a single, impassioned, responsive organism rather than a cycle of solos.
April 24, 2025 at 7:11 PM
A splendid noise from Paul Dunmall's Double Quartet @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night. As someone said, more Ascension than Free Jazz, but actually less ordered than either, with roles merging into a single, impassioned, responsive organism rather than a cycle of solos.
Saxophonist Camila Nebbia was very impressive @cafeotodalston.bsky.social on Sunday with her energy, timbral range and ability to forge a narrative, in a highly combustible trio completed by drummer Andrew Lisle and bassist Caius Williams, who was a worthy substitute for the missing Kit Downes.
April 15, 2025 at 12:31 PM
Saxophonist Camila Nebbia was very impressive @cafeotodalston.bsky.social on Sunday with her energy, timbral range and ability to forge a narrative, in a highly combustible trio completed by drummer Andrew Lisle and bassist Caius Williams, who was a worthy substitute for the missing Kit Downes.
Lovely show from the wonderful Amina Claudine Myers @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night where for over 90 minutes she played her own inimitable mix of gospel, jazz, blues and episodes more tricky to label.
April 3, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Lovely show from the wonderful Amina Claudine Myers @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night where for over 90 minutes she played her own inimitable mix of gospel, jazz, blues and episodes more tricky to label.
The last Soundhunt (for a while at least) went out with a bang in Cambridge on Sunday afternoon, with three short duos, from hosts Dominic Lash and N.O.Moore, a first time meeting between Tansy Spinks and Ben Jones, and an established duo from David Birchall and Alistair Zaldua, before all together.
March 30, 2025 at 6:38 PM
The last Soundhunt (for a while at least) went out with a bang in Cambridge on Sunday afternoon, with three short duos, from hosts Dominic Lash and N.O.Moore, a first time meeting between Tansy Spinks and Ben Jones, and an established duo from David Birchall and Alistair Zaldua, before all together.
I really enjoyed Alex Bonney's trio with Paul Dunmall and Mark Sanders at the Vortex last night, especially his first set piece dedicated to late trumpeters Ron Miles and Herb Robertson, and then the improv set when both he and Dunmall were blowing freely and Sanders was brewing up a storm.
March 21, 2025 at 7:58 PM
I really enjoyed Alex Bonney's trio with Paul Dunmall and Mark Sanders at the Vortex last night, especially his first set piece dedicated to late trumpeters Ron Miles and Herb Robertson, and then the improv set when both he and Dunmall were blowing freely and Sanders was brewing up a storm.
I got to review two excellent records for the March edition of Point Of Departure: Bone Bells by Mary Halvorson and Sylvie Courvoisier; and Rare by John Butcher and Sophie Agnel. Read about them, and lots of other great things here: www.pointofdeparture.org/PoD90/PoD90M...
March 14, 2025 at 4:14 PM
I got to review two excellent records for the March edition of Point Of Departure: Bone Bells by Mary Halvorson and Sylvie Courvoisier; and Rare by John Butcher and Sophie Agnel. Read about them, and lots of other great things here: www.pointofdeparture.org/PoD90/PoD90M...
Two superb sets from Craig Taborn and Peter Evans at the Vortex last night. I had a silly grin on my face from the first notes, marvelling at the dazzling interplay and constant weave in and out of their original charts, as well as one from Paul Motian.
March 12, 2025 at 9:37 PM
Two superb sets from Craig Taborn and Peter Evans at the Vortex last night. I had a silly grin on my face from the first notes, marvelling at the dazzling interplay and constant weave in and out of their original charts, as well as one from Paul Motian.
Background research for an upcoming project is leading me down some wonderful rabbit holes. I've just relistened to the A side of Company 5 for the first time in some 30 years and realized what a wonderful piece it is: a septet with Derek Bailey, Evan Parker, Leo Smith, Braxton, Lacy, Honsinger.....
February 19, 2025 at 12:31 PM
Background research for an upcoming project is leading me down some wonderful rabbit holes. I've just relistened to the A side of Company 5 for the first time in some 30 years and realized what a wonderful piece it is: a septet with Derek Bailey, Evan Parker, Leo Smith, Braxton, Lacy, Honsinger.....
I was so gripped by The Brutalist that I couldn't focus on the soundtrack, though I glimpsed bassist Joel Grip, pianist Simon Sieger and saxophonist Pierre Borel in the club scene, and picked out John Tilbury's piano, I couldn't distinguish Evan Parker, Seymour Wright or Axel Dorner et al.
February 18, 2025 at 7:08 PM
I was so gripped by The Brutalist that I couldn't focus on the soundtrack, though I glimpsed bassist Joel Grip, pianist Simon Sieger and saxophonist Pierre Borel in the club scene, and picked out John Tilbury's piano, I couldn't distinguish Evan Parker, Seymour Wright or Axel Dorner et al.
I was saddened to hear of Howard Riley's passing. His trio with Barry Guy was one of the seminal groups of the time, and though undersung, paved the way for many later improvising piano units. But if anyone wants to dive into his later work, I can't recommend the 6 CD Complete Short Stories enough.
February 12, 2025 at 4:54 PM
I was saddened to hear of Howard Riley's passing. His trio with Barry Guy was one of the seminal groups of the time, and though undersung, paved the way for many later improvising piano units. But if anyone wants to dive into his later work, I can't recommend the 6 CD Complete Short Stories enough.
Fabulous set from Tyshawn Sorey's Trio @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night. I thought the latest album was good, but here everything was dialled up and edgier: the individual contributions, the contrasts, the hypnotic intensity. And they played without pause for over 130 minutes. Incredible.
February 11, 2025 at 5:22 PM
Fabulous set from Tyshawn Sorey's Trio @cafeotodalston.bsky.social last night. I thought the latest album was good, but here everything was dialled up and edgier: the individual contributions, the contrasts, the hypnotic intensity. And they played without pause for over 130 minutes. Incredible.
I enjoyed the new Becoming Led Zeppelin documentary, even though the band's heyday was slightly before my time. It was a real treat to see the extended live footage of complete songs, especially the excitement in the 1968 clip from Sweden, before they'd even taken on the name, which was tremendous.
February 7, 2025 at 8:52 PM
I enjoyed the new Becoming Led Zeppelin documentary, even though the band's heyday was slightly before my time. It was a real treat to see the extended live footage of complete songs, especially the excitement in the 1968 clip from Sweden, before they'd even taken on the name, which was tremendous.
In over an hour's worth of understated excellence, Tyshawn Sorey takes the vaunted piano trio and gives it a delicious tweak on the nose with The Susceptible Now. My thoughts on p17 here: nycjazzrecord.com/issues/tnycj.... I can't wait to see them live @cafeotodalston.bsky.social on Monday!
February 6, 2025 at 7:47 PM
In over an hour's worth of understated excellence, Tyshawn Sorey takes the vaunted piano trio and gives it a delicious tweak on the nose with The Susceptible Now. My thoughts on p17 here: nycjazzrecord.com/issues/tnycj.... I can't wait to see them live @cafeotodalston.bsky.social on Monday!