Robin James

April is Jazz Appreciation Month, the perfect time to support live music and/or purchase some new albums to enjoy in the comfort of your home.

Plans are underway for the 18th Annual Twin Cities Jazz Festival taking place this summer, and its organizers have already picked the artists who will entertain the diverse and multi-generational crowd of festival-goers on June 23-26.

Cyrus Chestnut made quite an impact on the Twin Cities jazz community, so much so that the TC Jazz Festival organizers have invited him back to perform at this year’s TC Winter Jazz Festival on January 31.

When it comes to artists, their methods of craft, and the all-encompassing quest for true artistry, why are artists their toughest critic? I raise this question only because of a recent email exchange with a dear artist friend who reminded me of this fact.

Autumn is here! It’s already October and the leaves are turning gold and red. There’s plenty of things to do and see if you’re interested in music. And not just jazz, but all types of music. There are many new albums available for people to enjoy this fall season. New and vibrant sounds For one, there’s music by new […]

Get ready to make some noise, people! No one can say the Twin Cities doesn’t have it going on when it comes to hosting successful and long running jazz festivals. Two annual jazz festivals are happening over the next two Saturdays in the Twin Cities and at the same time, continuing to grow the audience for jazz.

First up is the Selby Avenue Jazz Festival, which takes place on September 12 (11 am – 8 pm); and next weekend it’s the Freedom Jazz and Art Festival, September 19 (12 pm – 6 pm). Both festivals are free and open to the public and can boast over 10+ years of history in the making.

It’s been a personal goal to continue my on-going effort to improve overall jazz coverage, be it writing for the mainstream press, specialized and jazz radio audiences. It’s been that way since day one, when I wrote my first column titled “My Jazz Journey” 15 years ago this month.

Prepare to ride the wave. Tomorrow night, Monday August 17, for one-night only, drummer/composer Eric Harland brings his band Rude Unkal to the club for a rare engagement and an evening billed as “purified Garage Jazz.”

It’s been three weeks now, and for music lovers living in the Twin Cities, some of us have done nothing but bask in the glow of an embarrassment of musical riches at the 2015 Twin Cities Jazz Festival.

Most loyal music lovers would pay good money to enjoy high-quality music made by top-flight artists from the jazz world.
Now, for a limited time, they can have that experience for free. All that’s required is spending a little time in the Twin Cities area for the next three days as it evolves into the center of the jazz universe. Sound like a win-win?
The 2015 17th Annual Twin Cities Jazz Festival (free and open to the public) — one of the Midwest’s largest gatherings of jazz artists and jazz supporters in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metro area — takes place Thursday-Saturday, June 25-27 in and around Mears Park in Saint Paul’s historic Lowertown neighborhood.

Next Tuesday and Wednesday June 23-24, vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant returns to the Dakota Jazz Club for a two-night stint. I don’t know what she sounds like live with her own band, but I’m ready to take a leap and find out.

I’ve often marveled at the way some individuals sway through life with a smile, an energy, and aura that’s almost otherworldly. What is their secret? Resilience.

It doesn’t matter how old you are, or how old you get, having resilience saves lives, and inspires lives.

What’s happening next in the Twin Cities on the jazz front? Below, a few hot happenings around town. If you missed saxophonist James Jimmy-apolis Wallace play at the hot and relatively new Friday night jazz spot at The Nicollet (located at 1913 Nicollet Avenue, in Minneapolis), don’t fret! There are plenty of great performances coming up around town to help you savor the […]

The power of self-expression in the age of social media furthered resonated with me while watching a recent interview with pianist/composer and Harvard professor, Vijay Iyer.

When I see photos of Holiday in gowns, smiling, I think about the profound courage it must have taken to get on stage and sing in front of crowds, all the while newspaper reporters were repeatedly chronicling explicit and unpleasant details of her life, instead of focusing on her amazing talent, and serious devotion to her craft.

Having your own unique sound is the prize possession in music. Smart artists know to work with what they’ve got and keep it moving — imperfections, conflicts, grittiness and all. Faithful supporters of this music get it. You never give up, and you continue to negotiate change with style. One such artist who has mastered […]

I do know that the treatment, Minneapolis-born vocalist José James gave the song, “Tenderly” when he performed on this birthday, January 20, at the Dakota was stellar. It was perfect for his vocal range and revealed a level of maturity beyond his 37 years. That song, among others by the great Billie Holiday, or made popular by her, appear on his new Blue Note Records album, Yesterday I Had the Blues: The Music of Billie Holiday, which drops in March. On Valentine’s Day, James will be in Japan, where the album has already been released and is making waves.

Holiday, also known as “Lady Day,” would have celebrated her 100th birthday this year. Her music has made a great impact on a wide spectrum of artists, and continues to resonate with people from all walks of life. Vocalist Cassandra Wilson is celebrating the music made by Holiday by releasing, Coming Forth by Day: A Tribute to Billie Holiday from Legacy Records in April. Look out for her upcoming performances in support of the album, at the Dakota, too. Holiday’s artistry speaks volumes about love, loss, and overall human condition. Thank you, Lady Day.

Happy New Year everyone, and best wishes for 2015!
Through the years, I’ve always admired the special loyalty and relentless commitment that artists apply to their craft. With this idea in mind, I sat myself down and wrote this column about what I found to be some of the most fascinating songs/albums/artists/concerts of 2014.