Al Di Meola Review - Jambase.com

Al Di Meola has long been considered one of the most dazzling jazz-rock guitarists of his, or any generation. This sit-down, semi-formalized jazz performance of his World Sinfonia band was perfectly executed, flawless instrumental world music. Though at times it teetered dangerously close to a New Age-y sound, it never quite got there, and the music instead traversed the delicate path of beautiful harmonic compositions. Here's my review of this Jazz-Fusion guitar master's performance:


Al Di Meola's World Sinfonia :: 02.27.09 :: Palace of Fine Arts :: San Francisco, CA


This footage gives an idea of the sound that this band is capable of. Watch Di Meola's fingers fly over the fretboard. The effortlessness is astounding.

Chico Mann Review - Jambase.com

Recently I was lucky to cover a record release party for the granddaddy of Latin Boogaloo, Joe Cuba. It was headlined by Chico Mann, guitarist in the afrobeat band Antibalas who has his own electro DJ side project that mashes up dance music from all genres into one big funky electric stew.

Chico Mann :: 02.11.10 :: Elbo Room :: San Francisco, CA

Here is some footage from that night that gives a sense of the mish-mash style that Chico Mann brings to the table, where he covers Joe Cuba songs, but adds some funky-ass beatz in there to modernize the tunes.