Jazz Bastard Podcast

It's sort of nearly a yearly ritual - Pat and Mike pick an outlet's top 10 list for the previous year, work their way through it, and pass FINAL JUDGMENT. Because of course these lists are anything but subjective. Mike picked the list this year: the good old New York Times, whose choices have been discussed before in these parts. He's not as grumpy as sometimes about the paper's East Coast bias, but this episode covers only 4 of the 10, so no long-term promises. Marshall Allen’s Ghost Horizons – LIVE IN PHILADELPHIA; Brandee Younger - GADABOUT SEASON; Amina Claudine Myers - SOLACE OF THE MIND; Trio of Bloom - TRIO OF BLOOM.

Welcome to 2026! As what will certainly prove to be an interesting year kicks off, the boys dive deeply into little-discussed keyboard master Kirk Lightsey's discography, checking out a couple of leader dates, an unusual duet exploration of a single composer, and a sideman appearance in a saxophonist's band who at least one Allaboutjazz reader finds worthy of a box set. Kirk Lightsey – ISOTOPE, COLTRANE REVISITED AT BIRDSEYE; Kirk Lightsey and Harold Danko – SHORTER BY TWO; Ricky Ford – SHORTER IDEAS.

For our last podcast of 2025 we delve into two very different big band projects, check out a recording by a brass band formed to cheer a guy up on his half-centenary, and dig through crates to pull out a harmolodic gem from the early eighties, when bass knew how to be big. Pop matters is light this week, focusing mostly on an English trio who took on a nickname for residents of Indiana for no apparently reason. Odean Pope - ALMOST LIKE ME; Mark Masters – SAM RIVERS 100; John Yao - POINTS IN TIME; Wild Iris Brass Band – WAY UP.

It's that time of year again, when Mike insists on a holiday music themed episode and Pat is too worried about upsetting Santa to say "no." This year's bag o' tunes has very little coal in it, unless you are allergic to smooth jazz. Mike, anyway, thinks his choice is one of the least offensive as the genre goes. You be the judge. Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra – BIG BAND HOLIDAYS II; Cincinnati Contemporary Jazz Orchestra – THE NUTCRACKER REMIX; April Varner - WINTER SONGS VOL 2; Dave Koz – DECEMBER MAKES ME FEEL THIS WAY.

Join us for a very special interview with Chicago jazz trio Twin Talk, who have made it over a decade without swapping any of the three - count 'em - musicians comprising this fascinating group. Two of those musicians - saxophonist Dustin Laurenzi and drummer Andrew Green - join the boys for a wide-ranging discussion about their formative years, goals as a group, musical heroes, and much, much more. We intersperse the talkin' with twins with selections from their releases: SIGHTLINE (released under the Laurenzi Enrst Green moniker), LIVE, TWIN TALK, and WEAVER.