Francis Lo Kee has contributed reviews to AAJ since May 2005.
Jazz has the potential of being the art form with the most complete synthesis of intellect and emotion.
I have loved jazz since I was a teenager, when my father brought home Monk’s “Underground”. I loved everything about it: the swing feel of Larry Gales’ and Ben Riley’s bass and drums, Charlie Rouse’s melodic and rhythmic sax playing and Monk’s piano playing which had revealed different layers of thought every time I listened to it! I even loved the cover!
I like music that really succeeds at what it sets out to do (which to me seems to involve intellectual and emotional impact) and so “style” or “genre” is irrelevant. I would like to share my enthusiasm for great, hard-working musicians, perhaps with a little more emphasis on the underdog, while warning listeners of “the emperor’s new clothes”.
