Ringleader Ross Shapiro has been mixing his musical metaphors for 20 years now, and it shows. Do not make me add injury by telling you that you really should go. Hugh Masekela has been at the epicenter of South African jazz for more than four decades. His career has seen him cross over repeatedly between jazz and Afropop, and on his latest release, Masekala steps aside to let other voices in South African popular music take over. The small stage at Jazz Alley, however, should give him a good opportunity to show off the careful, vibrant horn playing that brought him to the spotlight in the first place.
Jazz is what put America on the cultural map.
Like an ice-cold glass of lemonade on a scorching day, Tahiti 80 are a refreshing treat. I should tell you right off that I hate Wilco. I think it has something to do with their collaboration with Billy Bragg on the Mermaid Avenue albums. There is only a very small place in my world for the genre of music known as alt-country. The Tiny Kings' new album, Sorry Bastards , occupies that perfect space between coffee and booze, luck and love, pillows and pills that makes the end of summer go down so smoothly.