JazzNews is edited by Karl Dallas, who has been writing about jazz since 1948, for publications like Melody Maker, Acoustic Music, and Jazz Music News. He has also had his own jazz show, "Swing with Karl Dallas", on British Forces Radio, and currently broadcasts his "Swing Easy" show on Bradford Community Broadcasting.

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Monday, December 01, 2003

New York Times: Beiderbecke Re-imagined, With an Eclectic Approach

Bix Beiderbecke

Slithering through the cracks that separate musical genres has long been a way of life for Geoff Muldaur. Over the years his albums have blended gospel and bluegrass, country blues and modern jazz, Tin Pan Alley and R&B. But however eclectic his approach, those who prefer their music in neatly labeled boxes have tended to agree that he belongs in the one marked "folk singer." His new album should put an end to that idea.

Mr. Muldaur has, at least temporarily, forsaken Leadbelly and Dock Boggs for a very different kind of roots music: the recordings and compositions of the cornet player Bix Beiderbecke, a son of the Midwestern middle class who in the 1920's brought a new degree of delicacy and lyricism to jazz, and who achieved his highest profile as a member of Paul Whiteman's high-toned dance band.
FULL REPORT

Listen to “Bless You! Sister,” performed by Geoff Muldaur's Futuristic Ensemble, Loudon Wainwright III and the Harmony Girls

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I am posting here chapters from my unpublished 1989 novel about the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, set in modern times. The Roman soldiers carry sub-machine guns, the birth takes place in a car park shed, and Judas is a terrorist. At the moment, chapters are displayed in the order they are posted, but in due course, they will appear in the order they appear in the book.