Billy has been reviewing jazz CDs for Saxophone Journal since 1997. In addition, he reviewed CDs and books for Planet Jazz in Montreal.

Many of his reviews can be seen on the Saxophone Journal web-site at: www.dornpub.com. You can also read some recent reviews below and check some of the sites listed here.

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"The music world suffered a very big loss in January, 2007 with the passing of Michael Brecker. Simply put, Brecker was one of the most important musicians to come onto the jazz scene in at least the last fifty years. His singular, innovative style on the saxophone has had a tremendous influence upon thousands of musicians the world over.

For readers that might not be familiar with Michael Brecker, the following biographical information should help to get you acquainted with this great musician..."

Read the entire review here.

"Bud Shank is like the Eveready Bunny, he just keeps going, and going, and going. He was absent the day they said you were supposed to slow down by the time you reached your 8th decade. Good thing for us he did not attend that boring lecture. In the past twenty or so years his playing has become more passionate, aggressive and plainly, more interesting than ever before. He knows no limits; he is willing to try anything from playing with a quartet, to having his own sextet (Silver Storm), to teaming up with another great alto player (Phil Woods), to fronting a big band, and playing in a duet setting with piano..."

Read the entire review here.

"If there is a better jazz clarinet player anywhere in this world (or any other for that matter) than Eddie Daniels, I’ve never heard him or her. He has simply taken that impossibly difficult instrument and taught it new tricks. The clarinet’s heyday ran from the Dixieland era through the swing era and then for all intents and purposes, was quickly and quietly put to rest. After the swing era the instrument was considered by many ensconced in the be-bop movement to be too old fashioned. The fact that the clarinet is so hard to play didn’t help its’ case either..."

"Saxophonist Chris Potter has been turning heads for some 2 decades, beginning with his teenage years. Starting out on the alto, Potter has made the tenor his true voice for most of the last fifteen years. While his tenor playing has not changed the shape of the earth in quite the same way as Lester Young, John Coltrane or Michael Brecker, Potter has taken the language of post-be-bop and the tenor’s role in it, and marked it with his own very personal stamp. Potter’s melodic, harmonic and rhythmic sense, together with his sound and cracker-jack technique have shown that while you need not reinvent the wheel, you certainly can improve its performance and mileage..."

Read the entire review here.