ESSAYS

This section includes essays on various jazz subjects, written by a number of writers. Contributions are welcome. Writers interested in contributing are welcome to contact the editor by filling out the form in the CONTACT tab. Photographs to illustrate those essays are welcome. Readers can click on the INDEX button for a list of articles in this folder.

BARBARA MORRISON: MASTERFUL SINGING BACKED BY THE BEST

by John Shand

Sydney Morning Herald, June 6, 1997

Hackneyed songs can reveal a wealth about a singer. Take Route 66. I had thought a lifetime of hearing it crucified by the talent-impaired had left it beyond resurrection, but Barbara Morrison can still breathe life into it. The first Australian tour by this American singer is shaping up as a considerable success. Television appearances and a packed first Sydney concert have already lifted her profile from "who?" to "where's she on?"

GREG ARTHUR: LUNCH WITH AN SMH JOURNALIST

Interviewed by Anna Patty

Sydney Morning Herald, March 11, 2023

Taking a bow on the stage of Foundry 616 in Ultimo, Sydney’s most intimate jazz club, and bathed in the spotlight, the crooner mops his brow and grins. “If you enjoyed the show tonight, my name is Gregg Arthur. If you didn’t, my name is Michael Bublé.” The audience laughs, applauds, some even bang their tables, before Arthur gives them what they want – an encore.  The Bublé line is a great closer for the show but, over lunch, he fesses up to adapting it from two of Australia’s greatest bandleaders. “For years, Tommy Tycho would say thank you for coming. If you enjoyed the show, I’m Tommy Tycho. If you didn’t, my name is Geoff Harvey!” he says. “I don’t ever want to take myself too seriously, and I think that people who do in any art form are boring”…