He will always be the Quiet Beatle. George Harrison stood still in the background of the Fab Four, perhaps the most musically talented, and likely the deepest and  most spiritual of the band. Today is the eighth anniversary of his death in 2001 from lung cancer, and Podcast 171 is dedicated to his memory.

Considered one of the greatest guitarists of the rock era, Harrison also carved out places in musical history for himself as one of the first Western musicians to play the sitar, and subsequently one of the first to bring world music into rock. He was the first great rock philanthropist, inventing the rock charity concert in 1971 with a benefit for Bangladesh at Madison Square Garden. Diversifying from music, he moved into film production and was instrumental in supporting Terry Gilliam’s film career, both within and without Monty Python. Jazz musicians have been drawn to both the melodic and spiritual nature of Harrison’s work, so click here to listen to:

Nina Simone – “My Sweet Lord/Today is a Killer” from Emergency Ward!  The great singer performed a medley of Harrison’s biggest solo hit, pairing it with a David Nelson poem. Nina was one of the most underrated interpreters of songs from the rock canon, recording masterful versions of songs by Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Harrison and the Bee Gees.

Joel Harrison – “Within You Without You” from Harrison on Harrison. No relation, but the jazz guitarist does have a great sense of George’s music in his improvisation. Here the Sgt. Pepper number gets a modal interpretation, courtesy of Harrison on guitars and voice; David Liebman on saxophone; David Binney on alto saxophone; Uri Caine on piano; Stephan Crump on bass; Dan Weiss on drums and Todd Isleron percussion.

Frank Sinatra – “Something” from Trilogy: Past, Present and Future. The second most covered Beatles song (after “Yesterday”), attracted a great singer like Sinatra, who called it "the greatest love song ever written" and made it a staple of his live shows.

BeatleJazz - “All Things Must Pass” from All You Need. The title track from Harrison’s three lp solo album that stands, along with John Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band, as the finest work by an ex-Beatle. The group is Brian Melvin on drums/percussion and David Kikoski on piano. The album added guest spots by Toots Thielemans, Joe Lovano, Richard Bona and Larry Grenadier.

Monty Alexander – title track from Here Comes the Sun. Alexander has a flair for interpreting music from the likes of Bob Marley, and this quartet version of the Beatles classic shows he has a great sense of rhythm and timing. Alexander plays piano, Eugene Wright is on bass, Duffy Jackson plays drums and Montego Joe is on conga drums.

My friend Mary Lou sent me this link, which must be shared with all:

A pair of Johns Hopkins and government scientists have discovered that when jazz musicians improvise, their brains turn off areas linked to self-censoring and inhibition, and turn on those that let self-expression flow.

The joint research, using functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, and musician volunteers from the Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute, sheds light on the creative improvisation that artists and non-artists use in everyday life, the investigators say.

It appears, they conclude, that jazz musicians create their unique improvised riffs by turning off inhibition and turning up creativity.

The scientists from the University’s School of Medicine and the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communications Disorders describe their curiosity about the possible neurological underpinnings of  the almost trance-like state jazz artists enter during spontaneous improvisation.

“When jazz musicians improvise, they often play with eyes closed in a distinctive, personal style that transcends traditional rules of melody and rhythm,” says Charles J. Limb, M.D., assistant professor in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and a trained jazz saxophonist himself. “It’s a remarkable frame of mind,” he adds, “during which, all of a sudden, the musician is generating music that has never been heard, thought, practiced or played before. What comes out is completely spontaneous.”

Though many recent studies have focused on understanding what parts of a person’s brain are active when listening to music, Limb says few have delved into brain activity while music is being spontaneously composed.

Read the full article at Science Daily.

We all have much to be thankful for today, and so let us begin the day by sharing the sentiment of this song, written by Irving Berlin and sung by Erin Bode, the Official Song of Thanksgiving Day:

When I'm worried and I can't sleep
I count my blessings instead of sheep
And I fall asleep counting my blessings
When my bankroll is getting small
I think of when I had none at all
And I fall asleep counting my blessings

I think about a nursery and I picture curly heads
And one by one I count them as they slumber in their beds
If you're worried and you can't sleep
Just count your blessings instead of sheep
And you'll fall asleep counting your blessings

I think about a nursery and I picture curly heads
And one by one I count them as they slumber in their beds
If you're worried and you can't sleep
Just count your blessings instead of sheep
And you'll fall asleep counting your blessings

Twenty-four hours to go before the big Thanksgiving feast! What would go better with some turkey than some "Giblet Gravy" courtesy of George Benson.

Those who only know Benson from his smooth jazz or Top 40 recordings don't realize that he was one of the funkiest and fastest guitar slingers in his early days. Here he plays with a team of top notch musicians in 1968 sessions, including Herbie Hancock (piano), Ron Certer (bass), Pepper Adams (sax) and Billy Cobham (drums). It's worth noting that three of the four - and Benson as well - are all Miles Davis Alumni.

Click here for a tune well suited to those last minute preparations around the ktichen. Cue it up and let the gravy fly!

I've blogged about the unique singer-songwriter Jacqui Naylor before, and this weekend I had the pleasure to speak with her in anticipation of her three night run at the Blue Note in New York with her trio.

One of the most versatile performers in jazz today, Ms. Naylor's set is as likely to include reimaginings of R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion" as it is to have Gershwin tunes. And best of all, she and her trio have found a qay to capture the esence of the Great American Songbook with the groove of Classic Rock with something she calls "acoustic smashing". This takes the lyrics of a classic jazz song - say "Summertime" - and plays it out against the music of a classic rock song - in this case, "Whipping Post".

Interested? Click here and listen to the interview, which includes musical selections including:

 "My Funny Valentine" from You Don't Know Jacq. This is not your father's version of the jazz standard. Instead, a violin lead-in takes us to the groove from AC/DC's "Back in Black", while Jacqui croons the familar Rodgers-Hart melody.

"Summertime" from You Don't Know Jacq. As Jaqui points out in the interview, it's the Gershwin Brothers meet the Allman Brothers. And it works!

"Celebrate Early and Often" from You Don't Know Jacq. A Naylor-Art Khu original, which premiered when the singer and her pianist wed two years ago.

"Santa Claus is Coming to Town" from Smashed for the Holidays. After a few egg nogs, cue up Jacqui's version of this holiday classic set to the music of "Sweet Home Alabama". The party won't stop dancing.

Jacqui Naylor and her trio  play the Blue Note at 131 W 3rd Street  New York, New York November 24th-26th at 8pm and 10:30pm. Tickets: $15 Bar / $25 Table. Visit www.bluenote.net or call 212.475.8592.

Miles Davis was working with a large ensemble under the direction of Gil Evans as 1959 came to an end. Captivated by the machismo of bullfighting and charmed by Spanish music, Davis planned an album with Evans that would capture the spirit of that country.

Two weeks earlier, they had made an attempt to record Miles’ version of Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo’s classical piece for guitar and orchestra, “Concerto De Aranjuez”. Dissatisfied with the results, they adjourned and returned five days later. Davis was playing trumpet and flugelhorn, and among the nineteen musicians in the group were Davis regulars Paul Chambers (bass) and Jimmy Cobb (drums). Elvin Jones, who would go on to fame working with Miles’ sax player John Coltrane, played percussion.

Podcast 167 features the result of that session, as well as some background and resulting interpretations of the song. How significant is the recording? Read what Maria Schneider, no slouch as an arranger and conductor, wrote:

This is arguably the finest of Gil's and Miles' collaborations. There are countless details one could highlight, but I would like to touch on ... (one) particular point about this piece. It will be more deeply appreciated if you first take the opportunity to listen to the original guitar concerto as composed by Rodrigo. A comparison will illuminate Gil's unique gifts in writing all parts in a linear fashion. It's most notable that he manages to do this even in the bass line. The bass is never just relegated to playing roots, but rather lines—rich melodic lines. If you listen to the tuba line in the beginning, you'll catch one of these lines right from the start. And if you listen to the bottom parts throughout this work, you'll see that part of the translucence that Gil generally gets in his music is from freeing up the bottom and putting air in these low parts. Such attention to line-writing permeates every layer and can be heard throughout this piece.

Click here to follow along as Ms. Schneider suggests, and listen to:

John Williams –  "Concerto De Aranjuez" Beginning with one of the great classical guitarists of our time, here is a stripped down version of Rodrigo’s classic composition.

Miles Davis – "Concierto De Aranjuez (adagio)"   from Sketches of Spain. It is the adagio section that is the most familar, so Miles concentrated on that section in his reinterpretation. A masterpiece of nuance, and subtlety.

Jim Hall  -  from Concierto. An all-star band does their interpretation of the piece - Jim Hall (Guitar), Chet Baker (trumpet), Paul Desmond (sax), Sir Roland Hanna (Piano), Ron Carter (bass) and Steven Gadd (drums). Arranged for the album by Don Sebensky 

Chick Corea & Gonzalo Rubacala – “Concerto De Aranjuez/Spain” from Rendezvous in New York. Chick Corea, a Davis alumnus, wrote this composition as a variation on the Concerto. It begins with the adagio, and after the intro, the song switches to a fast, steady samba-like rhythm, in which the main theme and an improvisation part are repeated.Corea never goes too far a field, using a chord progression during the improvisation based on the harmonic progressions in Rodrigo's concerto. Originally written for Return to Forever, here it's played as an acoustic piano duet.

How’s this for a swinging session? Fifty years ago today, Dizzy Reece (trumpet) Hank Mobley (tenor sax) Wynton Kelly (piano) Paul Chambers (bass) and Art Taylor (drums) cut six tracks at Rudy Van Gelder’s studio in New Jersey that would make up the album Star Bright.  All of the players were band leaders in their own right, and Chambers and Kelly had played instrumental roles (pardon the pun) on Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue earlier in the year. Click here to listen to the 22^nd take of the day, the aptly titled Reece composition called “Groovesville”.

Born in Jamaica in 1931, Reece spent much of the Fifties in Europe, recording with English musicians and never really getting much buzz in the States. He moved to New York in 1959, fresh from playing with Donald Byrd and cut the first of four well-received albums for Blue Note. A true hard bop trumpeter, he never became as well-known as peers like Freddie Hubbard and Lee Morgan, and recorded few sessions as a bandleader after 1962. Check out the terrific Mosaic Select collection of Reece’s Blue Note recordings to get a feel for how talented he really was.

I couldn’t let the 40^th anniversary of “Sesame Street” go by without dropping in a list of famous jazz musicans who have swung through the block during the venerable show’s time on PBS:

Ray Barretto: Appeared in the mid-‘70s to explain Latin rhythm.
Tony Bennett: Taped an appearance in '95 singing a remake of "Little Things" with Lexine.
George Benson: Made several appearances in the early ‘80s, performing "A Friend for All Seasons" (with Olivia), "The Greatest Love of All" and "The Alphabet Song."
Cab Calloway: Appeared in several clips that debuted in '81 including "Hi-De-Ho Man" with the Two Headed Monster and “I Want to Count" with The Count.
Herbie Hancock: Made an appearance in the ‘80s in which Maria and the kids visit him in the studio. The segment closes with a rendition of the "Sesame Street Theme" as played by Hancock.
Diana Krall: Performed "Everybody's Song" with Elmo and a group of Muppets in '01.
Branford Marsalis: Appeared in the role of Forrest Wimbledon, a jazz musician who plays at Birdland with Hoots the Owl.
Wynton Marsalis: Appeared multiple times in the ‘80s. In one segment, Hoots gets into a musician's duel with Marsalis; in another, Marsalis performs at Birdland with Duck Ellington and the Sesame Street All-Animal Jazz Ensemble
Tito Puente: Guest starred in ’93 in multiple segments, including one in which his dance music eventually wins over Oscar the Grouch. Years later, he was parodied as Tito, the world's greatest timbale-playing bat.
Diane Schuur: Appeared in '96 singing “From Your Head" with Elmo.

One of the greatest jazz appearances – a Buddy Rich versus Animal drum duel – did not appear on “Sesame Street”, but on “The Muppet Show”, making it ineligible for inclusion.

For me, the best musical moment came when Hoots the Owl schooled Ernie on what it takes to play the saxophone. Click here and enjoy the video of “Put Down the Duckie”. How many celebrities can YOU name making cameos in the clip?

Old friend (and bass master) David Chevan dropped me an email this week to remind me of another major project making its premiere this weekend:

This coming Saturday and Monday, The Afro-Semitic Experience
will be premiering our new work, "The Road That Heals the Splintered Soul" in Hartford and Kalamazoo.  This extended work was composed by the group over the past year and a half.  We have been rehearsing, revising and getting things ready and we are very excited about these two  premieres.  I think this is some of the most energetic, melodic, fun, and simultaneously spiritual and contemplative music we have ever created—but I leave that for you to judge.  I do know that the process has made us tighter as a band—musically and spiritually. 

As a bonus for his friends and fans, David has given us an mp3 of a track not included on the CD, which can now be ordered from Amazon. Click here to listen to "Heaven's Gate", and prepare for another exciting and moving release from an unjustly underrated band.

In case you haven't read the New York Times story today, Wolfgang's Vault, the wonderful online resource for concerts recorded during or by Bill Graham's staff and consultants, has begun streaming music from the 1959 Newport Jazz Festival. Performances available so far include sets by Count Basie, singer Dakota Staton and Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers, featuring Lee Morgan.

More is to come soon, as are famous performances like Miles Davis' legendary set at Tanglewood in 1970 when he shared a bill with Santana.

Visit early and often to listen to these unearthed gems.

Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers were in a state of flux in late 1959. Bobby Timoons, the piano player who wrote the iconic "Moanin'" for their 1958 release had left the band to go on the road with Cannonball Adderly. Benny Golson was also gone, after having contributed "Along Came Betty" to the Moanin' album. Replacing him was the 25 year old Wayne Shorter, who had been making a name for himself in Maynard Fergusons band.

Blakey brought Shorter, trumpeters Lee Morgan and Dizzy Reece and bassist Jymie Merritt to Rudy Van Gelder Studio, in Englewood Cliffs, NJ, fifty years ago today. Behind the ivories was Walter David, Jr. who was fresh from a truimph in Donald Byrd's group in a series of shows in France.

Davis stayed only briefly with the Jazz Messengers, replaced by Timmons and Cedar Walton through the mid-sixties glory days of the band. Davis woudl retire briefly during this time to work as a tailor, before returning for a series of albums with Sonny Rollins in the 1970's.

Click here to listen to the title track of the album, "Africaine". That's Reece playing congas on the track, working clsoely with the indominatble Blakey as a pair of percussionists.

Since his debut in the late 1980’s, Kurt Rosenwinkel has emerged as one of the finest jazz composers and soloists of the day. Rosenwinkel’s recorded music has gone from standards and bop-influenced stylings to eletronica touched with hip-hop influences over his almost fifteen year career as a leader. His latest release finds him returning to classic tunes in a trio setting for the first time in a decade.

Born in Philadelphia, Rosenwinkel dropped out of Berklee in 1990 to join vibraphonist Gary Burton’s band, following in the footsteps of guitar gods like Larry Coryell, Pat Metheny and John Scofield. Tenure as a sideman for drummer Paul Motian allowed him to further develop his unique guitar style, which merges a sustained, legato sound with a full, deep tone.

It was his time playing at Small’s, a Greenwich Village nightclub that was a veritable incubator for jazz talent in the 1990’s that propelled him to a greater following. There Rosenwinkel played (and later recorded) with artists who are now recognized as the very best at their craft, including pianist Brad Mehldau, drummers Brian Blade and Jorge Rossy, saxophonist Joshua Redman, organists Sam Yahel and Larry Goldings, bassists Larry Grenadier and Avishai Cohen, and especially saxophonist Mark Turner, with whom he has had a long collaborative relationship.

Joining Rosenwinkel on tour for hte album will be Eric Revis (Branford Marsalis, Joey Calderazzo)  on bass and Rodney Green (Diana Krall, Greg Osby) on drums. Revis and drummer Eric Harland recorded Kurt Rosenwinkel Standards Trio Vol. 1: Reflections with him in New York over three days in June. That album, overdue at this point, will be mostly classic ballads like “You Go to My Head” and “More Than You’ll Know” and compositions by jazz legends like Thelonious Monk.

Reflections will appear on the wommusic imprint, an extension of the partnership between Rosenwinkel and his manager, Anders Chan-Tidemann. Rosenwinkel has explored a number of innovative ways to get his recorded music to the public. Selling primarily through digital portals like his website, iTunes and eMusic, he emphasizes forging direct relationships with his fans. This process began successfully last year when his critically acclaimed double live CD “The Remedy” was released on the innovative Artistshare.   He has also recorded as a leader for traditional jazz labels like Criss Cross and Verve.

Rosenwinkel left New York behind in 2003 to serve as a professor at the Jazz Instute Berlin. He now lives in Switzerland with his wife and small child. His stated musical influences include Keith Jarrett’s “American Quartet” with Dewey Redman, Miles Davis’ Second Quintet with Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, and Ornette Coleman’s 1962 Trio. Interestingly, none of these groups had guitar players.

It’s Hallowe’en again, and so it must be time for the annual Straight No Chaser Spooky Song Showcase. Podcast 166 features a scary cross section of sinister titles, so click here to enjoy: 

Eldar – “The Exorcist” from Virtue. Hopefully you listened to my interview with this 22 year old piano wizard, who announces himself as a major composer and performer with this new album. 

Dom Minasi – “Just One More Bite” from The Vampire’s Revenge. This 2006 release was inspired by Ann Rice’s “Interview With the Vampire” novel. Guitarist Minasi writes with wit and just a touch of mayhem on this tune.  Steve Swell, Herb Robertson and John Gunther stand out on the track, as do Carol Mennie’s wordless vocals.

Wayne Shorter – “Witch Hunt” from Speak No Evil. The penultimate Blue Note session – Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Freddie Hubbard, Ron Carter and Elvin Jones. So good it’s scary. 

Miles Davis – “Prince of Darkness” from Sorcerer. Miles second great quintet recorded this Wayne Shorter tune in New York in 1967 - Davis on trumpet, Shorter on tenor, Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Tony Williams on drums. The title is a reference to Miles himself, and became a nickname of sorts for the notoriously moody artist.

Part two of the birthday boy’s podcast tributes comes with recordings made by Gordon Sumner

himself, tapping into his jazz vein. He was quoted in 1985 when asked why he drafted jazz musicians for his backing band:

"I want freedom and the privilege to surprise people. With this new band, I want to destroy the old stereotypes that have been built around me. I feel very at home with jazz. This new group has a jazz influence, but it's not a jazz band. It has a polarity of all the best of my music. I try to achieve the cross-pollination in music that happened in the 1960s."

With that in mind, let’s listen to that band and a few others such as:

Sting – “Consider Me Gone” from Bring On the Night. When Sting decided to take his initial solo material on the road, he decided his backing band should have a jazz sound. The result was a lineup starring saxophonist Branford Marsalis, pianist Kenny Kirkland, drummer Omar Hakim (formerly of Weather Report), and Darryl Jones, (Miles Davis).

Sting and Gil Evans – “Strange Fruit “ from Last Session. Sting and legendary jazz composer/pianist/arranger Evans performed at the Perugia Jazz Festival on July 11, 1987. The concert turned out to be Evans’ final performance, as he died shortly thereafter. The repertoire for the show was Police hits alongside a wide array of covers ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Tony Williams to this Billie Holiday classic. The 19-piece ensemble featured George Adams on tenor sax, Lew Soloff on trumpet, Mark Egan on bass, and Branford Marsalis on tenor and soprano sax. The recording has never been released in the US.

Frank Zappa – “Murder By Numbers” from Broadway the Hard Way. Perhaps the strangest collaboration of Sting’s career came with Zappa in 1988, when he performed an unusual arrangement of "Murder By Numbers", set to the tune "Stolen Moments” by jazz composer Oliver Nelson, and for some reason "dedicated" to fundamentalist evangelist Jimmy Swaggart.

Sting –  “My Funny Valentine” from Sting at the Movies, Sting has a soft spot for the standards. He has recorded  “Someone to Watch Over Me” and “My One and Only Love”, among others. This track was recorded with pianist Herbie Hancock to play at the end of the Japanese film Ashura., directed by Yojiro Takita in 2005.

Chris Botti featuring Sting – “What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life?” From To Love Again – The Duets. Sting has appeared on a number of Botti studio recordings, and was a guest on the trumpeter’s recent TV special turned DVD turned live CD. This classic ballad has lyrics written by Alan and Marilyn Bergman and music by Michel Legrand. The recording on a 2006 Grammy award for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying a Vocalist, the award shared by Billy Childs, Gil Goldstein, and Hector Pereira.

Herbie Hancock featuring Sting – “Sister Moon” from Possibilities. It seemed a natural choice for Hancock to ask Sting to join him on this CD, which enlisted pop and rock performers to sing with a jazz band, often reimaging their own work.

Rock musician Sting – born Gordon Sumner 58 years ago this month – is one of the jazzier pop stars of the past forty years. Although he reached fame first as the bass player of the punk rock-styled band The Police, his first professional gigs during college and during breaks from being a school teacher were in jazz groups. He played with local bands such as the Phoenix Jazzmen, the Newcastle Big Band, and Last Exit in the Newcastle ara of England.

His songwriting from 1977 to the present has tapped into jazz stylings from time to time, and his solo recordings have usually had jazz musicians involved in the sessions. At least two of his songs, “Fragile” and “Fields of Gold”, have to be considered candidates for New Standards,. The former has been recorded by, among others,  Kenny Barron and  Regina Carter, Billy Childs, The Daugherty McPartland Group, Freddie Hubbard and Cassandra Wilson.

So here is another of my occasional  “Jazz Does Rock” series of podcasts, a “Jazz Does Gordon Sumner” salute, with songs made famous by The Police and Sting, recorded here by: 

Cassandra Wilson – "Fragile" from Glamoured. A poignant verion of the anti-war song that became something of an anthem after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.  

Dianne Reeves – “Ever Breathe You Take” from Blue Note Plays Sting. Two separate albums of Blue Note artists playing his music have been released., and Miss Reeves graces each of them with a Sting ballad. Here she sings The Police’s biggest hit, with  solos by Bob Belden (who did the arrangements), Mark Ledford and Kirk Whalum. L

Lynne Arriale Trio - "Wrapped Around Your Finger" from Now. Quietly, the Lynne Arriale Trio has been making expceptional music for a number of years, mixing standards, pop songs and jazz classics. This Police song kicked off the latest CD from Lynne Arriale on piano, Jay Anderson on bass, and Steve Davis on drums.

Christian McBride - "Walking On the Moon" from Sci-Fi. This is one of my favorite albums from the polific McBride, mixing covers of Herbie Hancock with those of Steely Dan and the Police. This version comes across as a ballad rather than the reggae sound of the original, That's Jame Carter with the bass clarinet solo, and Ron Blake on tenor and soprano saxophone; Shedrick Mitchell's piano and Fender Rhodes; David Gilmore on guitar, McBride on bass and Rodney Green on drums complete the band.

Kevyn Lettau - "Message in a Bottle" from Walking in Your Footsteps. In her own words: I first learned about The Police in the early 80's from my sister's old boyfriend. At that point I must admit I was a total Rock and Roll ignorant snob. If music wasn't either jazz, Joni Mitchell or old R&B, I couldn't have cared less! But when I really started to listen, I was blown away by the lyrics, the musicianship and the melodies, not to mention Sting's wonderful voice. I was very impressed, but still stayed with the other styles as far as my own singing and studying was concerned. Band members are led by smooth jazz star Russell Ferrante (Piano),  along with Mike Shapiro (Drums), Jimmy Haslip (Bass), Luis Conte (Percussion) and Gary Meek (Saxophone).

Nancy and I are spending a wonderful weekend in Manhattan. We're going to see Leonard Cohen at Madison Square Garden, eat at some top restaurants, catch an exhibit at the Guggenheim, and see "A Steady Rain" on Broadway so she can drool over Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig.

Yes, the soundtrack would have to be "Autumn in New York".

The song was composed by Vernon Duke in 1934 for the Broadway musical "Thumbs Up!" which opened on December 27, 1934 and was sung by J. Harold Murray. It's become a jazz standard, with a  who's who of jazz greats recording it from time to time.

Click here to listen to Billie Holiday's version of the song, which for my money is the best. It comes from her Solitude album, which featured a backing band of Flip Phillips (tenor saxophone); Charlie Shavers (trumpet); Oscar Peterson (piano); Barney Kessel (guitar); Ray Brown (bass); and Alvin Stoller (drums).

I celebrate my 50th birthday last month, and my brother and sisters presentd me with an area of gifts that turned out to be items that first appeared in 1959. So, I got a cool Barbie Doll, some Jiffy Pop Popcorn, the first season of "The Twilight Zone" on DVD and a burned CD of songs that were on the pop charts at that time.

Music was a little less parochial in those days. The songs making up the top 25 were country, rock & roll, blues, R&B, easy listening, and some oddities in foreign languages. There were, of course, some jazz as well, and so I present the excitement of finding that Sassy herself, Miss Sarah Vaughn, was on the pop charts in the fall of 1959.

 "Broken Hearted Melody" , recorded with the Ray Ellis Orchestra, was her first gold record, and a staple of her concert set lists for years to come. Despite all this success, she allegedly didn't care much for the tune, calling it "corny".  It would be one of her last recordings for Mercury, as she signed with Roulette Records and became, over the next few years, one the label's biggest stars. Her 1960 sessions for Roulette included The Divine One, arranged by Jimmy Jones and a session with Count Basie Band featuring such talents as trumpeters Thad Jones and Joe Newman and saxophonists Frank Foster and Billy Mitchell.

The music was written by Sherman Edwards, and the lyrics by Hal David. David had been writing popular music lyrics since the 1940s for band leaders like Sammy Kaye and Guy Lombardo. In 1957 David met Burt Bacharach at Famous Music in the Brill Building in New York. and began a thirty year partnership, writing some of the most enduring songs in American popular music.

“Ready Freddie” Washington has a resume that would take most artists two lifetimes to accumulate. As a sideman, he’s held down the bass duties for a who’s who of  R&B (Commodores, Stevie Wonder, Isley Brothers), Rock (Elton John, Steely Dan, Leonard Cohen), Jazz (Ramsey Lewis, George Benson, Kirk Whalum), and everyone else in between, including artists as different as Barry Manilow and The Tubes.

It’s because he is so obviously in demand and held in high esteem by his peers that his solo CD, In the Moment, is so disappointing. Simply put, its smooth jazz that never shows any real spark, much less blazes with the kind of sounds Washington can lay down. 

Washington wrote or co-wrote almost all the tunes on the CD, which may account for some of the problems. His all-star guests, like Joe Sample, Patrice Rushen and Gerald Albright, have their talents wasted with bland material, and cluttered by unnecessary background vocals. 

Click here to listen to “Freddie’s Groove”, one of the few tracks that cooks with any real energy. Washington’s bass is out in front, popping and laying down the groove, while Ray Fuller (guitar) and Michael Paulo (sax) take hot solos. By the time the tune is fading out, the synthesized instruments have taken us to the funky place for which we had hoped. 

Maybe Washington needed to get this one off his chest after thirty years of being a stalwart part of other performer’s recordings. Let’s hope it won’t take that long for him to get his groove on with something more memorable.

Poncho Sanchez just turned 58, so he can be forgiven if he wants to spend some time reminiscing about his youth. Psychedelic Blues, his latest release, is a nostalgic look at some of his jazz influences and favorite songs while growing up in the Southwest. He reinterprets material written by John Coltrane, Freddie Hubbard, Horace Silver and others in a decidedly funky manner.

Sanchez, an ace conga player, works with his usual band mates here, including trumpeter Ron Blake. In an effort to shake things up a bit, he recruited Andrew Synowiec, the guitarist from the Gordon Goodwin Big Phat Band, an LA based group that plays everything from funk to big-band charts to bebop. 

Given the high level of the material here, and an ensemble that’s tight as can be, it’s no surprise that the CD is a winner. It’s impossible not to enjoy Sanchez’s tribute to Willie Bobo, a medley of three of the legendary percussionist’s songs, highlighted by a Santana-esque solo by Synowiec and vocals by Joey DeLeon. Herbie Hancock’s “Cantaloupe Island” is given a Latin shuffle beat and a tasty guitar solo that serve as a tip of the hat to El Chicano and Pucho & His Latin Soul Brothers, great Latin stars who covered the song before Poncho. The title track was written by Sonny Henry, best known for “Evil Ways”, perhaps the penultimate Latin cross-over song of the Sixties.  

Click here to listen to “Slowly but Surely”, a John Hick composition recorded by Art Blakey in the mid-60’s. The percussion sets a deep groove and soon it’s the pulsating horns of saxophonist Javier Vergara, trumpeter Blake, and trombonist Francisco Torres that drive the song along. Blake’s solo is particularly memorable. 

There is no new ground broken here, but it hardly matters when the band is cooking like they are here. This is one to bring some heat into a cold October evening, a Mojito in hand.

“He’s a genius beyond most young people I’ve heard.”
-Dave Brubeck

Heavy words from a jazz master, particularly when he is talking about 22 year old Eldar Djangirov, a keyboard player whose latest CD, Virtue, confirms that he is among the most talented players on the scene today. Born in Kyrgyzstan (what was at the time of his birth part of the Soviet Union), Eldar emigrated to the US wiht his family in 1998. In a short time, he became the youngest guest ever to appear on Marian McPartland's "Piano Jazz" show. Signed to the Sony Classical label, he has released four CDs on the label.

 I had the pleasure of speaking with him last week as he readied himself for a multi-night engagement at Yoshi's in Oakland, California, and Podcast 162 presents that conversation along with music from his releases, including:

"Dream Song“ from Re-Imagination. Recorded three years later after signing with Sony Classical, this CD was nominated for a Grammy award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album. Eldar adds some electronic experiments, including the addition of DJ Logic on a few tracks. This recording is a solo piano piece, showing Eldar’s debt to Oscar Peterson, Chick Corea and Dr. Billy Taylor. 

"Lullaby Fantazia" from Virtue.  While keyboard pyrotechnics are Eldar’s strength, this track shows off his soulful side, as he glides through the track with a graceful left hand and melodic right hand, reminiscent in sound to Keith Jarrett’s solo work. 

“Blackjack” from Virtue. Trumpet star Nicholas Payton joins the trio for this up-tempo number, weaving between the strong rhythm section of Ludwig Afonso (drums) and Armondo Gola (bass). Never afraid to move the number along at an accelerated pace, he adds electric keyboards to the sound, showing why he may be the finest young technician in jazz today.

Jackie McLean was approaching the top of his game when he went into Rudy Van Gelder Studio, in Englewood Cliffs, NJ, fifty years ago today. He was leading a quartet that day composed of McLean on alto sax, Walter Bishop Jr. on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass and Art Taylor on drums.

He had graduated from Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers in 1957, and was a sought after sideman, working with Sonny Clark (the classic Cool Struttin'), Donald Byrd, Mal Waldron, and starring on Charles Mingus' seminal Blues and Roots, all over the previous 18 months. He was a rising star on Blue Note Records.

The October 20, 1959 sessions (whihc resulted in the album Swing, Swang, Swingin') featured jazz standards ("Stablemates") and standards, like "Let's Face the Music and Dance". Click here to listen to McLean's version of "What's New?", a ballad composed by Johnny Burke and Bob Haggart twenty years earlier. The song had been introduced by Bob Crosby and His Orchestra with vocalist Teddy Grace that year, rising to number ten on the pop charts. Bing Crosby would take it to number two the same year.

Four months later, McLean would enter the same studio with Freddie Redd to record the music most closely associated with the first part of his career, Music from "The Connection", an off-Broadway play which featured McLean playing and acting onstage.

Sidemen sometimes just don’t get their due. Plenty of the best jazz musicians in the world are constantly in demand by headliners for their recording sessions or concert tours, but to the average jazz fan, they labor in relative obscurity.  Luckily, every once in a while they get that chance to step out and draw some attention to themselves. Case in point – Mark Soskin, who shines on his latest release as a bandleader, the aptly entitled Man Behind the Curtain.

His list of credits as a sideman reads like a who’s who of jazz from the last forty years – Sonny Rollins, Joe Henderson, Randy Brecker, Billy Cobham, Stanley Turrentine, Herbie Mann, John Abercrombie, and Gato Barbieri, just to name a handful. Soskin has a strong feel for Latin Jazz, having been an integral part of Azteca, a group in which Soskin's keyboard, writing, and arranging talents were showcased, and trumpeter Tom Harrell and percussionists Pete and Sheila Escovedo was the core. 

Soskin has spent 14 years with Sonny Rollins, and still found time to release seven CDs as a leader. The new CD is a top notch quartet session, featuring Ravi Coltrane on tenor and soprano sax, Siskin on piano, Jay Anderson on bass and Bill Stewart don drums. Five covers, including classics like “Heather On the Hill”, vie with three Soskin originals for the listener’s attention. All are exceptional performances. 

Click here to listen to “Little One”, the Soskin composition that ends the CD. His piano languidly begins over slow cymbals from Stewart, leading to a give and take between the two musicians. Coltrane enters a minute later, playing a gentle melody that is accented by the rhythm section with subtle but definite flourishes. Slowly Coltrane’s sax begins exploring new ground, and then Stewart’s cymbals signal a solo for Soskin, a greater part for bassist Anderson, and then a group resolution. All in all, a lovely ending to a notable album.

Ramsey Lewis hasn’t recorded in a true piano trio format for almost five years. Not that he hasn’t been busy, mind you. Instead, he has worked with vocalist Nancy Wilson (Meant to Be and Simple Pleasures), redone some of his hits with a supplemented group (Time Flies), recorded a terrific live gospel album (With One Voice), and dabbled in funk (Don’t It Feel Good). He also recorded with his smooth-jazz band Urban Knights, leaving after their fifth record was released in 2003.

Songs from the Heart: Ramsey Plays Ramsey marks a return to the instrumental format that made him a cross-over hit in the 1960’s. However, this music couldn’t be further from the R&B influenced sound of “The In Crowd” or “Wade in the Water”. Collaborating with his long-time sidemen Larry Gray (bass) and Leon Joyce (drums), the album marks the recorded debut of music Lewis composed for two collaborative concerts he played at the Ravinia Festival just outside of his hometown of Chicago. Eight of the pieces come from the score he wrote for the Joffrey Ballet Company, while the remainder was created for and performed with the Turtle Island Quartet in a concert entitled “Muses and Amusements”.

The CD is not an inconsiderable statement from Lewis, who many – this listener among them – saw treading water after a lengthy career of making exceptional music. Instead, this is trio music at its highest level. A band together this long works almost telepathically at their best moments. Listen to Joyce’s drum work near the end of “To Know Her is To Love Her”, or how he colors “Sharing Her Journey” with cymbals. Or how Gray works his bass in and around the others on “Touching, Feeling, Knowing”.

Lewis steps out alone on four tracks, most notably the romantic “The Glow of Her Charm”. At the age of 74, he has lost none of his ability to play long, melodic lines without becoming saccharine. At the same time, Lewis isn’t afraid to move into darker territory on “Exhilaration”, where he begins with a Monk-like piano line and then plays off the rhythm section with grace.

Lewis and his new label, Concord Jazz, are to be commended for making sure that this music is recorded for posterity, allowing an audience outside of the Windy City to enjoy it. Here’s hoping that Lewis will continue this level of artistic output, and that we haven’t heard the last of this trio.

Every year, the Jazz Standard in New York presents a Festival of New Trumpet Music (FONT), conceived and cu­rated by acclaimed player, composer, and bandleader Dave Douglas. This year’s FONT honors the great Bobby Bradford, who will travel from the West Coast to appear on at the Jazz Standard with different combos in weekend performances October 1-4, 2009. Other trumpeters appearing to salute Mr. Bradford will be Jeremy Pelt, Ambrose Akinmusire, Avishai Cohen, Eddie Henderson and David Weiss.

Bradford, who at age 75 stands at perhaps our greatest living avant-garde trumpeter, is best known for his work with saxophonist Ornette Coleman and clarinetist John Carter, both major figures in pushing the limits of their respective instruments. He has also led his own group, the Mo’tet, and been a part of Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra. As an educator, Mr. Bradford has taught at Pomona College in California for four decades. His most famous student may be noted saxophonist David Murray, who will sit in with his former teacher on October 3rd and 4^th. 

Bradford will perform with a quintet and an octet, but he indicated when we spoke last week that the different band size would not create any special problems. “The music is not scored for a particular instrumentation, so the tunes we play will be the same tunes each night. The additional players are really strong, and they enhance the performance considerably.” He added that finding scores for some of the music he played with the John Carter Octet was difficult, with a certain discrepancy existing in some of the written scores. The band – which each night will include Bradford on trumpet, Marty Ehrlich on saxophones and clarinet, and Andrew Cyrille on drums, supplemented by others – will get just one rehearsal on Friday afternoon, “That’s asking a lot for anyone. No disrespect for New York players – these are the best you could have, but we want to play pieces like (John Carter’s) ‘Castles in Ghana’ and that takes work.”

I spoke with Mr. Bradford last week regarding the upcoming gigs, and while a scheduling error made a recording impossible, Podcast 162 is a tribute to Mr. Bradford and his music, including quotes from our interview and musical selections:

Ornette Coleman – “Down by Law“ from The Complete Science Fiction Sessions. Mr. Bradford chose “Down by Law” as a track he particularly liked from the CDs. However, he didn’t care much about the remastered sound of the set. “I’m not much of what you would call an audiophile, when they change what we had before. I’ve listened to the original over the years, and played in my classes. So since those are the only records I made with Ornette, I’m glad people who weren't familiar with the originals can discover the music.”

The core of the Coleman band had been trumpeter Don Cherry, saxophonists Coleman and Dewey Redman, bassist Charlie Haden, and drummers Ed Blackwell and Billy Higgins. For these sessions, pianist Cedar Walton, guitarist Jim Hall, trumpeter  Bradford, vocalist Asha Puthi, and poet David Henderson, who narrated “Science Fiction” were added. Mr. Bradford was pleased these sessions were reissued, but not because of the remastered sound. “I’m not much of what you would call an audiophile, when they change what we had before. I’ve listened to the original over the years, and played in my classes. So since those are the only records I made with Ornette, I’m glad people who weren't familiar with the originals can discover the music.”  

David Murray – “Woodshedetude” from Death of a Sideman. The record is under Murray’s name, but Bradford wrote all the music, a suite in memory of his long time collaborator John Carter. He spoke fondly of this recording, which featured Murray on sax, Bradford on trumpet, Dave Burrell on piano, Fred Hopkins on bass, and Ornette alumnus Ed Blackwell on drums. 

John Carter & Bobby Bradford’s New Art Jazz Ensemble – “Rosavita’s Dance” from Seeking. A 1969 session adding Nate Morgan on piano, Louis Spears on bass and Ndugu on drums to Carter’s clarinet and alto sax and Bradford’s trumpet, creating a quintet to perform this driving Bradford composition. This album has not, to the best of my knowledge, been released on CD. Thanks to Inconstant Sol for the rip. 

John Carter & Bobby Bradford - on “Portrait of J.B.G.” and “Circle” from Tandem 1. A duo concert recorded  live at the  Piedmont Center for Arts in Worcester,  on April 30, 1982, the evening gave two giants of their respective instruments a chance to play separately and together. Here is a cornet solo by Bradford on “Portrait of J.B.G.”, followed by a duet.  Who or what is “J.B.G.”. Bradford set me straight – “John Birks Gillespie”.

Were live duo performances exceptionally difficult for the two men? “Well yes, but you know we had spent hours playing together in that context. We didn’t have that many gigs, but by playing together we developed a repertory of tunes to play. We didn’t just start blowing! We had a book ready. In fact, we performed with a music stand in front of us many times.”

I asked Mr. Bradford what advice he had for young jazz musicians. “Take a serious look at it (a career), and if you are going to narrow down the type of music you play you have to be ready to miss out on a lot of money. You can be real good in jazz, but there is no guarantee that you’ll get the work you need to pay the bills. There are a lot of great musicians who would be deliriously happy if they could make $50,000 a year playing jazz. There’s a lot of competition. Even when you’re not working, you have to practice. If you’re lucky enough to work in someone’s band, you are still expected to rehearse for free, even when there’s no gig.”

John Abercrombie’s latest quartet recording is fairly typical of the legendary “ECM Records Sound”. What is that? As one article suggests, that sound “creates a sense of space, contemplation and nuance”. It also rarely swings, making it an acquired taste.

That’s what’s good and bad about Wait Till You See Her. The lead performer in the quartet is violinist Mark Feldman, a partner with Abercrombie for over ten years. A one-man string section, Feldman alternately lilts and drives home melodic touches, moving the music into upper octaves as the improvisation of the four members of group takes off for point unknown. 

Joey Baron, a veteran of avant-garde sessions with John Zorn, Dave Douglas and Arthur Blythe, is perfect for this sort of music, and he provides a valuable sense of direction to some of that more wandering tunes. However, he and bassist Thomas Morgan can never seem to bring the tunes into sharp focus. 

Abercrombie, who wrote most of the songs on the album, has to take responsibility for this contemplative, but often unfocused music. A guitarist of his stature and experience should be able to reign in the improvisations to prevent a sense of aimlessness, bringing it closer to a sense of introspective. Occasionally like on "Out of Towner" (click here) his leadership shines through and the results are gentle and shimmering. When he misses,  the quartet is headed for places I’d just as soon not visit.

One of the more interesting acts playing this weekend’s free portion of the Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival in Boston is percussionist Yoron Israel’s tribute to his friend and musical mentor, the late David “Fathead” Newman. For much of the last decade, Israel anchored his touring bands, and recorded three CDs with him. Newman, a legendary saxophonist/flutist and composer, was a prominent member of the Ray Charles band in the fifties and sixties and a renowned bandleader in his own right thereafter. He passed away on January 20, 2009 at age 75.

Israel will hit the stage at around 3:00 in Boston, leading a large ensemble, including the always exciting Curtis Fuller (trombone), Howard Johnson (baritone saxophone), Bill Easley (flute, tenor, and alto saxophones), Dave Leonhardt (piano), and John Menegon (bass). 

Israel, Chicago born and now residing in Brockton, MA, is assistant chairman of percussion at Berklee College of Music in Boston. I got the chance to talk to him about his work with “Fathead”, his role as bandleader and educator, and about the many musicians with whom he has recorded. Click here to listen to Podcast 161, which features the interview and music Yoron Israel has had a part in, including:

David “Fathead” Newman – “Here Comes Sonny Man" from Cityscape. This is the band that Yoron had in mind when he put together the tribute: Newman on sax and flute, Winston Byrd on trumpet, Howard Johnson on Baritone Sax, Benny Powel on Trombone, David Leonhardt on Piano, John Menegon on Bass and Yoron on Drums.

Kenny Burrell – “I’m Falling for You“ from Lotus Blossom.  The first of many great guitar players with whom Israel has made great music, this 1995 release has Burrell playing in a number of different settings. Here is one of the trio recordings, with Ray Drummond on bass and Israel on drums.

Kenny Burrell - "Soul Eyes" from Guiding Spirit. A different Burrell quartet featuring Yoron's "musical big brother" Jay Hoggard, the pride of Wesleyan University on vibes, Burrell on guitar, Marcus McLaurine on bass and Israel on drums.

David “Fathead” Newman – “I Can’t Get Started “ from Life. Newman was more than just Ray Charles’ main horn man – he was capable of playing in so many different idioms, and was as accomplished on flute as he was on saxophone. Here he tackles a Gershwin tune, with Peter Bernstein (guitar), Steve Nelson (vibraphone), John Menegon (double bass), and Israel (drums) backing him up.

Going from headliner to artistic director, Terri Lyne Carrington’s involvement with the Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival has reached its apex. A native of Medford, a Boston suburb, her deep musical network and knowledge make her an ideal choice to lead BeanTown as it expands its scope and moves towards becoming one of the nation's premier jazz festivals.  

She is no stranger to multitasking. She has received Grammy nominations both as a performer (for her solo album, Real Life Story) and as a producer (for the Dianne Reeves album, That Day). Her extensive touring career of over 20 years includes stints with Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Al Jarreau, and others. Among the acts she has recorded with are Diana Krall, John Scofield, George Duke, and James Moody. She appeared on Hancock’s Grammy winning CD Gershwin’s World, and Shorter’s High Life. Her most recent CD as a band leader is the celebrity-studded More to Say.

"This festival is a testament to Boston's reputation as a music hub and its dedication to jazz and producing and nurturing great artists," the noted drummer said in a written statement. "As a native and recent returnee to the area, I'm thrilled for this chance to give back to the community by throwing a big party for Boston. I hope people come out to fraternize with their neighbors, enjoy the delicious food, and hear some incredible music." 

I spoke with Ms. Carrington last week, and so Podcast 160 is a shout out to the BeanTown Jazz Festival and Ms. Carrington, including musical selections from: 

Friday Night Headliners:

 David Sanborn – “Slam!” from  Closeup.  His blues roots go back to Woodstock in 1969. Yes, Sanborn was a member of the Butterfield Blues Band horn section, making him perhaps the only current jazz headliner to perform that weekend. Headlining on Friday night, Sanborn is capable of some terrific R&B soloing. Check out this scorching Marcus Miller composition, with Miller taking the bass and keyboards, with Sanborn on sax, Vinnie Colaiuta on drums and Paul Jackson Jr. on guitar. 

 Kevin Mahogany – “Route 66” from You Got What It Takes.. Possessed of one of the great bass voices in jazz, Mahoganey should make quite an impression singing the blues Friday night. Here he is on a classic uptempo number. 

 Amina Claudine Myers appearing with Charlie Haden’s Liberation Orchestra – “Spiritual” from Dream Keeper.  A Haden composition dedicated to Martin Luther King, Medgar Evers and Malcolm X is given a large ensemble performance, under the baton of Carla Bley. Solos on this number are by Ray Anderson (trombone), Branford Marsalis (sax), Charlie Haden (bass) and Ms. Myers is on vocals. Other standouts on the cut are Tom Harrell on trumpet, Paul Motian on drums and Joe Lovano on sax. 

Saturday Acts include:

 Donald Harrison – “Dancehall” from Nouveau Swing.   A graduate of Art Blaey’s Jazz Messengers, Harrison produces great post-bop with a touch of New Orleans soul. This comes from one of my favorite Harrison release, with Christian McBride on bass, Carl Allen on drums, and Albert Wonsey on piano.  

Joe Louis Walker – “Uhhh!” from The Preacher and the President. A 1998 release on jazz label Verve,  the San Francisco native shows his debt to Delta and Chicago Blues with some down home playing.   

And finally….

Terri Lyne Carrington – “No Not One (For Helen)” from More to Say.  Her latest release is full of guest artists from Christian McBride to Everette Harp to Nancy Wilson. This track is a large group Afro-Cuban stomp of a number, featuring pianist Danilo Perez.

There are new arrivals in my home – the above pictured puppies are Hamish and Angus, a pair of mini-dachshunds Nancy and I brought home this weekend. 

I had to share this picture with you, and post the only song that would do – Sonny Rollins’ composition “Doxy” as recorded by Miles Davis on his Bag’s Groove album. A jazz classic, Rollins wrote the song by adapting the chords from “Ja-Da (Ja Da, Ja Da, Jing, Jing, Jing!)”, a hit song written in 1918 by Bob Carleton. 

In a recent interview, Rollins rememberd writing the tune:

Actually I think I was institutionalized when I wrote “Doxy.” The gory details…well it was back at a time when I was hooked on drugs, and while I was institutionalized my mind turned to music, and I had an opportunity to play with a band, a sort of Protestant Chapel Band – we played hymns and such. It’s not a pleasant memory. But it’s fruitful in that I was able to overcome those problems. I wrote “Doxy” during that time.  

Apparently the song has no real bad memories for Sonny – when he eventually established his own record label, he named it Doxy Records.

I’ve blogger before about the intersection of hip-hop and jazz among some of the more adventurous African-American musicians on the scene today. Robert Glasper’s latest release, Double-Booked, attempts to blur the line between the two genres by producing a  recording in two parts, one by a straight-ahead trio and the other by the electric “Robert Glasper Experiment”.

The first half of the record shows why Glasper is rapidly becoming one of the finest pianist on the scene. Along with bassist Vincente Archer and drummer Chris Dave, Glasper creates elegant trio music, making classic’s like Monk’s “Think of One” sound fresh, and originals like “Yes I’m Country (And That’s OK)” seem like songs you want to hear again and again. 

Glasper is less successful in the mish-mash that is the second half of the album. The Experiment swerves between jazz-funk, hip-hop and soul ballads, with a lack of direction that makes it seem – well, experimental. I look forward to when Glasper collaborates with a hip-hop producer or DJ who can turn his ideas into something more concrete and exciting. Perhaps the great jazz hip-hop album we’ve been waiting for is just around the corner.

Chico Hamilton is 88 years young today, and I had the pleasure of chatting with the legendary drummer last week. Podcast 159 is that interview, along with some of the most memorable music he recorded during his career that has covered the length of what he likes to call "contemporary music" of the last 8 decades.

Gerry Mulligan Quartet- "Bernie's Tune". the first recording ever made for Pacific Records was cut in 1952 in Phil Turetsky's house in Los Angeles. The great "piano-less"quartet was Mulligan on baritone sax, Chet Baker on trumpet, Bobby Whitlock on bass and Chico on drums.

Gerry Mulligan and his Ten-tette - "Walkin' Shoes" from Gerry Mulligan and his Ten-tette. Mulligan loved to play with different group sizes, including this large group whihc included Baker and Chico from his Quartet, along with West Coast standouts like Bud Shank (Alto Sax) and Bob Enevoldsen (Trombone).

Chico Hamilton Quintet - "The Sage" from The Complete Pacific Recordings of Chico Hamilton Quintet. His first great quintet - Chico, Buddy Collette (saxophone), Jim Hall (guitar), Carson Smith (bass) and Fred Katz on cello.

Chico Hamilton Quintet - "I'm Beginning to See the Light" from The Complete Pacific Recordings of Chico Hamilton Quintet. A young Eric Dolphy (saxophone) got his big break when Chico's brother discovered him and turned Chico on to his flute and sax playing. The rest of the quintet is John Pisano (guitar) Nathan Gershman (cello) Hal Gaylor (bass) and Chico. Recorded in Los Angeles April, 1958.

 Chico Hamilton - "Forest Flower" from Man From Two Worlds. From Dolphy to Charles Lloyd, Chico has always been able to spot the top players. Lloyd on sax and flute, Hungarian guitar whiz Gabor Szabo, bassist Albert Stinson and Chico make up the band.

Chico Hamilton - "Larry of Arabia" from The Dealer. Chico moved to Impulse! Records in the Sixties, and cut this classic with Larry Coryell making his recording debut on guitar. Chico on drums, altoist Arnie Lawrence, and bassist Richard Davis complete the band.

Piano trios are renowned for interpreting and reinterpreting popular songs. Whether you prefer the standards that Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett captured so wonderfully, or Brad Mehldau and  Ethan Iverson deconstructing Radiohead, there is no doubt that the give and take of piano, bass and drums lends itself to exploring the harmonic and melodic possibilities of songs that we all know and love. 

Add Kevin Hays’ trio to the list of piano trios that reinterpret both old and new material with panache. Hays has played with bassist Doug Weiss and Bill Stewart for almost ten years, and their interplay is almost telepathic at times. Their latest album, You’ve Got A Friend, reimagines pop hits like Paul Simon’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and the title track, concentrating not on their memorable melodies, but rather on the way they can present classic material in a new and different way. 

The same holds true for the group’s presentation of classic jazz written by Thelonious Monk (“Think of One”) and Charlie Parker (“Cheryl”). These tunes could be hot, but clichéd if taken as others have. Here, these are revisionist versions that get more than we might expect from be-bop era material. The rhythm section shines brightest on “Sweet and Lovely”, with Stewart creating a dramatic setting for the Harry Tobias standard. 

Since today is Beatles Hype Day, the day that the stereo remasters and “Rock Band” game are released to adoring consumers,  you can click here and listen to a sly and subtle rethinking of Lennon and McCarney's "Fool on the Hill".

Blue Note made a business decision a few years back that seems to be reaping dividends for the label and it's fans. By signing non-jazz artists like Van Morrison and Al Green, the august jazz label increased it's exposure to rock and soul fans, added some much-needed cash flow, and in the process, created some pretty darn good music. Morrison's What's Wrong With this Picture was one of his jazziest releases, with a killer versions of "Saint James Infirmary" and the jump-blues of "Stop Drinking".

Willie Nelson joins that label for American Classic, a sequel of sorts to his 1978 release, Stardust. Backed with a top-notch band of Mickey Raphael (harmonica), Joe Sample (piano), Christian McBride (bass) and Lewis Nash (drums), the Red Headed Stranger tackles eleven songs from the Great American Songbook, plus a new take on his own hit "Always On My Mind". The result is almost always a treat.

At this point in his career, Willie's phrasing is nothing short of exemplary. He rarely drags notes out, and his direct and honest reading adds to the strong melodies. His gentle reading of "Fly Me to the Moon" reveals a sense of whistful wonder that gets lost in more bombastic versions, and "Because of You" and "The Nearness of You" are given faithful presentations.

His duet with Diana Krall on "If I Had You" is fine, but seems more likely an attempt at giving Willie "jazz cred". Another duet, with Norah Jones on the holiday season staple "Baby It's Cold Outside" fails not due to the recording, but rather to an unavoidable sense of creepiness. I simply couldn't get past a man in his late seventies singing songs of seduction with a female coutnerpart young enough to be his granddaughter

Brother Randy Brecker stepped in, and we now have The Comet's Tail, an inspiring large ensemble work presented by the CJC's director Chuck Owens. His group, the Jazz Surge, is aided by soloists like Brecker,  guitarist Mike Stern and saxophonists Joe Lovano and Dave Liebman. Brecker compositions receive new arrangements by his former collaborators  Gil Goldstein and Vince Mendoza, and international contest winner Fred Stride arranged "Peep", a rousing number that opens the CD.

This is a modern big band sound, and it's always a pleasure to hear that venerable style made more modern. Owens' group shwos off a serious range, particularly on some of the more frenetic moments.

Brecker was an underrated composer, and this CD shows off some of his best material. He was also a killer tenor saxophone player, so it's only natural that some of the best tracks come from two sax legends.  Liebman delivers a terriffic solo in "Sumo", a piece from Brecker's Steps Ahead period. Lovano takes center stage on two tracks, the bluesy "Take a Walk" and the dramatic closing piece "Everything Happens When You're Gone".

Strick Muzik is a family affair. Marcus Strickland, in collaboration with his twin brother E.J. found that after years of either recording for small labels or being passed over by larger labels afraid to take a chance on his talent, in order to make the music he wanted the way he wanted, he'd have to go the D.I.Y. approach and create his own label.

Enter Strick Muzik, which is featuring two formidable releases this month. Marcus, who has recorded two CDs under his own name in addition to working with Jeff "Tain" Watts, Dave Douglas, Roy Haynes and Will Calhoun, has assembled a trio album entiteld Idiosyncracies (although to read the title on the CD, it's "Id I O Syn Crasies"). Recording covers from the likes of Bjork, Stevie Wonder and Andre 3000 alongside his originals, Strickland has made a powerful recording, stripping the songs down to their basic elements.

E.J. Strickland's long overdue debut as a band leader is a solid quintet CD. All originals, the music has a strong spiritual sound, the band meshing on song after song, sometimes soaring, sometimes whispering. After years of working with Wynton Marsalis, Christian McBride, Herbie Hancock, and Cassandra Wilson, it's good to see him stepping out on his own.

Podcast 158 is a conversation with Marcus Strickland, discussing the "indie scene" in jazz recordings, why he thinks the soprano sax might get a bad rap, and what's next for the brothers and their label. Featured are two tracks form each of their new CDs, including:

Marcus Strickland - "Middle Man" from Idiosynracies. A Marcus original features his powerful sax style, working hand in hand with drummer/brother E.J. Strickland and bassist Ben Williams.

Marcus Strickland - "Scatterheart" from Idiosynracies. Marcus spoke about taking this Bjork tune, which was highly produced as her original, and stripping it down to "the bare essentials" for his trio. Mission accomplished.

E.J. Strickland - "Abandoned Discovery" from In This Day.  The Quintet brother E.J. put together takes on a whole different sound that Marcus' CD. Jaleel Shaw is on alton, Marcus on tenor, Luis Perdomo on piano and Hans Glawischnig on bass. Ravi Coltrane, with whom E.J. often plays, is the producer for the sessions.

E.J. Strickland - "Eternal (intro)/Eternal" from In This Day. Several of E.J.'s compositions feature spoken or vocal introductions. Here the band is joined by Cheray O'Neal's spoken voice reading the poem she co-write with E.J. and Charenee Wade on vocals.

Imagine a nightclub in New York fifty years ago, where Billie Holiday, sadly past her prime at the age of 44, is performing in what will become her last public concert. The award-wining Hartford Stage Company in Hartford, Connecticut is bringing us just that, mounting a production of Reenie Upchurch's play "Yesterdays - An Evening with Billie Holiday". Jazz singer Vanessa Rubin is cast in the title lead role, backed by a jazz trio of Levi Barcourt (piano), Bernard Davis (vocalist/drums), and David Jackson (bass).

Born and raised in Cleveland, Miss Rubin's  first public brush with Billie Holiday's oeuvre came while competing in the Miss Black Central Ohio Contest. She received a standing ovation for her performance of “God Bless the Child”, which convinced her that her true calling was to sing in the jazz tradition. From her early dates with Pharoah Sanders and Barry Harris to her headlining performances, she has shown herself to be a singer of great depth and variety.

By taking on the challenging role of Lady Day herself in the "Yesterdays - An Evening with Billie Holiday", Ms. Rubin also shows she has acting chops. She is called upon to play a foul-mouthed, slowly burning out singer, and to tell stories of her upbringing, loves and musical influences, while sprinkling in a steady stream of Holiday classics. Dressed in a  long, white halter dress with the trademark gardenia in her hair, Miss Rubin succeeds admirably in bringing the legend to life, using her talents not to mimic Billie Holiday, but rather to bring across her spirit, through the turn of a phrase, the trill of a note, or a subtle turn of the head while clutching the microphone. She nails "Strange Fruit" near the show's close, wringing angst and sorrow from every note.

I got the chance to speak with Miss Rubin about the challenges of the role and other aspects of the show  this week, so please enjoy the interview as this week's Podcast. I celebrate Vanessa Rubin and the cast of "Yesterdays" and Billie Holiday with songs performed in the show and other tunes, including:

Billie Holiday - "Deep Song" from The Complete Commodore Recordings. Since Billie's cataloge from Decca and Columbia get the most attention, many singers (including Ms. Rubin) were unfamiliar with her version of this plaintive ballad.

Kenny Burrell -"Raincheck" from  Pieces Of Blue And The Blues. Bassist David Jackson from the Hartford Stage production anchors the rhythmn section for this live session with drummer Kenny Washington. Burrell joins two other guitarists, Rodney Jones and Bobby Broom for a three-headed monster.

Vanessa Rubin - "I Only Have Eyes for You" from Pastiche. Vanessa has recorded several songs that Billie Holiday recorded, although noen of the tunes Lady Day was best known for, including this standard.  This bass heavy version includes Tarik Shah on bass, Aaron Walker on drums, Aaron Graves on piano and a horn section that includes Steve Turre on trombone and Cecil Bridgewater on trumpet.

Vanessa Rubin - "Our Love Is Here To Stay" from Vanessa Rubin Sings. The Gershwins' classic gets a romping rendition backed by an all-star group, including Robert Hurst on bass, Marvin "Smitty" Smith on drums, Kevin Eubanks on guitar and Turre on trombone and conch shell.

Vanessa Rubin - "But Not for Me" from Girl Talk. Two fun-filled duets with the late Etta Jones were highlights of this 2001 Telarc release. These were the last sessions Ms. Jones would record before succumbing to cancer, and Vanessa points out in our interview that few singers captured the quality of Billie Holiday's voice as well as Miss Jones did. Cedar Walton is on piano, Steve Davis on trombone, Javon Jackson on saxophone, David Williams on bass and Lewish Nash on drums.

Billie Holiday - "Gimme a Pigfoot (and a Bottle of Beer)" from The Complete Decca Recordings. One of the highlights of the Hartford Stage production comes when Vanesa as Billie tells the story of her devotion for Bessie Smith and her frustrating encounter with the blues legend in a nightclub early in her career. A rousing finale to the podcast.

Red Garland was taking it a bit easier than in the past in 1959. The 36 year old pianist had come off one of the busiest years in jazz history, having participated in sessions for John Coltrane and Donald Byrd; Miles Davis with Coltrane and Cannonball Adderly; "Jazz From Carnegie Hall" with J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding, Lee Konitz, and Zoot Sims; as well as sessions for a trio and quartet under his own name.

No wonder it wasn't until August that Garland entered Rudy Van Gelder's studio in Hackensack, New Jersey to wrotk with the elgendary Coleman Hawkins and a new trio. Doug Watkins was on bass and Charles "Specs" Wright was the new drummer. They recorded five tracks for what was released as Coleman Hawkins with the Red Garland Trio, and then cut six more as a trio. Those tracks ended up ebign scattered on albums from Prestige and Fantasy Records like Satin Doll, Stretching Out, Soul Burnin' and the compilations Rediscovering Masters.

Click here to listen to the "A Little Bit of Basie" from those sessions. Garland lays down a boogie-woogie entry before heading off on one long solo that attempts to capture the spirit and fire of the one and only  Count Basie. His cohorts Watkins and Wright barely have time to do anythign else but keep the beat, although Wright caps things off with some crashing drums.

As I pointed out in my podcast last month, the Hammond B-3 organ is no longer the exclusive plaything of American jazz artists. From Japan to Europe, men and woman are picking up the mantle of the great players of the past and working out on the venerable B-3.

Another candidate for Hammond Hero has come from Germany. Jermaine Landsberger's North American debut Gettin' Blazed shows he has the chops, and is not afraid to try some things differently.

While the classic Hammond lineup is organ-guitar-drums, Landsberger has assembled a full band, adding Andreas Oberg on guitar, James Genus on bass, and session veteran Harvey Mason on drums. Gary Meek's sax and flute add additional color, and are particularly funky on Horce Silver's classic "Filthy McNasty".

The real coup here is Landsberger's landing of guitar player Pat Martino. A veteran of Hammond sessions himnself, Martino's "Three Base Hit" is a thrilling duet, as the pair push one another through exciting solo after solo. Martino also lends spice to "Sno' Peas" and the terrific "Brazilian People".

Landsberger shows himself to be a formidable player, and his originals hold up well against other tunes, particularly "Valse Manouche" which showcases Oberg's guitar. The cover of Stevie Wonder's "Another Star" gives him a top-notch solo. At the age of 36, Landsberger has proven he is ready to be crowned a Hammond Hero.

Listening to Kyle Eastwood's latest CD, Metropolitan, is like listenign to your iPod on shuffle - you're just not sure what's going to come up next. You're pretty sure it will be pretty good, since you put it there in the first place. But whether it will be loud, soft, fast, slow, modern, classic - well, you're not sure at all.

The title track is a slick piece of contemporary jazz with shimmering piano by Eric Legnini and wordless vocals by Camille. But if you're expecting that to be the norm, then you'd be mistaken. Guest trumpeter Till Bronner brings a nice ballad in "Bold Changes" and "Song for You" is also enjoyable, but "Hot Box" is a relatively listless Stanley Clarke-like workout and "Live for Life" is run of the mill jazz-funk. "Rue Perdue" tries for tension and atmosphere and fails.

What's missing here is any kind of cohesive sound, which is surprising given that for the rhythm section of Eastwood on bass, Legnini onpiano and organ and Franck Aguhon on drums is a constant. Perhaps its the guest appearances by Bronner or the vocals, but "Metropolitan" feels put uneven and missing a unifying sound and signature.

Click here to listen to "Song For You", my favorite track from the CD. A collaboration between Eastwood, guitarist Michael Stevens, pianist Andrew McCormack, electric pianist Legnini and Till Bronner on trumpet. A peaceful, lightly shifting composition, it possesses more of feeling and tension than most of the other tracks. One hopes that Eastwood will build his next album around his core band's considerable talents and create a solid listening experience.

Tribute CDs can be a dime a dozen. However, when an artist like Steve Kuhn decides to record Mostly Coltrane as a tribute to John Coltrane, we're advised to sit up and take notice.

Kuhn played with Coltrane at a pivotal moment in Trane's career. Preparing to leave the Miles Davis Quintet, Kuhn was the piano player the great saxophonist tabbed to fill out a band that included Steve Davis on bass and Pete LaRoca on drums. In a mostly successful effort to recall those days, Kuhn added the talents of Joe Lovano on tenor sax to the long-time trio of Kuhn on piano, David Finck on double-bass and a thundering Joey Baron on drums.

The song selection is stellar, as Kuhn wisely avoids cliched Coltrane covers like "My Favoirte Things" or "Naima" in favor of the songs he played with Coltrane ("Central Park West", "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes") and leser known tunes like "Configuration".

Lovano never tries to mimic Coltrane, nor is he so respectful that he misses the chance to put his imprint on the songs. He really shines on  the avant-garde "Configuration", and takes a wonderfully mellow solo on "Central Park West". Kuhan is wonderfully understated, able to hold the group together with his playing, and take a solo that is memorable without the need for flashiness. He can slash and burn with the best of them ("Configuration") or  take it down on the gentle "Trance".

My end of the year CD review includes a category for best tribute album of the year. I don't think I'm going to have to look too much further than Mostly Coltrane for this year's winner.

 Trumpeter Rod McGaha isn't out to break any new ground on his latest CD, A Gentle Man. He'd rather take on some of the classic tunes of the past, and like Marcus Roberts on his latest work, think those sounds through via his contemporary viewpoint. The result is an enjoyable string-filled CD.

McGaha knows his sources well. He will channel Louis Armstrong on "Honeysuckle Rose", recall Clifford Brown's With Strings sessions on "I'm Confessin That I love You" and bring a Chet Baker sound to "When I Fall In Love". He's not afraid to show these influences; rather, he tips his cap to them, and plays on.

The arrangements by pianist Jeff Steinberg are not all faithful, however. He runs "Happy Together" through a string arrangement that recalls "Eleanor Rigby", and compliments that sound with Chris Wolters' organ. The title track is an original composition by Steinberg, and McGaha gives a sensitive reading to the ballad in a way that would make his old mentor, Clark Terry, smile.

 Click here to listen to the "How Long Has This Been Going On" to hear a lovely string section set up McGaha for a plaintive rendition of the bluesy standard.

Deeply introspective and impressionistic, and yet willing to dance the night away when called upon, Mario Grigorov's latest CD, Paris to Cuba takes the listener on an imaginary trip from the City of Lights to the Caribbean. After the opening solo piano theme of "Ice Hotel" set the stage, "Cuban Soil, Cuban Sun" features sultry guitars and horns to let you know you're heading for some tropical heat. You're more than happy to tag along with this talented pianist and his collabroators.

Grigorov has worked with Brazilian master Oscar Castro-Neves before, so his sense of Latin music is filtered through that calmer sensibility, recalling the swaying sound of Rio rather than fire of Havana. Vocalist Melissa Newman's fine contributions to "I See" and "Every Little Movement" add to the sense of romance.

A big-beat version of "Ice Hotel" and the driven "Snake Eyes" let us know it's not all siesta time for Grigorov and his band, as Bob Dobrow's drums and Jeff Hill's bass lay the foundation for some dance tunes.

This is a CD for the late days of August, while enjoying a cold libation on the deck. In fact, I'm going to try that right now.

I've had some fun in the past with "theme shows", like the one I did a few years back on songs with the word "Jungle" in the title. This week, its a visit to the crisper bin in the refridgerator with songs titled after vegetables.

Click here to get your daily dose of necessary vitamins and roughage from:

Wes Montgomery - "Green Peppers" from California Dreaming. By the time Wes recorded this number in 1966, his days of burning it up seemed past him, as he concentrated on pop tunes. You could have fooled me with this funky one, powered by percussion by Ray Barretto and Grady Tate, and piano by Herbie Hancock.

Cal Tjader - "Sally's Tomato" from Sona Libre.  The latin music playing  vibraphonist teams with Clare Fischer on organ, Fred Schneider on bass, Johnny Rae on drums, and Bill Fitch on conga for a 1963 Verve session. And yes, I know the tomato is a fruit, not a vegetable. My blog, my rules of inclusion.

Hank Marr - "The Squash" from Greasy Spoon.  Blues great Albert King gives Hammond B-3 player Marr a boost in a 1960 recording. Rusty Bryant adds the distinctive saxophone.

Freddie Roach - Title Track from Mo' Greens Please.  One of Blue Note Record's best B-3 players, Freddie's band for this funky number includes Eddie Wright on guitar, Clarence Johnston on drums, and Connie Lester on sax.

Art Pepper - "Red Pepper Blues" from Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section.  An absolutely classic album matches the troubled bop saxophone player with an all-star supporting cast - the Miles Davis rhythm section of pianist Red Garland, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer Philly Joe Jones. The song is credited to Garland.

Weather Report - "Cucumber Slumber" from Mysterious Traveler.  The 1974 version of the seminal fusion group was Wayne Shorter on saxophone, Joe Zawinal on keyboards, Alphonso Johnson on bass and Ishmael Wilburn on drums. A funky electric ending to a fun podcast!

 Special thanks to Funky16Corners for some of the vegetables used in this podcast.

 At the age of 91, pianist Marian McPartland shows no signs of slowing down. I spoke to her by telephone last week, and found that she was still composing, still practicing and still working on her radio show Piano Jazz, now in its 30th year on NPR.  Podcast 155 is a portrait of the great piano player and her music.

From her days as a child prodigy in England, to her Trio's influencial long-term residency at the Embers (1950) and the Hickory House (1952-1960) to her current recording and radio schedule, Ms. McPartland has consistently been a dynamic pianist and personality. She still works primarily with a piano trio, a format she finds is a "comfortable way of playing. First you have the bass as one source of support, then the drummer as another...From there you can play different kind of things, whether straight ahead or playing something as a bossa nova or somethign else entirely."

Ms. Partland has a full schedule of guests for the summer on "Piano Jazz", a show that continues to grow in popularity. Crossover guests like Elvis Costello and Steely Dan's Donald Fagen and Walter Becker jump at the chance to spend an hour with her. She claims there are a few guests she still has never had; she would like to have Sonny Rollins ("He said he would; I just have to get him pinned down on a date.") and Stevie Wonder as guests before she's done with the show.

She credits her development of a feel for jazz to listening to teh great players of her childhood. "When I was in England there were the swing bands, and Benny Goodman had a great piano player in Teddy Wilson,  so ther was always someone to listen to. Fats Waller, Art Tatum - these are all people who are forever engraved in my mind. I try to lsiten to new people of course, to try to keep up with what is new and different".

She urges serious jazz students to listen to as much jazz as they can, "play a lot, experiment with harmony, just try to play." She claims to have dozens of half finished compostiions on her piano, songs that she looks at from time to time to consdier compelting. "One or two of them are not so bad at all", she said with a laugh. An understatement if there ever was one.

Podcast 155 includes the following:

Marian McPartland - Title Track from Twilight World. Her latest album on Concord Records revisits her older compositions and some songs she never got around to recording by Ornette Coleman, John Lewis and Miles Davis.The songs  "chose her", she claims, rather than the other way around. "Twilight World" was performed after its initial composition for Johnny Mercer, who asked Marian's permission to write a lyric for it. She was bowled over and delighted to collaborate. When Tony Bennett decided to record the song, she couldn't believe her good fortune.

The trio on this version is Ms. McPartland on piano, Gary Mazzaroppi on bass and Glenn Davis on drums. She dedicated the album to her late husband, Jimmy McPartland.

Marian McPartland - "Ambiance" from With Strings - Silent Pool. Marian took one of the compositions of which she is the proudest and had Alan Broadbent write string arrangements for this 1996 album.  She said she wrote the song while spending the summer in Norman, Oklahoma, working with other jazz musicians on an education program. At the time she was listening to a lot of Herbie Hancock, and inspired by his harmonic palette, decided to write something that the students would enjoy performing in his style. After that, it all fell together and was very easy to complete.

Eden Atwood - "In the Days of Our Love" from There Again. Marian and I share a fondness for the singer Eden Atwood, who recorded this McPartland original with Marian sitting in. She credits singers with helping her approach material, whether classics or her originals. She finds that she concentrates on the lyrics or thinks of a singer's approach to lyrics when interpeting a song, and with that in mind, finds she can improvise in a manner that allows a deeper emotional connection with the listener. "A beautiful ballad certainly gives extra poignancy", she said, "Certainly if you know the lyric you can give the song more feeling."

Marian McPartland - "Lush Life" from Plays the Music of Billy Strayhorn. Among the composers she has paid tribute to with album long recordings are Leonard Bernstein, Duke Ellington, Alec Wilder and Strayhorn. I asked her if she was intimidated by this classic tune, which so many jazz musicians, especially singers, have begged off from recording. She shrugged off the thought that it was anything other than a very simple tune with a very deep lyric.

 "Portrait of Stephane Grappelli" from Piano Jazz with Stephane Grappelli.  Many of her "Piano Jazz" shows are available on CD, so you can listen over and over again to her ability to make great musicians relax and perform with her in a most intimate setting. This recording of the show with the hot jazz violin master included one of her "musical portraits", an improvised song that captures the essence of her guest.  "It sounds corny", she said, "But that's jazz. If you can improvise on a particular theme, and have a person to work on, the results just happen." Among the shows she is most proud of are those with Bill Evans and Dave Brubeck.

Dave Brubeck Quartet - "Marian McPartland" from So What's New. Speaking of Brubeck, the great pianist turned the tables and recorded a portrait of Marian on this 1998 CD. Brubeck owes her though - he stole drummer Joe Morello from her trio in 1957, and his Quartet took off to fame from there. This version of the Quartet is Brubeck on piano, Bobby Militello on saxophone, Jack Six on bass and Randy Jones on drums.

Readers of this blog know that I am a huge fan of organ jazz, and include on my list of its greatest practitioners Hammond B-3 aces such as Jimmy Smith, Jack MacDuff and Jimmy McGriff.  These soulful players are all gone now, but their spirit lives on with a slew of contemporary masters.

So Podcast 154 is a tribute to the Hammond Heroes  of Today. I’ve intentionally left out well-known players like Sam Yahel and Joey DeFrancesco, choosing to focus on acts you might not yet have discovered. So click here, and listen to tracks in an organ way including:

Deep Blue Organ Trio - "Raspberry Beret" from Deep Blue Bruise.  From Chicago comes Chris Foreman (organ), Greg Rockingham (drums) and Bobby Broom (guitar), better known as the Deep Blue Organ Trio. They skillfully mix covers of pop tunes, like this Prince song, with originals that remind me of the best of Jack MacDuff’s recordings with George Benson. If you’re near the Windy City, they appear at the noted jazz club The Green Mill every Tuesday if they are in town.

Organissimo - "Jimmy Smith Goes to Washington" from Waiting for the Boogaloo Sisters. The title alone justified inclusion in the podcast. Jim Alfredson is  organ player behind this trio from Michigan .  Add to him guitarist Joe Gloss and drummer Randy Marsh, and you’ve got the foundation for a group that has traces of everyone from Bernard Purdie to Frank Zappa in their sound.

Barbara Dennerlein - "I Miss You" from In A Silent Mood. Shirley Scott was the torch bearer for female Hammond B-3 players in the 1950’s and 60’s, and now Ms. Dennerlein seems poised to carry it in the new century. While Ms. Scott had here roots firmly in soul music, ms. Dennerlein seems to be more of an experimental performer, her B-3 outfitted with foot pedals that engage her MIDI synthesizer settings, allowing for a wholly different sound.

Akiko Tsuruga - "These Are Soulful Days" from Harlem Dreams. From Osaka, Japan, Ms. Tsuruga was the “go-to” organist for visiting American jazz musicians before hitting the New York scene in 2001. This was her debut album as a leader, and included important sidemen like Grady Tate and Frank Wess. For those interested in a compare and contrast, Joey DeFrancesco recorded the same number on this Ballads & Blues CD.

Nick Peck Organ Trio - "The Chicken" from Fire Trucks I Have Known.  The Nick Peck Organ Trio from San Francisco sounds like the more traditional organ groups of the 1960’s. Peck plays Hammond organ and electric piano, Bill Wolter is on guitar,  and Peter Thomas on Drums and percussion  When they need a horn player, Erik Hoagland guests on tenor and alto sax.

My wife Nancy celebrates her birthday today, so it's time for my annual posting of a version of the song "Nancy (With the Laughing Face)". This year the track comes from Kurt Elling's latest album, Dedicated to You.

Since my old blog site has disappeared as of late, let me re-post one version of the story of this song, as reported by Ida Zeitlin in Modern Screen magazine in 1946.

She came running in, her face lighting up as always when she sees her father. Frank scooped her into his arms. “Here’s Nancy with the laughing face—”
    “Hey, that’s a cute song title,” said Phil Silvers, who’d dropped in at Frank’s with Jimmy Van Heusen. Jimmy was doodling at the piano. “Lemme write a lyric and run the pros out of town—”
    He didn’t mean it. Phil’s that unique bird who doesn’t want to write a lyric. All he wants is to be an employed actor. This lyric he wrote in spite of himself. Because Jimmy grinned up at him and went on doodling, and out of the music little Nancy’s face laughed again, and words began forming inside Phil’s dome.
    When it was finished, he sang it for big Nancy, who got all choked up and made the boys send it to Frank in New York. He read it and gulped and introduced it on his next broadcast. Maybe he sang it three times altogether before leaving with Phil and the rest of the gang for the ETO. No one expected the song to be commercial. The boys had written it for their buddy, Frank had put it on the air for Nancy, and now it could be retired to private life.
    So they go overseas and the song’s forgotten and comes time for Frank to do his request numbers. “What’ll it be, fellas?”
    Twenty thousand guys yell: “Nancy with the Laughing Face—”
    Frank looks at Phil and Phil looks at Frank and they’re both thinking: “Wise guy! You put ’em up to this—” But it wasn’t a rib. The Armed Forces Radio Service had taken the song off the air and recorded it on V-discs. It was No. 1 in the Stars and Stripes Hit Parade.

Happy Birthday, Nancy! And thanks for marrying me.

One New England's largest free jazz festival takes place this weekend in Hartford, Connecticut  as the Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz brings over twenty-five hours of music performed by internationally acclaimed artists. Wonderful world-class musicians will grace the mainstage of the Thomas Harris IV Pavillon in Bushnell Park during the 2009 Festival. Local and regional artists will dazzle with their talents on the Arch Stage located in the market place adjacent to Trinity Street.

The festival's main stage entertainmentis  thematically divided between Latin Jazz on Friday night, Smooth Jazz on Saturday, and Straight Ahead Jazz on Sunday. This year's headliners, and some of their representative music, is featured in Podcast 153, and includes:

Charlie Sepulveda - "Mastery of All Situations" from Algo Nuestro (Our Thing).  A hot time is guaranteed in the park Friday night! One of the best and most sought after Latin Jazz sideman in the business, Sepulveda can crank it up as a bandleader as well. Here her teams with tenor saxophonist David Sanchez, in a sextet that includes pianist Edward Simon, bassist Andy Gonzalez, drummer Adam Cruz, and Richie Flores on congas and bongos.

Bob Baldwin - "Seems Like One of Those Daze" from New Urban Jazz.com. Quietly Baldwin has emeregd as one of my favorite smooth jazz artists. This 2008 release shows the many facets of his talents, ranging from funk to gospel to R&B. Organ player Ike Stubblefield is a key member of the band, with vocals by Tyrone Iris.

The Rippingtons - "Take Me With You" from Curves Ahead. The 1991 edition of the smooth jazz pioneers was led by Russ Freeman, their founder, writing all this song and playing guitar and synthesizer. He had two powerhouse companions at that time, Steve Reid on percussion and Jeff Kashiwa on saxophone. Both have gone on to successful solo careers, but the group that will take the stage Saturday night should not disappoint, including Bill Heller on keyboards and synthesizers, Dave Karasony on drums, newcomer Rico Belled on bass, Kashiwa and Freeman.

Azar Lawrence - "My Favorite Things" from Legacy and Music of John Coltrane.  A powerful and underrated saxophone player who has worked with Miles Davis and Earth Wind & Fire, and led his own group through a variety of sounds and phases. His band will be performing a tribute to John Coltrane, so this track seems a perfect appetizer for his main course on Sunday. 

Bobby Lyle - "Groove (Ain't No Doubt About It)" from New Warrior.  The festival ends on a funky, if somewhat commercial, note with Bobby Lyle taking the stage. Artists as varied as Sly & the Family Stone, Gerald Albright, George Benson, and Bette Midler have called for his services, so expect a solid set.

Today is Bastille Day, the French national holiday, commemorating the storming of the Bastille, which took place on July 14, 1789 and marked the beginning of the French Revolution. Although the Bastille only held seven prisoners at the time of its capture, the storming of the prison was a symbol of liberty and the fight against oppression for all French citizens.

So I've dug through my music collection for French jazz musicians, and therefore, today we have....pianist Michel Petrucciani.

His is certainly one of the strangest and most inspirational stories of jazz musicians. Born with the disease osteogenensis imperfecta, a bone disease that greatly stunted his growth, he started by playing in the family trio with his father on guitar, brother on bass, and him on the piano. At the age of 15 he had the opportunity to play with expatriates Kenny "Kloop" Clarke and Clark Terry, and at 17 he made his first recording.

His best group recordings came with his involvement with Charles Lloyd (he may have brought Lloyd out of retirement single handedly) and a stunning live recording appropriately entitled The Power of Three in 1986 with guiatrist Jim Hall and saxophonist Wayne Shorter at Montreux. Click here to listen to Shorter's compostion "Limbo", that kicks off the album.

A little man with a big sound, he passed away of a pulmonary infection on January 6, 1999.

The loss of Freddie Hubbard last year was deeply felt in the jazz world, even more so since the noted trumpeter had just begun a return to playing music after the forced silence of lip-damage. While that album was acceptable, the newly found recordings from 1969 dates in England and Germany released by Blue Note as Without A Song - Live in Europe 1969, remind us of why Freddie was so important.

Although forty years old, the recordings show improvisational jazz played at the highest level. The band is nothing short of sensational - the often underrated Sir Roland Hanna on piano, Ron Carter on bass and Louis Hayes on drums. Hanna lends a certain darkness to much of the moods, playing complex chords before opening up for scintillating solos, often reminiscent of Thelonius Monk. Hayes' cymbal work is particularly notable, and Carter is - well, Ron Carter at his best.

Hubbard, who at one time was seen as one of the logical successors to Miles Davis as a straght-ahead jazz trumpeter, is uniformly great. "Body and Soul" comes across as a great balad, but there is room for more than afew Hubbard solos taken at lightning speed. The opening "Without A Song" is similarly fine. Hubbard could take a familar tune and spin in into something exciting, and this is a great example of that skill.

Click here to listen to the closing "Hub-Tones", one of Freddie's signature tunes. Hayes kicks it off with a short drum solo, before Hubbard comes blazing in. From there its a group triumph, with Carter and Hanna seemily competing for space, as Hubbard plays with speed, feeling and excitement.  By the time Hayes stretches out for another solo, there's a sense that everyone needed to come up for air. And then its off to the races again, as Hubbard takes the tune home.

Freddie, we'll miss you. And with this CD of music seeing the light of day, we'll always be able to remember why.

Frank Zappa, gone for almost sixteen years now (is it possible?) is getting a full summer review of his work - rock, jazz, orchestral, what have you - on the blog Bird With Broken Wings. Of particular interest to me is the analysis of his jazz material, which comes with a must have collection entitled "Jazz Noise and Randomonium" available for download.

Be sure to click here  to visit the jazz posting, and download songs that pushed the boundries between jazz, rock and anarchy like "Twenty Small Cigars", "The Grand Wazoo (Parts 1-4)" and especially "Waka Jawaka". Missing from the collection - perhaps because its just so popular - is the seminal instrumental from Hot Rats, "Peaches En Regalia". Check it out here.

There's a previous posting on the blgo giving Carla Bley similar treatment. That's well worth grabbing, too.

Podcast 152 gives listeners a chance to hear from a man behind the scenes - Nick Phillips, one of the key archivists, producers and project coordinators working today. He works the extensive Prestige and Fantasy Records vaults now owned by Concord, and has produced a number of important reissues. Click here to listen to a conversation with Nick, as well as musical contributions from:

Kenny Burell & John Coltrane - "Why Was I Born" from Kenny Burell & John Coltrane. A track selected for The Very Best of Prestige 2-CD set, this came from Coltrane's final sessions as a sideman for the label. What a session it was - Coltrane on sax, Burrell on guitar, Miles Davis stalwarts Paul Chambers on bass and Jimmy Cobb on drums, and Tommy Flanagan on piano.

Karrin Allyson - "A Long Way to Go (Equinox)" from Footprints. Nick Phillips produced, and played a little trumpet, on this album from the talented singer. This is a vocal treatment of the John Coltrane tune, with lyrics added by Chris Caswell, who works often with Ms. Allyson. She plays piano as well as sings, with support from Frank Wess on flute, Peter Washinton on bass and Todd Strait on drums.

Red Garland - "Crazy Rhythm" from Dig It!. Red Garland on Piano, John Coltrane on Tenor Saxophone, Donald Byrd on Trumpet, George Joyner on Drums, and Paul Chambers on Bass. This album will get the Rudy -Van Gelder Remasters treatment in September.

George Benson - "Shadow Dancers" from The New Boss Guitar of George Benson. One of the albums Nick says he regretted leaving a track off from was this debut as a leader of the 21 year old guitar whiz George Benson. He's matched with his mentor Jack MacDuff on organ, and Ronnie Boykins (bass), Red Holloway (tenor sax), Joe Dukes (drums) and Montego Joe (percussion) round out the band.

Charles Earland - "More Today Than Yesterday" from Black Talk. "The Mighty Burner" actually had a hit record with this recording, a soul-jazz winner from 1969. Earland is on hammond B-3 Organ, backed by Virgil Jones on trumpet, Melvin Sparks on guitar, Houston Person on sax, Idris Muhammad on drums, and Buddy Caldwell on conga.

Gene Ammons - "The Real McCoy" from The Big Sound. A Mal Waldren tune recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ
January 3, 1958. Quite a saxophone front line here: Gene Ammons (tenor sax), John Coltrane (alto sax), Paul Quinichette (tenor sax). and
Pepper Adams (baritone sax), with Jerome Richardson (flute), Mal Waldron (piano), George Joyner (bass) and Arthur Taylor (drums). This track will be part of a new five CD set due next year entitled Side Steps, collecting all of Coltrane's sessions as a sideman for artists such as Ammons, Mal Waldron, Red Garland and Tadd Dameron.

Miles Davis - "Airegin" from Bag's Groove. Miles Davis (trumpet) Sonny Rollins (tenor sax) Horace Silver (piano) Percy Heath (bass) and Kenny Clarke (drums) were the all-stars recording at the Rudy Van Gelder Studio, in Hackensack, NJ, on June 29, 1954. A seminal recording of a Rollins' clasic, this is on The Very Best of Prestige, and  will be included in one of Phillips' next reissues, Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins: The Classic Prestige Sessions, 1951-1956.

History Lesson from Wikipedia:

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, hip-hop DJs (starting with Kool DJ Herc) began using several breaks (the part of a funk or jazz song in which the music "breaks" to let the rhythm section play unaccompanied) in a row to use as the rhythmic basis for hip-hop songs. Kool DJ Herc's breakbeat style was to play the same record on two turntables and play the break repeatedly by alternating between the two records (letting one play while spinning the second record back to the beginning of the break). This style was copied and improved upon by early hip hop DJs Afrika Bambaataa and Grand Wizard Theodore^. This style was extremely popular in clubs and dance halls because the extended breakbeat was the perfect backdrop for breakdancers to show their skills.

There are dozens of collections of breakbeats for disc jockeys to collect, including a wonderful set called Blue Note Breakbeats, specializing in sounds from that prestigious label. I stumbled across a set called Breakzilla Beats on Zona-Musical featuring more than few top jazz artists. And so, Podcast 151 is a shout out to their work, including the following songs, including the rappers who have sampled them.

Jeff Lorber Fusion - "Rain Dance" from Water Sign. Sampled by Erykah Badu - "On and On", Lil' Kim - "Crush on You", MC Eiht ft Techniec - "Me & My Bitch" and SWV ft Lil' Caesar - "Love Like This".

Monk Higgins - "Little Green Apples" from Extra Soul Perception. Sampled by GangStarr - "Code of the Streets"

Ahmad Jamal - "Ghetto Child" from Jamalca. Sampled by GangStarr - "The Illest Brother" and Hieroglyphics - "The Who".

Herbie Hancock -  "Fat Mama" from Fat Albert Rotunda. Sampled by Chi-Ali - "Step Up",  Mad Flava - "Bump Ya Head", Mellow Man Ace - "Babulu Bad Boy", Skoolbeats - "Fat Mama", and Tupac Shakur- "If My Homey Calls".

Milt Jackson - "Enchanted Lady" from Memphis Jackson. Sampled by De la Soul - "Dinninit", Large Professor - "I Juswannachill", Pete Rock & CL Smooth - "Carmel City",  Pete Rock & CL Smooth - "Escapism", and Third Eye - "360".

Idris Muhammed - "Crab Apple" from Turn this Mutha Out. Sampled by DJ Honda ft Syndicate - "Every Now and Then", Ghostface Killah - "Daytona 500", Grand Puba ft Mary J. Blige - "Check it Out", Jeru - "Mind Spray", K-Solo - "Renee, Renee", Kwest - "Blase Blase", Run-DMC - "Beats to the Rhyme", Schoolly D - "Black Jesus",  Shyheim - "Napsack", Syndicate - "Every Now and Then", and Tupac Shakur - "Crooked Ass Niggas".

Diana Krall's onstage persona has been rather chilly at times - her small talk banal, her introduction of musicians limited, and at times, it even seemed that she would just as soon rush through her set as entertain her audience.

However, if the set she performed at Tanglwood on July 4 was any sort of indication she has come into her own as a performer and jazz musician. Her ninety minute set was supported by a fine backing trio, and supplemented at times by an orchestra, conducted by the pianist Alan Broadbent.

Miss Krall (should I say Mrs. Costello?) charmed the audience with her self-deprecating stories of her two children, her marriage to a rock star, and her childhood growing up on Vancouver Island. Her musical selections were equally beguiling, opening with her now traditional "I Love Being Here With You", and including several Brazilian-tinged tracks from her latest album, Quiet Nights.

Her singing skills have been well documented, but it takes a concert setting to see just how accomplished a pianist Ms. Krall has become. "Deed I Do" and "Cheek to Cheek" were exception, showing her sense of timing, rhythm and speed. The band was cooking so hot on the latter, that Ms. Krall almost forgot to sing. "Frim-Fram Sauce" in particular was a joy, with Ms. Krall allowing herself some vocal growling and boogie-woogie piano.

Her band - Anthony Wilson on guitar, Robert Hurst on bass, and Jeff Hamilton on drums - is a perfect foil for her playing. When she chooses to be soft, or play minimalistically, Hamilton is there with his brushwork. When its time to kick it up, Hurst and Wilson are ready to raise the stakes, pushing Ms. Krall along and taking their solos with glee.

By the time Ms. Krall had encored with a string soaked "The Look of Love", there were few disbelievers among the 15,000 fans in the shed and lawn of bucolic Tangelwood. How about an Elvis Costello-Diana Krall double bill next year? Or maybe a special taping of Elvis' talk show "Spectacle" using Tanglewood as a stage. Food for thought.

July 4 - Independence Day. We celebrate with cookouts, fireworks and concerts, but often fail to recall the brave words that were written by our forefathers in Philadelphia in 1776:

When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security. --Such has been the patient sufferance of these colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his assent to laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise; the state remaining in the meantime exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavored to prevent the population of these states; for that purpose obstructing the laws for naturalization of foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands.

He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers.

He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies without the consent of our legislature.

He has affected to render the military independent of and superior to civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his assent to their acts of pretended legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by mock trial, from punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhabitants of these states:

For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing taxes on us without our consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury:

For transporting us beyond seas to be tried for pretended offenses:

For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlarging its boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule in these colonies:

For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering fundamentally the forms of our governments:

For suspending our own legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection and waging war against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow citizens taken captive on the high seas to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare, is undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms: our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have we been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war, in peace friends.

We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as free and independent states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.

The official Straight No Chaser song of Independence Day is Ray Charles version of "America the Beautiful". It seems strangely appropriate that we in the 21st century are able to listen to a recording made in the 20th century, featuring a blind black man singing a song with lyrics by a white woman (Katherine Lee Bates) , with melody based on a 19th century hymn written by a white man (Samuel Ward). Enjoy!

"Best of" collections are often problematic when attempting to create an overview of a jazz artist. Since jazz musicians often change backing groups, styles, instruments and numerous other aspects of their performance, an attempt to collect a representative cross-section of their careers.

The most extreme example I can think of is The Essential Miles Davis, a two CD retrospective from Columbia a few years back. Given the length and breadth of his career and artistry, any collection that includes the modal jazz of Kind of Blue, experimental quintet work of Sorcerer and the fusion of Bitches Brew cannot allow someone to truly understand his music. Think of it as the Blind Men and the Elephant for music - whatever track you hear gives you a picture of what an artist is like, and it inevitably fails to give an accurate one.

Two of our finest female singers have released compilation CDs that for the msot part, succeed in showing off their artistry. By Request: The Very Best of Karrin Allyson draws on ten of her albums, along with a previously unreleased gem. Many of these were "theme albums", whether it was taking the music of Brazil, or covering blues, standards or Coltrane's Ballads.  As a result, each one of those releases served as a self-contained offering by the singer expressing her artistry at that moment. Here, the tracks are merely selections on the compilations, and while they are without exception fine recordings, you can't help but feel that the singer is better represented by the original CD as a whole.

Footprints was one of Ms. Allyson's best CDs, as she took isntrumental jazz classics and had lyrics added to the tunes. "Next Time Around(Soultrane)", is a Tadd Dameron composition that couldn't get cleared for inclusion on Footprints, but now serves as a terrific example of how talented singers can take memorable tunes and with the assistance of lyricists like collaborator Chris Caswell, being new and even deeper feeling to the piece. Click here to listen to her lyrics added to Duke Jordan's "Jordu", in a new version entittled "Life is a Groove".

Cassandra Wilson often peppers her albums with stripped down, reimagined version of rock classics. With Closer to You: The Pop Side, she collects eleven of those songs from six of her prior albums. Ms. Wilson has become perhaps our finest interpreter of popular songs today, and her versions of songs by the Monkees ("Last Train to Clarksville"), U2 ("Love is Blindness") and The Band ("The Weight") attempt to recreate songs that may have become jukebox favorites. As a result, this CD succeeds where many other compilations fail, since it creates a thematic whole.

Two songs on the CD, "Harvest Moon" and "Tupelo Honey", are among the strongest ballads written by Neil Young and Van Morrison, respectively. Ms. Wilson manages to make them very much her own, particularly the latter, stripping away any excess and leaving only her voice, Brandon Ross' steel guitar, Lonnie Plaxico's bass and percussion from Kevin Johnson and Lance Carter to carry the song. Charlie Burnham's violin plays the familiar beginning and adds tension on the instrumental breaks, but its the spareness of the arrangement, and Ms. Wilson's desky vocal, that makes it so memorable.

 It takes a bold man to attempt a tribute album to one of the best loved and most unique albums in jazz history. The 1963 session between the John Coltrane's Classic Quartet and journeyman singer Johnny Hartman has become the stuff of legend, and for this reviewer's ears, remains the best collaboration between a singer and major instrumentalist in jazz history.

Kurt Elling is that bold, however, and we are the luckier for it. The rich baritoned singer from Chicago, backed by strings and his longtime piano playing partner Laurence Hobgood, has shown with Dedicated to You that it is possible to record music associated closely with another artist, and turn it into your own.

 All six tracks that graced the orginal album are performed here, along with a five songs recorded by Coltrane on his classic 1962 album Ballads. The material is perfect for Elling, a master of using all aspects of his range to bring across a song, sometimes in one phrase. His version of "Lush Life", for example, takes a slighter slower pace than the original, and stretches out some words, while moving from lower to upper range in one line, all to great dramatic effect. Hopgood's piano is also worth noting here, deviating from the more traditional approach McCoy Tyner took forty-five years ago.

Elling tells the story of the sessions in his poem "A Poetic Jazz  Memory", which merges with "It's Easy to Remember". This serves to set the scene extremely well, and reminds us how grat art can appear when we least expect it, when talent, material and timing all merge.

The string section adds much to the material as well. From the pizzicato opening to the title track, or the coloring added to "Lush Life" and especially "My One and Only Love", these arrangements swirl around Elling and show another side to the familiar material. Only the Coltrane quartet backed Hartman on the original. 

Ernie Watts joins Elling on saxophone, and while his playing is more than acceptable, he plays it far too safe to stand in Trane's shoes. The sole instrumental on the album, "What's New", gives Watts a chance to show his stuff, but he never really shows the kind of playing he contribtued to Charlie Haden's Quartet West.

Dedicated to You won't ever replace the warmth and intimacy that John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman still bring every time it's played, but it doesn't try to. Instead, it joins CD's like Karrin Allyson's Ballads: Remembering John Coltrane and Branford Marsalis' Coltrane's A Love Supreme as current artists winningly taking the classic music of John Coltrane and making of it not only tribute, but triumph.

It's a real delight to welcome Christan McBride back into acoustic jazz. I've been a fan of the great bassist since his debut as a leader in 1994. Since then, he has been more than a little busy, lending his extensive talents to varying projects and combos, including the R&B tribute A Family Affair and the sprawling 3 CD set Live At Tonic, which found McBride adding violin, turntable and perhaps the kitchen sink to his basic group on long, meandering jams.

Kind of Brown  (a tip of the cap to his mentor Ray Brown) finds McBride back on his acoustic bass, playing as part of a quintet called Inside Straight. It's a winning hand, primarily due to the high quality of his collaborators and seven strong McBride compositions.

Drummer Carl Allen teams seemlessly with bassist McBride, creating a rhythm section that can keep the time with the best, but doesn't hesitate to step out and take control as well. Listen to McBride's solo on "Rainbow Wheel" to see that he can play the upright bass with the best.

Saxophonist Steve Wilson lends a warm sound to tracks like "Starbeam" and really stretches out on Freddie Hubbard's "Theme for Kareem". I'm a huge vibes fan, so its great to see McBride incorporating Warren Wolf, Jr. into the band. He contributes a lightning solo to "Kareem", and a tasteful run on pianist Eric Scott Reed's composition "Pursuit of Peace". The lilting "Uncle James" shows that Wilson and Wolf and slow it down as well, contributing tasty sounds to the piece.

McBride was wise to tap Reed for his pianist bench. A veteran of Wynton Marsalis and Freddie Hubbard's bands, he is a great foil for McBride, weaving in and around the bass player here and there.

 In short, Kind of Brown is the kind of CD that reminds us why we like acoustic jazz - its short on bombast, long on style and substance. With Inside Straight, Christian McBride has reclaimed his position as one of our finest upright bass players.

Sunday June 28, 2009 -

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Day One of the 32^nd annual Freihofer’s Jazz Festival in Saratoga Springs, New York may have been married by passing showers, but the weather didn’t seem to dampen the spirits of the enthusiastic crowd the filled the rolling grounds of the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (“SPAC”). Producer Don Melnick clearly had diversity as one of the hallmarks of the show that day, and the crowds were treated to two stages of the many facets of jazz music.

From Brazilian to Latin Jazz, Acoustic to Electric sounds, and veteran and new faces, the talent roster was impressive. As in previous years, a main Stage in the large amphitheatre and a Gazebo Stage across the park allowed both current stars and up and coming talent to perform.  It was a sumptuous musical buffet, and the hungry jazz fans were feasting all day.

As with any buffet, not all the offerings are going to be at the gourmet level, Kendra Shank’s early set suffered from the large main stage setting; she performed a more intimate set later in the day on the gazebo stage. Mark Morganelli’s Jazz Forum Project Brazil played a solid if unspectacular set of Tom Jobim covers, gaining some needed lift when vocalist Monica Olivera guested on vocals.

The mid-afternoon music made the day truly memorable, 80 year old Jimmy Cobb was nothing less than sensational as he gathered an all0star group to create the “So What Band” and salute the 50^th anniversary of Miles Davis’ modal jazz classic Kind of Blue. Trumpeter Wallace Roney seemed prepared to channel the spirit of Miles, taking the stage clad in a natty large pattered lapel less jacket and shades that recalled late period Davis. Roney has been called upon by Herbie Hancock to play Miles’ parts in a 1992 concert reuniting the Second Great Quintet, so there could be little doubt about his ability to tackle the material. Roney wisely chose not to mimic the muted notes and minimalistic solos of the 1959 recording note for note, instead bringing new and exciting tones to familiar material.

 Javon Jackson and Vincent Herring had the task of taking spots occupied by John Coltrane and Cannonball Adderly, respectively, but more than held their own, with Herring’s solos particularly notable. The fire of the band came from pianist Larry Willis, whose energetic chords and forceful solos pushed songs like “All Blues” and “Freddie Freeloader” up and onward. Each song earned a standing ovation. Cobb is the sole living member of the band from those famous sessions, and the band set him up for a furious solo to end the set. They left the stage with the audience begging for more.

 The crowd didn’t get an encore, but they did get Gary Burton’s much ballyhooed Quartet reunion, featuring guitar ace Pat Metheny, Steve Swallow and Antonio Sanchez. Playing songs from their stellar new live album; the band was in peak form on up-tempo numbers like “Sea Journey” and Metheny’s “Question and Answer”. Burton continues to wield his four mallets like a wizard, whether on the ballad “Coral” or Steve Swallow’s intricate “Falling Rain”.

Latin Jazz too often gets overlooked in major festivals, but a real coup was achieved by grabbing the Grammy-winning Spanish Harlem Orchestra before they headed off on their European tour. The band is a dozen strong, with a percussion section to match any in the business, and they had the crowd up and dancing, providing some needed hip-shaking to the soggy early evening.

Regrettably, the closing acts couldn’t match the group’s fire. The Stanley Clarke-Marcus Miller-Victor Wooten bass troika known as SMV proved to be a better idea on record than on stage. The CD Thunder allowed for overdubs and production detail, but performing live, they were backed only by keyboard and drums. Miller surprised the crowd with his sax solo on “When I Fall In Love” and bass clarinet on “Tutu”, but for the most part, their set seemed an exercise in bass-head flash. I must concede that it is unlikely I will see this many masters showing off their tricks and talents on one stage again, too often the feeling was of a series of master classes or private “cutting sessions” than a group performance of any real soul or grit.

Patti LaBelle, who closed the evening, showed soul and grit to spare, but her performance was sadly lacking in well-thought out and detailed presentation. She sadly seemed to take the Las Vegas approach of dripping a verse here and allowing a backup singer to take her leader there. “Lady Marmalade” was cut unforgivably short for audience participation shenanigans. A medley of “When You Wish Upon a Star” and “Over the Rainbow” ended her set with real feeling, but I couldn’t help but feel that Miss Patti had more with which to leave us.

The passing of Michael Jackson yesterday at the age of 50 leaves decidely mixed emotion. First, given that my 50th birthday looms ahead this Fall, an increased sense of mortality hits me. Next, a sense of relief that a tortured soul may finally have been given some measure of rest.

It's not easy to separate the public persona and acts performed by an artist from his work, but in considering Michael Jackson, I think its imperative. Poets like T.S. Eliot and Ezra Pound (and I am NOT comparing their work to Jacko's in any way) were a blatant anti-semite and fascist supporter, respectively, and yet their art will live forever and holds a special place in my heart. So I would prefer to remember his prepubescent enthusiasm and his days as a moonwalking megastar to the horrors of the last fifteen years, when he became a world-wide punchline and then, pariah.

The writer Greil Marcus used a quote from a William Carlos William poem in reference to Elvis Presley that I think serves Jackson well - "The pure products of America go crazy." An appropriate epitaph.

A Jazz Salute to Michael Jackson includes the following songs associated with the Jackson Five or Jackson's solo career:

Charles Earland - "Never Can Say Goodbye" from Funk Fantastique.

Lou Donaldson - "I'll Be There" from Cosmos.

Ramsey Lewis - "She's Out of My Life" from Three Piece Suite.

Miles Davis - "Human Nature" from The Complete Miles Davis at Montreaux.

Stanley Jordan - "Lady In My Life" from Stolen Moments.

Susan Wong - "Billie Jean" from 511.

For me, the official start of summer comes the last weekend in June, when the cozy confines of the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) open up for the annual Freihofer's Jazz Festival. I'll be headed there this weekend, and as always, have put together a preview of the many acts that will grace the two stages on the grounds. This way, even if you can't attend, you can get a decent feel for how varied and exciting the music can be.

Podcast 149 has just some of the performers I'll get to see, both up and coming acts and certified legends like:

Kendra Shank Quartet - "Life's Mosaic" from Mosaic. I've had her CD for several months now, and for no good reason haven't given you a taste of it. Kendra tackles standards with finesse and confidence, finding new and exciting ways to make the listener take notice of old chestnuts. She subtly links tunes for medleys, with her "Reflections in Blue" perfectly connecting to Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies". This track is a Cedar Walton tune, and Kendra is backed by Frank Kimbrough on piano, Dean Johnson on bass, and Tony Moreno on drums. Guest appearances are made by Bill Drewes on saxophone and clarinet, and Ben Monder on guitar.

Gary Burton Quartet Revisited with Pat Metheny - "Walter L" from Quartet Live.  You've heard a lot about this one here already, so let's jsut say that this is a Gary Burton original written for the first guitar player he ever worked with, Walter L. "Hank" Garland. The band? Burton on vibes, Pat Metheny on guitar, Steve Swallow on bass and Antonio Sanchez on drums.

SMV - Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller, Victor Wooten - "Tutu" from Thunder. If the Jeopardy! answer is "Thunder", then the question must be, "What do you get if you put three three bass giants on stage together?" This should be a real crowd pleaser. The song was written by Miller for Miles Davis, and features him on bass clarinet, saxophone and synthesizers along with bass.

Aaron Parks - "Karma" from Invisible Cinema.  A track from a welcome new piano player's debut album. He's been a key playerin Terence Blanchard's quintet, now setting out with his own band - Matt Penman on bass, Mike Moreno on guitar, and Eric Harland on drums.

Bonerama - "Hard Times" (single). A New Orleans export that takes calls itself "brass funk rock"; I call it a good time. No fewer than four trombone players make up the band, including Mark Mullins,
Craig Klein, Steve Suter, and Greg Hicks. Matt Perrine on tuba, Bert Cotton on guitar, and Eric Bolivar on drums round out the band.

Bettye LaVette - "You Don't Know Me At All" from The Scene of the Crime. One of the best stories of the past few years was the resurrection of the career of blues/soul singer Bettye LaVette. A veteran of 1960's "Northern Soul" movement, she came back with a vengeance in 2005. This track comes from her most recent album, which finds her backed up by southern rockers the  Drive-By Truckers.

George Benson - "Nature Boy" from In Flight. Benson will perform a tribute to Nat "King" Cole to end the festival Sunday night. Therefore, it seemed appropriate to go back 30 years ago for this Cole classic. The band includes Benson on guitar and vocals, Stanley Banks on bass, Jorge Dalton on keyboards,  and Harvey Mason and Ralph MacDonald on drums and percussion.

Mark Morganelli began presenting concerts in his first Jazz Forum loft at 50 Cooper Square in June 1979. By the time the second Jazz Forum loft closed its doors in April 1983, recordings, videos, films and radio broadcasts had documented performances by Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey, Wynton Marsalis, Woody Shaw, Red Rodney, Carmen McRae, Barry Harris, Max Roach and others.

Mark Morganelli established the Jazz Forum at 50 Cooper Square in New York City's East Village in June of 1979 to provide opportunities for emerging and established artists and their groups to perform in a relaxed loft-setting. He emphasized jazz education by renting his loft to Detroit piano icon Barry Harris, whose legendary classes grew from 25 to 150 students every Monday night for three years, before Dr. Harris relocated to his own Jazz Cultural Theatre. Weekly large ensemble presentations of Chuck Israel's National Jazz Ensemble, Jaki Byard's Apollo Stompers, and Charli Persip's Superband also happened at the Jazz Forum. There were also weekly jam sessions led by drummer Jo Jones, Jr. During the period when the second Jazz Forum operated at 648 Broadway at Bleecker Street, from 1981 to 1983, the loft played host to many benefits for ailing musicians, several National Public Radio broadcasts, a few celebrated recordings, and the award-winning film "Music In Monk Time," featuring Dizzy Gillespie, Carmen McRae, Milt Jackson, and Jon Hendricks

Happy Father's Day to my Dad and all other jazz loving fathers in the world. Here's a Podcast of tunes on the topic of fatherhood, including:

Deane Kincaide's Band - "Take a Tip From Father" from Classic Capital Jazz Sessions. This 12 disc compilation includes selections from Big Bands well-known (Benny Carter, Cottie Williams, Bobby Hackett) and less known, like this track. Kincaide was primarily known not as a leader, but as a member of the Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey and Woody Herman Big Band. Recorded in 1950, and unissued until the compilation came out on Mosaic Records, it's chock full of good advice.

Abbey Lincoln - "Story of My Father" from Devil's Got My Tongue. Abbey both wrote and sings this tale from her highly personal 1992 Verve album. Lincoln said that she composed the song because there were a few things she still needed to write down and to say. "It is like a letter to my mother and my father to say to them, 'Listen I really got it, I really appreciate all you did to help me to live,'" she says. "In a way, it's a monument to myself." Among those given credits are J.J. Johnson on trombone, Max Roach on drums, and Babatunde Olatunji on percussion. 

Stanley Clarke - "Father and Son" from At the Movies.  This 1995 collection of material from the bass ace's movie soundtracks includes this short but sweet piece from John Singleton's film Boyz n' the Hood. 

Lydia Allen - "Song For My Father" and Horace Silver - Title Track from Song For My Father.  A vocal version followed by the classic 1964 Blue Note version by the "Hard Bop Grandpop". Personnel for the instrumental are Horace Silver on piano, Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Joe Henderson on sax, Teddy Smith on bass and Roger Humphries on drums.

Dave Valentin - "Danzon for My Father" from Tropic Heat.  Flutist Valentin suplemented his quartet of pianist Bill O'Connell, bassist Lincoln Goines, and drummer Robbie Ameen with extra percussionist and a horn section, with the result being this dynamic tribute to his Dad.

By the time you've read this posting, the Summer Solstice will have occurred. For those scientifically inclined, that's the moment when  the sun's apparent position on the celestial sphere reaches its greatest distance above or below the celestial equator, about 23 1/2° of arc. At the time of summer solstice,  the sun is directly overhead at noon at the Tropic of Cancer. Or, you can simply say it's the first day of summer.

So let's celebrate this day with the appropriately titled song "Summer Solstice", the title track from saxophonist Azar Lawrence. Lawrence has been  unjustly ignored in recent years, given his strong  background. Beginning at the age of 19, he has been supporting acts as diverse as Woody Shaw (he played on "The Moontrane"), War, Earth,Wind & Fire and Ike & Tina Turner. He played sax for Elvin Jones for two years, and was part of McCoy Tyner's band for another five years.

His most notable recording as a sideman came when he was chosen by Miles Davis to perform with his band at Carnegie Hall, concerts that would eventually be released on album as Dark Magus.

As a leader, Lawrence has released six albums, most notably his tribute album to John Coltrane in 2007, Legacy and Music of John Coltrane. Lawrence and his quartet will concentrate on that material when he performs on the closing evening of the Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz July 19, 2009.

It may have been thirty-plus years since Gary Burton's Quartet included guitar hero Pat Metheney, but you couldn't tell it from their performance at Northampton Friday night. Opening the third leg of their reunion tour at the venerable Calvin Theatre, the Burton Quartet was received with the adulation often reserved for rock stars, and they rewarded the audience with a memorable two hour show.

Playing mostly material included on their live reunion CD recorded last year, Burton, Metheney, bassist Steve Swallow and drummer Antionio Sanchez never failed to dazzle, deftly integrating Burton's vibes and Metheney's familiar upper register guitar for a sound that could swing, bounce, rock or float, depednign upon the mood and song.

Burton was in fine form, wielding his four mallets in his inimitable style. As Metheney commented, Burton's great virtues are not limited to his viruosity on the vibes, but include an unerring sense of what tuens to include in the set. The Quartet inclued material written by Carla Bley("Olhos del Gato"), Chick Corea ("Sea Journey"), and Keith Jarrett (a moving "Coral"), along with their own compositons. Particularly memorable were Metheney's rousing "Question and Answer", which showed off the guitarist's fiery side,  and Swallow's playful "Hullo, Bolinas".

The show reached an unexpected highlight when Swallow and Sanchez laid out for three songs. Metheney and Burton dueted on two acoustic numbers, including "Summertime", before returning to an electric sound. Metheney even trotted out a 42-string multiplenecked guitar that created a sound recalling Burton's collaborations with guitarist Ralph Towner.

Sanchez is too young to remember the first recordings made by the Quartet in the early 1970's, but he held his own with the three veterans, filling in spaces with rhythm, and letting loose with two drum solos that elicited a loud response from the crowd and beaming smiles from his bandmates.

The crowd demanded encores, and the Quartet obliged with two uptempo numbers that ended the evening on a high note. The Quartet is off on the Festival circuit for the summer, so don't miss this rare opportunity to see a reunion that is far more than mere nostalgia.

Why? Because Joey mixes and melds the two styles together to create a constantly fascinating album entited Resonance. He plays Bach's "Goldberg Variations" and moves effortlessly to a funky "Palladio". He'll turn Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" into a tour de force for guest Daryl Sherman. He'll whip up the hip-hop influenced "Defying Gravity", that turns into a ballad before returning to a percussive, upper register throw down. At times, there seems to be little he CAN'T do.

Pero has studied with Wynton Marsalis at Juilliard, and he plays a Monette trumpet that was a gift from his teacher. He's cut his teeth at the Rochester Philharmonic, and playing with the Maynard Ferguson Big Band.

This is his debut CD, and its an impressive one. Click here to listen to his version of "Blue Rondo", a tune familiar to Dave Brubeck fans. Pero is on trumpet, with Adam Nussbaum on drums, Andy Snitzer on tenor sax, Artie Reynolds on bass, Paul Livant on guitar and Peter Firsh on piano.

Legendary drummer and founding member of the Allman Brothers Band, Jaimoe and his Jasssz Band play what can truly be called "American music". They combine elements of Jazz, Blues, Rock-n-Roll, and R&B into a unique blend that captures the spirit and stirs the soul. Their repertoire ranges from new interpretations of classic tunes, as well as original songs that are classics in the making. They might go from Coltrane to the ABB's "Dreams", the hot funk of New Orleans' The Meters to the cool of Miles Davis.

Jaimoe’s Jasssz Band features as its core Jaimoe on drums, Junior Mack on guitar and vocals, Dave Stoltz on bass, and Mathais Schuber on keyboards. A rotating series of some of the finest horn players of our time, including Jay Collins, Frank Kozyra, Paul Lieberman, Kris Jensen and Richard Boulger, have joined the band from gig to gig.

The Jasssz band plays the Majestic Theater at nearby West Springfield on Saturday night, June 20, 2009. To get you in the mood for what will surely be a memorable night, click here to listen to the jazz classic "Softly As in a Morning Sunrise". The track opened up a concert dedicated to the memory of the legendary jazz drummer Ed Blackwell in 2007. The CD is available here. 

Another summer movie remake opens today, with Tony Scott's redo of "The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3". The original film debuted thirty-five years ago, and starred Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw in a thriller involving the hijacking of a New York City subway car. Times being what they are, I suspect the sense of dread that existed in the early seventies involving the subways has somewhat dissipated, removing some of the overall tension that made the original film memorable.

Another reason the original film was memorable was its soundtrack, which has been described by Allmusic.com as "one of the best and most inventive thriller scores of the 1970s". Written by veteran film composter David Shire ("Norma Rae", "The Conversation", "Farewell, My Lovely" and most recently "Zodiac"), the score was heavily polyrhythmic, with horn sections building tension and delivering payoffs to drive along the action. Shire utilized the 12-tone method of composition, a technique devised by Arnold Schoenberg in the early 20th century in a theme is created by using 12 pitches in a specific order, and then other theems are created by playing that "row" backwards, upside-down, backwards and upside-down, or transposed.  Click here to listen to the "Main Title", a good example of the overall soundtrack.

 Unfortunately, the new film reportedly has abandoned any attempt to rewrite or pay homage to the original score, relying on Rap Music ("99 Problems" by Jay-Z or Alternative Rock (A Perfect Circle) for a more contemporary sound. Imagine if a Christian McBride, Terence Blanchard or even the hip-hop influenced D.J. Logic could have been brought in to re-image this classic score!

I'm a big fan of the ROIOs (Recordings of Indetermined Origin) posted on the Big O website (those are bootlegs to you and me). I've picked up some high quality recordings made by rabid fans of all kind of music, from a recording of Philip Glass' opera Appamattox to concerts from Todd Rundgren, Bob Dylan and the Mahavishnu Orchestra.

Posted today is a recording of an FM radio broadcast on March 1, 2009 from Paris, France of a L’Orchestre National De Jazz tribute to Billie Holiday on the 50th anniversary of her death. The recording, entitled Broadway in Satin: Billie Holiday Revisited, features many of the songs Holiday made famous, including Karen Lanaud singing "Skylark" and Ian Siegel channeling TomWaits doing "Solitude".

As the notes on the recording indicate:

For the 50th anniversary of Billie Holiday’s death, Daniel Yvinec’s L’Orchestre National Du Jazz had Alban Darche compose new arrangements for Holiday’s classic songs. So "Skylark" is given an Asian flavour in the instrumental colours of Chinese cymbals and gongs, while "You’ve Changed" and "God Bless the Child" are given avant-garde arrangements.

Visit the posting here.

The hot jazz reunion tour of the summer will undoubtedly be a revisited edition of the classic Gary Burton Quartet. Their tour, and new live CD features three original members of the important group, certified jazz legends Burton, Pat Metheny and Steve Swallow, along with one new member, and perhaps one of the most prominent drummers of his generation, Antonio Sanchez.  The 11-song album Quartet Live was recorded at Yoshi's Jazz Club in Oakland and was released on May 26, 2009.

Burton has always had a strong proclivity for working with guitarists. His 1967 album Duster was arguably the first jazz fusion album, powered by a young Larry Coryell on guitar. That group included bassist Steve Swallow and Roy Haynes on drums. Bob Moses replaced Haynes from the follow-up Lofty Fake Anagram, and the original quartet’s final studio album, A Genuine Tong Funeral (featuring the compositions of Carla Bley) completed 16 months of epic recording. After the release of a quartet live album, Coryell would go on to work with Herbie Mann, and then establish a seminal jazz-rock band, the Eleventh House. Burton went in different directions, making duet and trio albums with Chick Corea, Ralph Towner, Keith Jarrett, Paul Bley and Swallow.

Burton returned to the quartet setting with the new quartet of 1973, composed of guitarist Mick Goodrick, bassist Abraham Laboriel and drummer Harry Blazerc. However, Burton soon tapped one of his Berklee students,  19-year old guitarist Pat Metheny to work with, and then replace, Goodrick. This would be the start of a 35-year musical friendship between the vibist and guitarist that continues today.

Podcast 147 traces the history of the Burton-Metheney collaboration with selections from several of their releases, including:

“The Colours of Chloe” from Ring, featuring bassist Eberhard Weber along with Swallow.

“Vox Humana” from Dreams So Real. An album of Carla Bley compostions.

“B and G (Midwestern Night's Dream)” from Passengers. Future PMG drummer Danny Gottlieb joined the Burton group for this song.

“B and G (Midwestern Night's Dream)” from Quartet Live! A different reading of a Metheney composition.

“Question and Answer” from Quartet Live! One of my favorite Metheney compositions, originally heard on his collaboration with Roy Haynes and Dave Holland.

Lisa Sokolov does not approach a song like most jazz singers. For her, singing is both an art of listening and making sound, of reaching deep inside a song and wringing out of it levels of meaning that she along can find. Her approach is more avant-garde than middle of the road, and her performances are often fascinating displays of vocal improvisation. When she sings, she is, as she says in this interview, searching for the mystery of what lies within and behind a song.

Arriving on the New York scene in 1977, Lisa began collaborating with bassist William Parker, a collaboration that continues to this day.  She was also was heard regularly with pianists Wayne Horvitz and Robin Holcomb in the days of Studio Henry.  Over the years she has worked with many new music and jazz notables including Cecil Taylor, Rashid Ali, Gerry Hemingway, Hilton Ruiz, and Jim McNeely.

Sokolov is the originator of the method of Embodied VoiceWork, a vocal improvisation method which she teaches at The Experimental Theater Wing at New York University, Tisch School of the Arts where she is a full professor.  She was also on the faculty of The Graduate Program of Music Therapy at NYU for ten years.   In case all that is not enough, her work as a lay cantor has been featured in A CBS Special, "Sacred Art; Ancient Voices."

While she is not well known in best-selling jazz circles, her past albums Angel Rodeo, Lazy Afternoon and Presence have all received Best CD of the Year citations and press kudos. DownBeat magazine gave Presence a rare rating of 5 stars, along with Best New Release of 2004. Their 2005 critics poll adds Sokolov onto their “Rising Star” vocalist  list.

Her latest album, A Quiet Thing, (Laughing Horse Records) was released last week, and I got a chance to speak with her about the new CD, her upcoming appearance at New York’s Vision Jazz Festival and how she picks her material, from “Ol’ Man River” to “Kol Nidre”.

Ms. Tolstoy is on vocals, with Jacob Karlzon on piano and keyboards, Hans Andersson on acoustic bass, Peter Danemo on drums and percussion, Xavier Desandre Navarre on percussion, Tore Brunborg on saxophone and fluteand Lars Danielsson on cello.

Eric Dolphy – “The Prophet” from Live at the Five Spot. Richard Davis was the anchor of the Astral Weeks band, and here he is anchoring the group on one of Eric Dolphy's greatest live recordings. Dolphy is on clarinet, with Booker Little on trumpet, Mal Waldron on piano, the Davis on bass, with Ed Blackwell on drums. Basically a blues number, in the hands of these forward thinking players, its nothing short of a revelation. Check out Davis' playing near the end of the song, just before Dolphy and Little jump in to bring it home.

Some of my favorite music released in 2008 - includes tracks from notable releases from Patricia Barber, McCoy Tyner, James Carter, Melody Gardot, George Duke and Dianne Reeves.