Michael Blake: Ghostlines
The idea of resolution – of disorder seeking out (and finally discovering) order – is an attractive one to the human psyche. It's why most people (count me out) prefer the “Hollywood ending” in their movies. “Ghostlines” is a terrific improvisation that tricks the listener into thinking “all is well” before disorder has its way. Beginning with a long, foggy duet of sorts between Blake's airy saxophone and some damaged Gestrin piano clusters. (Or was that the marimba? The fog can play tricks on us.) It becomes apparent that a theme is forming as some chiming marimba notes do appear, followed by the piano playing counterpoint. But just when resolution is in our grasp, most of the instruments drop away, leaving the saxophone walking off into the mist.
December 31, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags:Abigail Riccards: I'll Be Seeing You
You know that cliché about a voice so beautiful that you wouldn't mind it singing the phone book? I'm ashamed to say that I've got to dust that one off for Abigail Riccards. The song itself has been done by so many singers that I was surprised to find myself looking up from my writing pad as the first verse passed. Guitarist Lund floats a gorgeous chord melody underneath the vocals...and oh, the vocals! Riccards has a lovely, finely textured voice and the delicate trills added at each line's end made me wish I'd known this version forever.
December 31, 2007 · 1 comment
Tags: i'll be seeing youJohnny Bothwell: From the Land of Sky Blue Water
Bothwell was called "the white Johnny Hodges" for his beautiful sound and florid technique. Formerly a member of Woody Herman's and Sonny Dunham's Orchestras, his initial recognition came as soloist with Boyd Raeburn's 1944 orchestra. Raeburn even let Bothwell use arrangements from his book for the altoist's sessions with Signature Records in early 1945. Bothwell left Raeburn, joined Gene Krupa for a short time, and then formed a good small group before putting together a big band in 1946. He scraped by for two years, formed other small groups and then disappeared by the early fifties, turning up in Florida shortly before his death. Most of Bothwell's recordings during this period are attempts to get hits with poor material, but there is one constant that makes most of them worth hearing: the talent of his chief arranger Paul Villepigue. "From the Land of Sky Blue Water" is perhaps Villepigue's finest moment with Bothwell. Because of its form of fast-slow-fast, this is clearly not a record for dancing. But Villepigue's use of a flute in the setting and his lovely harmonies clearly enhance the original song; while his transition from slow to fast using four 3/4 bars and one 2/4 bar to get back to 4/4 is one of the most graceful uses of time change in jazz ensemble writing -- and rarely done during that era. Villepigue would later write for Claude Thornhill, Charlie Barnet and Stan Kenton.
December 31, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: alto sax · odd time metersJohn Scofield: Shoe Dog
Jazzmen, from Charlie Christian to Wes Montgomery, defined the sound of the electric guitar: clear, swinging and sophisticated. But as rock 'n' rollers and electric bluesmen gave the guitar a ruder identity, the instrument turned uglier than General Patton's bull terrier Willie. Amplifiers cranked to 11, feedback, fuzzboxes—it was worse than your 2nd-grade teacher scraping her fingernails on the chalkboard to get everyone's attention. Yet, somehow, out of this din emerged John Scofield, who can flirt with electronic debauchery without violating his jazz vows of musicality. "Shoe Dog," by way of sly, easygoing example, slips so snugly and refreshingly into the ear, we wonder how we've gotten along without it all these years.
December 31, 2007 · 2 comments
Tags: electric guitar · shoe dogMaria Schneider: Evanescence
Maria Schneider honors her mentor Gil Evans -- whom she assisted in various musical pursuits during the last three years of his life -- with her glorious composition "Evanescence." The essence of Evans, his visionary contribution, was replacing the battling sections of the big band era (trumpets versus trombones versus saxes) with a streamlined conception in which different instruments blend together as a choir. Under his guidance, big band music moves from a war metaphor to a new role model, one rich in spiritual overtones. Maria Schneider, who formed her own band in 1989, builds on this same holistic image of large ensemble as a coming together of individual voices. Her horn writing on "Evanescence" is brightly colored and richly textured, like a tapestry which reveals more fine details the closer you examine it. Check out (to cite one example) her clever underpinning to Tim Hagans' solo. But Schneider is equally gifted at writing yearning melodies with their big interval leaps and declamatory phrases. This composition would sound good played by a squeezebox and fiddle. But with all the tools at her command, Schneider reaches for the stars.
December 31, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1990s jazz · big bandCount Basie: Cheek to Cheek
Count Basie did not have a pleasant 1949. He'd already disbanded, put together a new group, and was scraping for gigs. As if that weren't enough, he was finishing out a contract with RCA Victor Records, an association which did neither the artist nor the label very much good. This edition of his band would finally disappear in August, and the Count would lead a wonderful small group for a time until he started yet another big band, this group more successful in many ways than the first. Even when work was not plentiful, he could still attract excellent musicians and make some nice records. While not a classic, "Cheek to Cheek" swings nicely and is perfect to dance to, boasting a colorful, bop-tinged arrangement which was probably made by Gerald Wilson. Solos are unconfirmed, but they sound like Edison, Wells and Gonsalves. And we get to hear the Count on celeste during the song's first chorus.
December 31, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: cheek to cheekBrad Mehldau: Still Crazy After All These Years
Mehldau again shakes up the jazz police by sneaking some Paul Simon lead sheets into the nightclub. A quick check of Tom Lord's massive The Jazz Discography finds only two cover versions of Simon's "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" listed in its 23,000 virtual pages -- one of them is Mehldau's. Here the pianist turns his attention to the almost equally unlikely jam tune "Still Crazy After All These Years." But Simon crafted a lovely pop-rock waltz and it works in a jazz setting. Mehldau brings out the beauty of the melody and plays with great delicacy. But no Mehldau cover version is without its little surprises. When he gets to the end of the bridge, he lingers . . . and lingers and lingers. If this were a real bridge, say the Golden Gate, the suicide prevention squad would be out in full force by now. Brad grinds out a vamp that sets the poor old bridge swingin' and shakin'. But everything turns out okay, and Mehldau comes back to the main theme in all its glory. He will not be convicted by a jury of his peers, but this musician is still playing crazy after all these years.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: paul simon covers · piano trioBrad Mehldau: How Long Has This Been Going On
I have written elsewhere how Brad Mehldau has updated the piano trio repertoire, refreshing the musty museum which passes for the standard jazz playlist. But Mehldau has never renounced Gershwin and his Tin Pan Alley associates -- he has just given them some new company, letting them hang out with Radiohead, Nick Drake and Paul Simon. And when Mehldau plays the brothers George & Ira in the year 2000, they come dressed in new millennium garb. This performance opens at an ambling ballad pace and Mehldau is sparing in his piano work. We think, at least for a moment, that the pianist is taking it sweet and easy. Have we returned to the open spaces and straightforward melody-solos-melody framework of Mehldau's earlier trio work? Nope! At the five-minute mark, bass and drums lay out, and Mehldau seems to be entering a brief piano coda to wrap up the piece. In fact, we are only halfway through this magnificent performance, with the best yet to come. Mehldau now offers a brilliant chord study -- not really a reharmonization of Gershwin's song, but something even more daring. Mehldau builds a new composition with occasional snippets of "How Long Has This Been Going On" bobbing and weaving above the surface, indicating the place where Gershwin's tune once floated. This interlude is fresh and interesting, without the slightest hint of banality or conventional jazz piano vocabulary. When Grenadier and Rossy return, more than four minutes later, their calming rubato gestures cap a remarkable performance.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: gershwin covers · how long has this been going onEldar: Place St. Henri
Jazz is a borderless art. Among the first to prove it was Montreal's Oscar Peterson, who took jazzdom by storm in 1949, when topflight players were thought not to exist north of Boston. Nowadays they hail from Kyrgyzstan! At least, that's where pianist Eldar Djangirov was born in 1987. Here, Eldar and Oscar converge at "Place St. Henri" from Peterson's 1964 Canadiana Suite. Recorded a year before its composer's death, this track honors both men. A technical tour de force, "Place St. Henri" encompasses the history of jazz piano from stride to bop. If anyone wonders where the next Oscar Peterson might come from, the answer is clear: Kyrgyzstan.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: oscar peterson tributes · piano · place st. henriBrad Mehldau: River Man
In some circles, Mehldau may be almost as influential for his repertoire as his pianism. He has done more than any other musician of his generation to expand the concept of jazz "standards" beyond the traditional confines of Gershwin and Tin Pan Alley. Because of him, Radiohead and Nick Drake are now part of the great jazz game. Mehldau has also recorded Drake's "River Man" in an exemplary trio version, but this solo piano outing from a Tokyo concert offers a different perspective. Mehldau opens with a soothing melody statement, his left hand reminiscent of the strumming of Drake's guitar. But the textures soon get thicker and his phrases more insistent. By mid-solo he is attacking the keyboard with booming chords, harsh and angry, more Wagnerian than Drake-ish. We still encounter Mehldau's trademark "conversation between the hands," but instead of crisscrossing melodies, his two fists are hurling large harmonies back and forth at each other. We have now come full circle from the moody romanticism of the first Art of the Trio recording. This is formidable pianism, brash and challenging.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: nick drake covers · river manBoyd Raeburn: Blue Moon
Raeburn began his career in the Midwest leading a functional Lawrence Welk-type band. By 1943, he switched gears and put together a jazz ensemble that by 1946 was one of the most admired and controversial in American music. But in 1945, his band reflected a Basie approach to music and attracted the top young musicians on the scene. Gillespie was not a regular member, but his "A Night in Tunisia" was part of the Raeburn book. Lang-Worth Transcriptions (recordings made for radio play) recorded most of the Raeburn library over several sessions and with numerous personnel changes. "Blue Moon" is an exciting dance arrangement with good solos by Bothwell, Gillespie and Carpenter. But the real stars are this powerhouse group, and a terrific arrangement by baritone saxophonist/arranger Milt Kleeb, still active as co-leader of an 11-piece band with Bill Ramsey in the Seattle area.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: blue moon · richard rodgers coversBrad Mehldau: Martha My Dear
Paul McCartney doesn't get much credit as a pianist, but he builds very smart musical structures at the keyboard. Check out "Martha My Dear" from The White Album and admire Paul's fine harmonic motion and interesting left-hand action. But when it comes to left-hand action, Mehldau is the best since Smokin' Joe Fraizer threw that vicious southpaw hook back in the white-album-ish days of yore. Mehldau's sinister phalanges run amok in the bass clef, and his right is no slouch, by the way. Mehldau's counterpoint is invigorating, and this whole track shows not only his musicianship, but his conceptual brilliance.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: beatles covers · solo pianoBrad Mehldau: I Fall in Love Too Easily
Brad Mehldau's first Art of the Trio recording from 1996 includes some of the most romantic playing of his career. This artist sometimes veers into cerebral territory, offering up multi-layered performances that I dig, but that I would be more likely to recommend to musicians than to casual fans. But this track comes straight from the heart - one of those hear-a-pin-drop ballads that sends a hush over the nightclub, and even gets the burly bouncer at the door teary-eyed. In his later recordings, the pianist has tended to cram more content into his solos, and one fears that the constant comparisons with Bill Evans (to which Mehldau has vehemently objected) has perhaps led him to build ever more impressive superstructures into his trio performances. But this wistful song shows that Mehldau can create tremendous drama and emotion with a stark and simple immersion into the feeling space of the composition.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: i fall in love too easilyJan Allan: Polska With Trumpet
Jan Allan is one of Sweden's finest trumpet players, collaborating in live performance and recordings with such musicians as Gil Evans, George Russell, Bob Brookmeyer, Lee Konitz, Warne Marsh, and fellow Swedes Lars Gullin and Rolf Billberg. This track is included in an album which features three compositions for small ensemble, and three for large big band by Nils Lindberg, a classically trained composer/pianist whose music for saxophone ensemble, big band, symphony orchestra and/or choir is drenched in Swedish folk music. The ten-minute "Polska with Trumpet" is in sonata-allgreo form, and is an excellent example of composition for big band and soloist, perfectly balancing the written with the improvised. The solo in the 'A' section of the work is fully notated while the solo in the development portion is improvised, culminating in a trumpet/timpani cadenza. Also included in this section are exciting solos by Gustaffson and Aberg backed by trombones. The recording is a triumph for all participants, and not surprisingly, Jan Allan-70 won the Golden Record as the Best Swedish Jazz Recording of the Year by the magazine Orkester Journalen.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: sweden · trumpetBrad Mehldau: It Might As Well Be Sprng
In this debut trio recording, Mehldau stays in a straight-ahead groove. The later Art of the Trio recordings would take more chances, with their rhythmic pyrotechnics and the trademark left-versus-right-hand counterpoint that Mehldau does so well. But the trio swings with elegant drive on this Richard Rodgers' standard, and the pianist's improvised lines sparkle. Grenadier and Rossy support rather than challenge, and the whole performance stands out for its understated fluency. A promising debut with intimations of the riches to come.
December 30, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: it might as well be spring · richard rodgers coversMaria Schneider: The 'Pretty' Road
Maria Schneider continues to impress with her 13-minute "The 'Pretty' Road" from her Sky Blue CD. Frank Kimbrough's solo piano introduction, taken out of tempo, states Schneider's bittersweet melody. Horns enter unobtrusively and gradually take over the melody, first with delicacy, and then with large, grandiloquent gestures. By the time we are in the midst of Ingrid Jensen's passionate solo, the lush landscape of the 'pretty' road is flashing by the windows of our family station wagon (the childhood inspiration for Schneider's composition), and we are certain that we are nearing our destination. But Schneider now surprises us with a dramatic change in tone and mood, taking us for a side trip through four minutes of shimmering, pointillistic horn-writing. This is a real aural treat. But the main melody returns, like a familiar lover, and sweeps us up in a long embrace. The coda is a delight. Pretty? That, my friends, is an understatement.
December 28, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: big bandBuddy DeFranco: Out of Nowhere
At this writing, DeFranco continues to be an excellent musician playing an instrument that fell out of favor early in his career. Although he was certainly on the level of Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw, DeFranco was never able to cash in on his incredible playing the way his heroes did. After stints with Tommy Dorsey (his clarinet solo on the recording of "Opus No. 1" remains a classic) and Boyd Raeburn, DeFranco fronted an excellent small group before trying his luck as a big band leader. The band only lasted a few months before DeFranco joined Norman Granz's stable of soloists who toured all over the world. This track comes from DeFranco's first MGM session with an all-star studio ensemble recorded before the touring edition was formed. Under a straightforward ensemble background, DeFranco states the melody in an equally straightforward manner during the first chorus. The improvised solo in the second chorus begins in the low register, and maintains this easygoing feeling until the 'B' section. Then DeFranco cuts loose in a breathless burst of bop for another chorus and a half, even throwing in a quote from "Fascinating Rhythm." The result stuns and grips the listener with the sheer virtuosity and melodic beauty of DeFranco's art. The record seems to be over before it has started.
December 27, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: clarinet · out of nowhereKendra Shank: Incantation / Throw It Away
One can only applaud the idea of a tribute album featuring Abbey Lincoln's songs -- especially when Lincoln is still around to appreciate the gesture. But this recording does more to puzzle than to please. The essence of phrasing for jazz vocalists, as epitomized by the work of Billie Holiday and Frank Sinatra, has long been to let the meaning of the words guide the voice. But on this track, Shank seems to accent syllables at random, almost as if she were singing in Esperanto, and didn't know the meaning of the words. Sometimes she falls into a singsong, moving back and forth from heavily stressed to unstressed syllables, reminding me of a babysitter reciting a nursery rhyme. I give Shank credit for trying something different, but Lincoln's moving lyrics are lost in this babble. Shank is a talented singer with an excellent voice, but her conception of this song lets her down on this particular performance.
December 27, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: throw it awayCount Basie (with Sarah Vaughan and Joe Williams): Teach Me Tonight
Vaughan and Basie were regulars at the jazz club Birdland on Broadway in New York City; Williams was still the vocalist with the Count's ensemble. All were on career highs and signed to Roulette Records. It was natural that label head Morris Levy would combine Basie and Vaughan for a record album. According to Frank Foster, "Teach Me Tonight" was the song of choice when Vaughan would drop by the club and sit in with the band, and she and Williams would "break up the house every time." The familiarity of the material shows in the performance by Vaughan and Williams, which crackles with excitement; clearly these two are having a great time with this roaring Wilkins setting. This performance is a standout by all participants, and is a deserved classic. Ironically, it was only available briefly on Roulette single #4273 until it was issued on CD in 1996. Equally ironic, Basie himself was missing from the proceedings; the pianist was Ms. Vaughan's regular accompanist, Kirk Stuart.
December 27, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: jazz vocals · teach me tonightMax Roach: All Africa (from Freedom Now Suite)
The horns only make the briefest appearance on this movement from Max Roach's Freedom Now Suite. We open with Abbey Lincoln singing over drum accompaniment: "The beat has a rich and magnificent history, full of adventure, excitement and mystery. Some of it bitter and some of it sweet." But the centerpiece here is the four-minute percussion solo, performed with grandeur by Roach. This is a dramatic moment in 1960s jazz. Indeed, the whole Freedom Now Suite stands out as a landmark event in Roach's illustrious career, and an important milestone in the still-vital efforts to fuse African and jazz musical traditions.
December 27, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: drums · world fusionKurt Elling: A New Body and Soul
Kurt Elling not only promises "a new Body and Soul" in his song title, but he actually delivers the goods. By now, we are familiar with Elling's fastidious care in reworking the songs in his repertoire. Although his performances sound spontaneous and 'in the moment,' Elling never just wings it. Here he constructs new lyrics inspired by Dexter Gordon's rendition of this standard on the tenorist's 1976 Homecoming release. Elling takes the listener on an ingenious ten-minute journey full of densely packed vocalese, with a little dose of pianist Hobgood as a rest stop before we reach our final destination. He rewards us with a happy ending, and we can sit and contemplate how far we have come since Coleman Hawkins and Chu Berry dished out their own body-and-soul-fulness back in the 1930s.
December 26, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: body and soul · vocaleseAstor Piazzolla & Gary Burton: Milonga is Coming
Gary Burton had worked in Stan Getz's band in the 1960s, and saw firsthand how Getz's advocacy of bossa nova and willingness to collaborate with Brazilian musicians had revitalized his career and created a sensation in the music world. Two decades after leaving Getz, Burton embarks on a similar venture with the greatest Argentinean musician of the modern era, the brilliant tango composer and performer Astor Piazzolla. This promising meeting of jazz music and nuevo tango did not climb to the top of the charts, and posed no commercial match for that tall & tan & young & lovely girl who strolled past the Veloso bar-cafe in Rio. But this is a important recording, nonetheless, and one wishes that it had led to follow-up projects of similar scope. Burton here adapts to Piazzolla's compositions, and does so admirably, although with perhaps a little too much respect -- after all, Getz himself was fond of saying that irreverence was an essential attribute of a great jazz player. Maybe a dose of it would have been in place in this setting. I would have liked to hear one or two numbers in which the roles were reversed, with the great bandoneónist and his colleagues immersed in some heady modern jazz tunes; or perhaps (heaven forbid) a jazzier assault on one of Piazzolla's own cherished numbers.
December 26, 2007 · 1 comment
Tags: argentina · tango · vibes · world fusionAl Di Meola: Milonga Del Angel
I have a passion for Piazzolla, and look with satisfaction on how the music of this great master of nuevo tango still lives on more than 15 years after his death -- although his influence flourishes mostly outside the perimeter of the jazz world. Piazzolla had some interactions with jazz players during his career, perhaps most notably in his 1986 live recording with Gary Burton, but I am nonetheless surprised at how little attention the jazzistas pay to his legacy. By comparison, the bossa, samba, reggae and salsa styles seem to have penetrated the jazz mind more deeply. But Piazzolla and the tango tradition are just as potent as these other idioms, and one could profitably spend years exploring their riches.Al Di Meola has done just that. He has been an advocate of Piazzolla's music for more than a decade, and previously recorded "Milonga del Angel" on his Di Meola Plays Piazzolla CD. He now contributes an intimate solo version as part of his first-rate recent release Diabolic Inventions and Seduction for Solo Guitar, Volume 1: Music of Astor Piazzolla. If you remember Al Di Meola for his fusion work and his stint with Return to Forever, you haven't experienced the full measure of his artistry. From the first, Di Meola had deep roots in World Music -- his flamenco flourishes are as authentic as you will find this side of the Atlantic, and his feel for the tango idiom could hardly be any deeper. This heartfelt performance is a fitting tribute to Piazzolla, and a reminder of how fine a guitarist Al Di Meola can be when placed in the right setting.
December 25, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: guitar · tangoEsbjörn Svensson Trio (E.S.T.): Dating
Esbjörn Svensson's trio E.S.T. stands out as one of the most interesting European jazz ensembles of recent years -- but to call this a great European band is far too limiting. E.S.T. demands our attention as one of the finest piano trios to be found anywhere. I have long felt that many of the implications of the early ECM recordings, and in particular Keith Jarrett's masterful Facing You, have not been sufficiently understood and developed by later musicians. Jarrett himself went off in different directions, and no one else seemed interested or capable of mining this rich vein of harmonic textures and compositional devices. But E.S.T. builds new superstructures on this ground, adding much of their own inspiration and creativity in the process. Svensson, in particular, has a first-rate musical mind and shows here that he needs to be mentioned when the discussion turns to the best jazz pianists of the current day.
December 24, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: act · piano trio · swedenStan Getz (featuring Chick Corea): La Fiesta
Stan Getz was not just one of the greatest tenor saxophonists in the history of the music, but also an acute judge of talent. He brought João Gilberto and Antonio Carlos Jobim to the attention of the mass market -- if Nobel Prizes were awarded for international musical advocacy, that move alone would have sent Getz back to "Dear Old Stockholm." Yet Getz also helped propel the careers of a host of other big-time talents, ranging from Horace Silver to Diane Schuur. But when Getz ran into Chick Corea (who had been in Stan's band in 1966-67) in Spain in 1971, the two began plotting . . . and soon the tenorist was given a chance to unleash the next, new BIG thing. If Stan had held on to the band from his Captain Marvel session, he might have been as famous for fusion as for "Four Brothers," and maybe even approached his bossa nova sales. Instead, this exciting track represents a passing interlude in a variegated career. No, Getz is not remembered for this style of music, but don't think that you can skip this recording. The Captain was a Marvel, even if his fusion journey was all too short.
December 24, 2007 · 1 comment
Tags: latin jazzPat Metheny & Brad Mehldau: Ahmid-6
After a century of jazz, the piano and guitar duet is still a rare format, with only a few genuine masterpieces produced by this instrumental combination. Both guitarists and pianists love to mess around with chord voicings, and there is a great likelihood of clashing harmonies or muddy textures unless both performers play with great sensitivity and restraint. The 1962 collaboration between Bill Evans and Jim Hall still remains the litmus test by which this format is judged, but Metheny and Mehldau's 2006 session will inevitably be added to the short list of definitive guitar-meets-piano performances. Both Metheny and Mehldau are a natural for this type of partnership. Each has a history of functioning collaboratively within the context of a working band -- Mehldau with his stellar trio, and Metheny in many settings, but especially in his work with keyboardist Lyle Mays. They are both great listeners with what jazz people call 'big ears,' and the mutual respect is obvious throughout this CD. Mehldau does an especially good job of driving "Ahmid-6," and bass and drums are hardly missed, despite the high-energy tone of the composition. Metheny, for his part, never seems at a loss for melodic ideas, and offers up another winning solo.
December 24, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags:King Oliver: Dippermouth Blues (Gennett version)
Joe 'King' Oliver is often remembered in jazz histories as a mere footnote to the more illustrious story of Louis Armstrong -- he was the man who gave Satchmo the break that brought him out of New Orleans and into the limelight of Chicago nightlife. But this account fails to do justice to Oliver's own artistry. "Dippermouth Blues" is one of the first great recorded masterpieces of jazz -- and not just for Armstrong's contribution. Oliver's solo serves as a much-needed reminder of what jazz could do before Armstrong changed all the rules. It is to the Hot Fives and Hot Sevens what great medieval art is to the Renaissance masters -- not an inferior predecessor, but rather the final flowering of a purer, more rarefied style. Early New Orleans jazz was about the quality of sound rather than the quantity of notes, and Oliver was the great master of getting the cornet to speak with a vocal tone. His range is limited here, and his phrases are built on only two or three notes of the scale. But his down-and-dirty sound captures the ethos of jazz as it emerged at the dawn of the American century. The vitality of his playing comes through despite the passing decades and inferior recording technology of the era (although the sonic fidelity is much improved on this Off the Record reissue compared to earlier releases). Even today, jazz virtuosos could learn lessons about phrasing from this too-seldom-heard classic from 1923.
December 23, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: cornet · new orleans jazzPat Metheny & Brad Mehldau: A Night Away
Metheny and Mehldau worked admirably together on their recent guitar-piano duets, but this quartet track with Larry Grenadier and Jeff Ballard reaches an even higher plateau. Metheny takes one of his great melodic solos on "A Night Away," and he continues to impress me with his ability to sublimate technique and ego in order to elevate the musicality of any given performance. Guitarists often play as if they are getting paid piece rate by the note, but Metheny is cut from a different cloth. If you listen to this track a few times, you will start humming along with his solo. Mehldau starts his improvisation in a similar vein, but soon begins pushing against the grain of the chords, stretching the aural sensibility of the composition. But you can tell that the pianist was enjoying the proceedings. He even is shown chuckling to himself on the back cover of the CD -- and jazz fans know that no artist since Miles has given fewer smiles on his promo photos than the serious Mr. Mehldau. Listeners, for their part, will find it hard to be glum when these two artists join forces.
December 23, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags:Anders Widmark: Sweet Georgia Brown
Anders Widmark usually likes to lock into a happy groove and milk it for everything it's worth. Hence "Sweet Georgia Brown" is a great choice for him, and even before hearing his performance I could almost see the basketball bouncing back and forth among the members of his hot Swedish trio. Flashy passes, slam dunks, the whole works. But Widmark surprised me by dismissing the rest of his trio and settling into a thoughtful solo piano reworking of the standard, with only a smattering of blues licks thrown into the mix. But the total effect is quite impressive. Widmark's reharmonization is especially clever, and shows a powerful musical mind at work.
December 23, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: sweden · sweet georgia brownAnders Widmark: Raga Muffin Man
There is not much Indian raga in "Raga Muffin Man," but you will find a double dose of flat thirds and flat sevenths. Imagine if Ramsey Lewis grew up in Sweden, and picture the 'In Crowd' transplanted to Stockholm. An unexpected image perhaps, but it gives you some sense of Anders Widmark and his seriously funky piano playing. When the jazz snobs tells you that Europeans don't really get down, play this song and watch their jaws drop.
December 23, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: swedenEugene Chadbourne: Eleanor Rigby
I listened to this version of "Eleanor Rigby" and couldn't figure out if Chadbourne & Co. were playing it in major or minor. I listened again, and still couldn't decide. I'm not sure Eugene Chadbourne ever quite made up his mind. Maybe we should check with Paul and Yoko. Then again, fidelity to the original spirit of the music is not a high priority with this band. Elsewhere on the same CD, for example, we are regaled with "The Girl from Al-Qaeda" set to the music of your least favorite cocktail lounge song. (At least, Chadbourne is generous enough to credit "Getz / Jobim" as co-composers.) I might be old-fashioned . . . but I still think you should make sure your bandmates agree on the chord changes before you record the song. Nonetheless, Chadbourne will have his fans, especially among those who prefer Joseph Spence to Wes Montgomery, and Ed Wood to Orson Welles. If you fall into that category, you better not tell Paul and Yoko. They might want to put a stop to all this fun.
December 22, 2007 · 1 comment
Tags: banjo · beatles coversWynton Marsalis: Blood on the Fields
Wynton Marsalis has built a career on high ambitions -- including (for a start) assimilating the music vocabulary from Haydn to Ornette -- but this may be the biggest gambit of them all. The best comparison point here is Duke Ellington's extraordinary Black, Brown & Beige, composed a half-century before Wynton presented his Blood on the Fields to the music world. Like Ellington, Marsalis also tries to pull together history, sociology and lots of dramatic music into a big, big, big composition-- more than twice as long as Ellington's work. It may take the jazz world decades to digest this massive three-hour work -- and with Wynton Marsalis there is a particular problem that people like to talk about his music without giving it the close listening it deserves. But I predict that the Pulitzer committee's controversial decision to select this composition as the first jazz work honored in their long history will eventually look like a very smart move. Who would have thought that the dazzling trumpeter who first made his mark as a teenager hard-bopping in Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers would evolve into such a masterful composer? Listen especially to how well he writes for horns. One of the high points of a storied career.
December 22, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1990s jazzMiles Davis: All Blues
Miles Davis recorded many classic performances during his long career, but this ranks among the most beloved and best known of his works. Bill Evans sets the tone with a 6/8 vamp which provides both a hook for the listener and a spur for the soloists. I could tell you that Miles never had a better band . . . but, honestly, the real issue here is whether anyone ever brought a finer combo into a studio. And unlike most all-star dates, Kind of Blue contains no grandstanding or attempts at one-upmanship. Miles, Trane, Cannonball and the rhythm section all assert their individual personalities, but in a way that stays true to the mood of the music. This is not just a song, but a musical vision, perfectly realized and set down for the ages.
December 22, 2007 · 1 comment
Tags: 1950s jazz · all blues · kind of blueDinah Washington: You Don't Know What Love Is
Though she tends to take a backseat to Lady Day and Sassy in most jazz criticism, it’s difficult to find anything to criticize on Dinah Washington’s 1955 session for Norman Granz. Washington’s delivery, while every bit as knowing as Holiday’s, emerges from a place of confidence and resilience rather than fragility and despair. Supported by Galbraith’s solo guitar work on the opening lines and thereafter by Quincy Jones’ arrangement of an all-star horn section, with a wonderful solo by Jimmy Cleveland, Dinah delivers a hopefully defiant interpretation of this Raye-DePaul standard, belying an undercurrent of raw emotion that tells the listener she knows exactly what love—and jazz—is.
December 22, 2007 · 1 comment
Tags: you don't know what love isEnrico Rava: The Pilgrim and the Stars
"Contemporary Italian jazz can be said to have begun with Enrico Rava," critic Michael Zwerin has written. Rava is still recording for ECM more than three decades after the release of The Pilgrim and the Stars, and though his work has continued to evolve and mature, this early outing demonstrates the core virtues of his style -- a warm, inviting tone, especially rich in the lower register; great phrasing with lots of variety; a fluent technical command of the instrument; and very smart use of space and dynamics. Kudos (again) to ECM for hunting out deserving musicians such as Rava and bringing them to the attention of the global jazz audience.
December 21, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: ecm · italy · trumpetThe Bad Plus: This Guy's In Love With You
Cocktail lounge music from hell? No, it's just The Bad Plus playing games with a song that is best kept locked inside elevators and dental practices. This Bacharach and David tune was never cool. After all, it was debuted by Herb Alpert (of Tijuana Brass fame) on a TV show. Herb Alpert is to cool what kryptonite is to Superman. But this trio doesn't put "Bad" in their name for nothing. They like to play up the hokey elements in songs like this -- check out how they rev up the overwrought part near the end of melody -- but occasionally mixing in some radical jazz elements to show that they -- The Bad Plus -- are above it all. I usually prefer my songs played straight and with real emotion, but when I want a dose of postmodern, deconstructionist jazz, this band gets the nod. A fun outing from the most irreverent trio in jazz.
December 21, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: burt bacharach covers · piano trio · this guy's in love with youSteve Reich: Music for 18 Musicians
The ECM label would eventually push far beyond its jazz roots, but its willingness to tackle new sounds and idioms is perhaps best exemplified by this 1978 release by composer Steve Reich. The classical music world has claimed this extended, hour-long performance, and it is deservedly lauded as a major statement of the minimalist aesthetic. But any attempt to link this music to categories such as "classical' or "jazz" misses much of the point of this visionary composition, which defines its own soundspace. The slow pace of harmonic change creates a hypnotic effect that is unmatched, in my opinion, by any other work of modern music. Reich relies heavily on mallet instruments -- played by seven members of the ensemble -- but tempers them with four female voices, creating a tension between soft and hard, stubborn insistence and gentle persuasion, that transforms the aural space.
December 21, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: ecm · minimalismThe Spirits of Rhythm: My Old Man
"My Old Man" is one of those And yet songs. God knows, alcoholic fathers are no joke. They can be destructive, irresponsible, exploitative and abusive. Even the least obnoxious shame their families and strain the resources of society. And yet … this warmly affectionate song shows the redemptive qualities of humor and forgiveness. "He's only doin' the best he can," the Spirits of Rhythm absolve. Aren't we all? Caveat: as of January 2008, this 1996 Dutch import CD remained the most readily available source of "My Old Man," but audio is subpar on a track obviously remastered from a worn shellac disk.
December 21, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: vocal groupsKeith Jarrett: Bremen, Germany, July 12, 1973, Part I
Jazz musicians have always emphasized improvisation in their work. But few have taken this reliance on spontaneous creation to the lengths Keith Jarrett has assayed in his solo concerts. He pioneered the (still rare) concept of an entirely improvised piano recital, wholly inspired by the muse of the moment. But if the concept is exciting, Jarrett's execution of this ambitious idea is even more impressive. The ECM recording of Jarrett's 1973 Bremen concert represented the first attempt to capture this type of work on tape and present it on record. This disk may not have sold as well as the The Köln Concert from 1975 or matched the scope of Jarrett's massive Sun Bear Concerts (originally released on ten LPs) from 1976, but for sheer musicality and inventiveness it is hard to top the recital in Bremen. Here is piano music that is rich in complexity, subtle in detail, and completely free of cliché. One of my desert island disks.
December 20, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1970s jazz · ecm · solo pianoThe Art Ensemble of Chicago: Folkus
When the Art Ensemble of Chicago showed up at a studio in Ludwigsburg, Germany to record for ECM, it was as surprising (at least to jazz fans) as the Berlin Wall coming down. To many advocates of Free Jazz, ECM was the Evil Empire, dismissed as a reactionary attempt to infuse too strong a dose of European influences into the jazz vocabulary, thus watering down the music's inherent vitality. (Phew, that was a mouthful.) Such rhetoric may seem a little overheated today, but back in the 1970s the current pluralistic, open jazz environment had not yet been established, and those at the cutting (bleeding?) edge tended to believe that jazz presented a linear progression that allowed no turning back! But here we found the leading avant-garde band of the era showing up as "nice guys" and joining hands with their European brethren -- in a release appropriately named Nice Guys.But the Art Ensemble didn't get too nice -- and things get very edgy if you try saying this song title after your second drink at the nightclub. The lengthy "Folkus" track includes all their usual stock-in-trade: lots of dissonance, minimalist interludes, criss-crossing horn lines, background-music-as-foreground-music, and enough percussion instruments to fill a museum of membranophones and idiophones. Not nice enough, perhaps, for many ECM fans, but a historic moment by any measure . . . and an event signaling both the end of ECM's early years and the arrival of the new postmodern jazz world of peace and brotherhood.
December 20, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: aacm · avant garde · ecm · free jazzEgberto Gismonti: Baião Malandro
Egberto Gismonti concludes his Sol Do Meio Dia recording with a suite of four compositions, finishing with his amazing "Baião Malandro." Many know Gismonti as a guitarist, but this keyboard performance captures some of the most invigorating piano work in the ECM catalog. A savvy jazz player once told me that the secret to success was to steal from other players, but only from those who play other instruments -- so no one can trace your sources. Gismonti does just that -- but he steals ideas from his own guitar conception. Imagine treating the piano like an 88-string guitar, and you get some idea of what this song sounds like. A bravura performance full of drama and fireworks.
December 20, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: brazil · ecm · pianoJan Garbarek: Witchi-Tai-To
No record label has done more to establish the unique voice of European jazz -- not as an adjunct to American trends, but as a legitimate source of innovation -- than ECM under the direction of Manfred Eicher. But here Jan Garbarek and the exceptional rhythm section of Bobo Stenson, Palle Danielsson and Jon Christensen dig deeply into the ultimate American roots music. The Native American-inspired jazz of the late Jim Pepper is still all too little known and appreciated, although it has found a devoted audience that will not let his vital music be forgotten. Garbarek and crew offer an impassioned rendition of Pepper's best-known composition. Stenson starts in a wistful vein, but the energy level gradually increases . . . until Garbarek enters and wails with passion. His work in the upper register is as close as the saxophone can get to a human cry.
December 20, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: ecm · norway · witchi-tai-toPat Metheny: Midwestern Nights Dream
Bright Size Life may have been recorded in Ludwigsburg, Germany, but the spirit of the American heartland permeates its tracks. In addition to "Midwestern Nights Dream," other Metheny compositions from this seminal release include "Omaha Celebration" and "Missouri Uncompromised." The guitarist is joined on this exploration of aural Americana by New York-born drummer Bob Moses and Finnish- American Jaco Pastorius, raised in Pennsylvania and Florida. Missouri native Metheny leads the way with dreamy, free-floating chords that gradually entice his cohorts into musical dialogue. One of Metheny's great virtues as a guitarist is his complete freedom from clichés and trite licks. His improvised lines always grow organically from the music, invariably sounding natural and unforced. Although he is a master of technique, his music never sounds technical. Not since Wes Montgomery has a guitarist shown such consistent ability to enter into the inner life of a song. Only 21 years old when this track was recorded, Metheny was already making music as expansive as the Midwestern night sky.
December 19, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: ecm · guitarRalph Towner & Gary Burton: Icarus
Both of these musicians had fully assimilated the modern jazz tradition before joining forces for their Matchbook sessions on ECM. Burton had worked with Stan Getz and George Shearing, and had been one of the first to test the fusion waters, with his Duster release on RCA back in 1967. Towner had also tried his hand at fusion -- he appeared as a guest artist on Weather Report's I Sing the Body Electric almost three years prior to Matchbook -- and had even made his mark as a pianist before focusing on guitar. But the constraints of the standard post-bebop vocabulary were too confining for these players, who wanted to assimilate a variety of sounds (folk music, classical, ethnic, and avant-garde, among others) into their ever expanding musical melting pots. "Icarus" is one of Towner's finest compositions. He had already recorded it with the Paul Winter Consort and on his ECM solo release Diary, and he would draw on it again with the band Oregon and in other settings. The composition evokes a transcendent, yearning ambiance -- this is nothing less than a musical soundtrack for a personal vision quest. Here is the mythical Icarus while still in ascendancy and heading for the stars, and Towner and Burton enter fully into the emotional maelstrom of the flight.
December 19, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: ecm · guitar · vibesThe Boswell Sisters: Shout, Sister, Shout
In his book Jazz Singing (1990), Will Friedwald calls The Boswell Sisters "the greatest of all jazz vocal groups." Preternaturally attuned, they could start singing independently in separate rooms, gravitate towards one another, and find upon meeting that they were not only at the same spot in the same song, in tempo and in key, but in perfect harmony! This spooky synchronicity is well displayed in "Shout, Sister, Shout"—part jazz, part gospel, with shifting meters dramatizing its morally prophylactic message: One thing the Devil can't stand is a hallelujah song. If only Linda Blair had known! Exorcists take note.
December 19, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: vocal groupsDave Holland: Conference of the Birds
Jazz was exploring new horizons during the 1970s, dancing on the divide between consonance and dissonance, Europe and African-American elements, traditions and anti-traditions. Sometimes the experiments faltered but at other moments they coalesced into something fresh and never before heard. Conference of the Birds is one of those magical recordings where everything clicks. This performance sounded inspired and sui generis when I first heard it, and still captivates me today. I could try to trace the influences. Do I detect a Celtic tinge? Am I crazy when I actually hear the birds singing in this piece? Never mind, just listen and enjoy one of the great tracks of the decade.
December 18, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1970s jazz · bass · ecmChick Corea & Béla Fleck: Brazil
Jazz fans have enjoyed this composition in many versions, both jazz arrangements such as Chick Corea's solo piano rendition, or when played (usually under the title "Aquarela do Brasil") by many of the leading Brazilian musicians of the last half century. This standard is so well known and beloved in Brazil that a panel of experts picked it as the "Brazilian song of the century" back in 1997. I can't remember asking for a version featuring banjo . . . but maybe that just shows my lack of imagination. Even so, I became the biggest believer in Brazilian banjo jazz after hearing Béla Fleck and Chick Corea work their wonders on Barroso's delightful composition. For several years now I have been suggesting that many of the most exciting developments in jazz will increasingly be found in various fusions with 'World Music' styles. But sometimes even I am surprised where these cross-fertilizations lead. Fleck and Corea's take on "Brazil" is one of those happy discoveries.
December 18, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: aquarela do brasil · banjo · world fusionHerbie Hancock: Maiden Voyage
"Maiden Voyage" stands out as a landmark of the Blue Note sound, and remains Herbie Hancock's finest composition. In the midst of a turbulent jazz scene, where musicians were restlessly exploring all of their options, Hancock always approached his recordings with a clear, holistic vision. Classic Hancock performances such as "Watermelon Man" or "Cantaloupe Island" would establish their identity in the introductory bars, and stick to the same course until they reached their chosen destination. The texture and ambiance of the music envelops the listener -- and the musicians too. If Freddie Hubbard ever took a hotter trumpet solo than on this recording, I haven't heard it. And all done with only four suspended chords -- but the 'hook' is in the vamp. One of the high points of 1960s jazz.
December 18, 2007 · 2 comments
Tags: blue noteHerbie Hancock: Someday My Prince Will Come
Why does Herbie Hancock always save his best solo work for the Japanese market? When he was at the high point (low point?) of his career as a "fusion" artist, he released a solid, serious, solo keyboard effort called Dedication -- but only in Japan. I had to convert the holdings of my piggy bank into yen and find an import-export agent just to sniff the vinyl. The Piano is much the same story: a great collection of solo piano performances, but kept out of the US market for 25 years. "Someday My Prince Will Come" is a smart reworking of the famous Disney soundtrack song, with constant change-ups in mood, dynamics and attack. Although Hancock has recorded some 50 recordings as a leader, there are very few examples of him playing standards without accompaniment. This is one of the finest.
December 18, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: solo piano · someday my prince will comeLee Morgan: I Remember Clifford
Nine months after Clifford Brown's accidental death, composer Benny Golson unveiled this lovely, and loving, requiem for the late trumpeter, venerated as much for the content of his character as for his consummate musicianship. "I Remember Clifford" would've become a jazz standard strictly on its own merits, whatever its title. But being dedicated to the beloved Brownie ensured its instant acceptance by Clifford's peers and fans alike. Here, 18-year-old trumpet phenom Lee Morgan, a Brownie disciple but by no means imitator, brings us as close as we'll ever get to hearing Clifford himself play this reverent piece. A haunting, heartfelt tribute.
December 18, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: blue note · clifford brown · i remember clifford · trumpetSidney Bechet: I've Found a New Baby
Bechet's band, at this celebrated session, was called the "New Orleans Feetwarmers" -- but it's clear from the opening chorus that no one in this ensemble has cold feet. They plunge into "I've Found a New Baby" with gusto, and it would be hard to find a more driving example of New Orleans jazz. This style of music, with its interweaving counterpoint lines, was already old-fashioned by the time of this 1932 session, but Bechet and company were not ready to become museum pieces. The musicians who recreate the New Orleans sound today rarely achieve this degree of intensity -- perhaps they are too respectful of the tradition. Bechet, for his part, entitled his autobiography Treat It Gentle, but the directions he gave his fellow musicians on this date must have been treat it roughly and kick it in the pants. Great late vintage New Orleans music by one of the masters.
December 18, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: i've found a new baby · new orleans jazzChick Corea: Song for Sally
When Herbie or Miles or Wayne jumped on the fusion bandwagon, they often confused their loyal fans, who struggled to connect Kind of Blue with On the Corner or make their way from "Dolphin Dance" to "Chameleon." But for Chick Corea, the chasm between his straight-ahead acoustic and crossover electric styles demanded less of a leap. Only the smallest nudge was necessary to go from (for example) Corea's work with Stan Getz to his Return to Forever efforts. This memorable ECM track is a case in point. Corea always wrote great melodies, whether he was playing for fusion fans or jazz purists. He always put that "Latin tinge" into his keyboard work. He solos are always smartly conceived and played with Corea's immediately recognizable touch at the instrument. Corea's biggest-selling releases from the era were made for the Polydor label, but the great ECM disks -- with the Circle ensemble, the collaborations with Gary Burton, the first Return to Forever LP, and two outstanding volumes of solo piano improvisations -- rank among his most cherished works. "Song for Sally" from the first volume of Piano Improvisations is one of my favorite tracks from this period.
December 17, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: ecm · solo pianoBix Beiderbecke: Singin' the Blues – as heard in Woody Allen's <i>Bullets Over Broadway</i> (1994)
By the time Miles Davis's Birth of the Cool was first marketed as such (1954), cool jazz had been around for 30 years. The 1920s evoke hot-footed flappers burning up the dance floor to Hot Fives, Hot Sevens and Red Hot Peppers, but "Singin' the Blues" is cooler than bathtub gin in an igloo. Backed only by Lang at Heaven's gait, minute one features Trumbauer's sweet oddity C-melody sax. Minute two finds Bix's legendary legato supplanting Trumbauer. Minute three ushers in the remaining cast for an easygoing finale. This classic track could illustrate an audio dictionary under laid-back. Indispensable loveliness.
December 17, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags:Charles Mingus: I Can't Get Started
A definitive version of a favorite Mingus standard (and staple of his live repertoire), captured in performance at the Nonagon Art Gallery in Manhattan’s East Village. Explaining his affinity for the tune, Mingus told Nat Hentoff, “It applies to me.” His commanding solo, which begins after an abrupt tape edit, indicates that he knows and understands the material implicitly. John Handy, the other featured soloist, connects with it deeply, too. Their virtuoso flights and bravura suspensions reflect the lyric’s ironic complaint. They come on strong, effuse, emote, make strong cases, and maybe even overthink it. It’s not for lack of effort—or aesthetic achievement—that they can’t get started.
December 17, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: bass · i can't get startedStanley Clarke: School Days
The bass was an optional instrument in early jazz. But in the 1930s and 1940s its importance grew -- especially through the influence of the Kansas City sound and its smooth 4/4 time. The bass was now a key part of the accompaniment -- although bass solos were still as rare as caviar at a juke joint. But with the emergence of fusion in the late 1960s and 1970s, basslines drove the band. Even keyboardists and saxophonists looked to the bass to create the hook and move the audience to its feet. Thus began the age of the superstar electric bassist, with Jaco Pastorius and Stanley Clarke setting the tone. "School Days" was a grand bass anthem -- short on harmonic variety and about as subtle as a SWAT team at the door, but full of energy and boasting a very danceable beat. Clarke is the star here, and hits the mark with one of his most admired and imitated performances. A fusion classic that may be a bit dated, but with a groove that still packs a punch.
December 13, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1970s jazz · bass · funk · fusionPatricia Barber: Laura
Patricia Barber always puts a few surprises into her songs -- odd poetic phrases, unusual cultural references, layers of irony or ambiguity, or strange musical bric-a-brac. But the big surprise on this track is that she sings it absolutely straight. Yes, Barber the traditional chanteuse comes to the fore here, and contents herself with tapping into the inherent beauty of Raksin's melody and the smart Mercer lyric. And she does it very, very well. If Barber ever decides to abandon her role as the postmodern philosopher of jazz vocals, she could always find a second career as a singer of standards.
December 10, 2007 · 1 comment
Tags: ballad · lauraSophie Milman: The Man I Love
When Sophie Milman recorded it, "The Man I Love" was, at 80, antique enough to have been an oldie in her grandparents' day. Hope, however, springs eternal in a Gershwin song, and Milman's confidence about, in her words, "the waiting, searching and yearning for that one relationship" shines clear—fleeting though it may be. At Milman's tender age, singer Nancy King likewise saw hope; but as she matured, "the song took on tragic dimensions, deep longing for something lost or missed." While such hard-won wisdom of elders is indispensable, so is youthful optimism. Searchingly, yearningly, Sophie Milman balances the scales.
December 10, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: gershwin covers · the man i loveJane Monheit: Over the Rainbow
Coincidentally, two months after Jane Monheit recorded it, "Over the Rainbow" was voted the 20th century's favorite song in the Recording Industry of America Association's survey of hundreds of music lovers from all walks of life across the U.S. Whether or not the 23-year-old Monheit's cover will become as iconic to our new century as 16-year-old Judy Garland's original was to the last, only time will tell. As the emotional centerpiece of Hollywood's most beloved family film, Judy's track has enjoyed a promotional advantage, not to mention a 62-year head start. But don't sell Jane short. A stirring, uplifting, charismatic performance.
December 10, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: arlen covers · over the rainbowPearl Django: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes
What goes around, comes around. In 1930s Paris, The Quintette of the Hot Club of France, featuring Django Reinhardt & Stéphane Grappelli, revived the 1920s acoustic guitar and violin style of Americans Eddie Lang & Joe Venuti. In 1990s Tacoma, Pearl Django (jointly named after rockers Pearl Jam and the Gypsy swing guitarist) in turn back-translated the prewar French style, here covering a 1935 Reinhardt & Grappelli recording. There was, of course, only one Django, and front-man Andersson judiciously avoids imitation. Instead, this lively track, highlighted by Gray's alternately arco and pizzicato violin, demonstrates the group's fluent and cohesive buoyancy.
December 10, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: smoke gets in your eyes · violinHoward Alden & George Van Eps: I Surrender, Dear
Although the guitar may appear ancient, the modern instrument with six single strings has been the standard for only 200 years, having evolved to expand the range of precursors with four or five paired strings. In the 1930s, jazzman George Van Eps upped the ante by adding another bass string. (This one goes to seven!) Half a century later, the 79-year-old pioneer was joined by his ex-student Howard Alden, a mere pup of 34, for this unaccompanied duet, accounting for 14 strings vibrating sympathetically—the jazz version of quantum physicists' string theory. Impeccably, imperturbably, a shopworn ballad becomes 7th heavenly.
December 10, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: guitar · i surrender dearRosemary Clooney: More Than You Know
While the lyrics of this 62-year-old standard show their age, its lovely melody is untarnished, and the vocalist, one year older than her song, is younger than springtime. Although she was by this time a well-established jazz singer, Rosie's reinvention as such was as farfetched as, say, Patti Page tackling the Thelonious Monk songbook. As a 1950s pop star, Clooney may've been, as her friend Bing Crosby declared, "the best in the business," but that business wasn't jazz. And indeed, this sensitively arranged ballad is to jazz tangential. Still, if you fancy a beautiful song beautifully sung, Rosie is riveting.
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: more than you knowLee Morgan: You Go to My Head
On the heels of his previous year's hit "The Sidewinder," Lee Morgan applies 3/5ths of the same quintet and an equally engaging groove to this misterioso standard. Although bossa nova was by now a full-blown fad, Lee strolls the beach closer to 125th Street than to Ipanema, with better results than the bandwagon hoppers chasing the tall-&-tan-&-young-&-lovely almighty buck. Atop Mabern, Cranshaw and Higgins's funky foundation, Morgan and Shorter form a surprisingly lyrical twosome. Listeners familiar with Shorter's abstraction during this period with the Miles Davis Quintet should not be misled: this is a graceful, gently swinging, straight-ahead track.
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: blue note · trumpet · you go to my headPaul Desmond: Polka Dots and Moonbeams
It's always the fellows you least suspect. Never loitered an unlikelier Lothario: bony, balding, bookish and bespectacled. Yet Paul Desmond was such a ladies man that his biographer Doug Ramsey devotes an entire chapter to the subject. Either Paul's playing wowed the fair sex, or his preparation. Here, for instance, Desmond cagily delegates the opening chorus to Jim Hall, enabling Paul to gently shake (not stir) his celebrated "dry-martini" alto for best effect. Then, and only then, does 007—i.e., Desmond—cozy up to this pliant standard for a brief but blissful encounter. Casanova Milquetoast scores again.
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: alto sax · polka dots and moonbeamsBillie Holiday & Lester Young: All of Me
If hot jazz was defined by Louis Armstrong in the 1920s, then the lyrical side of jazz found its perfect exponents in Billie Holiday and Lester Young during the 1930s and 1940s. Their collaborations revealed a different side of the jazz art form. Here we can savor emotion without cheap sentimentality, simplicity without simple-mindedness, a force of expression that is achieved through restraint and understatement. In the long lineage of cool jazz, we constantly find the creative bursts coming at us through the work of couples -- Bix & Tram, Miles & Gil, Getz & Gilberto -- almost as if music this sensitive required some sort of magnetic, mutual attraction, an exemplary pairing to make it possible. Call it a musical romance, if you will. But at the top of the hierarchy, our First Lady (Day) and Pres of the democracy of cool jazz are Billie and Lester. "All of Me" ranks among the finest of their classic sides, and it is hard to say which of the two gets the upper hand here. Let's call it a tossup. A must have recording for anyone interested in the history of jazz vocals or the evolution of the tenor sax.
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: all of me · jazz vocals · tenor saxBillie Holiday & Lester Young: I Can't Get Started
The collaborations between Billie Holiday and Lester Young still speak to us today -- and not just as historical documents. The individual personalities, the emotional presence of these two artists come across in the music -- which thus serves as enduring testimony to their ability to project their hearts and souls into the songs they recorded. Their influence on later popular music and jazz can hardly be over-stated. It is hard to imagine the direct, conversational style of singing mastered by Frank Sinatra, and passed on by him to so many others, if Lady Day had not come first. And the lyricism of the tenor sax, now taken for granted, owes more to Lester Young than to anyone else. Here they take a show tune from the Ziegfeld Follies of 1936 -- a cute lyric by Ira Gershwin, and a sentimental melody by Vernon Duke -- instill depths of feeling into it that went well beyond any precedent found on Broadway. With all due respect to the great (and underrated) Bunny Berigan, this is the defining performance of "I Can't Get Started."
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1930s jazz · i can't get started · jazz vocals · tenor saxCharlie Parker: Embraceable You
We tend to remember 1940s bebop as fast and furious music, full of intricate melodies and hard-edged solos. But here Parker contributes one of the finest ballad performances in the history of jazz. Bird barely glances at Gershwin's melody, and instead constructs a thematic improvisation, which develops a short motif -- similar to the "You must remember this" phrase from "As Time Goes By" -- that he states in the opening measure. A musicologist could spend a hundred pages trying to describe what Parker tossed out in almost as many seconds. But it's better just to sit back and enjoy this example of the great altoist playing at the top of his game.
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: bebop · embraceable you · gershwin coversOrnette Coleman: Embraceable You
I'm still waiting for them to release Ornette Plays the George Gershwin Songbook. But in the meantime, I can continue to enjoy this unusual entry in the discography of the Master of Free Jazz Saxophony. The young Ornette (or the old Ornette, for that matter) never had much time for the American popular song tradition. True, on his first record back on the Coast, the band played the changes of standards behind his alto solos, but this was more a stopgap than a conscious aesthetic preference. Yet here, in the midst of his musical revolution, Coleman records "Embraceable You," and shows -- surprise! -- that he is an effective balladeer. I have always dug the plaintive wail of Coleman's best alto work, that deep moan that sounds (to my ears) like an authentic cry from the heart. When you get to brass tacks, this raw soulfulness is not much different than what Ben Webster or Stan Getz or the other great jazz ballad players brought to their performances. I can't help wishing Coleman had done more in this vein, and had given us (like Coltrane did) a whole LP of ballads. At least we can content ourselves with this moving track.
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: embraceable you · gershwin coversCecil Taylor: Silent Tongues
This music is not for the fainthearted. Taylor attacks the keyboard with such force that I'm surprised a few strings didn't break before he had finished all five movements of his extended work for solo piano. Taylor's "touch" at the instrument reminds me of nothing less than a jackhammer at work -- the notes and tone clusters explode from the sound board. Frankly, the technical challenges of this style of pianism are substantial, but don't underestimate the sheer stamina required to maintain this assault for the full duration of a concert. I often recommend Silent Tongues to fans of heavy metal and punk rock, since the intensity and theatricality involved here have much in common with those extreme forms of performance art. Could Cecil Taylor be the Sid Vicious of jazz? But even fans of hard bop and cool jazz might get swept away by the sheer passion of this music, which ranks among Cecil Taylor's most dramatic moments.
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: avant garde · free jazz · solo pianoOrnette Coleman: Lonely Woman
We still haven't come to grips with the turbulence unleashed by Free Jazz during the period that started with the Age of Ornette and roughly ended with the Arrival of Wynton. Critics will continue to debate the importance of this body of work. Nonetheless the day is past when anyone could release a recording called The Shape of Jazz to Come -- unless it was meant as a wry post-modern joke. No, this was not the shape of jazz to come, and what promised to be the final destination of the jazz idiom proved to be one more passing phase. But the best examples of the Free Jazz aesthetic continue to exert their power, and few are more potent than this early example of the Ornette Coleman quartet in full flight. Coleman's melody is haunting and his counterpoint with Don Cherry unforgettable. Haden's throbbing bass also contributes to the overall effect. Listening to this piece in 1959 must have been an unnerving experience, but after a half century of changing jazz fads and fashions it still will stir you up.
December 09, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: alto sax · avant garde · cornet · free jazz · lonely womanV.S.O.P.: One of a Kind
If you weren't a jazz fan at the time, you can hardly imagine the stir that this band made back in 1977. Newsweek featured the V.S.O.P. quintet in a cover story, pronouncing that Jazz Is Back. Of course, jazz hadn't gone anywhere, although it was a homecoming of sorts for some of the V.S.O.P. band members who had focused their energies on fusion music for most of the decade. I remember the excitement at the Greek Theater in Berkeley, where much of the resulting V.S.O.P. album was recorded in concert, a palpable sense that jazz history was being made on stage. In retrospect, this 1977 revival of the great 1960s Miles Davis Quintet (with Freddie Hubbard standing in for Miles, who definitely Was Not Back) did signal that fusion music was no longer a hot new thing. But predictions of widespread public interest in hard bop were premature, to put it mildly. And did the V.S.O.P. band live up to the hype? Certainly the individual members of the quintet exude tremendous energy on "One of a Kind." Hubbard takes the first solo, and shows why even today he must be on any list of the hottest trumpeters in the history of the music. Shorter follows and he gets into an esoteric bag with Hancock. Carter and Williams constantly stoke the fire. Maybe the band is trying a bit too hard . . the proceedings remind me of the NBA All Star Game where the heroics seem a little too staged. No, the V.S.O.P. reunion won't make you forget the great Blue Note sides these same musicians made in the 1960s, but it is much more than just a historical artifact. Pound for pound, no band of the decade had more raw talent on the stage, and if it had stayed together for a few years, and not just for a Very Special One-Time Performance, V.S.O.P. might have really shaken things up.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1970s jazzShirley Horn: You Stepped Out of a Dream
The late Shirley Horn had a long list of admirers. If you have any doubts, just look at the list of sidemen on her You Won't Forget Me CD -- which includes fellas named Wynton and Miles. They don't appear on this track, but the jazz credentials here are impeccable nonetheless. Buster Williams throws down the gauntlet during the opening bars, dishing out a queasy, churning bassline that would throw many singers for a loss. But Horn thrives on this type of accompaniment. Her intonation is perfect, her rhythmic sense impeccable, her phrasing always in sync with the meaning of the lyric. The CD title was prophetic. Although Horn is departed from the scene, she won't be forgotten.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: jazz vocals · you stepped out of a dreamBenny Carter: Central City Sketches
Benny Carter was six months shy of his 80th birthday when he debuted this extended composition at a "standing room only" concert at the Great Hall of Cooper Union. After a quarter of a century devoted primarily to work for movies and television, Carter could easily have been forgotten by the jazz world. Life ain't fair? Well, for once life did the right thing. Carter was given a major platform and he produced a major work -- an extended composition in six movements of Ellingtonian proportions. And like the Duke, Carter made no attempt to update his sound or jump on the latest bandwagon. The composer may be revisiting the harmonic and stylistic palette of the Swing Era, but nothing here sounds out-of-date. Carter's swinging lines and memorable melodies were captivating in 1937 and 1987 . . . and will still be charming listeners 50 years hence. Kudos as well to the all-too-short-lived American Jazz Orchestra for a winning performance.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: big bandThelonious Monk & Gerry Mulligan: 'Round Midnight
Producer Orrin Keepnews always did a brilliant job of putting his star musicians into interesting settings that tended to display new facets of their talent. As a result, the Monk recordings on Riverside represent a far more vital body of work than the later releases the pianist made when he switched to a major label. But matching Monk with baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan was an especially daring move. The folks at eHarmony would never approve. Who would think that the "High Priest of Bop" (as Monk was sometimes known at the time) and the fair-haired boy of the cool school (who made his reputation by getting rid of the piano in his band) could connect on the same wavelength? But judging by the results, Monk and Mulligan get along like carrots and peas. The opening is mostly cool school restraint, but the intensity ratchets up over the course of the song, and by the time we get to the final melody restatement, Monk is at his most dissonant. Mulligan seems to thrive on this battlefield, where the comping chords come flying like shrapnel. A peculiar moment in the discographies of both musicians, but a great date by any measure.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: baritone sax · riverside · round midnightJames Carter: 'Round Midnight
On his CD The Real Quietstorm, James Carter plays baritone sax . . . and tenor sax, alto sax, soprano sax, bass clarinet and bass flute. And plays them well. Of course, such versatility is rarely rewarded in the jazz world. Rahsaan Roland Kirk is hardly ever mentioned these days when jazz aficionados talk about great flautists or great tenor saxophonists -- and his constant switching back and forth among a dozen or so horns no doubt contributes to fans' difficulty in pigeonholing him. The same might be said of Benny Carter, who may have been the greatest alto sax soloist of his generation, but would also be found gigging on trumpet or piano or trombone or writing big band charts. Now we have another Carter whose multifaceted talent resists easy generalization. This baritone sax interpretation of "'Round Midnight" rivals in quality the version that Gerry Mulligan made in his celebrated session with Monk, but its style is far different. The baritone is the linebacker among jazz horns, and Carter brings out all of its muscular attributes. And I love his sound on the instrument. Imagine what he could do if he just focused on bari? Fat chance!
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: baritone sax · round midnightJames P. Johnson: Carolina Shout
"Carolina Shout" is James P. Johnson's most famous composition, and mastering it was a major rite of passage for aspiring Harlem stride piano players. But no one played it better than Johnson himself, as demonstrated by this outstanding 1944 recording. Stride piano was long out of fashion by the time of this session, replaced by the more streamlined rhythms of Kansas City, the jitterbugging sounds of the Swing Era and the nascent pulse of bebop. But James P. Johnson paid little attention to these passing fads, and asserts his own powerful musical vision. Hear the granddaddy of all jazz keyboardists at top form, the man and the song that influenced everyone from Ellington to Monk. A classic of American pianism.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: harlem · stride pianoJames P. Johnson: What Is This Thing Called Love
Only a few months after Cole Porter launched this tune as part of his 1929 musical Wake Up and Dream, James P. Johnson records this cover version in a stride adaptation. Johnson aims to transform Porter's minor key lament into a boisterous rent-party number. Jazz fans who are familiar with these chord changes as a springboard for bop pyrotechnics will find this Harlem piano version of the song a bit strange. "What Is This Thing Called Love" is not the best example of James P. Johnson's artistry -- check out his "Carolina Shout" or his classical works if you are new to this artist -- but even this track demonstrates the pianist's ability to put his own personal stamp on a popular standard.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: cole porter covers · harlem · what is this thing called loveRed Norvo: Dance of the Octopus
Music, declared Surrealist Manifesto author André Breton, is "the most deeply confusing of all art forms." He might've been referring to "Dance of the Octopus." After hearing a test pressing, a Brunswick Records exec manually shredded Red Norvo's contract. This was an understandable reaction to the strangest jazz track theretofore recorded. If we define surrealism as a phantasmagoria of irrational juxtapositions, then "Dance of the Octopus" is surrealist jazz. As wonderfully wacky as Hollywood's early 1930s black-&-white animated shorts (to which it could easily be a soundtrack), this quirky submersible by jazz's primo malleteer is an experience not be missed.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags:Red Norvo: In a Mist
Few jazz musicians have mastered a wider range of the music's history than the now unfairly forgotten Red Norvo. His resume reveals him working with Paul Whiteman in the 1920s, Benny Goodman in the 1930s, Charles Mingus in the 1940s and Frank Sinatra in the 1950s. But the recordings Norvo made under his own name in the 1930s are the best place to begin in coming to grips with this multi-faceted musician. Bix Beiderbecke had passed away only two years before this session, but the force of his personality continued to exert an influence over a generation of jazz players, with artists as diverse as Bing Crosby and Norvo learning from the cornetist's example. Here Norvo resurrects Bix's "In a Mist" in an ethereal performance that rivals Beiderbecke's own memorable piano rendition. "In a Mist" is a stellar example of chamber jazz, with an experimental flavor that has hardly been diminished with the passing years.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: in a mistRed Norvo: Dance of the Octopus
This strange piece of music sounds like . . . hmm, how about a dancing octopus? In a clever piece of program music, Norvo evokes an underwater mood with his lopsided melody, unusual instrumentation and startling arrangement. This masterpiece of cool jazz pushes beyond the typical confines of American popular music, circa 1933, and displays its avant-garde credentials proudly in every measure. The tenuous harmonies are reminiscent of "In a Mist," a version of which Norvo recorded at this same session, and "Dance of the Octopus" reminds us of what Bix Beiderbecke might have been doing had he lived longer. This is no mere novelty number, but true jazz chamber music of the highest order -- and proof that the cool aesthetic pioneered by Beiderbecke and Trumbauer in the 1920s still had adherents during the FDR years.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1930s jazz · bass clarinetRed Norvo: Honeysuckle Rose
In his day, Red Norvo recorded and gigged with everyone -- Billie Holiday, Charlie Parker, Frank Sinatra, Charles Mingus, Paul Whiteman, Benny Goodman, and Dizzy Gillespie, among others. Indeed, no other jazz musician of his generation had more diverse credentials. Norvo could flat his fifths with the boppers, or drink his fifths with Eddie Condon and the Chicagoans. But today he is unfairly ignored, dealt with as a modest footnote in the history of the music. What a shame! Few jazz bands in the 1930s were hipper than the Red Norvo Octet. Here in a rare integrated recording session from 1935, the xylophonist leads his band on a hard-swinging journey through "Honeysuckle Rose." What a strange, engaging mixture! The band tackles the song at a fast bop-like tempo, but by the end the horns are tossing out Dixieland counterpoint. A top-tier performance from an underrated ensemble that was always full of surprises.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: 1930s jazz · fats waller covers · honeysuckle roseDiana Krall: I've Got You Under My Skin (live in Paris)
What extraordinary patience and care Krall puts into her vocals. She never strains for effect, never gets caught up in superficialities. She just digs deeper and deeper into the emotional heart of a song. You may have heard this Cole Porter standard a thousand times before, yet Krall will make you believe that you are experiencing its feeling state for the first time. She lets this exquisite performance float by at the tempo of a heartbeat for a full 7½ minutes. This is what jazz singing sounds like when you get beyond the notes and into the soul of the composition. Highly recommended.
December 08, 2007 · 1 comment
Tags: cole porter covers · i've got you under my skinOrnette Coleman & Joachim Kuhn: House of Stained Glass
This live performance offers further evidence of Coleman’s unique melodic vision. The piano intro sets us up for the reading of the head, which displays the usual somewhat abstruse logic of this visionary’s compositional gifts. The interaction between the two would be awe-inspiring if one hadn’t come to expect this level of virtuosity from Coleman’s projects. That being said Kuhn sounds wonderful here, soloing and throughout. I am always thrilled to hear Ornette’s alto in less than familiar surroundings – especially a spare setting such as this. It reminds me what all the fuss was about, so long ago.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: alto sax · harmolodicsSonny Sharrock: Once Upon a Time
This track begins with one of THE greatest drummers of the 20th century laying the foundation for the whole piece. Bass is introduced briefly and then that marvelously saturated electric guitar sound of Sonny Sharrock. The guitarist is one of the more enigmatic figures of jazz to come out of the 60’s. He died young (53) and this session has him working with Sanders, who was one of the first artists he recorded with (Tauhid, 1966). Co-produced by Bill Laswell, this is one of Sonny’s best records and this tune’s drone-like quality builds regally through the fade with some beautiful soloing from the guitarist.
December 08, 2007 · 0 comments
Tags: guitarShelly Manne: I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face
Listening to André Previn's jazz recordings, I sometimes get the impression that he is out slumming . . . Having a good time, but not taking the proceedings very seriously. Too often he is content to throw out some clichés or play around with cocktail piano mannerisms. On this lovely Lerner & Lowe standard, he merely tinkles for most of the three minutes of the song. Manne tries to add some spice on the drums, engaging in a playful call-and-response during the melody statement. But Previn is not in the mood for musical banter. He plays it straight and simple. A clever bit of Lydian magic at the two-and-a-half minute mark reminds us that this is, in fact, an example of jazz piano. But for the rest of the song, we might as well be sitting in the lounge in the Marriott lobby. Rex Harrison did it with more soul.