‘Round Midnight – Chet Baker

by | Apr 29, 2023 | Quartet/Quintet

This has always been my favorite rendition of Thelonious Monk’s ‘Round Midnight … so much so, that I couldn’t resist adding my own visual interpretation of the mood it evokes. This is music for a rainy night.  Music for lonely lovers and all those others seeking shelter from the storm, needing comfort for the soul.

By request, for the first time in six years on Mark Of Jazz, I am repeating a post (May 12, 2017).  Besides Chet, the players in this set are unidentified and I’m not sure exactly where this particular performance came from, but I think it’s worth sharing one more once.

Fiddlin’ Around – Jean Luc Ponty

by | Apr 23, 2023 | Quartet/Quintet, Trio

It isn’t everyday we have the opportunity to see Jean Luc Ponty together with the likes of guitarist Al DiMeola and bassist Stanley Clarke, but the stars aligned in 1994 at The Montreux Jazz Festival.  The video below featuring their performance of Renaissance is merely one example.  Their landmark appearance was eventually made into both a CD and a DVD.

Here is Ponty with Dr. L. Subramaniam in 2003, live at The Gateway of India. Billy Cobham is on drums and the tune is called Conversations.  Whether labeled jazz-rock or fusion, their music is frantic and it’s fun!

Hank Mobley – The Middle Man

by | Apr 14, 2023 | Quartet/Quintet

Hank Mobley has been described as “the middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone” … a metaphor used to describe his tone, which was neither as aggressive as John Coltrane nor as mellow as Lester Young.  His style was laid-back, subtle and melodic, especially in contrast with players like John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins.  At the risk of sounding like a name-dropper, I’ll also point out that, like Charlie “Bird” Parker, any video of Hank is extremely rare.  Mobley’s 1968 performance of Summertime at the Jazzhus Montmartre in Copenhagen is the only one I could find.  His tenor is joined by Kenny Drew on piano, Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen (NHOP) on bass and Albert “Tootie” Heath playing drums.

The two tunes just below that are Remember where Hank is joined by Art Blakey on drums, Wynton Kelly playing piano, and Paul Chambers on bass … and Flirty Gerty with Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Jackie McLean on alto, Bob Cranshaw playing bass, Billy Higgins at the drums, John Hicks on piano and, of course, Hank Mobley out front with his tenor.

Remember

by Hank Mobley | Soul Station

Flirty Gerty

by Hank Mobley | High Voltage

Betty Carter Unplugged

by | Apr 8, 2023 | Trio, Vocal

Versatility abounds at The 1982 Montreal Jazz Festival with “What A Little Moonlight Can Do.”  As Carmen McRae once said, “”There’s really only one jazz singer—only one: Betty Carter.”

Betty Carter is something of an acquired taste, largely owing to her fondness for ‘scat singing’ … which is also an acquired taste.  Most folks either end up loving scat or hating it, but if you love it no one did it better, not even Ella.  Well-l-l, maybe it’s a tie because each is so unique.  Where Ella scat sings like a horn player, Carter thinks like a rhythm section and scats more like a bass player.  (Below left)  “Blue Moon” takes us back to France in 1968 and a younger Betty heading up The Betty Carter Trio with The Boy Edgar Orchestra.  Cees Slinger played piano, Jacques Schols bass, and John Engels was on drums.  (Below right) “What’s New” is another stellar performance from The 1982 Montreal Jazz Festival, featuring a most memorable Betty Carter bringing the lyrics to life, Khalid Moss on piano, Lewis Nash playing drums and Curtis Lundy on the bass.

In 1998, Betty Carter wowed The Nice Jazz Festival with her inimitable style and the Rodgers and Hart standard, “Isn’t It Romantic.”  The festival was held in July and she left us merely two months later in September.

The Incredible Jimmy Smith

by | Apr 1, 2023 | Big Band, Quartet/Quintet

Organ Grinder’s Swing (Top) was recorded at the Vienne Jazz Festival on July 7, 1993 in Vienne, France.  They rattled the cobblestones in the streets of that quaint old town with the likes of Jimmy on the Hammond, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Herman Riley playing tenor and Grady Tate at the drums.  Also in 1993, Smith performed Walk On The Wild Side with The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band In a special salute to the Jazz Masters.  We’re more used to hearing collaborations with Oliver Nelson on big band arrangements but the quartet merged equally well with the Carnegie group, as you can hear (Below, left).

While we don’t usually think of Elmer Bernstein when speaking of jazz, I’ve included the credits opening and original rendition of Walk On The Wild Side (Below, right) … because it may just be the greatest opening a motion picture ever had! Well-l-l-l, it certainly rates up there.