Steps – Chick Corea Freedom Band – Pt. 1

by | Mar 27, 2021 | Quartet/Quintet

Christian McBride’s amazing opening bass solo flows into Chick Corea’s unmatched piano prowess on the tune called Steps.  Not to be outdone, Keith Jarrett’s sax soliloquy communicates the passion personified by drummer Roy Haynes, much to the delight of their audience and fellow musicians.  I’ve never been a particularly huge fan of jazz fusion but Chick and this 2010 concert in Marciac, France have captured enough of my attention to inspire a deeper dive into that genre.  Although Chick Corea left us in February (2021), his musical legacy has made an indelible mark on the international jazz scene.

Slow Freight – Junior Mance & Ray Bryant

by | Mar 19, 2021 | Quartet/Quintet

Very few things are as addictive as salted peanuts … betcha’ can’t eat just one!  That’s why they employed two pianos and twenty golden fingers to perform the super bluesy Ray Bryant composition, Slow Freight.  The tune was recorded in 1993 for a Japanese TV special and features both Junior Mance and Ray Bryant on pianos, Bob Cranshaw on bass and Alan Dawson playing drums.

Stan Kenton’s West Side Story

by | Mar 17, 2021 | Big Band, Soundtrack

In 1961 The Stan Kenton Orchestra recorded a spectacular jazz album of music from West Side Story that rivaled even the soundtrack of the movie and the Broadway play.  Kenton West Side Story was one of the first ‘mellophonium‘ albums, featuring the newly-developed trumpet/French horn hybrid instrument and won Stan his first Grammy Award in 1962 for Best sound track LP and Best large ensemble jazz LP. Here are three songs from that album:

Kenton’s beautifully mellow rendition of Maria is music from the album itself.  Prologue [on the left] and Cool [on the right] are videos recorded during a live 1961 performance of the album material.

Maria

by Stan Kenton | Kenton's West Side Story

Two Of A Kind / Dat Dere – Art Blakey

by | Mar 6, 2021 | Big Band, Quartet/Quintet

Drummer Art Blakey and the 1989 version of his Jazz Messengers (with trumpeter Brian Lynch, tenor saxophonist Javon Jackson, trombonist Frank Lacy, pianist Geoff Keezer and bassist Buster Williams) celebrated the leader’s 70th birthday by welcoming back several notable alumni: trumpeters Freddie Hubbard and Terence Blanchard, altoists Jackie McLeanand Donald Harrison, tenors Wayne Shorter and Benny Golson, pianist Walter Davis Jr. and trombonist Curtis Fuller.  The opening song of that all star  performance was Two Of A Kind … and that set the tone for the next couple of hours.

The lower video features the original Jazz Messengers in 1961 with the slightly comedic Bobby Timmons tune Dat Dere … featuring Blakey on drums, the great Lee Morgan playing trumpet, Wayne Shorter on tenor sax, Bobby Timmons playing piano and Jymie Meritt on bass.

Now’s The Time – J.J. Johnson & The All Stars

by | Feb 27, 2021 | Big Band, Vocal

Many performances feature what they call All Stars but this 1994 Carnegie Hall Concert actually had the proof in the pudding … jazz legends one and all!  Imagine J.J. Johnson, Roy Hargrove, Jackie McLean, Joe Henderson, Kenny Burrell, Herbie Hancock, Hank Jones, Ray Brown, Christian McBride, Kenny Washington, Betty Carter and Dee Dee Bridgewater all in the same place, at the same time, on the same stage!  Charlie Parker’s Now’s The Time was the perfect vehicle to deliver standout moments like Betty Carter trading fours with J.J. Johnson, Roy Hargrove, Jackie McLean and Joe Henderson!  Actually, you don’t have to imagine it.  Here is the grand slam finale of that concert!

You can hear the concert in its entirety on YouTube at https://youtu.be/PTPuhLp8fWM

Clark Terry & Red Mitchell Together

by | Feb 23, 2021 | Solo/Duo

In 1988 at the ZDF Jazz Club, two of Duke Ellington’s most popular compositions were performed by two of jazzdom’s most talented musicians … Clark Terry on flugelhorn and trumpet plus Red Mitchell playing double bass.  Separately, either one can help you forget your troubles for hours.  Together, they can make you forget the entire rest of the band for good!  Terry connects all the notes into a single string of melodic calisthenics on “It Don’t Mean A Thing If It Ain’t Got That Swing”  and you can almost hear Mitchell’s bass sing when the “Sophisticated Lady” and Red musically dance as one!  This is a dynamic duo you are going to enjoy.

A Touch Of Burrell

by | Feb 13, 2021 | Trio

In A Mellow Tone is a Duke Ellington classic performed by the incomparable guitarist Kenny Burrell, bassist Marcus McLaurine and drummer Sherman Ferguson.  The tune was recorded in 1990 at The Subway Musikbar in Cologne, to the delight of a packed house of German jazz fans.

Lower left, George and Ira Gershwin’s Summertime was recorded live at the Town Hall in New York City on February 22, 1985.  Grover Washington Jr. added his soprano sax sounds to Kenny’s trio, which included Reggie Workman (b) and Grady Tate (d).  Lower right, the uniquely uptempo Jennine was performed in 1990 at a Japanese Club Date for TV … with Kenny Burrell on guitar, Bob Magnuson on bass and Sherman Ferguson playing drums.

Shades Of Black – Duke Ellington

by | Feb 6, 2021 | Big Band

On Nov. 2, 1969 a legendary concert was held at Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, Denmark.  At that time, Duke Ellington was celebrating his 70th birthday and had been leading his orchestra for 44 years.  His band featured such jazz icons as  trumpeters Cootie Williams and Cat Anderson, trombonist Lawrence Brown, altoist Harry Carney, Paul Gonsalves on tenor and Rufus ‘Speedy’ Jones on drums.

Here are three of my favorites from that concert, celebrating the Duke’s African roots.  The uppermost video is a haunting, very Ellington piece called “La Plus Belle Africaine,” At the lower left is “Black Butterfly” with a tender Johnny Hodges solo that takes you soaring with the butterfly itself … lower right is “Black Swan” featuring a duel between Duke’s piano and Wild Bill Davis’ Hammond organ..

My Way – The Three Tenors

by | Jan 22, 2021 | Trio, Vocal Group

The Three Tenors?  Jazz?  Well, when you add Frank Sinatra to the mix and understand the musical reverence they have for him, it begins to make sense.  In July 1994, José Carreras, Plàcido Domingo, and Luciano Pavarotti, together with conductor Zubin Mehta and The L.A. Philhrmonic, performed “A Tribute to Hollywood” medley at their legendary concert at the Los Angeles Dodger Stadium.  Old Blue Eyes was in attendance and his reaction to the trio’s uniquely tender rendition of My Way demands that I share this with you.