Archives for March 2006

When a voice behind me whispered low, 'That fellow's got to swing.' —Oscar Wilde, Hélas (1903) It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing. —Duke Ellington (1932) … [Read more...]

John Birchard of the Voice of America writes: I read your new material on Willis Conover and VOA. When I joined the staff in '93, Willis was in decline with cancer. As I worked ights, I didn't see him often and, in fact, never had a conversation with him. It was my impression that a fair number of … [Read more...]

"Bix Lives," read the graffiti after cornetist Bix Beiderbecke died in 1931. "Bird Lives," began appearing on walls in New York within days of Charlie Parker's death in 1955. Neither Beiderbecke nor Parker, however, inspired an establishment of religion. So far, the only jazz musician to be … [Read more...]

Ken Dryden writes: I enjoyed reading Paul Blair's comments about the late Willis Conover. What ever happened to his jazz collection--is it still in the VOA archives or was it disposed of with his estate, donated to an archives, etc.? Maybe Paul should get busy on a Conover bio. I just picked up a … [Read more...]

I'll be unbloggable, and possibly sleepless, in Seattle for a couple of days of meetings at the University of Washington, and some book business. There are worse places to be in springtime, when the cherry trees bloom in the UW quad, the showers lighten, and people smile more. In the meantime, visit … [Read more...]

Another location recording by Dave Frishberg? What do you mean, another? There hasn't been one since Do You Miss New York? That was four years ago. Ah, the one with "Jaws" and "The Hopi Way." How can he top that? Top it? Why does he have to top it? Music isn't a contest, a quest to set records (heh … [Read more...]

The Rifftides discussion of the perilous situation of the Voice of America’s English language broadcasting has a running sidebar about Willis Conover. Conover was the VOA’s free lance jazz voice, one of the United States’ most effective instruments of public diplomacy during the Cold War. … [Read more...]

Paul Blair, now an editor, free lance writer and licensed New York City tour guide, was a colleague of Willis Conover at the Voice Of America in the 1980s. He hosted a daily VOA broadcast. Blair sent Dave Frishberg the following recollection after reading Dave's story in the previous Rifftides … [Read more...]

Last night's concert by the Jim Knapp Orchestra at The Seasons Performance Hall drew on much of the repertoire from Knapp's most recent CD, Secular Breathing. There were a few changes in personnel, most notably the addition of Tom Varner, the brilliant French hornist who has moved from New York to … [Read more...]

The Portland Jazz Festival ended early this month, a week after I had to leave it. One of the events I hated to miss was a concert by the Jim Hall-Geoffrey Keezer duo. The Oregonian's Marty Hughley was there. I just came across his review, which contains this apt characterization of Hall. At 75, … [Read more...]

Thanks to Bill Reed and David Ehrenstein for calling this to our attention. … [Read more...]

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was going to my hometown—Wenatchee, Washington, The Apple Capital of the World and the Buckle of the Powerbelt of the Northwest—to give a talk preceding a concert by the Jeff Hamilton Trio. I had not heard Hamilton’s group in person since early in the … [Read more...]

The V.O.A. on short-wave radio and, in particular, the jazz presented by Willis Conover was top of our listening list as U.K. students in the late 1950's. Starved of American artists in the U.K because of the Musician's Union Ban, this was one way of our hearing the best U.S. jazz of the day.The … [Read more...]

Thanks to ArtsJournal commander-in-chief Doug McLennan for calling our attention, by way of his daily digest, to this story from the San Jose Mercury-News : San Jose's summer jazz festival calls itself the "largest free jazz festival in the United States." But that designation may be about to … [Read more...]

The Bush administration’s efforts to reduce or eliminate the amount of English language broadcasting overseas by the Voice Of America are receiving close attention from all sectors of the body politic. Not all of the warnings about the shortsighted foolishness of the administration strategy are … [Read more...]

I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play, bring a friend... if you have one. - George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second... if there is one. - Winston Churchill, in reply … [Read more...]

Bill Crow read the Rifftides post about The Seasons, then wrote: Could this be the realization of the dream Red Kelly had when he started the OWL party in Olympia. He wanted to build a giant Sin Drome near Chehalis, where everyone could come and party. His slogan: "Unemployment isn't working!" Uh. … [Read more...]

A couple of Rifftides readers have asked if there is a website for The Seasons, the nifty 400-seat performance hall in Yakima, Washington, my current home town. The Pacific Northwest of the United States is a wonderful place to visit. It is unlikely that many of you have immediate plans to come … [Read more...]

For ten years or so, David Sills has been emerging as a tenor saxophonist with a knack for fashioning calm, cool improvised lines laced with melodic and harmonic interest. His tonal quality leads reviewers to make comparisons with Stan Getz and Lester Young. Based on his harmonic resourcefulness, … [Read more...]