From time to time, John Birchard of the Voice of America news staff shares with Rifftides his impressions of musical events in the District of Columbia and environs. Can a ghost band make art? For example, does one consider a Glenn Miller Orchestra led by Sam Donahue capable of creating music that stands the test of time? How about the group led by Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter that featured Wallace Roney in the role of Miles Davis? Is their collaboration to be considered on the same plane … [Read more...]
Archives for October 2006
Correspondence: Cannonball 2
Continuing the Adderley theme, a Rifftides reader who identifies himself as El Destiny, sent the following message, which includes a link. This article includes a rare mp3 of Cannonball Adderley jamming with a novelty act of singing squirrels. The article tells the story of jazzman Don Elliott and partner Sascha Burland recording the track in an attempt to compete with Alvin & the Chipmunks. (Who had their own troubles with record labels...!) Within the article are several links, including one … [Read more...]
Comment: Life Imitates Art
After reading the Rifftides item about Josef Skvorecky's novel The Bass Saxophone, the British bassist, composer and leader Graham Collier wrote: Some years ago I suggested to BBC radio that they adapt The Bass Saxophone, which they duly did with my music. Art Themen, best known as a tenor sax player, played the bass sax for the occasion. He owned a bass saxphone, which helped, but I asked him for this gig because--as I had seen in other collaborations with him--he had the rare ability to "act … [Read more...]
Other Matters: October
Any day now could be the last good one of the year for cycling, so I said goodbye to work and took advantage of a late October afternoon so perfect that to have left it out there by itself would have been a shame. Deciding not to pit the road bike against heavy, skitterish Friday traffic, I left it in the shed and headed the mountain bike toward the system of canals that criss-crosses this agricultural valley. I dropped onto the path along a canal a block from my house and entered instant peace … [Read more...]
Freedom
Jazz expresses a yearning for freedom that survives the worst oppression. In his essay "Red Music," the Czech novelist Josef Skvorecky wrote about an urge that even the most brutal tyranny cannot fully extinguish. Skvorecky grew up under Nazi occupation in World War Two. He was a budding tenor saxophonist in a dance band with other youngsters. They were infected by the "forceful vitality," the "explosive creative energy" of jazz. He and his young friends did not regard themselves as … [Read more...]
New Picks: Guitar DVD
The latest DVD recommendation has joined the other new Doug's Picks in the right-hand column. … [Read more...]
The Artist’s Dilemma
. . .this is my dilemma. I'm a guy who makes things up as I go along so nothing is ever finished--there are so many layers. So when you solo, yeah, you might get into one thing, but then, hey, everything has implications! You can hear the next level. And that's how I feel about improvising--there's always another level. --Sonny Rollins … [Read more...]
New Picks: CDs And A Book
In the right column under Doug's Picks, you will find three recommended new CDs and a book of photographs to keep you company. Soon to come: a new DVD pick. … [Read more...]
CD
Sonny Rollins, Sonny, Please (Doxy). A canny balance between new compositions and show tunes he loved in his youth. The great tenor saxophonist proves that since 2001's Without a Song, and following the loss of his wife two years ago, his strength, imagination and intensity are undiminished. Steady work together has finely attuned Rollins and his five bandmates. His solos, laced with allusions and quotes, are notably cheerful. Stephen Foster is on his mind. "Oh! Susannah" pops up on two tracks, … [Read more...]
CD
Brian Lynch/Eddie Palmieri, Simpático (ArtistShare). Lynch, trumpeter for Eddie Palmieri, is the leader in this immensely satisfying album. He also works for Phil Woods and brings in both of his bosses as sidemen. At the piano, Palmieri ignites the proceedings spectacularly on Lynch's "The Palmieri Effect." Woods contributes stunning alto sax solos. Lynch plays throughout with fire, technical perfection and bebop harmonic understanding. Lila Downs brings emotional depth to vocals on two pieces, … [Read more...]
CD
Alan Broadbent, Every Time I Think of You (Artistry Music). The pianist applies his keyboard elegance and arranging talent to an album featuring his piano, Brian Bromberg's bass, Kendall Kay's drums and a string section. Broadbent's treatment of "Blue in Green" is a highlight, as haunting in its evocation of Bill Evans as is his "E. 32nd Elegy" of New York City in Lennie Tristano's day. His string writing supports and enhances the trio without a single harmonic clash, and it avoids the most … [Read more...]
DVD
Vic Juris, Corey Christiansen, Live at the Smithsonian Jazz Café (Mel Bay). Relaxation and amiable swing characterize two-and-a-half hours with the veteran Juris and the relative newcomer Christiansen. The guitarists are close listeners and thoughtful improvisers more concerned with line, chords and mood than with display and fire. The varied repertoire includes well chosen standards, compositions by each and originals by Carla Bley and Wayne Shorter. Over the years, "All The Things You Are" has … [Read more...]
Book
Lee Tanner, The Jazz Image: Masters of Photography (Abrams). The veteran jazz photographer assembles under one roof 150 examples of the best work of twenty-seven of his peers. Many of the prints are familiar--Herman Leonard's image of Dexter Gordon and a cloud of backlit smoke at the Royal Roost, Tanner's of Horace Silver musing. Others, less well known, are as surprising as the music itself--Ole Brask's image of a meeting of the Roy Eldridge-Norman Granz mutual admiration society; William … [Read more...]
Weekend Extra: Cecil Taylor And Henry Grimes
We get a lot of notices about concerts and club appearances. We don't publish them ("post them," in blogese). Rifftides is not, and will not be, a publicity clearinghouse. However, the Rifftides staff is making a one-time exception, partly because Margaret Davis, Henry Grimes' manager and ranking fan, was too clever and resourceful to resist. She even used the old "speaking of" trick. She went all the way back to Dave Frishberg's January 23 guest item about Cecil Taylor and used it as a hook for … [Read more...]
Weekend Extra: Fun And Games
I have long been convinced that one of the predominant reasons listeners took the classic Dave Brubeck Quartet to their hearts was visual. In the late fifties through the sixties, it was hip for jazz musicians to turn their backs--literally or figuratively--on the audience and each other. In contrast, it was obvious that the quartet enjoyed one another's company and music and didn't feel that it was uncool to show it. Brubeck, Paul Desmond, Eugene Wright and Joe Morello paid close attention as … [Read more...]
Correspondence: Golson And Kelly Blue
Eric Felten writes: On the "Kelly Blue" post: There's another reason to cherish Wynton Kelly's Kelly Blue. The title cut has what I consider to be Benny Golson's finest solo on record, and one of the great tenor solos of all time. It starts out bluesy and easy-going and builds relentlessly (and logically) into a torrent of out-and-in-and-back-out-again playing. Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant. The lengthy "Kelly Blue" track, by the way, was clearly cobbled together from at least a couple of … [Read more...]
This Just In…
a href="http://www.arsc-audio.org/"target="_blank">The Association for Recorded Sound Collections is pleased to announce the winners of the 2006 ARSC Awards for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research. BEST RESEARCH in RECORDED JAZZ MUSIC Best History: Take Five: The Public and Private Lives of Paul Desmond, by Doug Ramsey, with discography by Paul Caulfield. (Parkside Publications). Best Discography: Stan Getz: An Annotated Bibliography and Filmography, with Song and Session … [Read more...]
Busman’s Holiday
Once in a while it is necessary to take a day off and listen for the pleasure of the music, ignoring assignments and deadlines, including those that are self-imposed. Randomness is the key, letting one piece of music lead to the next. Sometimes the results are a surprise. I took a day off. Here's what I heard, in more or less this order. Only the Bill Evans was in the line of duty. (See the next item.) Branford Marsalis, "Hope" (from Braggtown) (Marsalis Music) Jack Teagarden, "Think Well of … [Read more...]
Comments And Response: Evans and Burrell
A couple of faithful Rifftides readers comment on the posting about the Bill Evans- Kenny Burrell video on YouTube. Ted O'Reilly counters my supposition that Evans and Burrell recorded together only one other time. He writes: Bill and Kenny are both sidemen with Chet Baker on Chet -- The Lyrical Trumpet of Chet Baker, Riverside OJC CD-087-2. I had forgotten that. Thanks for the reminder. Mel Narunsky writes: Listening to Bill Evans and Kenny Burrell brings to mind a probably highly contentious … [Read more...]