Bill Perkins (1924-2003) was the archetype of the creative musician incapable of letting his style freeze in place. To borrow the phrase coined by his initial inspiration Lester Young, Perkins refused to be a “repeater pencil.” He was with Stan Getz, Gene Ammons, Zoot Sims, Richie Kamuca, Al … [Read more...]

The National Endowment for the Arts today named the 2012 NEA Jazz Masters. As announced in the NEA's news release, the winners are: Jack DeJohnette, Drummer, Keyboardist, Composer (born in Chicago, IL; lives in Willow, NY) Von Freeman, Saxophonist (born in Chicago, IL; lives in … [Read more...]

More than one Rifftides reader has taken me to task for posting nothing about the death of Bob Flanigan, the original lead singer of the vocal-instrumental group The Four Freshmen. Flanigan died on May 15 at his home in Las Vegas. He was 84. As if to validate the group, many of his obituaries … [Read more...]

HOT LIPS PAGE Speaking of quasi-forgotten trumpeters of the 1930s and ‘40s (see the Benny Carter item in the previous exhibit), in his current post, blogger and frequent Rifftides correspndent Bruno Leicht highlights Hot Lips Page. Here’s some of what he writes about that musician of … [Read more...]

Benny Carter (1907-2003) is indelibly identified as a master of the alto saxophone, to the point where many listeners new to his work don’t know that he was also one of the great trumpet soloists of the 1930s. He gave up the horn for several years, concentrating on alto sax, composing and … [Read more...]

Don Emanuel, David Evans and other Rifftides readers have encouraged me to continue posting photographs made during bicycle expeditions. Okay. Maybe they are a welcome diversion. I tore myself away for a 15-miler this afternoon and paused at the top of a long, steep hill because my legs told me … [Read more...]

Here are the headline, subhead and lead paragraph of a news release from the Montreal Jazz Festival. I wonder if he jumped in at the last moment to sub for another jazz star who withdrew, Lady Gaga, perhaps. … [Read more...]

Reaction to the death of Ray Bryant keeps coming in. Dubliner Colm (Red) O’Sullivan writes from Rio de Janeiro, where he is immersing himself in Brazilian music. He alerts us to video of a fellow Irishman, guitarist Louis Stewart, playing a Bryant composition. Stewart has been an important player … [Read more...]

The staff is back at Rifftides world headquarters after joining other Jazz Journalists Association members for the JJA’s 2011 award event. We assembled on Saturday at Egan’s Ballard Jam House in Seattle to watch the ceremony by satellite feed from New York. It was one of several satellite … [Read more...]

Woke up this morning (no, that is not going to be the beginning of a blues lyric)… …and made this the background music to preparations for the day. I chose it because I wanted something that had solos I could sing, hum and whistle along with as I fixed breakfast. Every note of Horace … [Read more...]

New video has surfaced from an engagement that trumpeter Marcus Printup played with the Emil Viklický Trio during Printup’s visit to the Czech Republic in 2007. YouTube identifies the first piece as “In Holomoc Town,” but that is likely a misspelling or alternate spelling of “Olomouc,” … [Read more...]

Periodically, we post brief alerts to recordings the Rifftides staff finds worthwhile. The mini- or micro-reviews are not intended as deep analysis, but as guideposts. Some of these albums are recent arrivals. We select others, not quite at random, from accumulations in the music room and office, … [Read more...]

Ray Bryant died on Thursday in a New York hospital following a long illness. He was 79. A pillar of modern mainstream piano, Bryant was often categorized as a blues pianist. He was certainly that, a great one, but his stylistic breadth, powerful swing and harmonic flexibility put him in demand not … [Read more...]

Lee Konitz, Brad Mehldau, Charlie Haden, Paul Motian, Live at Birdland (ECM). When he’s working with people whose knowledge and ears he trusts, Konitz sometimes simply begins. The first track starts with seven seconds of silence. Then, Konitz, accompanied by Motian’s brushes, embarks on an … [Read more...]

There is someone I think of every Memorial Day, and many other days. Cornelius Ram and I were among a collection of young men who accepted the United States Marine Corps’ bet that we weren’t tough or smart enough to wrestle commissions from it. It quickly became apparent to everyone, including … [Read more...]

After the American Red Cross acknowledged the millions of dollars Paul Desmond left the organization (see this recent item), it also named a training room after him. The facility is in the national Red Cross headquarters in Washington, DC. We're working on getting a picture of the training room and … [Read more...]

Today is the 85th anniversary of the birth of alto saxophonist and flutist Bud Shank. One of the most respected of the musicians who flourished on the west coast in the fifties, he went on to gain worldwide popularity. Shank was especially popular in Brazil, whose music he was one of the first … [Read more...]