Lionel Hampton International Jazz Festival Moscow, Idaho 2/24/07 At this jazz festival doubling as a music education experience for young people, there are as many as a dozen events in every hour of the day. They are scattered across the University of Idaho campus and the town of Moscow. It is … [Read more...]

Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival Moscow, Idaho 2/23/07 Here's a quick update on highlights of a few of the dozens of festival events since the last posting. Last night's concert ran past midnight. It was dedicated to the late bassist Ray Brown and featured colleagues who achieved fame as sidemen in … [Read more...]

Local wisdom has it that the population of Moscow, Idaho, doubles during the week of the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. Half of the temporary immigrants seem to be Russian musicians and others from the former Eastern bloc. At the opening concert in the University of Idaho field house, we heard … [Read more...]

To his amazement and, apparently, that of his doctors, my brother had recovered enough to be checked out of the hospital today and sent home. Going into major surgery a week ago, his situation was touch and go. Thanks to all of you who expressed concern. He knows and is grateful. … [Read more...]

Thanks to Bill Reed, aka Dr. Chilledair, for alerting us to recent video of Pinky Winters performing. The occasion was a concert during her December tour in Japan. You may recall that in the Rifftides review of her new CD recorded in 1983, I emphasized that she is singing beautifully these days. To … [Read more...]

No, not that Moscow, the one in Idaho. I'm off later this morning to the Lionel Hampton International Jazz Festival. In its fortieth year, the twenty-second under his name, the festival goes on without Hamp, worse luck, but with an array of peformers including Benny Green, Jeff Hamilton, Christian … [Read more...]

A benefit is scheduled for next week to help pianist Larry Willis, who was burned out of his home last month. The January 7 fire in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, destroyed the living quarters of the house he shared with a friend. Willis is one of the great journeyman pianists in modern jazz. His resumé … [Read more...]

A message came in yesterday from a Rifftides reader who did not identify himself except to write, "I am going to be 25 in July and I consider myself not to be like most young people who at my age are probably getting their news from Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert." The anonymous correspondent said … [Read more...]

My brother is flat on his post-operative back, tethered to his hospital bed like a docked freighter, tubes going into every natural and created orifice. A nurse circumnavigates the bed checking monitor screens for vital signs, adjusting catheters, smoothing sheets. Then, heading for the door, the … [Read more...]

I left my hometown hospital after sitting with my brother in the intensive care unit for several hours. He is sedated up to his eyeballs, thank goodness, but seemed to know that I was there. Well, he knew that someone was there. The doctors tell me that the operation--a risky one--went well. We are … [Read more...]

Following the hospital visit, I had a terrific salmon dinner, then went to a bistro for a glass of wine. I ordered a Russell cabernet, which turned out to be a good choice. At a nearby table was a distinguished looking man of about sixty sitting with a couple who appeared to be in their late … [Read more...]

Nearly a year ago, reviewing The Shadow Of Your Smile: Pinky Winters Sings Johnny Mandel...with Lou Levy, I went on at length about that remarkable release by the vocalist and the pianist. Here is a bit of the review. Pinky Winters does not scat, swoop, or indulge in any form of "jazz singer" … [Read more...]

For the moment, I am back at Rifftides world headquarters, following a hundred-mile drive through dense fog in the wee hours to be with my unexpectedly hospitalized brother. Arriving after 2:00 a.m., I "slept" for four hours on a cot in his room. If you have ever done time in a hospital, you will … [Read more...]

Considering that the last of his last four albums was released in 1966 and only one of them is available on CD, there has been a suprising amount of response to the January Rifftides piece about the music of Rod Levitt. A message that arrived this morning updates the Levitt story. Rod Levitt turned … [Read more...]

I have no idea how many recorded jazz versions there are of Cole Porter's Songs. Hundreds, I imagine, possibly thousands. Think what handsome contributions "Love For Sale," "I Love You," Easy To Love" and "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To" must have made to Porter's royalties income. Of course, … [Read more...]

A family emergency has called me away. I don't know for how long, but the nature of the emergency has me not daring to hope that it will be a short stay. I'll be posting again as soon as possible. DR … [Read more...]

The Grammy win last night by Brian Lynch and Eddie Palmieri for Best Latin Jazz Album is also a victory for the proposition that independence can bring rewards. Lynch said goodbye to the oversight of record companies, produced Simpático on his own and released it with ArtistShare, the cooperative … [Read more...]

Rifftides Washington, DC correspondent John Birchard heard Dave Holland's new band the other night and filed this report. Terrace Theater, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, D.C. February 9, 2007. Dave Holland, bass; Robin Eubanks, trombone; Antonio Hart, alto saxophone; … [Read more...]

There have been several interesting comments about the Rifftides Pay To Play posting. Jim Brown's comment constitutes an essay and gets a posting of its own. He wrote it in response to messages about the Pay To Play piece that appeared on a listserve devoted to west coast jazz. The emphases and … [Read more...]