Jazz for aficionados
Jazz for aficionados
I'm going to review records in my collection, and you'll be able to decide if they're worthy of your collection. These records are what I consider "must haves" for any jazz aficionado, and would be found in their collections. I wont review any record that's not on CD, nor will I review any record if the CD is markedly inferior. Fortunately, I only found 1 case where the CD was markedly inferior to the record.
Our first album is "Moanin" by Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers. We have Lee Morgan , trumpet; Benney Golson, tenor sax; Bobby Timmons, piano; Jymie merrit, bass; Art Blakey, drums.
The title tune "Moanin" is by Bobby Timmons, it conveys the emotion of the title like no other tune I've ever heard, even better than any words could ever convey. This music pictures a person whose down to his last nickel, and all he can do is "moan".
"Along Came Betty" is a tune by Benny Golson, it reminds me of a Betty I once knew. She was gorgeous with a jazzy personality, and she moved smooth and easy, just like this tune. Somebody find me a time machine! Maybe you knew a Betty.
While the rest of the music is just fine, those are my favorite tunes. Why don't you share your, "must have" jazz albums with us.
Enjoy the music.
I'm going to review records in my collection, and you'll be able to decide if they're worthy of your collection. These records are what I consider "must haves" for any jazz aficionado, and would be found in their collections. I wont review any record that's not on CD, nor will I review any record if the CD is markedly inferior. Fortunately, I only found 1 case where the CD was markedly inferior to the record.
Our first album is "Moanin" by Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers. We have Lee Morgan , trumpet; Benney Golson, tenor sax; Bobby Timmons, piano; Jymie merrit, bass; Art Blakey, drums.
The title tune "Moanin" is by Bobby Timmons, it conveys the emotion of the title like no other tune I've ever heard, even better than any words could ever convey. This music pictures a person whose down to his last nickel, and all he can do is "moan".
"Along Came Betty" is a tune by Benny Golson, it reminds me of a Betty I once knew. She was gorgeous with a jazzy personality, and she moved smooth and easy, just like this tune. Somebody find me a time machine! Maybe you knew a Betty.
While the rest of the music is just fine, those are my favorite tunes. Why don't you share your, "must have" jazz albums with us.
Enjoy the music.
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The Mississippi River Delta, includes land on both sides of the Mississippi River. It includes several states. Arkansas and Louisiana being among them. The Mississippi (the State) Delta, extends from just south of Memphis, TN to Vicksburg, MS. I have a Mississippi Delta Blues Map that I purchased from the museum in Clarksdale, MS. I was stunned at the number of Blues musicians from the same area. Not from the entire state of Mississippi, just the delta region of Mississippi. Pops was not born nor raised in that Delta. https://www.google.com/search?q=mississippi+delta+blues+map&sxsrf=ALeKk00CV8iItoCIlGfmyzP0dlglmf... Cheers |
Rok, Pops was born and raised (and imprisoned) in the Delta. In his youth, he feared leaving N.O. at all. He eventually gave it a shot when he was invited to play jazz on riverboats. Once summoned to join King Oliver's band in Chicago in 1922, the cat was out of the bag. https://www.louisarmstronghouse.org/biography/ |
I often reach for T-Bone Walker when I want to hear blues with elements of jazz. Papa Ain’t Sally https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn8lNeEaLHo&list=PLQ4zwFxCQxeWqmA_6LE6hLyQtz2sVZOOZ&index=9 Glamour girl https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qjrf_QWM55Y Mean Old World https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7vp8-IyuGY&list=PLQ4zwFxCQxeWqmA_6LE6hLyQtz2sVZOOZ T-Bone Shuffle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GsRzqbRvus |
Alex, the conversation between you and I got derailed, but it seems to have created a lot of interest else where; that's good for the thread. For the record, I don't like "Delta Blues". I liked it a long time ago because those who were of the female persuasion could be found in numbers in the Blues joints, but were scarce in the jazz clubs. My priorities were different then. There are shades of difference between this Blues (jazz), and that Blues (Delta) which some may not be able to distinguish, but my ears hear a night and day difference. You posted an album with a view of the skyline of Chicago from a railroad yard; could you post that one again, and any others you have along those lines Thank you. |
edit; Frogman and Rok, you should try something with Van Halen (re resident jazz queen) you might be surprised...I see no reason why would that matter or why would anyone be surprised...I surely appreciate good old rock stuff. But I apologize if I disturbed you with my appreciation. Surely that will not happen any time soon. |
Trentmemphis, checked out Freddy Cole @ JALC. Very nice! Unique stylist and very good band. Thanks for the tip. I’m intrigued by your comment re what people say about the Delta. Would like your thoughts. A good friend is a busy musician in Nashville and he has told me there is a small but decent Jazz scene in Nashville. Too bad same can’t be said about Memphis. Happened across this: https://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entries/jazz-in-tennessee/ |
@jafant Yeah, 2020 isn't a great year to see much of a new place. No, there's practically no jazz scene at all in Memphis. Rock, blues, Americana, soul . . . not much jazz. And, unfortunately, our last audio shop closed about 10 years ago. We used to have a couple of pretty good ones. After the last one closed, George Merrill (he of the AR turntable mods, decades ago) opened kind of a half-shop, carrying just a few lines and doing business by appointment only, which, incredibly enough, I think is still around. I think it's moved since I was last there, though. @keegiam I was going to mention this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYALBzfY5QY Or even: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vchl9yUo3Fo |
If you think this is about sex, you might be a necrophiliac. Son House - Death Letter Blues https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCr3j_TwQwI |
Blues can be instrumental only, but singing dominates the form. I used to know a Berklee professor and we had this same discussion back in the 90s. He explained that blues is a vocal musical form with a lot of call and answer, and that instruments play a "vocal" role in the exchange. Just think of the guitar as a voice via which the musician expresses emotions. The same is true in jazz, n'est ce pas? Freddie and Albert King did mostly instrumentals and are blues legends. Don't shoot the messenger! Just passing along what I learned from the Berklee expert. |
More of the good stuff. now looka here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V--jgIQjco0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0aIjyX7vwI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJBh-ojdrI0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dHWdhHUysQ Cheers |
Nah! It’s the usual pointless attempt at narrowing classifications of genres. Waste of time. Music (art) is not like that; it’s all much more fluid than that. https://youtu.be/VBvxNhaEvHE (Michael Brecker, you are missed) |
Not sure I understand your question. With Elmore James, it’s obvious. Just listen to his words. With Pops, that’s the beauty of this music, no? It’s a feeling; and depending on OUR individual feeling when listening, it tells each of us a unique story....IF it’s good (instrumental) “story telling”. Now, if you want to get into the technical weeds of it all....simple.....they’re both classic twelve measure Blues form and both use a Blues tonality....they’re both the Blues. Hey, speaking of fowl: if it quacks like a duck, walks like a duck..... |
When ever yall get through mixing jazz with Blues, and calling them both blues; you take the "Delta" blues and leave me the jazz blues. Yall can call them both "The Blues" if you like, but I guarantee you, if you take both of them to "The Delta", you will get rocks thrown at you if you present the wrong one, And please believe me, if folks in the Delta don't know nothing else, they know "The Blues". |
The blues songs played by Burrell and other Jazz players are way way too sophisticated to ever be played in a Delta Juke Joint. The Frogman knows the words to say. Say them. Two Blues songs: I'm not sure Pops ever set foot in the Delta. He played blues fit for Carnegie Hall. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WPCBieSESI my posse and I used to hear this outside of 'Red Rubys' while riding our bicycles. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jcGY7NbaQw Talk to us Frogman. Cheers |
Muddy Waters was a Blues artist. Muddy Waters played the Blues: https://youtu.be/cXTCA2jJRXE No vocals. (I’m pretty sure I heard all sorts of stories in there) It’s the feeling. |
Rok, you might be right for that verse, but than again, I cant think of any words that might express this feeling more profundly that played here Nat Adderley from album 'Little big horn' with K.Burrell, from 1963 Loneliness https://youtu.be/B7R6dp74fR0 |
**** You can’t say this on a saxophone: "Got up this morning, got me a jug, and laid back down."*** Definitely up for debate 🤔 Not a chicken, but maybe close enough: https://youtu.be/H3sDygsxvSg https://youtu.be/eAa2FAyyF8w |
Keegiam, you are welcome, but we’ll have to wait to see what our resident bleues expert (Rok) have to say about it...live clip with Brown certainly sounded like one(blues)to me... Orpheus, I would not agree that blues must be presented with vocal, to be called ’the blues’...I’ve would say that ’feeling’ behind it is more important... Dizzy, Terry, Hubbard, with Peterson and Pass, from later years... album The Trumpet Summit Meets The Oscar Peterson Big Four 1980 https://youtu.be/FTshuTxrSvU Kenny Burrell ’Blues the common ground’ album from 1967. Not like his usual settings... https://youtu.be/CwskVXNwvKM https://youtu.be/_6g7OVtqz1s https://youtu.be/Mhy2gVTNE4w edit; Frogman and Rok, you should try something with Van Halen (re resident jazz queen) you might be surprised... Listening the Hooker, I could not resist...I like this album John Lee and Earl Hooker If you miss 'im...i got 'im" (1969) https://youtu.be/yD2RvYqW3-E https://youtu.be/VC3cl5TLHAM |
Someone say Real blues? Maybe The Queen will dig this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51Mek3CqDXI Cheers |
Thanks Alex. You nailed the "best in a club" aspect. I like his tone on 1 & 2. Fun tracks, and he knew how to chicken pick. Tended to overdo the lick repetitions on this one (which I didn't hear in his later stuff), and I had to fast forward through the organ solos. Live, 31 years later: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F90Mht9wC60 |
The "Delta Blues" is what I identify as "The Blues"; I have trouble defining other forms of music as "The Blues". For example "Sandra's Blues" is not the Blues to me. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMgwWAaxQQ4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQnOY5LWrWI In my mind, we have to have vocal, to have the blues, and for whatever reason, I don't identify "Blue Funk" as "The Blues". |