That post was in regard to Ellington only.
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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Today's Listen: Duke Ellington -- NEW ORLEANS SUITE The Duke's tribute to The City and it's Musical Heritage. According to the liner notes, Ellington was thinking about how he could persuade Johnny Hodges to play Soprano on this tribute to Sidney Bechet, when the phone rang, and he was informed Hodges had just died. Paul Gonsalves was the subsequent choice. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZJ7O8gOAPU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=890IdiOOVKM Great CD. Along with 'Latin America Suites', my last Ellington purchases. Cheers |
Pryso, I do not know your feelings, but to paraphrase Groucho Marx 'I would never want to be a memebr of a club, that wants somebody like me as a member'... https://youtu.be/jsW-atvN9y0 |
Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges -- SIDE BY SIDE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NgvXbwi4lI The liner notes in the booklet are just as fascinating as the music itself. Gives good insight into the workings of the Ellington Band. Clark Terry who was a band member for 8 years, said the only rehearsals he could recall were for new material prior to recording sessions. Stop smiling O-10. The reason for this was the gifted players in the Band, and the many years they had played together. *****A lot of the music was never committed fully and accurately to score paper. A case in point was the experience of saxophonist bill Perkins, who was booked to take part in an Ellington Tribute concert at which he would play the baritone. "I looked forward to playing those marvelous Harry Carney parts", remarked Perkins prior to the first rehearsal, only to find out later that they did not exist. At best, Ellington's musicians would be provided with just skeletal scores, little more than a melody line.......*** I don't quite understand all that, but it seems like you had to be ready to play with Ellington. Listen to the entire LP. Great stuff. Cheers |
How about a change of pace with some swinging female vocals; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-QpUr-A_BA Karrin Allyson, "No Moon At All"; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWdgG7TJl7Y |
Another favorite recording of Ellingtons, Soul Call. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgdQO-o5Ykw Pryso, How about you play some favorite Basie? Also, I am thinking, not very well, about your question from last night. I will respond if my brain is able to pull something up. |
Part of the genius of Duke Ellington was the way his music was able to paint a picture or tell a story; not unlike the idea behind the “tone poems” of some of the great Classical composers. Very evocative music which demanded listening in a way that was different from that for the more visceral music of other jazz composers/leaders. Great quote, Alex; pretty funny. **** However prior to discovering this post I never would have called myself an "aficionado" anyway. ;^) **** pryso, for some reason for me the word “aficionado” has always conjured up an image of Hugh Heffner smoking a pipe and wearing a silk robe while saying “Yeah, baby” 😎 Very interesting topic, “rediscovered” records. Oliver Nelson’s “BATAT” was the very first recording that I mentioned in my very first post on this thread. Wonderful and classic record. Great and very interesting choice of personnel on the record which was discussed a couple of times subsequently in the context of a discussion about arrangers. Nelson was, of course, one of the best. On that record’s title cut is quite possibly my favorite Freddie Hubbard solo on record; great example of thematic development in a solo and swinging like mad. However, I am not sure that this record would qualify for “rediscovered” as I think is what you mean and was certainly never forgotten by jazz fans in general. This record has consistently placed on “must have” lists pretty much since its release. In more direct answer to your question I think that the difference is that records like KOB and Time Out (to a lesser extent) were records that influenced the direction of jazz whereas BATAT, excellent as it was, was not a “milestone” recording. KOB and TO set a pretty high bar in that regard. Again, a very interesting topic worth exploring. Here’s my first nominee for classic “rediscovered” recording. This record created quite a stir when first released and seemed to be forgotten for a while and then got a lot of renewed attention over the last few years. One of my favorites: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IwOIVQVVhwg https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GYQNsuzMXiQ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_vVHT-wSLik |
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So, a little more on my feelings about Ellington, not that any of you might or should care. ;^) I'm not much of a fan of big band jazz in general. By necessity too much must be charted out. Yes there are solos within a number but the ensemble playing just seems to lose something in spontaneity for me. A bit of big band jazz (Basie, Herman, Ellis, Evans, etc.) I can enjoy, but most others I can easily skip. As I tried to say, that's just me, nothing negative about the Duke himself. rok, "We are all entitled to our own opinion, just not our own facts." I was not aware I was presenting anything as fact, just stating my own position. alex, as it happens I'm a big fan of Groucho, and have been known to quote him myself. So excuse me if I offer a slight correction to your quote, "I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member." acman, I have posted a bit of Basie, but will add this, it is representative of the drive that draws me in - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cc0nDETJlbY frog, I guess my perspective on Nelson's "Blues And The Abstract Truth" was more in the sense of reduced popularity/general awareness, not that it was forgotten by the jazzbos. It was released to acclaim, then was seldom heard or talked about (outside of the dedicated jazzbos) for some time. Now with the reissued vinyl craze over the past 10+ years it became well known again. So (shudder) maybe I'm only thinking of sales. Other candidates for rediscovered albums I'll offer are Mingus' "Tijuana Moods, two or three Julie London records, and June Christy's "Something Cool". Those were all records I heard practically nothing about for years and now with the reissued vinyl they are in demand again. That is different from other jazz albums which continued sales on CDs in the intervening years. |
“Corner Pocket”: Fabulous! One of my favorite Basie charts. Wasn’t aware of that record. Didn’t know Basie had recorded at The Sands except for the great record with Sinatra; a favorite. Wonderful drive as you say. That’s gotta be Lockjaw Davis on tenor. What a sound and I love his use of note inflections. Quiz time! : Can anyone name the tune that the trumpet player quotes at the very beginning of his solo? Hint: the tune was a big hit for (speaking of big bands) for a Cuban band leader from the 40s/50s whose last name sounds like the name of a famous fashion designer and whose first name is usually a last name 🤔 |
Researching that great Basie ”Live At The Sands” recording that pryso posted I learned that this recording is from the warm up sets that the band would play before the “The Chairman” took the stage for the famous Sinatra At The Sands concerts. Here’s an earlier (1962) performance of the same chart. What a band! This time it’s Frank Wess playing a beautiful tenor solo. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8IVX8BayOCA Among the many great things that one could point to two stand out for me. One of the, if not exactly unsung, but certainly more subtle heroes in Basie’s band was guitarist Freddie Green. In practically every chart they played, subtly in the “mix”, one can hear Green’s acoustic (!) rhythm guitar chomp-chomp-chomping on every beat. It’s the kind of very important musical detail that is not fully appreciated unless it were not there at all. It added so much to the sound of the band and to that sense of drive that pryso mentions. He was also the author and arranger of “Corner Pocket” which leads me to the second point: Check out Thad Jones’ trumpet solo! He plays first and is followed by Al Aarons. When was the last time we heard or read anything about what a great trumpet player Thad Jones was? Like Oliver Nelson his fame as a great orchestrator/band leader has made many forget what great players they were. The recognition that the arrangers deserve puts things in a different perspective for me. Not to take anything away from the leaders or headliners, but the reality is that without the great arrangers the leaders would not have nearly as much to lead. Although I’m particular fond of Neal Hefti’s arrangements for Basie, Sammy Nistico was another great arranger who helped define Basie’s big band sound. This is one of my favorite charts of his: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TS-UNkdyyvg |
Thanks frog. I have the "Live at the Sands" recording on CD. I love the entire album except for Sinatra's monolog. That smacks too much of the old white guys doing the Amos 'N Andy routine. I could just imagine members of the band cringing while he did it. Luckily with CD it is easy to skip to the next track. I agree about Freddie Green. Did you see my comments on him during the mention of bluegrass and the importance of the rhythm guitar back up? Speaking of Thad Jones, this has long been a favorite album (easy since I love Monk so much anyway) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoSoCj3DWhc&list=PLbQSo5KOStyvpPfvrQy4Kvyt1q_genUbS |
I must admit and thank you all in this forum for extending my jazz music collection and introducing me to some truly great music. Please keep them coming. Listening to Miles Davis Flamenco Sketches in High Resolution and cant imagine music ever being better than what was comprised on Kind of Blue. From the all star cast to the improvisation to the reported first takes going on wax. IMHO KOB will forever be the standard for jazz music. Listening Cannonball and Coltrane duke it out is pure joy. Cheers |
Today’s Listen: Ellington & Hodges -- BACK TO BACK: PLAY THE BLUES The OP's favorite Blues https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azYeH-tn0qE It does indeed sound weary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtQ-yfNTIyg Cheers |
pryso, yes I did see your comment re Green: **** Just a steady foundation to each tune. **** Exactly! And we all know what happens when you take the foundation away. re Thad Jones and Monk. I think whoever posted your link originally screwed up. Did you mean this? Great record. Thanks for the reminder. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oRDxZpwJwks |
Ellington/Hodges. Not much to say. Fabulous! Not a Betty, and no Marian Macpartland, maybe O-10 knew this babe 😊: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7baIamNydvo |
Pryso, I bought "Bean Bags" probably in 61, naturally the album cover is stuck in my mind; bags of various kinds of beans. "Bags" is Milt Jackson, and "Beans" is Coleman Hawkins; those are the names they were given by jazz enthusiasts before me. I compare being an "aficionado" to being a wine "Connoisseur"; after many long years of diligent listening, we are qualified to pass judgment on what is the best jazz; just as a wine connoisseur is qualified to pass judgment on the best wine. I'm sure the very best grapes and procedures must be implemented for a 5 star wine; and so the very best artists at the top of their game are required for a 5 star jazz album. I have deemed this album 5 star, so if you only see 4 stars, that's wrong. After a lifetime of listening, the Aficionado savors every note on a 5 star album, the same as a wine Connoisseur savors every sip of the very best wine. I would like you to join me in savoring this music; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhgUUe5czxc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnTdGw9jDVI Bass – Eddie Jones Drums – Connie Kay Guitar – Kenny Burrell Piano – Tommy Flanagan Tenor Saxophone Tenor Sax – Coleman Hawkins Vibraphone Vibraharp – Milt Jackson |
Lenore Raphael studied jazz piano under Barry Harris. Her piano attests to the fact that she is one of the best jazz pianists alive. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lenore_Raphael |
Not Jazz, but from the same thing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1FlyZF_uPo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oica5jG7FpU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9sq3ME0JHQ Cheers |
That must have been quite an experience Schubert; I'm sure she sounded so much better live, all artists I've seen live, sounded exponentially better on stage in front of me. Not only is she a good vocalist, but she has exquisite jazz backing her; I'll have to add more of her records to my collection. |
frog, yes, "5 x 5" was what I intended. Don't know what happened, so thanks for correcting. o10, I did enjoy those. But that's an album I don't have, so a rare time we are out of step. ;^) Now, not jazz?, maybe jazz?, certainly jazz? o10 and rok since you still appreciate doo-wop, here's a revision - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQCtBIBcPpE |
All the Lester Bowie clips were just great. I went to Amazon to see his output, and the first name to pop up was Roscoe Mitchell, I thought, oh Lord, but I read on. I have him as side man on the Mitchell CD "Sound". Turns out this guy is steeped in Blues and R&B. Played with Little Milton and was married to Fontella Bass. Excellent credentials in the world or Blues and R&B. He and Mitchell even recorded on the blues label 'Delmark". He also played with my high school band-mate. I will listen to my Roscoe CD later. It has five tracks, 2 titled 'Ornette' and 2 titled 'Sound 1 & Sound 2". WTF!!! Red flags all over the place. That 'One Love' tune is a good tune to mess around with. It was one of my favorites on the 'playing for change' project. Thanks for the introduction and clips Cheers |
Totally agree re Lester Bowie; and all great clips. On the hunch that acman3 had posted “I Only Have Eyes For You” previously I did a little search of the “archives” and came up with this, one of the better exchanges of opinion (this time about Bowie) and one of Rok’s more memorable comments about his own trumpet playing background. https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/jazz-for-aficionados/post?highlight=Lester%2BBowie%2B&pos... **** don’t know why I put them in the noise maker box. **** In my book that’s what it’s all about. Not so much the why then, but the why not now. I appreciated the Bey sisters a lot more this last time around. |
The Frogman man is amazing. How did you find that old clip. I don't remember it, but I think my comments were very consistent after 4 years. It also reminded me why I put them in the Noise Maker box. Based on that clip, that's where they belonged. Maybe Roscoe and Malachi were the problems. Bowie's music that was recently posted was good. I think I will purchase two of them. There is a whole treasure to be found is redoing old classic R&B and and Soul music. The BEY sister will not be denied their just place in Jazz!!!! Frogman, Thanks for the history example. I Liked that. I always wondered if any of us could withstand looking at our past comments. I think I passed this one. whew! Cheers |
You know how the audio rags do “retrospectives” of old reviews of classic audio equipment? It would be interesting to occasionally go back to old comments and exchanges. Some of the “exchanges” we can probably do without revisiting, but that’s a different story. It’s really not hard to do. You go to the “Search Forums” window, type in the name of the artist or whatever, then select the “topic” (music) and it’s fairly easy to then narrow down all the hits according to the thread’s timeline. |
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