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.
mary_jo I remember Dusko Goykovich from a big band he was in from the latye 60's -early 70's. Aptly named tune "Ballad For Miles" as he sounds so much like Miles. It sounds like it could have been recorded by Miles during his Prestige period in the 50's. A nice homage. On a similar note these two trumpet players have been criticized by Jazz writers in the past for sounding a lot like Miles' pre-jazz/rock period. Anyone have any thoughts on this...fair or unfair? Wallace Roney http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2CHb_23SriY
nsp, I read that too quickly and thought you suggested Red Rodney. ;^)
There's a story that when he toured Southern states with Charlie Parker he was called Albino Red to get around local laws for segregation. Not sure if that's true but it sounds believable.
nsp, totally fair. They both do sound a lot like Miles. However, in the case of Henderson I feel he is bringing some of his own stuff to the table; the jazz is on a higher level. Many players sound a lot like Miles, or Coltrane, or Bird, and they still bring something unique to their own style. In the case of Wallace Roney, to my ears he is trying very hard to sound Iike Miles.and very little more. It takes a lot of balls to play Blue In Green almost exactly the way Miles played it. Problem is he is not nearly the player Miles was and his instrumental control, as in the intro on the live cut, is very rough. It leaves me the feeling of “what’s the point?”. He sounds ok on the more aggressive and faster tempos, but the slow intro to the tune sounds downright bad, imo. He’s learned a lot of Miles’ licks. His band’s playing, including the tenor player, is not on a particularly high level, imo.
pryso Talk about 2 drug addicts who both had a second chance on their careers- Frank Morgan & Red Rodney.. Can you elaborate on that story? Was Rodney the only white band member and back in the 40's and 50's in the South he couldn't travel and play with them unless he faked being black?
frogman your impressions match mine. Wow was that intro on Roney's live cut ragged. And yes he has copied Miles licks. All jazz players coming up listen to guys already established and copy them ...in the beginning. But most move on and find their own voice and style-That's the mark of being a jazz musician. Personal creativity and getting your own sound out of the instrument. But Roney has been on the scene for quite some time and I don't think he has found or wants to find his voice . But he has made a career of it . E Henderson on the other hand does not ape Miles licks and this is very apparent on the live cut I included. His approach and phrasing are very much his own. i like Henderson's work in H Hancock's 70's band and he made several albums in the 70's which I really liked but unfortunately no longer have.
"A slow hot wind"; nothing could be more descriptive, or seductive; "A slow hot wind in the Philippines." A slow hot wind in Montego Bay Jamaica off the coral reefs in the Caribbean Sea; that’s the beginning of my next novel (although I haven’t written the first)
With a beginning like that, and music like this, you know it’s got to be hot; you submit your own fantasy to fit the first chapter, I already lived mine.
Peppe ’s music is extraordinary. You can almost touch the magic sound that comes out of his instrument, that vivid and palpable mark it leaves. I was introduced by a friend into jazz giants but in the process and in my complete ignorance (that poor knowledge still continues to be) have discovered Peppe by myself. I remember that I said to myself: Omg, who this guy is? Later found out that I run into one of ’the world’s great altoist’ as Scott Yanow, American historian and jazz reviewer once said for Peppe.
mistakenly thought to be the song written by Barbra Streisand https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjMR-A5AaH8 - came to be a huge hit after the song was used as the soundtrack for the movie ’Eyes of Laura Mars’
Lyrics "I’ve never been wrong But you’re the the only one I trust to show me the way I always hear your voice And in my dreams I hear you calling my name What is it about you? Some kind of light shines from your face And I can’t turn away. I’m like a prisoner Captured by your eyes, I’ve been taken And I’ve been hypnotized..."
*** As for the Dusko in related to Miles, Frogman said it all. And so did you in one of your latest postings.
In my opinion, I am quite sure that, the more the artists ’work’ on themselves and their art, the more they are able to shape their own and recognizable sound in the process. I think it’s inevitable. Will they try to suppress their signature or let it out on the open, I guess that’s the matter of their choice & courage & arrogance. Personally, I prefer lousy original over excellent copy (replication).
Sometimes we just kind of wander in different directions, but that's OK. I hope everybody knows buy now what it means when I don't comment; I just have nothing to add or subtract from that subject.
Just hang loose, and we'll get back together when it happens.
mary_jo, I agree about Art Pepper. In fact, I sometimes find it difficult to listen to his playing. Not because I don’t like it, I love his playing, but because it is so emotional and even tortured sounding (like much of his life) that find it uncomfortable at times. No question that he played from the heart.
The second incarnation of Art Pepper when he came back in 1975 was quite different from when he originally started. I think the lifetime of hard living he had experienced came out in his playing. Such raw emotion , as mary_jo says , takes courage to play. I knew the song "The Prisoner " from Pepper but was not aware it came from a hit movie. Pepper w/strings http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sQPh4f9wrqk
Heard this on the radio this morning. Truth is, I usually don’t enjoy scat singing very much. For me, it is very rare the singer who can scat a solo which, when compared to a decent instrumental solo, can hold its own. So, I’m ususally left with the feeling of “why?”; or worse. There have been but a handful that could scat on the level of an instrumentalist. Check out Ella on this and her interplay with Paul Gonsalves. Astounding!
I am profoundly moved by certain songs, that's because they touched on my life experiences.
When I was a tot (that was a long time ago) I recall a junkman pulling his cart down the alley behind us; it was like a rickshaw with wagon wheels that wobbled and squeaked when he pulled his cart. Nina Simone came out with a song titled "Rags and Old Iron"; this was about the same time, the love of my life got married to someone other than me. I'll let you put that song and my sentiments together.
Have you ever thought about how innocently a love affair begins; "Softly As In A Morning Sunrise". After which it blazes hotter than the noon Sun, but the Sun has to set and the light that gave you glory will take it all away.
Mary-Jo, that Lucio Dalla was deep, about as deep as you can get.
I thought "Dance With Me" was most unique, and I thank you for sharing.
Since we are kind of like friends, I don't have a problem in sharing emotions that are brought about by certain songs, our emotions are what makes the song "real", and each song has a real story attached to it.
o10, I have a couple of songs with emotional attachments to women in my life when I was younger, but those are far removed from jazz. However encouraged by mary_jo's post I will offer this one, which is closer to jazz because of the artist, if not the song itself.
But an introduction is needed to appreciate the meaning. Some of you will remember my previous mention of my introduction to jazz by my dad. At the time he died my folks had moved back close to my sister so she could watch over them. So when we discussed a memorial service with the minister he didn't know dad and ask for some background on his life. One thing mentioned was his love of jazz and his favorite musician being Louie Armstrong.
The minister did a credible job at the memorial, but he surprised us all when he referenced dad's love of Satchmo and then brought out a guitar and softly sang "It's A Wonderful World". That was certainly a capper to the service. The song brings me a flood of great memories, but my sister can't bear to hear it now.
frogman I've always felt indifferent to scat singing-like what's the point? But those two cuts you posted changed my mind. Ella uses her voice to improvise just as any instrumentalist.. Especially the second cut- when she is trading back and forth you can hear the saxophone player pick up on HER phrasing and go with it in his answer each and every time. Great stuff. BTW thanks for Red Rodney article. So he didn't fool the blacks as "Albino Red" but he didn't have too. I don't think he fooled the bigoted whites either , just appeased them.
That was a very touching story Pryso, and I imagine Satchmo and your father were on a higher plane looking down at the services; I can't think of a more appropriate ending.
Glad you enjoyed those clips, nsp. They’re pretty great, as you say. That kind of vocal prowess is rare and your observations are right on. Another aspect of Ella’s scatting that separates her from most other sigers who try to scat is that, while some singers can handle fast tempos (sort of), Ella actually makes the (harmonic) changes! Most singers fake it and simply stay (mostly) in the key of the song, but Ella actually vocalized phrases that clearly outlined the changing harmonies of the tune; the way a good horn player would. Almost unheard of from most singers. Not many could keep up with this:
Thank you pryso for sharing. Similar was here but with a different song. I understand your sister, that music will ’haunt' us for a long period of time.
frogman Ella's making the changes is proof that she was a consummate musician ! Here's a song by one of my favorite male singers with some scat singing that i like. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=A9wS1KB6iQ8
Frogman that was fantastic; I'm a scat aficionado, and that's the best I've heard; not only that, but he's singing one of my very favorite tunes.
This is the very first time I heard "Mark Murphy"; it just goes to show how much music is out there from the past, that aficionados have not heard, which means there is so much more music I have yet to hear, that's from my favorite era in music.
Italian (Leone) creating one of the best westerns ever, filmed in Spain. Everything is connected?
One of my favourte all time crime (french) movies. A hommage to the genre, but it became known as such creation, that future artists continued to create hommage to it.
J.P. Melville's 'Samurai' from 1967. with Alain Delon
o10, not to split hairs, but I doubt many would consider that "classical". It simply utilizes a full orchestra. While it's true that several classical composers wrote scores for films, "soundtracks" seem to have developed their own category of musical classification over the years.
Not having a technical background in music I can't offer a good definition for classical, hopefully friend frog will chime in and enlighten us.
Qorpheus10 Mark Murphy had a long career starting in the 50's and he stayed in the Jazz idiom , not venturing into light Jazz or pop. He recorded for Riverside early and then mostly for Muse records. I think he has a powerful , expressive voice , especially on ballads. I don't like everything he has done with the right material he hits it out of the park. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=61d7PpVmfzU
BTW-I went back to listen to the Eddie Jefferson cuts you posted as I want more exposure to singers. He has a really excellent sense of swing . I will seek out a recording by him. I read a bio of him giving him credit for putting lyrics to Jazz songs before anyone else , including "Body And Soul"?
Pryso, there is no way that I or anyone else would think that was classical music, I was alluding to the way that big symphony orchestra put the music together in such a way that it helped me to understand how a big symphony orchestra works when it puts classical music together.
Thanks for the Mark Murphy clips, nsp. Great stuff! O-10 doesn’t remember, but some Mark Murphy clips were posted a while back when we discussed male singers. I like him very much. If I’m not mistaken I posted some clips from this record which features early Brecker brothers:
As pryso points out, simply because music uses an orchestra does not make the music “Classical” and the music in those clips is definitely not Classical.
The term “Classical” music is typically used to describe a genre of “art music” distinguished from jazz, rock or other popular music; although much of what we now call Classical was, in fact, popular at one time. The genre covers a wide range of styles spanning several centuries. Adding to the confusion is the fact that the term is used generically when, in fact, Classical music is technically music composed during the Classical period (roughly 1750-1850) as opposed to, for instance, the Baroque or Romantic periods. The music can be symphonic, choral, chamber or opera. Additionally, the music adheres to certain compositional disciplines and traditions. As in jazz, the boundaries of these disciplines are always being challenged by composers searching for new sounds and ways of expression. This short description just scratches the surface of the tremendous depth of the compositional skill of the great “Classical” (generic) composers and the techniques that they use in their compositions.
0-10, I know you don’t like Classical music and I suspect you haven’t listened to much of it. I’m glad those clips helped you understand “how all the various musicians in a symphony contribute to the whole”. However, those clips are not very good examples of this for a variety of reasons, starting with the fact that most of the featured instruments are not orchestral instruments at all and not to mention that the “conductor”, while she may be attractive, is not a good conductor. There are far better examples on YouTube of how a symphony orchestra “works” if you are interested. There is a lot of amazing music in the genre; give it a listen.
Every time I attempt to interject a little humor in a clip, I get presented as a total MOWRON. Now it seems that I thought "The Good, The Bad, And the Ugly" was classical music.
First Pryso informs me that it's not, and then after I attempt to clarify this, Frogman informs me again that it's not classical music; well, the MOWRON thanks both of you.
Just as my taste buds tell me what's good food and what's not, so my ear buds tell me what sounds good and what doesn't; oatmeal might be good for me, but I don't like it.
I liked the conductor, the "Wa Wa girl", and the music so much that I looked and listened several times; while you can keep most of your classical music with the oatmeal.
Frogman, the proof of the pudding is in the tasting; if she's not a good conductor, show me; find a better sounding version of what she presented than that one.
O-10, no one is calling you names and no one here would. I apologize if you found anything I wrote to be offensive. None of it was intended to be a personal attack and I would suggest you go over what you wrote to understand why it gave a certain impression.
re the conductor:
O-10, by your own admission you know very little about Classical music and don’t listen to it. Simple statement of fact and not a criticism at all; we don’t all like all genres of music. So, it follows that a person who doesn’t listen to Classical music would not be able to recognize a good conductor. Right? I would be glad to offer more details as to why that is not a very good conductor if you would like to learn a little more about what conducting an orchestra is all about. Otherwise, good tasting pudding or not, you’ll just have to take my word for it; or not. Regards.
I took your post in the element in which it was presented- as a song from a classic movie soundtrack. I enjoyed this interpretation and would make no attempt to classify it's genre. BTW i enjoyed your injection of humour and my vote goes to the conductor- but i am partial to asians as my girlfriend is asian. I will admit to not being a fan of classical music but do enjoy Jazz music when it has classical elements . One of my favorites is the following from Don Sebesky:
o10, I'm sorry I failed to read your reference to classical as being humorous. My reply was intended to be gentle since "some" folks probably would consider music by any full orchestra (say more than 60 pieces) to be classical in nature.
Thanks for that. acman3. Good stuff, I particularly enjoyed Akinmusire’s playing. Excellent player with a very fiery attitude reminiscent of Freddie Hubbard’s. Nice to see the banner for the great WBGO in the back. Great way to start the morning before breakfast.
I think it’s oatmeal for me today (with a little brown sugar and cranberries!) 😊:
You must have a verified phone number and physical address in order to post in the Audiogon Forums. Please return to Audiogon.com and complete this step. If you have any questions please contact Support.
