JazzStage

Stanley Turrentine - Impressions

2011-08-22T10:45:00.000-07:00

Stanley Turrentine: tenor saxophone Billy Kaye: drums Butch Cornell: organ Lonnie L. Smith Jr.: electric piano George Benson: guitar Freddie Hubbard: trumpet Ron Carter: bass Richard "Pablo" Landrum: conga

Track Listing
Side 1 Sugar, Sunshine Alley
Side 2 Impressions

Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis -- The Stolen Moments

2011-08-16T07:51:00.000-07:00

Personnel: Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis (tenor saxophone); Clark Terry, Richard Williams, Bob Bryant (trumpet); Melba Liston, Jimmy Cleveland (trombone); Jerome Richardson, Oliver Nelson, Eric Dolphy, George Barrow, Bob Ashton (reeds); Richard Wyands (piano); Wendell Marshall (bass); Roy Haynes (drums).

Happy Birthday, Louis Armstrong

2011-08-04T09:06:00.000-07:00

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Before he had an airport named after him, before he was on a postage stamp, before he became a universally celebrated star, before he recorded dozens of hits, before he changed the course of jazz and popular music, before he ever picked up a trumpet or a cornet, Louis Armstrong had a hard-scrabble upbringing in his beloved hometown of New Orleans. Read complete story from gibson.com.

Louis Armstrong House Museum on Facebook

Comments:
"Great place to visit, especially the stainless steel kitchen. "Pops" could have lived anywhere in the world (he was easily a millionaire), but, he chose to stay in that Corona, Queens neighborhood. You have got to go! --" Larry Reni Thomas

"Yes, it's a beautiful historic place ... very intimate look into a icon's everyday life." -- Barry Stuldivant

"Larry, yes the Corona - East Elmhurst neighborhood provided back and front yards for the movers and shakers of migrating people of color coming up from the south working and operating in Harlem.. He could have lived anywhere .. but was at home here." -- Barry Stuldivant

"Does anyone know how to direct My Family in making The Childhood Home Of Sir Miles Dewey Davis..in East St. Louis Ill... a National Landmark?.... I have talked to Everyone from Jesse Jackson Sr. to the former and current Mayors.. Of E. St Louis.........Please contact Me @ Nefdrum@mac.com." -- Vince Wilburn, Jr.

"I forgot to mention the patio and garden next to the house. "Pops" bought the house next to his and converted it into a beautiful Japanese garden where he would entertain guests. Very nice and pleasant setting." --Larry Reni Thomas

Pianist Duke Pearson -- The Right Touch

2011-08-01T06:26:00.000-07:00

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Personnel: Freddie Hubbard: trumpet; Garnett Brown: trombone; James Spaulding: alto sax; Jerry Dodgion: alto sax, flute; Stanley Turrentine: tenor sax; Duke Pearson: piano; Gene Taylor: bass; Grady Tate: drums. 1967

Hometown Chicago to honor saxophonist Von Freeman, 87

2011-07-27T09:07:00.000-07:00

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It has taken the National Endowment for the Arts three decades to recognize Chicago tenor saxophone legend Von Freeman with the country's highest jazz honor: the NEA's Jazz Masters Award.
Freeman, 87, will receive the prize, plus $25,000, next January at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York, during the awards' 30th anniversary ceremony (as first reported in the Tribune on April 19).

But Chicago – where Freeman was born and always has lived – long has recognized the man's outsized contribution to music, the latest tribute coming in the form of a major concert Thursday night at the Pritzker Pavilion, in Milllennium Park. "Truth Be Told: Celebrating the Legacy of Von Freeman" will kick off the seventh annual "Made in Chicago: World Class Jazz" series in the most fitting way possible: with an artistically ambitious, evening-length salute to an icon of Chicago jazz. Read complete story from chicagotribune.com

Dexter Gordon and Freddie Hubbard -- "Generation" and more!

2011-07-25T08:07:00.000-07:00

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Veteran tenor-saxophonist Dexter Gordon welcomed trumpeter Freddie Hubbard to his recording group several times during his career and each collaboration was quite rewarding.This CD, called "Generation," should please collectors. Click here for complete review from allmusic.com

Freddie Hubbard - Hub Cap

2011-07-20T08:56:00.000-07:00

When the trumpeter Freddie Hubbard showed up in 1960, he was hailed with much of the stunned admiration that Wynton Marsalis was to attract 20 years later. Hub Cap was his third album for Blue Note, released in 1961. Read complete review from www.guardian.co.uk

Buddy Collette's 90th birthday to be celebrated Aug. 9 in Hollywood

2011-07-19T08:36:00.000-07:00

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Facebook friend Addison Whitaker passes this along: It would be Buddy Collette's 90th birthday on August 6th. We're having a 'celebration' on August 9th at Catalina's in Hollywood. Buddy's Big Band led by John Stephens, Ernie Andrews, Dee Dee McNeil, and the JazzAmerica Band.

The event is hosted by: Helen Borgers of KJAZZ 88.1 FM. Reservations: 1-323-466-2210 or www.catalinajazzclub.com. Cover charge $20 to benefit JazzAmerica.org.

Read Mr. Collett's obit from the New York Times

Trumpeters Donald Byrd and Booker Little - "The Third World"

2011-07-15T07:41:00.000-07:00

There is more -- and less -- than meets the eye with this hard bop collection from 1960: less Booker Little and more performers than are listed on the CD. A little research corroborates what the ear suspects: the eight tracks come from three sessions, only one of which has trumpeters Little and Donald Byrd together (three tracks). The other sessions feature, respectively, Little and trombonist Curtis Fuller (two tracks) and Byrd and baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams (three tracks). Adams is one of a half-dozen performers not credited on the CD. Read complete review from allmusic.com

Yusef Lateef -- "Eastern Sounds"

2011-07-14T12:52:00.000-07:00

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One of multi-instrumentalist and composer Yusef Lateef's most enduring recordings, Eastern Sounds was one of the last recordings made by the band that Lateef shared with pianist Barry Harris after the band moved to New York from Detroit, where the jazz scene was already dying. Lateef had long been interested in Eastern music, long before John Coltrane had ever shown any public interest anyway, so this Moodsville session (which meant it was supposed to be a laid-back ballad-like record), recorded in 1961, was drenched in Lateef's current explorations of Eastern mode and interval, as well as tonal and polytonal improvisation. That he could do so within a context that was accessible, and even "pretty," is an accomplishment that stands today. Click here for complete review from allmusic.com.

Dizzy Gillespie -- Newport Jazz Festival 1957

2011-07-11T07:31:00.000-07:00

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Justifiably considered one of the best of Dizzy Gillespie's many live sets, AT NEWPORT captures a dead-on1957 performance featuring Gillespie and one of his best bands, starring baritone saxophonist Pee Wee Moore, tenor Benny Golson, and pianist Wynton Kelly. Road-tightened by months of world tours sponsored by the US State Department's cultural exchange program, the ensemble is flawless, but not at all mechanical.

The goofy humor of comic standards like "School Days" and "Doodlin'" is an old jazz standby that only Gillespie truly continued into the post-bop years. However, on Latin-flavored standards like a scorching version of "Manteca" and a spirited run-through of the old standard "Carioca," not to mention the extended solo showcases "Night in Tunisia" and "Cool Breeze," Gillespie and band show that their chops are as sharp as anyone's. Another highlight is the showcase for pianist Mary Lou Williams, containing selections from her signature piece ZODIAC SUITE and proving this lineup capable of more thoughtful, sensitive playing, than one might expect from their more exuberant moments. Read complete review from cduniverse.com.

Jazz saxophonist Gary Bartz - "I've Known Rivers"

2011-07-08T08:01:00.000-07:00

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Though much of altoist Gary Bartz's seventies output has been reissued, this live date from the 1973 Montreux festival has remained as rare as rocking horse droppings until now.
Still probably best known as Wayne Shorter's replacement in Miles Davis' early 70's band, Bartz's fruity tone and generous, emotional approach provided a perfect foil to the leaders oblique trumpet stylings. Though initially inspired by Charlie Parker, Bartz eventually proved himself to be one of the few alto saxophonists to successfully draw on John Coltrane's legacy.

This was never more apparent than in the output of Ntu Troop, who mixed the questing improvisations of Coltrane's late period with funk and soul influences and no-nonsense political messages, delivered in short, snappy songs by vocalist Andy Bey. For this date, Bey was replaced by pianist Hubert Eaves and Bartz takes up vocal duties. Though he's not much of a singer, if you're like me you might prefer his unadorned, slightly breathless style to Bey's more mannered delivery. Click here for complete story.

Trumpeter Kenny Dorham - Complete 'Round About Midnight At The Cafe Bohemia

2011-07-07T07:40:00.000-07:00

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During the spring and summer of 1956, trumpeter Kenny Dorham recorded two studio albums with his Jazz Prophets, a small hard bop band involving tenor saxophonist J.R. Monterose and a rhythm section of pianist Dick Katz, bassist Sam Jones and drummer Arthur Edgehill. On May 31 of that year, Dorham's group performed live at the Café Bohemia with Bobby Timmons at the piano and guitarist Kenny Burrell sitting in on all but the first of four sets. Originally engineered by Rudy Van Gelder and remastered by him in 2001, Blue Note's 2002 double-disc "Complete" Dorham Café Bohemia edition combines every usable track taped during this exceptionally fine evening of live jazz. Click here for complete review from allmusic.com.

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Hugh Masekela: South African music losing steam, needs new direction after apartheid

2011-06-22T11:47:00.000-07:00

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The euphoria of freedom has faded a bit after 17 years, but few South Africans would trade today's freedoms for the apartheid years. Even so, freedom did bring casualties. And 1994, in a way, was the day the music died. Jazz clubs suffered from the influx of rural migrants and foreign immigrants, crammed into tiny apartments by greedy landlords in the cheaper areas where jazz clubs tended to situate. Jazz aficionados found that freedom gave them other options, including moving out of all-black neighborhoods into the middle-class white neighborhoods where they were now allowed to live. Click here for entire story from the Christian Science Monitor.

Click here for more music from Hugh Masekela

Hugh Masekela performs at Yoshi's-Oakland June 23-24, 2011. Click here for details.

Trumpeter Don Cherry - "Hear & Now"

2011-06-20T07:54:00.000-07:00

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Don Cherry was one of the most individual and idiosyncratic voices in contemporary jazz and world music, and also one of the most significant figures of his era. In an age of technically fearsome trumpet players, Cherry preferred to emphasise expression and musical communication over speed and technical prowess, and evolved an utterly distinctive sound and style in the process.

He began playing trumpet in high school in Los Angeles, where he was brought up, but made his earliest public appearances as a pianist in rhythm and blues bands. He adopted a small B-flat pocket trumpet made in Pakistan as his preferred instrument, and it became his trademark, although he went on to play a wide range of ethnic instruments, notably the doussn'gouni, a hunter's guitar from Mali, which he used extensively in performance. Read complete bio from jazzhouse.org.

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Guitarist John McLaughlin -- "Follow Your Heart"

2011-06-17T09:36:00.000-07:00

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John McLaughlin, is an English jazz and jazz fusion guitarist and composer. He played with Tony Williams's group Lifetime and then with Miles Davis on his landmark electric jazz-fusion albums In A Silent Way, Bitches Brew, A Tribute to Jack Johnson and On The Corner. His 1970s electric band, the Mahavishnu Orchestra, performed a technically virtuosic and complex style of music that fused eclectic jazz and rock with eastern and Indian influences. His guitar playing includes a range of styles and genres, including jazz, Indian classical music, fusion, and Western classical music, and has influenced many other guitarists. He has also incorporated flamenco music in some of his acoustic recordings. The Indian tabla maestro Zakir Hussain has called John McLaughlin "one of the greatest and one of the important musicians of our times". In 2010, Guitarist Jeff Beck called him "the best guitarist alive".^[1] In 2003, McLaughlin was ranked 49th in Rolling Stone magazine list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".^[2]

^{Click here for complete bio, discography and more from pediaview.com}

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Coltrane's house where he wrote "A Love Supreme" listed among the most endangered in U.S.

2011-06-15T06:42:00.000-07:00

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It was where one of the all-time greatest jazz albums was recorded. Now, the Coltrane house on Long Island is among the nation’s 11 most endangered historic places. Jazz musician John Coltrane‘s home in Dix Hills, where he wrote “A Love Supreme” in an upstairs bedroom, has deteriorated due to a lack of funds, the National Trust for Historic Preservation said. Coltrane’s son, Ravi, said his father went into the bedroom and was there for several days writing the famous masterwork. Read complete story from cbs newyork.

For more on this story click on http://thecoltranehome.org./

Featuring Facebook friend, trumpeter Freddie Jacobs

2011-06-06T09:14:00.000-07:00

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Fred Jacobs, jazz trumpeter/composer, “sounds as bright and assured as Freddie Hubbard or Woody Shaw, but with verve and a smooth, fluent originality," said Robert Spencer in All About Jazz.
Jacobs has toured with some legendary jazz bands -- Eddie Palmieri, Jimmy McGriff, Lionel Hampton, Buddy Rich, and the Sam Jones/Tom Harrell band, performing at the Newport Jazz Festival, Carnegie Hall, and the Village Vanguard – and has taken his own band into Birdland, Sweet Basil, Visiones, and Trumpets. Also currently touring with Pucho and the Latin Soul Brothers. Read complete bio and listen to his music at reverbnation.com.

Meet Jacobs on Facebook

Artists still fuming over Grammy decision to drop Latin Jazz album category

2011-05-24T13:45:00.000-07:00

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Wayne Wallace calls his 2011 Grammy nomination one of the greatest honors of his life. That's why he's now furious with the Grammys.

"It was a great experience," says the local trombonist-bandleader, whose "Bien Bien" was nominated for best Latin jazz album. "I want others to experience it."
But that just got a lot more unlikely for Latin jazz artists. The Latin jazz album category was one of 31 fields dropped last month by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the group that runs the Grammys, as part of a move to streamline the awards show. In all, the group trimmed the number of categories from 109 to 78. Artists that normally would have submitted in the Latin jazz category now have to try their luck in the much broader fields of best jazz instrumental album or best jazz vocal album. Read complete story from mercurynews.com

Wayne Wallace website

Grammy Watch -- Protests over Grammy decision

Mal Waldron and Steve Lacy -- Collaborations

2011-05-21T20:25:00.000-07:00

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Mal Waldron:
A pianist with a brooding, rhythmic, introverted style, Mal Waldron's playing has long been flexible enough to fit into both hard bop and freer settings. Influenced by Thelonious Monk's use of space, Waldronhas had his own distinctive chord voicings nearly from the start. Read complete bio from allmusic.com.
Steve Lacy:
One of the great soprano saxophonists of all time (ranking up there with Sidney Bechet and John Coltrane), Steve Lacy's career was fascinating to watch develop. Read complete bio from all music.com.

John Coltrane - Africa

2011-05-04T06:52:00.000-07:00

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Four albums with a glossy, orange and black cover hit the record stores in January 1961 and began a buzz that has lasted for 50 years. "The first four albums all shipped to radio and all buyers at the same time...a totally coordinated merchandising effort," says producer Creed Taylor. "It was a landslide. On radio everyone was playing Impulse, distributors were running out of stock."

Within six months, Impulse Records had made a mark on the music business that lasts to today, where at the Jazz Standard in Manhattan, a celebration called "Impulse! Nights" runs until Sunday. Tenor saxophonists Dave Liebman and Ravi Coltrane kicked off the series with "Africa/Brass," the first Impulse recording by Ravi's father, John Coltrane. Ravi recalls the title song, "Africa," as one of the first of his dad's tunes he learned. He would play it with his mom, keyboardist and harpist Alice Coltrane. Read complete story at nydailynews.com.

Heath Brothers make special connection with audience

2011-04-28T14:47:00.000-07:00

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Historic jazz musicians and brothers Jimmy, 84, and Albert "Tootie" Heath, 75, stress the importance of performing in their craft — that as a performance art, jazz is about connecting through music. With The Heath Brothers Quartet, Jimmy and Tootie performed in Rosse Hall on Friday, April 22. They connected with the audience and imbued the sizable crowd with a feeling of intimacy. Playing everything from jazz interpretations of western classical music to standards like "Autumn Leaves" — Jimmy's version is titled "Autumn Sleeves" — and original compositions, the quartet dazzled the crowd with virtuosic talent and inviting humility. Read complete story from kenyoncollegian.com.

Photo by David Hoyt

Happy Birthday, Charles Mingus

2011-04-22T13:29:00.000-07:00

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Irascible, demanding, bullying, and probably a genius, Charles Mingus cut himself a uniquely iconoclastic path through jazz in the middle of the 20th century, creating a legacy that became universally lauded only after he was no longer around to bug people. As a bassist, he knew few peers, blessed with a powerful tone and pulsating sense of rhythm, capable of elevating the instrument into the front line of a band. But had he been just a string player, few would know his name today. Rather, he was the greatest bass-playing leader/composer jazz has ever known, one who always kept his ears and fingers on the pulse, spirit, spontaneity, and ferocious expressive power of jazz. Read complete bio from allmusic.com.



The Charles Mingus website

Trumpeter Wallace Roney talks about mentor Miles before performance

2011-04-21T09:56:00.000-07:00

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When it came to nurturing and mentoring promising young jazz trumpeters, Miles Davis was fairly picky. In fact, he did it just once. For several years, Davis took the massively talented Wallace Roney under his wing, providing not just musical tutelage but also insights into the creative process and Life Itself.

Having established that, don't expect, when Roney brings his quartet to the Garde's Oasis Room tonight, note-for-note recitations of "Bitches Brew" or "The Jack Johnson Sessions." Though the event is billed as a Tribute to Miles, that's a more conceptual than literal concept. "Every time I pick up a trumpet and play, it's a tribute to Miles. Read complete story from theday.com.

Tribute to Clifford Jordan -- sax, flute, piano, vocals

2011-04-21T07:49:00.000-07:00

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CLIFFORD JORDAN was born in Chicago in 1931. A self-taught musician, his love of jazz had him performing in his home town until the late 1950's, when he moved to New York. His first album was appropriately titled "Blowing in from Chicago," and Horace Silver and Art Blakey. In the 60's, his range broadened, as he played with Charles Mingus, Max Roach, Kenny Dorham, Lloyd Price, and James Brown. He toured Europe as a soloist and conducted his own music for radio and studio orchestras in 1966. A year later, he was toured West Africa and the Middle East for the U.S. State Department with Randy Weston. 1968 saw Cliff forming Frontier Records, through which he produced albums for Wilbur Ware, Pharoah Sanders, Cecil Payne, Charles Brackeen, Ed Blackwell and their groups. Read complete bio from cliffordjordan.com.