“The Jazz Score” 4/26/11 – Duke Ellington
Posted on | April 26, 2011 | 1 Comment
Duke Ellington is the featured artist this week on KMHD’s “Artist Spotlight” so I couldn’t resist the temptation to feature him for the second time on “The Jazz Score.” I featured a bit of everything: early Ellington, the Blanton-Webster band, some of his larger-scale works, works of his performed by others, and a number of tracks featuring him on piano outside of his band. Hope you enjoyed the show! Here’s the playlist:
- Take The A Train / Clifford Brown (Study in Brown)
- Things Ain’t What They Used To Be / Young Men From Memphis (Down Home Reunion)
- It Don’t Mean A Thing / Dizzy Gillespie (Diz and Getz)
- Warm Valley / Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus, Max Roach (Money Jungle)
- Single Petal of a Rose / Duke Ellington (The Great London Concerts)
- Pitter Panther Patter / Duke Ellington and Ray Brown (This One’s For Blanton)
- Wig Wise / Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus, Max Roach (Money Jungle)
- East St. Louis Toodle-Oo / The Washingtonians (Unknown)
- Washington Wabble / Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (Early Ellington)
- Flaming Youth / Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (Early Ellington)
- Jack The Bear / Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (The Blanton-Webster Band)
- Main Stem / Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (The Blanton-Webster Band)
- I Got It Bad (And That Ain’t Good) / Ella Fitzgerald (Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook)
- Black, Brown, and Beige Part 1 / Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (Black, Brown, and Beige)
- Such Sweet Thunder {Cleo} / Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (Such Sweet Thunder)
- Day Dream / Steve Lacy (Soprano Sax)
- John Hardy’s Wife / Oscar Peterson (Oscar Peterson Plays the Duke Ellington Songbook)
- Solitude / Sonny Rollins (Way Out West)
- Sophisticated Lady / Archie Shepp (The Way Ahead)
- Fleurette Africaine / Gary Burton (Lofty Fake Anagram)
- Come Sunday / Eric Dolphy (Iron Man)
“The Jazz Score” 4/18/11 – Bill Challis and Don Redman
Posted on | April 25, 2011 | 1 Comment
Last week on “The Jazz Score” I featured two somewhat obscure but very influential arrangers from the 1920′s – Don Redman and Bill Challis. I’m a bit late in posting the playlist but here it is:
- My Pretty Girl / Jean Goldkette and his Orchestra (RCA Victor 80th Anniversary, Volume 1)
- Sunday / Jean Goldkette and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Dardanella / Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- San / Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Singin’ The Blues / Bix Beiderbecke (Volume 1 – Singin’ The Blues)
- Ostrich Walk / Bix Beiderbecke (Volume 1 – Singin’ The Blues)
- In A Mist / Bix Beiderbecke (Volume 1 – Singin’ The Blues)
- With A Song In My Heart / Bobby Hackett with Bill Challis Orchestra (Unknown)
- Tiger Rag / Vince Giordano (Bill Challis Goldkette Project)
- Clarinet Marmalade / Fletcher Henderson and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- King Porter Stomp / Fletcher Henderson and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Henderson Stomp / Fletcher Henderson and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Miss Hannah / McKinney’s Cotton Pickers (The Complete Recorded Works)
- Gee Baby Ain’t I Good To You / McKinney’s Cotton Pickers (Unknown)
- Hot And Anxious / Don Redman and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- No One Else But You / Louis Armstrong (Hot Fives and Sevens Volume 3)
- Save It, Pretty Mama / Louis Armstrong (Hot Fives and Sevens Volume 3)
- The Stampede / Fletcher Henderson and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Sugar Foot Stomp / Fletcher Henderson and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Charleston Crazy / Fletcher Henderson and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Four or Five Times / McKinney’s Cotton Pickers (RCA Victor 80th Anniversary, Volume 1)
- Where There’s A Will, Baby / McKinney’s Cotton Pickers (Unknown)
- Milenberg Joys / McKinney’s Cotton Pickers (Unknown)
- How’m I Doin? (Hey-Hey) / Don Redman and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Shim-Me-Sha-Wabble / Don Redman and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- I Got Rhythm / Don Redman and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Idolizing / Jean Goldkette and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Washboard Blues / Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra (Unknown)
- Three Blind Mice / Bix Beiderbecke (Volume 1 – Singin’ The Blues)
- Sugar / Bix Beiderbecke (Volume 2 – At The Jazz Band Ball)
- Riverboat Shuffle / Bix Beiderbecke (Volume 1 – Singin’ The Blues)
“The Jazz Score” 4/11/11 – Contemporary Bassist-Composers
Posted on | April 12, 2011 | 2 Comments
Last night on “The Jazz Score” I featured 6 contemporary bassist-composers. I have been thinking of moving the show towards more broad themes instead of always focusing on one or two individuals, and I think last night’s theme generated a really nice playlist. Here it is:
- Chutzpan / Avishai Cohen (Gently Disturbed)
- Gershon’s Beat / Avishai Cohen (At Home)
- Abraham’s New Gift / Phronesis (Green Delay)
- Four Folk Songs / Ben Allison (Little Things Run The World)
- Mauritania / Ben Allison (Buzz)
- Kramer vs. Kramer vs. Godzilla / Ben Allison (Think Free)
- CJ / Fly (Sky & Country)
- JJ / Fly (Fly)
- Global Citizen / Dave Holland (Not for Nothin’)
- Jugglers’ Parade / Dave Holland (Prime Directive)
- Four Winds / Dave Holland (Conference of the Birds)
- Daoulagad (a GLQ) / Romano, Sclavis, Texier (Carnet de Routes)
- Dance Revolt / Henri Texier ((V)IVRE)
- Amazone Blues / Henri Texier (An Indian’s Week)
- Korokoro / Romano, Sclavis, Texier (Carnet de Routes)
It was great to revisit that Avishai Cohen album “Gently Disturbed” which, in addition to great musicianship, is really well recorded and produced, the piano and floor tom sound especially compelling on that one. Anyhow, it was also nice to have the opportunity to play some more Texier, I really enjoy his tunes a lot and he is a bit of an unknown here in the U.S. I think (though when I saw his sextet at the Paris Jazz Festival a few years ago, he was treated like a rock star!!). Anyhow, hope you enjoyed the show!
“The Jazz Score” 4/4/11 – Steve Lacy
Posted on | April 6, 2011 | No Comments
Monday night on “The Jazz Score” I featured one of the masters of the soprano sax, Steve Lacy. It was a great journey through some obscure and well-known albums, hope you enjoyed it. Here is the playlist:
- Dutch Masters / Han Bennink, Misha Mengelberg, Ernst Reyseger, George Lewis, Steve Lacy (Dutch Masters)
- The Dumps / Ideal Bread (Transmit)
- Barble / Steve Lacy (Disposability)
- The Wane / Steve Lacy (Stalks)
- Trickles / Steve Lacy – Roswell Rudd Quartet (Trickles)
- Bone / Steve Lacy – Roswell Rudd Quartet (Early And Late)
- As Usual / Ideal Bread (Transmit)
- Blinks / Douglas / Sclavis / Lee / Van Der Schyff (Bow River Falls)
- Stamps / Steve Lacy Seven (Cliches)
- Flakes / Steve Lacy Sextet (Flakes)
- I Feel A Draft / Mal Waldron and Steve Lacy (Journey Without End)
- Esteem / Steve Lacy and Gil Evans (Paris Blues)
- Utah / Steve Lacy (Sidelines)
- Retreat / Mal Waldron and Steve Lacy (Hot House)
It was really a fun one to put together and a great opportunity for me to explore a few of the very prolific Lacy’s numerous groups and albums. Hope you enjoyed the show and can tune in next week!
Golden Ear + WA/OR Kora Band Dates
Posted on | March 29, 2011 | No Comments
I’m very happy to announce that the Kora Band has recently received a Golden Ear Award from Seattle’s Earshot Jazz for “2010 NW Jazz Recording of the Year”! Needless to say I and we are very happy about this honor. There’s more info over at the Kora Band site, and just in time to celebrate we have a few dates coming up in Washington and Oregon:
- Wednesday, March 30 @ The Upstage in Port Townsend
- Thursday, March 31 @ Tula’s in Seattle
- Tuesday, April 5 @ “Notes from the Underground” at the Mission Theater in Portland
I guess this amounts to something of a “regional tour” though we get to go home every night, which is actually quite nice! We have some new original tunes by myself for these shows as well as a version of the very old Mandinka classic “Djandjon” and the Ghanaian highlife hit “Mami Wata.” Should be a great run of shows and maybe we’ll post some audio too, if it comes out well of course…
Anyhow, thanks again to everyone for their support and votes in the Golden Ear Award and stay tuned for more music, as always…Tunnel Six tour coming up in May…among other things!
“The Jazz Score” 3/28/11 – Joe Henderson
Posted on | March 29, 2011 | No Comments
Last night on “The Jazz Score” I featured the great tenor player Joe Henderson. Here’s the playlist:
- Caribbean Fire Dance / Joe Henderson (Mode for Joe)
- Jinrikisha / Joe Henderson (Page One)
- The Kicker / Bobby Hutcherson (The Kicker)
- Serenity / Marcus Strickland (At Last)
- Punjab / Rez Abbasi (Natural Selection)
- Black Narcissus / Joe Henderson (Power to the People)
- If / Larry Young (Unity)
- Mamacita / Kenny Dorham (Trompeta Toccata)
- Inner Urge / David Kikoski (Details)
- Recorda Me / McCoy Tyner (New York Reunion)
- Power to the People / Matt Jorgensen + 451 (Another Morning)
- El Barrio / Joe Henderson (Inner Urge)
- Step Lightly / Blue Mitchell (Step Lightly)
- Tetragon / Joe Henderson (Tetragon)
- Out ‘N In / Joe Henderson (Joe Henderson in Japan)
I love Joe Henderson’s music but haven’t spent a lot of time with it, strangely. It was nice to check out some old classics, especially “Mode for Joe” which I hadn’t heard before, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite Blue Notes. I was also interested to find out a bit more about Kenny Dorham, who worked quite a bit with Henderson over the years. I had always thought of him as quite boppy, but especially hearing “Trompetta Toccata” was very interesting – he seemed to be going for a pretty unique blend of bop, latin, and progressive elements in that one, but unfortunately he stopped making his own albums not long thereafter. Still, I would like to feature him on a show in the future I think.
Anyhow, I was also happy to get to feature “Power to the People”, a great and I think somewhat underrated album of Henderson’s, and I was really excited to find “Joe Henderson in Japan,” featuring a totally unknown but smoking Japanese rhythm section from the early 70′s. Hope you enjoyed the show!