Southern & Rivers: High Notes

Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com

Jeri Southern and Mavis Rivers [above]—two important jazz-pop singers who got their start in the 1950s—have just been treated to solid retrospective CD sets. Both collections offer an in-depth overview of each artist and provide insights into how singers were developed back then and routinely re-positioned by their labels in hopes of charting a hit.

Southern [above] was a piano player who added singing to her act and wound up recording steadily just as the LP blossomed and the demand for female vocalists spiked. In her earliest vocals for Decca in 1951 and '52, you can almost hear the basis for Chet Baker's casual, sighing singing style. 

Rivers also had a casual, amiable approach—though her delivery was glossier and more swinging than Southern's. Rivers' marble-smooth tone was seductive and her held notes shimmered with a slight vibrato. But she resisted belting songs, coolly sending up songs with hip phrasing. In all fairness to Southern, Rivers recorded at the tail end of the 1950s and the start of the 1960s, when the jazz-pop idiom had been perfected, resulting in crackerjack 12-inch LPs. 

Both retrospectives by Fresh Sound provide a well-rounded sense of why each singer was special. In The Warm Singing Style of Jeri Southern: The Complete Decca Years 1951-1957, a five-CD set, we not only hear Southern's voice mature over time but she's also backed by a range of orchestras and ensembles of varying sizes. You Better Go Now—her first recording in 1951—remains  breathtaking and was never really topped by Southern. Arranged by Tutti Camarata, the song set the stage for an entire generation of jazz vocalists who sounded like they were singing from their beds. Other set gems include When I Fall in Love, Call Me Tonight, Just Got to Have Him Around, The Man That Got Away, An Occasional Man and I'm Gonna Try Me Some Love.

Southern was best when she was committed to a lyric and put her back into it. Too often she was placed in  treacly settings by Decca that made her sound like she was singing Silent Night over and over again. By far, the set's best tracks feature Southern accompanying herself on piano. On songs like It's De-Lovely, I'll Take Romance and Let's Fall in Love, you hear Southern's lush piano introductions and smart chord voicings. Also special are her tracks on piano with the Dave Barbour Trio—including Miss Johnson Phoned Again Today, That Old Devil Called Love and The Very Thought of You. Listening to them now, you realize that a small group was all Southern needed to put her charm across.

Rivers is featured on two double-CD sets—Mavis Rivers: The Capitol Years 1959-1960 and Mavis Rivers: The Reprise Years 1961-1962. Rivers had A-list arrangers like Jack Marshall, Dick Reynolds, Nelson Riddle, Marty Paich, Neil Hefti, Van Alexander and Chuck Sagle. Most of her song choices were upbeat, and her phrasing on up-tempo tunes borrowed ever-so-slightly from Ella Fitzgerald's round, friendly conversational style. Rivers was truly one of the finest least-known singers of the era.

Two singers, two different approaches and two different eras captured by labels trying to find their way.

JazzWax tracks: You'll find The Warm Singing Style of Jeri Southern: The Complete Decca Years 1951-1957 (Fresh Sound) here. Mavis Rivers' The Capitol Years 1959-1960 here and The Reprise Years 1961-1962 (both Fresh Sound) here.

JazzWax clips: Here's Jeri Southern singing It's De-Lovely, accompanying herself on piano with Cliff Hills on bass and Lloyd Morales on drums...

It's De-Lovely

Here's Mavis Rivers singing There's No You, arranged by Marty Paich...

There's No You

- See more at: http://www.jazzwax.com/2013/10/southern-rivers-high-notes.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Jazzwax+%28JazzWax%29#sthash.DdgY88hj.dpuf

Used with permission by Marc Myers

Biographer finds some dissonance in Ellington's life

Reviewed by Karl Stark
Posted: Sunday, October 27, 2013, 3:01 AM
A Life of Duke Ellington - By Terry Teachout (Gotham. 496 pp)

Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was jazz royalty. He even eschewed the term jazz at times, although an unbelievable number of his 1,700 tunes remain jazz standards.

Ellington wrote orchestral suites, soundtracks for the movies, and scores for Broadway. In an era when many jazz players were seen as drug addicts, he was one of the first jazz players to be successfully marketed as a creative artist, and he's often considered one of the greatest American composers ever.

Or was he?

In his new biography, Terry Teachout, a former professional bassist who is the drama critic for the Wall Street Journal, politely chips away at the Ellington image. The debonair maestro is still charismatic, but the weight of this biography, billed as the first major one in 18 years, hits some unpleasant dissonance.

Those tunes Ellington is credited with writing turn out to have been done largely by his sidemen. Ellington never really succeeded on Broadway or in the movies. His suites often lacked real orchestral development, Teachout writes, and even his celebrated band - full of unique players - scuffled at times with poor discipline and a lack of fire.

Teachout's biography is full of such critical counterpoint. At different points. he calls Ellington "one of the supreme creative figures of the 20th Century" and "a major composer but not an influential one." Certainly, to have led bands as Ellington did through a largely segregated America over nearly a half-century of shifting tastes was a monumental feat.

Ellington's ace in the hole was the band's songbook. His many standards provided a steady stream of royalties that kept his groups together when others were fading.

Those bands - full of powerhouse players like Ben Webster, Johnny Hodges, Paul Gonsalves, Cootie Williams, Harry Carney, and Clark Terry - were integral to the way Ellington composed. The man was not a natural tunesmith, Teachout writes. But he was adept at picking up promising fragments from band members and remolding them into tunes that he then took for himself.

"Sophisticated Lady" from 1933 was typical. This standard was composed of themes from two of his sidemen: saxophonist Otto Hardwick and trombonist Lawrence Brown. Ellington spliced their licks together and reharmonized them. He offered both men $15 and kept the long-term rights. "I don't consider you a composer," Brown told Ellington early in their difficult relationship, according to Teachout. "You are a compiler."

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/20131027_Biographer_finds_some_dissonance_in_Ellington_s_life.html#Vd8MpkTGZB7zQcmW.99

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ZOOT SIMS!

Tenor saxophonist “Zoot” Sims grew up during both the Swing era and the early years of Bop where he absorbed the basic roots of Jazz. In honor of what would’ve been his 88th birthday, we are offering a free download medley of his 1960’s recording of "Down Home."

His playing contains the heartbeat that represents all of the Jazz periods making “Down Home” an enjoyable and consistently swinging set. Also featured on this album is pianist Dave McKenna, bassist George Tucker and drummer Dannie Richmond.

"Down Home" has been remastered from the original analog tape recordings and is available on 180-Gram vinyl, CD and exclusively selected as part of the “Mastered for iTunes" program. Enjoy your free download here.
Read more: http://bethlehemrecords.com/post/65434460698/happy-birthday-zoot-sims

Paul Carlon ….

La Rumba is a Lovesome Thing - Tribute to Billy Strayhorn 

It's hard to measure in mere words the worth of an artist like Billy Strayhorn (1915 - 67). The music he gave to the world speaks so clearly and with such incredible musical imagination; so let me at least try to put into words what this project has meant to me. Taking on a Strayhorn tribute record is a pretty big mountain to climb; Billy's enormous importance to American music as a composer and profound integrity as a human being set the bar very high indeed as a model to aspire to. 

His body of work does not particularly need "reimagining"; the way he imagined it is, even this many decades on, about as good as it gets. I can only offer my restless mind as the motive for this 'Latin side of' tribute; and my curiosity, in wondering what the Ellington band might have sounded like had they all been born en la Havana. 

For this CD is also a tribute to the profound influence Latin America has had on me. The music of Brazil, Puerto Rico, Peru, Colombia, Argentina, and particularly Cuba, has mesmerized me over the last fifteen to twenty years. I feel I have still barely scratched the surface in understanding the beautiful intricacies of these magnificent musical cultures. 

The musicians on this album are all part of a New York City musical family. The core members of the group, known on previous releases as the Paul Carlon Octet, have been working together for, in most cases, ten years or more. In vocalist Christelle Durandy I have found the perfect foil for the colors and energy of the band. 

As to the special guests: Chembo Corniel and I met playing in Harvie S's band; I am lucky to have his experience and deep feel here. And equally lucky to have Benjamin Lapidus on board. I've learned an awful lot playing in Ben's group Sonido Isleño for the last ten years, so he was a natural fit for this project. Pedrito Martinez and I met around 1999 when we were both part of Juan Pablo Torres' concert at the Town Hall, Cuba Without Frontiers; we continued working together several years later in the Ileana Santamaría Orchestra. 

And the expertise of Obanilu Ire, who came on board on Christelle's recommendation, turned out to be a perfect fit as well. In the two years that have passed since I decided that a Strayhorn record would be this group's next recording project, we have gone through a very organic process of workshopping, rehearsing, and performing these songs live, adapting them to fit the unique personalities involved. I've spent many hours as well editing and rewriting them as they developed and as various aspects revealed themselves more fully. 


Music comes from the heart, and it is our great pleasure to share how we feel about Billy, from our hearts to yours, on this album. It is also my personal privilege to be recording and performing with such big-hearted human beings. Many thanks to Ben, Beaver, Chembo, Mark, Anton, Mike, Christelle, Pedrito, John, Dave, Alex, Obanilu, and Ryan. A very special thanks also to my wife Lavita for all her love and support.
Read more: http://www.zohomusic.com/cds_detail.php?cds_id=124

Acclaimed pianist returns to Welwyn Garden City music venue

By Alan Davies
Sunday, October 27, 2013, 9:58 AM
She will be appearing at Herts Jazz Club, at the Hawthorne Theatre complex, on Sunday night with Andrea Vicari’s Jazz ExTempore.

This is a pan-European band with Croatian guitarist Elvis Stanic, Dutch/Indonesian bass player Rico de Jeer and Bulgarian drummer Hristo Yotsove joining Andrea.

The group was initially formed as a cultural exchange between Croatia and other European countries, with gigs in Croatia at the Zagreb jazz club and Liburnia jazz festival, Bulgaria at Live Club Sofia and Plovdiv jazz festival.

They also played in Holland and at the 2010 Scarborough jazz festival in England. More recently, the group toured Eastern Europe, with visits to Bosnia, Herzegovina, Croatia and Italy.

The music of Jazz ExTempore draws on the cultures, folk music and compositions of all the band members.

The use of accordion and acoustic guitar gives the music an earthy feel with some beautiful folk melodies. The music is accessible but still has depth and some outstanding playing.
read more: http://www.whtimes.co.uk/what-s-on/acclaimed_pianist_returns_to_welwyn_garden_city_music_venue_1_2935447

Learning With Jazz

By Lucille Renwick
Walk through the halls of Washington Rose Elementary School in Long Island, New York, and you find yourself enveloped by the sights and sounds of jazz. Pictures of famous jazz artists and time lines chronicling the evolution of jazz adorn the walls. The strains of jazz flow from Faye Nelson's second grade classroom, where it's played from the moment the students walk in the door until they leave at the end of the day. Teachers at Washington Rose, along with others in two Pemberville, Ohio, elementary schools, and in a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-area elementary school, are proving that teaching jazz music and its history is no longer limited to the music curriculum. Standards-based lessons in language arts, social studies, and even science can spring from this unique American music form.

The use of jazz in each of the three schools began with a similar two-part goal: to enrich standard curricula and to raise students' understanding and appreciation of a music form widely recognized for its rich cultural heritage rooted in the African-American experience. Each found success in various ways: student confidence soared; student interest increased; and, in some cases, student achievement improved. Many of the teachers noted an added benefit — their students came to appreciate the influence of jazz on the music they listen to, such as pop, rock, and hip-hop.

In each school, teachers presented lessons focusing on different jazz artists and/or different types of jazz music — blues, be-bop, swing, Dixieland, New Orleans jazz. They matched a book about a jazz musician with that artist's music to give their students a multisensory experience with the artist and his work. The teachers usually followed these lessons with activities such as theatrical performances and art projects. "The children are challenged in so many different ways ... but they're not intimidated by the work because they're so excited," said Paulette Taylor, a first grade teacher at Washington Rose.

Geographical Jazz

Students at Washington Rose Elementary have been studying jazz and its origins for the past three years as part of a pilot program called "Jazz Sampler." The "Jazz Sampler" project is a joint venture between Washington Rose Elementary and a Long Island-based non-profit organization called "Friends of the Arts." The program was developed to provide teachers with art- and literacy-based activities that meet New York State standards, and which they could incorporate into their lessons as they saw fit. It was also an effort to expose the predominantly African-American student body to another part of Black History.

Each year of the project has focused on a different type of jazz; this year it is Latin jazz. The project stresses literacy, but has also focused on social studies, geography, and science. For example, during a recent social studies lesson, Nelson's second graders learned how, during slavery, African drums were brought from Africa to many Caribbean and Latin American countries. Slaves played the drums to send messages. The drums remained an important part of the culture after slavery ended and, over time, influenced the music of the region. Today, drums are widely used throughout much of Latin music, including Latin jazz music. (Just try to imagine Desi Arnaz without his famous conga drums!)
http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/music/jazz.htm

Mick Coady's Synergy featuring David Binney: Nine Tales of the Pendulum – review

Photograph: Emma Haugh

John Fordham

theguardian.com, Thursday 24 October 2013 23.14 BST

Irish bassist Mick Coady and turn-on-a-dime New York saxophonist David Binney just toured some of this music in the UK, and it was a real meeting of hearts and minds. Nine Tales of the Pendulum is full of testaments to Coady's broad world-music experience, and bop-sax empathy through his regular association with Peter King – in passages such as the two-sax theme statement of Autumn, the asymmetrical piano hook and stealthy sax theme of Naturally Liberating Molecules, or the contrapuntalism of Enemies of Order and unison chorus of Skimpy, in which Binney and Irish tenor saxist Michael Buckley border on a contemporary equivalent to the famously articulate pairing of Lee Konitz with Warne Marsh.
Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/oct/24/mick-coadys-synergy-nine-tales-review

UCC president kicks off symposium celebrating Jazz as liturgy

Written by Anthony Moujaes
October 25, 2013
The Rev. Geoffrey A. Black first noticed the spirituality woven throughout the jazz music repertoire when he was a radio host decades ago in Syracuse, N.Y.  Jazz is, as he put it, both inspirational and a spiritual expression. The General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ believes in jazz as liturgy because of its ability to speak to its listeners.

"Jazz always has a message. For us as people of faith, the Bible has traditionally been the source of our messaging," Black said. "There are the ancient narratives of God's relationship with people — God's liberating acts for a people enslaved. There we also hear the lament of God's people in their trials and suffering.

"We want you to go get the biblical message as expressed in the idiom of jazz and spoken word, a very powerful combination."

With those remarks, Black extended an extravagant welcome to jazz enthusiasts from across the country who came to Cleveland for Jazz for the Journey, a national symposium on jazz music in worship. Sixty-two people gathered at the UCC's headquarters Thursday evening, Oct. 24, to kick off the three-day event. The symposium brings together pastors, worship leaders, jazz musicians and music lovers to celebrate and explore the creative possibilities of jazz and its power to speak to our existential situation and transform Christian worship.

"The music is a natural fit. It is spiritual expression in a very pure form," Black explained to the audience. "It is proclamation. It is jubilation. It is longing. It is prayer. It inspires the body to move."

Black's keynote speech at the Amistad Chapel was the first in a series of presentations, workshops and concerts that continue through Saturday, Oct. 26. The Jazz lovers gathered will spend some time discussing ways liturgical music transforms worship in the church, the ways in which jazz is right in worship, and how jazz improvisation acts as a prayer.

Other presenters include the Rev. Henry T. Simmons, pastor of St. Albans Congregational UCC in Queens, N.Y.; the Rev. Dwight Andrews, senior minister of First Congregational Church UCC in Atlanta; and the Rev. Ozzie Smith, senior pastor of Covenant UCC in South Holland, Ill. The symposium aims to give people the tools, resources and inspiration to bring jazz music into their congregations, and provide attendees with the opportunity to network with each other as they learn more about the history of jazz music. A Friday evening concert, a Saturday Jazz worship service, and musical jam sessions are also scheduled.
Readmore: http://www.ucc.org/news/jazz-for-the-journey-keynote-08062013.html

Sally Sayh sings

Indepth Jazz Clinic - The Music Of Herbie Hancock

SOURCE: 

THE PHILLIPS AGENCY, 

Published: 2013-10-24
An “In-Depth Jazz Clinic" for adults and older teens will be held on Saturday November 16th from 1pm to 5pm at St. Mark's Presbyterian Church, 10701 Old Georgetown Rd, North Bethesda, MD 20852.

The clinic will focus on Herbie Hancock's 1965 Blue Note Album, Maiden Voyage. It will cover the five tunes: “Maiden Voyage," “Dolphin Dance," “Eye of the Hurricane," “Little One," and “Survival of the Fittest."

Clinic coaches include Jeff Antoniuk, saxophone; Allyn Johnson, piano; Kenny Rittenhouse, trumpet; Mike Pope, bass; Todd Harrison , drums. All are seasoned and highly-regarded performers and jazz educators.

Jeff Antoniuk's “InDepth Jazz Clinics" offer several focused workshops every year. For details and registration call 410-295-6691 or visit: indepthjazz.com

The workshop faculty will also perform in two concerts at Twins Jazz, 1344 “U" Street, Washington, D.C. on Friday night Nov. 15 and Saturday night Nov. 16. Shows are at 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. Admission is $20. Make reservations at twinsjazz.com


Visit Website
Read more: http://news.allaboutjazz.com/news.php?id=106736

Jazz Bassist Eddie Gomez Awarded First Honorary Doctorate At Berklee In Valencia, Spain

Published: 2013-10-24
Legendary jazz bassist and Grammy Award-winner Eddie Gómez was awarded an honorary doctor of music degree by Berklee College of Music in Valencia. Gomez is a native of Puerto Rico who was raised in New York City. This was the first-ever honorary doctorate granted at the college’s new international campus in Spain. The award was presented by Larry Simpson, Berklee senior vice president for academic affairs, at a celebratory concert at the Teatro Martin i Soler in the Palau de les Arts, home of the college’s Valencia campus.

“I am profoundly proud to receive this honor from Berklee College of Music, one of the most prestigious music schools in the world,” said Gomez in his acceptance remarks. “Of course, I need to thank Mr. Roger Brown, Larry Simpson, Brian Cole, Matt Marvuglio and Marco Pignataro for making this happen. It is a very special night.”

The concert starred Gómez performing alongside faculty and student musicians from Boston and Valencia. These included flutist and composer Matt Marvuglio, dean of Berklee’s performance division; saxophonist Marco Pignataro, managing director of the Berklee Global Jazz Institute; bassist Steve Bailey, chair of the college’s bass department; guitarist and bandleader Dave Fiuczynski, professor of guitar; and vibraphonist and composer Victor Mendoza, director of the college’s master’s program in contemporary studio performance. The concert was produced by Marvuglio and Mendoza.

“Eddie is among the greatest living jazz musicians and a titan in the history of the jazz double bass. His music and technique has influenced jazz musicians and bassists from almost every genre,” commented Simpson. “He has also shown a serious commitment to education, dedicating time to teaching at institutions including the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music and Berklee, despite his very active performance schedule.”
Read more: http://news.allaboutjazz.com/news.php?id=106738#.Um7XXKXhH9A

Tigran Hamasyan, the pianist giving jazz an Armenian twist

He's the hottest pianist in jazz and he likes to mix things up, whether it's bebop, thrash metal or dubstep. But his heart is in the folk music of his native land

Somewhere, there's home-movie footage of a three-year-old Tigran Hamasyan at his childhood home in rural Armenia. He is listening to Black Sabbath's Paranoid and freaking out on a toy guitar. "That was my childhood ambition," he laughs. "Still, to this day, if I could become a killer guitar player in a couple of years, I'd quit playing the piano and start learning now. I'd love to front a thrash metal band!"

Thankfully, thrash metal's loss has been jazz's gain. At the age of 26, this tiny, impish Armenian-American is the hottest pianist in jazz, selling out arenas and earning fervent praise from the likes of Chick Corea, Brad Mehldau and Herbie Hancock (the latter declared: "Tigran, you are my teacher now!"). But Hamasyan isn't even sure if he makes jazz music. "I suppose it's jazz in the sense that I'm improvising," he says. "But the language I try to use when I'm improvising is not bebop but Armenian folk music."

Hamasyan has an omnivorous musical diet. He devours traditional songs from Armenia, Scandinavia and India, and has studied classical music to a high level (he has suggested a budding jazz pianist would be better off playing Bach or Chopin than studying bebop), while his iPod playlist is that of the twentysomething hipster – J Dilla, Flying Lotus, Radiohead, Sigur Rós, Skrillex and a heavy dose of thrash metal.

But the music he makes doesn't really sound like any of the above. We meet after he's played to a sold-out 2,000-seat theatre in Toulouse, where his 90-minute set lurches from delicate, impressionistic versions of eastern orthodox hymns to bursts of electronica; from Keith Jarrett-like meditations to full-on jazz-rock.

"I get into different types of music and really immerse myself in each one and then move on," he says. "But I try to retain that intensity whenever I revisit any particular music." In the past 18 months alone he has collaborated with Indian percussionist Trilok Gurtu, Tunisian oud player Dhafer Youssef, dubstep collective LV, oddball hip-hop producer Prefuse 73, along with fellow Armenian-American Serj Tankian from prog-metal outfit System of a Down.

Hamasyan was born in Gyumri, near Armenia's border with Turkey. Neither of his parents were musicians (his father was a jeweller, his mother a clothes designer), and he grew up listening to his father's heavy rock collection – Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Queen. By three, he was picking out pop melodies on the family piano; from six he attended a specialist music school. "We can be grateful to the old Soviet Union that we had classical education systems in place," he says. "Everybody had a piano in their house, whether they were musicians or not." By the age of nine he began to immerse himself in jazz, and even guested as a singer with a local big band ("I was this weird, talented kid who sang a couple of standards and a Beatles song, Oh Darling").
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/oct/24/tigran-hamasyan-pianist-jazz-armenian

NJJazzList.com Calendar

10/30 Wed Warren Vache duo at Italian Bistro Restaurant & Bar, The 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm Style: Mixed, Cover:None, $20 PREFIX MENU EVERY NIGHT!! except Sat. beautiful baby grand piano, Full bar, Free parking lot John Bianculli Solo Fridays & Sundays, JAZZ NIGHT Saturdays duos & trios Learn more , Hear samples , (732/848)

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10/31 Thu Barbara Rose, Pianist & Vocalist at Molly Pitcher Inn, Red Bank 6:00 pm to 11:00 pm Style: Mixed,Cover: None, Celebrate the American Songbook with piano prodigy Barbara Rose. Barbara’s style as a vocalist ranges from Judy Garland to Janis Joplin. Her piano style is reminiscent of Thelonius Monk. Learn more , Hear samples , (732/848)

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10/31 Thu Carrie Jackson @ 16 Prospect Wine Bar & Bistro at 16 Prospect Wine Bar & Bistro 8:00 pm to 11:00 pm Style: Mixed, Cover: None, Carrie Jackson Trio w/ John Zweig, guitar; Gary Mazzaroppi, bass 16 Prospect Street, Westfield, NJ Learn more , Hear samples , (862/973)

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10/31 Thu Drummer Winard Harper and his quartet. at Makeda - 338 George St. New Brunswick, NJ 8:00 pm to 11:00 pm Style: Mixed, Cover: None, Drummer Winard Harper and his quartet. $5 cover charge. Learn more , (Unknown)

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11/01 Fri B.D. Lenz at The Deer Head Inn 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm Style: Contemporary/Post Bop, Cover: $10 or less, ** CD RELEASE PARTY!! ** Learn more , Hear samples , ()

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11/01 Fri Billy Carrión Jr./Campbell Charshee/Jon Di Fiore at Tomi Jazz 9:00 pm to 1:00 am Style: Mixed,Cover: None, Come join us as we play new original music, as well as covers from some of the favorites like Hancock/Shorter, and Japanese video game composers! , (212/ )

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11/01 Fri Joel Zelnik Trio at Hibiscus 7:00 pm to 1:00 am Style: Mixed, Cover: None, Hear Joel Zelnik-Piano, Brian Glassman-Bass, and Vocalist Stan Edwards perform the music of the Tony Bennett and Bill Evans , Hear samples , (862/973)

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11/01 Fri John Bianculli SOLO PIANO FRIDAYS at Italian Bistro Restaurant & Bar, The 7:00 pm to 10:30 pmStyle: Mixed, Cover: None, $20 PREFIX MENU EVERY NIGHT!! except Sat. beautiful baby grand piano, Full bar, Free parking lot John Bianculli Solo Fridays & Sundays, JAZZ NIGHT Saturdays duos & trios Learn more ,Hear samples , (732/848)

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11/01 Fri KEVIN HILDEBRANDT at Robert's Steakhouse - Trump Taj Mahal AC 7:30 pm to 11:30 pm Style:Guitar, Cover: None, Learn more , Hear samples , (609/ )

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11/01 Fri New Brunswick Groove Fusion at Destination Dogs - 101 Paterson St. New Brunswick, 9:00 pm to 12:00 am Style: Mixed, Cover: None, Trombonist Matt Echols featuring James Ohn - tenor sax, Mike Bond - keyboard, Matthew Keppler - bass, Mike Winnicki - percussion and Abel Tabares - drums. No cover charge.Learn more , (Unknown)

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11/01 Fri Rob Paparozzi SOLO Piano & Vocals at Nauvoo Grill 7:30 pm to 11:00 pm Style: Mixed, Cover:None, The music of Randy Newman, Leon Rusell and many more Learn more , Hear samples , (732/848)

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11/01 Fri Shikantaza at South Brunswick Jazz Cafe 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm Style: Straight-ahead, Cover: $10 or less, South Brunswick Municipal Complex, 540 Route 522, Monmouth Junction NJ 08852. Doors open 7:30 PM. Doug Miller on piano, Bernhard Geiger on acoustic bass, Brandon Lewin on percussion, Lori Pantaleo, Tanya Saunders, and Robert Bullington, vocals. Hidden gems from the Great American Songbook, along with original and esoteric works. Learn more , Hear samples , (732/848)

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11/02 Sat Akua Dixon Turre at Bethany Baptist Church 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm Style: Straight-ahead, Cover: None, Cellist Akua Dixon and Trio at the Bethany Jazz Vespers Learn more , Hear samples , (862/973)

Born in Dawson, Ga., Otis Redding, Jr. ….

Born in Dawson, Ga., Otis Redding, Jr. and his family moved to Macon when he was five years old. At an early age he began his career as a singer and musician in the choir of the Vineville Baptist Church. Otis attended Ballard Hudson High School and participated in the school band. He began to compete in the Douglass Theatre talent shows for the five-dollar prize. After winning 15 times straight, he was no longer allowed to compete.

Otis joined Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers in 1960, and would also sing at the “Teenage Party” talent shows sponsored by local celebrity disc jockey King Bee, Hamp Swain, on Saturday mornings initially at the Roxy Theater and later at the Douglass Theatre in Macon.

Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers drove to Memphis, Tenn., for a recording session in October 1962 at Stax Record. At the end of the session, Stax co-owner Jim Stewart allowed Otis to cut a couple of songs with the remaining studio time. The result was "These Arms of Mine", released in 1962.

This was the first of many hit singles (including classics "I've Been Loving You Too Long," "Respect" and "Try A Little Tenderness") that Redding enjoyed during his tragically short career. After nine months, he was invited to perform at the Apollo Theatre for a live recording and would go on to showcase his dance movements with "Shake" and "Satisfaction."

After years of ambition and drive, Otis Redding’s sacrifices paid off. He appeared throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and the Caribbean. His concert tours were among the biggest box office smashes of any touring performer during his time. He was nominated in three categories by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS) for recordings he made during 1967. 1968 was destined to be the greatest year of his career with appearances slated at such locations at New York’s Philharmonic Hall and Washington’s Constitution Hall. Redding was booked for several major television network appearances, including The Ed Sullivan Show and The Smothers Brothers Show.

He was posthumously inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 1981 and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1989. In 1999, he was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award.

In 1970, Warner Brothers released an album of live recordings from the June, 1967 Monterey International Pop Festival, featuring Otis Redding on one side, and Jimi Hendrix on the other. This record is evidence that the hip white audiences, better known as the “love crowd” were digging Otis Redding just as much as the black audiences for whom he had always played. His energy and excitement, his showmanship, and his relationship with the crowd made Redding a master as a performer who had the rare gift of being able to reach audiences the world over.

THE SONG - It was unlike anything Redding had ever written, influenced by his admiration for the Beatles' classic "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" album. Otis played The Beatles' album constantly during a week he had spent on a houseboat in Sausalito when performing at…

Read more: http://www.otisredding.com/#&panel1-3

The Wrong Object: After the Exhibition

By

DAVE WAYNE, 

Published: October 24, 2013

Sometime during the late 1960s, adventurous European rock musicians led by the likes of Gong, Soft Machine, Magma, andArzachel began incorporating elements of avant-garde jazz, contemporary classical and various ethnic musics into their own original progressive rock music. The result varied somewhat from region to region, but the most important thing was that very little of this hybrid music fit neatly into the existing parameters of fusion music, then known generically as jazz-rock. Sure, there were stacks of analogue keyboards, long virtuosic solos, convoluted and labyrinthine compositions, and numerous appearances by electrified non-rock instruments such as violin, flute, and vibraphone; but the music wasn't a take-off on the ostensibly jazz- based American variant of the sub-genre. Despite their admitted pre- eminence, Weather Report and Mahavishnureferences were, in fact, few and far-between. 

Despite its niche appeal and chronic commercial non- viability, this sub-sub genre has persisted and even flourished as fans have aged and become ever more ardent music consumers. These days, the branding is so profligate, that one often views claims of avant-prog, Rock-In- Opposition, and Canterbury influences with a jaundiced eye. Belgium'sThe Wrong Object is, however, very, very much the real deal. After The Exhibition, the band's seventh full-length release, is heady and strong stuff, indeed. Over the group's decade-plus of existence, the two remaining members are drummer Laurent Delchambre and guitaristMichel Delville. Currently a sextet comprising two reed players, keyboards and bass in addition to drums and guitar, The Wrong Object started out as a Frank Zappa tribute band, and subsequently developed strong ties to the UK jazz scene via collaborations with trombonistAnnie Whitehead, trumpeter Harry Beckett, and ex-Soft Machine reedman Elton Dean. The band's propensity for working with heavy friends continues on After The Exhibition with Benoit Moerlen, formerly with Gong, playing mallets on six tracks. However, an unheralded guest makes the biggest splash here; vocalist Susan Clynes pours luscious syrupy Northette-inspired gold onto "Glass Cubes." 

The majority of the tracks were written by guitarist Michel Delville or keyboardist Antoine Guenet, or both. Their complex, multi-sectioned compositions don't tend to stay in one place too long, yet manage to give the soloists ample space to have their say. "Detox Gruel" starts off the album with measured aggression; its heavy guitar / saxophone leads hearken back to the days when Allan Holdsworth teamed up with Didier Malherbe in Gong. The manic "Spanish Fly" is capped by a madcap clarinet / saxophone duet, while Guenet lights up Delchambre's Moorish-sounding, minor-key "Yantra" with spooky Rhodes solo. "Glass Cubes" takes a completely different turn. Featuring dual vocals by Guenet and Clynes, this is the one track that evokes the Canterbury spirit of groups like National Health and Hatfield and the North most fully. The centerpiece of After The Exhibition is "Jungle Cow," a three-part suite that opens with an extraordinarily cohesive group improvisation which gives way to a hypnotic 5/4 groove. Delville takes an absolutely scorching solo (over an entirely different groove, of course) that breaks down into Pierre Mottet's wild fuzz-wah bass intro to Part 3, which— naturally—mellows out for some inspired saxophone soloing by Marti Melia and Francois Lourtie. "Wrong but Not False" occupies a mellower space, with prominent Rhodes and clarinet and another fine solo from Delville. "Flashlight Into A Black Hole" might be the most hard-rocking piece on the album, with Melia's tenor saxophone riding Delville's wall-of-sound guitar into oblivion. The album closes on a whimsical note with Benoit Moerlen's "Stammtisch." Here, comparisons to Moerlen's former group are no coincidence, though The Wrong Object takes the tune much further "out" than Gong would have.

Read more: http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=45638#.Umpbg6XhH9A

Tommy Whittle obituary

Tommy Whittle, right, playing tenor sax in his quintet at the Marquee club, Wardour Street, London, in 1958, alongside Eddie Thompson on piano and Harry Klein on baritone sax. Photograph: Eric Jelly/Peter Vacher

Peter Vacher
theguardian.com, Wednesday 23 October 2013 15.01 BST
The tenor saxophonist Tommy Whittle, who has died aged 87, was as relaxed in the demanding session world as he was on the jazz bandstand. Having earned his spurs in dance-hall bands as a youngster, he became a member of the Ted Heath orchestra in the late 1940s. In parallel, he kept the jazz flame alive, always finding time to play club dates and running a series of successful jazz clubs involving the best local musicians. A "polished stylist", in the words of the cornettist Digby Fairweather, Whittle at his best was arguably one of Britain's finest jazz musicians.

Once his commercial assignments had diminished, Whittle returned to full-time jazz performance with his second wife, the singer Barbara Jay, whom he married in 1967. His desire to play and willingness to travel continued until failing health intervened late last year.

Whittle was born in Grangemouth, Scotland, and, after some family prompting, tried the harmonica and the banjo before alighting on the clarinet. Introduced by the painter Alan Davie, then a student, to the local rhythm club, he began to attend jam sessions and listen to recordings by Lester Young and Coleman Hawkins.

When Davie went into the army, Whittle borrowed his saxophone. Evidently a quick learner, he played briefly with a local band before his parents sent him to stay with his grandparents in Chatham, Kent, hoping to wean their 16-year-old son away from professional music by finding him a serious job. But a chance encounter with the drummer Ronnie Verrell led to a booking with the Claude Giddins band in Gillingham, which often featured guest stars from London, including the expatriate Belgian trumpeter Johnny Claes.

After playing with Claes for a few weeks, Whittle joined the veteran bandleader Lew Stone. On the London freelance scene, he performed with the reedman Carl Barriteau and then with Harry Hayes at Churchill's Club, a combo that included the pianist George Shearing.

Already making a name for himself as a soloist in classy circles, Whittle joined the Heath band in 1947, replacing Ronnie Scott, and stayed with this high-profile, well-paid outfit for the next five years. They did road trips, frequent recording dates, London Palladium concerts and an appearance in the 1950 movie Dance Hall. It was when Heath insisted that he repeat the same solos every night that Whittle made his bid for freedom by playing in the drummer Tony Kinsey's trio at Studio 51 in Soho.
Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/oct/23/tommy-whittle

Camille Harris Releases 'Silly Jazz' EP

Camille Harris, author of the popular FringeNYC musical Muffin Man, regular player on the comedy show, The Moon in Brooklyn, and co-host of My High School Boyfriend is Gay at UCB East, is celebrating the release of her first EP Silly Jazz by hosting a variety show featuring stand-up, storytelling and other music comedians.

The show is Tuesday, November 5th at 8pm at Union Pool (485 Union Ave. Brooklyn, NY). $5
Camille will be joined by some of her friends, featuring stand-up from Myq Kaplan (2010 Last Comic Standing, Conan) and Carolyn Castiglia (Last Comic Standing, VH1); music from Kenny Pickett (Chicara Wrestling) and Ben Lerman (Big Band Hot 100, LogoTV); and storytelling from Leslie Goshko (Huffington Post, Sideshow Goshko).

Camille will be hosting and singing songs off her new album

Read more about Camille Harris Releases 'Silly Jazz' EP - BWWMusicWorld by www.broadwayworld.com

Jamie Cullum: "Music was my retreat from the crippling handicap that being a teenager is."

Written by EMMA HIGGINBOTHAM
When Jamie Cullum plays the Cambridge Corn Exchange on Friday, don’t be surprised if you hear some rather overenthusiastic whoops and squeals.

Not that the jazz supremo doesn’t deserve them. Far from it.

With his beguiling mix of earthy, jazzy pop, super-smooth vocals and puppylike on-stage energy, even the most restrained audience member would struggle not to squeal at Mr Cullum like a hyperventilating teen.

No, the explanation is a little simpler than that: “I’ve got quite a few friends who live in Cambridge, so there’ll be an unnatural amount of joke screaming when I play because all my friends will be there. It’ll be like ‘Oh my God, Jamie!’” he squeaks, “and ‘You’re a GOD!” That kind of thing. Heheh.” It may be first thing on a Monday morning, but Cullum is in a jovial mood – not bad for a sleep-deprived father of a baby (Margot, 6 months) and a toddler (Lyra, 2), let alone someone who’s deep in rehearsals for a hectic tour. He’s playing everywhere from Belfast to Bordeaux, promoting his sixth and latest album, Momentum - but there’s bound to be surprises, as Cullum never has a set-list.

“There’ll be moments of really deep jazz, some pop moments as well – but it could go any way, really. I walk on stage and try to make it a fresh feast every night. Not even the band knows what I’m going to play.” Crikey, isn’t that a bit exciting for them? “Yeah, but they’re used to it,” he shrugs. “If you rely on the same tricks every night, it can be like you’re going through the motions; a bit like theatre in some ways. And actually I really thrive on spontaneity on stage. It’s exhausting, but it keeps it fresh.”

Growing up in Wiltshire, the son of musicloving parents, Cullum took up the guitar and piano as a boy. His talent was unmistakable, yet he never learned to read music: “I just was kind of terrible at it,” he says sheepishly.

“But I’ve always found it easy to play things that I hear. Not necessarily note for note, but I can work something out just by hearing it.” At school, he was “into everything” musically - particularly hip-hop which, with its plethora of samples, introduced Cullum to the sounds and styles of an earlier era: “It was a real link to old soul, and funk, and jazz music.

But I was never the kind of kid who walked around school in a trilby, wishing I was living in the 60s,” he adds quickly. “I was going to raves and concerts with everyone else, I just had very open ears from a young age.

“When I got home from school, the first thing I would do was go to the piano or the guitar, or put music on. It was my retreat from the crippling handicap that being a teenager is.
My crutch was music.” Did he ever think he’d be famous? “No, I did not!” he laughs. “I had no designs on fame.

Read more: http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Whats-on-leisure/Choice/Jamie-Cullum-Music-was-my-retreat-from-the-crippling-handicap-that-being-a-teenager-is-20131024060033.htm#ixzz2ijZfekbJ

"Jolie Goodnight releases debut album"-- “Say Goodnight Gracey”

AUSTIN, TX • September 23, 2013 The Denver Post calls her  “…seductive siren, Jolie Goodnight, a muse not to be missed.” With “Say Goodnight Gracey” creative tour-de-force Jolie Goodnight steps forth with her recording debut November 22nd.

In love with the beauty of an era gone by, Goodnight sings with the freshness of a young heart echoing from the depth of an old soul, moving easily between dirty blues, Tin Pan Alley humor, poignant ballads and “…a tender voice that could melt a stone heart” Michael Simmons (MOJO Magazine.)

 A native Austinite, daughter of the legendary producer Joe Gracey and singer-songwriter Kimmie Rhodes, she was born into a showbiz family. Collaborating with producer/brother, Gabriel Rhodes, who assembled a dream team band, Mike Thompson (The Eagles), Glen Fukunaga (Joe Ely), Dony Wynn (Robert Plant), Brian Standefer (Alejandro Escovedo), and Jon Mills (Times Ten), they bring nouveau quirky, but grounded coolness to beloved standards.

 “I got to bare my soul. It’s a really positive vulnerability. I feel so honored to have worked with such stellar musicians in the studio,” says Goodnight.

Read more: https://www.storyamp.com/dispatch/4724/9NBloqWFV_ud81-exbeu2A

Mike Jones: Plays Well With Others

Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com

Jazz has a long history of pianists with punch. Earl "Fatha" Hines, Art Tatum, Erroll Garner, Bud Powell, Oscar Peterson, Horace Silver and Bobby Timmons are just a handful. All had a tiger-like attack on the keyboard coupled with an acrobatic technique. About a month ago a CD by pianist Mike Jones arrived that sizzled with excitement and I thought to myself—the punch, it lives! Weeks later, critic, pal and Duke Ellington biographer Terry Teachout sent along an email raving about Mike.

The album is Plays Well With Others (Capri), featuring Mike on piano, Mike Gurrola on bass and Jeff Hamilton on drums. Mike's night job is performing during the long-running Penn & Teller Show in Las Vegas. Penn Jillette joins Mike on bass during the introductory musical segment of the evening.

Mike attended Boston's Berklee College of Music and remained there after graduation, playing with Herb Pomeroy and Gray Sargent. After performing on the Floating Jazz Festival on the S.S. Norway and the Queen Elizabeth ll and recording several pre-bop albums, Mike moved to Vegas. Since 2002, Mike has worked with Penn and Teller at Rio All Suites Hotel and Casino.

Mike's first release was Oh! Look at Me Now! on Chiarascuro, followed by Runnin' Wild (1996). Three more CDs followed in the 2000s. I reviewed his Live at Steinway Hall (1999) back in 2010 and was thunderstruck by his gift.

On Plays Well Together, Mike takes on 10 gorgeous standards like Detour Ahead, Harry Warren's I Know Why and So Do You, Corcorvado and I'm Old Fashioned. The two originals on the album are rollicking blues and both are foot-beaters. Mike is old school. His playing is first and foremost artful entertainment. Like those punch pianists of yore, Mike means to grab you and delight your senses. The strength of his playing and his choice of chords and improvised lines are show-stopping. But what makes this album special is how his playing curls around the part of your brain that responds favorably to warm, larger-than-life sound.

This is piano jazz the way it used to be played—before the electronic and digital ages, when music was labor and musicians broke their necks to make seduction sound easy. You won't be disappointed.

JazzWax tracks: You'll find the Mike Jones Trio's Plays Well With Others (Capri) here.

JazzWax clips: Here's I Thought About You and Mike's Box Viewing Blues...

I Thought About You

Box Viewing Blues

 JazzWax note: For more on Mike Jones, go here.
- See more at: http://www.jazzwax.com/2013/09/mike-jones-plays-well-with-others.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Jazzwax+%28JazzWax%29#sthash.pQLQe5qF.dpuf

Used with permission by Marc Myers