At JazzWax, Dexter Gordon and Al Cohn's only recording session together in 1976 https://t.co/FR232bpTkw pic.twitter.com/YZ9e1z8u54— Marc Myers (@JazzWax) September 14, 2016
Thursday, September 15, 2016
#DexterGordon and #AlCohn
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Dexter Gordon in Denmark: 1962
Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com
There are tens of thousands of jazz clips on YouTube. But some, like this one, add a human element that brings the artist and the event to life.
Here's Dexter Gordon in Copenhagen in 1962. It was filmed for a German TV program that aired a year later, featuring Gordon at the Jazz Club Montmartre along with Lars Gulin (bs), Sahib Shihab (fl/as), Harold Goldberg (p), Benny Nielsen (b) and Alex Riel (d)....
Used with permission by Marc Myers
Monday, April 15, 2013
Dexter Gordon: "Ernie's Tune"
Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com
In the late '50s, Jack Gelber wrote a play called The Connection, which dramatized the lure of narcotics and the stark perils of addiction. The play—which opened in New York at the Living Theatre on July 15, 1959—featured jazz musicians who were initially going to improvise music on stage.
But when pianist Freddie Redd wrote a score, he persuaded Gelber to use it and Redd, alto saxophonist Jackie McLean, bassist Michael Mattos and drummer Larry Ritchie performed it during the run. The theater was located on the second floor of the former Hecht's department store on Sixth Ave. at 14th St.
The play's raw theme and incorporation of live jazz attracted sufficient acclaim in New York that Gelber launched a West Coast production in 1960. For the Los Angeles version, Dexter Gordon composed music and performed. Among the songs he wrote was Ernie's Tune, a ballad.
What most people don't know is that in 1960, Los Angeles songwriter Morgan Ames [pictured above] was asked to write lyrics to Gordon's song.
Last week, I spoke with Morgan about Ernie's Tune...
JazzWax: When did Dexter Gordon write Ernie's Tune?
Morgan Ames: It was written during the run of the play in Hollywood in 1960, because that's the date on my original leadsheet. Dexter was probably hanging out somewhere and he did what musicians do—he wrote several tunes for the play. As we know, Dexter turned out to be a really good actor. I'd love to know who figured that out. Later, of course, he was beautifully cast in movies like 'Round Midnight and Awakenings.
JW: Who was Ernie?
MA: Ernie was the play's junkie musician—soft-spoken, talented, lost, attractive. Dexter was perfectly cast, and this may have been his first play. I don't know.
JW: Who played the characters on the West Coast?Morgan Ames: It was written during the run of the play in Hollywood in 1960, because that's the date on my original leadsheet. Dexter was probably hanging out somewhere and he did what musicians do—he wrote several tunes for the play. As we know, Dexter turned out to be a really good actor. I'd love to know who figured that out. Later, of course, he was beautifully cast in movies like 'Round Midnight and Awakenings.
JW: Who was Ernie?
MA: Ernie was the play's junkie musician—soft-spoken, talented, lost, attractive. Dexter was perfectly cast, and this may have been his first play. I don't know.
MA: Robert Blake and Gavin MacLeod, who was notoriously square in life but playing this hope-to-die drug addict. He was really good in it but his career didn't take off until The Love Boat and The Mary Tyler Moore Show, both of which suited him way better.
JW: Who asked you to write lyrics for the song?
MA: I think it was Robert Blake's [pictured above] idea. He liked my writing. I was excited about the idea of writing a lyric around a character.
JW: Why that specific song? What is it about the song that intrigued you?
MA: It's a purely beautiful melody, not just a jazz tune. At that time, jazz guys were writing changes to tunes and this was one of them—but Dexter's had a real melody. I was a keyboard player who was enthralled with chords. Dexter was a jazz star to me. I was 20 at the time—thrilled to be around these guys. Here was this young girl eager to write a lyric to his tune.
JW: What did Gordon think?
MA: I think he was amused, and then he liked it. It suited the character and the life pretty well. I remember Dexter was very tall—courtly but distant. I'm a little hazy but I'm pretty sure I was the one who made sure the song was registered with BMI. He must have been in the process of recording it because otherwise you can't get a song registered.
MA: No, I didn't work with him. He wrote the song and I got my hands on it somehow. I never saw Dexter again after that.
JW: What was your expectation—that a specific singer would take it on?
MA: Yes. It was a disappointment that the song was never recorded with my lyric. But this is a very familiar occurance in the music business, and every writer knows it. These rejections happen, and your confidence flags. You bury it and move on to the next song, the next chance. I was not good with follow-through.
MA: Yes. It was a disappointment that the song was never recorded with my lyric. But this is a very familiar occurance in the music business, and every writer knows it. These rejections happen, and your confidence flags. You bury it and move on to the next song, the next chance. I was not good with follow-through.
JW: Tough to needle singers to try singing it?
MA: I was more attracted to musicians than songwriters. Sometimes a songwriter makes a profound hookup with an artist—Fred Ebb, John Kander and Liza Minnelli [pictured above], or Barbra Streisand and Alan and Marilyn Bergman. They have a whole different kind of career as a result. They are better oriented and have a container for their work. And of course these are all great songwriters.
JW: So to date, no one has recorded the lyrics? A song waiting to happen.
MA: That's right. Shirley Horn would have killed it. I'd say it hasn't been recorded because no one knows it exists. I lost track of it over time, and Dexter was a player, not a singer. Also if anyone did look it up, I was listed as Vicki Arnold—a name I changed in my early 20s. It was registered with BMI, and I've always been an ASCAP writer.
MA: That's right. Shirley Horn would have killed it. I'd say it hasn't been recorded because no one knows it exists. I lost track of it over time, and Dexter was a player, not a singer. Also if anyone did look it up, I was listed as Vicki Arnold—a name I changed in my early 20s. It was registered with BMI, and I've always been an ASCAP writer.
Used with permission by Marc Myers
Read more: http://www.jazzwax.com/2013/04/dexter-gordon-ernies-tune.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Jazzwax+%28JazzWax%29
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Dexter Gordon and Booker Ervin
Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com
Tenor saxophone battles date back to the '30s and proliferated 
at clubs on Central Avenue in Los Angeles in the late '40s. Famed post-war tenor sax pairings include Dexter Gordon and Wardell Gray, Sonny Stitt and Gene Ammons, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and Johnny Griffin, and Zoot Sims and Al Cohn. One of the finest battle albums isSettin' the Pace(Prestige), featuring Dexter Gordon and Booker Ervin.
at clubs on Central Avenue in Los Angeles in the late '40s. Famed post-war tenor sax pairings include Dexter Gordon and Wardell Gray, Sonny Stitt and Gene Ammons, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and Johnny Griffin, and Zoot Sims and Al Cohn. One of the finest battle albums isSettin' the Pace(Prestige), featuring Dexter Gordon and Booker Ervin.The two tenor titans met in 
Munich, Germany, on October 27, 1965. Ervin was touring Europe at the time and Gordon was residing in Copenhagen. Fortunately, Prestige records, Ervin's label at the time, was there to capture the meeting.
Munich, Germany, on October 27, 1965. Ervin was touring Europe at the time and Gordon was residing in Copenhagen. Fortunately, Prestige records, Ervin's label at the time, was there to capture the meeting.Only two tracks were recorded, each filling a side. On Setting
the Pace, Gordon took the first solo. On Dexter's Deck, Ervin kicked things off. The first track runs just over 19 minutes while the second lasts for nearly 23 minutes. The rhythm section featured Jaki Byard on piano, Reggie Workman on bass and Alan Dawson on drums.
the Pace, Gordon took the first solo. On Dexter's Deck, Ervin kicked things off. The first track runs just over 19 minutes while the second lasts for nearly 23 minutes. The rhythm section featured Jaki Byard on piano, Reggie Workman on bass and Alan Dawson on drums.All in all, my vote goes to Gordon. Ervin [pictured] may have been playing out of the box, with freer, Coltranesque lines. But 
Gordon is immensely more interesting to listen to and a lot more fluid and melodic as he tirelessly runs chorus after chorus of ideas. Ervin also pauses often to reload by landing and lingering on notes, the musical equivalent of "Uhhh" in a speech.
Gordon is immensely more interesting to listen to and a lot more fluid and melodic as he tirelessly runs chorus after chorus of ideas. Ervin also pauses often to reload by landing and lingering on notes, the musical equivalent of "Uhhh" in a speech. I asked Maxine Gordon, the saxophonist's widow, about this summit yesterday. Here's what she said:
"Prestige arranged the date. After 
the club appearance, Dexter was in Berlin with Kenny Drew on October 30 with Booker Ervin playing a jam session with Sonny Rollins, Kenny Drew, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen and Alan Dawson. There is a radio broadcast of Scrapple From the Apple."
the club appearance, Dexter was in Berlin with Kenny Drew on October 30 with Booker Ervin playing a jam session with Sonny Rollins, Kenny Drew, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen and Alan Dawson. There is a radio broadcast of Scrapple From the Apple."One only wonders what the audience thought that night and what these two talked about afterward. The October 30 date doesn't sound half bad either!
JazzWax tracks: Settin' the Pace 
and Dexter's Deck are available on CD here or on Dexter Gordon: The Complete Prestige Recordings here.
and Dexter's Deck are available on CD here or on Dexter Gordon: The Complete Prestige Recordings here.JazzWax note: Be sure to visit Dexter Gordon's official site here.
from Marc Myers
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
