MUSICA DESDE LAS ANTIPODAS

ASí ESTÁN LAS COSAS

2015-05-17T12:43:00.001+02:00

Blogger está eliminando cada vez más discos de los que he publicado en el blog, de acuerdo con el acta DMCA.
No sé lo que durará este sitio abierto. El origen del blog era divertirme y compartir con vosotros la música que me gusta. Actualmente la diversión es cada vez menor (esos e-mails amenazadores!) y lo de compartir, mejor no hablar (hay un forum de Georgia que lo lleva al extremo; prácticamente, el 99% de lo que publican lo han cogido de otros blogs).
Así que lo dicho. No sé cuanto tiempo seguiré en la brecha.

Coleman Hawkins - 1962 Hawkins Alive ! At the Village Gate

2010-05-17T12:39:00.002+02:00

01 All the Things You Are (From "Very Warm for May) (Hammerstein, Kern) 8:16
02 Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho (traditional) 10:42
03 Mack the Knife (Weil, Brecht) 8:49
04 It's the Talk of the Town (Levinson, Symes, Neiburg) 9:28
05 Bean and the Boys (Hawkins) 7:02
06 If I Had You (Shapiro, Campbell, Connelly) 8:35

Recorded at Art D'Lugoff's Village Gate, New York, on August 13 & 15, 1962

Coleman Hawkins tenor sax
Tommy Flanagan piano
Major Holley bass
Ed Locke drums

Coleman Hawkins - 1960 All Stars

2010-05-17T12:38:00.002+02:00

01 You Blew Out the Flame in My Heart (Hodges, Drake, Shirl) 5:58
02 More Bounce to the Vonce (Osie Johnson) 9:00
03 I'm Beginning to See the Light (James, Ellington, Hodges, George) 6:55
04 Cool Blues (Jerry Valentine) 8:10
05 Some Stretching (Hawkins, Johnson) 12:16

Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, on January 8, 1960

Coleman Hawkins - tenor saxophone
Joe Thomas - trumpet
Vic Dickenson - trombone
Tommy Flanagan - piano
Wendell Marshall - bass
Osie Johnson - drums

Coleman Hawkins - 1958-62 In a Mellow Tone

2010-05-17T12:36:00.002+02:00

01 You Blew Out the Flame in My Heart (Hodges, Drake, Shirl) 6:00
02 I Want to Be Loved (Churchill) 5:57
03 In a Mellow Tone (Ellington, Gabler) 6:48
04 Greensleeves (Traditional) 3:15
05 Through for the Night (Young) 5:14
06 Until the Real Thing Comes Along (Cahn, Chaplin, Holiner, Nichols, Freeman) 4:44
07 The Sweetest Sounds (Rodgers) 4:20
08 Then I'll Be Tired of You (Harburg, Schwartz) 5:12
09 Jammin' in Swingville [bonus track] (Hamilton) 9:30

Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, New Jersey on November 7, 1958 and April 3, 1959
Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey between August 12, 1959 and March 30, 1962

Ray Bryant (Piano)
Ron Carter (Bass)
Tommy Flanagan (Piano)
Red Garland (Piano)
Tiny Grimes (Guitar)
Claude Hopkins (Piano)
Joe Newman (Trumpet)
Doug Watkins (Bass)
Charlie Shavers (Trumpet)
Billy Gene English (Drums)
Major Holley (Bass)
Charles Wright (Drums)
Coleman Hawkins (Tenor Sax)
George Duvivier (Bass)
Kenny Burrell (Guitar)
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis (Tenor Sax)
Vic Dickenson (Trombone)
Jimmy Hamilton (Clarinet)
J.C. Higginbotham (Trombone)
Hilton Jefferson (Alto Sax)
Gus Johnson (Drums)
Osie Johnson (Drums)
Eddie Locke (Drums)
Wendell Marshall (Bass)
Joe Thomas (Trumpet)

Coleman Hawkins - 1955 Cool Groove

2010-05-17T12:34:00.002+02:00

01. I'll Never Be the Same (Kahn, Signorelli, Malneck) 7:19
02. The Breeze and I (Lecuona, Stillman) 4:50
03. When Your Lover Has Gone (Swan) 5:03
04. I'll String Along With You (Dubin, Warren) 3:24
05. Blue Room (Rodgers, Hart) 3:18
06. What's New? (Haggart, Burke) 5:53
07. Running Wild (Gibbs) 4:54
08. My Own Blues (Hawkins) 6:10

Recorded in New York, on May 10, 1955

Coleman Hawkins (Tenor Sax)
Eddie Bert (Trombone)
Ernie Royal (Trumpet)
Joe Knight (Organ, Piano)
Wendell Marshall (Bass)
Osie Johnson (Drums)

Coleman Hawkins & Kenny Clarke - Swiss Radio Days Jazz Series, Vol. 13, Lausanne 1949

2010-05-17T12:32:00.002+02:00

01 Robbins' Nest 6:28
02 Rifftide 6:33
03 It's The Talk Of The Town 4:19
04 The Man I love 7:58
05 Hawk's Blues 5:39
06 Stuffy 7:04
07 Disorder At The Border 7:38
08 Sophisticated lady 4:22
09 Sweet Georgia Brown 5:51
10 Body And Soul 4:12
11 Assy Panassy 6:04
12 Ornithology 3:06

Recorded live at Maison De Peuple, Lausanne, Switzerland on December 3, 1949

Coleman Hawkins (tenor saxophone)
Herbert Fol (alto saxophone)
James Moody (tenor saxophone)
Nat Peck (trombone)
Jean-Paul Mangeon (piano)
Pierre Michelot (bass)
Kenny Clarke (drums)

Coleman Hawkins - 1944 Cattin'

2010-05-17T12:30:00.001+02:00

01 Blue Moon (Rodgers, Hart) 4:35
02 Father Cooperates (Young) 4:47
03 Just One More Chance (Johnston, Coslow) 4:55
04 Thru For The Night (Young) 4:45
05 Flame Thrower (Hawkins) 3:17
06 Imagination (Burke, Van Heusen) 2:51
07 Cattin' At Keynote (Lim) 2:43
08 On The Sunny Side Of The Street (Fields, McHugh) 4:46
09 Louise (Whiting, Robin) 4:52
10 Hallelujah (Robin, Grey,Youmans) 4:01
11 Home (Clarkson, Clarkson, Steeden) 3:35
12 Too marvellous For Words (Whiting, Mercer) 4:06
13 Somebody Loves Me (Gershwin, Desylva, Ballantine, MacDonald) 3:48
14 You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me (Fain, Norman,Kahal) 3:08

Tracks 1- 4: Cozy Cole All Stars

Coleman Hawkins (tenor sax)
Earl Hines (piano)
Joe Thomas (trumpet)
Trummy Young (trombone)
Teddy Walters (guitar)
Billy Taylor (bass)
Cozy Cole (drums)

New York: February 22, 1944

Tracks 5- 7: Coleman Hawkins Quartet

Coleman Hawkins (tenor sax)
Teddy Wilson (piano)
Israel Crosby (bass)
Cozy Cole (drums)

New York: February 17, 1944

Tracks 8, 9: Coleman Hawkins And His Sax Ensemble

Coleman Hawkins (tenor sax)
Don Byas (tenor sax)
Johnny Guarnieri (piano)
Harry Carney (baritone sax)
Tab Smith (alto sax)
Al Lucas (bass)
Sid Catlett (drums)

New York: May 24, 1944

Track 10: Coleman Hawkins' All American Four

Coleman Hawkins (tenor sax)
Teddy Wilson (piano)
John Kirby (bass)
Sid Catlett (drums)

New York: May 29, 1944

Tracks 11-14: George Wettling's New Yorkers

Coleman Hawkins (tenor sax)
Herman Chittison (piano)
Jack Teagarden (trombone)
Hank D'Amico (clarinet)
Joe Thomas (trumpet)
Billy Taylor (bass)
George Wettling (drums)

New York: December 12, 1944

Coleman Hawkins - 1940-44 Passin' It Around

2010-05-17T12:28:00.001+02:00

01 The Sheik of Araby (Smith, Wheeler, Snyder) 3:47
02 It's a Wonderful World (Savitt, Watson, Adamson) 4:53
03 Sweet Adeline (Kern, Magidson) 2:46
04 Passin' It Around (Hawkins) 3:17
05 Basin Street Blues (Williams) 4:12
06 Chicago (Fischer) 2:58
07 The Breeze and I (Lecuona, Stillman) 4:16
08 When a Congressman Meets a Senator Down South (Fischer) 3:38
09 I Can't Believe You're in Love With Me (Gashill, McHugh) 3:07
10 Stompin' at the Savoy (Sampson, Goodman) 3:12

Recorded live at the Savoy Ballroom, New York, on August 4 & 25, 1940 (tracks 1-4, 6-9) and at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York, on January 13, 1944 (tracks 5, 10)

Personnel: Coleman Hawkins (tenor saxophone); Nelson Bryant (vocals, trumpet); Ernie Powell (alto saxophone, clarinet); Jackie Fields, Eustis Moore (alto saxophone); Kermit Scott (tenor saxophone); Louis Armstrong, Roy Eldridge, Joe Guy, Tommy Lindsay, Tommy Stevenson (trumpet); William Cato, Claude Jones, Sandy Williams, Jack Teagarden (trombone); Barney Bigard (clarinet); Red Norvo (vibraphone); Art Tatum, Gene Rodgers (piano); Gene Fields, Al Casey (guitar); Oscar Pettiford, Billy Taylor (bass); J.C. Heard, Sid Catlett (drums).

Coleman Hawkins - 1935-37 Accompanied by The Ramblers Dance Orchestra

2010-05-17T12:26:00.002+02:00

01. After You've Gone (Creamer, Layton) 2:36
02. Meditation (Bulterman) 3:00
03. I Wanna Go Back To Harlem (Bulterman) 2:57
04. Original Dixieland One-Step (traditional) 1:54
05. Something Is Gonna Give Me Away (Hawkins) 2:58
06. Some Of These Days (Brooks) 2:31
07. I Wish I Were Twins (Meyer) 2:31
08. Netcha's Dreams (Hawkins) 2:34
09. Chicago (Fisher) 3:00
10. What Harlem Is To Me (Razaf, Wooding, Denniker) 2:44

Coleman Hawkins (tenor sax) & The Ramblers (dutch musicians)

Tracks 1, 6, 7: Recorded at The Hague (Holland), on February 4, 1935
Tracks 2, 8, 9, 10: Recorded at Casino Hamdorff, Laren (Holland) on August 26, 1935
Tracks 3, 4, 5: Recorded at Casino Hamdorff, Laren (Holland) on April 27, 1937

Coleman Hawkins - 1926-1944 The Quintessence

2010-05-17T12:23:00.001+02:00

Disc: 1
01 The Stampede 3:17
02 Wherever There S A Will There S A Way 2:59
03 Hello Lola 3:16
04 One Hour 3:25
05 Sugar Foot Stomp 3:14
06 New King Porter Stomp 3:08
07 Sweet Sorrow Blues 3:05
08 Sweet Sue 3:04
09 Queer Notions 2:36
10 It S The Talk Of The Town 3:35
11 The Day You Came Along 3:40
12 Jamaica Shout 3:01
13 Hocus Pocus 3:17
14 Lost In A Fog 3:07
15 Star Dust 3:13
16 Honeysuckle Rose 2:48
17 Crazy Rhythm 3:05
18 Out Of Nowhere 3:18

01 Fletcher Henderson And His Orchestra
Banjo - Charlie Dixon
Reeds - Buster Bailey , Don Redman
Tuba - Ralph Escudero
02 McKinney's Cotton Pickers
Banjo - Dave Wilborn
Leader, Saxophone [Alto], Vocals - Don Redman
Piano - Fats Waller
Saxophone [Tenor] - Ted McCord
Trumpet - Sidney De Paris
Tuba - Billy Taylor*
03 Mound City Blue Blowers*
Performer [Musical Comb] - Red McKenzie
04 Mound City Blue Blowers*
05 Fletcher Henderson And His Orchestra
Banjo - Clarence Holiday
Reeds - Harvey Boone
Tuba - John Kirby
06 Fletcher Henderson And His Orchestra
Guitar - Freddy White*
Trombone - Sandy Williams
07 Spike Hughes And His Negro Orchestra
Bass - Ernest Hill (2)
Piano - Luis Russell
Reeds - Benny Carter , Howard Johnson (6) , Leon "Chu" Berry , Wayman Carver
Trombone - George Washington , Wilbur De Paris
Trumpet - Bill Dillard
08 Spike Hughes And His Negro Orchestra
Bass, Leader - Spike Hughes
Piano - Rod Rodriguez
Saxophone [Alto] - Wayman Carver
09 Fletcher Henderson And His Orchestra
10 Fletcher Henderson And His Orchestra
11 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
12 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
13 Fletcher Henderson And His Orchestra
Drums - Vic Engle
Trombone - Keg Johnson
14 Coleman Hawkins
Piano - Stanley Black
15 Coleman Hawkins
16 Coleman Hawkins And His All Star Jam Band
17 Coleman Hawkins And His All Star Jam Band
18 Coleman Hawkins And His All Star Jam Band
Clarinet - Alix Combelle
Trumpet - Benny Carter

Disc: 2
01 When lights are low 2:15
02 One sweet letter from you 3:21
03 She's funny that way 3:18
04 Body and soul 3:05
05 9:20 special 3:10
06 My ideal 3:09
07 Voodte 3:06
08 How deep is the ocean 3:24
09 Stumpy 3:21
10 The man i love 5:05
11 Sweet Lorraine 4:18
12 Woody'n you 3:00
13 Yesterdays 2:57
14 Disorder at the border 2:58
15 Rainbow mist 2:58
16 Father co-operates 4:48
17 Don't blame me 4:52
18 On the bean 2:43

01 Lionel Hampton And His Orchestra
02 Lionel Hampton And His Orchestra
03 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
Vocals - Thelma Carpenter
04 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
05 Count Basie And His Orchestra*
Bass - Walter Page
Drums - Jo Jones
Guitar - Freddie Green
Piano - Count Basie
Trombone - Dan Minor , Ed Cuffee
Trumpet - Al Killian , Buck Clayton , Ed Lewis , Harry Edison
06 Leonard Feather's All Stars*
Clarinet - Edmond Hall
Piano - Art Tatum
Trumpet - Cootie Williams
07 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
08 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
09 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
10 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
11 Coleman Hawkins Swing Four
12 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
13 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
14 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
15 Coleman Hawkins And His Orchestra
16 Cozy Cole All Stars
Bass - Billy Taylor*
Guitar - Teddy Walters
Piano - Earl Hines
Trombone - Trummy Young
17 Coleman Hawkins' All American Four
Piano - Teddy Wilson
18 Coleman Hawkins Quartet
Bass - Edward "Bass" Robinson*
Drums - Denzil Best
Piano - Thelonious Monk

Credits
Banjo - Eddie Condon (tracks: 1-3, 1-4)
Bass - Al Morgan (tracks: 1-3, 1-4) , Eugène D'Hellemmes (tracks: 1-16 to 1-18) , John Kirby (tracks: 1-6, 1-9 to 1-13, 2-17) , Milt Hinton (tracks: 2-1, 2-2) , Oscar Pettiford (tracks: 2-6 to 2-15) , William Oscar Smith (tracks: 2-3, 2-4)
Clarinet - Andy Fitzgerald (tracks: 2-7 to 2-9) , Hilton Jefferson (tracks: 1-11, 1-12) , Pee Wee Russell (tracks: 1-3, 1-4)
Cornet - Rex Stewart (tracks: 1-1, 1-5, 1-6)
Drums - Arthur Herbert (tracks: 2-3, 2-4) , Cozy Cole (tracks: 2-1, 2-2, 2-16) , Gene Krupa (tracks: 1-3, 1-4) , Kaiser Marshall (tracks: 1-1, 1-2) , Max Roach (tracks: 2-12 to 2-15) , Shelly Manne (tracks: 2-7 to 2-11) , Sidney Catlett (tracks: 1-7, 1-8, 2-6, 2-17) , Tommy Benford (tracks: 1-16 to 1-18) , Walter Johnson (tracks: 1-5, 1-6, 1-9 to 1-12)
Flute - Wayman Carver (tracks: 1-7, 1-8)
Guitar - Al Casey (tracks: 2-6 to 2-9) , Bernard Addison (tracks: 1-9 to 1-13) , Charlie Christian (tracks: 2-1, 2-2) , Django Reinhardt (tracks: 1-14 to 1-18) , Jack Bland (tracks: 1-3, 1-1) , Lawrence Lucie (tracks: 1-7, 1-8)
Piano - Clyde Hart (tracks: 2-1, 2-2, 2-12 to 2-15) , Eddie Heywood, Jr.* (tracks: 2-10, 2-11) , Ellis Larkins (tracks: 2-7 to 2-9) , Fletcher Henderson (tracks: 1-1, 1-5, 1-6, 1-13) , Gene Rodgers (tracks: 2-3, 2-4) , Horace Henderson (tracks: 1-9 to 1-12) , Stéphane Grappelli (tracks: 1-15 to 1-18)
Reeds - Coleman Hawkins (tracks: 1-1, 1-5, 1-6, 1-7, 1-9, 1-10) , Eustis Moore (tracks: 2-3, 2-4) , Hilton Jefferson (tracks: 1-6, 1-9, 1-10) , Jackie Fields (tracks: 2-3, 2-4) , Russell Procope (tracks: 1-5, 1-6, 1-9, 1-10)
Saxophone [Alto] - André Ekyan (tracks: 1-16 to 1-18) , Benny Carter (tracks: 1-2, 1-8, 1-16 to 2-1, 2-2) , Hilton Jefferson (tracks: 1-11, 1-12) , Leo Parker (tracks: 2-11, 2-12) , Leonard Lowry (tracks: 2-11, 2-12)
Saxophone [Baritone] - Budd Johnson (tracks: 2-12 to 2-15)
Saxophone [Tenor] - Alix Combelle (tracks: 1-16 to 1-17) , Ben Webster (tracks: 2-1, 2-2) , Budd Johnson (tracks: 2-14, 2-15) , Coleman Hawkins (tracks: 1-2 to 1-4, 1-8, 1-11, 1-12, 1-14 to 2-4, 2-6 to 2-18) , Don Byas (tracks: 2-12 to 2-15) , Leon "Chu" Berry (tracks: 1-8, 2-1, 2-2) , Ray Abrams (tracks: 2-12 to 2-15)
Trombone - Benny Morton (tracks: 1-1, 1-5) , Claude Jones (tracks: 1-2, 1-5, 1-9, 1-10, 1-13) , Dicky Wells* (tracks: 1-7, 1-8, 1-9, 1-10, 2-5) , Earl Hardy (tracks: 2-3, 2-4) , Glenn Miller (tracks: 1-3, 1-4) , J.C. Higginbotham (tracks: 1-6, 1-11, 1-12)
Trumpet - Bill Coleman (2) (tracks: 2-7 to 2-9) , Bobby Stark (tracks: 1-5, 1-6, 1-9, 1-10) , Dizzy Gillespie (tracks: 2-1, 2-2, 2-11 to 2-15) , Ed Vandever (tracks: 2-12 to 2-15) , Henry "Red" Allen (tracks: 1-7 to 1-13) , Joe Guy (tracks: 2-3, 2-4) , Joe Smith (3) (tracks: 1-1, 1-2) , Joe Thomas (4) (tracks: 1-13, 2-16) , Leonard Davis (tracks: 1-2, 1-7) , Russell Smith (tracks: 1-1, 1-5, 1-6, 1-9, 1-10, 1-13) , Tommy Lindsay (tracks: 2-3, 2-4) , Vic Coulson (tracks: 2-12 to 2-15)
Vibraphone - Lionel Hampton (tracks: 2-1, 2-2)

Coleman Hawkins

2010-05-17T12:07:00.003+02:00

Los primeros y más fundamentales capítulos de la historia del saxofón tenor en jazz fueron escritos de puño y letra por Coleman Hawkins. Ello fue fruto de una larga y concienzuda evolución de un instrumento que adaptó perfectamente para el lenguaje musical del jazz.
Su familia era de clase acomodada y desde niño comenzó estudiar piano. Con siete años estudió violonchelo y con nueve comenzó a aprender a tocar el saxo tenor, un instrumento que entonces no era utilizado en el jazz y que en las orquestas comerciales se tocaba con una técnica que recordaba demasiado a la de los músicos de circo. En esa época inicia en el "Washburn College" de Kansas City, estudios de música clásica que completará en Chicago, ciudad a la que se trasladará con su familia en 1919 y donde tiene la oportunidad de oír por primera vez jazz.
Debuta profesionalmente en 1920 en una orquesta de la región de Kansas City, y al año siguiente es contratado por la famosa cantante de blues, Mamie Smith, que solía tener en su grupo músicos de altísima calidad como Buster Bailey, Sydney Bechet, o Bubber Miley. Con ella llegará a New York y grabará su primer disco y empieza a darse a conocer en los círculos jazzísticos de la gran manzana. En 1923, entra a formar parte de la orquesta de Fletcher Henderson, que con él en sus filas y la incorporación el año siguiente de un jovencísimo, Louis Armstrong, se convertiría en la primera bigband de toda la historia y en la que Hawkins permanecería once largos y magníficos años hasta hacer de esa orquesta la mejor de su época.
En 1934, Coleman Hawkins deja la banda de Henderson y se marcha a Europa y en Inglaterra firma un jugoso contrato con la orquesta de Jack Hylton. Es expulsado de la Alemania nazi por el color de su piel y se recluye en Holanda primero y después en Francia grabando en Paris discos con músicos locales y coincidiendo con su amigo Benny Carter, que también se había desplazado a la vieja Europa. En 1939 regresa a los Estados Unidos donde encuentra que sus antiguos discípulos están pisando fuerte en la escena jazzistica y donde conoce por primera vez a un saxofonista de Kansas que empieza hacerle sombra. Se llamaba Lester Young y destacaba entre los demás saxofonistas por poner en práctica un estilo distinto al suyo por primera vez en veinte años.
Hawkins monta su propia orquesta y graba el histórico tema: "Body and Soul" uno de los grandes estándares de jazz desde entonces y que significará su consagración definitiva como uno de los grandes creadores del jazz. A partir de ese momento, se le empieza a conocer como el "padre del saxofón tenor". Disolvió su bigband en 1941 y trabajó con grupos más pequeños. En la segunda mitad de los años cuarenta será una de las estrellas del "Jazz at the Philarmonic", la organización musical creada por Norman Granz, que se encargaría de llevar el jazz a todos los rincones del mundo.
Entre sus registros destaca la colaboración con Roy Eldridge y Oscar Peterson, en los años cincuenta y dejó grabados algunos discos extraordinarios como los titulados: "The Genius of Coleman Hawkins" (Verve 1957) o el espléndido "High and Mighty Hawk", también para Verve, en 1958. En 1962 graba un disco memorable con Duke Ellington: "Duke Ellington meets Coleman Hawkins" (Impulse!) y en 1966, graba el ultimo disco de su vida "Sirius" (Pablo) pues a partir de esa fecha su salud empieza a jugarle una mala pasada, falleciendo tres años después victima de una pulmonía, el 19 de mayo de 1969 en el hospital Wickersham de New York.
Con él desapareció el hombre que fue al saxo tenor, lo que Louis Armstrong a la trompeta: el inventor de las primeras y, por consiguiente, más importantes reglas músico-instrumentales que determinarían la configuración, concepto y lenguaje del saxofón tenor en el jazz de todos los tiempos.
apoloybaco.com

Before Coleman Hawkins, the saxophone was mainly a favorite in marching bands and a novelty instrument in circus acts and vaudeville shows. Coleman Hawkins made the saxophone a lead jazz instrument and, for nearly 50 years, showed the world how it should be played, leaving a catalog of recordings that musicians still try to emulate today.

It was here in Saint Joseph that Coleman Hawkins first found his musical ability. He was born November 21, 1904, (or perhaps earlier – there is some controversy) to Wil Hawkins an electrical worker, and Cordelia (Coleman) Hawkins, a schoolteacher and organist. Cordelia taught her son the piano at age five. He switched to the cello, then requested and received a tenor sax for his ninth birthday. Three years later he was playing for dances.
At thirteen, Hawkins lived with friends in Chicago where he was influenced by jazz musicians from New Orleans. By 1921, Hawkins was back in the Midwest, attending high school in Topeka, Kansas, learning musical theory, harmony and composition at Washburn College in Topeka while performing in Kansas City with the 12th Street Theater pit band.
That year classic blue singer Mamie Smith and the Jazz Hounds played the theater and Hawkins joined them, creating recordings and touring from coast to coast.
In June of 1923, Hawkins left the group to freelance in New York City, where he worked with many of the top jazz men of the day. In January 1924, Hawkins joined Fletcher Hender-son’s Band, remaining with the group for the next ten years, becoming a star of the ensemble. During this period, Hawkins refined his style, moving from choppy, staccato playing to a warm, full tenor sound. He was greatly influenced by Louis Armstrong who had joined Henderson’s group and helped transform it from a tight, ricky-ticky novelty band into a hard-swinging jazz unit.
At that time, Hawkins was gaining nationwide notoriety as the master of the tenor sax but a trip to Kansas City by the Henderson band in December of 1933 provided him with some major competition. The story is told by Len Weinstock in his article, “Coleman Hawkins, Father of the Tenor Sax.”
“Hawkins got the shock of his life on meeting local players Lester Young, Ben Webster and Hershel Evans. Hawkins had a ‘cut session’ with these early masters of the sax at dawn at a place called the Cherry Blossom Club. The entire musical community of KC showed up for this session! According the earwittness accounts by Mary Lou Williams and Jo Jones, Lester Young got the best of it. The Hawk had finally met a formidable rival!”
When a Fletcher Henderson tour of Great Britain fell through in 1934, Hawkins went on his own. He was idolized throughout England and Europe, remaining for the next five years, playing and recording with all of the prominent European jazzmen. In Paris on April 28, 1937, Hawkins joined Django Reinhardt and Benny Carter to record a classic version of the song “Crazy Rhythm”.
In July 1939, Hawkins returned to the U.S. to form a nine-piece band that opened at Kelly’s Stable in New York. At the end of a recording session a few days later, he impro-vised a version of "Body and Soul" to fill some available studio time. Again, Len Weinstock:
“Hawkins himself didn't think there was anything outstanding about his Body and Soul saying, ‘it was nothing special, just an encore I use in the clubs to get off the stand. I though nothing of it and didn’t even bother to listen to it afterwards.' But the solo, two choruses of beautifully conceived and perfectly balanced improvisation, caused an immediate sensation with musicians and the public. It is still the standard to which tenorists aspire.”
At the end of that year, readers of Down Beat magazine voted Hawkins “best tenor saxophonist.” He then formed a big band and played the major theaters and ballrooms in New York followed by small groups and a couple of years touring the Midwest.
In the 1940’s, jazz came of age. And so did the instrument that in earlier years had been the sole reserve of Coleman Hawkins. Now the saxophone was a major part of any group or orchestra, often taking the lead.
As Jazz grew and expanded, it took on new forms. One of those was Bebop. Some of the older musicians like Benny Goodman and Louis Armstrong, who called Bop “Chinese Music”, shunned the new form. But Hawkins not only encouraged the young modernists, but as early as 1944 hired many of the revolutionaries like Thelonious Monk, Max Roach and Dizzy Gillespie. Hawkins was the leader on record dates of some of the earliest Bop experiments.
During the late 1950’s Hawkins continued to appear at all the major jazz festivals. He appeared on The Tonight Show in 1955, joined the Jazz at the Philharmonic tour of 1957, the Seven Ages of Jazz tours in 1958 and 1959. He continued to record during those years including his only collaboration with Duke Ellington in 1962. His last concert was at the North Park Hotel in Chicago April 10, 1969, as emotional stress and alcoholism took its toll during the last two years of his life. Coleman Hawkins died in New York in May, 1969.
colemanhawkins.org

Elmo Hope - 1966 Trio feat. Philly Joe Jones

2010-04-26T20:55:00.001+02:00

01 A Night In Tunisia (Dizzy Gillespie, Frank Paparelli) 10:16
02 Stellations (Elmo Hope) 4:22
03 Elmo's Blues (Elmo Hope) 10:42
04 I Love You 10:50 (Cole Porter) 10:50
05 Bertha My Dear (Elmo Hope) 8:04
06 Somebody Loves Me (G. Gershwin, B. DeSylva, B. MacDonald) 8:42

Recorded at A-1 Sound Studio, New York, on March 8 (tracks 1-4) and May 9 (track 5, 6), 1966

Elmo Hope (p)
John Ore (b)
Philly Joe Jones (d) (tracks 1-4)
Clifford Jarvis (d) (track 5, 6)

Elmo Hope - 1963 Sounds From Rikers Island

2010-04-26T20:53:00.002+02:00

01 One for Joe (Frey, Hope) 4:34
02 Ecstasy (Frey, Hope) 3:15
03 Three Silver Quarters (Frey, Hope) 4:45
04 A Night in Tunisia (Gillespie, Paparelli) 5:57
05 Trippin' (Frey, Hope) 3:19
06 It Shouldn't Happen to a Dream (Ellington, George, Hodges) 4:07
07 Kevin (Frey, Hope) 4:15
08 Monique (Frey, Hope) 3:02
09 Groovin' High (Gillespie) 2:59

Recorded in Rikers Island, New York, on August 19, 1963

Elmo Hope (piano)
Freddie Douglas (soprano & alto saxophones)
John Gilmore (tenor saxophone)
Lawrence Jackson (trumpet)
Ronald Boykins (bass)
Philly Joe Jones (drums)
Earl Coleman (vocals track 6)
Marcella Daniels (vocals track 9)

Elmo Hope - 1961 High Hope

2010-04-26T20:51:00.001+02:00

01 Chips (Hope) 4:56
02 Moe's Bluff (Hope) 4:19
03 Happy Hour (Hope) 4:03
04 Mo Is On (Hope) 4:28
05 Maybe So (Hope) 4:37
06 Crazy (Hope) 4:15

Recorded in New York City, 1961

Tracks 1-3
Elmo Hope (p)
Paul Chambers (b)
Philly Joe Jones (ds)

Tracks 4-6
Elmo Hope (p)
Butch Warren (b)
Granville Hogan (ds)

Elmo Hope - 1961 Here's Hope

2010-04-26T20:48:00.001+02:00

01 Hot Sauce (Hope) 3:32
02 When The Groove Is Low (Hope) 4:59
03 De Dah (Hope) 4:26
04 Abdullah (Hope) 3:45
05 Freffie (Hope) 3:37
06 Stars Over Marakesh (Hope) 6:44

Recorded in New York, 1961

Elmo Hope (p)
Paul Chambers (b)
Philly Joe Jones (ds

Elmo Hope - 1959 Elmo Hope Trio

2010-04-26T20:45:00.002+02:00

01 B's A-Plenty (Hope) 5:42
02 Barfly (Hope) 6:15
03 Eejah (Hope) 3:52
04 Boa (Hope) 5:58
05 Something For Kenny (Hope) 6:25
06 Like Someone In Love (Van Heusen, Burke) 7:28
07 Minor Bertha (Hope) 4:46
08 Tranquility (Hope) 2:57

Recorded at Radio Recorders Studio B, Los Angeles, on February 8, 1959

Elmo Hope (piano)
Jimmy Bond (bass)
Frank Butler (drums)

Harold Land Quartet - 1958 Jazz At The Cellar

2010-04-26T20:44:00.002+02:00

01 Cherokee (Noble) 18:58
02 Just Friends (Klenner, Lewis) 19:39
03 Scene Is Clean (Dameron) 1:17
04 Big Foot (Parker) 27:44
05 Come Rain or Come Shine (Arlen, Mercer) 11:57

Recorded live at The Cellar, Vancouver, Canada, on November 1958

Harold Land tenor sax
Elmo Hope piano
Scott LaFaro bass
Lennie McBrowne drums

Curtis Counce Quintet - 1958 Exploring the Future

2010-04-26T20:41:00.001+02:00

01 So Nice (Elmo Hope) 6:42
02 Angel Eyes (Matt Dennis, Earl Brent) 4:03
03 Into the Orbit (Elmo Hope) 4:47
04 Move (Denzil Best) 2:34
05 Race For Space (aka Crazy) (Elmo Hope) 4:36
06 Someone To Watch Over Me (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin) 3:45
07 Exploring the Future (Harold Land) 6:18
08 The Countdown (Elmo Hope) 4:05
09 Forecast (bonus) (Duke Jordan) 6:40
10 Move (unedited) (Denzil Best) 4:21
11 Countdown (unedited) (Elmo Hope) 5:37

Recorded on April, 1958

Harold Land - tenor sax
Rolf Ericson - trumpet
Elmo Hope - piano
Curtis Counce - bass
Frank Butler - drums

Elmo Hope - 1956 Informal Jazz

2010-04-26T20:38:00.002+02:00

01 Weeja (Hope) 11:00
02 Polka Dots and Moonbeams (Burke, Van Heusen) 8:31
03 On it (Hope) 8:58
04 Avalon (Jolson, DeSylva, Rose) 9:37

Recorded on May 7, 1956

Donald Byrd (tp)
John Coltrane (ts)
Hank Mobley (ts)
Elmo Hope (p)
Paul Chambers (b)
Philly Joe Jones (dr)

Elmo Hope - 1955 Hope Meets Foster

2010-04-26T20:33:00.001+02:00

01 Wail, Frank, Wail (Hope) 6:28
02 Zarou (Foster, Hope) 5:16
03 Fosterity (Foster) 6:17
04 Georgia on My Mind (Carmichael, Gorrell) 6:41
05 Shutout (Foster) 5:51
06 Yaho (Hope) 7:38

Recorded in Hackensack, New jersey, on Oct ober 4, 1955

Elmo Hope (Piano)
Frank Foster (Tenor Sax)
Freeman Lee (Trumpet)
John Ore (Bass)
Art Taylor (Drums)

Elmo Hope

2010-04-26T20:22:00.003+02:00

De origen antillano, St. Elmo Sylvester Hope nació en Nueva York el 27 de junio de 1923. Sus primeros años transcurren en Harlem, donde estudia piano clásico y tiene como amigo y compañero a Bud Powell. Con 15 años empieza a dar recitales de música clásica para piano pero, debido a los prejuicios raciales y a su entorno social, le resulta muy difícil hacer carrera como concertista, por lo que decide pasarse al jazz.
Al finalizar su servicio militar en 1943, regresa a Nueva York. Pianista y compositor autodidacta, adquiere experiencia tocando en bandas de baile y en pequeños clubes en el Bronx, Greenwich Village y Coney Island, mientras sus amigos Bud Powell y Thelonius Monk se situan en el centro de la escena evolutiva del jazz. Tras una corta estancia con el combo de Snub Mosely, se une a la banda de Joe Morris en 1949, permaneciendo en ella hasta 1951. Allí coincide con Johnny Griffin, Percy Heath y Philly Joe Jones. En junio de 1953 entra al estudio con Lou Donaldson y Clifford Brown, unas grabaciones que le sacan a la luz de los focos por primera vez. Nueve días después de esas sesiones, Alfred Lion reúne en el estudio a Elmo con sus antiguos camaradas, Heath y Jones, para su primera grabación como líder. En mayo de 1954 regresa al estudio de Rudy Van Gelder en Hackensack, junto con Heath, Art Blakey, Frank Foster y Frank Lee Freeman, para grabar su segundo disco como líder. En esa época se convierte en uno de los pianistas del sello Blue Note y luego de Prestige, grabando con Kenny Dorham, Sonny Rollins, Lou Donaldson y Jackie McLean. Sus problemas con las drogas le habían hecho perder su tarjeta para trabajar en los clubs de New York. En 1957, grabará una sesión con Donald Byrd, John Coltrane y Hank Mobley. Ese mismo año trabaja con los trompetistas Dudley Bascomb y Chet Baker. Con este último viaja a California, decidiendo quedarse en Los Ángeles.
Aunque trabaja con Lionel Hampton en el Moulin Rouge y con el bajista Courtis Counce, su asociación más importante es con el saxo tenor, Harold Land, con quien realiza una gira y graba un par de discos (Harold In the Land of Jazz en 1958 y The Fox en 1959). En 1959 graba otro album bajo su nombre (Elmo Hope Trio). En 1960 se casará con la también pianista, Bertha, a la que había conocido en 1958.
Cuando Orrin Keepnews, de Riverside Records, visita Los Angeles le alienta para que regrese a Nueva York. Tras un par de sesiones para dos pequeños sellos, en junio de 1961 graba "Homecoming" para el sello Riverside con sus viejos amigos Foster, Heath y Philly Joe Jones. En noviembre graba un álbum en solitario en el sello Riverside (Hope-full), en el que como segundo piano se le unió en tres números, su esposa Bertha Hope. Su siguiente grabación no sería hasta 1963 y, por su propio título (''Jazz From Rikers Island") y el contexto en el que se realiza (todos los músicos habían estado en la cárcel por problemas de drogas), parece indicar que Hope estaba de nuevo teniendo problemas de adicción.
Sus dos últimas grabaciones como líder se realizarían en mayo y agosto de 1966, pero no serían publicadas hasta cierto tiempo después de su muerte. En 1967, Elmo fue hospitalizado con neumonía durante varias semanas y mientras se recuperaba, murió el 19 de mayo, aparentemente debido a un ataque al corazón.

This profile was inspired by an exceptional article here on All About Jazz by Derek Taylor called “St. Elmo’s Fire” where he focuses and expands on Elmo Hope’s music and recordings. Please read it!! (http://www.allaboutjazz.com/articles/fant0902.htm)
St. Elmo Sylvester Hope was born in New York on June 27, 1923, began piano studies by age seven and went on to win prizes for his piano recitals. He was a childhood friend of Bud Powell, and Thelonious Monk and they would play piano for each other. He continued to play and improve and upon his return from the army in 1943, he dedicated his life to jazz piano, paying his dues in small clubs in the Bronx, Greenwich Village, and Coney Island.
There were recording sessions while he was working with ex-Lionel Hampton trumpeter Joe Morris between 1948 and 1951, but that didn’t really garner much exposure. It was not until June of ’53 where dates with Lou Donaldson and Clifford Brown for Blue Note started to give Elmo Hope a name in jazz circles. He followed quickly with some sessions as leader, and another with Frank Foster, both for Prestige. There were further Prestige sides cut with top players as John Coltrane, Donald Byrd, with Paul Chambers bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums. These were originally called “Informal Jazz”, but as Coltrane became a bigger name the title was changed and Hope became regulated to the role of sideman. His piano style was overshadowed by the growing popularity of both Powell and Monk, and though he was in there since the beginning of the bebop movement, he was compared to and judged against the other two. His cabaret license was pulled for a previous drug conviction and this severely limited where he could work if at all. This would start a cycle of disillusionment and frustration that would hound him all his life.
California seemed like the place to try it next, and so in 1957 he went west with Chet Baker. Hope was suffering from respiratory aliments, and the dry climate suited him just fine. There was a brief spell working with Lionel Hampton, then joining Harold Land, with whom he recorded “The Fox” in ’59, followed by a session with his own trio. He married in California in 1960, and was at least happy and healthy. But there was not much work out on the coast for a bebop pianist, and he grew restless again. So it was back to New York, where in ’61 he recorded “Homecoming” (Riverside) with Blue Mitchell, Jimmy Heath, and Frank Foster, these sessions included Percy Heath on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums, who were on his trio sides at this time. There was a solo piano effort where he was joined by his wife Bertha, also a pianist. There were a couple of more recordings in ’61 for the Celebrity and Beacon labels, which were remakes of some of his older material.
Elmo Hope would reemerge in 1963 to record “Sounds from Riker’s Island” (Audio-fidelity) and it was not until 1966 he would record two more as a trio for the same label. These last two were released years later, as many of his recordings were, in a posthumous revival of his music, heralded as a cult figure in the shadows of bebop. In 1967 he was hospitalized with pneumonia, and consequently suffered a heart attack. Elmo Hope died on May 19, 1967.
I intentionally did not dwell too much on the negative aspect of Elmo Hope’s life. Just shedding a brief light on a pianists short career, in the tough world of bebop jazz in the ‘40’s and ‘50’s where there were not many who survived the rigors of the lifestyle and the demands of the music. A lot of players, not just pianists, fell by the wayside, but the music lives on, and we are all better for it.
All About Jazz

Bobby Hackett - 1973 What A Wonderful World

2010-04-12T11:26:00.002+02:00

01 Muskrat Ramble (Gilbert, Ory) 3:35
02 Medley: It Had to Be You/I've Got a Crush on You (Jones, Khan / Gershwin, Gershwin) 4:46
03 Love Is Just Around the Corner (Gensler, Robin) 4:25
04 Ja-Da (Carleton) 6:21
05 South Rampart Street Parade (Allen, Bauduc, Haggart) 2:54
06 Fidgety Feet (Shields, Edwards, Ragas, LaRocca, Sharbaro) 5:00
07 My Melancholy Baby (Bernett, Norton) 3:05
08 What a Wonderful World (Thiele, Weiss) 2:21
09 Blueberry Hill (Lewis, Rose, Stock) 2:59
10 That's a Plenty (Gilbert, Pollack) 4:30

Recorded in 1973

Bobby Hackett Trumpet
Mel Davis Trumpet
Max Kaminsky Trumpet
Jimmy Maxwell Trumpet
Warren Covington Trombone
Vic Dickenson Trombone
Urbie Green Trombone
George Berg Saxophone
Hank Freeman Saxophone
Toots Mondello Saxophone
Johnny Mince Clarinet, Saxophone
Clarence Hutchenrider Clarinet
Hank Jones Piano
Art Ryerson Banjo, Guitar
Richard Davis Bass
Todd Sommer Drums
Teresa Brewer Vocals

Bobby Hackett & Billy Butterfield - 1967 Bobby, Billy, Brasil

2010-04-12T11:24:00.001+02:00

01 Dancing In The Dark (Schwartz, Dietz) 2:35
02 Sunny (Hebb) 2:32
03 Cherokee (Indian Love Song) (Noble) 3:01
04 Quiet Nights (Corcovado) (Jobim, Lees, Kaye) 2:47
05 Never Ever Leave Me (Nunca Me Deixes) (Ham, Stone) 2:30
06 Baia (Barroso) 2:52
07 That's All (Haymes, Brandt) 2:25
08 Love Is Here To Stay (Gershwin, Gershwin) 2:50
09 Dawn Comes Again (Henrique) 2:39
10 A Foggy Day (Gershwin, Gershwin) 2:35
11 Brazil (Barroso) 3:47

Recorded in New York on August 17 (tracks 4, 7-9), August 25 (tracks 1, 2, 5, 11) and September 12 (tracks 3, 6, 10), 1967

Bobby Hackett Trumpet, Cornet
Billy Butterfield Trumpet
Terry Bernard Piano
Warren Bernhardt Piano
Luiz Henrique Guitar, Vocals
Mitch Kerper Vibraphone
Doug Allen Vibraphone
Art Koenig Bass
Don Payne Bass
Joe Hunt Drums
Sivuca Accordion, Vocal Effect
Mary Mayo Vocals

Bobby Hackett - 1967 Creole Cookin'

2010-04-12T11:22:00.001+02:00

01 High Society (Steele) 2:09
02 Tin Roof Blues (Rappolo, Mares, Brunies, Pollack) 4:40
03 When The Saints Go Marching In (Traditional) 2:52
04 Basin Street Blues (Williams) 3:54
05 Fidgety Feet (LaRocca, Shields) 2:20
06 Royal Garden Blues (C & S Williams) 2:48
07 Muskrat Ramble (Ory) 2:31
08 Original Dixieland One Step (LaRocca) 2:12
09 New Orleans (Carmichael) 3:00
10 Lazy Mood (Mercer, Miller) 2:52
11 Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans (Alter, DeLange) 3:01

Recorded at A & R Studios and Capitol Studios, New York, on January 30, March 13 & May 2, 1967

Bobby Hackett trumpet
Zoot Sims tenor sax
Bob Brookmeyer, Bob Cutshall trombone
James Morreale, Rusty Dedrick trumpet
Jerry Dodgion alto sax
Pepper Adams baritone sax
Joe Farrell tenor sax
Bob Wilbert soprano sax, clarinet
Wayne Wright guitar
Dave McKenna piano
Buddy Jones bass
Morey Feld drums

Bobby Hackett - 1966 Swingi'est Gals In Town + 1963 Jazz Impressions Of Oliver!

2010-04-12T11:20:00.001+02:00

Originally released on Epic.

2 LPs on 1 CD: The Swingiest Gals In Town (1966)/Jazz Impressions Of Oliver (1963)

Recording information: 02/08/1963-03/04/1966

01 Where Am I Going? (Coleman, Fields) 1:59
02 Baby Dream Your Dream (Coleman, Fields) 2:59
03 There's Gotta Be Something Better Than This (Coleman, Fields) 2:06
04 Big Spender (Coleman, Fields) 2:32
05 You Wanna Bet (Coleman, Fields) 2:28
06 Sweet Charity (Coleman, Fields) 2:15
07 Open a New Window (Herman) 2:13
08 We Need a Little Christmas (Herman) 2:23
09 That's How Young I Feel (Herman) 2:22
10 If He Walked into My Life (Herman) 2:49
11 Mame (Herman) 2:01
12 Who Will Buy? (Bart) 2:47
13 Where Is Love? (Bart) 3:21
14 Food, Glorious Food (Bart) 2:08
15 I'd Do Anything (Bart) 3:20
16 As Long As He Needs Me (Bart) 3:03
17 It's a Fine Life (Bart) 3:11
18 Oom-Pah-Pah (Bart) 2:17
19 Consider Yourself (Bart) 2:39
20 Pick a Pocket or Two (Bart) 2:32
21 Oliver (Bart, Madden) 3:04
22 My Name (Bart) 2:45
23 Be Back Soon (Bart) 2:28

Bobby Hackett - 1963 Plays The Music Of Bert Kaempfert

2010-04-12T11:18:00.002+02:00

01 Danke Schoen (Kaempfert) 3.10
02 Wonderland By Night (Kaempfert) 3.08
03 A Swingin´ Safari (Kaempfert) 2.29
04 The Bass Walks (Kaempfert) 3.29
05 Mexican Market Day (Kaempfert) 2.38
06 Now And Forever (Kaempfert) 2.40
07 Bert´s Tune (Kaempfert) 2.55
08 Afrikaan Beat (Kaempfert) 2.36
09 Sunday In Madrid (Kaempfert) 3.17
10 Only Those In Love (Kaempfert) 2.44
11 Take Me (Kaempfert) 2.58
12 The Happy Trumpeter (Kaempfert) 2.38

Arranged And Conducted By Dick Hyman

Bobby Hackett - 1958 Blues With A Kick

2010-04-12T11:16:00.002+02:00

01. Good-bye Blues (McHugh-Fields-Johnson) 2:32
02. Weary Blues (Greene-Cates-Matthews) 2:49
03. Sugar Blues (C. Williams-L. Fletcher) 3:13
04. Blues In The Night (J. Mercer-H. Arlen) 3:32
05. Baker's Keyboard Blues (B. Hackett) 2:51
06. Wang Wang Blues (Mueller-Busse-Johnson) 2:38
07. Limehouse Blues (P. Braham-D. Furber) 2:41
08. Davenport Blues (B. Beiderbecke) 2:57
09. Blues In My Heart (B. Carter-I. Mills) 2:44
10. Alcoholic Blues (E. Laska-A. Von Tilzer) 2:45
11. Bye Bye Blues (Bennett-Gray-Hamm-Lown) 1:22
12. Blues With A Kick (B. Hackett-S. Applebaum) 2:53

Recorded in New York, on November 25-26, 1958

Bobby Hackett (cor)
Dave McKenna (p)
Nicky Tagg (p, org)
John Giuffrida, Milt Hinton (b)
Joe Porcaro (d)
Harry Breuer, Phil Kraus (vbs, perc)
string section (nine violins, two violas and two cellos) directed by Stan Applebaum

Bobby Hackett - 1958 At The Embers

2010-04-12T11:15:00.002+02:00

01. Paradise (Clifford, Brown) 2:46
02. Spring, Beautiful Spring (Lincke) 2:37
03 C'est Magnifique (Porter) 2:21
04. I'll See You In My Dreams (Kahn, Jones) 2:30
05. It's Been So Long* (Adamson, Donaldson) 2:15
06. That Naughty Waltz (Levy, Stanley) 2:07
07. Cheek To Cheek (Berlin) 2:48
08. If I Had My Way (Kendis, Klein) 2:38
09. My Monday Date (Hines) 2:17
10. If You Were There (Farrow, Ackers, Slawson) 2:21
11. All Of You (Porter) 2:14
12. Rosalie (Porter) 2:05

* On the album, incorrectly titled "It's Been A Long, Long Time"

Recorded in New York, on May 6-8, 1958

Bobby Hackett (cornet)
Pepe Moreale (piano, celeste on track 4)
John Giuffrida (as John Giuff) (bass)
Buzzy Drootin (drums)

Bobby Hackett - 1956 Rendezvous

2010-04-12T11:11:00.001+02:00

Edited, at least, with 3 different front covers in three labels (Capitol T719 in 1957, Regal R10649, MFP MFP1046 in 1965)

01. You Are Too Beautiful (Rodgers, Hart) 3:02
02. Thank You For A Lovely Evening (McHugh, Fields) 2:36
03. Autumn Nocturne (Myrow, Gannon) 2:34
04. Cocktails For Two (Coslow, Johnston) 2:56
05. When I'm With You (Gordon, Revel) 3:06
06. We Kiss In A Shadow (Rodgers, Hammerstein) 3:05
07. Two Cigarettes In The Dark (Webster, Pollack) 2:33
08. The Very Thought Of You (Noble) 2:32
09. The Way You Look Tonight (Fields, Kern) 2:30
10. Moonlight Becomes You (Van Heusen, Burke) 3:12
11. Love Me (Young, Washington) 3:04
12. One Kiss (Hammerstein, Romberg) 2:24

Recorded in New York, on January 23 (track 4), February 13 (tracks 3, 6, 9, 11), February 15 (tracks 2, 8, 12) and April 3 (tracks 1, 5, 7, 10), 1956

Bobby Hackett (cornet) with an unknown orchestra arranged and conducted by Glenn Osser

George Wettling, Bobby Hackett - 1950 Jazz Session

2010-04-12T11:09:00.001+02:00

George Wettling's Jazz Band

01 Collier's Clambake (Wettling, Sullivan) 2:33
02 Collier's Clime (Key Changin' Blues) (Wettling, Sullivan) 3:00
03 Rose Room (Williams, Hickman) 2:53
04 After You're Gone (Creamer, Layton) 3:10
05 Indiana (MacDonald, Hanley) 2:33
06 As Long As I Live (Koehler, Arlen) 2:42
07 A Good Man Is Hard To Find (Green) 3:17
08 Memphis Blues (Handy, Norton) 3:08

Tracks 1-4
George Wettling, d
Wild Bill Davison, cor
Jimmy Archey, tbn
Edmond Hall, cl
Joe Sullivan, p
Eddie Condon, g
Bob Casey, b
Recorded in New York, on March 8, 1951

Tracks 5-8
George Wettling, d
Wild Bill Davison, cor
Cutty Cutshall, tbn
Edmond Hall, cl
Ralph Sutton, p
Eddie Condon, g
Bob Casey, b
Recorded in New York, on May 4, 1951

Bobby Hackett - Jazz Session (CBS CL-6156)

Originally release as a 78 rpm album, as well as 10” LP.

09 Struttin' with Some Barbecue (Armstrong, Armstrong, Raye) 2:19
10 I've Got the World on a String (Koehler, Arlen) 3:11
11 What a Difference a Day Made (Adams, Grever) 3:03
12 Oh, Baby! (Murphy) 2:40
13 A Room with a View (Stillman, Swan) 3:16
14 Fidgety Feet (LaRocca, Shields) 2:24
15 Tin Roof Blues (Brunies, Mares, Melrose, Pollack, Rappolo, Stitzel) 3:15
16 Royal Garden Blues (Williams, Williams) 2:33

Tracks 9, 10, 16
Bobby Hackett, cor
Charlie Queener, p
Carl Kress, g
Bob Casey, g
Don Marino, d
Recorded in New York, on August 31, 1950

Tracks 11-15
Bobby Hackett, cor
Charlie Queener, p
Danny Perri, g
Bob Casey, b
Cliff Leeman, d
Recorded in New York, on September 15, 1950

Bobby Hackett

2010-04-12T10:58:00.002+02:00

Robert Leo (Bobby) Hackett nació el 31 de enero de 1915 en Providence, Rhode Island, el sexto de nueve hijos de una familia con escasos recursos económicos. Muy pronto empezó a tocar el ukelele y con 12 años ya tocaba la guitarra y el violín y se había comprado su primera corneta. Con 14 años dejó la escuela secundaria para ayudar a su familia, teniendo su primer trabajo fijo con una banda que tocaba en un restaurante chino. También tocaba la guitarra con regularidad en los salones de baile Rhodes y Arcadia, en sesiones que a menudo se emitían en la radio de Providence.
En el otoño de 1932 fue contratado por la orquesta de Herbie Marsh para actuar durante el invierno en un hotel de Syracuse, Nueva York. Bobby pasó el verano de 1933 en Cape Cod, tocando en el Salón de Té Megansett, donde conocería a Pee Wee Russell, quien más tarde lo llamaría para incorporarse a la banda Teddy Roy en Boston. En otoño de 1934, Bobby y Johnny Crandon forman su propia banda, The Harvard Gold Coast Orchestra, que actúa los fines de semana en fiestas estudiantiles por toda Nueva Inglaterra. A mediados de 1936 le encargan formar una banda de dixieland para tocar en The Theatrical Club en Boston, recomendado por Herbie Marsh que estaba terminando una serie de actuaciones allí. Para formar el grupo, incorpora a Teddy Roy (p, voz), Roger Malencourt (b), Russ Isaacs (d), Pat Barbara (cl / alto), Billy Wiles (ts) y Gowans Brad (tb, arr). El club pronto se convirtió en el lugar preferido por los músicos, tanto locales como los que estaban de visita en la ciudad. Durante el año que la banda actuó en The Theatrical Club, se recaudó más de un millón de dólares (de 1937!).
A finales de 1937, Bobby se traslada a Nueva York para buscar trabajo. Tras una corta estancia en la calle 52, co-dirige la banda del Nick's en Greenwich Village, un club que pronto se convirtiría en uno de los lugares favoritos de los músicos de Nueva York. En enero de 1938 participa en el histórico concierto de Benny Goodman en el Carnegie Hall y, al día siguiente, graba varios números para Commodore con Eddie Condon y su Windy City Seven. Tras un año de trabajar en Nick's, Bobby toca brevemente en la orquesta Lanin y trabaja en clubs con Eddie Condon, Jack Teagarden, y Teddy Wilson.
En 1939, alentado por MCA, forma su propia banda, actuando en la Feria Mundial de Nueva York, en el Ben Franklin Hotel de Filadelfia, en The Famous Door y en otros clubes de Nueva York, realizan una gira, y hacen varias grabaciones. A los seis meses, el grupo estaba en números rojos y tuvieron que separarse. Bobby debe casi 3000 $ a MCA y está a punto de casarse, por lo que acepta un trabajo bien pagado con los Musical Knights de Horacio Heidt, una orquesta de baile que pasa el verano tocando en la isla de Nantucket, lo que proporciona a Edna y Bobby la oportunidad de pasar una luna de miel barata. A mediados de 1940 se despide de la banda de Heidt y, junto con Billy Butterfield, graba la banda sonora de la película 'Second Chorus', protagonizada por Fred Astaire.
En julio de 1941, se une a su amigo Glenn Miller, pero debido a sus problemas dentales no puede tocar la corneta, por lo que Miller lo contrata para tocar la guitarra. En estas condiciones, Bobby grabaría dos de sus solos de corneta más admirados, "A String of Pearls" y "Rhapsody in Blue". En 1942 la banda de Miller, incluyendo un timido ante las cámaras Bobby Hackett, aparecerá en la película "Orchestra Wives".
Después de que Miller se uniera a la Fuerza Aérea a finales de 1942, Bobby trabajó como músico de plantilla de la NBC (1942-1943) y participó en la organización de los Town Hall Concerts de Eddie Condon, pudiéndosele escuchar en los volúmenes 1-5, 7 y 8 de los 10 grabados. Tras un año en la NBC, reemplaza a Red Nichols en la Casa Loma Orquesta de Glen Gray, donde permaneció hasta 1946. En Mayo de 1947 toca con Louis Armstrong en el NYC Town Hall Concert, además de actuar como director musical. Entre 1949 y 1951 toca frecuentemente con Red Allen y Wiley Lee. En la primera mitad de los 50 realiza una serie de grabaciones producidas por Jackie Gleason ('Music for Lovers Only'), con un total de seis álbumes. Son el más claro exponente del Easy Listening y en los créditos de los discos, el único músico al que Gleason le reconoce su labor es a Bobby Hackett. En 1952, participa con su banda en una de las emisiones musicales de la WMGM ('Dr. Jazz') que posteriormente lanzaría como disco el sello Storyville. En esa época actúan dos noches por semana en el Lou Terrasi's, mientras el resto de noches son el respaldo de Billy Butterfield o Pee Wee Erwin. Con Eddie Condon y Lee Wiley, abren el primer Festival de Jazz de Newport, en julio de 1954.
En 1955 se publica 'Coast Concert', con la presencia del trombonista Jack Teagarden. En noviembre de 1956 formará un sexteto para actuar en el Voyager Room del Henry Hudson Hotel en la calle 57, tocando un amplio repertorio que incluye dixieland, bop, cool jazz e incluso "mood music". A finales del verano 1957, el grupo se embarca en una gira por los Estados Unidos y Canadá. De aquí has ta el final de la década de los 50 realiza diversas grabaciones para Capitol (The Gotham Jazz Scene, Jazz Ultimate, At The Embers, Blues With A Kick), con un grupo que incluye al pianista Dave McKenna.
Durante los años 60, graba para los sellos Columbia y Epic. En 1962, se unió a Benny Goodman, actuando en el celebre concierto que la orquesta del clarinetista, ofreció en Moscú y participando en 1963 en las grabaciones en la Universidad de Yale. En 1965 se convierte en el acompañante oficial de Tony Bennett, realizando dos giras por Europa ('65, '66). Además, en 1966, viaja a Austin, Texas, para asistir a un festival de jazz acompañando a Coleman Hawkins . Mientras está en Texas, graba un LP con la Happy Jazz Band de Jim Cullum (Happy Jazz Records). En 1968 Bobby graba con Billy Butterfield en el sello Verve un disco de música brasileña. A finales de los años sesenta forma un quinteto con Vic Dickenson, que pasa gran parte del tiempo de gira. Finalmente se instala en The Roosevelt Grill en Nueva York con un grupo que incluía a Vic, Dave McKenna, Jack Lesberg y Leeman Cliff. El grupo produjo varios álbumes en el sello Chiaroscuro con la denominación "Live at The Roosevelt Grill, 1970".
En el otoño de 1970, durante una visita a Cape Cod, toca con la banda de dixieland de Ronnie Bill en el Holiday Inn de Hyannis y es invitado a tocar con ellos, lo que hizo durante unos seis meses. En el otoño de 1971 se compró una casa en West Harwich y se mudó a Cape Cod. Viaja a Japón con George Wein y Dizzy Gillespie y efectúa una nueva visita a Europa. En 1973 graba 'What a Wonderful World', con la cantante Teresa Brewer en dos de los temas. El siguiente año Hackett, con un sexteto que incluye el saxo tenor Zoot Sims, graba 'Strike Up The Band' (Flying Dutchman). Además, crea su propio sello discográfico (Hyannisport Records) que produjo varios lanzamientos con Bobby y su compañero de Cape Cod, Dave McKenna. Cuando no estaba de viaje, tocaba con frecuencia en Cape Cod, a menudo con su hijo, Ernie, en la batería.
El 7 de junio de 1976, Bobby moriría de un ataque al corazón en Chatham (Massachussets). Al año siguiente, Jack Bradley (ex manager de Hackett y amigo íntimo) preguntó a Gordon Brooks, líder de The Clam Shack Serenaders, si podía tocar un solo de corneta junto a la tumba de Bobby, algo que desde entonces Gordon repetiría en el cementerio de Chatham cada 7 de junio.

Bobby Hackett, one of nine children, was born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island. At an early age he played the ukulele and by the time he was twelve played guitar and violin, and had bought his first cornet. He left high school after his freshman year to take a steady job with a band that performed seven days a week at the Port Arthur - a local Chinese restaurant. He also played guitar regularly at the Rhodes and Arcadia ballrooms which often broadcasted on Providence radio. A highlight of his time at the Rhodes occurred when the Cab Calloway Band arrived short-handed and invited Bobby to fill in. In the fall of 1932 he was recruited by The Herbie Marsh Orchestra for a winter engagement at a hotel in Syracuse, New York. This was the scene of perhaps the first of many great Hackett anecdotes. Although hired as a guitar player, Bobby preferred the cornet and would play it occasionally. After a few evenings, the manager called Marsh aside and reportedly said "...if that kid picks up the horn again the whole band is fired."
Bobby spent the summer of 1933 on Cape Cod, at the Megansett Tea Room in North Falmouth, playing with Payson Re's band. It was here that he first met Pee Wee Russell. Later in 1933 Russell joined Teddy Roy's band at the Crescent Club, a speakeasy and after-hours place in Boston. Pee Wee then recruited Bobby for the group. In early 1934 Bobby rejoined the Billy Lossez Band at the Biltmore Hotel in Providence, and then traveled to Cape Cod that summer to play in Teddy Roy's quintet at the Megansett Tea Room.
In the fall of 1934, Bobby and Johnny Crandon (a drummer and Harvard Medical School student) formed a band - The Harvard Gold Coast Orchestra - to play New England colleges on weekends. The group consisted of four professional musicians and four medical students. During the next several months the orchestra visited virtually every college between the University of Rhode Island and the University of Maine. In spite of the fact that Bobby was still tied to Providence, he applied for a union card in Boston and received it in early 1935. For the remainder of '35 and early '36 he periodically traveled to Boston from Providence for gigs, typically with Ted Roy.
In mid-1936 Bobby was asked to form a dixieland band to play at The Theatrical Club in Boston, having been recommended by Herbie Marsh who was just finishing an engagement there. To form the group, he took Teddy Roy(p,voc) and Roger Malencourt(b) from the Crescent Club, Russ Isaacs(d) from Meyer Davis's band, and recruited Pat Barbara(cl/alto), Billy Wiles(ts), and Brad Gowans(tb, arr). The Club was an after-hours place and soon became the favorite spot for musicians, both local and out of town visitors. Several reviews of the Hackett band by noted Boston music critic George Frazier drew widespread attention to the group. During the band's one year stay The Theatrical Club grossed more than a million (1937!) dollars.
Later that year Bobby and several of the band members went to New York to look for work. They were unable to find a job as a group, so when Eddie Condon left the Condon-Marsala Band at the Hickory House, Bobby took his place. After a short stay on 52nd Street he co-led the first band at Nick's in Greenwich Village (12/37). The club soon became a favorite stop for many New York City musicians. A number of photos taken at Nick's, many including Bobby, appear in chapter 3 of the Stokes book cited in the references.
In January 1938 he participated in the historical segment of Benny Goodman's Carnegie Hall Concert performing I'm Coming Virginia (sound clip below) in tribute to Bix Beiderbecke who had recorded the number in 1927 with Frankie Trumbauer's Orchestra. A 2-CD set, as well as cassettes, for this concert are available on Columbia/CBS(40244). The following day, he recorded several numbers for Commodore with Eddie Condon and His Windy City Seven. In April the same group (with Jack Teagarden replacing George Brunies on trombone) recorded again (Com. 14427). After a year at Nick's, Bobby played briefly in the Lanin orchestra and did club work with Eddie Condon, Jack Teagarden, and Teddy Wilson.
In 1939, encouraged by MCA, he formed his own big band. They played at New York's World Fair, the Ben Franklin Hotel in Philadelphia, the Famous Door, at several other NYC clubs, toured, and made several recordings: That Da-Da Strain (CBS Portrait 44071) which included two Hackett favorites: Embraceable You (his theme song) and Ja-Da. (Another rendition of Embraceable You from this period appears on OKeh 4877 (1939), as well as on the 4/38 Condon recording.) But, within six months the group was in the red and forced to disband. Owing MCA nearly $3000, and desiring to marry his childhood sweetheart, Bobby took a well-paying job with Horace Heidt's Musical Knights. Aside from the good pay, the Heidt band spent the summer on Nantucket Island, providing Edna and Bobby the opportunity for an inexpensive honeymoon. In mid-1940 he took leave from the Heidt band to record, along with Billy Butterfield, the sound track for the film 'Second Chorus', starring Fred Astaire.
After his stay with Heidt, he joined his close friend, Glenn Miller, in July of 1941. He had dental problems and was unable to play the cornet on a regular basis, so Miller hired him on guitar. Bobby was encouraged to purchase an amplifier and switch to electric guitar. He bought the amplifier and carried it around faithfully, but never plugged it in. Nevertheless, it was under these conditions that two of his most admired cornet solos, on A String of Pearls and Rhapsody in Blue, were recorded. During 1942 the Miller band, including a camera shy Bobby Hackett, appeared in the movie Orchestra Wives. Oh, Glenn Miller negotiated the Hackett MCA debt down to $1000.
After Miller joined the Air Corps in late 1942, Bobby took a studio job with NBC and became active in organizing the Condon Town Hall Concerts which would be broadcast and recorded under the supervision of Milt Gabler (Commodore Records). Many of these concerts (the Blue Network broadcasts - 5/44 through 4/45) are now available in 2-CD sets from Jazzology Records. Bobby can be heard on volumes 1-5, 7 and 8 of the 10 sets. Also in 1942 he, along with Louis Armstrong and members of the Condon gang, visited the fifth grade class of jazz photographer Charles Peterson's son, Don, in Manhattan. Two great photographs of this event can be found in the Stokes reference (pp. 140-41).
After a year at NBC, followed by a short tour with Katherine Dunham's revue, he replaced Red Nichols in Glen Gray's Casa Loma Orchestra where he remained until 1946. At this time Bobby joined the music staff at ABC, initiating a relationship that would last for 15 years. He also continued to play at Condon's and other clubs in the New York area. In 1945 he recorded If I Could Be With You (V-disc 587) with Jack Teagarden. Bobby was musical director for, and performed in, Louis Armstrong's acclaimed May 1947 NYC Town Hall Concert. Louis was suffering from a recurrent ulcer problem, so Bobby put the band together and rehearsed it: Jack Teagarden(tb), Dick Cary(p), Peanuts Hucko(cl), Bob Haggart(b), 'Big' Sid Catlett(d), and George Wettling(d). Also, Bobby was a leading participant in the Condon Floor Show series of the late 1940's.
During 1949-51 he played periodically, with Red Allen and Lee Wiley, at Bill Green's Rustic Lodge in New Jersey - some live recordings featuring Red and Bobby are available on cassette. In the early 50's he held a long engagement at the Copley Square Hotel in Boston, played frequently at Child's Paramount, toured in the midwest, and also began his 'Music for Lovers Only' recordings, produced by Jackie Gleason. Over the next decade six albums were cut and heavily publicized by Gleason; Gleason and Bobby were often seen together on television. Bobby was also appearing on Martha Wright's weekly ABC-TV program. Aside from 'Lovers': supermarket and department store shoppers, diners, elevator riders, doctors' office visitors, and even people put on hold, could and still do enjoy the mellow sound of Bobby Hackett's cornet.
In 1952 the Bobby Hackett band - from Lou Terrasi's - participated in the seven month 'Dr. Jazz' series of WMGM radio broadcasts hosted by DJ Aime Gauvin(The Doctor). These recordings have been released on 2 CD's by Storyville - Dr. Jazz, Vol. 2, No.1 and No.2 - STCD6042, STCD6050. At this time, the Hackett group only played two nights a week at Terrasi's, backing Billy Butterfield or Pee Wee Erwin the other nights.
Eddie Condon's band and Bobby Hackett's sextet, featuring Lee Wiley, opened the first Newport Jazz Festival, July 1954. Part of the festival was televised on ABC, and the entire program was recorded for The Library of Congress.
Four important sides were cut in October 1955 (Coast Concert): Struttin' With Some Barbecue, Muskrat Ramble, Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans, and Bugle Call Rag, with Jack Teagarden joining in on Bugle Call Rag. During January 1957 Bobby appeared with Eddie Condon's band at Constitution Hall in Washigton and, at this time, performed with the National Symphony Orchestra as guest soloist. In November 1956 he put together a sextet to play the Voyager Room at the Henry Hudson Hotel on 57th Street. The ensemble presented a wide ranging repertoire which included dixieland, bop, cool jazz and even 'mood music'. In late summer 1957 the group embarked on a tour of the United States and Canada. Also during 1957 the band produced an album for Capitol (T857), The Gotham Jazz Scene, which featured some very nice Dick Cary arrangements. Bobby also made additional recordings with Jack Teagarden: Jazz Ultimate. Coast Concert and Jazz Ultimate appear together on the Dormouse label (DM1 CD X02). In November of 1957 the Hackett sextet was recorded live at The Embers. After the tour, Bobby returned to studio work but continued to play occasional club dates in New York. In 1959 a Hackett quartet including Dave McKenna(P), Bob Carter(b), and Richard Scott(dr), recorded twelve sides for Capitol.
Hackett ensembles continued to record during the early 1960's, mainly for Columbia and Epic. In 1962, he joined Benny Goodman and participated in the band's 1963 recordings available on a 2-CD set re-mastered for the Yale University Music Library (vol 5) by MusicMasters. During fall of 1963 and summer of 1964 Bobby's band played in Hyannis, Yarmouth, and Dennis on Cape Cod. In 1965 he became the official accompanist for Tony Bennett, and they made two European tours ('65, '66). A favorite of vocalists, Bobby had earlier accompanied Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong (check out Rockin' Chair from the Armstrong Town Hall Concert), Frank Sinatra, Maxine Sullivan, and Lee Wiley. Also, in 1966, he traveled to Austin, Texas with Coleman Hawkins to attend a jazz festival featuring Hawkins. While in Texas, he made an LP with Jim Cullum's Happy Jazz Band (Happy Jazz Records), and in early 1967 a Hackett orchestra recorded some jazz favorites for Verve Records. In the late sixties he formed a quintet with Vic Dickenson, which spent much of the time on the road. Eventually he settled in at The Roosevelt Grill in NYC with a group that included Vic, Dave McKenna, Jack Lesberg, and Cliff Leeman. The group produced several albums on the Chiaroscura label: Live at The Roosevelt Grill, 1970. Also, during 1968 Bobby recorded with Billy Butterfield on the Verve label, and with the Hackett/ Dickenson Quintet on Project.
In the fall of 1970, while visiting Cape Cod, Bobby sat in with Ronnie Bill's dixieland band at the Holiday Inn, Hyannis. He was invited to stay on as the featured guest which he did for about six months. In the fall of 1971 he purchased a house in West Harwich and moved to Cape Cod. In the early seventies, Bobby traveled to Japan with George Wein and Dizzy Gillespie, and made another visit to Europe. In 1973 he cut a CD, What a Wonderful World (Signature/CBS Special Products 40234), which features two tracks with singer Teresa Brewer. During the following year a Hackett sextet, which included tenor saxophonist Zoot Sims, produced the LP Strike Up The Band (Flying Dutchman) which included his last recording of Embraceable You. Also, after moving to the Cape Bobby formed his own record company - Hyannisport Records which produced several releases featuring Bobby and fellow Cape Codder, Dave McKenna. For a month in 1975, Bobby was featured at Disney World, and also played at Michael's Pub in New York.
Between trips he continued to play frequently on Cape Cod, often with his son, Ernie, on drums. He became music director for Dunfey's (Hyannis) and performed there regularly. It seems that everyone over fifty, who was here then, saw him perform at least once, and most saw him several times. The reminiscences are remarkably similar: always greeted by a big smile on the first visit, and a personal Hackett greeting on the second. Of course, we will never forget the music.
In 1976 Bobby died of a heart attack. The following year Jack Bradley - former Hackett manager and close friend - asked Gordon Brooks, the leader of The Clam Shack Serenaders, to play a cornet solo at Bobby's grave side, which he gladly did (he chose More Than You Know)....and since then Gordon has played a solo in the Chatham Cemetary every June 7th.
On June 2, 1996 The Cape Cod Jazz Society presented a tribute to Bobby Hackett: I Remember Bobby, at Cape Cod Community College featuring an all-star sextet and an exhibit of Hackett photographs and memorabilia, including a 10 minute movie of Bobby playing in 1938, presented by Jack Bradley. The tribute to Bobby was hosted by jazz DJ Dick Golden of WQRC radio, Hyannis.
John Ciccolo, November 1996

Sonny Rollins - 1986 G-Man

2010-03-28T01:16:00.001+01:00

01 G-Man (Rollins) 15:19
02 Kim (Rollins) 5:58
03 Don't Stop the Carnival (Rollins, Traditional ) 11:18
04 Tenor Madness (Rollins) 12:01

Recorded live at Opus 40, Saugerties, New York on August 16, 1986.
Additional sax overdubs on track 2, at Manhattan Recording Studios, New York, on April 9, 1987

Sonny Rollins Tenor Sax
Clifton Anderson Trombone
Mark Soskin Piano
Bob Cranshaw Bass
Marvin 'Smitty' Smith Drums

Sonny Rollins - 1980 Love At First Sight

2010-03-28T01:15:00.002+01:00

01 Little Lu (Rollins) 6:38
02 The Dream That We Fell Out Of (Clarke) 4:14
03 Strode Rode (Rollins) 7:33
04 The Very Thought Of You (Noble) 5:38
05 Caress (Duke) 7:25
06 Double Feature (Clarke, Rollins) 4:51

Recorded at Fantasy Studios, Berkeley (California) on May 9-12, 1980

Sonny Rollins (tenor sax, lyricon on track 2)
George Duke (acoustic and electric piano, except on track 6)
Stanley Clarke (electric bass)
Al Foster (drums, except on tracks 4 & 6)
Bill Summers (congas, percussion, only on tracks 1, 3 & 5)

Sonny Rollins - 1975 Nucleus

2010-03-28T01:12:00.001+01:00

01 Lucille (Rollins) 6:08
02 Gwaligo (Rollins) 5:58
03 Are You Ready? (Rollins) 4:08
04 Azalea (Rollins) 4:46
05 Newkleus (Mtume) 5:17
06 Cosmet (Rollins) 7:20
07 My Reverie (Clinton, Debussy) 7:39

Recorded at Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, California, on September 2-5, 1975

Sonny Rollins (tenor saxophone)
Bennie Maupin (tenor saxophone)
Raul De Souza (trombone)
George Duke (piano, synthesizer)
David Amaro, Black Bird (guitar)
Bob Cranshaw, Chuck Rainey (bass)
Roy McCurdy, Eddie Moore (drums)
Mtume (percussion)

Sonny Rollins - 1964 After The Bridge

2010-03-28T01:10:00.001+01:00

CD1
01 Fifty-Second Street Theme 15:54
02 Django 5:28
03 Now's the Time 16:00
04 I Remember Clifford 6:33

CD2
01 St. Thomas 3:09
02 Afternoon in Paris 3:06
03 Four I 6:57
04 Four II 8:57
05 Winter Wonderland 5:24
06 When You Wish Upon a Star 3:27
07 Trav'Lin' Light 13:30

Thad Jones (cor) Sonny Rollins (ts) Bob Cranshaw (b) Roy McCurdy (d)
NYC, January 20, 1964
I Remember Clifford

Sonny Rollins (ts) Herbie Hancock (p -2,5/7) Ron Carter (b) Roy McCurdy (d)
NYC, February 14, 1964
1. 52nd Street Theme
2. Django
3. St. Thomas
4. Four, II
5. Now's The Time
6. Afternoon In Paris
7. Four, I

Sonny Rollins (ts) Herbie Hancock (p) Jim Hall (g) David Izenzon, Teddy Smith (b) Stu Martin (d)
NYC, June 11, 1964
Trav'lin' Light

Sonny Rollins (ts) Herbie Hancock (p) Bob Cranshaw (b) Mickey Roker (d)
NYC, July 2, 1964
Winter Wonderland
When You Wish Upon A Star

Sonny Rollins - 1959 St Thomas. Sonny Rollins Trio In Stockholm

2010-03-28T01:09:00.002+01:00

01 St Thomas 7:30
02 There Will Never Be Another You 5:40
03 Stay As Sweet As You Are 4:35
04 I've Told Every Little Star 4:40
05 How High The Moon 10:45
06 Oleo 5:35
07 Paul's Pal 9:20

Recorded at the Swedish Radio, Stockholm, March 4, 1959, except for track 1, recorded live at Nalen, Stockholm, around the same date.

Sonny Rollins Tenor Sax
Henry Grimes Bass
Pete La Roca Drums

Sonny Rollins - 1958 Brass And Trio

2010-03-28T01:07:00.002+01:00

01 Who Cares? (Gershwin, Gershwin) 3:56
02 Love Is A Simple Thing (Carroll, Siegel) 3:01
03 Grand Street (Rollins) 6:04
04 Far Out East (Wilkins) 4:31
05 What's My Name? (Saxon, Wells) 3:46
06 If You Were The Only Girl In The World (Ayer, Grey) 5:08
07 Manhattan (Hart, Rodgers) 4:28
08 Body & Soul (Eyton, Green, Heyman, Sour) 4:17

tracks 1-5
Sonny Rollins, tenor saxophone
Nat Adderly, cornet
Clark Terry, Reunald Jones, Ernie Royal, trumpets
Billy Byers, Jimmy Cleveland, Frank Rehak, trombones
Dick Katz, piano
Rene Thomas, guitar
Roy Haynes, drums
Henry Grimes, bass
Recorded at Metropolitan Studios, New York, on July 11, 1958

tracks 6-8
Sonny Rollins, tenor saxophone
Charles Wright, drums
Henry Grimes, bass
Recorded at Beltone Studios, New York, on July 10, 1958

Sonny Rollins - 1957 Everytime We Say Goodbye

2010-03-28T01:05:00.002+01:00

01 Cutie (Rollins) 05:54
02 Everytime We Say Goodbye (Porter) 03:23
03 Dearly Beloved (Mercer, Kent) 03:05
04 Toot, Toot, Tootsie (Styne, Green, Cahn) 04:22
05 Just in Time (Styne, Green, Cahn) 03:58
06 Mangoes (Wayne, Libby) 05:33
07 Sonnymoon for Two (Rollins) 08:58
08 Like Someone in Love (Burke, Van Heusen) 04:54
09 Theme from Pathetique Symphony (Tchaikowsky) 05:52

tracks 1-6
Sonny Rollins (tenor sax)
Sonny Clark (piano)
Percy Heath (bass)
Roy Haynes (drums)
Recorded in New York, on June 11 & 12, 1957

tracks 7-9
Sonny Rollins (tenor sax)
Jimmy Cleveland (trombone)
Gil Coggins (piano)
Wendell Marshall (bass)
Kenny Dennis (drums)
Recorded in New York, on November 4, 1957

Sonny Rollins - 1956 Sonny Boy

2010-03-28T01:03:00.002+01:00

01 Ee-Ah (Rollins) 6:53
02 B. Quick (Rollins) 9:11
03 B. Swift (Rollins) 5:14
04 The House I Live In (Allen, Robinson) 9:21
05 Sonny Boy (DeSylva, Brown, Henderson, Jolson) 8:22

Recorded in Hackensack, New Jersey, on October 5 (track 4) and December 7, 1956

Sonny Rollins (tenor saxophone)
Kenny Dorham (trumpet) on track 4
Kenny Drew (piano)
Wade Legge (piano) on track 4
George Morrow (bass)
Max Roach (drums)

Sonny Rollins - 1951 Sonny Rollins Quartet

2010-03-28T01:00:00.001+01:00

01 Time on My Hands (Adamson, Gordon, Youmans) 2:38
02 This Love of Mine (Parker, Sanicola, Sinatra) 2:22
03 Shadrack (MacGimsey) 2:29
04 Slow Boat to China (Loesser) 2:38
05 Scoops (Rollins) 2:13
06 With a Song in My Heart (Hart, Rodgers) 3:06
07 Newk's Fadeaway (Rollins) 3:10
08 I Know (Davis) 2:33

Recorded on January 17, 1951 (track 8) and December 10, 1951

Sonny Rollins tenor sax
Kenny Drew piano (track 1-7)
Miles Davis piano (track 8)
Percy Heath bass
Art Blakey drums (track 1-7)
Roy Haynes drums (track 8)

Sonny Rollins

2010-03-28T00:48:00.002+01:00

Theodore Walter (Sonny) Rollins nació el 7 de septiembre de 1930 en Nueva York, en el seno de una familia que había emigrado de las Islas Vírgenes. Se crió en Harlem en un momento en el que este distrito era el centro vital de la cultura afroamericana. Su abuela, seguidora de las doctrinas pan-africanas de Marcus Garvey, jugó un papel importante en el crecimiento de Sonny mientras su padre sirvió en la Marina de los Estados Unidos. Harlem en los años 30 y 40 era el lugar donde se cocían las innovaciones en el jazz y los músicos de jazz eran admirados miembros de la comunidad. La música era también una parte importante de la vida en el hogar Rollins, donde su hermano y su hermana estudiaban violín y piano. Influido por Louis Jordan, muy popular en aquella época, Sonny empieza a tocar el saxofón alto, cambiando al saxo tenor bajo el hechizo de Coleman Hawkins.
En los años siguientes a la Segunda Guerra Mundial, Harlem es el escenario de la revolución musical conocido como el be-bop. El adolescente Sonny Rollins y sus amigos se convierten en entusiastas seguirdores del nuevo estilo e idolatratan a sus intérpretes, en particular a Charlie Parker. Rollins y otros jóvenes músicos de su barrio de Sugar Hill formarán su propia banda, que incluye al talentoso saxo alto Jackie McLean. A los 18 años, Rollins se ha ganado ya una reputación tal que se unirá a sus héroes en el escenario y en los estudios de grabación. Su debut discográfico tiene lugar en 1949, grabando para el sello Capitol con el cantante Babs Gonzales y para Savoy con el trombonista Jay Jay Johnson. Ese mismo año de 1948, Bud Powell le elegiría para formar parte de un quinteto -junto al trompetista, Fats Navarro - que dejó para la posteridad los álbumes "Bouncing With Bud" y "Dance of the Infidels", ambos para Blue Note. En 1950 empieza a grabar regularmente para el sello Prestigie, bajo el liderazgo de Miles Davis, y ya en diciembre empiezan a aparecer los primeros discos a su nombre. El talento de Rollins es evidente para todos en el mundo del jazz, pero como muchos jóvenes músicos de la época, su admiración por el trágicamente inestable Charlie Parker, le llevará a emularle en el uso de drogas, lo que le ocasionará problemas con la ley. Durante un tiempo, pareció que una prometedora carrera había llegado a un final prematuro, pero la madre de Sonny se negó a renunciar a él. El propio Charlie Parker le instó a buscar ayuda antes de que su hábito le consumiera. Rollins finalmente entraría en un centro de rehabilitación federal en Lexington, Kentucky, donde se encontrará el tratamiento que necesitaba. Liberado de su adicción, regresa a Nueva York y se embarca en un período de productividad impresionante. Cada vez m ás maduro artística e instrumentalmewnte, Sonny Rollins graba entre 1953 y 1954 al lado de The Modern Jazz Quartet, Tkelonious Monk, Art Farmer y, especialmente, con Miles Davis. En una de esas sesiones tiene, por fin, la oportunidad de grabar con su ídolo, Charlie Parker. En esta época empieza a presentar sus primeras composiciones, algunas de las cuales ("Óleo", "Airegin", "Doxy") se han convertido con el paso del tiempo en estándares del jazz. Precedido de una excelente reputación, en 1955 abandona Nueva York y se instala en Chicago donde coincide con su amigo Max Roach, que actuaba con un quinteto en el que estaba Clifford Brown a la trompeta. Roach le propuso unirse a ellos en sustitución del saxo tenor, Harold Land, permanenciendo con el baterista un año y medio. Además de las grabaciones bajo el nombre del grupo, el quinteto produce el álbum "Sonny Rollins Plus Four". La inesperada muerte de Clifford Brown en 1956, en un accidente de automóvil, fue un golpe para todo el mundo del jazz. Rollins permanece con el quinteto en esta difícil transición, pero pronto la producción de sus propias grabaciones va a un ritmo extraordinario. Max Roach colabora con el joven Sonny, tocando la batería en el álbum "Sonny Rollins, Volume One". En la continuación, "Volume Two", Rollins trabajará con dos grandes pianistas: Thelonious Monk y Horace Silver. Rollins es ahora una estrella del Jazz. En 1956, Rollins grabaría el disco cumbre de su carrera: "Saxophone Colossus" (Prestige) con Tommy Flanagan al piano, Doug Watkins, al bajo y Max Roach a la batería. El disco incluye el tema "St. Thomas", basada en un calipso tradicional que su madre le cantaba en su infancia, y el excelente blues, "Blue Seven". Otros discos importantes en este período será "Tenor Madness", con John Coltrane. Aquel gran año se cierra con Sonny Rollins colaborando con Thelonious Monk en el disco "Brilliant Corners".
Los amigos de Rollins habían empezado a llamarlo "Newk" por su parecido con el lanzador de los Dodgers, Don Newcombe, de ahí el nombre de una de sus grabaciones de 1957, "Newk's Time". Ese año modifica el formato de su música, cambiando el soporte del piano por el contrabajo y la batería. Este trío de saxofón sin piano era un concepto nuevo en jazz. Sin el apoyo armónico del piano, Rollins encontrará caminos melódicos inesperados más allá de las estructuras armónicas convencionales. Así graba "Way Out West" (Contemporary, 1957), la maratoniana sesión en el Village Vanguard (Blue Note, 1957) y "Freedom Suite" (Riverside, 1958). A pesar de su extraordinario éxito en los 50 y de estar considerado uno de los grandes saxofonistas del momento, la aparición de Ornette Coleman y la eclosión de Coltrane, le desplazan de la vanguardia del jazz de la época. En el apogeo de su fama, se retira de la actuación en público y deja de grabar.
Tras tres años de exilio, Rollins vuelve con una técnica reforzada, como demostró en su álbum de regreso, "The Bridge". Un Sonny Rollins sereno, majestuoso y con un estilo depurado, está acompañado por Jim Hall a la guitarra, Bob Cranshaw al contrabajo y Ben Riley a la batería. A lo largo de la década de 1960, Rollins hace frente al desafío de cada nuevo desarrollo, participando en los experimentos de la avant-garde y el "free jazz" de músicos más jóvenes. Además, grabará con su héroe de la infancia, Coleman Hawkins. Durante esta fase ecléctica de su carrera interpreta Latin jazz, graba un álbum de standards y compone la banda sonora de la película de 1966 "Alfie", protagonizada por Michael Caine. Poco después, reúne la sección rítmica de Coltrane (Elvin Jones a la batería, Jimmy Garrison al contrabajo, más Freddie Hubbard a la trompeta) para grabar su postrero intento de subirse a la corriente free jazz: "Broadway Run Down" (Impulse, 1966).
A finales de los 60, Rollins se toma otro descanso de su carrera musical para sumergirse en el estudio de las religiones orientales. Durante un tiempo vive en Japón, luego viajó a la India, donde estudió el yoga y pasó un largo retiro meditando en un monasterio. A principios de los 70 está listo para volver a los estudios de grabación y a las actuaciones en directo. Su viaje espiritual ha traído la paz a su alma inquieta y se dirige a su público con un nuevo sentido de alegría y aceptación. Inspirándose en melodías tradicionales del Caribe, introduce instrumentos eléctricos y los ritmos de funk contemporáneo y R&B, adentrándose en un territorio musical muy alejado del hard bop de su juventud. Su aparición en 1981 en el álbum de The Rolling Stones "Tattoo You" sorprende tanto a los aficionados al rock y como a los del jazz. Además de trabajar con grandes grupos eléctricos, Rollins se coloca en el extremo opuesto, actuando como artista en solitario, sin acompañamiento de ningún tipo, tal como se refleja en su grabación de 1985 "The Solo Album", en el Museo de Arte Moderno de New York. Sus actuaciones en solitario alcanzan cimas de inspiración que trasciende todas las consideraciones de estilo y género, reportándole algunos de los mayores elogios de su carrera. Excepto por un periodo de 6 meses de descanso en 1983, tras un colapso por agotamiento, Rollins permanece activo durante la segunda mitad de los 80, realizando giras por USA, Europa y Japón, además de grabar una fusión de bop y soul con su quinteto.
Rollins estaba en su casa de Manhattan, a poca distancia del World Trade Center, cuando su ciudad natal fue atacado en septiembre 11, 2001. Sólo unos días después de la catástrofe, Rollins grabó un concierto en vivo ("Without a Song: The 9 / 11 Concert") como un homenaje a sus vecinos caídos. Rollins había ganado su primer Grammy por "This Is What I Do" (2000), recibiendo el segundo por "Why Was I Born" incluida en "Without a Song: The 9 / 11 Concert". Además, Sonny recibió el Lifetime Achievement Award de la Academia Nacional de las Artes y las Ciencias en 2004.
A punto de cumplir los 80 años, Sonny Rollins sigue interpretando sin que su fuerza e inventiva haya disminuido, una ejemplo perdurable de integridad personal y musical.

Sonny Rollins is a saxophone colossus.
The revered tenor saxophonist first received that appellation via the name of his 1956 Prestige Records album. Even then, at age 26, the title seemed fitting. He had already played and/or recorded with bebop giants Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, and J.J. Johnson”and had established himself as the prominent young voice on his instrument via recordings and performances as a leader.
The sobriquet has lasted through the years. It recently served as the title of Jazz Times’s June 2005 cover story, in which Rollins was interviewed by youthful sax ace Joshua Redman. It was also employed” “The Colossus””as the title of Stanley Crouch’s fine profile in the May 9, 2005 issue of The New Yorker.
And Rollins has shown himself continually deserving of the honorific. A melodically dynamic and incredibly hard-swinging improviser”he has often been called the premier jazz soloist alive”his career has borne a host of excellent recordings and countless memorable live performances.
Without a Song (The 9/11 Concert), Rollins’s latest Milestone Records album, will serve to further the saxophonist’s reputation as an artist who delivers. The album was recorded at Boston’s Berklee Performing Arts Center on September 15, 2001. This was just four days after the saxophonist, staying in his apartment six blocks from the site of the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan (he mainly lives in upstate New York), witnessed the horrific attacks of 9/11 firsthand. The performance reveals Rollins’s use of music to try and help heal the immense wounds left by the attacks.
As Boston-based jazz writer Bob Blumenthal, who attended the concert, observes in his CD liner notes: “Boston, where the hijacked flights originated and so many of the passengers/victims lived, seemed enveloped in desolation. . . . A palpable restraint permeated the atmosphere, and one could sense it in the audience.”
Rollins, in shock from the direct experience of the attacks, almost canceled the concert. He was in the street and saw the second tower fall, and was evacuated from his building with his neighbors on September 12. His wife and manager, Lucille, persuaded him to perform. Though he said in an interview that he felt he was “a reluctant troubadour,” he seemed to intuit what the listeners needed.
As heard on the album, the saxophonist tells the audience: “Music is the one of the beautiful things of life. . . . Maybe music can help, I don’t know, but we have to try something these days.” Thunderous, appreciative applause followed.
The music on Without a Song (The 9/11 Concert), Rollins’s first live band recording since 1986’s G-Man, is inspired, warm, and moving. Joined by bandmates trombonist Clifton Anderson (his nephew), longtime bassist Bob Cranshaw, drummer Perry Wilson, pianist Stephen Scott, and percussionist Kimati Dinizulu, the saxophonist plays with passion and persuasion on his calypso “Global Warming,” and four standards” the title track, “Why Was I Born?,” “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square,” and “Where or When.”
“I’m glad the album is coming out,” Rollins said. “It was as if the feeling that permeated the whole country permeated the musicians. Maybe the album will reflect some of that.”
Walter Theodore Rollins was born in New York City on September 7, 1930; his name has been incorrectly stated as Theodore Walter, a switch Rollins made in the mid-’50s. A child of music-loving parents of West Indian ancestry, Rollins first played piano then turned to saxophone at around age 7. One of his uncles, Hubert Myers, a professional saxophonist, helped him pick out an alto saxophone. Young Sonny was enthralled.
“I used to play for hours and hours at home,” the mostly self-taught Rollins recalled recently. “I was in my own world, my own reverie. I did a lot of free association, just ideas that came to my mind, which is why I have told people” what I told Joshua Redman [in Jazz Times] “ that I consider myself a free musician.”
By age 12, Rollins began to play in groups with “like-minded boys my age,” including saxophonist Jackie McLean and drummer Arthur Taylor. He worked his first professional job at age 14. At age 15, enamored by tenor saxophonist Coleman Hawkins, Rollins bought his first tenor, a King Zephyr. “It was what I wanted,” he said.
Four years later, Rollins was in the jazz big leagues, recording with singer Babs Gonzales, then trombonist Johnson, and Powell whose Blue Note date also spotlighted trumpet marvel Fats Navarro and fiery drum Roy Haynes.
In 1951, Rollins began to record as a leader, first for Prestige. His nine albums, including Saxophone Colossus and Tenor Madness (with John Coltrane) and featuring Monk, McLean, and others, have been collected in the 7-CD set, The Complete Prestige Recordings.
The era also found Rollins working with Davis, Monk, and the Clifford Brown Max Roach band before stepping out as a leader. He also recorded for Blue Note, Riverside, and Contemporary Records. Recordings from the latter two are gathered on The Freelance Years.
In 1959, Rollins took a sabbatical from performing to further develop his musicianship. He lived on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, and often practiced on the Williamsburg Bridge. He returned to performing in 1962, and released The Bridge (RCA), a classic featuring guitarist Jim Hall and Bob Cranshaw, his bassist almost nonstop ever since.
Rollins also later led a quartet with trumpeter Don Cherry and drummer Billy Higgins, both of whom had played with maverick saxman Ornette Coleman; and recorded with his idol, Hawkins. In 1966, he wrote and performed a jazz score for the film, Alfie, and, in 1969, took another sabbatical, this time traveling to India and studying with a guru.
In 1972, with the encouragement and support of Lucille, whom he had met in 1956 in Chicago, and married in 1965, Rollins again returned to performing and recording beginning his up-to-the- present association with Milestone Records.
That association has resulted in a bevy of superior recordings that touch on such genres as straight- ahead, funk, pop, and, of course, calypso. Among these are Next Album, Don’t Stop the Carnival, G-Man, Sonny Rollins +3, Global Warming, and This Is What I Do.
In November 2004, Rollins suffered a tremendous loss when Lucille, who had not fully recovered from a stroke, died. “We were together 48 years,” he said. “I miss her.”
In the wake of Lucille’s death, Rollins has maintained his performing schedule of 20-25 dates a year, playing recently in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and on Long Island. Listeners have reported that Rollins is playing with characteristic vitality, furthering his position as a musical colossus.
Without a Song (The 9/11 Concert) will only enhance that position.
All About Jazz

Jimmy Smith - 1999-2001 Daybreak

2010-03-13T23:21:00.002+01:00

01 Transition 5:50
02 Moanin' (Timmons) 5:18
03 Eight Counts for Rita (Smith) 5:08
04 Saint Thomas (Smith) 6:30
05 Dark Blues (unknown) 5:52
06 Satin Doll (Ellington, Strayhorn, Mercer) 3:54
07 NASDAQ Blues (Smith) 5:16
08 They Ain't What They Used to Be (Ellington, Persons) 5:42

Tracks 3, 4, 5, 6 recorded live in the Florida Keys Islamorada's Festival By The Bay, October 23rd 1999.
Tracks 1, 2, 7, 8 recorded at Livewire Studios, Sacramento, California, April 11th 2001.

Joshy Hernandez Saxophone (tracks 1,2,7,8)
Nat Marucci Drums (tracks 1,2,7,8)
Jimmy Smith Hammond B-3
Claudio Spiewak Guitar (tracks 3-6)
Nestor Torres Flute (tracks 3-6)
Abner Torres Drums (tracks 3-6)
Phil Upchurch Guitar (tracks 1,2,7,8)

Jimmy Smith - 1993 Sum Serious Blues

2010-03-13T23:18:00.001+01:00

01. Sum Serious Blues (Pate) 7:54
02. Round The Corner (Smith) 5:58
03. Hurry Change, If You're Comin' (Feldman, Stephens) 6:45
04. The Sermon (Smith) 9:21
05. You've Changed (Carey, Fischer) 3:46
06. Moof's Blues (Pate) 5:38
07. Open For Business (Smith) 9:06
08. (I'd Rather) Drink Muddy Water (Miller) 3:10

Recorded at A&M Studios, Hollywod, on January 12-14, 1993

Jimmy Smith (vocals, organ)
Buddy Collette (alto saxophone)
Herman Riley (tenor saxophone)
Ernie Fields Jr. (baritone saxophone)
Oscar Brashear (trumpet)
George Bohannon (trombone)
Maurice Spears (bass trombone)
Phil Upchurch (guitar)
Mick Martin (harmonica)
Andy Simpkins (bass)
Mike Baker (drums)
Marlena Shaw, Benard Ighner (vocals)

Jimmy Smith & Eddie Harris - 1981 All the Way Live

2010-03-13T23:17:00.001+01:00

01. You'll See (Smith) 11:36
02. Autumn Leaves (Mercer, Prevert, Kosma) 12:08
03. A Child Is Born (Jones) 9:41
04. 8 Counts For Rita (Smith) 6:52
05. Old Folks (Hill, Robinson) 10:40
06. The Sermon (Live) (Smith) 9:36

Recorded live at Keystone Korner, San Francisco, California on August 29, 1981

Jimmy Smith (Hammond B-3 organ)
Eddie Harris (Veriphone tenor saxophone)
Kenny Dixon (drums)

Jimmy Smith - 1969 I'm Gon' Git Myself Together

2010-03-13T23:15:00.001+01:00

01 I Know What I Want (Pate) 5:21
02 (Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay (Cropper, redding) 5:15
03 Uh Ruh (Smith) 2:45
04 I'm Gon' Git Myself Together (Smith) 5:30
05 Dirty Roosta Booga (Smith, Pate) 5:00
06 Spill the Wine (War) 5:50
07 Need Mo' (Smith) 6:16
08 Sugar, Sugar (Barry, Kim) 5:15

Recorded at TTG Sound Studios, Hollywood and Bell Sound Studios, New York, on 1969

Jimmy Smith organ
band unknown

Jimmy Smith - 1965 La Metamorphose Des Cloportes Et Autres Films

2010-03-13T23:13:00.001+01:00

01 Blues Por Alphonse (Smith) 3:24
02 Générique (Smith) 5:40
03 Ballade Pour Un Cloporte (Smith) 2:09
04 Melodie Pour Catherine (Smith) 4:50
05 Theme Pour Alphonse (Smith) 4:32
06 Angoisse/Race Track Blues (Smith) 2:15
07 Melodie Pour Catherine (Version 2) (Smith) 2:19
08 Love Theme (Smith) 1:01
09 Requiem Pour Un Cloporte (Smith) 7:09
10 Generique (Version 2) (Smith) 6:10
11 Mélodie en Sous Sol (Any Number Can Win) (Magne) 2:13
12 Les Félins (Theme from Joy House) (Schifrin) 4:40
13 Mission Impossible (Schifrin) 3:38
14 Goldfinger (Barry, Bricusse, Newley) 2:49
15 L' Homme au Bras d'Or (The Man With the Golden Arm) (Bernstein) 4:33

Recorded on 1965

Jimmy Smith Organ
Quentin Warren Guitar
Billy Hart Drums

Jimmy Smith - 1963 Rockin' The Boat

2010-03-13T23:11:00.001+01:00

01 When My Dreamboat Comes Home (Friend, Franklin) 7:26
02 Pork Chop (Donaldson) 7:38
03 Matilda, Matilda! (Thomas) 2:58
04 Can Heat (Smith) 5:22
05 Please Send Me Someone to Love (Mayfield) 6:11
06 Just a Closer Walk With Thee (Foleu) 3:46
07 Trust in Time (Wever, Ager, Schwartz) 4:56

Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on February 7, 1963

Jimmy Smith (organ)
Lou Donaldson (alto saxophone)
Quentin Warren (guitar)
Donald Bailey (drums)
John Patton (tambourin)

Jimmy Smith - 1961 Straight Life

2010-03-13T23:03:00.002+01:00

01 Straight Life (Smith) 5.08
02 Stuffy (Hawkins) 5:06
03 Star Dust (Carmichael) 6:02
04 Sweet Sue, Just You (Young) 4:50
05 Minor Fare (Smith) 5:38
06 Swanee (Gershwin) 2:27
07 Jimmy's Blues (Smith) 5:41
08 Yes Sir, That's My Baby (Donaldson) 4.57
09 Here's To My Lady (Bloom) 4.53
10 Minor Fare (Alternate take) (Smith) 5.38

Recorded at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs (NJ), on June 22, 1961

Donald Bailey Drums
Jimmy Smith Hammond B-3
Quentin Warren Guitar

Jimmy Smith - 1960 Plain Talk

2010-03-13T23:00:00.001+01:00

01 Big Fat Mama (Millinder, Simon)
02 My One and Only Love (Mellin, Wood)
03 Plain Talk (Smith)
04 Time After Time (Cahn, Styne)

Recorded at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs (NJ), on March 22, 1960

Blue Mitchell Trumpet
Jackie McLean Sax (Alto)
Ike Quebec Sax (Tenor)
Jimmy Smith Organ, Organ (Hammond)
Quentin Warren Guitar
Donald Bailey Drums

Jimmy Smith - 1957 Cherokee

2010-03-13T22:58:00.002+01:00

01 What Is This Thing Called Love (Porter) 7:03
02 I'm In The Mood For Love (Fields, McHugh) 6:25
03 Things Ain't What They Used To Be (Ellington, Persons) 5:49
04 On The Sunny Side Of The Street (Fields, McHugh) 5:12
05 Laura (Raskin, Mercer) 5:40
06 Cherokee (Noble) 4:59
07 Somebody Loves Me (DeSylva, MacDonakis, Gershiwn) 5:40

Recorded at Manhattan Towers, New York, on July 3, 1957, except track 7 recorded on May 8, 1957

Jimmy Smith (organ)
Eddie McFadden (guitar)
Donald Bailey (drums)

Jimmy Smith

2010-03-13T22:46:00.002+01:00

James Oscar (Jimmy) Smith nació el 8 de diciembre de 1928, en Norristown, PA, aunque muchas referencias dar su año de nacimiento en 1925. Sus padres eran pianistas profesionales y el joven Jimmy pronto aprendió a tocar el piano, ganando un corcuso para aficcionados con doce años. Con 14 años formó con su padre un pequeño grupo en el que trabajaba como bailarín. Tras realizar su servicio militar en la Marina, estudió piano y contrabajo en Filadelfia en la Hamilton School of Music y en la Ornstein School.
Tras oir una noche a Wild Bill Davis, le preguntó cuánto tiempo necesitaría para aprender a tocar el órgano. Davis le dijo que le llevaría años dominar sólo los pedales. Con dinero prestado, se compró un órgano Hammond B3 y empezó a practicar durante el día, al tiempo que de noche tocaba en varios clubs. Al cabo de unos meses ya dominaba los pedales y pronto comenzó a tocar en diversos locales de la zona, debutando en el Small's Paradise in Nueva York en 1956.
Utilizando el pedal al estilo creado por el organista Bill Doggett para obtener el sonido de la percusión, Smith trabajó con su mano izquierda para obtener un sonido como de saxofón y unos tonos modales asociados con el piano, al tiempo que usaba su mano derecha para reproducir las melodías y las improvisaciones. Smith toca tanto en tríos como con big bands y pronto se correla voz acerca de su estilo, que combina el blues, R & B y gospel. El área de Filadelfia era conocida por un estilo agresivo al órgano que meclaba blues y bebop, y Smith pronto se convirtirá en el rey del nuevo estilo ya que era el único que podía manejar con maestría los pedales del órgano. Como era lógico esas actuaciones no pasaron desapercibidas para la critica especializada y en 1956, el prestigioso sello "Blue Note" lo añade a su nómina de músicos. El primer disco será "A New Sound, A New Star: Jimmy Smith at the Organ", y en un corto periodo de tiempo, Smith grabaría más de 30 albums con Blue Note. Además, colabora con numerosos músicos, incluyendo al guitarrista Kenny Burrell, el saxofonista Stanley Turrentine y el trompetista Lee Morgan.
En 1962 firmaría por Verve. A lo largo de los 60 y principios de los 70 continúa realizando nuevos albums. También realizaría diversas colaboraciones con el guitarrista Wes Montgomery. En esta época realiza gran número de giras. Además, crearía su propio sello discográfico Mojo Records. Esta actividad continuaría hasta 1980, cuando Jimmy Smith y su familia se trasladan a Los Angeles. Allí abriría su propio club (Jimmy Smith Supper Club), en el que actuaría frecuentemente durante los pocos años que estuvo abierto.En 1986, tras la reactivación del sello Blue Note, volvería a grabar con su primer sello, en compañía del saxofonista Stanley Turrentine y del guitarrista Kenny Burrell.

En la década de 1990, Smith lanzaría nuevos álbumes con el sello Concord Jazz. También comenzó a ir de nuevo de gira. Colaboraría con el tambien organista Joey DeFrancesco, a menudo tocando con él en un club local en las tardes de domingo. La voz se corrió rápidamente y comenzaron a atraer a grandes multitudes. Smith y su esposa se trasladarían a vivir a Scottsdale, Arizona, en 2004. Ese mismo año sería nombrado "Jazz Master" por la Fundación Nacional de las Artes. Smith y De-Francesco grabarían un álbum, Legacy, y se preparaban para salir de gira cuando Smith murió en su casa, mientras dormía, de causas naturales el 8 de febrero de 2005, a la edad de 76 años. El álbum se publicaría póstumamente.

Born James Oscar Smith in Norristown, Pennsylvania, USA. Smith was influenced by both gospel and blues. He first achieved prominence in the 1950s where his recordings became popular on jukeboxes before there were commonly used terms to describe his unique musical flavor. In the sixties and seventies he helped create the jazz style known as 'funk' or 'soul jazz'.
There had been earlier limited use of the electronic organ in jazz (notably by Fats Waller and Count Basie), though these early examples sometimes had a novelty feel. Smith is widely recognized as introducing the electric organ as a legitimate musical instrument, capable of virtuoso improvisation.
Smith employed a unique technique to emulate a string bass player on the organ. Although he played walking bass lines on the pedals on ballads, for uptempo tunes, he would play the bass line on the lower manual and use the pedals for emphasis on the attack of certain notes. His solos were characterised by percussive chords mixed with very fast melodic improvisation with the right hand. He generally used a drawbar registration of 868000000 or 888000000 on the lower manual, which he used for the bass line and comping chords. He used a similar registration on the upper manual, which he used for soloing, but with the addition of the Hammond's percussion circuit.
Smith was a prolific recording artist. He first recorded with the Blue Note label in 1956. His early albums with Blue Note sold very well, improving its financial viability and aiding the label's efforts to promote other artists. They include Home Cookin' , The Sermon!, Midnight Special, Prayer Meetin' , and Back at the Chicken Shack.
Smith signed to Verve Records label in 1963. Smith's albums with Verve include: The Cat, The Boss, Root Down, Peter & The Wolf, Any Number Can Win, The Incredible..., Bashin' , Got My Mojo Workin' , Christmas Cookin' , and Organ Grinder Swing.
It was in this period that he began a regular collaboration with Guitarist Wes Montgomery, with whom he recorded two albums: The Dynamic Duo with Wes Montgomery and Further Adventures Of Jimmy and Wes.
Smith recorded with a full orchestra and worked with arrangers and conductors such as Lalo Schifrin and Oliver Nelson. He also worked in small groups that featured many of the best jazz musicians of his era: Kenny Burrell, Donald “Duck” Bailey, Grady Tate, Lee Morgan, Lou Donaldson, Tina Brooks, Jackie McLean and Stanley Turrentine among them.
Smith had a career revival in the 'eighties and 'nineties, again recording for Blue Note and Verve, as well as for the Milestone label. There are also numerous recordings with other artists available including: Love And Peace: A Tribute To Horace Silver with Dee Dee Bridgewater (1995) and Blue Bash! with Kenny Burrell (1963).
His influence has been felt across multiple generations and musical styles; nearly every subsequent jazz organist owes a large debt to Smith. The Beastie Boys (who sampled the bassline from Smith's “Root Down (and Get It)”?”and saluted Smith in the lyrics?”for their own hit “Root Down”), Medeski, Martin & Wood, and The Hayden-Eckert Ensemble are among the better known contemporary bands that pay tribute to Smith's sensibilities and sound. The Acid Jazz movement also reflects Smith's influences.
Smith died on February 8, 2005, in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA.
All About Jazz

Dexter Gordon - 1976 Featuring Joe Newman

2010-02-28T11:54:00.002+01:00

01 Tangerine (Mercer, Schertzinger) 13:35
02 Ode to Billie Joe (Gentry) 5:31
03 Body and Soul, Pt. 1 (Eyton, Green, Heyman, Sour) 4:43
04.Body and Soul, Pt. 2 (Eyton, Green, Heyman, Sour) 4:03
05 Softly 7:37
06 The Shadow of Your Smile (Mandel, Webster) 5:00
07 Walkin' (Carpenter) 15:45

Recorded at the Jazz Workshop in Chicago, on November, 1976

Dexter Gordon (Tenor Sax)
Joe Newman (Trumpet)
Jodie Christian (Piano)
Eddie Dehase (Bass)
Wilbur Campbell (Drums)

Dexter Gordon - 1974 The Rainbow People

2010-02-28T11:52:00.001+01:00

01 The Rainbow People (Gordon) 16:35
02 I Can't Get Started (Duke, Gershwin) 11:57
03 C Jam Blues (Bigard, Ellington) 15:09
04 Montmartre (Gordon) 20:49

Recorded in Copenhagen (Denmark), on November, 1974

Dexter Gordon (Tenor Sax)
Benny Bailey (Trumpet)
Lars Sjösten (Piano)
Torbjorn Hultcrantz (Bass)
Jual Curtis (Drums)

Dexter Gordon - 1973 Blues A La Suisse

2010-02-28T11:51:00.002+01:00

01 Gingerbread Boy (Heath) 12:48
02 Blues a la Suisse (Gordon) 10:29
03 Secret Love (Fain, Webster) 6:05
04 Some Other Spring (Herzog, Jr.,Kitchings) 14:30

Recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, on July 7, 1973

Dexter Gordon (Tenor Sax)
Hampton Hawes (Piano, Electric Piano)
Bob Cranshaw (Electric Bass)
Kenny Clarke (Drums)

Dexter Gordon Quartet - 1971 The Shadow Of Your Smile

2010-02-28T11:50:00.002+01:00

01 Once I Had a Secret Love (Fain, Francis) 14:07
02 Polka Dots and Moonbeams (Burke, Van Heusen) 8:17
03 The Shadow of Your Smile (Mandel, Webster) 9:59
04 Summertime (G & I Gershwin, Heyward) 12:50

Recorded at Stampen in Stockholm (Sweden), on April 21, 1971

Dexter Gordon (tenor sax)
Lars Sjosten (piano)
Sture Nordin (bass)
Fredrik Noren (drums)

Dexter Gordon - 1967 Come Rain Or Come Shine

2010-02-28T11:48:00.002+01:00

01 Doxy (Rollins) 7:12
02 Misty (Burke, Garner) 9:14
03 For All We Know (Coots, Lewis) 8:38
04 But Not for Me (Gershwin, Gershwin) 14:56
05 Come Rain or Come Shine (Arlen, Mercer) 11:00
06 There Will Never Be Another You (Gordon, Warren) 12:18

Recorded in Copenhagen (Denmark), on July 20, 1967

Dexter Gordon (Tenor Sax)
Kenny Drew (Piano)
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (Bass)
Albert "Tootie" Heath (Drums)

Dexter Gordon Quartet - 1965 Misty

2010-02-28T11:46:00.001+01:00

01 Take the "A" Train (Strayhorn) 14:42
02 Shiny Stockings (Foster) 16:27
03 Misty (Garner) 15:06
04 Cheese Cake (Gordon) 1:15

Recorded live at Jazzhus Montmartre in Copenhagen (Denmark), on July 8, 1965

Dexter Gordon - tenor saxophone
Kenny Drew - piano
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen - bass
Albert "Tootie" Heath - drums

Dexter Gordon - 1960 The Resurgence Of Dexter Gordon

2010-02-28T11:45:00.001+01:00

01 Home Run (Dexter Gordon) 5:05
02 Dolo (Dolo Coker) 6:14
03 Lovely Lisa (Dolo Coker) 7:20
04 Affair In Havana (Dolo Coker) 7:39
05 Jodi (Dexter Gordon) 6:37
06 Field Day (Dolo Coker) 6:44

Recorded at United Recording Studios in Los Angeles, on October 13, 1960

Dexter Gordon (tenor saxophone)
Martin Banks (trumpet)
Richard Boone (trombone)
Dolo Coker (piano)
Charles Green (bass)
Lawrence Marable (drums)

Dexter Gordon & Wardell Gray - 1947 The Hunt

2010-02-28T11:43:00.001+01:00

01 Disorder At The Border (C. Hawkins) 19:20
02 Cherokee (R. Noble) 21:12
03 Byas-A-Drink (D. Byas) 19:15
04 The Hunt (O. Cadena) 18:05

Recorded at the Elks Auditorium in Los Angeles, on July 6, 1947

Dexter Gordon — tenor saxophone
Wardell Gray — tenor saxophone
Sonny Criss — alto saxophone
Trummy Young — Trombone
Howard McGhee — Trumpet
Hampton Hawes — Piano
Barney Kessel — Guitar
Harry Babison — Bass (tracks: 1, 4)
Red Callender — Bass (tracks: 2, 3)
Connie Kay — Drums (tracks: 2 to 4)
Ken Kennedy — Drums (tracks: 1)

Dexter Gordon - 1945-47 Dexter Rides Again

2010-02-28T11:41:00.001+01:00

01 Dexter's Riff (Gordon) 2:44
02 Settin' the Pace, Pts. 1 & 2 (Gordon) 5:53
03 So Easy (Gordon) 2:43
04 Long Tall Dexter (Gordon) 3:04
05 Dexter Rides Again (Powell, Gordon) 3:15
06 I Can't Escape from You (Robin, Whiting) 3:16
07 Dexter Digs In (Gordon) 2:58
08 Dexter's Minor Mad (Gordon) 2:43
09 Blow Mr. Dexter (Gordon) 2:59
10 Dexter's Deck (Gordon) 2:57
11 Dexter's Cuttin' Out (Gordon) 3:10

Tracks 8-11
Recorded in New York, on October 30, 1945
Dexter Gordon (tenor saxophone)
Sadik Hakim (piano)
Gene Ramey (bass)
Ed Nicholson (drums)

Tracks 4-7
Recorded in New York, on January 29, 1946
Dexter Gordon (tenor saxophone)
Leonard Hawkins (trumpet on tracks 4,5,7)
Bud Powell (piano)
Curly Russell (bass)
Max Roach (drums)

Tracks 1-3
Recorded in New York, on December 11, 1947
Dexter Gordon (tenor saxophone)
Leo Parker (baritone saxophone)
Tadd Dameron (piano)
Curly Russell (bass)
Art Blakey (drums)

Dexter Gordon

2010-02-28T11:35:00.003+01:00

Dexter Gordon es considerado el primer músico en traducir el lenguaje del Bebop para el saxo tenor.
Dexter Keith Gordon nació el 27 de febrero de 1923 en Los Angeles, California. Su padre fue uno de los primeros médicos afroamericanos en Los Ángeles, contando entre sus pacientes con Duke Ellington y Lionel Hampton. Con 13 años comenzó sus estudios de música con el clarinete, cambiando al saxo alto a los 15, y, finalmente, al saxo tenor a los 17. Estudió música con Lloyd Reese y luego con Sam Browne en la Jefferson High School. En su último año de escuela secundaria se unió a la banda de Lionel Hampton, con la que permaneció tres años, aprendiendo de compañeros de la banda como Illinois Jacquet y Joe Newman. En enero de 1941, la banda actuó en la Grand Terrace en Chicago durante seis meses. Estas actuaciones fueron emitidas por radio y constituyen las primeras grabaciones de Dexter. Uno de los momentos más importantes de su carrera tiene lugar en 1943, en el Minton's Playhouse de Nueva York, cuando con la banda de Hampton se sienta con Ben Webster y Lester Young.
En 1943 regresa a Los Ángeles , tocando fundamentalmente con Lee Young (hermano de Lester Young) y con Jesse Price, además de estar un par de semanas con la orquesta de Fletcher Henderson. En 1944 trabaja con la orquesta de Louis Armstrong, uno de los momentos destacados de su carrera profesional. Estar en compañía del gran maestro de la trompeta fue inspirador y le dio un conocimiento del mundo de la música que nunca olvidaría. Es en esta época cuando Gordon realiza su primera grabación en solitario como líder de un quinteto que contaba con Nat King Cole como acompañante. Ese mismo año, Dexter se une a la banda de Billy Eckstine, compartiendo actuaciones diariamente con Sarah Vaughan, Dizzy Gillespie, Fats Navarro, Sonny Stitt, Gene Ammons, Leo Parker, John Malachi y otros arquitectos del bebop.
En 1945 Dexter comienza a grabar para el sello Savoy temas como Blow Mr. Dexter, Dexter’s Deck, Dexter’s Cuttin’ Out o Long Tall Dexter, grabaciones que son ejemplos de la evolución de su sonido y de un estilo que influiría en músicos más jóvenes, como Sonny Rollins y John Coltrane. En 1947 realiza sus históricas grabaciones para el sello Dial, incluyendo "The Chase" con el saxofonista tenor Wardell Gray. Los "duelos" entre ambos tenores se hicieron muy populares en esa época, protagonizando interesantes duelos entre 1947 y 1952. Dexter comentó que, a pesar de las diferencias de estilo, a veces era difícil para él decir cuando acababa uno y empezaba el otro. Estas grabaciones se convertirían en el mayor éxito de ventas de Dial, además de convertir a Dexter en un líder y un artista de grabación de reconocido prestigio.
Después de pasar unos años en prisión (1953-1955) por un asunto de drogas, grabó tres discos, "Daddy Plays The Horn", "Stanley The Steamer" y "Dexter Plays Hot and Cool", al que siguió un periodo de olvido para volver en 1960 cuando escribe la música para la obra de teatro, posteriormente pasada al cine, "The Connection" y graba el disco "The Resurgence of Dexter Gordon". En 1960, Alfred Lion le propone firmar con Blue Note Records. Durante cinco años graba una sesión tras otra, y todas ellas son consideradas clásicos. Cuando se le preguntó cuál de todas sus grabaciones era su favorita, Dexter dijo: "Yo tendría que decir que es Go! La perfecta sección de ritmo hizo posible tocara lo que yo quería tocar". Las grabaciones de Blue Note le dieron la oportunidad de grabar con Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Hutcherson, Barry Harris, Kenny Drew, Horace Parlan, Bud Powell, Billy Higgins. Las grabaciones de Blue Note todavía están disponibles y son consideradas clásicos del jazz ("Doin' Allright", "Dexter Calling" , "Go", "A Swingin' Affair", "Our Man In Paris").
En 1962 actuaría en el club de Ronnie Scott's en Londres, una nueva experiencia para Dexter que a partir de entonces comenzó a viajar y trabajar en Europa. Finalmente, se estableció en Copenhague en 1962, donde vivió hasta su regreso a los EE.UU. en 1976. En Dinamarca es tratado con respeto y afecto, trabajando durante largos períodos en el histórico Jazzhus Montmartre (conciertos retransmitidos por radio y, posteriormente, sacados como discos) y grabando muchos discos para el sello SteepleChase con músicos que viven o están de paso por Copenhague, como Kenny Drew, Horace Parlan o el pianista español, Tete Montoliu. Al mismo tiempo se presenta en muchos festivales europeos (Malmoe, Molde, San Remo, Berlín, Lugano) y también en pequeños clubes, dejando su magistral huella en París a través de dos discos históricos de Blue Note, el ya citado, "Our Man in París" (1963, con Bud Powell) y "One Flight Up". Sin embargo siguió yendo a Nueva York por cortos periodos de tiempo. En 1976, Dexter es recibido como un héroe en los EE.UU. cuando actúa en el Storyville en Nueva York con Woody Shaw, Louis Hayes, Ronnie Mathews, y James Stafford. Posteriormente es contratado en el Village Vanguard, en un regreso que significó el renacimiento del Bebop en los Estados Unidos, al tiempo que firma un contrato con Columbia Records. El grupo con el trabaja (George Cables, Rufus Reid y Eddie Gladden) es considerado por Dexter como su mejor banda. Con ellos viajó extensamente, grabando con ellos Live at the Keystone (Mosaic) y Manhattan Symphonie (CBS Sony).
En 1986 participa en la película Round Midnight, dirigida por Bertrand Tavernier. Su actuación le valió una nominación al Oscar al Mejor Actor Principal en 1986 por su interpretación de Dale Turner, un personaje basado en la vida de Lester Young y Bud Powell. La música de la película ganó un Oscar por el director musical, Herbie Hancock. La película incluye músicos como Bobby Hutcherson, Billy Higgins, Cedar Walton, Freddie Hubbard, Tony Williams, Pierre Michelot, John McLaughlin, y Wayne Shorter.
La última gran aparición de Dexter Gordon fue un concierto con la Orquesta Filarmónica de Nueva York en Ellingtones, una pieza escrita para él por el aclamado compositor David Baker y dirigida por James de Priest.
Dexter murió de un fallo renal, el 25 de abril de 1990 en Filadelfia, Pensilvania.

Career
Quit high school to perform in a local band and joined Lionel Hampton's band, 1940; left Hampton's band and became member of Lee Young's sextet, 1943; performed with Fletcher Henderson's band, 1944; performed with Louis Armstrong's band and then joined Billy Eckstine's big band, 1944 ; recorded with Dizzy Gillespie, 1945; played clubs along 52nd Street; recorded sides under own name for the Savoy label, 1945-47; recorded for the Dial label in Los Angeles, 1947; performed in Tadd Dameron's band, 1948; performed with Oscar Pettiford, 1949; recorded three albums during the 1950s; appeared in and scored the music for Jack Gelber's play The Connection, 1955; recorded seven albums, 1961-65; moved to Copenhagen, Denmark, 1962; returned to the United States, 1977; signed a recording contract with Columbia Records, 1977; starred in film Round Midnight, 1986.

Life's Work
During the 1940s, Dexter Gordon emerged as one of the premiere instrumentalists to adapt the tenor saxophone to the bebop jazz idiom. After earning a reputation as a sideman in the bands of Lionel Hampton and Billy Eckstine during the 1940s, Gordon spent the next four decades as a solo artist. He lived in Europe from 1962 until 1976. Upon his return to the United States, he landed a major recording contract and critical acclaim for his recordings and live performances. Early in his career, Gordon absorbed the influence of tenor saxophonists Lester Young and Hershel Evans, and subsequently developed his own sound and approach. Throughout his life, Gordon continued to garner musical ideas from all over the jazz spectrum, including the saxophone style of one of his early followers, John Coltrane. Six and a half feet tall and handsome, Gordon possessed a gift for language - one that benefitted him when he starred in Jules Tavernier's 1986 film Round Midnight, a role which won him an Oscar nomination.
Dexter Keith Gordon was born on February 27, 1923, in Los Angeles, California. Gordon's father, who was an amateur clarinetist and the personal physician to Lionel Hampton and Duke Ellington, took his son to hear live jazz shows. Gordon listened to big band radio broadcasts as a child and, during his teenage years, purchased second-hand records from jukebox companies. At the age of 13 he studied clarinet and music theory. Two years later, he switched to alto saxophone. At Jefferson High School, Gordon fell under the musical instruction of Sam Browne. Multi-instrumentalist, Buddy Collette, recalled in the book Central Avenue Sound that the youthful Gordon was "a fun guy" who "seemed all tongue and cheek....I heard that Sam Browne...used to keep him after school and tried to make him play scales. He was not an easy guy to teach. He was player who knew where he wanted to go, I guess. Later, he finally got to be serious." By the age of 17, Gordon took up the tenor saxophone and began musical instruction with Lloyd Reese, a multi-talented musician and former member of several prominent big bands. As Gordon was quoted in Mingus: A Critical Biography, "He taught us like we were going to be professionals, not just some kid just learning how to play an instrument in the school band and marching band....He taught me about Art Tatum, and about listening to film music when you go to the movies." During this same time, Gordon attended school jam sessions and performed in nightclubs.
In 1939, Gordon skipped school to hear the Count Basie Orchestra featuring his saxophone hero, Lester Young. Years later, in the book West Coast Jazz, Gordon recalled how the Basie Orchestra, "opened with 'Clap Hands Here Comes Charlie,' and Lester came out soloing--and he was just fantastic. I really loved the man. He was melodic, rhythmic, had that bittersweet approach....It felt so good to hear him play." Gordon's father died of a heart attack in 1940, and Dexter quit school to play in a local band known as the Harlem Collegians. That same year, he joined Lionel Hampton's band which included saxophonists Illinois Jacquet and Marshall Royal, the latter of whom furthered Gordon's musical education. In the liner notes to Dexter Gordon Settin' the Pace, Gordon recalled his joining Hampton's band at the age of 17, "We went right on the road without any rehearsal, cold. I was expecting to be sent home every night." Gordon was often late for performances, a habit Hampton often tolerated because the saxophonist's musicianship and showmanship was a vital asset to his ensemble. As Hampton recalled in his autobiography, Hamp, "One time at the Paradise [Theatre] in Detroit, [Gordon] still wasn't there when we started, and were doing a number that he was supposed to solo on. Just as we got to his solo, he walked out of the wings blowing his horn. The crowd went wild....I couldn't even be angry with him, because you couldn't believe the effect he had on that audience."
Immersing himself in swing music, Gordon was soon exposed to modern jazz. While in New York City with Hampton's band in 1941, Gordon heard Charlie Parker at the Savoy and visited Monroe's Uptown House, a Harlem after-hours spot that became one of the primary birthplaces of bebop. When he left Hampton's band Gordon returned to Los Angeles, where he recorded with pianist sideman Nat "King" Cole in 1943, and performed at the Club Alabam, one of Central Avenue's most popular venues. Because the Alabam generally relegated musicians to backing stage acts, Gordon and his bassist friend Charles Mingus attended after-hours jam sessions. In 1943, Gordon joined the Lee Young sextet, which included Mingus. After Gordon worked with Fletcher Henderson's band in April and May of 1944, he was invited to join the band of Louis Armstrong. Although he became friends with Armstrong and retained respect for his musicianship, Gordon found little inspiration in the band's dated material.

Worked In New York and Los Angeles
In late 1944, Gordon left Armstrong's employ for Billy Eckstine's big band, which included Dizzy Gillespie. During his stint with the Eckstine band, Gordon performed in an all-star reed section - dubbed the "Unholy Four" - comprised of the four saxophones of Gordon, Sonny Stitt, John Jackson, and Leo Parker. Along with featured saxophonist Gene Ammons, Gordon took part in legendary performances. Famous for their onstage saxophone battles, Gordon and Ammons can be heard On Eckstine's "Blow My Blues Away," with the bandleader calling out twice in the number, "Blow Mr. Gene, and blow Mr. Dexter too."
In early 1945, Gordon took part in a New York City recording session led by Dizzy Gillespie. This session produced the Guild label recording Blue n' Boogie, and an unreleased version of "Groovin' High." Gordon also played 52nd Street with a band consisting of Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Bud Powell, and Max Roach. At the same time Gordon, caught up in the New York jazz scene, also began using heroin. In Mike Hennessey's book Klook: The Story of Kenny Clarke, Gordon recounted, "I started using it [heroin] around 1945 when just about all the big names were. But it was the most terrible mistake I ever made in my life." Along with his drug habit, Gordon also filled the jazz hipster image by dressing in the latest style. As Miles Davis recounted in his memoir Miles, "Dexter used to be super hip and dapper, with those big-shoulder suits everybody was wearing in those days...I always respected Dexter because I thought he was super hip - one of the hippest and cleanest young cats on the whole music scene back then."

Recorded Under Own Name
Beginning in October of 1945, Gordon recorded several sessions for the Savoy label. As Ted Gioia pointed out in the book West Coast Jazz, Gordon's first recordings "are still very much in a Lester Young vein, and his lead sides for Savoy in October 1945, reveal an undeniable streak of modern traditionalism." In January of 1946 Gordon recorded with young bebop innovators, pianist Bud Powell and drummer Max Roach. This Savoy session, asserted Gioia in West Coast Jazz, "was a major step forward" in Gordon's stylistic development. On these sides, added Gioia, "all the disparate elements of Gordon's work begin to come together in a distinctive way: the repeated figures reminiscent of Illinois Jacquet; the harmonic darings of the beboppers; the lyricism of Lester Young; the forcefulness gleaned from [Coleman] Hawkins; From now on these separate currents would flow together into a style reflecting the individuality of Dexter Gordon."
Gordon's returned to Los Angeles in 1946. With his wide brimmed hat and zoot suits, Gordon became an idol to younger players, including Art Pepper and Stan Getz. Gordon attended jam sessions at venues like Jack's Basket, where he engaged in furious tenor saxophone battles with Wardell Gray and Teddy Edwards. The Basket's crowded saxophone contests usually ended with Gordon and Gray as the victors. In June of 1947 Gordon and Gray recorded a tenor-battle, "The Chase," a commercially successful recording for Ross Russell's newly established Dial label. The success of "The Chase" prompted the recording of another legendary Gordon-Gray saxophone battle, "The Hunt." Vital to the 1940s Los Angeles jazz scene, Gordon, as Gioia stressed in West Coast Jazz, "developed one of the first great modern sax styles, and--perhaps even more remarkably--did so by borrowing modestly from Parker and Gillespie. Instead, Dexter created a new approach to the tenor, a persuasive and immediately recognizable sound all his own."

Career Fell Into Periodic Decline
Around 1948, Gordon became a member of pianist Tadd Dameron's band, which played a nine-month engagement at the Royal Roost. In 1949, he joined bassist Oscar Pettiford's band which included Miles Davis, Bud Powell, and drummer Kenny Clarke. Gordon returned to California in 1949 and, during the following year, was reunited with Wardell Gary. The two saxophonists recorded for the Prestige and Decca labels, which released their 1952 concert at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium as the album The Chase and Steeplechase. That same year, Gordon's career took a downturn with his arrest for heroin possession. He subsequently spent two years at California's Chino Prison. During the 1950s, Gordon also served time in prisons in Fort Worth, Texas, and Lexington, Kentucky, and finally in Folsom Prison. Although he made only three recordings between 1952 and 1960, Thomas Owens noted in Bebop: The Music and Its Players, that Gordon's albums "announced clearly that he severed his ties with the swing era," and marked "the beginning of his mature style."
Following Gordon's release from prison, he recorded the 1960 album, The Resurgence of Dexter Gordon, produced by alto saxophonist Cannonball Adderley. Between 1961 and 1965, he recorded seven albums for Blue Note - Go!, A Swingin' Affair, Doin' Alright, Dexter Calling, Our Man in Paris, One Flight Up, and Gettin' Around -releases that, as Gary Giddins described in the book Visions of Jazz, "represented the apogee of his art....Splendidly conceived and recorded, they are insuperable examples of the streamlined elegance of which jazz quartets and quintets are capable." Gordon spent these years experimenting with a hard bop sound and incorporating elements of John Coltrane's saxophone style into his music. "But Gordon never confined his borrowings to any one role model," observed Thomas Owens in Bebop; "he took what he liked from various places, adding new elements to whatever was already in place, and ingeniously preserving his musical identity with great clarity."

"Transcontinental Tenorist"
Gordon traveled to London in 1962 and, during that same year, arrived in Copenhagen where he lived until his return to United States in the 1970s. "I didn't intend on staying, it just happened," recounted Gordon in Riding on a Blue Note. "I was working and having a ball in this new environment. Before I realized it, a couple of years went by and I was considered an expatriate." Describing Gordon's life abroad, Dan Morganstern wrote in the liner notes to Dexter Gordon: Settin' the Pace, "Copenhagen became his home base, and unlike many expatriates he thrived and grew as a player abroad....He became one of Copenhagen's most popular adopted sons, raising a family, learning some Danish (he had a gift for languages), teaching jazz in schools, appearing on TV, picking up flute and also adding soprano saxophone to roster of instruments, and cutting a familiar figure riding a bicycle through the streets of the friendly Danish capital."
While in Paris in May of 1963, Gordon recorded the Blue Note album Our Man in Paris with pianist Bud Powell, bassist Pierre Michelot, and drummer Kenny Clarke. In his book Bebop, Thomas Owens commented that Gordon's "best solos" on the recording "are in 'Scrapple From the Apple,' 'A Night in Tunisia,' and in the ballads 'Stairway to the Stars' and 'Willow, Weep For Me.' Gordon's rhythmic brinkmanship stands out in the latter piece; how can he lag behind so much and still play with the rhythm section?" In the liner notes to Our Man in Paris, Gordon commented on his continuing musical development, "I'm much more lucid and have a stronger sense of equilibrium. My musical conception is surer. I know where I'm going now."
While living in Copenhagen, Gordon often played American concert dates and music festivals. For the most part, however, his musical activities were concentrated in Europe. In an interview in Down Beat, Gordon related how life in Copenhagen "has been very good because my whole lifestyle is much calmer, much more relaxed. I can devote more time to music, and I think it is beginning to show. It's not an everyday scuffle, and I'm able to concentrate more on studying." His appearance at Copenhagen's Montmartre Jazzhus was captured on the 1967 Blue Note release, Sonnymoon for Two. Gordon earned his first number one ranking on Down Beat's Critics Poll in 1971, and began a four-year recording stint with the Prestige label. In 1972, Gordon recorded the Prestige album Ca'Purange with brothers Thad and Hank Jones, Stanley Clarke and Louis Hayes.

Triumphant Return To America
Gordon's return to the United States in 1976 began with a well-received performance at New York City's Storeyville Club. Several weeks later, he signed a contract with Columbia Records and was booked to play several weeks at the famous Village Vanguard. After attending one of Gordon's performances at the Vanguard in October of 1976, Whitney Baillett wrote in the book Night Creature, "Every handclap was a genuflection....He [Gordon] locks together giant cubes of sound in his solos, piling one on another....He builds these edifices in a determined, almost harsh fashion, rarely missing a note, and finishes each phrase so that it has a clear, sharp edge." Prompted by a major recording contract and critical acclaim for his performances, Gordon remained in America in 1977. That same year his first Columbia recording, the double album Homecoming, showcased a masterfully modern sound. Gordon's Columbia producer, Michael Cascuna, asserted in the liner notes to Homecoming, "Of all the people of his generation, Dexter has stayed the youngest. He is the most modern player to have come out of that period....He is still learning and still growing."
In 1980, Gordon was named Musician of the Year by Down Beat magazine's readers poll, and named to the Jazz Hall of Fame. Despite his declining health, Gordon spent the mid 1980s recording and venturing into film acting. During the 1950s, Gordon appeared in several films and stage productions including the 1955 motion picture Unchained and Jack Gelber's successful play, The Connection. He appeared in Bernard Tavernier's 1985 film Round Midnight, which was released in 1986. Dedicated to Gordon's saxophone hero Lester Young and his friend Bud Powell, the film resulted from discussions between Tavernier and Francis Puadras, a Parisian commercial artist and author of Dance of the Infidels: A Portrait of Bud Powell. Largely based upon Powell's expatriate life with Puadras during the 1960s, the film portrays Dale Turner, an ailing saxophonist played by Gordon, who befriends a Parisian jazz aficionado who becomes his honorary guardian. In the scenes shot at the Blue Note club, where Gordon had often played in the 1960s, Gordon is joined by such musicians as Herbie Hancock (who scored the film's music), Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter, Tony Williams, and John McLaughlin. Gordon's moving portrayal of a dying jazzman earned him an Academy Award nomination.
Four years after his performance in Round Midnight, Gordon died of kidney failure on April 25, 1990, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Several years before his death, Gordon stated in Down Beat that "jazz is such a living thing. It will never die, because it can use things from everywhere, from all kinds of music...." A leading saxophonist during the 1940s and 1950s, Gordon spent the last decades of his life expanding his sound, taking up the soprano saxophone, and adding modern compositions to his repertoire. With the 1999 release of Gordon's early Savoy sides and the 1997 complete Blue Note box set, his music began embracing a new generation of listeners.

John Cohassey

Thad Jones & Mel Lewis Orchestra - 1978 A Touch of Class

2010-02-13T23:20:00.001+01:00

01 Quietude (Jones) - 7:26
02 Samba Con Get Chu (Brookmeyer) - 13:35
03 Cecilia Is Love (Foster) - 7:06
04 I Love You (Porter) - 5:57
05 And I Love You So (McLean) - 7:33
06 That's Freedom (Jones) - 9:14

Recorded at the Jazz Jamboree Festival in Warsaw (Poland) on October 26, 1978

•Thad Jones - flugelhorn
•Mel Lewis - drums
•Jim McNeely - piano
•Jasper Lundgaard - bass
•Dick Oatts - alto saxophone
•Steve Coleman - alto saxophone
•Rick Perry - tenor saxophone
•Robert Rockwell - tenor saxophone
•Charles Davis - baritone saxophone
•Ron Tooley - trumpet
•Simo Salminin - trumpet
•Irvin Stokes - trumpet
•Larry Moss - trumpet
•Doug Purviance - trombone
•Lolly Bienenfeld - trombone
•Lu Robertson - trombone
•John Mosca - trombone

The Thad Jones and Mel Lewis Quartet - 1977 Live at the Airliner Lounge

2010-02-13T23:18:00.001+01:00

01 But not for me (Gershwin) 16:30
02 This can't be love (Rogers & Hart) 3:52
03 Autumn Leaves (Kosma & Mercer) 15:25
04 What is this thing (Jones & Lewis) 4:45

Recorded at the Airliner Lounge, Miami, Florida, September 24, 1977

Thad Jones - Cornet
Mel Lewis - Drums
Rufus Reid - Bass
Harold Danko - Piano

Thad Jones & Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra - 1969 Central Park North

2010-02-13T23:15:00.003+01:00

01 Tow Away Zone (Jones) 4:30
02 Quietude (Jones) 4:06
03 Jive Samba (Adderley) 8:54
04 The Groove Merchant (Jones, Richardson) 5:12
05 Big Dipper (Jones) 5:54
06 Central Park North (Jones) 9:15

Recorded at A&R Studios, New York, on June 17 & 18, 1969

Thad Jones - Arranger, Flugelhorn
Mel Lewis - Drums
Eddie Daniels - Clarinet, Sax (Tenor)
Joe Farrell - Clarinet, Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor)
Jerome Richardson - Clarinet, Piccolo, Sax (Alto), Sax (Soprano)
Joe Temperley - Clarinet (Bass), Sax (Baritone)
Daniel Moore - Trumpet
Jimmy Nottingham - Trumpet
Richard Gene Williams - Trumpet
Snooky Young - Trumpet
Benny Powell - Trombone
Eddie Bert - Trombone
Jimmy Knepper - Trombone
Cliff Heather - Trombone (Bass)
Sir Roland Hanna - Piano
Sam Leigh Brown - Guitar
Barry Galbraith - Guitar
Sam Herman - Guitar
Richard Anthony Davis - Bass

Thad Jones & Mel Lewis Orchestra - 1969 Basle

2010-02-13T23:13:00.002+01:00

01 Second Race (Jones) 10:39
02 Don't Ever Leave Me (Jones) 4:16
03 The Waltz You Swang for Me (Jones) 9:11
04 Ah' That's Freedom (Jones) 10:54
05 Come Sunday (Ellington) 4:42
06 Don't Get Sassy (Jones) 11:34
07 Bible Story (Hanna) 6:30
08 Groove Merchant (Jones, Richardson) 7:54

Recorded at Basle, on September 1969

Thad Jones, trumpet, flugelhorn, arranger
Snooky Young, Al Porcino, Richard Williams, Danny Moore, trumpets
Eddie Bert, Jimmy Knepper, Cliff Heather, Ashley Fannell, trombones
Jerome Richardson, Jerry Dodgion, Joe Henderson, Eddie Daniels, Pepper Adams, saxophones
Roland Hanna, piano
Richard Davis, bass
Mel Lewis, drums

Thad Jones & Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra - 1968 Monday Night

2010-02-13T23:11:00.003+01:00

01. Mornin' Reverend (Jones) 4:51
02. Kids Are Pretty People (Jones) 6:04
03. St.Louis Blues (Handy) 12:38
04. The Waltz You "Swang" For Me (Jones) 5:27
05.Say It Softly (Jones) 6:35
06. The Second Race (Jones) 7:17

Recorded at The Village Vanguard, New York on October 1968

* Thad Jones – flugelhorn
* Mel Lewis – drums
* Roland Hanna – piano
* Richard Davis – bass
* Jerome Richardson – alto saxophone
* Jerry Dodgion – alto saxophone
* Seldon Powell – tenor saxophone
* Eddie Daniels – tenor saxophone
* Pepper Adams – baritone saxophone
* Richard Williams – trumpet
* Snooky Young – trumpet
* Danny Moore – trumpet
* Jimmy Nottingham – trumpet
* Jimmy Knepper – trombone
* Garnett Brown – trombone
* Jimmy Cleveland – trombone
* Cliff Heather – trombone

Thad Jones & Mel Lewis - 1967 Live at the Village Vanguard

2010-02-13T23:07:00.005+01:00

01 The Little Pixie (Jones) 10:34
02 A-That's Freedom (Jones) 7:01
03 Bachafillen (Brown) 7:08
04 Don't Git Sassy (Jones) 7:22
05 Willow Tree (Razaf, Waller) 5:04
06 Samba Con Getchu (Brookmeyer) 12:17
07 Quietude (Jones) 4:48
08 The Second Race (Jones) 9:37
09 Lover Man (Davis, Ramirez, Sherman) 4:53

Recorded on The Village Vanguard, New York, on April 28, 1967

Jerome Richardson, sax
Jerry Dodgion, sax
Joe Farrell, sax
Eddie Daniels, sax
Pepper Adams, sax
Thad Jones, flugel horn
Snooky Young, trumpet
Jimmy Nottingham, trumpet
Marvin Stamm, trumpet
Richard Williams, trumpet
Bill Berry, trumpet
Bobby Brookmeyer, trombone
Garnett Brown, trombone
Tom McIntosh, trombone
Cliff Heather, trombone
Sam Herman, guitar
Roland Hanna, piano
Richard Davis, bass
Mel Lewis, drums

Lee Morgan & Thad Jones - 1960 Minor Strain

2010-02-13T23:05:00.001+01:00

01. Suspended Sentence (Shorter) 5:22
02. Minor Strain (Timmons) 6:23
03. A Bid For Sid (Morgan) 4:28
04. Subtle Rebuttal (alt take) (Jones) 3:56
05. Subtle Rebuttal (Jones) 4:02
06. Tip Toe (Jones) 3:35
07. H and T Blues (Jones) 9:56
08. Friday The 13th (Jones) 6:55

Tracks 1-3 recorded in New York, on July, 1960
Lee Morgan Trumpet
Wayne Shorter Sax (Tenor)
Bobby Piano
Jimmy Rowser Bass
Art Taylor Drums

Tracks 4-8 recorded at Capitol Studios, New York, on May 12, 1960
Thad Jones Trumpet
Al Grey Trombone
Hank Jones Piano
Frank Wess Flute, Sax (Tenor)
Billy Mitchell Sax (Tenor)
Richard Davis Bass
Osie Johnson Drums

Thad Jones, Frank Wess, Teddy CHarles, Mal Waldron - 1957 Olio

2010-02-13T23:03:00.002+01:00

01. Potpourri (Waldron) 6:04
02. Blues Without Woe (Charles) 7:58
03. Touché (Waldron) 6:25
04. Dakar (Charles) 6:58
05. Embraceable You (Gershwin, Gershwin) 4:17
06. Hello Frisco (Charles) 6:23

Recorded at Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack (New Jersey) on February 16, 1957

Thad Jones (trumpet)
Mal Waldron (piano)
Frank Wess (tenor sax, flute on tracks 1, 3, 4)
Teddy Charles (vibraphone)
Doug Watkins (bass)
Elvin Jones (drums)

Thad Jones - 1957 Mad Thad

2010-02-13T22:59:00.002+01:00

01 Whisper Not (Golson) 5:38
02 Quiet Sip (Jones) 9:04
03 Ballad Medley: Flamingo/If You Were Mine/I'm Through With ... (Gershwin, Anderson, Gershwin, Grouya, Kahn, Mercer, Malneck, Livingston) 7:26
04 Cat Meets Chick (Feather, Feather) 5:26
05 Bird Song (Jones) 8:25
06 Jumping for Jane (Feather, Feather) 5:35
07 Mad Thad (Q. Jones) 4:40

Recorded in New York between December 24, 1956 and January 6, 1957

Eddie Jones (Bass)
Doug Watkins (Bass)
Frank Wess (Flute)
Elvin Jones (Drums)
Tommy Flanagan (Piano)
Thad Jones (Cornet, Trumpet, Flugelhorn)
Jimmy Jones (Piano)
Frank Wess (Sax Tenor)
Jo Jones (Drums)
Henry Coker (Trombone)
Frank Foster (Sax Tenor)

Thad Jones

2010-02-13T22:50:00.003+01:00

Thadeus Joseph "Thad" Jones nació el 28 de marzo de 1923 en Pontiac, Michigan, en el seno de una familia eminentemente musical. Su padre, un diácono baptiista, tocaba la guitarra; su hermana mayor Olive interpretaba música clásica al piano, un instrumento con el que también se desenvolvían sus hermanos Hank y Paul; su hermano pequeño Elvin se convertiría en un famoso batería. En la radio, la familia oía mucha música sinfónica; pero, además, Thad escuchaba la retrasmisión de actuaciones de Louis Armstrong. Tras ver una actuación suya en Detroit, Thad decidió convertirse en trompetista. Con una trompeta de segunda mano que le regaló su tio, empezó a practicar, pasando a tocar la corneta cuando se unió a la banda de la escuela.

Con 16 años, Thad y su hermano Hank empiezan a tocar con un grupo semi-profesional (the Arcadia Club Band) en funciones escolares y actuaciones durante el fin de semana. En 1943 es llamado a filas, formando parte de la banda militar. Licenciado en 1946, se incorpora a la banda de Charles Young, pero debe regresar a Pontiac cuando su padre enferma. Con su hermano Elvin forma un quinteto que toca en la zona de Detroit, pero poco después se incorpora al grupo del saxofonista Candy Johnson y más tarde forma parte de la banda de Jimmy Taylor. En 1952 forma parte de la banda residente del Detroit's Blue Bird Inn, compartiendo escenario con su hermano Elvin, el saxofonista Billy Mitchell, el bajista James "Beans" Richardson, y el pianista Barry Harris. En esta época, Thad empieza a destacar en una de las características que definirían su trayectoria profesional, la de arreglista. Durante su estancia en el Blue Bird, tiene la oportunidad de trabajar con otros dos talentos locales, el guitarrista Kenny Burrell y el pianista Tommy Flanagan. Durante una visita a Detroit, Charles Mingus escucha a Jones, del que poco después dirá "Acabo de oír el mejor intérprete de trompeta que he oído nunca en mi vida". Entre 1953 y 1954 tuvo ocasión de trabajar con el grupo de Charles Mingus.
En mayo de 1954, recomendado por Frank Wess, Thad entra a formar parte de la banda de Count Basie con la permanecerá hasta 1963. En agosto de 1954 graba su primer disco con su nombre con el sello Debut y la colaboración de Charles Mingus. En 1956, la revista DownBeat otorgaría a Jones el "New Star Award". Ese mismo año, su disco "Detroit-New York Junction" es considerado uno de los mejores discos del año. En la banda de Basie empieza a tener un papel predominante, realizando tareas de intérprete, arreglista y compositor. En 1959, junto a otros músicos de Detroit (Kenny Burrell, Tommy Flanagan y Paul Chambers), graba "Motor City Scenes". En julio de 1960 y enero de 1961 graba con la cantante Sarah Vaughan el álbum "Count Basie & Sarah Vaughan", un LP con doce de los arreglos de Jones, incluyendo una excepcional interpretación de Vaughan del tema "Perdido".
Tras abandonar la Count Basie Band en 1963, Thad trabaja como arreglista en CBS. En 1965, Thad Jones y Mel Lewis, un ex colaborador de Stan Kenton y Gerry Mulligan, forman la Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra - una banda de 18 unidades creada para ofrecer una salida creativa para los músicos de jazz de estudio con sede en Nueva York. El conjunto, que tocaba cada lunes por la noche en el Village Vanguard, consigue atraer a una gran audiencia y crear una orquesta de jazz que, además de swing en el sentido tradicional, está llena de sonidos e ideas nunca antes escuchadas. En la orquesta participan talentos estelares del jazz como Frank Foster, Pepper Adams, Peter Gordon o Roland Hanna.
En la década de 1970 la Thad Jones y Mel Lewis Big Band hizo varias giras por el extranjero, incluida una gira en 1972 patrocinado por el Departamento de Estado por la Unión Soviética. En 1978, en Yugoslavia, un asaltante desconocido hirió a Jones en el labio. Jones decidió abandonar la orquesta y se trasladó a Dinamarca, donde tocó brevemente el trombón de válvula, dirigió la Orquesta de la Radio Danesa, enseñó en el Conservatorio Real, y, finalmente, reanudó las grabaciones con un grupo pequeño. En 1985, un año después de la muerte de Basie, Jones volvió a USA para dirigir la big band; sin embargo, sus problemas de salud le obligaron a dejar la banda y regresar a Copenhague, donde moriría de cáncer el 21 de agosto de 1986.

Thaddeus Joseph Jones (March 28, 1923 - August 21, 1986) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader.
He was born in Pontiac, Michigan to a musical family of ten (an older brother was pianist Hank Jones and a younger brother was drummer Elvin Jones). Thad Jones was a self taught musician, performing professionally by the age of sixteen. He served in U.S. Army bands during World War II (1943-46).
After the war, Thad Jones continued his professional music career, eventually winding up with Count Basie in 1954, for whom he arranged, composed, and performed. He stayed with Basie for nine years. Thad achieved critical acclaim during this time, but not for his work with Basie. Much of Jones's music was stylistically original and didn't always fit in with the Basie group which he left in 1963. In the early sixties he became a free lance arranger and performer in the New York area.
In 1965 he and drummer Mel Lewis formed the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Big Band. The group initially began with informal late night jam sessions amongst New York's top studio musicians. The group eventually began performing at the Village Vanguard, to wide acclaim, and continued with Jones in the lead for twelve years. In 1979 they won a Grammy Award for their album Live in Munich. Jones also taught at William Paterson College in New Jersey.
In 1978 Thad suddenly moved to Copenhagen, Denmark, (to the great surprise of his New York band mates), where several other American jazz musicians had gone to live. There, he formed a new band Eclipse, composed for The Danish Radio Big Band and taught jazz at the Royal Danish Conservatory in Copenhagen.
A year before his death, Jones came back to the U.S. to lead the Count Basie Orchestra but had to step down due to ill health. He returned to his home in Copenhagen for the last few months of his life. He died on August 21, 1986 after being hospitalized for months but his cause of death was not published. At the time of his death he had a six year old child, also named Thad Jones, with his wife Lis Jones. He is buried there in the Vestre Kirkegard Cemetery (Western Churchyard Cemetery).
Charles Mingus called Jones “...the greatest trumpet player I've heard in this life.” In later years his playing ability was overshadowed by his composing and arranging skills. His best known composition is the standard A Child is Born.
All About Jazz

Dick Hyman & Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen - 1995 Elegies, Mostly

2010-01-27T15:51:00.003+01:00

01 I Cover the Waterfront (Green) 8:54
02 You Must Believe in Spring (Legrande) 6:19
03 Waltz in C# Minor (Chopin) 6:22
04 Summertime (Gershwin) 7:02
05 Take, O Take Those Lips Away (Shakespeare, Hyman) 4:26
06 Love Me or Leave Me (Donaldson) 8:53
07 Some Other Time (Bernstein) 5:52
08 This Is All I Ask of You (Webber) 5:25
09 My Man'S Gone Now (Gershwin) 5:39
10 We're in the Money (Warren) 3:43

Recorded at Waterfall Studio, Oslo, on August 14, 1995

Dick Hyman piano
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen bass

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen - 1993 Scandinavian Wood

2010-01-27T15:49:00.001+01:00

01 Lille Suite for Strygere Og Solo-Bas (Traditional, Nielsen, Hansen) 13:50
02 Sig Naermer Tiden da Jeg Ma Vaek (Ring) 5:06
03 Samba Petite (Pedersen) 4:31
04 Sonata No. 1 in G, Presto (Bach) :58
05 En Yndig Og Frydeful Sommertid (Traditional) 3:30
06 Kenny (Pedersen) 3:20
07 Befael du Dine Veje (Traditional) 5:10
08 Old Folks/To a Brother (Traditional) 13:22

TRACK 1: Recorded in Kaustinen, Finland, October 1993

TRACKS 2,3,4,5: Recorded in Copenhagen, Denmark, September 1994

TRACKS 6,7: Recorded in Copenhagen, Denmark, February 1994

TRACK 8: Recorded in Copenhagen, Denmark, March 1994 at a concert in the Danish Radio Concert Hall

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen Bass
Ole Kock Hansen Piano
Jonas Johansen Drums
Danish Radio Concert Orchestra
Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra

TRACK 1 :
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen : acoustic bass
Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra : symphony orchestra
TRACKS 2,3,4,5 :
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen : acoustic bass
TRACKS 6,7 :
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen : acoustic bass
Ole Kock Hansen : piano
TRACK 8 :
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen : acoustic bass
Ole Kock Hansen : piano
Jonas Johansen : drums
The Danish Radio Concert Orchestra
Børge Wagner, conductor : symphony orchestra

Maria Joao, Aki Takase & Niels Pedersen - 1990 Alice

2010-01-27T15:44:00.002+01:00

01 MC (W.Schatzlein) 0:30
02 S. Joao/Quinta das Torrinhas (Trad./Peixoto) 9:47
03 Dr. Beat (A.Takase) 4:47
04 Mae-Dou-Iho- Nao (M.Joao) 4:13
05 Yoridori Midori (A.Schmidt-A.Takase) 5:35
06 Old Folks (Hill-Robinson) 8:49
07 Presto V.H. (A.Takase) 6:53
08 Primaccini (Takase-Joao) 7:42
09 Alice (Takase-Joao) 7:29
10 What a Wonderful World (Douglas-Weiss) 4:19

Recorded live at The Jazz East-West Festival, Nuremberg, on October 28, 1990

Aki Takase piano
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen bass
Maria Joao vocals

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen & Palle Mikkelborg - 1990 Hommage: Once Upon A Time

2010-01-27T15:42:00.002+01:00

01 Cream (Prologue) (P.Mikkelborg) 3:32
02 Tango Jalousie (J.Gode) 9:07
03 Lullabye-Bye (P.Mikkelborg) 7:55
04 Spørge-Jørgen (K.Rosenberg) 3:56
05 Det Haver Så Nyeligen (Traditional) 3:50
06 Lost in the Stars (K.Weill) 5:25
07 J.P. (Pedersen-Bach) 3:05
08 That Old Black Magic (Arlen-Mercer) 5:13
09 September Song (Epilogue) (K.Weill) 3:20

Recorded in Copenhagen, on August 17, 1990

Palle Mikkelborg - trumpet, flugelhorn, keyboards, piano
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen - bass
Lennart Gruvstedt - drums
Mehmet Ozan - percussion
Ole Kock Hansen - keyboards (2)
Thomas Clausen - keyboards (6)
Helen Davies - harp
Jan Kohlin - trumpet
Palle Bolvig - trumpet
.........

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen & Floris Nico Bunink - 1988 - Breaking The Ice

2010-01-27T15:40:00.001+01:00

01 All the Things You Are (Hammerstein, Kern) 6:47
02 I'll Remember April (DePaul, Johnston, Raye) 6:35
03 Old Folks (Hill, Robison) 8:57
04 Stella by Starlight (Washington, Young) 7:37
05 Samba Petite (Petersen) 5:04
06 Alone Together (Dietz, Schwartz) 6:03
07 St. Thomas (Rollins) 4:37
08 Autumn Leaves (Kosma, Mercer, Prevert) 8:02

Recorded in Amsterdam, on April 3, 1988

Floris Nico Bunink Piano
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen Bass

Mikkelborg, Knudsen & NHOP - 1986 Heart to Heart

2010-01-27T15:38:00.001+01:00

01 Heart to Heart (Knudsen) 4:43
02 Girl With Her Hat (Mikkelborg) 7:25
03 Song for Henry (Knudsen) 3:25
04 Three Mountains (Knudsen) 4:21
05 Imagine (Lennon) 3:15
06 Short Cart (Mikkelborg) 10:50
07 Then I Said (Pedersen) 2:50

Recorded in 1986

Palle Mikkelborg Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Keyboards
Kenneth Knudsen Keyboards
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen Bass

Tete Montoliu & Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen - 1982 Face To Face

2010-01-27T15:36:00.001+01:00

01 There Will Never Be Another You (Warren) 10:34
02 I Love You (Porter) 9:20
03 I Fall In Love Too Easily (Styne) 11:02
04 Lover Man - Salt Peanuts (Ramirez - Gillespie) 9:34

Recorded in Umea, Sweden, on April 15, 1982

Tete Montoliu (piano)
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (bass)

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen & Kenneth Knudsen - 1976 Pictures

2010-01-27T15:34:00.001+01:00

01 Skagen (Knudsen) 2:39
02 School Song (Pedersen) 6:52
03 It's All There (Knudsen) 11:10
04 Signal (Knudsen) 6:53
05 Afternoon's Sentiment (Pedersen) 7:02
06 Daughters (Knudsen) 4:07

Recorded on December 4 & 5, 1976

Kenneth Knudsen Synthesizer, Piano
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen Bass

Joe Albany & Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen - 1974 Two's Company

2010-01-27T15:31:00.001+01:00

01 Out Of Nowhere Green/Heyman 5,29
02 What's New Haggart/Burke 9,06
03 Lullaby In Rhythm Sampson, Edgar 4,47
04 Birdtown Birds Albany, Joe 3,53
05 Lover Man Ramirez, Ram 6,49
06 If You Could See Me Now Dameron, Tadd 7,08
07 Star Eyes DePaul/Raye 5,45

Recorded on February 17, 1974

Joe Albany (piano)
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (bass)

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen

2010-01-27T15:25:00.003+01:00

(Osted, 27 de Mayo, 1946 - Copenhague, 19 de Abril, 2005)

Hijo de una aficionada a la música (su madre era organista de iglesia), comenzó estudiando piano, aunque pronto su vocación de contrabajista le llevó a dedicarse al estudio y especialización en este instrumento. Debutó en una orquesta de músicos no profesionales, pero enseguida su depurada técnica le llevó a integrarse en el circuito jazzístico. Empezó a tocar en el trío de Bud Powell, leyenda viva de la era bop, con sólo 16 años: casi un insulto y una irreverencia para otros muchos músicos de la historia del jazz.
Con Powell realizó un gira europea con parada en Copenhague, donde grabó un disco célebre (Bud Powell Trio), en el que se incluían temas de Monk, Hawkins, Golson o Dameron. En esta gira también estuvo presente el batería danés William Schiopffe. Al año siguiente, con 17 años, rechazó el formar parte de la orquesta de Count Basie debido a las dificultades para obtener permiso para trabajar como músico y vivir en Estados Unidos a causa de su edad. En 1963 atracó en la banda de Quincy Jones; en 1964 fue incluido en la banda de Dexter Gordon; y, en 1965 (todavía con 19 años), tocó con Roland Kirk. Fue una época en la que recaló, además, en los grupos de algunas figuras del jazz norteamericano, como Bill Evans, John Lewis, Sonny Rollins o Johnny Griffin.
Posteriormente Orsted Pedersen volvió a su país, Dinamarca, y trabajó en la Danish Radio Orchestra, a la vez que creó una banda que llegó a tocar regularmente junto a Kenny Drew en el Café Montmartre, en Copenhague. También en este tiempo formó parte de The Underground Railroad, grupo en el que usó la guitarra bajo, por entonces un instrumento novísimo en el jazz.
Su máximo reconocimiento le llegó cuando Oscar Peterson, uno de los pianistas más técnicos y con más personalidad de la historia del jazz, lo contrató para tocar en su trío, en sustitución ni más ni menos que de Ray Brown. Con este pianista grabó algunos álbumes importantes, como The Good Life (1973), Oscar Peterson Trio Transition (1976) o Giants (1977). En 1975 se asociaba al trío de Peterson otro músico estelar: Joe Pass, con quien grabaron The Trio, un álbum clave. Con Peterson, de cualquier modo, siguió colaborando de forma intermitente en las décadas de los años ochenta y noventa. En los ochenta grabó, por ejemplo, Jam, para el sello Pablo; mientras que en los noventa sobresale el concierto ofrecido en directo en París, en 1997, cuyo título fue Oscar in Paris.
En 1978 tocó con el trío del pianista George Shearing; mientras que en 1979 se unía a Joe Pass, antiguo colaborador de Oscar Peterson y guitarrista de Ella Fitzgerald. Además de con Joe Pass, colaboró también con Toots Thielemans hasta bien entrada la década de los años ochenta. Formó parte de nuevo, durante un tiempo, del cuarteto de Dexter Gordon, con quien realizó una gira por América y Europa, e incluso se sumó al equipo el pianista catalán Tete Montoliu, cuyas colaboraciones venían de principios de la década de los años sesenta, cuando Dexter llegó a los clubes de Europa.
De los años ochenta son, precisamente, algunas destacadas apariciones con importantes artistas. Entre 1983 y 1988, aproximadamente, tocó a dúo asiduamente con el guitarrista Philip Catherine, de cuyo encuentro nació el álbum The Viking, al tiempo que colaboraba con los pianistas Alain Jean-Marie (con quien grabó Latin Alley) y Tete Montoliú, quien le hizo inseparable de su trío mientras pudo. También otros músicos le incluyeron en sus grupos. Es el caso de George Shearing, que lo mantuvo irregularmente en sus insospechados tríos (piano, contrabajo y guitarra, por ejemplo), con quien grabó un álbum delicioso, Windows, en 1977; mientras, tocó también en las bandas de algunos grandes del jazz, como Dizzy Gillespie o Milt Jackson.
Uno de los últimos trabajos de NHOP se tituló Those Who Were, publicado ya en la década de los años noventa, y que contó con las colaboraciones de Johnny Griffin y Lisa Nilsson. Se trata de un magnífico álbum donde queda puesta de manifiesto la técnica de este pulcro contrabajista clásico que, sin embargo, se aleja de toda huella innovadora o vanguardista.
Sus asombrosas dotes técnicas lo situaron en un perfecto lugar como sideman, convirtiéndolo en acompañante de lujo de multitud de figuras del jazz. Su estilo ecléctico le permitía adaptarse a muy distintos estilos dentro del jazz, y corresponder a las exigencias de instrumentistas de muy distinto calado: músicos clásicos y músicos innovadores y de vanguardia requirieron sus servicios en un determinado momento.
Sus solos eran llamativas improvisaciones que abordaban melodía y armonía de manera exhaustiva. Por ello le tentó tanto la formación de dúo, donde tal vez mejor se expresaba este llamativo contrabajista y donde mejor se percibía lo puntilloso de su estilo. Por otro lado, su contundencia en el acompañamiento (en el que predominan tanto el pizzicato como la interpretación con arco) hizo que muchos líderes lo llevasen consigo, pues siempre culminaba las expectativas de manera sobresaliente. Era un acompañante que había sabido labrarse un hueco de honor en la historia del jazz reciente y, a la vez, uno de los músicos europeos con mayor proyección internacional.
www.biografiasyvidas.com

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (1946-2005)

NHØP (NHOP) was born 27 May 1946 in a village outside greater Copenhagen. He maintained to live close to the Danish capital and died in his home 19 April 2005 after a heart attack. His childhood in a Danish school environment characterized by the vicar N. F. S. Grundtvig, who created an influential cultural stream in Denmark in the 19th century, had a decisive influence on his music. It had roots in the Danish and Swedish national traditions, and NHØP continued this, while at the same time expressing himself as a bassist in the modern jazz with origins in bop
Among the musicians who played a major role in NHØP’s carrier were Dexter Gordon, Kenny Drew, Ben Webster and Oscar Peterson.
Other collaborators in his own generation were moreover Philip Catherine, Sonny Rollins, Freddie Hubbard, Joe Pass and Martial Solal. He also played with musicians, who belonged to generations older than him self. Among these were Benny Carter, Count Basie, Teddy Wilson, Stéphane Grappelli, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Eldridge, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell and Miles Davis.
Before he was fifteen NHØP had according to his brother Poul Ørsted Pedersen his recording debut in 1960 with a revival orchestra called Don Camilo's Footwarmers (På Min Lysegrønne Ø / On My Light Green Island). However, the first registrated jazz recordings so far are with Rolf Billberg (Swede) 01JAN61 and Bent Axen (Dane) later the same year. The next year he succeeded Oscar Pettiford as the regular bassist in Jazzhouse Montmartre in Copenhagen and accompanied Bud Powell, with whom he also made the recording Bouncing With Bud. As a consequence NHØP began to be known outside Denmark. He soon left the gymnasium (high school) without passing the exam to become a fulltime professional musician among other things as a member of The Radiojazzgroup and the Danish Radio Big Band. In 1965 he got an offer from Count Basie, but was not able to accept it (he recorded many years later with Basie). The same year he toured with Bill Evans (p) and Sonny Rollins and particularly the cooperation with the energetic Rollins in a trio without piano made a big impression on the bassist.
His engagement in Jazzhouse Montmartre remained decisive, however. Here he played with Dexter Gordon (ts), and together with Kenny Drew (p) and the Danish drummer Alex Riel they formed an American-Danish quartet, which was one of the fixed elements of the jazz house. As a trio (without Gordon) the group accompanied visiting foreign musicians, who came to Copenhagen, and this environment played a major role in Danish Jazz in the middle of the sixties.
NHØP's roots in the Grundtvigian environment and his participation in the jazz in the sixties - a decade where the music no longer was the most preferred music among the youth - explain to a large extent, why the general historical development of the turbulent decade passed by without making any greater impact on NHØP’s music. Instead he in Jazzhouse Montmartre played with Ben Webster, and Webster's formidable ability in the playing of ballads was another experience, which undoubtedly developed the Danish bassist’s own ballad playing. These were years of apprenticeship.
In 1971 he made the first recording with Oscar Peterson and from 1973 he was a regular member of the Oscar Peterson trio. Peterson, next to Kenny Drew the pianist with whom NHØP got the closest musical cooperation, was very demanding for the Danish bassist, however the Dane’s virtuoso technique equalled the Canadian’s. They made several recordings through the years.
Finally in 1975 Jaywalking, the first recording of NHØP in his own name, was issued, but the breakthrough to an audience normally not a part of the jazz scene came already in 1973 with the record Duo made with Kenny Drew. Although this record not at all was conceived as a political record - NHØP is neither conservative nor left wing progressive but somewhere in between - the record with titles like Det var en lørdag aften (Once a Saturday night) and I skovens dybe stille ro (In the still of the woods), both traditionals in the Danish music, hit a strong tendency of the time, which was to be found also in the 1975 recording Folkevise (Folksong) by Ole Kock Hansen, a musical partner to NHØP since the childhood. The repertoire consisted exclusively of old Danish folk songs. In the rest of his career NHØP recorded pieces from the traditional Danish repertoire, for instance Tango Jalousi, and occasionally also pieces from the Swedish choir repertoire. This repertoire reflects the cultural environment of NHØP and his Nordic identity.
In 1986 he left the Oscar Peterson trio and since then he was freelancer or leader of his own groups. In the 1990s they were mainly in the trio format (with guitar and drums), but although the career began already in the 1950s we got less than twenty records from NHØP in his own name. As the first musician outside the ranks of composers of so-called score music he received the Nordic Council Music Prize in 1991, one of the largest music prizes in Scandinavia.

Repertoire
Many years of cooperation with American musicians, who played the repertoire of the great American songbook, strengthen NHØP’s motivation for seeking back to his own roots on his own records. In addition to the repertoire already mentioned he also recorded variations of pieces by J. S. Bach and Bela Bartok - from time to time he played chamber music on the cello - and children’s songs like Spørge-Jørgen (Ever Asking Jørgen on Hommage - Once Upon A Time, 1990) or Elephant March (Ambiance, 1993). Apart from recordings with the broad-minded Kenny Drew, NHØP was seldom allowed to record the Nordic repertoire with other leaders, but it can be heard on his own recordings or recordings with other Scandinavian musicians.
His ability to make use of the lyric expression of the double bass is demonstrated in many pieces, of course particularly in ballads. Examples are for instance Our Love Is Here To Stay (on Those we were, 1996) O, Tysta Ensamhet (Quiet Solitude, a Swedish traditional, on This Is All I Ask, 1997).

About his technique
NHØP had a natural physical predisposition for the instrument and a virtuoso technique on the double bass, the latter was established through the training in classical technique and repertoire he received already as teenager. His pizzicato technique allowed him to strike the strings with four fingers and enabled him to play with an amazing tempo. Like the predecessors Jimmy Blanton and Scott LaFaro NHØP contributed to the emancipation of the double bass by turning the instrument into a melody instrument in addition to the traditional accompaniment role of the instrument, which NHØP handled with a profound swing.
NHØP was a member of the first Danish fusion orchestra Underground Railroad 1968-72, but he seldom played the electric bass. However, to a certain extent he transferred some of the technique of the electric bass to the double bass, developing a funky style for the latter. It is to be heard on many recordings, examples are Short Cart (Heart to Heart, 1986) or his own Dancing Girls (To A Brother, 1993). J. S. Bach, Jaco Pastorius, an admired fellow bassist, and NHØP are united in J. P. (meaning Jaco Pastorius, on Hommage - Once Upon A Time, 1990), where NHØP again demonstrated his superior mobility on the instrument. In addition he used techniques on the instrument, which allowed him to accompany his own solo playing (implicit or explicit part-playing) on the bass or in small groups to create an accompaniment behind other soloists like for instance in the trio work with Sonny Rollins or the duo work with Joe Pass. For this purpose he also applied flageolets stroke with the right hand above the left on the fingerboard. It can be heard on many pieces, for instance on Tango Jalousi, where he as a soloist played the opening violin cadenza without any other accompaniment than his own. Finally he had an unusual command of the high register of the instrument among other things developed through the playing of classical cello parts on the double bass
by Jørgen Mathiasen

vol. 40 Monty Alexander - 1994 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T16:23:00.002+01:00

01 When the Saints Go Marching In (Traditional) 3:38
02 When I Grow Too Old to Dream (Hammerstein, Romberg) 5:32
03 Close Enough for Love (Mandel, Williams) 6:40
04 The Serpent (Alexander) 4:32
05 Where Is Love? (Bart) 4:11
06 Renewal (Alexander, Severino) 6:48
07 Island in the Sun (Belafonte, Lord Burgess) 4:08
08 Estaté (Brighetti, Martino) 6:13
09 For Sentimental Reasons (Best, Watson) 4:27
10 Speak Low (Brunner, Nash, Tate, Weill, Wilton) 4:33
11 Smile (Chaplin) 4:20

Recorded on September 20, 1994

Vol. 39 Kenny Drew, jr - 1994 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T16:21:00.002+01:00

01 Stella by Starlight (Ned Washington, Victor Young) 6:12
02 Peace (Horace Silver) 5:45
03 After You (Cole Porter) 5:45
04 Ugly Beauty (Thelonious Monk) 5:47
05 Well, You Needn't (Thelonious Monk) 3:42
06 Coral Sea (Kenny Drew, Jr.) 7:13
07 Images (Kenny Drew) 5:39
08 Straight, No Chaser (Thelonious Monk) 6:09
09 Waitin' for My Dearie (Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe) 4:22
10 Autumn Leaves (Johnny Mercer, Jacques Prévert, Joseph Kosma) 9:46

Recorded on August 07, 1994

vol. 35 George Cables - 1994 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T16:19:00.001+01:00

01 Over the Rainbow (Arlen, Harburg) 7:05
02 Helen's Song (Cables, Evans) 5:43
03 Bess, You Is My Woman Now (Gershwin, Gershwin, Heyward) 6:34
04 My Man's Gone Now (Gershwin, Gershwin, Heyward) 8:11
05 Someone to Watch over Me (Gershwin, Gershwin) 4:00
06 You Don't Know What Love Is (DePaul, Raye) 5:03
07 Lullaby (Cables) 4:49
08 Everything Happens to Me (Adair, Dennis) 5:14
09 Goin' Home (Dvorak) 6:27
10 Little B's Poem (Hutcherson) 6:01

Recorded on January 9, 1994

vol. 32 Sir Roland Hanna - 1993 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T16:17:00.001+01:00

01 Love Walked In (Gershwin, Gershwin) 5:40
02 They Can't Take That Away from Me (Gershwin, Gershwin) 5:48
03 Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise (Hammerstein, Romberg) 4:06
04 Gershwin Medley: Fascinating Rhythm/The Man I Love/Let's Call the ... (Gershwin, Gershwin) 11:32
05 How Long Has This Been Going On? (Gershwin, Gershwin)) 5:25
06 Oleo (Rollins) 3:03
07 Lush Life (Strayhorn) 8:27
08 This Can't Be Love (Dearie, Hart, Rodgers) 4:37

Recorded on August 15, 1993

vol. 22 Ellis Larkins - 1992 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T16:15:00.001+01:00

01 Introductory Announcement 0:14
02 How'dja Like to Love Me? (Lane, Loesser) 4:50
03 Perfume and Rain (Larkins) 5:25
04 Oh, Lady Be Good (Gershwin, Gershwin) 5:44
05 I Don't Want to Cry Anymore (Schertzinger) 6:18
06 Blue Skies (Berlin) 5:39
07 No More/God Bless the Child (Camarata, Russell) 6:47
08 I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart (Ellington, Mills, Nemo, Redmond) 5:06
09 Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year (Loesser) 5:33
10 Leave Me Alone (Brown, Bruce) 4:12
11 Things Ain't What They Used to Be (Ellington, Persons) 5:36
12 When a Woman Loves a Man/I'm Through with Love (Hanighen, Mercer, Jenkins / Kahn, Livingston, Malneck) 6:24

Recorded on March 29, 1992

vol. 12 Barry Harris - 1991 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T16:13:00.003+01:00

01 It Could Happen to You (Burke, Van Heusen) 8:37
02 All God's Chillun Got Rhythm (Jurman, Kahn, Kaper) 4:38
03 I'll Keep Loving You (Powell) 6:35
04 She (Shearing) 4:06
05 Cherokee (Noble) 4:34
06 Gone Again (Lewis, Hamner, Hampton) 4:30
07 Lucky Day (DeSylva, Brown, Henderson) 3:21
08 Medley 8:28
It Never Entered My Mind (Hart, Rodgers)
Meet the Flintstones (Hanna, Barbera, Curtin)
I Love Lucy (Daniel, Adamson)
09 Parker's Mood (Parker) 4:40
10 Would You Like to Take a Walk? (Dixon, Rose, Warren) 2:57

Recorded on March 1990

vol. 11 Roger Kellaway - 1991 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T16:09:00.001+01:00

01 Introductory Announcement 0:12
02 How Deep Is the Ocean? (Berlin) 8:48
03 I'm Still in Love with You (Kellaway) 5:50
04 Love of My Life (Kellaway) 4:31
05 Close Your Eyes (Petkere) 7:10
06 New Orleans (Carmichael) 9:29
07 My One and Only Love (Gershwin, Gershwin, Mellin, Wood) 8:54
08 Creole Love Call (Ellington, Miley) 7:44
09 I'm Getting Sentimental Over You (Bassman, Washington) 6:39

Recorded on March 10, 1991

vol. 08 Gerald Wiggins - 1990 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T16:07:00.003+01:00

01 Yesterdays (Harbach, Kern) 4:53
02 My Ship (Gershwin, Weill) 4:41
03 All the Things You Are (Hammerstein, Kern) 5:37
04 Night Mist Blues (Jamal) 5:37
05 Body and Soul (Eyton, Green, Heyman, Sour) 5:35
06 Easy to Love (Porter) 3:27
07 You're Mine, You (Green, Heyman) 4:51
08 I Should Care (Cahn, Stordahl, Weston) 4:50
09 Don't Blame Me (Fields, McHugh) 5:00
10 Take the "A" Train (Strayhorn) 4:56
11 Berkeley Blues (Wiggins) 3:39
12 Lullaby of the Leaves (Petkere, Young) 3:38

Recorded on August 1990

vol. 01 Joanne Brackeen - 1989 Live at Maybeck Recital Hall

2010-01-12T15:56:00.002+01:00

01 Thou Swell (Hart, Rodgers) 4:34
02 The Most Beautiful Girl in the World (Bourke, Hart, Rodgers, Sherrill, Wilson) 5:32
03 Dr. Chu Chow (Brackeen) 5:54
04 Yesterdays (Arkeen, Harbach, James, Johnson, Kern, Rose) 5:31
05 Curved Space (Brackeen) 6:44
06 It Could Happen to You (Burke, Van Heusen) 4:43
07 African Aztec (Brackeen) 7:07
08 My Foolish Heart (Washington, Young) 7:13
09 Calling Carl (Brackeen) 3:58
10 I'm Old Fashioned (Kern, Mercer) 4:59
11 Strike up the Band (Edwards, Gershwin, Gershwin, Rodgers) 4:20

Recording Date June 1989

Maybeck Recital Hall (II)

2010-01-12T15:21:00.006+01:00

Uno de mis primeros posts, allá por diciembre de 2007, se lo dediqué a la serie de grabaciones editadas por el sello Concorde que tuvieron lugar durante casi 5 años en Maybeck Recital Hall. Son 42 interpretaciones de pianistas en solitario, tocando con el mismo piano y ante una muy reducida audiencia. Hay, además, otras 11 actuaciones a duo de otros tantos pianistas.
Para aquellos interesados en la serie, hay un buen trabajo recopilatorio realizado por Steven Cerra en:

One of my first posts, back in December 2007, was dedicated to the series of recordings, released by the label Concorde along nearly 5 years, at Maybeck Recital Hall. They are 42 solo piano performances, playing with the same piano in front of a very small audience. There are also 11 other performances in duo format with 11 different pianists.
For those interested in the series, there is a good compilation work written by Steven Cerra at:

http://jazzprofiles.blogspot.com/2008/07/maybeck-recital-hall-treasure-hunt-part.html

FELIZ AÑO NUEVO

2010-01-01T08:27:00.002+01:00

Stan Getz - 1989 Soul Eyes

2009-12-30T22:55:00.001+01:00

01 Voyage 9:00
02 Soul Eyes 8:01
03 Feijada 8:52
04 Blood Count 3:40
05 Stan's Blues 7:40
06 Slow Boat To China 8:39
07 Warm Valley 9:22
08 Hush-A-Bye 9:22

Recorded live at the 'Glasgow International Jazz Festival', Glasgow, Scotland, on June 29, 1989

Stan Getz - tenor saxophone
Kenny Barron - piano
Ray Drummond - bass
Yashuito Mori - bass
Ben Riley - drums

Stan Getz - 1981 Spring is Here

2009-12-30T22:51:00.001+01:00

01. How About You? (Burton Lane, Ralph Freed) 10:08
02. You're Blasé (Bruce Sievier, Ord Hamilton) 5:32
03. Easy Living (Ralph Rainger, Leo Robin) 6:51
04. Sweet Lorraine (Mitchell Parish, Clifford R. Burwell) 5:34
05. Old Devil Moon (E.Y. "Yip" Harburg, Burton Lane) 10:18
06. I'm Old Fashioned (Jerome Kern, Johnny Mercer) 6:41
07. Spring Is Here (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) 7:46

Recorded live at Keystone Korner, San Francisco, California in May 1981

Stan Getz (tenor saxophone)
Lou Levy (piano)
Monty Budwig (bass)
Victor Lewis (drums)

Stan Getz - 1975 My Foolish Heart. Live at the Left Bank

2009-12-30T22:49:00.001+01:00

01 Invitation (Bronislaw Kaper, Paul Francis Webster) 6:23
02 [Untitled Track] 10:58
03 Spring Is Here (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) 5:43
04 Litha (Chick Corea) 11:13
05 Lucifer's Fall (Ralph Towner) 9:38
06 My Foolish Heart (Ned Washington, Victor Young) 5:54
07 Fiesta (Chick Corea) 6:15

Recorded live at The Famous Ballroom, Baltimore, Maryland on May 20th, 1975

Stan Getz (tenor saxophone)
Richie Beirach (piano)
Dave Holland (double bass)
Jack DeJohnette (drums)

Stan Getz - 1969 Didn't We

2009-12-30T22:47:00.001+01:00

01 Didn't We (Jimmy Webb) 3:34
02 The Shining Sea (Peggy Lee, Johnny Mandel) 3:13
03 The Night Has A Thousand Eyes (Jerry Brainin, Buddy Bernier) 4:48
04 Go Away Little Girl (Carole King, Gerry Goffin) 3:30
05 Heartstrings (Milt Jackson) 5:52
06 I Remember Clifford (Benny Golson) 3:21
07 Try To Understand (Johnny Pate) 2:38
08 Emily (Johnny Mandel, Johnny Mercer) 3:39
09 Mandy Is Two (Johnny Mercer, Fulton McGrath) 3:50
10 What's New (Bob Haggart, Johnny Burke) 4:11

Recorded in New York, on September-October, 1969

Stan Getz (ts)
Johnny Pate (arr, cond)
unidentified orchestra

Stan Getz - 1966-68 What The World Needs Now

2009-12-30T22:44:00.001+01:00

01. Wives And Lovers (B. Bacharach, H. David) 3:36
02. Windows Of The World (B. Bacharach, H. David) 2:43
03. The Look Of Love (B. Bacharach, H. David) 2:39
04. Any Old Time Of Day (B. Bacharach, H. David) 3:33
05. Alfie (B. Bacharach, H. David) 2:51
06. In Times Like These (B. Bacharach, H. David) 2:44
07. A House Is Not A Home (Master Take) (B. Bacharach, H. David) 4:13
08. Trains And Boats And Planes (B. Bacharach, H. David) 3:01
09. What The World Needs Now Is Love (B. Bacharach, H. David) 2:58
10. In Between The Heartaches (Edited Master Take) (B. Bacharach, H. David) 2:17
11. Walk On By (B. Bacharach, H. David) 3:32
12. A House Is Not A Home (Alternative Take) (B. Bacharach, H. David) 4:25
13. In Between Heartaches (Partial Alternate Take) (B. Bacharach, H. David) 2:35
14. My Own True Love (M. Steiner, M. David) 2:29
15. Tara's Theme (M. Steiner) 2:36

Stan Getz (ts) Herbie Hancock or Hank Jones (p) Jim Hall (g) Ron Carter (b) Grady Tate (d) Bill Horwath (cymb) Artie Butler, Bobby Rosengarden (per) Claus Ogerman (arr, cond) unidentified brass, strings and chorus
Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, December 2, 1966
103873 The Look Of Love

Stan Getz (ts) Chick Corea (p) Phil Upchurch (g) Walter Booker (b) Roy Haynes or Curtis Prince (d) unknown (cga) Burt Bacharach (comp) Richard Evans (arr, cond) unidentified brass and strings
Ter-Mar Recording Studios, Chicago, IL & NYC, August 30, 1967
103487 Windows Of The World

Same personal
Ter-Mar Recording Studios, Chicago, IL & NYC, August 31, 1967
103486 Wives And Lovers
103488 In Times Like These
103489 A House Is Not A Home
103490 Trains And Boats And Planes
103491 Any Old Time Of The Day
103492 Walk On By

Jim Buffington (frh) Stan Getz (ts) Jerome Richardson (woodwinds) Paul Gershman, David Mankovitz, David Nadien, Gerald Tarack (vln) Bernard Zaslav (vla) Charles McCracken (vlc) Gloria Agostini (harp) David Carey (vib) Herbie Hancock (p) Kenny Burrell (g) Ron Carter (b) Grady Tate (d) Burt Bacharach (comp) Richard Evans (arr, cond)
A&R Studios, NYC & Chicago, IL, February 14, 1968, August 30, 1967
104457 In Between The Heartaches (edited mst. take)
104458 What The World Needs Now Is Love
104459 Alfie

Stan Getz (ts) Herbie Hancock or Hank Jones (p) Jim Hall (g) Ron Carter (b) Grady Tate (d) Bill Horwath (cymb) Artie Butler, Bobby Rosengarden (per) Claus Ogerman (arr, cond) unidentified brass, strings and chorus
Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, December 2, 1966
My Own True Love
Tara's Theme

Stan Getz (ts) Chick Corea (p) Phil Upchurch (g) Walter Booker (b) Roy Haynes or Curtis Prince (d) unknown (cga) Burt Bacharach (comp) Richard Evans (arr, cond) unidentified brass and strings
Ter-Mar Recording Studios, Chicago, IL & NYC, August 31, 1967
A House Is Not A Home

Jim Buffington (frh) Stan Getz (ts) Jerome Richardson (woodwinds) Paul Gershman, David Mankovitz, David Nadien, Gerald Tarack (vln) Bernard Zaslav (vla) Charles McCracken (vlc) Gloria Agostini (harp) David Carey (vib) Herbie Hancock (p) Kenny Burrell (g) Ron Carter (b) Grady Tate (d) Burt Bacharach (comp) Richard Evans (arr, cond)
A&R Studios, NYC & Chicago, IL, February 14, 1968, August 30, 1967
104457 In Between The Heartaches (partial alternative take)

Stan Getz - 1964 Nobody Else But Me

2009-12-30T22:42:00.001+01:00

01. Summertime 6:58
02. 6-Nix-Quix-Flix 6:26
03. Here's That Rainy Day 5:07
04. Waltz For A Lovely Wife 6:49
05. Out Of Focus 7:07
06. Nobody Else But Me 4:11
07. Sweet Sorrow 6:03
08. Little Girl Blue 3:38
09. What Is This Thing Called Love? 4:24
10. Waltz For A Lovely Wife 3:10

Recorded at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, on March 4, 1964

Stan Getz: Sax (Tenor)
Gary Burton: Vibraphone
Gene Cherico: Bass
Joe Hunt: Drums

Stan Getz - 1957 Award Winner

2009-12-30T22:41:00.002+01:00

01 Where or When 7:11
02 Woody 'n' You (Master Take) 7:08
03 Smiles 4:48
04 Three Little Words 6:59
05 Time After Time 6:45
06 This Can't Be Love 9:19
07 All God's Chillun Got Rhythm 7:42
08 But Beautiful 5:31
09 Woody 'n' You (Alternative Take) 7:10
10 Time After Time (Alternative Take) 6:57
11 All God's Chillun Got Rhythm (False Start) 0:34
12 Smiles (False Start) 0:20
13 Time After Time (False Starts) 0:42
14 Woody 'n' You (False Start) 0:27
15 Woody 'n' You (Inserts) 2:43

Recorded in Hollywood, on August 2, 1957

Stan Getz - tenor sax
Lou Levy - piano
Leroy Vinnegar - bass
Stan Levey - drums

Vido Musso & Stan Getz & Kai Winding - 1945-46 Loaded

2009-12-30T22:38:00.001+01:00

01 Moose in a Caboose (Vido Musso) 2:42
02 Moose on the Loose (Gene Roland) 3:00
03 My Jo-Ann (Boots Mussulli) 3:10
04 Vido in a Jam (Vido Musso) 3:00
05 Bassology (Boots Mussulli) 2:53
06 Spellbound (David M.) 2:59
07 Lem Mego (Lem Davis) 2:49
08 Jam Session at Savoy (Kai Winding) 2:57
09 Sweet Miss (Kai Winding) 3:00
10 Loaded (Bernard Miller) 3:02
11 Grab Your Axe, Max (Kai Winding) 3:23
12 Always (Irving Berlin) 3:19

Tracks 1-4: Kai Winding - Vido Musso Septet
Kai Winding (tb)
Gene Roland (vtb)
Boots Mussulli (as)
Vido Musso (ts)
Marty Napoleon (p)
Eddie Safranski (b)
Denzil Best (ds)
Recorded in NYC, on February 25, 1946

Tracks 5-8: Eddie Safranski Octet
Leonard Hawkins (tp on track 5)
Gene Roland (vtb on track 5)
Boots Mussullis (as on track 5)
Lem Davis (as on tracks 5,7,8)
Vido Musso (ts)
Sanford Gold (p)
Eddie Safranski (b)
Denzil Best (ds)
Recorded in NYC, on February 26, 1946

Tracks 9-12: Kai Winding - Stan Getz Sextet
Shorty Rogers (tp)
Kai Winding (tb)
Stan Getz( ts)
Shorty Allen (p)
Iggy Shevack (b)
Shelly Manne (ds)
Recorded in NYC, on December 14, 1945