J.B.: Jazzitude Blog

2008-04-28T13:12:00.000-06:00

PLAYBOY JAZZ FESTIVAL CELEBRATES 30th ANNIVERSARY WITH
LEGENDARY JAZZ GREATS, TODAY’S TOP TALENTS AND FESTIVAL FAVORITES,
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, JUNE 14th & 15th AT HOLLYWOOD BOWL.

Now in its 30th year, the Playboy Jazz Festival has evolved into an internationally acclaimed event
and one of the premier jazz festivals on the west coast, attracting over 35,000 fans every year. Since its landmark first presentation in 1979 on a June weekend at the Hollywood Bowl, the Festival has featured the who’s who of jazz, from legendary giants such as Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Miles Davis, and Dizzy Gillespie, to the superstars of today like Wynton Marsalis, Herbie Hancock, Joshua Redman, George Benson, Dianne Reeves and so many more.

Today, celebrating 30 years of electrifying performances, magical moments and extraordinary music, Playboy will once again present a world class roster of talent at the 30th Anniversary Jazz Festival Saturday and Sunday, June 14th and 15th at the famous Hollywood Bowl. Featuring renowned jazz greats, today’s top talents, and popular festival favorites, the two day affair will showcase the many variations of jazz.

With an Oscar and 12 Grammy awards to his credit, Herbie Hancock is a true icon of modern American music. His latest CD, River: The Joni Letters, a tribute to songwriter Joni Mitchell, just won the coveted 2008 Grammy for “Album of the Year,” only the second jazz album to ever win the award. During his illustrious five decade career, Hancock has explored jazz, rock, soul and funk. A surefire festival favorite, he will return with acclaimed musicians, bassist David Holland, drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, saxophonist Chris Potter, and guitarist Lionel Loueke. They will perform selections from The River, along with other material from his extensive repertoire.

An international star, Al Jarreau’s unique vocal style is one of the world’s great treasures. One of the only artists to have won a Grammy in all three categories of jazz, pop and R&B, his extensive catalog of platinum and gold albums includes the smash hit singles, “We’re In This Love Together” and “Moonlighting,” the theme song from the popular TV series. Returning for his fifth appearance, Jarreau will perform a variety of his favorite songs from three decades of albums, showcasing the innovative musical expressions that have made him one of the world’s greatest song stylists.

Back by popular demand, singer-songwriter and blues guitarist, Keb’ Mo’ will be back with his distinctive brand of Delta Blues capturing the essence of America’s music. The popular singer-songwriter has been on a roll these past few years, receiving his first gold album for his early Keb’ Mo’ project and a Grammy Award (his third overall) for “Best Contemporary Blues Album.” A festival favorite, his performance will once again wow the crowd.

Returning to the Playboy stage for the third time, Grammy and Tony Award winning vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater is making her debut appearance at the Festival with a special group from Mali, including several musicians and singers that will perform music from her latest album RED EARTH – A Malian Journey. A colorful celebration of Bridgewater’s cultural roots, the album and show blend Malian voices, music and traditional native instruments with American jazz, traversing the musical landscape. A versatile songstress, her jazz styles vary from scat to the hard tones of John Coltrane to the cool blues of Duke Ellington.

A master of Afro-Cuban rhythms, Grammy-winning Latin Jazz percussionist, Poncho Sanchez will return for what is sure to be another sizzling performance. Sanchez will be joined by special guest singer-songwriter Eddie Floyd, in a first time performance together. Known for his classic hit, “Knock on Wood,” Floyd and Sanchez recently collaborated on Sanchez’s new CD, featuring an updated version of the Floyd classic and other hits.

One of the most enduring figures in modern jazz, master saxophonist James Moody will make his long anticipated debut as the leader of his own group, having appeared previously at Playboy as a guest of Poncho Sanchez and Dizzy Gillespie. Best known for his signature composition, “Moody’s Mood for Love,” at 82 he still plays with the fluid expression that made him a titan in Dizzy Gillespie’s All Star Band and one of the all time tenor sax greats.

Inducted into the Louisiana Hall of Fame earlier this year, the colorful Dr. John will be back with his eclectic New Orleans blues and boogie-woogie music. Best known for his hit song, “Right Place, Wrong Time,” he continues to crisscross the country performing with his band the Lower 911, who will no doubt put on yet another rousing performance.

Often called “one of the world’s greatest rhythm and blues bands,” Tower of Power is sure to kick things up a notch with their signature horn driven sound and high energy performance, melding jazz, funk, rock and soul. Now experiencing a renaissance, the band continues to play to sell out crowds across the country. Fans are sure to enjoy the party when the group takes the stage for their second Festival appearance.

Two of the hottest superstars on today’s contemporary jazz scene, Rick Braun (trumpet) and Richard Elliot (tenor sax), have come together to form R n R. Their namesake CD became an instant #1 hit upon its recent release and together they represent a cornerstone of the smooth jazz genre. Continuously playing to sold out crowds, their live performances percolate with spontaneity and their hallmark sound is sure to excite fans.

Also redefining the contemporary jazz scene is dazzling young pianist, Hiromi. Fronting her own group, she creates a new dimension of sound with her eclectic combination of traditional piano, bass and drums with jazz, rock, funk, and punk. Back by popular demand, her first CD mesmerized the jazz community and her previous performance at Playboy captivated the audience.

Voted one of the best Big Bands in the world by Downbeat, the DIVA Jazz Orchestra is making their Festival debut. Led by charismatic drummer Shari Maricle, the 15 woman ensemble swings with the best of them. Hard charging and forceful, the group exudes all the excitement of a historic big band, but with today’s progressive sound and verve. Their highly anticipated performance is sure to be a highlight.

Returning as master of ceremonies for his 27th time, is jazz aficionado extraordinaire Bill Cosby, who will once again bring together his own group of veteran musicians. Featured in the Cos of Good Music X are: Monk Institute Trumpet Competition winner Ambrose Akinsuire, accomplished bassist Dwayne Burno, world class drummer and percussionist Ndugu Chancler, jazz pianist Benny Green, tenor saxophonist Billy Harper, keyboardist Jerry Peters, and rhythm guitarist David T. Walker.

Making his Festival debut is 27 year old Robert Glasper, who articulates bold ideas about what a jazz piano trio can achieve. Not long after he arrived in New York, Ben Ratliff of the New York Times declared that Glasper’s trio “deserves comparison with the best of the newer piano trios, those led by Jason Moran, Bill Charlap and Brad Mehldau.” VIBE declared that Glaspar’s “remarkable debut shows why cats from Mos Def to Roy Hargrove have sought him out – providing that subtlety and soul are natural allies.”

Although Grammy winning trumpet great Roy Hargrove has performed at many previous Festivals, he will make his debut this year on Sunday’s show, as the leader of the Roy Hargrove Big Band. Always seeking to find challenging and colorful ways to flex his musical chops, Hargrove has left his indelible imprint on a vast array of jazz genres, from Latin and be-bop to a jazz/hip-hop hybrid with his ensemble The RH Factor. His unique interpretations of music’s many forms make him the ultimate ambassador of jazz.

Destined to be a great crowd pleaser is the latest lineup of the annual Guitars & Saxes tour, a staple of the smooth jazz genre every summer since 1995. Each a superstar in their own right, the 2008 ensemble features the perfect balance of urban and retro soul rhythms, blues rock and breezy, melodic guitar sounds by funky R&B-flavored saxophonist Gerald Albright; ultra-melodic British born acoustic guitarist Peter White; charismatic, blues-drenched electric guitarist Jeff Golub; and grooving Philly-bred keyboard whiz Jeff Lorber. The key to the success of the Guitars & Saxes Supergroup concept is their ever-rotating lineups, with each participant bringing their own unique vibe to the mix.

Veteran jazz drummer Ben Riley’s Monk Legacy Septet presents an innovative way to hear the intriguing, classic music of Thelonious Monk. The Septet (four horns, guitar, bass, and drums) illuminates Monk’s infamous melodies and harmonies with new clarity as horns and guitar share the responsibilities for Monk’s own rhythmic and dynamic “comping” style. Their explosive 2006 debut on Concord Records includes fresh interpretations of eleven Monk compositions, eight of which originally appeared on three of the key recordings Riley made with the pianist. The septet includes Bruce Williams (alto and soprano sax), Wayne Escoffery (tenor and soprano), Jay Brandford (baritone), Freddie Bryant (guitar) and Koyoshi Kitagawa (bass).
One of Brazil’s most recorded and best known composers, Grammy winning singer-songwriter Ivan Lins’ eagerly awaited performance with fellow Brazilian legend, guitarist Oscar Castro-Neves, will mark the pair’s first performance together at Playboy. Over the course of his 35 year career, the Rio De Janeiro born Lins—whose hits include “Madalena” and the Grammy winning “Dinorah, Dinorah”-- has recorded 27 albums and brought his music to jazz and pop fans in the United States, Latin America, Europe and Japan.

Adding to the multicultural mix at this year’s show is Plena Libre, a 13 member Afro-Rican group, founded by bassist Gary Nunez. Making their Festival debut, the group has become an ambassador for the new sounds of Puerto Rico, taking its updated blend of roots music to many parts of the world. Reclaiming the long-ignored Puerto Rican folkloric music derived from the 100 year old genre of Puerto Rican plená—a unique combination of rhythms and styles—Plena Libre has received many prestigious awards in their native Puerto Rico and was nominated for three Grammy Awards, including Best Tropical Traditional Album for the group’s eleventh release, 2005’s Evolución.
Also making his debut will be 27 year old singer-songwriter Ryan Shaw. Nominated for a Grammy Award earlier this year for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for “I Am Your Man” from his critically acclaimed 2007 debut album This Is Ryan Shaw, his repertoire blends powerful original contemporary R&B songs, classics and overlooked gems by legends like Wilson Pickett, Jackie Wilson and Bobby Womack. Out to revive the passion and soul of the Golden Age of Rhythm & Blues (1960-1972) for a new generation, he brings it all together with a combination of Southern warmth and New York vitality.

The Hamilton High School Academy of Music Jazz Ensemble “A” opens under the direction of Dan Taguchi on Saturday’s show at 2:30 pm. Opening Sunday’s show at 2:00 pm is the View Park Prep Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Fernando Pullum.
George Wein is producer of the Playboy Jazz Festival for the 30th consecutive year. Darlene Chan is the associate producer for both the Playboy Jazz Festival and Festival Network, LLC. Hugh Hefner is executive producer and Richard Rosenzweig is president of the Playboy Jazz Festival.

NEW THIS YEAR! Tickets will be available through Ticketmaster starting February 27, 2008. Patrons can purchase tickets online at www.ticketmaster.com, over the phone by calling (213) 365-3500 or (714) 740-7878, at any Ticketmaster outlet or by downloading a ticket order form available at www.playboyjazzfestival.com. There is also a link to the Ticketmaster website on the Playboy Jazz Festival website.

2008 Jazz Cruise Information

2008-04-28T13:10:00.001-06:00

JAZZ CRUISES LLC FEATURES LEGENDARY AND CONTEMPORARY JAZZ STARS FOR EIGHTH ANNUAL SAILING OF ‘THE JAZZ CRUISE’
NOVEMBER 9-16, 2008

Includes Performances By
Regina Carter, Nnenna Freelon, Tom Scott, Tierney Sutton And
The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra

‘The Jazz Cruise,’ the only full ship charter cruise in the world dedicated to the diverse and exciting artistry of straight ahead jazz, will set sail the week of November 9th through the 16th, 2008 for its eighth annual voyage aboard Holland America’s luxurious MS Westerdam. Produced by Jazz Cruises, LLC, ‘The Jazz Cruise’ departs from Fort Lauderdale, Florida for four spectacular Western Caribbean ports: Key West, Grand Cayman, Cozumel and Belize.

With multiple performances scheduled every evening and during afternoons at sea, passengers will experience the finest “straight ahead” jazz entertainment in the world from many of today’s most acclaimed traditional and contemporary jazz artists.

This year’s lineup includes The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, the famed Grammy nominated L.A. based ensemble that has backed Diana Krall, Rosemary Clooney and John Pizzarelli. Joining them on the cruise are vocal great Andy Bey; the classically trained Regina Carter, considered one of the finest violinists in contemporary jazz; and five-time Grammy nominated vocalist Nnenna Freelon.

Other artists appearing on The Jazz Cruise are Wycliffe Gordon, well known jazz trombonist; hard bop jazz pianist Benny Green; The Heath Brothers, a hard bop jazz group. Other top names on The Jazz Cruise are popular swing jazz clarinetist Ken Peplowski; hard bop, swing and soul jazz tenor saxophonist Houston Person; The Tom Scott Quintet, featuring the legendary bebop, funk and fusion saxophonist with notable jazz pianist and arranger Shelly Berg; dynamic jazz pianist Johnny O’Neal and vocalist Tierney Sutton, a Grammy nominated singer of jazz standards and originals.

With nearly 100 jazz musicians and vocalists on the ship, fans will not only be treated to numerous performances in a variety of theatre and club settings, but
will also have the rare opportunity to attend various “behind the instruments” sessions where they can get acquainted with the participating artists in an intimate club-like atmosphere.

“The Jazz Cruise is defined, first and foremost, by its music,” says cruise founder Anita Berry, who launched The Jazz Cruise in 2001. “Every year we have brought our guests the finest musicians, vocalists and performers in the world of straight ahead jazz. This has inspired The Jazz Cruise Hall of Fame, a living tribute to those who have made The Jazz Cruise what it is today. Other than the time we are in port, virtually every hour is filled with music and related activities. Like jazz, the mood is laid back, with no tickets, no lining up for seats and no identification cards. Musical ‘grazing’ is encouraged and some evenings there is music in four or five venues at a time. Our guests can also meet the musicians behind the instruments during our popular ‘Conversation with the Stars.’ These onboard panel discussions in groups of ten offer everyone special insights into the jazz world.”

Jazz Cruises LLC is the foremost producer of full ship charter music cruises in the world, specializing in luxury jazz cruises. Currently, it produces three annual events besides The Jazz Cruise: Dave Koz And Friends At Sea and The Smooth Jazz Cruise, hosted by Wayman Tisdale; and, beginning in January 2009, the first ever Playboy Jazz Cruise, which culminates the celebration of the 30th Anniversary of the Playboy Jazz Festival. Hosted by Grammy winning artist and bass player Marcus Miller, The Playboy Jazz Cruise will feature special guest Herbie Hancock, 2008 Grammy Award winner for Album of The Year, along with a stellar roster of today’s top jazz talents.

As is the case with all of Jazz Cruises LLC’s programs, The Jazz Cruise also offers passengers a totally first class experience from accommodations and amenities to food and service, (as well as the exclusive opportunity to personally meet and mingle with the artists throughout the week), completely unique from the standard fare typically offered on other ships.

“For years I was involved in the jazz cruises produced by Norwegian Cruise Lines,” says Ms. Berry. “In 1999, when I was told that they were discontinuing the program, I was heartbroken, for those cruises meant so much to so many people. I took the plunge, chartered a ship, convinced the wonderful musicians to have faith in what we were doing and it all turned out wonderfully for everyone. Now that we have four cruises, it is a real business, but we never stray from our total desire to make sure that we get the music right and that all of our guests have the very best cruise possible. Everything that we do is for the guests.”

For cruise reservations and further information for the The Jazz Cruise, please call 800.762.6737 or see the following website at www.thejazzcruise.com.

Mindi Abair CD release performance at Deep Rock Drive

2008-04-26T20:29:00.002-06:00

LIVE INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY DEEP ROCK DRIVE PRESENTS EXCLUSIVE CONCERT WITH SAXOPHONIST/VOCALIST MINDI ABAIR & HER DEBUT PEAK RECORDS CD “STARS”
FIRST BROADBAND “SOCIALCASTING” SERVICE BRINGS MINDI ABAIR TO DEEP ROCK DRIVE FOR FANS TO ENJOY INTERACTIVE HIGH DEFNITION LIVE CONCERT

(LAS VEGAS, NV) – April 16, 2008 –Deep Rock Drive, the world’s first live interactive entertainment service, today announced the first Peak Records (a division of Concord Music Group) artist to stream live will be saxophonist/vocalist MINDI ABAIR on Thursday, May 1 at 6:00 P.M. PST/9:00 P.M. EST.

Mindi will preview tracks from her first Peak Records CD – STARS, which will be released nationally on May 6, to an exclusive crowd of 5,000 fans. With her growing fan base and cross-genre appeal, it was very attractive for DeepRockDrive to offer Mindi and her label the opportunity to share her new music with fans around the world.

Fans log on to http://www.deeprockdrive.com/artist/mindi_abair to sign up for the free interactive concert.

“The chance to have an audience from all around the world at our CD release DeepRockDrive.com online concert is phenomenal,” says Mindi. “This is such a great use of technology to help us connect with fans and friends from all over at one time! The fact that everyone can interact in real time and be a part of the experience...even better.”

“DeepRockDrive is a service that connects fans and artists together. We are re-defining the presentation of online music in a broadband world,” David Helfant, COO of DeepRockDrive states. “Live concerts are a long-standing tradition that displays the talents of the artists in an uninhibited, raw fashion that is virtually impossible to recreate. Bringing that accessibility to the fans has only been possible through recent developments in technology, and we are excited to be working with Peak Records and Mindi, in order to allow fans to support the artists they love at the first global interactive venue for live music.”

DeepRockDrive brings the opportunity for global awareness, immediacy and interactivity that is unprecedented for artists of all levels at this large scale. Integrating the social aspects of MySpace, YouTube and Facebook into a live setting, artists are able to simply, yet highly effectively, connect with their fans in the most organic and direct way possible. Through professionally produced, high-definition, multi-stream, live shows, tens of thousands of fans from all over the world can enjoy these concerts simultaneously, offering an unprecedented experience for both the fans and the performers. DeepRockDrive is a groundbreaking service that allows the label to launch new artists or albums on the Internet, prompting the digital revolution in live concerts in a compelling new experience, akin to playing a video game.

MINDI ABAIR bursts onto the pop scene as one of an exciting new generation of crossover artists. Singer, songwriter and saxophonist, Mindi wrote 11 new songs for STARS, showcasing her dynamic vocals like never before. Her instrumental single, Smile, is currently on R&R at #13 and rising, and her vocal song Stars, will be serviced to AC radio on April 28. Collaborator/producer Matthew Hager enlisted a group of stalwarts from the pop world to contribute to the new CD including keyboardist Ricky Peterson (John Mayer, Prince), drummer Abe Laboriel, Jr. (Paul McCartney, Sting) and cellist Richard Dodd, (Faith Hill, Foo Fighters).

STARS is the follow up to Mindi’s 2006 CD Life Less Ordinary, which debuted on Billboard’s Contemporary Jazz chart at #1; and spawned three #1 hit singles on Radio & Records. Her debut CD, It Just Happens That Way, stayed in the Top 10 for 19 consecutive weeks, and she was named the #1 most played Contemporary Jazz CD of 2003 by Jazz Week. Abair has established herself in the pop world touring with Adam Sandler, Mandy Moore, Josh Groban, Duran Duran and Backstreet Boys’ Millennium Tour; and her vocal song I Can Remember was featured in Aaron Spelling’s hit Summerland; while Every Time was featured in Robin Williams/Mandy Moore’s License To Wed.

For more information about Mindi and her new CD, STARS, in stores on May 6, go to http://www.mindiabair.com; myspace.com/mindiabair; or http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/albums/PKD-30637/.

Nina Simone's daughter, Simone, to release album

2008-01-16T12:05:00.000-06:00

SIMONE – NINA SIMONE’S DAUGHTER – RELEASES FIRST SOLO ALBUM TITLED SIMONE ON SIMONE APRIL 29, 2008 ON HIGH PRIESTESS/KOCH

On April 29, 2008, another generation of talent will be releasing her first solo album nationwide. Her name is Simone and she is the daughter of the legendary musical icon Nina Simone. She is her own woman, a singer, songwriter and performer whose ability to transcend genres echoes the tradition of her mother.

With the upcoming release of her first full-length album on High Priestess/Koch, Simone On Simone (a big band tribute to her mother produced by famed jazz musician and arranger Bob Belden), music lovers worldwide will discover the vocal dynamism that live audiences have witnessed for over a decade. Fortunate to have gotten over fifty of her mother’s original arrangements, Simone began working with producer Bob Belden (whose credits include work with Woody Herman, Donald Byrd, Mel Lewis and Dianne Reeves and extensive credits as a premier jazz reissue producer) on the recording project, culling eleven songs from Nina Simone’s repertoire, including one live performance on which her mother accompanied her and featuring one poignant and highly personal song, “Child In Me” which Simone fondly refers to as “my love song to my mother.” She succeeds admirably turning in tour-de-force performances on little-known gems from her mother’s recorded repertoire such as “Keeper Of The Flame,” “I H! old No G rudge” and “Don’t You Pay Them No Mind” (all from Nina Simone’s 1966 LP High Priestess Of Soul) as well as the reworking of such classics as “Feeling Good,” “Black Is The Color Of My True Love’s Hair” (given a completely new and original twist), “Work Song,” the spirited “(You’ll) Go To Hell” and swinging versions of “Love Me Or Leave Me” and Duke Ellington’s “Gal From Joe’s.”

Rounding out her first of many future albums: “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free” (the Billy Taylor tune closely identified with her mother as one of the potent message songs which were so much a part of Nina Simone’s catalog of music with themes of freedom, self-empowerment and justice for all) and “How Long Must I Wander,” a plaintive song that speaks to Simone’s own formative years traveling across the globe with her mother.

Chuck Mitchell, Koch Vice President of Jazz/Adult Music, states, “There are extremely rare occasions when you come across a musical performer and say to yourself: ‘This artist can do anything!’ Simone has inherited her mother’s charisma, but when she sings you immediately realize that she stands out on her own. We expect to hear Simone in a variety of musical settings going forward…this is just the beginning.” Blessed with a rich vocal range, an innate skill for lyrical interpretation and a soul-deep understanding of music as a means of healing, empowerment and celebration, Simone is very much her mother’s daughter, but she is most assuredly a multi-talented artist in her own right. !

Marian McPartland at 90

2008-01-16T11:52:00.000-06:00

March 20, 2008 marks the 90th birthday of one of the jazz world's living legends and the indefatigueable Marian McPartland has quite of year of celebrating ahead of her. She not only continues to tape her acclaimed weekly radio show, Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz for NPR, but will release her first studio cd in 9 years, TWILIGHT WORLD on March 11 from Concord Records.

"The Grande Dame of Jazz", an NEA Jazz Master, celebrates her 29th year as a Concord Records artist as well as 29 years at Piano Jazz. The new cd, TWILIGHT WORLD features her regular Piano Jazz trio of bassist Gary Mazzaroppi and drummer Glenn Davis and is rich with sumptuous ballads including some rarely heard Marian originals and a handful of tunes she has yet recorded in her nearly 100 sessions over the years. Ms. McPartland, known for her encyclopedic knowledge of the jazz repertoire even includes two riveting versions of compositions by jazz innovator Ornette Coleman. She also interprets tunes by her friends songwriters Alec Wilder ("Blackberry Winter"), Burt Bacharach ("Alfie") But, anyone who has listened to her playing on on the radio or in the concert hall will not be surprised by the breadth and diversity of Marian's adroit pianistic versatility and taste.

"I'm so happy to have done this album," she says. "It's nice to have something you're this happy with at this stage of life."

Among the celebratory events planned are the following:

• During her birthday week (March 19-23), Marian and her trio will perform at Dizzy's Club Coca Cola at Jazz@Lincoln Center in New York City with a bevy of very special guests each night. These shows will be taped and highlights will be heard in a very special 90th Birthday Celebration edition of Piano Jazz. Among the artists paying tribute over the week's shows will be Karrin Allison, Regina Carter, Jason Moran, Jeremy Pelt, Ken Peplowski, Chris Potter and many more to be announced shortly. Dizzy's intimate setting, stellar sound and breathtaking view of the skyline over Central Park makes if one of the world's best venues to catch a jazz master & her friends at work.

• Another milestone for Ms. McPartland came this past November 15 and can be heard this April on NPR. On that day, Marian headed to Columbia, SC where she debuted her composition for symphony and improvised piano, "A Portrait of Rachel Carson". This is Marian's loving tribute to one of the environmental movements early heroes. Carson's book, "Silent Spring" was a groundbreaking work exposing the dangers of DDT and environmental carelessness years before such daring writing was widespread.

Long an admirer of Carson's book and a staunch environmentalist herself, McPartland penned the tribute and collaborated with renowned jazz and film pianist/arranger Alan Broadbent who sculpted the orchestrations around McPartland's piano based compositions.

Marian performed this piece with the University of South Carolina Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Dr. Donald Portnoy. The premiere was recorded and will be the centerpiece of a special Earth Day edition of Piano Jazz to be broadcast on NPR the week of April 21st, which will be co-hosted by a very special guest, musician and environmentalist Paul Winter.

* A yearly tradition for Ms. McPartland has been her Labor Day weekend appearance at the Tanglewood Jazz Festival. Each year her sold out shows are taped for popular live versions of Piano Jazz. Past programs from Tanglewood have featured Marian with guests such as Renee Rosnes, Elvis Costello and Diana Krall, Norah Jones, and Taylor Eigsti. This year will find multiple guests paying tribute and collaborating with Marian onstage in the beautiful setting Tanglewood provides in another star-studded birthday bash.

Read Marshall Bowden's piece, Marian McPartland Swings! written several years ago, based on an interview he conducted with her.

Blue Note Studio Notes, New Releases.

2008-01-12T16:36:00.000-06:00

Check out this link to Blue Note's Studio Update for January 2008. Currently recording or wrapping up new releases for the label are: Al Green, Amos Lee, Eric Darius, Dianne Reeves, Cassandra Wilson, Patricia Barber, The Wood Brothers and Aaron Parks. Read about their upcoming projects and then stay tuned to Jazzitude for reviews and other information about these releases!

We've also updated our Forthcoming Releases schedule. Lots of great new releases coming in the first half of 2008!!

Oscar Peterson dead at 82

2007-12-27T17:20:00.000-06:00

Pianist Oscar Peterson has died at the age of 82. The Canadian-born musician succumbed to kidney failure on December 23, 2007. During his career Peterson recorded some 200 albums, winning eight Grammy awards. In 1997 he was honored with a Grammy for lifetime achievement.

Peterson one of the last of a long line of descendents of the Harlem piano professors like James P. Johnson as well as the virtuosic Art Tatum. In his early years Peterson was also influenced by Teddy Wilson and Nat “King” Cole. This helps explain the complete nature of Peterson’s playing. He was both a virtuoso who could unleash flights of technical fancy that few pianists could match and a superbly swinging pianist whose ability to get listeners tapping their toes demonstrated his roots in, and understanding of, blues, gospel, boogie, and stride piano. He was the complete package, and no pianist who came along afterward could remain uninfluenced by this keyboard giant.

I saw Peterson several times. The first couple of times I saw his was in the late 1970s, when I was in my teens and he was touring regularly and recording for the Pablo Records label. My father greatly enjoyed Peterson’s playing, recognizing that Oscar was a technically advanced pianist, but I think it was Petereson’s ability to swing that really hooked him. As I studied both classical and jazz piano, he introduced me to Peterson’s recordings and got tickets to see Peterson. I remember one of these shows, featuring Peterson, guitarist Joe Pass, and the Count Basie Orchestra at Chicago’ McCormick Place. I watched awestruck as this solitary figure, alone on the stage with just a grand piano, filled the large auditorium with robust stride bass notes, impossibly funky blues, and mind-bendingly speedy right-hand gymnastics. Yet, even at his most frenetic, the flow of coherent musical ideas and the seeming ease with which he executed them was difficult to believe. My initial reaction was much like Peterson’s upon first being introduced to Art Tatum’s recordings by his father: one of utter despair, because I knew that no one, least of all me, would ever likely equal his pianistic abilities, much less surpass them.
I also saw Peterson following his comeback from a stroke, at the Ravinia Festival in the summer of 1994. His technique was diminished, and he relied more heavily on left-hand comping, outlining chords more sparsely than in the past, but it says much about the pianist’s incredible talent that he nonetheless was still one of the best jazz pianists around.

Peterson had a special affinity for Chicago, which produced a number of excellent jazz pianists over the years, and where the Oscar Peterson Trio was a regular feature in the 1950s and on into the ‘60s; at clubs such as Mr. Kelly’s and the London House. Though those clubs, like many others, closed in subsequent decades, Oscar continued to be in constant demand, performing at auditoriums and concert halls around the world.

Peterson’s passing is indeed the passing of an era in jazz music. No one since Art Tatum has been so widely lauded or universally recognized as a piano great, and few pianists these days demonstrate Peterson’s knowledge of all eras and styles of the instrument. To say that Oscar Peterson will be missed is an understatement of enormous proportions. Rather, he will be lamented as one of the last of a certain breed of jazz pianist, and we won’t see his like again anytime soon.

JOEL DORN (April 7, 1942 - December 17, 2007)

2007-12-18T23:54:00.000-06:00

Joel Dorn, a multiple Grammy Award-winning record producer who first made a name for himself while at Atlantic Records in the late 1960s and early '70s, died on Monday, December 17, from a heart attack, in New York City at the age of 65. One of the most prolific producers of his time, Dorn's discography stretches from the multi-platinum soul sounds of Roberta Flack to the black classical music of Rahsaan Roland Kirk. He helped introduce the world to Bette Midler's diva swing and the funky New Orleans' R&B of The Neville Brothers. His name can be found on the back of classic recordings by Les McCann and Eddie Harris, Mose Allison, Yusef Lateef, Leon Redbone, Peter Allen, Don Mclean, The Allman Brothers Band, David "Fathead" Newman, Donny Hathaway and Mongo Santamaria to name just a few. "It's impossible to pick a highlight," Dorn once said. "If one record was a highpoint because of great sales, there's another to match it for the incredible fun that went into making it and another that achieved its intended artistic vision."

From an early age, Joel Dorn knew he wanted to be in the music business, and not just anywhere in the business; Dorn knew he wanted to work specifically for Atlantic Records. At 14-years old, he began correspondence with the label's co-founder Nesuhi Ertegun. "I'd send letters telling him who I thought they should have duet with Ray Charles, what talent they were missing out on, all sorts of critiques and suggestions," remembered Dorn.

In 1961, he officially began his career as a disc jockey at the pioneering Philadelphia jazz radio station WHAT-FM. "The DJ gig was a great way to get to know all the record companies, and get involved in the business, but I had my heart set on producing the entire time," remembered Dorn.

Nesuhi Ertegun, who'd now been corresponding with Dorn for six years, finally began to take those opinions seriously. "My show had become popular in the Philly market, and I think Atlantic realized that I was becoming instrumental in breaking records for them on a regional level,” figured Dorn. "Before long the letters turned into telephone calls and I eventually met Nesuhi."

As fate in 1963 would have it, Ertegun offered Dorn the chance to produce one record by an artist of his choice for Atlantic Jazz. Dorn chose Hubert Laws, a young flutist he had seen in Philly performing with Mongo Santamaria's band. The resulting album, The Laws of Jazz, would become the first of countless record production credits to follow.

By 1967, Dorn joined Atlantic Records full-time as Nesuhi Ertegun's assistant. He was given the opportunity to sign artists, produce their records and become intricately involved with the promotion and marketing. Rising quick through the ranks, Joel, along with Nesuhi and Ahmet Ertegun, Jerry Wexler, Arif Mardin and Tom Dowd became part of the most formidable record producing team of all time. Focusing primarily on jazz and R&B recordings, Joel developed a production style that was unique to the time period. "I brought pop techniques and pop sensibilities to jazz and R&B records,” recalls Dorn. "As a producer I had two gigantic influences: Lieber and Stoller and Phil Spector. To this day before I go in and make a record, I'll throw on 'Be My Baby' or a Coasters' record."

His work at Atlantic Records with Roberta Flack on "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Killing Me Softly" won two consecutive Grammy Awards for "Record Of The Year." Additional Grammies were soon to follow including "Jazz Record Of The Year" for Keith Jarrett and Gary Burton. Joel also went on to sign Bette Midler and co-produce her debut album The Divine Miss M. "Some of the best times I've ever had involved recording artists who were completely unknown at the time like Roberta and Bette, and then watching them ascend to national prominence," Dorn exclaims. "It's a great feeling to put your faith in a young artist who you believe in and see them flourish."

In 1974, after accumulating ten Gold albums, five Platinum albums and seven Gold singles, Joel Dorn left Atlantic Records. He'd produce for a variety of labels and artists during this period, including albums by Leon Redbone, Lou Rawls, Don McClean, Peter Allen, Mink Deville and The Neville Brothers. He was awarded yet another Grammy for "Best Country and Western Instrumental" with Asleep At The Wheel's "One O'Clock Jump," and received two more Gold records for the Leon Redbone albums On The Track and Champagne Charlie.

In the mid-1980s, Dorn scaled back the hectic production schedule he'd maintained for the previous two decades. He took time off to travel the United States from ‘86 through ‘89, and in the process gathered hours upon hours of previously unreleased "live" recordings from many of his favorite artists. Four collections documenting Cannonball Adderley, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Les McCann and Eddie Harris were subsequently released on Joel's own label, Night Records. He later referred to these albums as "audio verite." It was through this short-lived venture that Dorn began to reinvent himself within the industry. He was soon asked to consult for the likes of Rhino, GRP and Columbia, which were in the process of updating and reissuing their catalogs on CD. Joel produced a 13-CD historical overview of the Atlantic Jazz years for Rhino. His production on the 7-CD John Coltrane box set entitled The Heavyweight Champion earned him an additional Grammy-nomination, while collections by Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Oscar Brown, Jr. cemented Dorn's reputation as a preeminent audio documentarian and reissue producer.

In 1995, the Smithsonian Institute added Joel Dorn's works and papers to its collection in honor of his accomplishments as a record producer. By the end of that year, Dorn decided it was time to take another shot at running his own record label. He subsequently formed 32 Records, which focused on reissuing albums from the classic Muse and Landmark jazz vaults, as well as select titles from Atlantic Records. In the four years spent with the label, Dorn reissued over 250 titles, and produced the critically acclaimed Individually Twisted by the Jazz Passengers with Deborah Harry. His biggest commercial success of this period came after developing the Jazz For A Rainy Afternoon compilation series, which went on to become one of the best selling jazz sets in the history of the genre. "I'm proud of what we accomplished with 32 Records in such a short period of time. There was the continued effort to get all of Rahsaan Roland Kirk's albums back in print. There was a terrific Judy Garland box set and personally fulfilling Clyde McPhatter set. For better or worse, the Jazz For… series turned the industry on its ear, completely reshaping how jazz is marketed in this day and age," Dorn explained at the time. "I go into the record shops now and all these cats like Sonny Criss, Zoot Sims and Sonny Stitt are being reissued with intelligent price points and new packaging. To a certain extent, 32 tested the waters on that front and proved that these artists have an undying appeal. Nobody else was going there and now it's like every company in the world is looking for old jazz catalogs to reissue."

2007 marked Joel Dorn's 47th year in the record business. In a great loss to both American culture and music fans everywhere, it would be his last. Over the past decade, he'd produced albums by Jane Monheit, Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, Leon Parker, Janice Siegel and The Frank and Joe Show (featuring guitarist Frank Vignola and percussionist Joe Ascione). In 2003, Dorn helped create HYENA Records. The independent label forged an identity with an intriguing mix of new and archival recordings, including those by Bobby Darin, Thelonious Monk, Dr. John and Joe Williams.

At the time of his death, Dorn was completing a five CD box set for Rhino Handmade entitled Homage A Nesuhi, serving as a tribute to his mentor Nesuhi Ertegun and their years together at Atlantic Records. He was also the voice of Sirius Satellite Radio's "Pure Jazz" channel and was producing a series of music infomercials for Time Warner.

"I don't know how to do anything else. It's like if I don't do this what am I going to do? Sit in the park? I love doing stuff with music, with records. I enjoy it," Dorn once said about being a producer. "I know that might not be the great spiritual answer, but I really love making records."

Jazz Icons DVD series.

2007-11-09T17:22:00.000-06:00

We now have listings for the full Jazz Icons DVD series, including the box sets and the individual titles. Check here.

Jewel in the Lotus/The Struggle continues

2007-11-03T21:20:00.001-06:00

ECM Records has just issued two excellent backlist titles on CD for the first time. These are welcome and long-overdue additions to the active ECM catalog.

Bennie Maupin's Jewel In the Lotus features the multi-reedman along with Herbie Hancock, Charles Sullivan, Buster Williams, Frederick Waits, Billie Hart, and Bill Summers. While Maupin, Hancock, and Williams were all members of Hancock's groundbreaking Mwandishi band, the music on this album isn't much like the music produced by that group. In addition, it's not a heck of a lot like other avant-garde music of the day (1974). It is beautiful, otherworldly, and inspirational. I remember being very excited by this recording back when I was a saxophonist interested in the avant-garde—music like this just seemed to open up an entire universe of possibilities. Reacquanting myself with it now, I find that it's incomprehensible that this recording hasn't maintained a higher profile since its original release. Maupin has released some fine recordings over the years, but this has definitely been a significant missing piece of his discography. It's great to have it back in circulation—here's hoping it will continue to inspire future generations of musicians.

Also issued for the first time on CD is Dewey Redman's The Struggle Continues, a 1982 release that helps demonstrate the fact that while he was widely known as an 'outisde' player, he was nonetheless a Texas tenor man who could just as easily play ballads, blues, and other more mainstream jazz sounds. It's a recording that some consider Redman's best. That may or may not be the case (Ear of the Behearer is certainly in the running), but it is certainly an excellent recording that is deserving of a wider hearing (as is Redman's work in general). Redman plays here with Mark Helias, Ed Blackwell, and Charles Eubank, and the music ranges from the Ornette Coleman-ish "Then" to the soulful "Turn Over Baby."

Keep the backlist CD reissues coming, ECM!

Joe Zawinul dies at age 75

2007-09-11T16:18:00.000-06:00

Keyboard master, composer, and fusion figurehead Joe Zawinul passed away today at Vienna’s Wilhelmina Clinic. He was 75 years of age. Zawinul had been hospitalized since last month, suffering from Merkel cell carcinoma, a rare form of skin cancer. His hospitalization came after a European tour in celebration of the 20th anniversary of his most recent incarnation, the band Zawinul Syndicate.

Of course, Zawinul will be best remembered by the largest number of people for his association with the group Weather Report, a band that he helped found and which was one of the most successful and artistically interesting fusion bands of the day. Weather Report raised the bar for fusion bands, because they never played down to their audience—even their signature bona fide hit tune, “Birdland” has plenty of musical texture and complexity for anyone who listens beneath the surface.

Zawinul was born in Vienna and emigrated to the United States in 1959. He played with both Maynard Ferguson and Dinah Washington. In 1961 he began working with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, an association that would last for many years. Zawinul had a funky, blues/gospel piano style that was the perfect accent to Cannonball Adderley’s blues-drenched, bop-influenced sax work. Zawinul was also a gifted composer, creating tunes such as “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy,” “Walk Tall, “and “Country Preacher.” In addition, Joe began to play the Fender Rhodes electric piano, becoming one of the three musicians who would define the way that jazz music was played on electric keyboards (and, soon thereafter, synthesizers)—the others being Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea. As synthesizers became more viable, first as a studio instrument and then in the live setting, Zawinul quickly developed his own voice on the instruments. It sometimes seemed as if keyboard players might be rendered interchangeable by the advent of electronic instruments, as the earlier synths offered little in the ways of pressure-influenced keys or other factors that conveyed the emotions and individuality of the musician playing the instrument. Zawinul had no problem creating a synthesizer language, both in terms of the sheer sound itself and his ability to combine synth voices that had some of the warmth of a full big band or orchestra, all without trying to explicity mimic the sounds of other instruments. From his groundbreaking, atmospheric (at times approaching what became known first as ‘ambient’ and then as ‘chill’ music) work on Miles Davis’ albums In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew to his very different work through several phases of Weather Report and, finally, Zawinul Syndicate, Joe Zawinul was always a recognizable muisical voice and a forward-looking musician always interested in exploring new sounds and ideas.

Another important element of Zawinul’s music is what came to be called ‘the groove.’ Just as with the term ‘swing’ the term ‘groove’ has a special, somewhat indefinable quality that has to be heard to be appreciated. And Zawinul was always in the groove, from his funky work with Cannonball to his work with Weather Report and beyond. His last recording to be released before his death, Brown Street, is a live performance from 2005 featuring a stellar Zawinul-led group surrounded by big band arrangements and soloists to create a new approach to some of his best Weather Report and Zawinul Syndicate compositions. But the music grooved fiercely, a precondition to any Zawinul project, it would seem.

Like his former employers, Mssrs. Adderley and Davis, Joe Zawinul was never content to continue to do the same old thing. He devoted his entire life to music, and in doing so helped expand all of our sonic landscapes dramatically. If you doubt that, put on the opening section of Miles Davis’ “In a Silent Way” from the album of the same title. The title track, Zawinul’s composition, sounds like it might have been crafted on some digital DJ’s G5, its aesthetic not out of context with the concept of the chill out room. Zawinul will be missed because he contributed mightily to the music we call jazz, expanding its definition along with a handful of other pioneers, and he gave electric jazz fusion an emotional language and a human feeling that many others lacked.

On the Corner Box Set coming in September

2007-08-24T15:43:00.000-06:00

On September 18, 2007, Columbia/Legacy will release the six-disc box set The Complete On the Corner Sessions by Miles Davis. This set will chronicle the creation of music which was made during 1972. Music from these sessions appeared on the Davis albums On the Corner, Big Fun, and Get Up With It.

On the Corner is still highly controversial today, more than thirty years after its release. This music is what eventualy influenced the first turntablists and mixers who created what would become hip-hop music. Jazz critics have always reserved a special hatred for the album. Once the music on this box set was in the can, Miles practially stopped recording, concentrating on bringing his Afro-centric funk/electronic noise to live audiences. While these performances were documented in the Japanese (and evenutally, U.S.) releases Pangea and Agharta, they were sparsely recorded. Davis' live band, consisting of Davis, Michael Henderson, Al Foster, Mtume, Reggie Lucas, and Dominique Gaumont, augmented with Pete Cosey and Sonny Fortune did cut new material for Get Up With It, but overall, the music here was Miles' final grand studio statement of the 1970s.

Disc 1:
1 On the Corner [unedited master]
2 On the Corner [take four]
3 One and One [unedited master]
4 Helen Butte/Mr. Freedom X [unedited master]
5 Jabali

Disc 2:
1 Ife
2 Chieftain
3 Rated X
4 Turnaround
5 U-Turnaround

Disc 3:
1 Billy Preston
2 The Hen
3 Big Fun/Holly-wuud [take 2]
4 Big Fun/Holly-wuud [take 3]
5 Peace
6 Mr. Foster

Disc 4:
1 Calypso Frelimo
2 He Loved Him Madly

Disc 5:
1 Maiysha
2 Mtume
3 Mtume [take 11]
4 Hip-Skip
5 What They Do
6 Minnie

Disc 6:
1 Red China Blues
2 On the Corner/New York Girl/Thinkin' of One Thing and Doin' Another/Vote for Miles
3 Black Satin
4 One and One
5 Helen Butte/Mr. Freedom X
6 Big Fun
7 Holly-wuud

Bassist Art Davis dies at age 73

2007-08-04T08:50:00.000-06:00

Bassist Art Davis has passed away at the age of 73. Davis was perhaps best known as a bassist with John Coltrane on the albums "Ascension," "Africa Brass Sessions" and "Ole Coltrane." Davis also played with many other jazz and popular music greats, including Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington, Rhasaan Roland Kirk, Judy Garland, Peter, Paul & Mary, and Bob Dylan.

Also a classical bassist, Mr. Davis filed lawsuit in the early 1970s against the New York Philharmonic alleging discrimination in hiring. The lawsuit was unsuccessful, and Davis was effectively blacklisted for nearly 10 years afterward. This prompted Davis to return to school, graduating with a doctorate in clinical psychology from New York University in 1981. Davis continued to work as a musician while practicing psychology.

Davis died of a heart attack in his Long Beach home, according to his son Kimaili Davis.

The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival: 50 Years

2007-07-18T14:08:00.000-06:00

Monterey Jazz Festival Releases

The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years

By Keith and Kent Zimmerman

Foreword by Clint Eastwood

Designed by Jerry Takigawa

July 17, 2007; Monterey, CA; The Monterey Jazz Festival, a leader in jazz education since 1958, is pleased to announce the release of The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years, a celebratory coffee-table sized book which captures the MJF experience through posters, program covers, and exclusive photographs dating back to 1958.

The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years celebrates the historic images that were created to promote and memorialize the Festival. In the last 50 years, the MJF posters have become legendary for their representation of the time, place and attitude. >From the early days when the posters were created as hand-pulled silkscreens to the present era with contemporary prints produced through the offset process, The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years features reproductions of posters by such artists and designers as Earl Newman, Eldon Dedini, Batista Moon Studios, Judy Anderson, Ron Grauer, Harry Briggs, Jeeun Lee and the book’s designer, Jerry Takigawa. The posters feature abstract and figurative designs and are noted for their constantly striking and memorable images. Vintage MJF posters are still on the market today as collector items, and are available at www.montereyjazzfestival.org.

“As we approached our 50th year, we wanted to have a book that showed literally the ‘art’ of the Festival,” says Tim Jackson, the General Manager of the Monterey Jazz Festival since 1992. “There have been so many posters that have stuck in our minds over the years, yet they had never been assembled in a single place. Some of them are so colorful; some from the early years approach the twenties’ Bauhaus movement, very dark, sparse and minimal. Some are more graphic, and some utilize photography with the classic image of the trumpet on the chair. The posters demonstrate the progression of the Festival's artistic statement, not just on stage, but how its images have changed over the years. It honors the people and artists who have made the Festival one of the leaders in the world of jazz.”

The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years includes a foreword written by legendary actor and filmmaker Clint Eastwood (a member of MJF’s Board of Directors), and a decade-by-decade look at the world and the Festival, explored through essays by noted music and culture writers Keith and Kent Zimmerman.

The essays reflect on both the history of the era, and the music that was produced. Punctuated by striking photographs of legendary musicians important to the history of the Festival, The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years is a visual cornucopia of graphics, words and photography. The book contains historical and contemporary photographs of legendary jazz musicians, captured by longtime Festival photographers Jerry Stoll, Tom Copi, Ron Hudson, Veryl Oakland, Tony Salazar, Craig Lovell, and Cole Thompson. A number of photographs from the archives of the Monterey County Herald are also featured--some of which have never been seen before.

Photographs include rare shots of Dizzy Gillespie (one of the influential artists who called MJF his home over the years), Duke Ellington, B.B. King, Herbie Hancock, Tony Bennett, Diana Krall, Dave Brubeck, Louis Armstrong, and many more. Striking the balance of historical precedent and aesthetic excellence, the photographs reveal an insight into the Festival and the artists.

Alongside the essays, posters and program covers, The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years also has a comprehensive list of artists who have performed at MJF since the beginning, including the 50th celebration which will take place September 21-23, 2007.

The book was designed by Monterey graphic designer Jerry Takigawa, who also has designed the posters for the Festival for the last three years. “From a design perspective, it’s fascinating to trace design and color trends of the artwork of the Festival across the decades,” said Mr. Takigawa. “Keith and Kent Zimmerman’s insightful narratives parallel design trends with music trends as well. The Art of Jazz is a tribute to all of the artists who performed at the Monterey Jazz Festival as well as the visual artists who captured each year in a form suitable for framing.”

The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years is released in celebration of the Monterey Jazz Festival’s 50th year, and is also an intriguing companion piece to the Festival’s previous publication, Monterey Jazz Festival: Forty Legendary Years which was released in 1997 and contains the history and story of the Festival, told by the noted jazz writer and critic William Minor, with photographs edited by Bill Wishner.

The 142 page book is now available for pre-order at the MJF website, montereyjazzfestival.org. It will be available at bookstores across the country on July 31, 2007.

Charles Mingus Sextet with Eric Dolphy/Cornell 1964 released!

2007-07-18T13:45:00.000-06:00

Out in stores today is the newly-released Charles Mingus Sextet with Eric Dolpy/Cornell 1964. This recently-discovered release is certainly the jazz find of the year so far in 2007. In much the way that John Coltrane/Thelonious Monk Live at Carnegie Hall and, to some extent, the live Coltrane document One Up, One Down, Cornell 1964 brings a major piece of jazz history into focus in the best way possible--with an actual recording that documents it.

In this case what we hear is a very first performance by the Mingus group that played a well-known concert at New York's Town Hall before embarking on a major tour of Europe and the 1964 Monterey Jazz Fesitval (a performance that is one of several the festival will be making available next month to celebrate its 50th anniversary). Mingus and Dolphy are joined by Clifford Jordan (tenor sax), Johnny Coles (trumpet), Jaki Byard (piano), and drummer Danny Richmond.

Along with the forthcoming Monterey release and the reissue of 1965's Music Not Heard at UCLA, there is an embarassment of riches from one of Mingus' most fertile periods becoming available for fans of the composer, arranger, bassist, and bandleader...

Full review available shortly. In the meantime, click here to purchase the CD, or click here to launch a player that allows you to hear excerpts from this release as well as see video.

Andrew Hill, 1931-2007

2007-04-20T14:54:00.000-06:00

I've been asked by composer and pianist Andrew Hill's family to
announce to the press that he died at 4 a.m. today, April 20, 2007,
several years after being diagnosed with lung cancer. He was 75 years
old and lived in Jersey City, NJ.

Hill, born June 30, 1931 in Chicago, Illinois (contrary to some
previously published places and dates dates), had a lengthy
international career as performer and recording artist, and educator
(at Portland State University; he also gave master classes at New
York University, and elsewhere; he leaves a voluminous and highly
varied recorded legacy, dating from the 1950s (So In Love) to his
2006 trio album Time Lines (Blue Note), named to many critics' top
ten lists. Hill is survived by his wife Joanne Robinson Hill, and a
niece, nephew and cousin, besides a devoted coterie of friends,
typically creative artists and perceptive fans.

As announced on April 11, Andrew Hill will receive an honorary
doctorate of music degree from Berklee College of Music at
commencement May 12; other honorees "for their achievements in the
world of music, and for their enduring contributions to American and
international culture" this year are Gloria and Emilio Estefan, and
The Edge; this distinction has perviously been extended to Duke
Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Tito Puente, Quincy Jones and Ahmet
Ertegun, among a few others.

Andrew was voted Jazz Composer of the Year by the Jazz Journalists
Association four times, most recently in 2006; he received the 2003
JazzPar Award, and was one of the first to receive a Doris Duke
Foundation Award for jazz composers. His recordings have been on Blue
Note, Mosaic, Palmetto and Black Saint/Soul Note, among other labels.

Funeral and tribute information has not been determined.I first met Andrew in
1971, we kept in touch and became friendly, I regard him highly and
am enriched to have known him.

--Howard Mandel--

2007-04-14T13:30:00.000-06:00

Bennie Wallace emerged at the end of the 1970s, a tenor saxophonist who was influenced by both the mainstream post-bop jazz of the 1960s and the avant -garde that emerged in the middle of that decade and grew in influence throughout the '70s.

This is what James Eason, writing in Music Hound Jazz: The Essential Album Guide wrote about Wallace in the late '90s:

"Imagine Eric Dolphy and Sonny rollins (c.1964) 'walking the bar' in some old honky-tonk, playing Thelonious Monk tunes, and you'd have some idea of what Bennie Wallace sounds like. His honking, heavily arpeggiated style can sometimes sugges the saxophone's circus roots, but he provides enough humor, emotion, and intensity to remain a safe distance from the abyss."
Who better than Wallace to pay tribute to Coleman Hawkins, one of jazz music's most influential tenor players ever, a player who respected and embodied the romantic tone and melodic interpretation of the instrument in his own era, yet who was fascinated by the possibilities of increased harmonic interpretation of familiar melodies and who, far from dismissing early bop developments as did many of his contemporaries, instead championed the younger players and continued to learn from them? Wallace's latest disc, Disorder at the Border: The Music of Coleman Hawkins is a fantastic tribute to the tenor legend, because it gets both aspects of Coleman's music right, and the performances are great.
Wallace fronts a nine-man band, which forms a kind of mini-big band. There is a near full sax section with Wallace on tenor, two altos (Jesse Davis and Brad Leali) and a baritone (Adam Schroeder). Terell Stafford and Ray Anderson are the lone trumpet and trombone, respectively. Rounding out the band are Donal Vega on piano, Danton Boller on bass, and Alvin Queen on drums.
The band tackles a repertoire tha includes a couple of Hawkins compositions, some all-out blowing sessions, a Latinesque number, and two standards--Fats Waller's "Honeysuckle Rose" and "Body and Soul," the number most associated with Hawkins. The performances are tight, with lots of solo space for Wallace, naturally. His playing here is vital and energetic, with good use of his arpeggiated style to increase the harmonic variety of the compositions, while at other times the harmonic edge comes from the voicings of arranger Anthony Wilson. Stafford and Anderson play some nice solos, as does Vega.
Recorded live at Berlin JazzFest, Disorder at the Border is a really fine jazz album that is just what it says--nothing more, and certainly nothing less than the implications of its title and creator would suggest.

New Marsalis Music Honors Series CDs released

2007-04-10T14:50:00.000-06:00

Just released today are the latest entries in the Marsalis Music Honors Series, and this time the honorees are two legends of New Orleans music: Alvin Batiste and Bob French. Clarinetist and educator Alvin Batiste presents modern jazz with a New Orleans edge. His disc features many beautiful original compositions, including "Clean Air," "Bumps," "Bat Trad" and "Salty Dogs" as well as classics such as Hoagy Carmicheal's "Skylark." Musicians include Branford Marsalis and Russell Malone.

Bob French's disc features classic New Orleans music, including "Bourbon Street Parade," "Basin Street Blues," "Milenburg Joys," "When It's Sleepy Time Down South," and "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans?" Sitting in with French and his ensemble are Branford Marsalis and Harry Connick, Jr.

The two discs, taken together, represent a real history of the music of New Orleans in terms of where it came from and where it's headed. It's great that Marsalis Music decided to honor two NOLA musicians by recording them with great bands in excellent studios. The music of New Orleans can never be lost if it is documented in sound recordings for future generations to be inspired by. These are a couple of great discs that everyone interested in the New Orleans jazz tradition needs to hear!

MONTEREY JAZZ FEST: Lineup, Tickets

2007-04-04T10:22:00.000-06:00

The Monterey Jazz Festival Presented by Verizon celebrates its 50th in grand style as the artists who have shaped both the Festival and the history of jazz reunite with the stages that have made MJF the longest running jazz festival in the world. The world-renowned event takes place September 21-23, 2007 on the familiar oak-studded and beautiful grounds of the Monterey Fairgrounds, the location of the Festival since 1958. Featuring some of the biggest living legends in the jazz world, MJF/50 promises to be the key event of 2007 in the world of live music.

Tickets on sale Friday, March 30th on the Monterey Jazz Festival’s website,
http://www.montereyjazzfestival.org/ or by phone at (925) 275-9255.

A stellar list of artists will grace the Arena/Lyons Stage including Diana Krall, Sonny Rollins, Ornette Coleman, the Dave Brubeck Quartet featuring the legendary guitarist Jim Hall, John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension, the Gerald Wilson Orchestra, Los Lobos, bluesmen Otis Taylor and James Hunter, Cuban vocalist Issac Delgado and the supergroup of Dave Holland, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chris Potter and Eric Harland.

2007 MJF Artist-In-Residence, trumpeter Terence Blanchard, will appear with the MJF Chamber Orchestra, with his own quintet, with the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, and also with the MJF 50th Anniversary All-Stars, featuring James Moody, Nnenna Freelon, Benny Green, Kendrick Scott, and Derrick Hodge. MJF/50 Showcase Artist, Jim Hall, will appear with his own quartet, in duo with pianist Geoff Keezer, and with Dave Brubeck's Quartet. And MJF/50 Commission Artist, Gerald Wilson, will premiere Monterey Moods, his third milestone composition for MJF.

Arena artists also appearing on the Grounds include bluesmen Otis Taylor and James Hunter, guitarist Jim Hall, trumpeter Terence Blanchard, Gerald Wilson and his Orchestra, the MJF 50th Anniversary All-Stars, featuring Terence Blanchard, James Moody, Nnenna Freelon, Benny Green, Kendrick Scott, and Derrick Hodge; and bassist Dave Holland, appearing with Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chris Potter and Eric Harland.

Friday, September 21 will kick off the Festival with the multi-cultural and multi-dimensional talents of Cuban singer Issac Delgado; iconic bassist Dave Holland, appearing with Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chris Potter and Eric Harland in a special all-star band; and the influential and mesmerizing guitarist John McLaughlin. On the Grounds, the vibe will be no less electric with the New Grooves show in Dizzy’s Den being visited by three slices of funk bands from New Orleans, Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk, the Brass Funk Rock group Bonerama, and the jazz-inflected Papa Grows Funk.

Also on Friday night, in a meeting of genius minds, Jim Hall and Geoff Keezer will perform as an understated yet intense duo; the freewheeling guitarist Anthony Wilson and his Nonet will perform, and the cutting-edge pianist Craig Taborn and his Trio will forge new sounds. The Grounds will also feature the Terence Blanchard Quintet performing their visionary and rootsy brand of jazz, the straight-ahead groove of Along Came Betty,
and the gifted students of the Berklee-Monterey Quartet.

Saturday, September 22 will showcase a world of music from the blues to the symphonic, with the best-of-the-best in between. The Arena/Lyons Stage will rock in the afternoon with the raw blues sounds of artists Otis Taylor and James Hunter, followed by the legendary Los Lobos, featuring their own blend of blues, rockabilly, and Latin jazz, mixed with the music of their Mexican-American heritage. Evening on the Arena/Lyons Stage will turn from the blues to the highly anticipated debut of two large scale pieces—Artist-In-Residence Terence Blanchard’s Requiem for Katrina with the MJF Chamber Orchestra, and 2007 Commission Artist Gerald Wilson’s Monterey Moods, his third commission for the historic anniversaries of the Festival (25th, 40th, and 50th). The evening will end with the reigning queen of cool, Diana Krall in her third appearance at Monterey, her first MJF visit since 1999.

Saturday, the MJF grounds will witness an international cornucopia of blues, straight-ahead jazz, elegant vocalists, the avant-garde, jazz legends, and rising stars. Appearing will be the quartets of legendary six-stringers Jim Hall (MJF’s 2007 Showcase Artist) and Kenny Burrell, plus the electrified bluesy Mimi Fox Trio; rising young trumpeters Sean Jones and Christian Scott; the rollicking pianism of the Cyrus Chestnut Trio and the Shigeru Morishita Quintet; the radiant power of vocalists Ernestine Anderson and Lynne Fiddmont; the
trailblazing drummer Rashied Ali and his Quintet; and the down-home traditional and electric-trance blues of James Hunter and Otis Taylor. Also featured will be the blues supergroup, The Honeydripper All-Stars, who are the subject of the John Sayles new film Honeydripper, which will be previewed in the Festival's Jazz Theater. Gerald Wilson and his Orchestra will also perform on the grounds on Saturday, as will bassist Dave Holland, with Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chris Potter and Eric Harland.

Sunday, September 23 will cap off the 50th celebratory weekend in style, displaying the rich artistry of the living musical legends that have made Monterey the favorite jazz festival in the world (voted best jazz festival in the 2006 and 2007 JazzTimes Readers’ Poll), featured with the future stars of jazz. On the Sunday afternoon Arena/Lyons Stage, Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Big Band (winner of the 37th Annual National High School Competition at the Next Generation Festival) and the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra will take the stage along with Terence Blanchard. Ornette Coleman, one of the primary architects of jazz, will close Sunday's show, performing with his Grammy-nominated group.

Sunday night will offer a fitting culmination to the Festival's historic celebration with the premiere of the Monterey Jazz Festival 50th Anniversary All-Stars. Terence Blanchard, vocalist Nnenna Freelon, pianist Benny Green, legendary saxophonist James Moody, drummer Kendrick Scott, and bassist Derrick Hodge will perform; each has a strong connection with the Festival.

Blanchard is the 2007 Artist-In-Residence at Monterey, James Moody has been performing at Monterey since 1963, and Benny Green is a graduate of the Festival's world-renowned Jazz Education Programs, having performed as a high schooler with the Monterey Jazz Festival High School All-Star Big Band in the 1970s. Nnenna Freelon, a regular performer at MJF, also has connections with MJF Jazz Education Programs, having performed at the Festival's annual High School Jazz Competition. Kendrick Scott performed with the Berklee-Monterey Quartet at the Festival in 2000. This special group will tour across 60 cities in the United States, from January through March of 2008.

Sunday night will also witness the return of one of the patriarchs of the Festival, Dave Brubeck. Fans will be treated to a meeting of the minds as the Brubeck Quartet performs with a legendary architect and innovator of modern jazz guitar, Jim Hall, who also performed at the first Monterey Jazz Festival.

The finale on Sunday night will be the appearance of Sonny Rollins, the 6th time the legendary artist has performed at the Festival. The final night of the 50th Monterey Jazz Festival promises to rival the early MJF years, offering one of the most richly intense and memorable lineups in memory.

Sunday Grounds artist lineup will offer a gourmet selection of internationally known masters and young emerging talent. Audiences can enjoy the piano mastery of the Kenny Barron Trio and Jacky Terrasson, the unprecedented talents of Richard Galliano playing bebop accordion, and the jagged new music of the Smith Dobson V Quintet. The historic Monterey Jazz Festival 50th Anniversary All-Stars will also play a set on the Grounds, with additional appearances by MJF stalwart drummer Benny Barth and his Trio, featuring Buddy Montgomery. Also on Sunday will be the groove-oriented audience favorite, the "Hammond B-3 Blowout" featuring a double bill of the Joey DeFrancesco Trio and Atsuko Hashimoto Trio (with Houston Person and Jeff Hamilton).

Sunday marks the return of Family Day sponsored by Macy's, reprising the concept launched at the 2006 MJF. Family Day features activities and fun for fans and families of all ages, including a Percussion Playshop where kids can have a hands-on experience with percussion instruments, the “Jazzy Jumper” where kids can bounce the day away, musical entertainment by the Banana Slug String Band, Sambada, and the country’s best high school bands appearing in nearby Dizzy’s Den.

In a move to mark the Festival's 50th Anniversary and leave a legacy for future fans, MJF will open a brand new area and a brand new venue on the grounds of MJF/50.

Lyons Lane, named in honor of MJF founder Jimmy Lyons, will be an expansion of the grounds located adjacent to the Arena entrance on the Festival midway. As patrons stroll down the lane, they will relive the history, images, and music of the Monterey Jazz Festival in special MJF history displays. Partners–including Starbucks Coffee and ZonePerfect Nutrition Bars–will be distributing complimentary coffee and samples on
the Lane, while partners from Borders will be hosting autograph sessions with MJF artists at a Borders Store on Lyons Lane.

At the end of Lyons Lane, fans will discover a brand new MJF venue called Lyons Lounge. Lyons Lounge was established in honor of MJF's historic milestone and is dedicated to the future. The Lounge will offer
fans a hip jazz club, with DJ Logic and San Francisco DJ Vinnie Esparza remixing jazz, hip-hop, and dance music all weekend in a setting that promises to be the place to be at MJF/50.

The Festival is celebrating its 50th year with a range of activities and offerings. The milestone year will kick-off with a Golden Gala Celebration on April 7, 2007 at Tehama Golf Club. The evening will feature cocktails, dinner, entertainment, and the premiere presentation of the MJF Legends Award to Dave Brubeck. Space is still available as of this date. Fans are urged to contact mailto:cynthia@montereyjazzfestival.org?subject=Golden%20Gala%20Celebration%20Question or (831) 373-3366 for more information.

Other pre-Festival events include an evening celebration of art and jazz at the Monterey Museum of Art on June 26, 2007. The event will include a preview and private viewing of the museum's "Henrí Matisse: Jazz" exhibition and a concert with special guest Terence Blanchard. Reservations and information are available from the museum at (831) 372-5477 extension 20, or from http://www.montereyart.org/. 50 years of MJF images and memorabilia are also scheduled to be on display at Monterey Peninsula Airport this fall.

Art and jazz feature prominently in the Festival's new publication "The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival / 50 Years" telling the story of the Festival through its graphic imagery and photographic moments, capturing the MJF experience through posters, program covers, and exclusive photographs dating back to 1958. “The Art of Jazz” also includes a list of artists who have performed at MJF, along with a decade-by-decade look at the world and the Festival. "The Art of Jazz" will be available for purchase online at http://www.montereyjazzfestival.org/.

Another aspect of the festival will be seen—and heard—with the formation of Monterey Jazz Festival Records, in conjunction with the Concord Music Group. Since 1958, the Festival has recorded nearly all of its Arena shows, leaving us a true legacy, a living history of jazz. MJF is issuing these rare and rarefied recordings, along with recordings of new groups performing at the Festival, through Monterey Jazz Festival Records. Fans may sign up for the MJF e-mail list at http://www.montereyjazzfestival.org/ for more details and a release schedule.

MJF’s Front Box Auction presents another opportunity for jazz fans to enjoy the Monterey Jazz Festival while supporting Jazz Education. From March 30 until June 1, patrons can bid to sit at the front of the Arena with three of their closest friends in a Front Box for the 50th Anniversary. For more information, please visit http://www.montereyjazzfestival.org/.

During the Festival, fans are also encouraged to visit the MJF Booth in the center of the midway to participate in the MJF Silent Auction featuring unique jazz memorabilia and collector’s items, with all auction proceeds benefiting MJF Jazz Education Programs.

The Festival's 9th Annual Golf ‘n’ Jazz Tournament is a rare opportunity to play Pasadera, an outstanding Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course. This exclusive event includes a buffet lunch, jazzy gift bag, and golf with cart, plus an evening to remember at elegant Pasadera Country Club following the Tournament. The evening will feature cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, a sumptuous buffet dinner, a jazz concert and live auction, plus the golf awards ceremony. The Tournament takes place on Thursday, September 20, 2007; registration takes place by phone, (831) 373-3366 and online at http://www.montereyjazzfestival.org/. Fans are urged to visit the MJF website for more details about how to participate in this longtime MJF favorite. All proceeds are invested in MJF’s Jazz Education Programs.

The 3rd annual Jazz with Steinbeck event will offer fans an exclusive supper club evening in support of MJF’s Jazz Education Programs and the National Steinbeck Center’s Youth Programs. This very special event takes place on Wednesday, September 19 from 5:30 pm to 10:00 pm at the unique National Steinbeck Center, with jazz entertainment by Kim Nalley, Ed Reed, and the Jazz Birds, and a bountiful dinner by celebrity Chef Cal Stamenov. Jazz with Steinbeck is sponsored by Scheid Vineyards, Rabobank, and Lombardo and Gilles. The evening is limited to 150 people and reservations are available from the National Steinbeck Center at (831) 775-4723.

The Monterey Jazz Festival encourages jazz fans to purchase tickets early for the 50th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival Presented by Verizon. Arena Packages traditionally sell out and are available only on a first come, first served basis.

Tickets on sale Friday, March 30th on the Monterey Jazz Festival’s website,
http://www.montereyjazzfestival.org/ or by phone at (925) 275-9255.

MJF/50 Highlights Include:
Return of jazz legends Sonny Rollins, Ornette Coleman, Dave Brubeck, Diana Krall, and Jim Hall
World Premiere of Commission Artist Gerald Wilson’s Monterey Moods
Artist-In-Residence Terence Blanchard’s Requiem for Katrina with the MJF Chamber Orchestra
Dave Holland with Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chris Potter, and Eric Harland to record live sets for MJF Records
New venue, Lyons Lounge, featuring DJ Logic and Vinnie Esparza remixing jazz, hip-hop, and dance music
Premiere of MJF 50th Anniversary All-Star Band with James Moody, Nnenna Freelon, Terence Blanchard, and Benny Green
Friday’s "New Grooves in New Orleans" featuring Dumpstaphunk, Bonerama, and Papa Grows Funk
Sunday’s “Hammond B-3 Blowout” featuring the Joey DeFrancesco Trio and Atsuko Hashimoto Trio (with Houston Person and Jeff Hamilton)
Lyons Lane featuring MJF history, artist meet 'n' greets, complimentary coffee, and more in newly created area in honor of MJF/50
Return of Sunday's “Family Day” sponsored by Macy's, with fun for all ages
Debut of MJF coffee table art book, "The Art of Jazz: Monterey Jazz Festival/50 Years" featuring MJF images from the first Festival through the 50th
Launch of Monterey Jazz Festival Records, featuring the release of rare and rarified recordings from the last 50 years on CD in conjunction with Concord Music Group

Arena/Lyons Stage:
Friday, 9/21: John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension, Issac Delgado, Dave Holland with Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chris Potter and Eric Harland
Saturday, 9/22: Los Lobos, Otis Taylor, James Hunter, Diana Krall, Gerald Wilson Orchestra premiering Monterey Moods, Terence Blanchard Quintet w/Monterey Jazz Festival Chamber Orchestra featuring Requiem for Katrina
Sunday, 9/23: Ornette Coleman, Sonny Rollins, Dave Brubeck Quartet w/special guest Jim Hall, Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Big Band, and Monterey Jazz Festival 50th Anniversary All-Stars w/Nnenna Freelon, James Moody, Terence Blanchard & Benny Green

Partial List of Grounds Artists:
Friday, 9/21: “New Grooves in New Orleans” with Dumpstaphunk, Bonerama, and Papa Grows Funk; Terence Blanchard Quintet, Jim Hall/Geoff Keezer Duo, Craig Taborn Trio, Anthony Wilson Nonet, Along Came Betty, Berklee-Monterey Quartet, DJ Logic, and Vinnie Esparza
Saturday, 9/22: Gerald Wilson Orchestra, Dave Holland with Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chris Potter and Eric Harland, Jim Hall Quartet, Kenny Burrell Quartet, Ernestine Anderson, Rashied Ali Quintet, Christian Scott, Cyrus Chestnut Trio, Lynne Fiddmont, Mimi Fox Trio, James Hunter, Otis Taylor Band, Honeydripper All-Stars, Sean Jones, Shigeru Morishita Quintet, Sambada, DJ Logic, and Vinnie Esparza
Sunday, 9/23: “Hammond B3 Blowout” with Joey DeFrancesco Trio and Atsuko Hashimoto Trio (with Houston Person and Jeff Hamilton); Kenny Barron Trio, Jacky Terrasson, Benny Barth Trio with Buddy Montgomery, Richard Galliano, Smith Dobson V Quintet, Sambada, “Family Day” with the Banana Slug String Band; DJ Logic, Vinnie Esparza, the country’s best high school bands, DownBeat Blindfold Test and more!

Tickets on sale Friday, March 30th on the Monterey Jazz Festival’s website,
http://www.montereyjazzfestival.org/ or by phone at (925) 275-9255.

Robin Eubanks Releases Live Vol. 1

2007-04-04T09:46:00.000-06:00

ROBIN EUBANKS & EB3RELEASE LIVE VOL. 1 ON RKM RECORDS

Multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and educator Robin Eubanks has been using electronics to augment the sonic palette of his trombone for more than 15 years. His latest project, EB3 was created for the expressed purpose of exploring modern technology in the context of his live performances, while also advancing the art of trombone in general. All three members of the EB3 collective share a love for jazz, funk, and rock, not to mention a musical fluency in odd meters. Additionally, the band follows one guiding principle whereby each member must fulfill roles ordinarily handled by two or more musicians.

Robin's new project- a DVD-CD combo entitled LIVE VOL. 1, released on Ravi Coltrane's RKM Records, features Eubanks' signature original compositions. Eubanks uses various effects and processors to alter the trombone sound, including effects that emulate electric guitar. He also uses percussion pads with programmed sounds and creates on-the-spot arrangements using looping techniques, thereby accompanying himself (sometimes several times over) on both trombone and percussion pads.

The DVD portion of LIVE VOL. 1 highlights the band's multi-dimensional skills on five tracks- "Me, Myself, and I," "Mojo Jojo," "Solo Latin," "Blues for Jimi Hendrix," and "X-Base." The DVD illustrates each musician's dexterity handling more than one musical role each. Each member of the band plays bass parts on keyboards at different times. Drummer Kenwood Dennard, whose history with Eubanks dates to the mid-1980s, is able to play a full drum set with his right hand and feet while at the same time playing bass lines on keyboard with his left hand. Fellow Philadelphia native Orrin Evans plays melodies, chords, applies textures and solos, while also filling in on bass parts in his left hand. This innovative and deceptively effortless approach delivers exciting and energetic group play often sounding like a much bigger ensemble.

Robin Eubanks is the premier jazz trombonist of his generation. An original and present member of multi-GRAMMY award-winning Dave Holland Quintet and Dave Holland Big Band, Eubanks has not only played trombone in both bands, but has contributed multiple compositions and arrangements for Holland's acclaimed groups. His musical influences range from James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone and Led Zeppelin to Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane to Béla Bartók and Igor Stravinsky. He lacks musical boundaries.

"My compositions can change fluidly from swing to funk to Latin to 11/8 or 7/4 without sounding forced or awkward," explains Eubanks. "This allows me to draw upon all of my experiences. I have the freedom to create forms that unite diverse influences into new structures that are organic."

Release Date: May 8

New Poncho Sanchez album May 22

2007-04-04T09:40:00.000-06:00

GRAMMY® winner Poncho Sanchez will be releasing his first record in two years, Raise Your Hand (Concord Picante) on May 22, 2007. For Raise Your Hand, Poncho called on an array of guest artists to create a record that combines his bedrock Latin jazz style inherited from Cal Tjader, Tito Puente, and Mongo Santamaria with the funky brand of R&B and soul music that inspired him as a teenager in the 1960s. Poncho pays homage to his soul heroes as legendary Eddie Floyd, along with Stax icon Booker T. Jones and his Mgs guitar player, Steve Cropper, add their funky licks to Floyd classics “Knock On Wood” and the title track, “Raise Your Hand.” Puerto Rican sonero Andy Montañez, Cuban vocalist José “Perico” Hernández, and renowned saxophonist Maceo Parker all bring their unique flavor to the project.

The early career of Poncho Sanchez began as the youngest of 11 children listening to his older sisters groove on the mambo, cha-cha, and the other popular music of the day. He taught himself to play the congas and performed as often as he could. In his high school days in Norwalk, California, Poncho sang in an R&B group. Poncho’s real break came when he met Latin music luminary, Cal Tjader. Tjader, who inspired the formation of the Concord Picante label to promote and distribute his music, served as Poncho’s mentor and bandleader for nearly eight years. Poncho eventually started recording his own albums as a leader for the same label. Since then, he has become a world renowned percussionist and has been voted the number one percussionist in both DownBeat and Jazz Times reader’s polls for the past three years. He remains the preeminent Latin jazz leader on Concord Picante, carrying the torch for Cal Tjader and Latin jazz. Throughout his career, he has covered hits by James Brown and other soul gurus and has recorded with a long list of R&B royalty, including Ray Charles, Tower of Power, The Crusaders’ horn section, Sam Moore, and Billy Preston.

“Raise Your Hand demonstrates all the reasons that Poncho is so beloved,” says album producer and Concord Records’ Executive Vice President of A&R, John Burk, “He brilliantly and seamlessly combines authentic Latin jazz with roots soul music.”

“I love soul music -- the whole thing, from Motown and Stax to James Brown,” Poncho readily admits. But the conguero will always stay true to the Latin jazz style he has come to master and define. “When we perform, I tell people, ‘This is Poncho Sanchez and his Latin Jazz Band,’” he concludes, strongly accenting the words “Latin jazz.”

Two recent Mario Adnet releases from Adventure Music

2007-02-25T10:06:00.000-06:00

Adventure Music , the label started by Mike Marshall that continues to expose North Americans and the rest of the world to great current Brazilian music, has released a torrent of great music, which I hope to cover over several blog entries. In the meantime, the latest release is from Mario Adnet, and is entitled Jobim Jazz. The CD focuses on brass arrangements of thirteen Jobim compositions. Yet, despite the big band sound, the rhythm section, driven along by Adnet's guitar work, remains distinctly and authentically Brazilian. In this sense, Jobim Jazz manages to truly combine the jazz and Brazilian idioms without promoting one aesthetic over another.

So, while there is a jazzy aesthetic to pieces such as "Tema Jazz" or "Surfboard," they are far above the sound of many hackneyed arrangements of this type of music heard at the time of its popularity in the U.S. in the late '50s and early '60s. These are really fresh-sounding arrangements by a musician who understands Jobim's work from a Brazilian cultural perspective very well.

The brass effect can be striking, as on the opening "Domingo Sincopado," which basically recalls American big band performances based on Latin rhythms that were suave, urban, and sophisticated. At other times, as on "Quebra Pedra" it can be more subtle, with the horns trading off lead voice with accordian and Adnet's guitar. This is a masterful CD that anyone who enjoys Jobim or Brazilian music will enjoy. Ditto if you like big band Latin or are interested in arranging.

Last year Adnet released a disc of his own original work entitled From the Heart. That disc featured Adnet playing new arrangements of his tunes from mostly the 1970s, with one brand new track (the title track). Joining Adnet is a stellar cast of musicians, including pianist Marcos Nimrichter, percussionist Armando Marcel, trombonist Vittor Santos, guitarist Ricardo Silveira, and many others. Santos is a welcome presence with his warm trombone sound (Santos also has a disc under his own name on the Adventure label--more about that in a subsequent post).

"Walking Song," a recent composition, makes excellent use of Joao Donato's piano work and some gentle flugelhorn and trumpet playing by Jesse Saddoc. "I started to write this song at the end of the 90s" says Adnet in his liner notes, "and I could imagine, even then, the touch of Joao Donato's piano." Other standout tracks include "Salsatlantic," a previously unrecorded composition, and two compositions by others--Claudio Santoro's "Paulistana #1" featuring the gorgeous wordless vocals of Monica Salmaso, and Guarnieri's "Danca Negra."

Along with other artists who keep Brazilian music alive at its roots while finding new ways to express themselves musically, Mario Adnet shows the staying power of Brazilian music. I think Brazilian music works so well in a jazz context because, like jazz, it is a combination of many elements, some of which it shares with jazz. There are African and Carribean influences, and on top of that there are Portuguese elements as well as influences of indigenous peoples. Like jazz, Brazilian music finds ways to bring new musical elements in without diluting the main vein of whatever it is that defines the music.

More Mario Adnet releases

Brubeck Festival 2007, Stockton, California

2007-02-24T14:57:00.000-06:00

(Stockton, California, February 20, 2007) Dedicated to jazz, contemporary concert music, lectures and symposia, Brubeck Festival 2007 will be held from April 11-15 in Stockton, California. An annual event that celebrates the musical, intellectual, and philosophical ideas of Dave Brubeck, this year’s festival is entitled Words with Music and honors the words and music of Iola and Dave Brubeck.

In its sixth year, the five day festival includes nine concerts, symposia and lectures centered on the University of Pacific campus. The festival’s centerpiece performance is on April 13, with an evening entitled “The Dave Brubeck Songbook.”

The concert will open with the Dave Brubeck Quartet and Grammy-nominated vocalist Roberta Gambarini ("* a true successor to Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Carmen McRae" Boston Globe) and concludes with a performance of the Cannery Row Suite, commissioned by the Monterey Jazz Festival in 2006 and to be performed at Brubeck Festival 2007 by the Dave Brubeck Quartet, Triple Play (including Chris Brubeck) and others.

Cannery Row Suite is “based on the John Steinbeck novel about the drifters and workers of old Monterey. . . [the work] includes a roadhouse blues number, a sing-along sea chantey and a pair of arias, wickedly difficult to pull off (Brubeck said he derived them from 12-tone rows) yet sounding a little like Gershwin” (San Jose Mercury News). The concert will be preceded by a presentation by Susan Shillinglaw, Scholar in Residence at the National Steinbeck Center.

Dave Brubeck, designated a “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress, continues to be one of the most active and popular musicians in the world today. Brubeck Festival 2007 is sponsored by the Brubeck Institute, which was established by the University of the Pacific in 2000 to honor its distinguished alumni Dave and Iola Brubeck. The mission of the Institute is to build on Dave Brubeck's legacy and his lifelong dedication to music, creativity, education, and the advancement of important social issues

New Marsalis Music Honors Series Releases

2007-02-24T14:53:00.000-06:00

MARSALIS MUSIC CONTINUES HONORS SERIES BY CELEBRATING TWO GIANTS OF NEW ORLEANS

CAMBRIDGE, MA – For the second set of recordings in its Honors Series, Marsalis Music places the focus on two of the most steadfast voices of New Orleans, the hometown of label head and producer Branford Marsalis. The discs, one of which features clarinetist Alvin Batiste and the other drummer Bob French, will be released on April 10 by Marsalis Music/Rounder Records.

“Watching the post-Katrina flood wash away so much of the city, my love for New Orleans was painfully confirmed,” Marsalis says. “These recordings are a tribute to just a small portion of the music my city has to offer.”

Marsalis Music Honors Alvin Batiste is the first recording in over a decade for the legendary clarinetist, composer and educator. In keeping with the Honors Series concept of bringing veterans together with musicians at the start of their career, Batiste is joined by pianist Lawrence Field and bassist Ricardo Rodriguez as well as guitarist Russell Malone, vocalist Ed Perkins and two former Batiste students – drummer Herlin Riley and Marsalis, who sits in on tenor sax. The program leans heavily on the original compositions with which Batiste redefined notions of New Orleans music. “Along with my father and a few others,” Marsalis notes, “Alvin was part of a small group of Crescent City musicians dedicated to playing modern jazz in a city as far away from the urban environment where modern jazz thrived as any you could imagine. His playing and writing prove that, at any age, true `modernity’ is more than a harmonic exercise – it’s a philosophical construct.”

The sounds are more traditional on Marsalis Music Honors Bob French, as befits the drummer, vocalist and radio personality who is about to lead the Original Tuxedo Band into its second century of continuous performance. The program, filled with classic compositions associated with the Crescent City, confirms Marsalis’ comment that “Bob’s recording should remind everyone that New Orleans is one of the only cities in our country with its own music.” French assembled a band for the occasion from among several generations of his musical associates, including his contemporary Bill Huntington on banjo; young protégés Leon “Kid Chocolate” Brown on trumpet and Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews on trombone; a pair of longtime associates in bassist Chris Severin (another Batiste pupil) and vocalist Ellen Smith; and two men who French has known and encouraged since they were kids – Marsalis, heard here on soprano sax, and pianist Harry Connick, Jr.

“I felt honored myself that both Alvin and Bob would allow me to share the stage with them in these recordings,” Marsalis admits. “Both discs are very special to me, because they pay tribute to two men who have inspired me, Harry and generations of other musicians with their tutelage, their wisdom and their friendship.”

The Honors Series, launched in 2006 with volumes featuring drum giants Jimmy Cobb and Michael Carvin, is designed to spotlight veteran musicians whose contributions often get taken for granted in multi-generational settings of their choice. The initial releases were extremely well received, with Marsalis Music Honors Michael Carvin being selected as one of the ten best jazz discs of 2006 by The New Yorker. As with the initial releases, the covers for the new volumes feature the images of noted photographer Lou Jones.

Marsalis Music Honors Alvin Batiste and Marsalis Music Honors Bob French join other recent releases on the label, including the Branford Marsalis Quartet’s Braggtown and Harry Connick, Jr.’s Chanson du Vieux Carré (the third volume of the Connick on Piano series), in showcasing diverse approaches that all represent the best in jazz music.

Bob French and his band (w/special guests Branford Marsalis and Harry Connick, Jr.), Alvin Batiste and his band, and the Branford Marsalis Quartet will be featured in the Jazz Tent at this year's New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on May 6. Harry Connick, Jr. will close the Festival on the Main Stage.