Tuesday, May 15

The Art of the Trio

Erroll Garner on the keys
I know you've heard me talk before about being a recent devotee to the piano trio. I am constantly amazed by the different sounds available to those three musicians. Today I was listening to one of the all-time classic jazz recordings: 'Misty' by Erroll Garner from the album 'Contrasts' (1954).

This song is such a classic that it would be easy to dismiss it, much the same way you could dismiss the Dave Brubeck Quartet's 'Take Five'. Dismiss 'Misty' at your peril! Some things are popular for a reason. It didn't hurt the legendary status of the song that Clint Eastwood made a movie called 'Play Misty For Me.'

Have a listen (and take a look) to a live version. He really did have a sound of his own. Perfect music for a blustery spring day.

Because you know how much I love to share music with you,  let's listen to the incomparable Johnny Smith's version. We need to discuss Mr. Smith some time soon!

Tuesday, May 8

The Piano Player in my Dreams is Named Phineas?

Though I have little acuity on the keys, when I dream I am often a gifted jazz pianist. I wake and feel certain that if I were to have a piano placed in front of me I would be able to play; that the unconscious ability would remain for at least a moment. They are vivid and joyous dreams.

the best men wear glasses
Today I realized that when I am dreaming, my piano playing sounds like that of Phineas Newborn, Jr.

Now I admit I have heard the name, and even heard some of his music but I never really heard it until today. That is, I never heard it while I was awake...

I read a great article at Jazz Profiles that prompted me to listen to his album 'Here Is Phineas' that features the great Oscar Pettiford on bass and Kenny Clarke on drums. The fact that the album is subtitled 'The Piano Artistry of Phineas Newborn Jr' should give you some idea of the breathtaking nature of the 23-year-old's recording debut. It's an incredible display of virtuosity that I can't recommend highly enough to fans of jazz piano.

Phineas, like Monk, Oscar Peterson and Art Tatum (quite the list of names to be placed with!) has a unique voice that will surely become instantly recognizable to me after a few more listens. I suspect my collection of Phineas (pronounced by him as 'Fine as' by the way) will be growing in the coming weeks. Lucky me!

I hope when I sleep tonight I will again sound like this.

Friday, May 4

What's Spinning Today

You know that I'm fond of the Modern Jazz Quartet and have written often about how they are one of my favourite bands of all time (one of many, admittedly...) but I am also a fan of vibes-master Milt Jackson's solo work.

For the most part, it is quite different from the MJQ since that band's music was largely arranged by pianist John Lewis and had a healthy dose of classical music infused into their sound. His solo work tends to be more bop oriented, which makes sense since he did hone his chops in Dizzy Gillespie's band in the '40s. It was there he first played with John Lewis.

The story goes that when the horn players took an intermission, this rhythm section would remain onstage and soon enough decided to leave Dizzy's band to explore their own sound. In 1952 Percy Heath joined the band and then three years later Connie Kay replaced Kenny 'Klook' Clark and the foursome would go on to greatness.

Even though the MJQ toured and recorded regularly, Milt Jackson also recorded under his own name with many of the biggest names in jazz including John Coltrane, Oscar Peterson and Wes Montgomery.

Milt ringing those bells
This morning I was taken by 'Sandra's Blues' from the album 'Bean Bags' (1959). (Milt Jackson's nickname was 'Bags', which in a genre full of classic nicknames such as Klook, Bird, Duke, Lady Day, this ranks as one of the worst... but what's in a name, right? At least it's not as lame as Mel Torme's nickname: The Velvet Mist...) This track features the breathy sax of Coleman Hawkins and the guitar work of a young Kenny Burrell.

A great song to begin a Friday. Enjoy!

Thursday, May 3

Black Coffee in the Morning

the happy couple, pre-Playboy
On my way to the office this morning, just before I pulled off to buy a morning cup, 'Black Coffee' began to play.  This is one of my favourite standards and my preferred version is by the Stan Kenton band, arranged by Bill Holman, and while I am not typically a fan of big band music, this arrangement swings. Ann Richards never sounded better than she did on this song. She was 19 and new to Stan Kenton's band and Stan, aged 43, married her shortly after she joined the group and by all accounts, in spite of the difference in their ages, they had a perfect marriage. They had two kids together and all was going well until the sixth year of marriage for when she posed in Playboy magazine without telling him... Imagine a little something like that coming between a couple!

Ann came to a sad end, like so many in jazz, so instead let's think about her days as a drop dead gorgeous singer with one of the most popular bands in jazz. Have a listen to her and Stan play 'No Moon at All' from the album 'Two Much' they put out shortly before the marriage fell apart.

Doesn't the album title seem too perfect considering the drama that was about to befall them? Where is the Hollywood movie about their time together? Time to call my agent! I'll start writing it tonight!

I wish you would have been there driving with me this morning to hear Ann sing 'Black Coffee' so perfectly. Unfortunately, this particular version isn't available on the web, so you will instead get to enjoy Peggy Lee's fine rendition.