Fabulous Flamenco on a Winter's Morn

Miles & Bill - I wish they had recorded 100 albums together...

Friends, I know I've spoken a great deal about spending a lot of time listening to lesser known jazz musicians and while this is true, the track that accompanied me through my drive to work on this unseasonably mild January morning (what happened to northern winters?) was the absolutely lovely "Flamenco Sketches" from Miles Davis' seminal recording Kind of Blue. You know that I am in love with Bill Evans and to hear him playing with Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Paul Chambers, Cannonball Adderley and Jimmy Cobb... well it doesn't get much better than that, does it?

Enjoy this classic, my friends.

Kind of Blue is the best-selling jazz album of all time for a very good reason, don't you think? After all, I named it an Essential Album That All Humans Should Own, so I imagine you've already bought it, listened to it constantly like I did upon first hearing it, then rushed out and bought as much Bill Evans as you could afford.

So What!

On hold to talk to the government about this and that. 

What should be playing?

So What by Miles Davis.  Not a lousy Muzak version either, but the original recording!

Sure, the fidelity is terrible and I couldn't make out much of Miles' muted trumpet or Paul Chambers bass, but that song has a great mid-range. Bill Evans, Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley have my toes tapping.

Say what you will about the Canadian government, and believe me there's a lot I could say, (proroguing Parliament twice! slashing funding to the arts, to hell with the environment, etc etc etc) but I will give them their due: their on hold service has great taste in music!

Keep me on hold a little longer! I don't mind!

The Theme

Babies are asleep.
Malay Chicken in Coconut Milk is in the oven.

Paul Chambers is setting the mood with The Theme which he probably played every night when he was with the Miles Davis Quintet, (which had the stellar line-up rounded out by John Coltrane tenor, Red Garland piano and Philly Jo Jones drums).

[My wife didn't enjoy the track that was on previously: Charles Tolliver's attacking brilliance demonstrated on Impact. Hit it certainly does.  The electric bass has me playing this track several times a day in between the gentle tones of Walt Dickerson, of To My Queen fame. More on Charles Tolliver's in a later post, my friends.]

Just before dinner was prepared I read about Mr. Chambers in the new Monk biography, stating that when Monk first met Mr. Chambers through Coltrane:

Chambers was jazz's golden child... and Down Beat critics were about to anoint him 'New Star' on bass...

 I knew my faith in him was well placed.

Ahh, the basmati is ready.  Good night for now. Let's allow Cannonball Adderley's Somethin' Else to lead us to dinner.

Did You Know, #1

Julian 'Cannonball' Adderley's nickname derived from his large appetite.

In high school they called him 'Cannibal'.

How about that?