Curtis Amy and The Doors

My last post about Bud Shank (who I listened to a lot this weekend, which made for a wonderful soundtrack) had me thinking about another jazz great who was prominantly featured in a 1960s rock hit.

I am not a huge Doors fan but I admit they have a handful of classic tracks. I like the fact that their drummer, John Densmore, played mostly jazz before he joined the band and he felt that The Doors retained jazz elements. This is apparent in the great track 'Touch Me' which turns into a jazz-like number at the end. That great sax solo is played by Curtis Amy. Haven't heard of him?

That's a shame since he was a fine player who never got his due (yes, another jazz cliche in action) but had a fantastic aggressive tone and was surely the finest horn player to ever come out of Houston, Texas. Aside from doing studio work (not only did he play with The Doors but was also featured on Carole King's mega-selling Tapestry album) he put out some fine albums of his own in the 1960s that are worth exploring. How about listening to 'Bobblin' which he recorded with a top-notch band that included two of my favourites that I need to talk to you about soon: Carmell Jones on trumpet and Bobby Hutherson on vibes.

Bud Shank and the Mamas & Papas

I have been listening to a lot of Bud Shank lately and why not? Summer is approaching, the sun is shining and surely that's a perfect time to listen to the cool sounds of Bud Shank on flute, alto sax, or occassionally tenor or baritone sax. Over the course of his career he played with many of the greats, especially those other west coast fellows including Gerry Mulligan, Chet Baker, Art Pepper and Shorty Rogers.


What I didn't know, was that he did a lot of studio work in California during the 1960s. The bombshell is that he played that great flute line in 'California Dreaming'. I haven`t heard that song in years but I can still hum that wonderful solo.


I won`t post that song here since you can track that one down on your own.

Instead how about we listen to What'll I Do a great track he recorded with Bob Cooper. I mean, how often are you likely to hear the oboe in jazz? They were an amazing team and I highly recommend trackong down some of their recordings. In fact, Mosaic Records (are you getting tired of my talking about them yet?) put out a set of their recordings which has recently made the transition to a cheaper iTunes edition (called The Capitol Vault Series) and my friends, this music would make a fine soundtrack to your summer.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Mingus

want to listen to Mingus and smoke cigars?

Today Charles Mingus would have turned 90. He didn't even make it to his 60th birthday. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis robbed the world of one of the great musical geniuses of the 20th century.

I will try not to get too emotional (but you know how I can be...) so instead lets have a listen to one of his great tracks, Fables of Faubus, which features one of the several excellent bands Mingus ever put together, including the great Eric Dolphy on saxophone!

I will always love Mingus for being the musician that first introduced me to jazz a all those years ago in my parent's living room, and if you haven't heard the man's music, I encourage you to seek him out.

Wait! I can't stop at just one track. Mingus is so great that you should enjoy two. How about the incredible basswork on Haitian Fight Song? I am in awe of his talent as a composer and musician and I could post twenty songs for you and it would barely scratch the surface. If Mr. Hypothetical told me I could only listen to one jazz artist's recordings for the rest of my life, it would be Mingus.

Tyranny of the Drums

Jimmy's feeling it

I know my friends who are drummers aren't going to be fond of this post, (sorry G-Man, Achtung Baby and Dr. Rockmore...) but Jimmy Giuffre made a fascinating point:

Jimmy Giuffre complained about the 'tyranny of the drums' in jazz, and that the only non-tyrannical drummer was no drummer at all.

- from the liner notes to 'Herb Ellis Meets Jimmy Giuffre'

Now I am a fan of drums in jazz, but I can see Jimmy's point. He wanted the freedom that came without having that person whacking away behind him. As much as I love Art Blakey I don't think he would have added much to the beautiful trio Jimmy formed with Jim Hall. Once they added Bob Brookmeyer to the mix they had one of my favourite groups ever (yes, you keen readers will notice that I use the phrase 'favourite group ever' an awful lot... but cut me some slack... there are so many groups to love in jazz, surely you are learning this by now, aren't you?).

jazz in a peaceful setting

While he may have not liked playing with drummers, I would point out that one of my favourite Jimmy recordings is the album he made with the Modern Jazz Quartet (another of my favourite groups ever...) "The Modern Jazz Quartet at Music Inn." Perhaps he could work with Connie Kay's drumwork, since he did have a style all his own; one that fit perfectly with the rest of the band. He didn't the need to dominate the group. One of the things I love about the MJQ, and this recording in particular, is how well they play together and how well they compliment one another. Jimmy fits perfectly into this ensemble and it's a shame the five didn't record together more often. If you get a chance, listen to 'Fugue' or 'Fun' from this album.

Have a listen to the group play 'Serenade' from that concert, which must have been a treat for those in attendance.

[Feel free to ignore the video of the guy playing bass in this YouTube clip... focus on the fine music]

Oscar Pettiford: Another Bass Master Revealed

Friends, even those of you who are casual visitors to this site know that I have a fondness for the bass. Not only is this site named in honour of Charles Mingus, but I written at length about my man Paul Chambers as well as Scott LeFaro's masterful performances with the Bill Evans Trio. Well, I have more proof that even two decades of enjoying jazz will continue to reveal wonders. In this case, the wonder is Oscar Pettiford.

Listening to his music, the finest of which was recorded in the early to mid 1950s, he sounds like a bridge between the 1940s and the modern postbop surge of the 50s. He was an amazing soloist, made all the more interesting since he often soloed on the cello, which was pretty rare in jazz. I know Chico Hamilton employed a cello in his fine group that featured a young Eric Dolphy, but other than in orchestral settings, I can't think of another group that employed cello. Those tracks with Oscar on cello are all the sweeter since it was often Charles Mingus who took over on bass, and it's hard to imagine two more talented people playing those eight strings.

He died too young, like so many jazz artists, yet left behind a wealth of wonderful music. I know you are interested in some advice on where to start, so let me recommend two albums that I have no doubt that you will enjoy. "Complete Jazz Series 1951-1954" and "Complete Jazz Series 1954-1955".

Just looking at the names that join him on those album covers must have you intrigued...

I dare any of you to listen to 'Marcel the Furrier' and not agree that his music is a must for your ever-expanding jazz collection.

I look forward to speaking with you about this exuberant music. Over a Bodum perhaps?

Albums That All Humans Should Own #6

I had a difficult time deciding on this one; not on the band, since the Art Farmer/Benny Golson Jazztet is one of my favourite bands ever, but the decision was whether I should recommend that you rush out to pick up a single album, or if you are an iTunes user (which has many cheap delights for us jazz aficionados) you can download the incredible Complete Argo Mercury recordings. Since the complete set is somewhat pricey (I see it as a steal at $49.99: it does have 95 tracks of which none are weak) I thought I would go with the single album:

'Meet the Jazztet' (1960) by Art Farmer and Benny Golson is my sixth pick of essential albums that all humans should own.

The band line-up says it all:
Art Farmer on trumpet. He is one of the finest players out there. I love his lyricism and his effortless playing.
Benny Golson on tenor sax. Not only is Benny a great player, he is also one of the best writers/arrangers in jazz. He wrote four of the eleven tracks including 'I Remember Clifford' and 'Killer Joe'.
You also go the wonderful Curtis Fuller on trombone, and for those of you who have been following along you know that I have a fondness for Curtis' playing.
And then you have McCoy Tyner on piano making his recording debut. He would of course go on to play in John Coltrane's wonderful quartet of the '60s as well as having a fine solo career which continues to this day.

The music is top-notch and even though it is a large group, it isn't unwieldy. I really can't recommend it highly enough.

Have a listen to 'Killer Joe'. Cool or what? It captures the group at its finest.

Still, if you want to treat yourself, I recommend dipping into your pocketbook and springing for the complete recordings. You won't regret it. It was formerly a Mosaic boxset which would have cost over $150, so you know that those fine folks have filled this set with riches.
I wish I had never heard this band and could spend a few weeks letting the 95 tracks of this set wash over me as they did when I first heard them. I am envious of those of you who have yet to discover this great band!

Best Jazz Book of All Time #1

Yes friends, I know I have mocked list-makers over the years, but when it comes to jazz I like to be organized. Like many of you, jazz isn't just something to be listened to; it's something to absorb, to live, to wrap around you like James Cameron's new deep water sub to protect you from the drudgery of day to day living. (Okay, there's no drudgery here, but it was a nice turn of a phrase so how could I resist?)

I wish I had written this book.

I recently picked up a great book that has me thinking of jazz in a new way. Gary Giddins, Visions of Jazz: The First Century.

You know that for me jazz became interesting in the 1950s (with Louis Armstrojng being the god-like exception to this and every other rule) yet this book has me rethinking some of the oldies. I mean, how many of you have an understanding of Irving Berlin? I didn't. Sure, we all know his classic songs ('Cheek to Cheek', 'Puttin on the Ritz', 'Blue Skies', 'White Christmas', 'God Bless America', 'I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm' and on and on...) but did you know he and his parents escaped Russia in order to avoid a pogrom? Did you know that his life was full of tragedy and heartbreak? If I dwelled on the sadness in jazz I could tell you about the tragedy that befell his lovely wife during their honeymoon in Cuba and how the sad song he wrote about it ('When I Lost You') sold a million copies.

I downloaded Ella Fitzgerald's The Complete Irving Berlin Songbooks upon completing the chapter on this icon (see how quickly Giddins has brought me around to his way of thinking?) and I recommend you do the same.

I have little doubt this book will continue to inspire me as I chip away at its riches in the weeks to come so I will keep you posted, alright?  For now, have a listen to this lovely number. Frank Sinatra singing 'When I Lost You'. He brings out that sadness Irving was feeling in those dark times.

Don't Be Sad; There Are Still Wonders Out There To Be Found

Thinking about Bob Brookmeyer a lot over the past few days and listening to plenty of his music.  I stumbled across this great interview by Marc Myers on his fantastic site Jazz Wax (which I encourage you to explore).

In an earlier post I talk about the trombone (like the baritone sax) being difficult to love, so I enjoyed this exchange from the interview:

Marc Myers: Why didn’t you like the slide trombone?

Bob Brookmeyer: Who likes the slide trombone? Sax players got all the girls because they were seated in the front row. Trumpeters got all the money because they were driving the band from the back row. Trombones sit in the middle and develop an interior life [laughs]. Trombonists didn’t get the money or the girls.

Gerry & Bob laying it down

Bob was unique in jazz as far as I know for playing the valve trombone rather than the more common slide variety.
 
Though it is easy to get discouraged that so many of the greats have passed away, don't forget that there is so much great jazz out there that we haven't heard yet. After all, I wasn't even aware of Bob Brookmeyer before last year. Sure, I had heard him with Gerry Mulligan and Jimmy Guiffre, but I hadn't sat down and asked 'Who is that great trombonist?' and tracked down some more information on him; I hadn't yet heard his wonderful group with Clark Terry.

We'll keep our chins up, my friends, and not get too sombre even in the face of another jazz death. Don't forget, we focus on the positive here on Beginning With Mingus!  How about another great song from Bob? Moonlight in Vermont from Dutch TV with John Scofield on guitar? Wonderful.

Bob Brookmeyer is no more

Clark Terry & the great Bob Brookmeyer

Sadly, Bob Brookmeyer has died.  In his honour, let's listen to three great songs from three of the top trombone players of all time.

First, let's listen to Bob playing with the great trio he was in with Jimmy Giuffre and Jim Hall. I love this track.

Secondly, Bennie Green, who I have been listening to a lot lately, playing 'A Bun Dance'. I am a fan of Jimmy Forrest, who plays some fine tenor on this one.

And lastely, who can forget the wonderful Curtis Fuller, seen here in all his glory with The Jazz Messengers, one of the top jazz bands of all time.

The Best Pianist You've Never Heard Of

The best pianist you've never heard of just may be Herbie Nichols.

play it, Herbie

(If you haven't heard of the great Lennie Tristano I might place him first, making Herbie the second best pianist you've never heard of...) Friends, surely you'll remember those jazz cliches I have spoken about several times and Herbie fits the 'never received the acclaim he deserved during his lifetime' (he also died too young, so fits two cliches).

Let's make sure he gets plenty of posthumous attention shall we?

As I was driving west on Water Street this afternoon I was happily listening to the wonderful 'Rif Primitif' which displays his divine sense of rhythm. Truly a masterful trio. How did the jazz public of the 1950s not realize the genius that was recording at Blue Note? Was it just that he was one of many and got lost in the shuffle? 

Blakey brings the thunder

It took me a long time to come around to appreciating the piano trio in general.

Perhaps I had never heard the best ones and associated it with lounge music and always found myself missing the fire of a horn-player. I liked piano players like Monk and Brubeck but never focused on them in the trio format. Bill Evans changed it for me, and then I discovered that the piano trio offers the jazz lover a wide variety of soundscapes. Bill Evans offers a gentle mood with the bass sharing centre stage (especially in his recordings with Scott LeFaro), the exquisitely talented Ahmad Jamal is a joy to listen to (are you getting tired of me talking about the masterful drumming of Vernel Fournier?) and his exploitation of the dynamic range is astonishing, and then there is Herbie Nichols who is completely different. There is a logic to his playing; effortless and beautiful runs that I know you will appreciate. He seemed to have an affinity with drummers the same way that Bill Evans had with bassists. It doesn't hurt that Art Blakey, one of the two or three greatest jazz drummers all time (and I know some of you are at the moment shocked that I wouldn't immediately place him at #1 but you know that there are so many incredible jazz musicians and how accurately can one rank them?) played with him a freat deal.

Do yourself a favour and have a listen.

The Mysterious Gigi

that must be a hilarious arrangement

I have been thinking a lot about Gigi Gryce lately. One the finest writers, saxophonists and arrangers of the 1950s and '60s, he walked away from jazz to teach public school for reasons that remain mysterious. I love Gigi and could listen to him all day long. There is something extremely intriguing about his playing and I could listen for a week straight (why stop at a single day?) and I'm not sure I'd be any closer to explaining just what it is about his music that pulls me in.

His recordings with Donald Byrd are essential (you can get a good set from iTunes for next to nothing!), but then again, Gigi recorded so little that anything he was involved with is a worthwhile purchase. He also recorded with some of the other finest trumpet players of the era, Art Farmer (another one of my favourites), Lee Morgan (how can you not love Lee?) and Clifford Brown (who died to young, (25), as did Lee Morgan (33) for that matter, but we don't dwell on the negative here, do we? No, let's focus on the music instead of car accidents and murder.)

Not only did he prove that glasses and sweater-vests are extremely cool, (thanks for paving the way, Gigi!) but he left behind a scattering of wonderful music that is just screaming out for someone like Mosaic Records to pull together in some multi-disc retrospective that will help ensure Gigi's lasting legacy.

sweater vests are cool

As a songwriter he wrote a few songs that have become standards including 'Minority' that has been recorded by just about everybody.

Enjoy the music my friends and perhaps you too will become enthralled by Gigi who may or may not have had his house firebombed by gangsters, would have a public school named after him and would change his name to Basheer Qusim. Intrigued? I thought so. Since I miss you so much, I will offer another musical present: Gigi and Monk playing another of his standards, 'Nica's Dream'. I look forward to hearing how much you love it.

It's Easy To Forget Jimmy Giuffre

How many times have we sat around and discussed the greats? Too often to count. Let's face it though, we talk for an awfully long time before anyone mentions Jimmy Giuffre.

Jimmy showed us clarinets can be cool

Surprising isn't it? Perhaps he was always overshadowed by other players, but he was pushing boundaries and expanding the limits of jazz and everyone that followed him benefited from his explorations. I could go on about his history, about how he was part of the whole 'cool jazz' thing and played with Mulligan and was a great arranger and that he is my favourite clarinetist of all time, (who, as you can see from the clip, can also play a fine baritone and tenor and could probably swing on every instrument ever made if he set his mind to it) but instead I'll just direct you to this great song, 'The Train and the River' with his stellar trio featuring the wonderful Jim Hall on guitar. They two were certainly like minded and recorded a lot of wonderful, highly-recommended music together.
Don't you love the recording Giuffre made with the Modern Jazz Quartet at The Music Inn? That's another essential recording isn't it? Oh yes, and the album Sonny Stitt recorded with him is also wonderful. Jimmy, I could go on and on. Let's talk about him more often, okay?

The Man With the Baritone, pt 2

Friends, I was going to say it's been too long since we've spoken about baritone saxophones, but let's be honest: it's been too long since we've spoken about anything at all. How are you? I hope you have all been good and happy and healthy and have been listening to lots of great jazz. Have you been enjoying the Mosaic box sets and the Henry Miller trilogy? Me too.

Donald & Pepper made a great team

Busy here today, so let me simply add to a previous discussion on how difficult it is to love the baritone sax by pointing out another player that joins Gerry Mulligan in elevating the instrument: have a listen to Pepper Adams play a great number with Donald Byrd.

We will discuss the music soon my friends. Over strong coffee perhaps? I can make a cappuccino if you'd prefer.

Frankly, it's becoming

After my recent post about Frank Sinatra, the man has been present in my life not only through his music, but in words as well.


I don't have much time to read lately yet on the same day I ran into old Frank in two different books.

Mailer hanging out

The first was in Norman Mailer's Harlot's Ghost:


"Do you like Frank Sinatra?" she asked.
"Never met him."
"I mean, do you like his singing?"
"Overrated," I replied.
"You don't know what you're talking about."
- pg 688

The second was in Thaddeus Russell's The Renegade History of the United States:


When a teenaged Frank Sinatra saw Crosby perform in New Jersey, he decided to "do that". 
- pg 201


How fitting, my friends, that considering I compared him to Frank in the previous post, Johnny Hartman should happen to be singing at this very moment 'The Very Thought of You', as if reminding me that Frank may be a bigger part of our greater culture, but that Johnny Hartman has a few killer tracks of his own.

Frank & Johnny

the man could sing

It's easy to underestimate Frank Sinatra. I used to.

He's no Johnny Hartman, I used to say. I know some of you have heard me expound on this point, perhaps over espressos or iced vodka.

It's easy to focus on Frank's mob connections and to give their strong-arm tactics the credit for his success.

Friends, I am pulled from my computer to listen to him sing 'Black Magic.' The song proves the man deserves his reputation as one of the finest voices in the history of jazz.

Johnny, I'm sorry

Yes, I used to say that Frank was good, but that he was no Johnny Hartman... but lately I'm thinking that if I had to choose one over the other I just might go with Frank.

I'm sorry, Johnny! I really am. I feel just terrible. I mean, I love your Impulse! recordings but some of your other discs don't reach to those heights of quality. Perhaps if you had Nelson Riddle arrangements and the support of major label your catalogue would be as strong as his.

Johnny, you made three classic albums and how many musicians can say that?  You recorded with John Coltrane at the peak of his powers and recorded the song 'Joey' which always make my wife try to mimic your low notes. Thanks for that.

You liked Frank's music too, so you must understand. Are you angry at me for choosing him over you? Are you joining Red Norvo? Are both of you scowling at me from beyond the grave?