Goodbye, Pork Pie Hat

Effective August 31, this blog is no longer being maintained.

I do maintain the Core Jazz Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/corejazz) and the Core Jazz Twitter feed (https://twitter.com/corejazz), so please follow me there.

In the meantime, listen to Charles Mingus remembering the great Lester Young.

RIP, Lionel Hampton (1908-2002)

Jazz vibraphonist Lionel Hampton died from congestive heart failure on August 31, 2002, in New York City at the age of 94. He is buried in the Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, New York.

Hampton was the first jazz vibraphonist and a long-lived talent, who played with jazz giants from Louis Armstrong to Benny Goodman to Charles Mingus. Len Lyons said that Hampton "was the master of a rhythmic vitality that enlivened every band he played in," and critic Scott Yanow said that Hampton "achieved the difficult feat of being musically open-minded ... without changing his basic swing style."

In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Lyons recommends Hampton's album, The Complete Lionel Hampton, 1937-1941 (RCA AXM6-5536, 6 LPs). The album is available on CD from Amazon.com.

In addition to that album, Jim Determan recommends the following, commenting that "These three volumes contain much of material from the all star sessions that made up the LP boxed set. The first volume is Hampton's pick of his favorites from these sessions.":

• Lionel Hampton: Vol. 1 Hot Mallets! The All-Star Groups (RCA), available from Amazon.com.
• Lionel Hampton: Vol. 2 The Jumpin' Jive: The All-Star Groups: 1937-1939 (RCA), available from Amazon.com.
• Lionel Hampton: Vol. 3 Tempo and Swing: The All-Star Groups: 1939-1940 (RCA), available from Amazon.com.

Hampton and His Orchestra play "Wee Albert" here:

Robert
Facebook page

Happy Birthday, Charlie Parker

Jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker was born on August 29, 1920, in Kansas City. Parker was arguably the most influential jazz musician of all time. As Len Lyons puts it, "If you have never heard Charlie Parker, the experience could permanently change the way you think about music." Parker led the development of bebop, which differed from the straightforward, dance-able tunes of the swing era, replacing these with rapid tempos, fragmented asymmetrical phrasing, intricate melodies, and rhythm sections that did more than just keep time.

In his 101 Best Jazz Albums, Lyons recommends two of Parker's albums:

• The Very Best of Bird (Warner Brothers 2WB 3198, 2 LPs) (Purchase the vinyl at Amazon.com.)
• Bird/The Savoy Recordings (Master Takes) (Savoy SJL 2201, 2 LPs) (Purchase the vinyl at Amazon.com.)

Jim Determan (who has updated the Lyons list for CD) also recommends the following:

• The Legendary Dial Masters, Vols. 1 and 2 (Jazz Classics) (Purchase the CD at Amazon.com.)
• Best of The Complete Savoy & Dial Studio Recordings (Purchase the CD at Amazon.com.)
• The Complete Savoy & Dial Master Takes (Purchase the CD at Amazon.com.)
• The Complete Savoy & Dial Studio Recordings 1944-1948 (Purchase the CD at Amazon.com.)

About the latter three, Determan says, "Three reissues let you choose the depth to which you want to delve into this material. These recordings are the basis of bop, so I would recommend the 3 CD Complete Master Takes set, which covers most of what was on the two double albums [Len Lyons] recommended. If you’re not sure and want to try out just a cross-section, then pick up the first disk. If you already know you are a serious fan, then you may be inclined to go for the Complete Recordings."

Parker's Septet plays "All the Things You Are" here:

Robert
Facebook page