Jazz trumpeter Clifford Brown (1930-1956) was born on October 30 in Wilmington, Delaware. Brown was an incredibly gifted musician whose career lasted just four years, but in that short space of time, he "played with a full-toned, linear lyricism which proved to be the only vital alternative during the 1950's to Miles Davis's understated melodic style," according to Len Lyons. Sonny Rollins, who worked for seven months with Brown, said simply, "He had it all."
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends Clifford Brown's The Quintet, Vol. 1 (EmArcy/Mercury), but that album is nearly impossible to find and is only available in vinyl. Jim Determan recommends two alternatives:
Clifford Brown and Max Roach (EmArcy/Polygram). Purchase at Barnes & Noble.)
Study in Brown (PID/Polygram). Purchase at Barnes & Noble.)
The Clifford Brown Quintet plays "Night in Tunisia" here:
Jazz clarinetist and big band leader Woody Herman (1913-1987) died on October 29, 1987, in Los Angeles of congestive heart failure, emphysema, and pneumonia at the age of 74.
Herman was particularly good at finding talented individuals — like Stan Getz, Bill Harris, and Zoot Sims — and allowing them to "find themselves." Herman was also interested in playing and creating new music, and his band was the first to absorb the innovations of bebop.
His first band — sometimes known as "The Band That Plays the Blues" — plays its first hit, "Woodchopper's Ball," here:
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends the album, The Three Herds (Columbia). The album is available only in vinyl, and Jim Determan recommends as an alternative The Thundering Herds 1945-1947 (Columbia). Purchase the CD, The Thundering Herds 1945-1947, at Barnes & Noble.
Miles Davis: Skrillex and the remaining members of the Doors will record a "variation" on Miles Davis's album Milestones, according to Davis Online. (Purchase the CD, Milestones, at Barnes & Noble.)
Dizzy Gillespie: Joseph Stromberg explains how Dizzy Gillespie's bent trumpet found its way into the American History Museum at Around the Mall.
George Russell: Parts of a chapter from Duncan Heining's biography of George Russell appear at All About Jazz. (Purchase the book, George Russell: The Story of an American Composer, at Barnes & Noble.)
Jazz saxophonist Oliver Nelson (1932-1975) died on October 28, 1975, in Los Angeles at the age of 43. His death is usually attributed to a heart attack, but his son claims that the cause of death was really pancreatitis. Others, like Len Lyons, argue that "overwork and long-standing frustration over not expressing himself musically were underlying causes."
In fact, Lyons refers to Nelson as "a little-known tragic hero — little known by the public, a hero to many jazz musicians, and tragically swallowed up by Hollywood's film and television industry."
Nelson plays his best-known composition, "Stolen Moments," with Bill Evans, Paul Chambers, Freddie Hubbard, Eric Dolphy and Roy Haynes here:
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends Nelson's album, Three Dimensions: The Dedication Series, Vol. 3 (Impulse). The album is available only in vinyl, and Jim Determan recommends the following alternatives, both of which contain all of the tracks from the album recommended by Lyons. Blues and the Abstract Truth is considered a classic and includes "Stolen Moments," the piece featured in the video above.
Blues and the Abstract Truth (Verve). Purchase at Barnes & Noble.
Louis Armstrong: Ricky Riccardi provides cuts to listen to in conjunction with chapter 12 of his book, What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong's Later Years, at his blog, The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong. (Purchase the book, What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong's Later Years, at Barnes & Noble.)
Wes Montgomery: Marc Myers reviews the Wes Montgomery album, Movin': The Complete Verve Recordings, at JazzWax. (Purchase the CD, Movin': The Complete Verve Recording, at Barnes & Noble.)
Ornette Coleman: John Fordham closes his Guardian series on 50 great moments in jazz with Ornette Coleman's 2009 appearance at the Meltdown Festival.
Oscar Peterson: Sony Masterworks and Zenph Sound Innovations will release Oscar Peterson: Unmistakable on September 20, according to All About Jazz. (Purchase the CD, Oscar Peterson: Unmistakable, at Barnes & Noble.)
Jazz trumpeter John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (1917-1993) was born on October 21 in Cheraw, South Carolina. Gillespie was the intellectual force behind bebop and played brilliant solo lines. His showmanship and ability to communicate with his audiences also made him perhaps the greatest single force in leading the public to accept bebop.
Wynton Marsalis said of Gillespie, "Dizzy was so quick-minded, he could create an endless flow of ideas at unusually fast tempi. Nobody had ever even considered playing a trumpet that way, let alone had actually tried. All the musicians respected him because, in addition to outplaying everyone, he knew so much and was so generous with that knowledge ..."
Gillespie and his band play one of his compositions, "A Night in Tunisia," here:
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends two of Gillespie's albums:
In the Beginning (Prestige). This album is only available in vinyl, but Jim Determan recommends as an alternative, Shaw Nuff (Discovery), which has all but one cut from In the Beginning. (Purchase the CD, Shaw Nuff, at Barnes & Noble.)
The Original Dizzy Gillespie Big Band: In Concert (GNP), which is available on CD. (Purchase the CD, The Original Dizzy Gillespie Big Band: In Concert, at Amazon.com.)
Miles Davis: Davis Online announces the release of Miles Davis — The Warner Years 1986-1991, a 5-CD boxset celebrating Davis's last recordings. (Pre-order the CD, Miles Davis — The Warner Years 1986-1991, at Barnes & Noble.)
Bill Evans: Marc Myers discusses Bill Evans's two recordings of "Autumn in New York" — on the Bill Evans album The Solo Sessions, vol. 2 and on the George Russell album New York, New York — at JazzWax. (Purchase the CD, The Solo Sessions, vol. 2, at Barnes & Noble. Purchase the CD, New York, New York, at Barnes & Noble.)
Jaco Pastorius: John Kelman reviews the new album, Jaco Pastorius: The 60th Anniversary Collection, at All About Jazz. (Purchase the CD, Jaco Pastorius: The 60th Anniversary Collection, at Barnes & Noble.)
Weather Report: Jeff Tamarkin announces the release of a live 1983 Weather Report concert, Live in Cologne 1983, at JazzTimes. (Purchase the CD, Live in Cologne 1983, at Barnes & Noble. Purchase the DVD, Live in Cologne 1983, at Barnes & Noble.)
Chick Corea: According to JazzTimes, Chick Corea will play a month-long residency at New York's Blue Note.
Charles Mingus, Sonny Rollins: John Fordham reviews two recent Impulse Records re-issues at The Guardian: Charles Mingus's The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady and Sonny Rollins's Impulse 2-on-1: On Impulse! / There Will Never Be Another You. (Purchase the CD, The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady, at Barnes & Noble. Purchase the CD, Impulse 2-on-1: On Impulse! / There Will Never Be Another You, at Barnes & Noble.)
Jazz drummer Art Blakey (1919-1990) died on October 16, 1990, in New York City at the age of 71 of lung cancer. Blakey was cremated.
Blakey was a great drummer and the leader of one of the greatest jazz bands, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, which served as the developmental band for a large number of jazz musicians. Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard remarked that "Art Blakey was the first one who gave me a big opportunity." Pianist Walter Davis said, "I think no one in jazz has brought more great musicians to music than Art Blakey."
Shortly before his death, Blakey told Hubbard, "Don't be grieving when I die. Think about the good moments, what we did together and what you can do later on."
Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers play "Moanin'" here:
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends Blakey's album, A Night in Birdland, Vol. 1 (Blue Note). (Purchase at Barnes & Noble.)
Jazz pianist Art Tatum (1909-1956) was born on October 13 in Toledo, Ohio. Tatum was nearly blind and yet was probably the greatest piano virtuoso that jazz has ever seen. Stories about Tatum's talents abound. Perhaps the best known is the night that Tatum walked into a club where Fats Waller was playing. Waller — who never underestimated his own talents — stepped away from the piano bench to make way for Tatum and said, "I only play the piano, but tonight God is in the house."
Jazz critic Leonard Feather called Tatum "the greatest soloist in jazz history, regardless of instrument."
Tatum's dazzling virtuosic runs can be heard on "Over the Rainbow" here:
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends Tatum's album, Art Tatum: The Tatum Solo Masterpieces, Vol. 3 (Pablo). (Purchase at Barnes & Noble.)
Louis Armstrong: Ricky Riccardi has added a playlist of 25 "musical high points" from his book, What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong's Later Years, to Spotify, according to his blog, The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong. (Purchase the book, What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong's Later Years, at Barnes & Noble.)
Art Blakey: Art Blakey was the Jazz Musician of the Day on his birthday, October 11, at All About Jazz.
Miles Davis: Pitchfork.com reviews the album, The Miles Davis Quintet Live in Europe 1967 - The Bootleg Series, Vol. 1. (Purchase the CD, The Miles Davis Quintet Live in Europe 1967 - The Bootleg Series, Vol. 1, at Barnes & Noble.)
Herbie Hancock: Karen Brundage-Johnson reviews Herbie Hancock's solo piano concert at the Verizon Hall-Kimmel Center in Philadelphia at Jazz Times.
Billie Holiday, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Sarah Vaughan: JazzTimes announces the October 25 release of a 5-DVD set, "Masters of American Music," which includes individual DVDs featuring Billie Holiday, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, and Sarah Vaughan.
Jazz drummer Art Blakey (1919-1990) was born on October 11 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Blakey was one of the inventors of the bebop style of drumming. He was also the leader of one of the greatest jazz bands, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, which served as the developmental band for a large number of jazz musicians, including pianists Keith Jarrett and Cedar Walton, reed players Wayne Shorter and Benny Golson, trumpet players Clifford Brown and Wynton Marsalis, bassist Stanley Clarke, and many others.
Blakey's talents as a drummer are clear in this 1965 solo:
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends Blakey's album, A Night in Birdland, Vol. 1 (Blue Note). (Purchase at Barnes & Noble.)
Jazz pianist Thelonious Monk (1917-1982) was born on October 10 in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. Monk was one of the greatest jazz pianists ever, a founder of bebop, and according to some sources, the second most-recorded jazz composer after Duke Ellington.
Monk and his quartet play "'Round Midnight," reputedly the most-recorded jazz standard written by a jazz musician:
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends three albums by Monk:
The Complete Genius (Blue Note), available only on vinyl. (Purchase at amazon.com.)
Brilliance (Milestone), available only on vinyl and hard to find at that.
Pure Monk (Mileston), available only on vinyl. (Purchase at amazon.com.)
Jim Determan, who has updated the Lyons list, recommends these alternatives in CD format:
The Genius of Modern Music, Volume 1 (Blue Note) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
The Genius of Modern Music, Volume 2 (Blue Note) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
Brilliant Corners (Riverside) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
Five by Five by Monk (Riverside) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
Alone in San Francisco (Original Jazz Classics) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
Thelonious Himself (Riverside) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
Louis Armstrong: Ricky Riccardi provides cuts to listen to in conjunction with chapter 11 of his book, What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong's Later Years, at his blog, The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong. (Purchase the book, What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong's Later Years, at Barnes & Noble.)
Anthony Braxton: Howard Mandel provides a video of Anthony Braxton working with his ensemble class at Wesleyan University at Jazz Beyond Jazz.
Miles Davis: Fred Kaplan reviews the album, The Miles Davis Quintet Live in Europe 1967 - The Bootleg Series, Vol. 1, at Stereophile. Tim Niland reviews the album at Music and More. (Purchase the CD, The Miles Davis Quintet Live in Europe 1967 - The Bootleg Series, Vol. 1, at Barnes & Noble.)
Miles Davis: Nicholas Thompson compares the recently deceased Steve Jobs to Miles Davis is The New Yorker.
Count Basie: Todd Gordon reviews the album Sinatra-Basie: The Complete Reprise Studio Recordings at All About Jazz. (Purchase the CD, Sinatra-Basie: The Complete Reprise Studio Recordings, at Barnes & Noble.)
John Coltrane: The John Coltrane Impulse! Albums Volume 5 is reviewed by Tim Niland at Music and More. (Pre-order the CD, The John Coltrane Impulse! Albums Volume 5, at Barnes & Noble.)
Miles Davis: Eagle Rock Entertainment will release a 10-DVD, 20-hour collection titled The Definitive Miles Davis at Montreux DVD Collection 1973-1991 on October 24, according to Jeff Tamarkin at JazzTimes. (Pre-order the DVD, The Definitive Miles Davis at Montreux DVD Collection 1973-1991, at Barnes & Noble.)
Wes Montgomery: Tim Niland reviews the Wes Montgomery album, Movin': The Complete Verve Recordings, at Music and More. (Purchase the CD, Movin': The Complete Verve Recording, at Barnes & Noble.)
Louis Armstrong: Ricky Riccardi provides cuts to listen to in conjunction with chapter 10 of his book, What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong's Later Years, at his blog, The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong. (Purchase the book, What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong's Later Years, at Barnes & Noble.)
Jazz singer Dave Lambert died on October 3, 1966, at the age of 49 when he was hit by a truck while changing a flat tire. He was a member of the trio Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross and is one of the originators of vocalese, which adds lyrics to existing instrumental songs.
He sings the Horace Silver song, "Doodling," with Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross in 1960:
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends the Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross album, The Best of Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross (Columbia C-32911 or JCS-8198). Unfortunately, the album is only available in vinyl. Jim Determan, who has updated Lyons's list of albums for CD, recommends instead the following title:
Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross: Everybody's Boppin' (Columbia Jazz Masterpieces) (Buy at Barnes & Noble)
