Count Basie: Marc Myers discusses Count Basie's two Beatles albums from the 1960s at JazzWax. (Purchase the CD, Basie's Beatle Bag, at Amazon.com. Purchase the CD, Basie on the Beatles, at Amazon.com.)
Chick Corea: John Kelman reviews the Chick Corea and Gary Burton album, Hot House, at All About Jazz. John Fordham does the same at The Guardian. (Purchase the CD, Hot House, at Amazon.com.)
Jazz pianist Cecil Taylor turns 83 today. Taylor was born on March 25, 1929, in New York City. He is regarded as one of the most advanced and radical improvisers in jazz, with what one critic described as an "intense atonal percussive approach [that] involves playing the piano as if it were a set of drums."
Taylor's performances at the Five Spot Cafe in the late 1950s, along with those of Ornette Coleman, are generally seen as one of the origins of free jazz.
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends two albums by Taylor:
Cecil Taylor: Unit Structures (Blue Note), available from Amazon.com.
Cecil Taylor: Silent Tongues (Arista), available from Amazon.com.
Jazz guitarist George Benson turns 69 today. Benson was born on March 22, 1943, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Benson first performed professionally as a singer, winning a contest at four and performing in nightclubs at eight. In 1960, he formed a rock band, using a guitar that his stepfather made for him.
Benson, as Len Lyons puts it, "has a warm, clean, melodic delivery along the lines of ... Wes Montgomery," Benson's mentor.
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends the George Benson album, Weekend in L.A. (Warner Brothers), which is available on CD from Amazon.com.
Louis Armstrong: Ricky Riccardi discusses "Irish Black Bottom," originally recorded by Armstrong and colleagues in 1926, at The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong. ("Irish Black Bottom" is available on the CD, The Complete Hot Five & Hot Seven Recordings (Sony), which can be purchased at Amazon.com.)
Count Basie: Marc Myers shares a clip of drummer Harold Jones playing with Count Basie and his orchestra in 1968 at JazzWax.
John Coltrane: Tim Niland reviews John Coltrane's album, Afro Blue Impressions, at Music and More. (Purchase the CD, Afro Blue Impressions, at Amazon.com.)
Miles Davis: All About Jazz features an excerpt from an upcoming autobiography on the late percussionist Don Alias, which covers Alias's work on Miles Davis's album, Bitches Brew. (Purchase the CD, Bitches Brew, at Amazon.com.)
Herbie Hancock: According to the Huffington Post, Herbie Hancock, a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, is establishing International Jazz Day on April 30 of every year. (That date coincides with the last day of Jazz Appreciation Month in the U.S.)
Thelonious Monk: Tim Niland discusses the 1994 album, The Complete Blue Note Recordings of Thelonious Monk, at Music and More. (Purchase the CD, The Complete Blue Note Recordings of Thelonious Monk, at Amazon.com.)
Wes Montgomery: Dan Bilawsky reviews Wes Montgomery's album, Echoes of Indiana Avenue, at All About Jazz. (Purchase the CD, Echoes of Indiana Avenue, at Amazon.com.)
Wes Montgomery: Aaron Cohen reviews Wes Montgomery's album, Echoes of Indiana Avenue, in the latest issue of Downbeat magazine.
Charlie Parker, arguably the most influential jazz musician of all time, died on March 12, 1955, in New York City. The official causes of death were listed as lobar pneumonia and a bleeding ulcer. The coroner who performed his autopsy mistakenly estimated Parker's 34-year-old body to be between 50 or 60 years of age.
Parker was buried in Kansas City's segregated Lincoln Cemetery over the objections of his partner, Chan Parker, who knew that Parker never wanted to return to the city of his birth. Dizzy Gillespie paid for the funeral arrangements.
Len Lyons put it best when he said, "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)
Unfortunately, both are available only on vinyl. Instead, Jim Determan (who has updated the Lyons list for CD) recommends the following:
The Legendary Dial Masters, Vols. 1 and 2 (Jazz Classics) (Purchase the CD at Barnes & Noble.)
Best of The Complete Savoy & Dial Studio Recordings (Purchase the CD at Barnes & Noble.)
The Complete Savoy & Dial Master Takes (Purchase the CD at Barnes & Noble.)
The Complete Savoy & Dial Studio Recordings 1944-1948 (Purchase the CD at Barnes & Noble.)
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."
Miles Davis: Miles Davis Online shares a video of Davis, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, and Tony Williams in concert in Milan Italy in 1964.
Wes Montgomery: Tim Niland reviews the new Wes Montgomery album, Echoes of Indiana Avenue, at Music and More. (Purchase the CD, Echoes of Indiana Avenue, at Amazon.com.)
Jazz cornetist Bix Beiderbecke (1903-1931) was born on March 10, 1903, in Davenport, Iowa. Beiderbecke was one of the first great soloists of jazz and played a sensitive, "cool" style of jazz that contrasted with the hot, hard playing of someone like Louis Armstrong. Jazz critic Terry Teachout called Beiderbecke and Armstrong "the two most influential figures in the early history of jazz."
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends The Bix Beiderbecke Story: Bix and Tram, Vol. 2 (Columbia). Unfortunately, this album is not available in CD or MP3 format. According to Jim Determan, who has updated the Lyons book for CD, there are two good alternatives:
Bix Beiderbecke: Singin' the Blues, Volume 1 (Sony), which Determan says "is a better collection than [The Bix Beiderbecke Story], since it includes the best tracks from the LP, has more cuts, and includes Bix's unique piano solo, 'In a Mist.'" It is available on CD from Amazon.com.
Bix Beiderbecke: Bix & Tram (JSP), which Determan claims "has superior remastering by John R. T. Davies on most tracks, and makes an excellent choice, especially for those who want more than one Beiderbecke disc." It is available on CD from Amazon.com.
Beiderbecke is featured in this 1927 recording of "Singin' the Blues" by Frankie Trumbauer and His Orchestra. Beiderbecke's cool, balladic cornet solo starts at 1:03.
Jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman turns 82 today. Coleman, who was born in 1930 in Fort Worth, Texas, is best known as one of the great innovators in the "free jazz" movement of the 1960s.
Coleman's music, which was quite controversial, focused on the mood or feeling of the melody and moved away from the chord changes that had dominated jazz in the 1950s and 1960s. As Coleman said, "Let's play the music, not the background."
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends two Ornette Coleman albums, both of which are available on CD:
Ornette Coleman: The Shape of Jazz to Come (Atlantic), available from Amazon.com. Lyons calls this "perhaps the boldest album in the history of jazz" and "certainly ... the first to depend primarily upon collective improvisation."
Ornette Coleman: Free Jazz (Atlantic), available from Amazon.com.
Coleman's quartet plays "Lonely Woman," from "The Shape of Jazz to Come," here:
Jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery (1923-1968) was born on March 6 in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists in Jazz.
Montgomery played with his thumb rather than with a pick, and this gave his playing a uniquely round and soft sound. Jazz critics Dave Miele and Dan Bielowsky said that Montgomery "was certainly one of the most influential and most musical guitarists to ever pick up the instrument" and that he "took the use of octaves and chord melodies to a greater level than any other guitarist, before or since."
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends the Wes Montgomery album, While We're Young (Milestone). Unfortunately, the album is only available on vinyl. For CDs, Jim Determan recommends the following:
Wes Montgomery: Incredible Jazz Guitar (Original Jazz Classics), available from Amazon.com.
Wes Montgomery: So Much Guitar! (Riverside), available from Amazon.com.
Brazilian jazz singer Flora Purim was born on March 6, 1942, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She is known as the "Queen of Brazilian jazz."
Purim met and married percussionist Airto Moreira in Brazil in the late 1960s and then moved with him to the United States, where she worked with Stan Getz and pianist Duke Pearson before joining Chick Corea, Joe Farrell, Stanley Clarke, and Moreira in the original Return to Forever band in 1972.
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends the Flora Purim and Airto Moreira album, 500 Miles High/At Montreux (Milestone), which is available on CD from Amazon.com.
Purim sings "Light as a Feather" from the Chick Corea and Return to Forever album of the same name here:
Louis Armstrong: Ricky Riccardi writes about Louis Armstrong's 1932 recording of "Love, You Funny Thing" at The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong. ("Love, You Funny Thing" is available on the CD, The Big Band Sides, 1930-1932, which can be purchased at Amazon.com.)
Chick Corea: Chick Corea was selected by JazzTimes readers as the best electric keyboard player of the year.
Miles Davis: Miles Davis's album, Live in Europe 1967: The Bootleg Series Vol. 1, was selected by JazzTimes readers as the historical recording of the year. (Purchase the CD, Live in Europe 1967: The Bootleg Series Vol. 1, at Amazon.com.)
Keith Jarrett: Keith Jarrett was selected by JazzTimes readers as the best piano player of the year.
Wes Montgomery: Marc Myers talks about the newly released Wes Montgomery album, Wes Montgomery: Echoes of Indiana Avenue, at JazzWax. (Purchase the CD, Wes Montgomery: Echoes of Indiana Avenue, at Amazon.com.)
Sonny Rollins: Sonny Rollins was selected by JazzTimes readers as the artist of the year and as the best tenor sax player of the year. His album, Road Shows Vol. 2, was selected as the new release of the year. (Purchase the CD, Road Shows Vol. 2, at Amazon.com.)
Wayne Shorter: Wayne Shorter was selected by JazzTimes readers as the best soprano sax player of the year.
Jazz guitarist Charlie Christian (1916-1942) died on March 2, 1942, in New York City, a year after he contracted tuberculosis. He was just 25 years old. He is buried in the Gates Hill Cemetery in Bonham, Texas.
Christian was a key figure in the history of the electric guitar, and his technique helped establish the guitar as a legitimate solo instrument. He gained national exposure as a member of the Benny Goodman Sextet and Orchestra from August 1939 to June 1941 and was a major influence in the development of bebop and cool jazz.
In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends Christian's album, Solo Flight (Columbia CG 30779), but this has not been issued on CD or MP3. Instead, Jim Determan recommends the three alternatives listed below. As he notes, the box set "is the definitive reissue [but for] those wanting a single Charlie Christian CD, the first Columbia single CD makes a good choice." The third CD, according to Determan, "has good sextet material, but Christian's role is less prominent."
Charlie Christian: Genius of the Electric Guitar, Box Set (Sony) (Available at Amazon.com.)
Louis Armstrong: Chris May reviews the new 4-disc set by Louis Armstrong, Satchmo: Ambassador Of Jazz, at All About Jazz. (Purchase the CD, Satchmo: Ambassador Of Jazz, at Amazon.com.)
