Jazz for aficionados

The Latin Bit:

Great tune lineup.  Besame Mucho, Brazil, and Grenada.  Reminds me of the first LP I ever fell in love with  "The Soul Of Spain" by the 101 Strings.   The one I would add would be "Begin The Beguine".

I got the "Definitive Classic Blue Note Collection of Donald Byrd" today.  Also Duke Pearson's "Dedication".  Will report later.

Also the book "The CIA World Fact Book 2015".  Everything you could ever want to know about anything.

Cheers

Don't you have to have some kind of clearance to get that CIA book? I was in a meeting, and a wire or something came in and they told me I had to leave the room; only people with security clearances could stay. They told them the Vietnam war had started; the next day it was in the news paper, and I couldn't stop laughing.

If the recording quality is as good as those last CD's we got, I want that.




Enjoy the music.

Alex, I was listening to "South Side Soul", and thinking about the hippest, coolest, multiethnic neighborhood that ever existed on the planet; 63rd and Cottage Grove was it's center. I don't know what this CD sounds like to someone who wasn't there, but to someone who was, it's one of the best in their collections; that's because they start reminiscing about 'that' South Side.

Although there were so many different ethnic dishes to get there, that I can't remember them all, there are two I will never forget, and those are Bar-B-Q, and Pizza. My mouth waters just trying to recall the ribs, or the pizza; as common as pizza is, how could one be so unforgettable that I can still remember it after all these years. Nothing is more common than Bar-B-Q ribs, but when they are ever so tender, and smoked to the bone, with a sauce that was made in heaven; you can never forget them. Nobody had to tell you when you were getting close to the rib joint; that scent of Bar-B-Q on the smoke pit a block away told your future; "Not too long now".

This neighborhood only existed for a short period of time; there is nothing left to prove it was ever there, almost all of the famous jazz musicians trod those streets to entertain: Dinah Washington, lived in that neighborhood; Bird, Miles, Clifford Brown entertained there; Ahmad Jamal at the Pershing was recorded there; I'm talking about an area so small, that a car would be a hindrance.

The Pershing Lounge, where Ahmad Jamal played, was on 64th and Cottage Grove; we lived near 65th and Cottage Grove. Almost every night, I would don one of my cousin's best sport coats and stroll Cottage Grove (I was a teenager then). The Walgreens at 63rd and Cottage, had a soda fountain where all the cutest girls stopped; and guess what?

Lou Rawls sings a lot about this neighborhood; remember the song about the guy with one woman too many, that setting was in this neighborhood.



I just remembered that I queried on a previous post in regard to sharing my memories; there is a possibility that I repeat; there is a possibility that you heard this one before; if you're tired of my stories, say so.




Enjoy the music.

Orpheus, I enjoy a good story, I am sure we all do. A good one even does not have to be a true. Let me point to a one, documentry film, from Tribeca festival, its not tied to jazz, hope its not an offense. Maybe Rok could check that Cia book to see is it a myth or true story. Here is the link to a trailer

https://youtu.be/Q_oQFplWs_g

1961 was a extremely interesting year in jazz. The music was breaking new ground and going in new directions that, while not immediately accepted by all, was an expression of the inevitability of its evolution. As always, there was a kind of conflict between the artists that push the music forward in new directions and those whose comfort zone is more in the past and who feel that is where the music should stay. Still, there were some artists like Benny Carter who, while comfortable in their own skin as keepers of the swing tradition, welcomed and encouraged the younger more experimental players. Rok’s Benny Carter clips are a good example of this. Carter was a champion of the younger alto star Phil Woods and his presence on this record, along with Charles Rouse was a bow to the contemporary while the inclusion of Coleman Hawkins (as well as himself) was a tribute to the past. There is also a very subtle and unexpected hint about a dynamic that is important to jazz players to be found in the order of the solos on "Cotton Tail". I don’t believe that it is coincidental that Hawkins solos twice. It could have been anyone of the four; and, being Carter’s session it would probably have been someone besides himself. I am certain he gave that "honor" to the senior member of the saxophone section and an acknowledged giant. Jazz player are always very conscious of this sort of thing; respect.

O-10 expressed a desire to "establish the mood for that period of time"; an interesting proposition. I think that the mentioned Carter session is emblematic of the mood for that period: the push towards the modern contending with the pull of the traditional. Obviously, this is something that could be said about jazz at any point in time; I just think that this dynamic was particularly important during this time. Some of my favorite recordings from 1961:

One of my all time favorite recordings, the presence of Dolphy alone augers what is to come in jazz. Brilliant record:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=f_R7pbBAjcA

This one became a hit (!) after its RE-release in 1961. Combined the West Coast "cool" sound with, incredibly, odd meter. The public accepted and loved a tune in 5 (!!!); and they didn’t even know it:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nzpnWuk3RjU

A meeting made in heaven and long overdue. As good a reminder of the importance of the traditional as any:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=m8HZ7Ku1f3k

Hard to believe that the previous music was performed the same year as this. Spiritual:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wr5BotYA3U8

One of my favorites from 1961 and one which featured Wayne Shorter who would soon start recording as a leader himself and be one of the most influential in taking jazz to a new place:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PL15243F255ACDA1EC&v=NrP7KI6--2c

Many more examples, but I think the above do a pretty good job of establishing the mood for that period: looking forward with respect for tradition; within an environment in which the public could still accept a REAL jazz tune and make it a "hit". Then there was the soul-funk-jazz thing which ultimately led to the gross commercialization of jazz and brought unimagined success to some and derailed the careers of others......