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JAM SESSION COAST-TO-COAST (Part One): DENNIS LICHTMAN, JON-ERIK KELLSO, RAY SKJELBRED, MATT MUNISTERI, MATT WEINER, HAL SMITH (Redwood Coast Music Festival, October 6, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
My title harks back to a fabled Columbia record featuring Eddie Condon's band (plus guests) on one side and the Rampart Street Paraders on the other: New York meets California. The 2024 evocation at the Redwood Coast Music Festival for the closing extravaganza at the Eagle House had fewer participants, but generated just as much…
BEAUTY AND SERENITY: CONNIE JONES, KRIS TOKARSKI, BRYAN BARBEROT (New Orleans, 2014) | JAZZ LIVES
An episode of pure beauty, so typical of the late cornetist Connie Jones (1934-2019) -- here meditatively and lovingly considering a Johnny Mercer ballad with Kris Tokarski, piano; Bryan Barberot, drums, recorded in 2014 in New Orleans. Kris said, "I remember that gig, it was in the Windsor Court lobby bar and Connie was subbing…
NANCY HARROW HAS CREATED A NEW CD! | JAZZ LIVES
There's special, there's extra-special, and there's Nancy Harrow. She deserves more than one exclamation point. If you know her and her work (singer, composer, lyricist, playwright, thinker) the news that she has created a NEW compact disc, SECOND THOUGHTS, is something to celebrate. And if you don't know her, please come to a stop and…
ALI MAKES A FULL AND FRANK CONFESSION | JAZZ LIVES
Not criminal. Endearing. Last June, Ali Affleck and The Traveling Janes created beauty at the Ascona Jazz Festival. They are Ali Affleck, vocals and percussion; Katie Cavera, banjo and guitar; Susanne Ortner, clarinet and alto saxophone; Danielle Price, tuba; Amanda Lee, piano: In this video, the song is I'M CONFESSIN', which I have heard done…
“SAVE MUSIC, SAVE THE ARCHIVE!” | JAZZ LIVES
I know first-hand how few musicians are paid fairly for their work. This has been true all the way back to the vocal quartet on the corner in New Orleans singing MY BRAZILIAN BEAUTY (DOWN ON THE AMAZON) and forward to the virtuoso pianist I know who used to play three long sets in a…
TWO TIMES: MATTHEW RIVERA, SCOTT WENZEL, and ME (WKCR-FM) | JAZZ LIVES
Any excuse to play this record is a good thing (Lips Page, Eddie Barefield, Bill Basie, Eddie Durham, Walter Page, Willie McWashington, at the end of the monumental December 13, 1932 Moten date for Victor). The song -- one that relies on the listener's eagerness to assume lewdness -- is by Ben Samberg, who, as…
HOT AND RARE: BILL RIDDLE, DON EWELL, FRANK CHACE, JERRY BLUMBERG, EPHIE RESNICK, MARTY GROSZ (1948-50) | JAZZ LIVES
What follows is a thirty-minute tape from the private collection of Joe Boughton, made available by his family. It is small-band hot music performed in Chicago and Baltimore by some of the greatest practitioners of the art, although some of them are almost completely unknown. These items do not appear in the standard jazz discographies,…
ALWAYS LOOKING FORWARD TO SOMETHING: JOHN SCURRY’S MUSICAL STORIES | JAZZ LIVES
John Scurry has a surfeit of identities, but that causes no problem for any of us. Guitarist, "a left-handed banjo player" with a Red Onion past, composer, painter. All those identities coalesce happily because John is a born teller of stories. A conversation with him is an endearing series of observations, narratives, and thoughtful connections.…
MORE HOT MUSIC FROM NEWCASTLE: BENT PERSSON, THOMAS WINTELER, GRAHAM HUGHES, RICHARD EXALL, DAVID BOEDDINGHAUS, PHIL RUTHERFORD, JACOB ULLBERGER, RICHARD PITE, GUNTER ANDERNACH (Friday, November 5, 2016) | JAZZ LIVES
After the formal presentations concluded at the Whitley Bay Classic Jazz Party on Friday, November 5, 2016, the unbuttoned lively fun began anew in the Victory Pub (of the Village Hotel, Newcastle) and I was there to record the hot music, which continues to gratify and uplift. I've already shared a rousing SHEIK OF ARABY…
MARTIAL SOLAL and LEE KONITZ (October 30, 1980) | JAZZ LIVES
In honor of the extravagantky gifted pianist and composer Martial Solal, who moved to another neighborhood on December 12. He was 97 and still active. Here he is in a duet recital with alto saxophonist Lee Konitz, performed and recorded as part of the Lennie Tristano Memorial at "Berlin Jazz Days," October 30, 1980. They…
STRONG INDIVIDUALISTS: BARNEY WILEN, LEE KONITZ, JIMMIE ROWLES, BUCKY PIZZARELLI, REGGIE JOHNSON, SHELLY MANNE (Nice Jazz Festival, July 6, 1978: radio broadcast) | JAZZ LIVES
Fault-finders will deem this tape imperfect: the beginning is truncated and unheard, and there's some messy sound midway through. But the combinations created by the Nice Jazz Festival in the Seventies and Eighties are irreplaceable and precious. They didn't always come off -- but gathering old friends in startling combinations often made for lively music…
LESTER SMILES WITH OSCAR (Cleveland, 1951) | JAZZ LIVES
For bid on eBay, a slide, captured by Harvey Singerman of the Character Arts photography studio. The site was the Cleveland Music Hall, October 1951, presumably a Jazz at the Philharmonic show: I'd guess pre-concert, and I'd also like some of what's in the two cups Lester is holding. The two men did not go…
“A PRETTY GIRL IS LIKE A MELODY”: DUKE HEITGER, BOB HAVENS, BOB REITMEIER, JAMES DAPOGNY, MARTY GROSZ, VINCE GIORDANO, ARNIE KINSELLA (Jazz at Chautauqua, September 18, 2009) | JAZZ LIVES
Between 2004 and 2017, September would have meant an annual pilgrimage for music and friendships, both of those entities being deeply life-affirming. First, Jazz at Chautauqua in the Athenaeum Hotel in Chautauqua, then the Allegheny Jazz Party, finally the Cleveland Classic Jazz Party. The generous creators were Joe Boughton and his family, Nancy Hancock Griffith…
IN A SPIN, or DIGITALIS (December 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
A particularly inquisitive vistor to our apartment would notice several small stacks of compact discs in several rooms. If you asked, "Is this a new filing system?" I would say, with some embarrassment, "These are the CDs I've asked for or been sent over the past too-many months. Beautiful music that provokes guilt, because I…
DICK HYMAN, DICK WELLSTOOD, MAXINE SULLIVAN, JACK LESBERG, JAKE HANNA (Bern International Jazz Festival, March and April 1986) | JAZZ LIVES
Once upon a time, these apparently casual gatherings of musical deities were common. I spoke with every one of the stars above except Lesberg and Wellstood, and saw them all in performance. Now, with the passage of time, these concerts seem sacred. Both Wellstood and Sullivan left us in 1987; Lesberg in 2005, Hanna in…
“SAVE YOUR PENNIES”: LESTER YOUNG SIGNS IN | JAZZ LIVES
Here's a pretty (and relevant) soundtrack from 1956: https://youtu.be/nAmTiElmpPA?si=3oeug7cOgigfEkcg eBay has become the place to be Young: Lester Young, that is. Here are three Lester autographs. Three! Cost: 735 USD plus 28 shipping. From China. "Or best offer." Link here . Cost: 879 USD plus 28 shipping. From China. "Or best offer." and this, from…
“BUTTERFLY LOVERS”: NATHAN TOKUNAGA, CHARLES CHEN, MIKIYA MATSUDA, BENNY AMON (2024) | JAZZ LIVES
If you know or know of Nathan Tokunaga, the beauty he creates will be no surprise. If he is new to you, savor the next five minutes, as he performs a theme adapted from a Chinese violin concerto, along with Charles Chen, piano Mikiya Matsuda, bass Benny Amon, drums. It's beutifully evocative music, and if…
“GET HOT OR GO HOME!” (Part One): THE CHICAGO CELLAR BOYS at the SCOTT JOPLIN INTERNATIONAL RAGTIME FESTIVAL: ANDY SCHUMM, JOHN OTTO, NATALIE SCHARF, PAUL ASARO, JIMMY BARRETT, DAN ANDERSON (Sedalia, Missouri, June 1, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
The Chicago Cellar Boys offered several sets of truly stirring hot music during this summer's Scott Joplin Festival in Sedalia, Missouri. They are Andy Schumm, leader, arranger, cornet, clarinet, vocal; John Otto, clarinet, alto saxophone; Natalie Scharf, tenor saxophone, clarinet; Paul Asaro, piano, vocal; Jimmy Barrett, banjo, vocal; Dan Anderson, tuba. And since they are…
FEEL LIKE SHOUTING? CARL SONNY LEYLAND’S BOOGIE WOOGIE BOYS featuring VALERIE KIRCHHOFF, DAN BARRETT, NATE KETNER, SAM ROCHA, JOSH COLLAZO (Redwood Coast Music Festival, October 5, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
I hadn't arrived for this set on the first evening of the Redwood Coast Music Festival, but Mark Voitenko, JAZZ LIVES' Video Chief of Staff was there, poised to capture the sights and sounds. And what sounds! The Reverend Leyland (that's Carl Sonny Leyland to you) was at the controls -- SHOUT THE BOOGIE, Memphis…
THAT’S LIKE IT OUGHT TO BE: SHAYE COHN, CRAIG FLORY, DAVID BOEDDINGHAUS (Three Muses, New Orleans, November 25, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
I've gone on record as being less entranced by Tuba Skinny than its fervent fan base, but this is honey to my ears. Hot, lyrical chamber jazz -- unaffected, passionate, and expert. Recorded only a night ago by a benefactor new to me, "RaoulDuke504" , it's just marvelous: Shaye Cohn, cornet; Craig Flory, clarinet, David…
“FESTINA LENTE”: THE GOLD COAST JAZZ BAND PLAYS RODGERS AND HART (The Red Arrow, June 23, 1962). | JAZZ LIVES
I move more slowly than I once did. That's cautious age. But playing more slowly: that's wisdom. Making love musically can't be rushed. Make haste slowly, the Greeks and then the Romans said. And it's worth remembering that YOU TOOK ADVANTAGE OF ME was and is, for all its sly cheekiness, a love song. So…
BEAUTY IN 4/4: The CHRIS DAWSON SWINGTET featuring JANICE ANDERSON with JONATHAN STOUT, SAM ROCHA, and JOSH COLLAZO (2024) | JAZZ LIVES
Somewhere, Count Basie is grinning appreiatively. As are we. I should explain. "Swing" is the goal, but it is elusive. Work at it too hard, and you might as well be burying it in the backyard with a shovel. There's no one variety, but it is immediately recognizable and gratifying: your dearest one's voice on…
FOR LOUIS (Continued): “NEW ORLEANS STOMP” — JON-ERIK KELLSO, DENNIS LICHTMAN, JOSH DUNN, JAY RATTMAN, The EarRegulars at The Ear Inn, 326 Spring Street, Soho, New York, August 4, 2024. | JAZZ LIVES
History in two images. 1923: and 1927, with different composer credits and at a much faster tempo (you can compare on YouTube): Here, in 2024, is another seriously romping performance of NEW ORLEANS STOMP, not often played, rendered with characteristic passion and expertise by the EarRegulars at The Ear Inn on August 4. They were…
A PHILOSOPHICAL STATEMENT SET TO MUSIC: JOE WILDER, DAN BARRETT, GEORGE MASSO, PEANUTS HUCKO, BILLY BAUER. BOB HAGGART, RALPH SUTTON, JAKE HANNA (March 1995) | JAZZ LIVES
Mat and Rachel Domber of Arbors Records were (Rachel still "is") generous people who loved the music and the company of like-minded others. They threw great parties in Clearwater, Florida, to celebrate their heroes: Flip Phillips, Ruby Braff, Bucky Pizzarelli, Bob Haggart, Bob Wilber, and others. And some of this music has been released on…
“SWEET AND LOVELY”: GENE BERTONCINI and FRIENDS: MELISSA STYLIANOU, RONI BEN-HUR, JOSHUA MARCUM (The National Jazz Museum in Harlem, Thursday, November 7, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
Sometimes, incredibly lovely music takes place in the afternoon, quietly, away from darkened rooms and the clink of glasses. It happened on that most undramatic of times -- a Thursday afternoon -- but magic certainly appeared. The site was The National Jazz Museum in Harlem, the sponsor the Jazz Foundation of America. The quietly shining…
A JAZZ HOLIDAY with RAY SKJELBRED and THE CUBS: KIM CUSACK, CLINT BAKER, KATIE CAVERA, JEFF HAMILTON, July 10, 2014. | JAZZ LIVES
If you look at the date, you will see that this exalted gathering took place ten years ago. But when joy is on the menu, the calendar no longer matters. Here is the real thing, the good stuff, a working band. An antidote to gloom, a true JAZZ HOLIDAY created by Ray Skjelbred, piano, vocal,…
RISING TEMPERATURES (Part Two): HAL SMITH’S EL DORADO JAZZ BAND: T.J. MULLER, DAN BARRETT, RYAN CALLOWAY, BRIAN HOLLAND, ANDY SCHUMM, STEVE PIKAL (Redwood Coast Music Festival, October 5, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
In case you missed it, here's the first part of this hot band's steamy music at the 2024 Redwood Coast Music Festival. And if you missed everyone's name, they are Hal Smith's El Dorado Jazz Band: Hal, washboard; T. J. Muller, trumpet, vocal; Dan Barrett, trombone; Ryan Calloway, clarinet, vocal; Brian Holland, piano; Andy Schumm,…
EDDIE AND THE GANG TAKE TO THE AIR (1964) | JAZZ LIVES
Eddie Condon is one of my heroes and will remain so until I can no longer hear music or remember the joy it brings me. There are many photo-portraits of Eddie and "the Gang," the name for the divine stock company of friends who gathered around him, played and sang so memorably from 1927 to…
GLORIOUS MUSIC, INFERIOR SOUND: “DON LAMBERT PRIVATE TAPE” | JAZZ LIVES
I herald this blogpost in that particularly ambivalent way because when I posted ninety minutes of the pianist Donald Lambert with friends here, some early comments criticized the sonic quality, admmittedly less than CD or even well-preserved reel-to-reel tape. The critics didn't add "What glorious music!" Rudeness dressed up as high standards is still rudeness.…
THE LAST TIME I HEARD PARIS: LUCAS MONTAGNIER, JEROME ETCHEBERRY, RAPHAEL DEVER, BJORN INGELSTAM, CID ESSAIE (Cocotte et Tire-Bouchon, October 23, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
In October, the OAO and I spent a delightful week in Paris: eating, walking, shopping, laughing, observing. By the evening, all we wanted to do was to relax in our very ornate hotel room. and, on the wall above the desk where I placed my laptop, this study: Details on request. But kind friends Brice…
“THE BLUE SIX”: MARTY GROSZ, ANDY STEIN, DAN BLOCK, JAMES DAPOGNY, SCOTT ROBINSON, HAL SMITH (Allegheny Jazz Party, September 11, 2015) | JAZZ LIVES
This was a magnificently hot session, with lively individuals in the present honoring the lively individualism of 1933. The inspiration was a record date organized by John Hammond, led by violinist Joe Venuti with Benny Goodman, clarinet; Bud Freeman, tenor saxophone; Adrian Rollini, bass saxophone; Joe Sullivan, piano; Dick McDonough, guitar; Neil Marshall, drums. They…
CHIEF DETECTIVE MINTUN IS ON THE CASE: THE DONALD LAMBERT MYSTERIES, Chapter One | JAZZ LIVES
I hope you know the great pianist-singer Peter Mintun. But his skills go beyond the piano bench. He is also a renowned scholar of American popular music and musical film. Thus, when all seemed lost, I asked for his help. The scholars in my audience can see that Peter travels in fast company. and But…
LOUIS, IN THE AIR: “BECAUSE OF YOU” | JAZZ LIVES
This post is for my most remarkable wife, "the OAO," as I call her on the blog, since she is a private person. We are now in Bethesda, Maryland, for a family celebration, and since she is a talented and prodigious knitter, we look for yarn shops when we visit new cities, A short walk…
“LOVE WALKED IN”: THE JON DE LUCIA OCTET PLAYS THE MUSIC OF THE DAVE BRUBECK OCTET (CUNY Graduate Center, New York City, October 29, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
I've been following Jon De Lucia on his musical peregrinations for more than seven years now. Although I would have said in 2017 that my chosen music was hot rather than cool, his projects, his playing, and his colleagues have always rewarded me emotionally and intellectually. Those interested can find more about Jon and his…
SOMEPLACE ELSE | JAZZ LIVES
I don't believe that Canada is ready to welcome an influx of Americans heading north. We have dear family in New York and Arizona, so moving to Paris or Australia, although tempting, is not feasible. But I think wistfully of being elsewhere. This is what I have in mind, even though my name is not…
“IT’S FOUR-LEAF CLOVER TIME”: CHRIS DAWSON, JANICE ANDERSON, JOSH COLLAZO (October 28, 2024) | JAZZ LIVES
All I will say is that this performance feels like a subcutaneous shot of joy. Or sunshine breaking through gray skies. The alchemists are Chris Dawson, piano; Janice Anderson, voice; Josh Collazo, drums. No other explication needed: https://youtu.be/TZrttl1PEEU?si=dHok6PWricgwGDzf We need this: the collective joy (and Josh softly playing two beats on his bass drum: thank…
“WITH YOUR CUTE LITTLE WAYS”: MARTY GROSZ, JAMES DAPOGNY, BOB HAVENS, RANDY REINHART, SCOTT ROBINSON, DAN BLOCK, JON BURR, JOHN VON OHLEN (Jazz at Chautauqua, September 21, 2013) | JAZZ LIVES
The sweet 1931 pop song by Madeline Hyde and Francis Henry, swung graciously by a Marty Grosz all-star ensemble at Jazz at Chautauqua on a Saturday night more than a decade ago (September 21, 2013). The band is Marty, guitar, arrangements; James Dapogny, piano; Randy Reinhart, cornet; Bob Havens, trombone; Scott Robinson, tenor saxophone; Dan…
“THE SHEIK OF ARABY,” LIVE FROM THE VICTORY PUB, NEWCASTLE, ENGLAND: BENT PERSSON, DAVID BOEDDINGHAUS, JACOB ULLBERGER, RICHARD PITE, PHIL RUTHERFORD, RICHARD EXALL, THOMAS WINTELER, GRAHAM HUGHES (November 5, 2016) | JAZZ LIVES
Today, Tuesday, November 5, 2024, US voters will cast ballots for the next President. The months leading up to this have been emotionally charged and I cannot predict what will happen next. I should say that this is a non-partisan post, for a thousand reasons. I was ambivalent about how JAZZ LIVES, created to increase…
ON BECOMING A PIECE OF THE JAZZ MOSAIC | JAZZ LIVES
This new Mosaic Records set, eleven discs devoted to small-group jazz recorded for V-Disc between 1943 and 1949, is out, and I received my copy yesterday morning. My wife came through the door and said, "There's a big box. Is it your Mosaic set?" and it was. Here is the post I published on September…