Jazz Is

Jazz Is: 39 – Blue Rondo à la Turk

May 11, 2012

. Giving Los Angeles (or West Coast) cool jazz a whole new meaning. These guys simply take wing. The Dave Brubeck Quartet on ”The Lively Ones” television show, first broadcast July 25, 1962. Related articles Forgotten Gems From The Dave Brubeck Quartet (npr.org) My music playlist for today (May 6, 2012 edition) (viewfrommiddleclass.wordpress.com) Take Five by [...]

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How We Lived On It (49) – The First Hippie

May 5, 2012

. “When I was young, I dreamed of a boy searching for God. Now I am old, and I dream of God searching for a boy.” The focus of yesterday’s Jazz Is, the vocal standard “Nature Boy,” was written by eden ahbez. This is not like saying written by Johnny Mercer or  Jimmy Van Heusen. ahbez [...]

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Jazz Is: 38 – “Nature Boy”

May 4, 2012

. For a marvelous contrast, sample both of the versions below of eden ahbez‘s famous jazz ballad, “Nature Boy.” The first is a classic, serenely tasteful rendition by Nat King Cole, who first performed and recorded the song. The second, longer performance is the stunningly inventive rendition arranged by Ross Burford and Connaitre Miller for Howard University’s Jazz [...]

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Jazz Is: 37 – Nina Simone, “Love Me or Leave Me”

April 26, 2012

. Just take this as an add shot to your morning espresso. Related articles Here, There & Everywhere: Jazz at the Federal opens (irom.wordpress.com) Jazz For Young People: What Is New Orleans Jazz? At Jazz At Lincoln Center (bxcheapskate.com) New Orleans Jazz Sensation’s New Album Highlights a Montage of Music Culture (pr.com) Share Tweet Subscribe [...]

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Jazz Is: 36 – White Tie & Reefer

April 18, 2012

. Cab Calloway and “Reefer Man.” My favorite part is watching his hair fly. And here’s a little background on the Cab: Prince before Prince. Related articles Cab Calloway Sings “Minnie The Moocher” (treeofmamre.wordpress.com) Video Proves The Power Of Music: Dementia Patient Loves His Cab Calloway (towleroad.com) Cab Calloway Song On iPod Awakens Senior In [...]

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Jazz Is: 35 – Take Five Walla

March 24, 2012

Recorded at Sachal Studios, Lahore, Pakistan – the premiere of Take Five’s Official Video. www.sachal-music.com (Hat tip: friend Janet) Related articles CineFile – The City (sadredearth.com) Eating Poetry (XXX) – “Every telling has a tailing” (sadredearth.com) Share Tweet Subscribe to comments on this post Email

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Jazz Is: 34 – ‘Poutin’

November 19, 2011

It was a foggy night. Or a long night, and my heart was foggy. The bright lights glared. The crazy cat stared. All around the city no one waited. From across the bay the foghorn made no call. I walked. Came to a club. Something moaned inside. I went in. There were smoke signals. Whiskey. [...]

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Jazz Is: 33 – Occupy Love

October 29, 2011

. One of my occasional exceptions to the has-to-be-an-interesting-video rule. The last time I heard this, a couple of months ago, I was sitting in a storefront window on Ninth Avenue in Manhattan with a cup of coffee, thinking about love. There’s Wall Street and politics, and there’s real life, before, during, and after. A Billie Holiday original. Don’t bother. [...]

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Jazz Is: 30 – My Funny Valentine

March 30, 2011

I periodically have to offer the disclaimer that while this series was conceived to offer interesting video of fine jazz performances, I do at times reserve the right and make the exception, under the Make the Exception clause, section 15, part B of the Reserve the Right rules of 2010, to be so bowled over [...]

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Jazz Is: 29 – Dexter Gordon, “Body and Soul”

March 16, 2011

While I was laboring over the Wisconsin labor crisis and neglecting my regular features, Dexter Gordon, much beloved sax man, had a birthday. Gordon, who died in 1990, was born on February 27, 1923. Here is how his Wikipedia entry introduces him: Gordon is one of the most influential and iconic figures in Jazz and [...]

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Jazz Is: 28 – The Grammys’ “Best New Artist”

February 16, 2011

If you came of age watching the Academy Awards play all hail Hollywood while the most innovative filmmaking was ignored, or the Grammy’s spend the 60s and 70s honoring mainstream bland while rock was busting out all over, Sunday night’s Grammy Awards delivered the pleasure of the voting membership delivering up its Best New Artist [...]

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Jazz Is: 27 – In the Shape of Mood to Come

February 9, 2011

Only twenty years separate these two numbers. Glenn Miller‘s “In the Mood,” recorded in 1939, is one of the most famous pieces of the Swing, big band era. Here it is in a rendition led by Tex Beneke, who took charge of Miller’s orchestra in the immediate post-War years, after Miller disappeared in a flight [...]

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Jazz Is: 26 – Happy Birthday, Stan Getz

February 2, 2011

Today is the birthday of Stan Getz, great saxophonist of the lineage of Lester Young and known as “the sound” for that sweet and mellow tone, gone now nearly twenty years. Here he plays “Out of Nowhere”  in Dusseldorf, Germany in 1960, with Jan Johansson on piano, Ray Brown on bass, and Ed Thigpen on [...]

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Jazz Is: 25 – Louis Armstrong: “Dinah”

January 26, 2011

Even if you’re old enough to remember him, even if you’ve seen film or video, you’ve probably never seen and heard Louis Armstrong like this. He was young, and the cat could scat – and swing. In Copenhagen. Related articles The House of Jazzman Louis Armstrong: The Corona, Queens, house where jazz… (curbed.com) Visitors’ Center [...]

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Jazz Is: 24 – The Death of Charlie Parker

January 19, 2011

from the PBS American Masters series… Related articles Jeff Bridges teases PBS’ “The Dude Abides” with interview, clip (hollywoodnews.com) Trailer and Clip for PBS’s JEFF BRIDGES: THE DUDE ABIDES (geektyrant.com) Jeff Bridges Interview AMERICAN MASTERS – JEFF BRIDGES: THE DUDE ABIDES (collider.com) Share Tweet Subscribe to comments on this post Email

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Jazz Is: 23 – Charlie Parker and Birdland

January 12, 2011

The jazzman’s jazzman. The jazz club’s jazz club. Related articles The House of Jazzman Louis Armstrong: The Corona, Queens, house where jazz… (curbed.com) Brian Ross: Christian McBride & Inside Straight – Fame Eludes Greatness (huffingtonpost.com) Coming to London’s Vortex Jazz Club (avantmusicnews.com) Share Tweet Subscribe to comments on this post Email

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Jazz Is: 22 – “Molten Soul”

January 5, 2011

Joshua Redman Elastic Band Joshua Redman – Tenor Sax Brian Blade – Drums Sam Yahel – Keyboards “Molten Soul” New year, Oh, yeah Related articles White House Holiday Parties: 19 Trees, ‘Simple Gifts’ Theme (politicsdaily.com) This weekend’s must-see shows (timeoutny.com) Share Tweet Subscribe to comments on this post Email

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Jazz Is: 21 – Granaína

December 22, 2010

No this is not jazz, but if I were a jazz musician, I would make it jazz. I came across it in my search for this week’s Jazz Is post, and it is simply too extraordinary not to share. It is sung by the late Enrique Morente, a great and controversial figure in the world [...]

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Jazz Is: 20 – Elevator to the Gallows

December 15, 2010

Soundtrack by Miles Davis. Directed by Louis Malle, 1957. Starring Jeanne Moreau and Maurice Ronet. Why do I love Moreau’s shake of the head early on in her walk? Related articles Art – Miles Davis’s last addiction (guardian.co.uk) In Transit: The Art of Miles Davis, on Display in London (intransit.blogs.nytimes.com) Song Of The Day – [...]

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Jazz Is: 19 – “Moanin’”

December 1, 2010

I’m breaking a rule, and maybe committing a sacrilege. So sue me. Better yet – jazz me. Founding principle of the Jazz Is series: not just good music, but interesting video. Principle betrayed. “Moanin’,” by Charles Mingus, first appeared on the album Blues and Roots, in 1959, a year after the Bobby Timmons song of [...]

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Jazz Is: 18 – A Twofer

November 24, 2010

I might as well confess it, I am in deep infatuation. I can’t get enough. I have to offer two this week of my favorite sultry hipster, ’cause you know, baby, I’m a fool. t> There’s nothing to be done about it, though. It’s just the way that I am. I’ve got a worrisome heart. [...]

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