Sunday, May 19, 2013
Thursday, May 16, 2013
"They Died Before Forty" documentary
Jazz Museum Founder Howard Fischer Is Producing a Film About Jazz Greats
Who Died
Young
Young
by Clem Richardson
New York Daily News, May 9, 2013
Howard Fischer has created music from heaven, played by musical geniuses
who lived
fast and died young.
And he did it in a pretty creative way.
Fischer, 76, founded the New York Jazz Museum. He's nearing the end of a Kickstarter
campaign to fund his latest movie project on jazz greats who died young.
"They Died Before Forty," profiles eight jazz musicians -- notable in their day but
now largely forgotten -- whose deaths fit the movie's title all too well: pianist
Fats Waller, 39 when he died in 1943; guitarist Charlie Christian, dead at 25 in
1942; 23-year-old bassist Jimmy Blanton, dead the same year; drummer Chick Webb,
34, dead in 1939; tenor saxophone players Herschel Evans, 29, and Chu Berry, 33,
who died in 1939 and 1941 respectively; and trumpeters Bunny Berigan, who was 33
when he died 1942, and Clifford Brown, who died in 1956 at age 25.
"In fact, six of the eight died before they were 30," said Fischer, who is producing,
directing and writing the movie. "Some of them only recorded for two or three years,
yet were major figures on their instruments. Yet I've asked many of my friends about
them and most of them never heard of any of these guys."
Fischer has been around jazz since his parents introduced him to the music as a child.
A former entertainment lawyer, he once represented bassist and bandleader Charlie
Mingus.
"At one time we had one of the most significant archives of jazz music in the world,"
Fischer said, referring to the collection at the New York Jazz Museum, which he founded
in 1977. Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman both sat for live interviews with Fischer
at the museum, he said, and on Nov. 3, 1973, the museum hosted an all-women jazz
band that "had a line going down the street and around the corner."
This is Fischer's second movie; he wrote and directed "The Holland Avenue Boys,"
about his childhood friends who came out of his neighborhood and became successful.
This latest project has been a labor of love for over a decade, Fischer said.
"The main thing, after the music and the biographies, is that I want to show how
they died and how they lived before they died, and how that lifestyle contributed
to their deaths," Fischer said. "Many of them had lifestyles that were unusual even
for performers -- they'd have a one-night-stand performance, travel all night by
car and then hit another gig and repeat that week after week.
"A lot of them lived for the music and died for the music."
Some had storied exits. Webb, the diminutive drummer who discovered legendary jazz
singer Ella Fitzgerald, was surrounded by family when he sat up in his hospital bed,
said "I gotta go, I gotta go!" and died.
Webb was so popular that 10,000 mourners came to his funeral, which featured an 80-car
funeral procession to the cemetery. "He was that famous, and now no one remembers
who he was," Fischer said.
The movie will feature academics and musicians who either studied, worked with or
wrote books about each musician talking about their subject.
It will also have a nine-item soundtrack -- with limited financing, Fischer worked
out a master licensing agreement that allows him to use the music only in this country
-- that will feature each musician either performing solo or with a group.
"I have Berry doing a fabulous version of 'Sweethearts on Parade' with Lionel Hampton,"
Fischer said. "Blanton is doing a duet with Duke Ellington on 'Pitter Panther Patter.'
Christian is doing 'Solo Flight,' which was revolutionary for the guitar."
Through the wonders of sound splicing, Fischer has seven of the eight musicians --
who never played together -- playing a single rendition of "Stardust."
"Webb never recorded 'Stardust,'" Fischer said. "I got a man to take bits and pieces
of each of their versions of 'Stardust' and make it into one song. It's beautiful;
it's going to make a lot of noise when the film comes out."
Fischer is hoping to complete the project by late summer.
fast and died young.
And he did it in a pretty creative way.
Fischer, 76, founded the New York Jazz Museum. He's nearing the end of a Kickstarter
campaign to fund his latest movie project on jazz greats who died young.
"They Died Before Forty," profiles eight jazz musicians -- notable in their day but
now largely forgotten -- whose deaths fit the movie's title all too well: pianist
Fats Waller, 39 when he died in 1943; guitarist Charlie Christian, dead at 25 in
1942; 23-year-old bassist Jimmy Blanton, dead the same year; drummer Chick Webb,
34, dead in 1939; tenor saxophone players Herschel Evans, 29, and Chu Berry, 33,
who died in 1939 and 1941 respectively; and trumpeters Bunny Berigan, who was 33
when he died 1942, and Clifford Brown, who died in 1956 at age 25.
"In fact, six of the eight died before they were 30," said Fischer, who is producing,
directing and writing the movie. "Some of them only recorded for two or three years,
yet were major figures on their instruments. Yet I've asked many of my friends about
them and most of them never heard of any of these guys."
Fischer has been around jazz since his parents introduced him to the music as a child.
A former entertainment lawyer, he once represented bassist and bandleader Charlie
Mingus.
"At one time we had one of the most significant archives of jazz music in the world,"
Fischer said, referring to the collection at the New York Jazz Museum, which he founded
in 1977. Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman both sat for live interviews with Fischer
at the museum, he said, and on Nov. 3, 1973, the museum hosted an all-women jazz
band that "had a line going down the street and around the corner."
This is Fischer's second movie; he wrote and directed "The Holland Avenue Boys,"
about his childhood friends who came out of his neighborhood and became successful.
This latest project has been a labor of love for over a decade, Fischer said.
"The main thing, after the music and the biographies, is that I want to show how
they died and how they lived before they died, and how that lifestyle contributed
to their deaths," Fischer said. "Many of them had lifestyles that were unusual even
for performers -- they'd have a one-night-stand performance, travel all night by
car and then hit another gig and repeat that week after week.
"A lot of them lived for the music and died for the music."
Some had storied exits. Webb, the diminutive drummer who discovered legendary jazz
singer Ella Fitzgerald, was surrounded by family when he sat up in his hospital bed,
said "I gotta go, I gotta go!" and died.
Webb was so popular that 10,000 mourners came to his funeral, which featured an 80-car
funeral procession to the cemetery. "He was that famous, and now no one remembers
who he was," Fischer said.
The movie will feature academics and musicians who either studied, worked with or
wrote books about each musician talking about their subject.
It will also have a nine-item soundtrack -- with limited financing, Fischer worked
out a master licensing agreement that allows him to use the music only in this country
-- that will feature each musician either performing solo or with a group.
"I have Berry doing a fabulous version of 'Sweethearts on Parade' with Lionel Hampton,"
Fischer said. "Blanton is doing a duet with Duke Ellington on 'Pitter Panther Patter.'
Christian is doing 'Solo Flight,' which was revolutionary for the guitar."
Through the wonders of sound splicing, Fischer has seven of the eight musicians --
who never played together -- playing a single rendition of "Stardust."
"Webb never recorded 'Stardust,'" Fischer said. "I got a man to take bits and pieces
of each of their versions of 'Stardust' and make it into one song. It's beautiful;
it's going to make a lot of noise when the film comes out."
Fischer is hoping to complete the project by late summer.
To help, go to his kickstarter page at
http://www.kickstarter.com/
Fischer's website for the film is
http://jazzdeaths.weebly.com
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Who wrote Brazilia : Eric Dolphy or John Coltrane?
This very interesting question was raised by Dan Voss on the Dolphy-L as well on his blog here.
Check it out and put those records again on the turntable ;-)
On another hand i just received Sun Ship The Complete Session.
Check it out and put those records again on the turntable ;-)
On another hand i just received Sun Ship The Complete Session.
Monday, April 29, 2013
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Saturday, April 20, 2013
(Upcoming Release) Miles Davis – “The Kinda Blue Sessions ’59″ 180g LP + CD
From here :
At this point the importance of Miles Davis groundbreaking work on his 1959 release Kind of Blue is well-established. Recorded over two dates in 1959 (March 2nd and April 22nd at Columbia’s 30th Street Studio) and featuring the legendary “First Sextet” lineup of Davis, Julian Adderley, John Coltrane, Wynton Kelly/Bill Evans (Kelly was on “Freddie Freeloader”), Paul Chambers and James Cobb. This is the band that Davis started his experimentation with modal jazz and the move away from his hard bop style. Though Kind of Blue is heralded as the pinnacle of modal style, Davis had already been working with it on his 1958 release Milestones, suggesting that Coltrane was the catalyst of this move.
Kind of Blue stands head and shoulders above many other jazz releases in popularity– depending on who you believe, it may be the greatest selling jazz release of all time. It certainly represents an important release in my jazz collection. When people who are unfamiliar with jazz ask me where to start listening, it is a safe bet to suggest Kind of Blue. So much about the album lends itself to being a springboard of sorts to more jazz– Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Bill Evans’s participation alone will send the newly motivated jazz investigator down some very important and landmark releases in the jazz canon.
Of course, these facts are not lost on the label custodian of Miles Davis’s catalog– Sony/BMG. I don’t think I can even count the reissues of just Kind of Blue that have happened over the years. For the 50th Anniversary of Kind of Blue in 2008, Sony Legacy released a beautifully-packaged release that included a clear-blue vinyl stereo LP (which fixed the long-standing mastering error that had side 2 at the wrong speed), 1 CD of Kind of Blue with an alternate take of ”Flamenco Sketches” and session chatter, 1 CD with five tracks from a May 26, 1958 session and a live version of “So What” from April 9, 1960 in Holland. There was also a DVD documentary of the album, and a beautiful book, posters and photos. This is the version I have in my collection.
So, I was surprised to see in the Record Store Day list diligently maintained at Wax Poetic the mention of an LP called The Kinda Blue Sessions ’59. Some quick googling turned up some information about it, but not a lot of details. It is on Birdland Records and distributed by RedEye. (Birdland also has an interesting Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers Munich ’59 live release). At SpinCD’s website, they provide the tracklist and credits:
Side One
1.Freddie Freeloader session
2.So What session
Side Two
1.Blue in Green session
2.All Blues session.
Musicians: Miles Davis – Trumpet, John Coltrane – Tenor sax, Bill Evans – Piano (S1 T2. S2 T1&2) Wyn Kelly – Piano (S1 T1), Julian Adderly- Alto Sax (All except S2 T1), Paul Chambers – Bass James Cobb- Drums
Based on the research I’ve done, I suspect that this is possibly a partial release of the bootleg commonly known as Kind of Blue Studio Sessions and Outtakes.
Initially I was a little concerned that this would be a release of only the additional tracks on the first CD of the 2008 Sony Legacy release of false starts and studio sequences. In fact, these are in exactly the same order, but it’s missing the tracks from “Flamenco Sketches” making this a release that– including the “Flamenco Sketches” chatter and false starts would have only been 10 minutes long!
7. Freddie Freeloader studio sequence 1 from the 3/2/59 sessions (0:51)
8. Freddie Freeloader false start from the 3/2/59 sessions (1:25)
9. Freddie Freeloader studio sequence 2 from the 3/2/59 sessions (1:26)
10. So What studio sequence 1 from the 3/2/59 sessions (1:53)
11. So What studio sequence 2 from the 3/2/59 sessions (0:59)
12. Blue in Green studio sequence from the 3/2/59 sessions (1:59)
13. Flamenco Sketches – studio sequence 1 from the 4/22/59 sessions (0:42)
14. Flamenco Sketches – studio sequence 2 from the 4/22/59 sessions (1:09)
15. All Blues – studio sequence from the 4/22/59 sessions (0:18)
But, the notable absence of the “Flamenco Sketches” sequences and the one outtake that they released on the Legacy release of ”Flamenco Sketches” would make this, although interesting from a collector’s standpoint, a pretty lame release out of the context of full songs. Especially at $29 MSRP.
The Kind of Blue Studio Sessions and Outtakes notes lists this track listing:
Tracks 1,2,3 > March 2, 1959 (2:30pm to 5:30pm and 7:00pm to 10:00pm)
Tracks 5,6 > April 22, 1959 (2:30pm to 5:30pm)
Columbia 30th Street Studio, New-York, USA
Tracks:
1. FREDDIE FREELOADER SESSION (13’38)
2. SO WHAT SESSION (12’53)
3. BLUE IN GREEN SESSION (11’13)
4. FLAMENCO SKETCHES SESSION (24’10)
5. ALL BLUES SESSION (11’53)
Since we know that an LP can be at the most 24 minutes per side, if you take out the 24 minutes of “Flamenco Sketches,” it would fit on one LP. Though, they could include “Flamenco Sketches” as a bonus track on the CD they are including.
The only caveat I’d mention here is that these recordings are direct dumps of the safety masters of each of the sessions (Columbia 62290, 62291, 62292, 62293, 62294) and include the tape starts and stops and have some cut outs– possibly from the tape edits? I suspect that due to the very few extra full takes available, this may include takes that were used on the official release of Kind of Blue, which begs the question about the legitimacy of the release.
Based on the wonderful Miles Ahead Sessions Information database which articulates all of the details of the sessions down to the studio chatter, here is what I know about the possible tracks:
1. Freddie Freeloader Session – This is Take 2, Take 3, Take 4 – An Edit of Take 4 was used on the official release.
2. So What Session – This is the full Take 3- An Edit of Take 3 was used on the official release. The bootleg includes Cannonball Adderley singing “with a song in my heart…” at the end.
3. Blue in Green Session – Take 2, Take 3, Take 4, Take 5 – An Edit of Take 5 was used on the official release.
4. All Blues Session – Take 1 – An Edit (faded) version was used on the official release. The bootleg includes the unfaded end with Paul Chambers panting at the end and saying “Damn…” part of ”Damn that’s a hard mother!”
If this release is the Kind of Blue Sessions and Outtakes version, I’ll be happy to have this in my collection! The sound is incredible– which isn’t surprising considering the source, but certainly one I’d play. It’s great to hear the musicians working through what would become one of the most important jazz albums in history.
Read this interesting piece on NPR called “Between the Takes” by Ashley Kahn which was also used in the hardbound book included in the 50th Anniversary box of Kind of Blue.
At this point the importance of Miles Davis groundbreaking work on his 1959 release Kind of Blue is well-established. Recorded over two dates in 1959 (March 2nd and April 22nd at Columbia’s 30th Street Studio) and featuring the legendary “First Sextet” lineup of Davis, Julian Adderley, John Coltrane, Wynton Kelly/Bill Evans (Kelly was on “Freddie Freeloader”), Paul Chambers and James Cobb. This is the band that Davis started his experimentation with modal jazz and the move away from his hard bop style. Though Kind of Blue is heralded as the pinnacle of modal style, Davis had already been working with it on his 1958 release Milestones, suggesting that Coltrane was the catalyst of this move.
Kind of Blue stands head and shoulders above many other jazz releases in popularity– depending on who you believe, it may be the greatest selling jazz release of all time. It certainly represents an important release in my jazz collection. When people who are unfamiliar with jazz ask me where to start listening, it is a safe bet to suggest Kind of Blue. So much about the album lends itself to being a springboard of sorts to more jazz– Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Bill Evans’s participation alone will send the newly motivated jazz investigator down some very important and landmark releases in the jazz canon.
Of course, these facts are not lost on the label custodian of Miles Davis’s catalog– Sony/BMG. I don’t think I can even count the reissues of just Kind of Blue that have happened over the years. For the 50th Anniversary of Kind of Blue in 2008, Sony Legacy released a beautifully-packaged release that included a clear-blue vinyl stereo LP (which fixed the long-standing mastering error that had side 2 at the wrong speed), 1 CD of Kind of Blue with an alternate take of ”Flamenco Sketches” and session chatter, 1 CD with five tracks from a May 26, 1958 session and a live version of “So What” from April 9, 1960 in Holland. There was also a DVD documentary of the album, and a beautiful book, posters and photos. This is the version I have in my collection.
So, I was surprised to see in the Record Store Day list diligently maintained at Wax Poetic the mention of an LP called The Kinda Blue Sessions ’59. Some quick googling turned up some information about it, but not a lot of details. It is on Birdland Records and distributed by RedEye. (Birdland also has an interesting Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers Munich ’59 live release). At SpinCD’s website, they provide the tracklist and credits:
Side One
1.Freddie Freeloader session
2.So What session
Side Two
1.Blue in Green session
2.All Blues session.
Musicians: Miles Davis – Trumpet, John Coltrane – Tenor sax, Bill Evans – Piano (S1 T2. S2 T1&2) Wyn Kelly – Piano (S1 T1), Julian Adderly- Alto Sax (All except S2 T1), Paul Chambers – Bass James Cobb- Drums
Based on the research I’ve done, I suspect that this is possibly a partial release of the bootleg commonly known as Kind of Blue Studio Sessions and Outtakes.
Initially I was a little concerned that this would be a release of only the additional tracks on the first CD of the 2008 Sony Legacy release of false starts and studio sequences. In fact, these are in exactly the same order, but it’s missing the tracks from “Flamenco Sketches” making this a release that– including the “Flamenco Sketches” chatter and false starts would have only been 10 minutes long!
7. Freddie Freeloader studio sequence 1 from the 3/2/59 sessions (0:51)
8. Freddie Freeloader false start from the 3/2/59 sessions (1:25)
9. Freddie Freeloader studio sequence 2 from the 3/2/59 sessions (1:26)
10. So What studio sequence 1 from the 3/2/59 sessions (1:53)
11. So What studio sequence 2 from the 3/2/59 sessions (0:59)
12. Blue in Green studio sequence from the 3/2/59 sessions (1:59)
13. Flamenco Sketches – studio sequence 1 from the 4/22/59 sessions (0:42)
14. Flamenco Sketches – studio sequence 2 from the 4/22/59 sessions (1:09)
15. All Blues – studio sequence from the 4/22/59 sessions (0:18)
But, the notable absence of the “Flamenco Sketches” sequences and the one outtake that they released on the Legacy release of ”Flamenco Sketches” would make this, although interesting from a collector’s standpoint, a pretty lame release out of the context of full songs. Especially at $29 MSRP.
The Kind of Blue Studio Sessions and Outtakes notes lists this track listing:
Tracks 1,2,3 > March 2, 1959 (2:30pm to 5:30pm and 7:00pm to 10:00pm)
Tracks 5,6 > April 22, 1959 (2:30pm to 5:30pm)
Columbia 30th Street Studio, New-York, USA
Tracks:
1. FREDDIE FREELOADER SESSION (13’38)
2. SO WHAT SESSION (12’53)
3. BLUE IN GREEN SESSION (11’13)
4. FLAMENCO SKETCHES SESSION (24’10)
5. ALL BLUES SESSION (11’53)
Since we know that an LP can be at the most 24 minutes per side, if you take out the 24 minutes of “Flamenco Sketches,” it would fit on one LP. Though, they could include “Flamenco Sketches” as a bonus track on the CD they are including.
The only caveat I’d mention here is that these recordings are direct dumps of the safety masters of each of the sessions (Columbia 62290, 62291, 62292, 62293, 62294) and include the tape starts and stops and have some cut outs– possibly from the tape edits? I suspect that due to the very few extra full takes available, this may include takes that were used on the official release of Kind of Blue, which begs the question about the legitimacy of the release.
Based on the wonderful Miles Ahead Sessions Information database which articulates all of the details of the sessions down to the studio chatter, here is what I know about the possible tracks:
1. Freddie Freeloader Session – This is Take 2, Take 3, Take 4 – An Edit of Take 4 was used on the official release.
2. So What Session – This is the full Take 3- An Edit of Take 3 was used on the official release. The bootleg includes Cannonball Adderley singing “with a song in my heart…” at the end.
3. Blue in Green Session – Take 2, Take 3, Take 4, Take 5 – An Edit of Take 5 was used on the official release.
4. All Blues Session – Take 1 – An Edit (faded) version was used on the official release. The bootleg includes the unfaded end with Paul Chambers panting at the end and saying “Damn…” part of ”Damn that’s a hard mother!”
If this release is the Kind of Blue Sessions and Outtakes version, I’ll be happy to have this in my collection! The sound is incredible– which isn’t surprising considering the source, but certainly one I’d play. It’s great to hear the musicians working through what would become one of the most important jazz albums in history.
Read this interesting piece on NPR called “Between the Takes” by Ashley Kahn which was also used in the hardbound book included in the 50th Anniversary box of Kind of Blue.
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Dexter Gordon in Abu Dhabi
Dexter Gordon on Abu Dhabi Classic FM
As of yesterday, and as part of the year-long Dexter Gordon 90th Birthday Anniversary, Abu Dhabi Classic FM pays homage to Dexter everyday until Thursday this week, featuring his classic recordings and concluding with a series of CD give-aways.
Date: Monday April 15 - Thursday April 18, 2013
Time: 11AM - 2PM EST
Where: http://www.adradio.ae/abudhabiclassicfm
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Stanley Kubrick and Jazz in the Third Reich
The Atlantic has an article about Stanley Kubricks never made film about Jazz in the Third Reich.
It's available here.
Enjoy!
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Friday, March 22, 2013
James M. Cain : The Cocktail Waitress
The last final novel of James Cain "The Cocktail Waitress" has been published.
Read more about the search for the manuscript in Sandra Bertrands article here.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
The Many Moods of Charles Mingus
Steven J. Chandler wrote an article called the 'Many Moods of Charles Mingus" which is available on the net here.
Enjoy!
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Bertrand Tavernier
Today Bertrand Tavernier is a special guest for the whole day at France Musique.
The program is available here but one can mention already Le Magazine at 12:35 PM about the Hollywood Movies of the 50's, Open Jazz at 18.00 PM, an interview / portrait with Bertrand Tavernier at 19h00, Cinema Song at 22:30 PM and at 1.00 AM friday morning, an interview with Bertrand Tavernier from 2008 about John Ford!!
Enjoy !
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Monday, February 25, 2013
Donald Byrd remembered
Blue Note Records does the right thing :
"In honor of Donald Byrd we are streaming a never-released live recording from the '73 Montreux Jazz Festival."
Listen here.
And Gilles Peterson still has his two Tribute Mixes available one with the accoustic years and one with the electric years.
Enjoy and remember Mr. Byrd.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
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