Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Scott LaFaro

New Release From Legendary Jazz Bassist Scott LaFaro
Pieces of Jade is a collection of rare recordings from one of jazz's most revered bassists. The album includes five selections recorded in New York City during 1961 that showcase LaFaro with pianist Don Friedman and drummer Pete LaRoca and a practice session with Bill Evans. Available now on CD and MP3 from Resonance Records.



Monday, September 28, 2009

Michael Connelly : The Last Coyote

Besides reading every year a novel by James Ellroy i also read annualy a Michael Connelly. I stick to the Harry Bosch series. A few weeks ago i ended 'The Last Coyote'. Sometimes Harry Bosch reminds me of the the main characters James Ellroy uses. Harry Bosch is sometimes as unusual and onorthodox as an LAPD cop as is for instance Dwight C. Holly in 'Blood's A Rover'. But then it might seem as Harry Bosch has an ethical code which lacks the Ellroy main characters? At first glance i would say yes, then with 'Blood's A Rover' in mind i might have to reconcile my vision (don't want to give too much away for those who still have to read Blood's A Rover.

Dennis Lehane wrote an article for Il Corriere della Sera on April 30, 2009 which now has been posted to Michael Connelly's site. It deals with the new Harry Bosch novel called 'Nine Dragons'. I don't care in particular for the Dennis Lehane novels, but if he writes about a true master it might be interesting.

Speaking of Ellroy, i haven't read much reviews yet of 'Blood's A Rover'; if you found some online reviews please send me a message.

Friday, September 25, 2009

ROIO OF THE WEEK : Dave Liebman - Sketches Of Spain

This weeks ROIO is a recording i made from a live radio broadcast from the Jazz in Marciac festival in 2006. It's Dave Liebman with the orchestra of Toulouse playing ' Sketches of Spain'. The concert was supposed to be aired in its totality later on but it never happened or i missed it. I don'tknow if this concert is already in circulation...
Anyway, enjoy !

DAVE LIEBMAN 'Sketches Of Spain'
with l'orchestre du Conservatoire National de Toulouse
Direction Jean-Charles Richard
09.08.2006
France Inter Live Broadcast
FM -) CDRW -) HD -) FLAC

01.Concierto d'Aranjuez (Adagio) 22:10
02.Will O' The Wisp 04:16
03.Saeta 15:14
04.Unknown 02:49
TT 44:29 M

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

John Coltrane on WKCR

WKCR in New York will present its annual John Coltrane Birthday Broadcast tomorrow Wednesday, September 23d. The station will broadcast the music of Coltrane for 24 hours.You can listen at it here. Hopefully something unissued will show up ;-)
So sit back and relax ...

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Archie Shepp & Anthony Braxton

On September 17th Archie Shepp & Anthony Braxton were given an honorary doctorate by the University of Liège . After the academic audience a concert took place in the Salle Philharmonique de Liège where some of their compostions were played by multiple groups.
(source Jazzflits n° 124, year7)

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

ROIO of the week : Ahmad Jamal at Marciac 2007

The first in a series of concerts from Jazz in Marciac :the Ahmad Jamal trio in 2007.
Enjoy the music ! (links are in the comment section)




Ahmad Jamal
Jazz In Marciac
07.08.2007
Radio France Inter
Direct Broadcast
MP3 (320)

The upload is the way how the concert was live broadcasted, it began during the encore's. Track 6 is the start of the concert (about two hours earlier) which was broadcasted after the encore's. Track 9 is an interview (in french) with the director of the festival while A.J. is somewhat audible in the far background,so you might want to skip this one...

Any help with the setlist is much appreciated...

1. Unknown (encore) 3:44
2. Unknown (encore) 3:56
3. Unknown (encore) 2:09
4. Unknown (encore) 4:59
5. Radio 1:07
begin of the concert :
6. Unknown 12:37
7. Radio 0:12
8. Unknown 2:14
9. interview 9:39
10.Unknown 1:59
11.Unknown 2:14

Ahmad Jamal p
James Cammack b
Idris Muhammad ds

Thursday, September 10, 2009

ROIO of the week : Rashied Ali, Gent 16.07.2007

Here's a belated tribute to the late Rashied Ali, a webcast recording of his concert in 2007 at the Blue Note Festival in Gent, Belgium.
Thanks Rashied Ali for the wonderfull music (if it was only for 'Interstellar Space' and those duo's with Sonny Fortune) you gave us.
Enjoy! (links are at its usual place)


Rashied Ali Quintet Company Of Heaven
16.07.2007, Blue Note Records festival, Gent
KLARA
WEBCAST

1 intro
2 A Thing For Joe (James Blood Ulmer)
3 intro
4 Untitled Original (Rashied Ali)
5 intro −) Take The Coltrane (Duke Ellington)

Rashied Ali ds
Jooris Teepe b
George Evans tp
Laurence Clark ts
Greg Murphy p

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Jazzman-Jazzmagazine : Miles Davis 1981 -1991


The French jazzmonthly Jazzman-Jazzmagazine (who have unified their forces) published this month an article on the last Miles period 1981 -1991. I haven't read it yet, but that might be something for the coming weekend.

Ayway they had around the cover of my issue a publicity for the new box which will be issued shortly "The Complete Columbia Album Collection". Here's the publicity shot :

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Le Cas Ornette Coleman


Cette nuit, France Musique fera tout afin qu'on n'aille pas dormir. En effet c'est la nuit Ornette Coleman. Ca commençe à 23 heures avec deux heures de concerts qui ne sont disponibles que dans des cercles de collectionneurs: le concert à la "Salle De La Mutualité", Paris le 4 Novembre, 1965 ainsi que celui au studio 102 à l'ORTF le 15 février 1966 avec son trio (éditions bootleg sur Magnetic Records et Affinity) suivi par le concert en quartet donné le 2 novembre 1971 à la Maison des syndicats de Belgrade (édition bootleg sur Jazzdoor).

Et après à partir d'une heure les choses sérieuses commençent : pendant 6 heures des musiciens, écrivains, critiques etc. vont discuter sur Ornette Coleman, jusqu'à 7 heures quand on peut aller à la boulangerie se chercher quelques croissants ;-)

C'est super cette initiative mais comment il faut enregistrer tout cela? Par internet? La connection de France Musique n'est pas top. Se lever toutes les heures ? Se partager le travail? N'hésitez pas à me contacter.

En tout cas à ne pas rater!

Bonne écoute.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Chris Connor update

The New York Times published it's obituary here.

ROIO of the week : Sonny Rollins Paris, 06.11.1974

Here's the second installment of the ROIO of the week. This time a concert Sonny Rollins gave 5 days after his Berlin concert. All i know is that it was recorded during a Paris show but i don't have an exact venue. The audio quality, depsite the fact it's a radio broadcast, is not great (especially the first track) but what the hell, the recording is 35 years old...
Links are at the usual place., enjoy!




Sonny Rollins Quintet
19741106 Paris
RB-) ? -) EAC -) HD -) FLAC
C

1. Don't stop the carnival 6:47
2. Alfie 11:00
3. To a wild rose 7:06
4. Swing low sweet charriot 12:22
TT 37 M

Sonny Rollins tenor sax
Ruftte Harley, soprano sax and bagpipes
Masuo , guitar
Gene Perla, bass
David Lee, drums

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Chris Connor R.I.P.

I received this message from the Jazzwestcoastlist this morning:

"LEGENDARY JAZZ SINGER CHRIS CONNOR DEAD AT 81
Legendary jazz vocalist Chris Connor, who first came to prominence with the orchestras of Claude Thornhill and Stan Kenton and went on to record dozens of successful albums and singles, died on Saturday evening, August 29 at the Community Medical Center in Toms River, NJ following a long bout with cancer, according to her publicist Alan Eichler. She was 81. Among her many hits were "All About Ronnie," "Trust in Me" and "I Miss You So." Nearly her entire recorded legacy has been reissued on CD, including such classic albums as "The George Gershwin Almanac of Song," "Witchcraft" and "Lullaby of Birdland."
Chris Connor was among the most popular '50s vocalists, famous for altering rhythms on ballads, using little vibrato except on special occasions, and a husky, lush sound and she continued to record and perform successfully throughout the world for the next 50 years.
Born Mary Loutsenhizer in Kansas City, MO on Nov. 8, 1927, Connor studied clarinet for eight years as a child, then began singing in her late teens. She was the vocalist with a large band at the University of Missouri led by Bob Brookmeyer modeled after the Kenton band. After working with a group in Kansas City, Connor moved to New York in 1949. She sang with Claude Thornhill, Herbie Fields and Thornhill again in the early '50s, performing with Thornhill's vocal group the Snowflakes.
An admirer of Kenton singers Anita O'Day and June Christy, Connor recalled, "I had my sights set on singing with Kenton." While appearing with Jerry Wald's band, she got her wish, receiving a phone call to join Kenton in 1952, with whom she recorded her biggest hit, "All About Ronnie." Connor went solo in 1953 and signed with Bethlehem Records for two years. She then moved to Atlantic, and enjoyed worldwide success as one of their biggest album sellers, having two chart singles in the late '50s. They were the songs "Trust In Me" and the title cut from the album "I Miss You So." Connor switched to Roulette and ABC-Paramount and was highly praised for her 1966 appearance at the Austin Jazz Festival. Following a period of semi-retirement, Connor made a comeback in the mid-'70s, cutting albums with Kenton and Maynard Ferguson. She continued recording into the '80s, '90s, and 2000s for such labels as Progressive, Contemporary, High Note and Enja, and touring throughout the world, including Carnegie Hall in New York, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and top venues in Japan, where she was hugely popular. Her last appearance was at the Iridium jazz club in New York City in 2004 in a split engagement with her idol Anita O'Day.
She is survived by a nephew and her longtime companion and manager Lori Muscarelle. Services will be private. Further details at<http://www.chrisconnorjazz.com/>
Chris Connor won every conceivable critical and popular accolade in her half century reign as one of the most gifted and distinctive vocalists in jazz history. To the delight of fans and fellow musicians, her singing has never been more satisfying. Her warm, cello-like tones glow with new luster, and her interpretation of lyrics is more deeply felt than ever before. Connor's concert appearances at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center, an appearance at the Essence of Jazz Festival in Memphis, and her appearance as part of the star studded JVC tribute concert to Miss Peggy Lee, as well as jazz club engagements at such venues as Birdland and Iridium, have revealed an artist at the peak of her creative powers.
Born in 1927 in Kansas City, Missouri, Connor studied clarinet, but her career direction was clear at an early age. "I always knew I wanted to be a singer," she said, "I never wanted to be anything else." After completing her schooling, she took a secretarial job while commuting on weekends to the University of Missouri to perform with a Stan Kenton-influenced college jazz band. An admirer of Kenton singers Anita O'Day and June Christy, Connor recalls, "I had my sights set on singing with Kenton."
Frustrated by the lack of vocal musical opportunities in her hometown, Connor pulled up stakes and headed east in 1949. She was hired by Claude Thornhill and spent the next five years touring with his orchestra. Then, while appearing with Jerry Wald's band, she received the phone call she had been dreaming of. June Christy, Stan Kenton's current vocalist, had heard Connor on a radio broadcast and recommended her to the orchestra leader, who chose her from dozens of other vocalists eager for the job. "My voice seemed to fit the band," Connor said, "with that low register like Anita's and June's."
Connor's ten-month stint with Kenton during 1952-53 won her national recognition. Her haunting recording of Joe Greene's ballad "All About Ronnie" announced the arrival of a fresh new artist. But the years of one-night stands, fast food and interminable bus rides soured Connor's enthusiasm for life on the road. "By that time, I'd endured about six years of one-nighters and I'd just about had it." To this day she values the musical training she received with Kenton, especially the skills relating to time, phrasing and "how to come in on exactly the right note while 18 or 20 musicians are playing their parts."
Determined to forge a career as a solo artist, Connor returned to New York and signed with Bethlehem Records in 1953. Her three albums for that independent label, featuring Ellis Larkins, Herbie Mann, Kai Winding and J.J. Johnson, established her as a major jazz voice. In 1956, she began a six-year association with Atlantic Records that produced a string of chart-topping recordings arranged by Ralph Burns, Al Cohn, Jimmy Jones and Ralph Sharon, showcasing a host of jazz legends - John Lewis, Oscar Pettiford, Lucky Thompson, Phil Woods, Kenny Burrell, Milt Hinton, Clark Terry, Oliver Nelson and, in a particularly memorable pairing, Maynard Ferguson's big band.
The rock youthquake of the late '60s and '70s derailed the careers of many jazz artists, but Connor persisted, performing in clubs, touring Japan and recording for a variety of labels. The early '80s resurgence of interest in jazz singing revitalized her career, leading to a brace of highly-acclaimed Contemporary CDs. In the '90s she began to record for the Japanese label Alfa. Connor recorded two CDs with jazz pianist Hank Jones and his trio, "Angel Eyes" and "As Time Goes By." She then recorded two additional CDs with her own quintet, "My Funny Valentine," arranged by Richard Rodney Bennett, and "Blue Moon," a collection of movie songs, arranged by Michael Abene.
The new Millennium brought the timeless singer into yet another recording agreement, signing with the New York based High Note Records in 2000. Her first release, "Haunted Heart," also arranged by Michael Abene, was released September 2001, and a second CD "I Walk With Music," was released in 2002, also with Michael Abene arranging and producing.
Chris then returned to another Japanese label and recorded "Lullaby Of Birdland" for King Record Co.Ltd, with pianist/arranger David Matthews. It was released in September 2003.
Of her current singing, Connor said, "I haven't changed my approach, although my voice has become deeper and softer, and I don't experiment as much. When you're young, you overplay as a musician and you over-sing as a singer because you're trying all these ideas, and I was throwing in everything but the kitchen sink. I've eliminated a lot of things I used to do. The simpler it is, the better it works for me." She remains, as critic Larry Kart proclaimed in the Chicago Tribune, "a dominating vocal presence whose music is full of hard-earned wisdom and truth."
ALAN EICHLER Publicity1010 Hillcroft Rd.Glendale, CA 91207818-507-8918aeichler@earthlink. net "