April 2009

  • Turrentine x Scott

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/19/09 5:05pm
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    I can’t say that there are too many dates that Stanley Turrentine led that I really care about. The live set that finds him paired with Freddie Hubbard is definitely one of them – but with the line up that appears on that disc, it’s not too difficult to figure out why it turned out well. But even if Turrentine didn’t have tremendous leadership qualities, he had good taste in woman. And in 1960 he married organist Shirley Scott.

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  • Soul Stew: King Curtis

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/17/09 2:08pm
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    There aren’t too many parts of the recording process that King Curtis didn’t have a hand in. He wrote, orchestrated, directed, produced and played on some of the most important recordings in a variety of genres – some that you wouldn’t even associate the saxophonist with. You know he wrote “Reminiscing” by Buddy Holly, right? That’s crazy.

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  • Bird 'n Diz: Live in NYC, 1945

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/16/09 6:59pm
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    Right. So, these two dudes have pretty much defined the way in which to play their individual instruments. I’ve heard tell of Maynard Ferguson having an enormous range – trumping Diz, who I don’t believe was ever touted for such talents. But considering that no one in their right mind cares about Maynard, save for a few drunken trumpet majors, we’ll consider Diz tops. As for Bird – well Coltrane, at this point is probably more important - but without the Charlie Parker style check at the beginning of his career, who knows where Coltrane would have wound up.

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  • Consternation: Harold Ousley

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/16/09 1:45pm
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    After the advent of the independent record label – let’s just give the credit to Sam Cooke, since the genre we’re about to take a trip through is as tied to the progress of black folks as any other – a slew of outlets began popping up. Some were more valid than others. But that’s not really the point. The fact that folks without significant ties to the music industry were able to put to tape what they felt was as important a step in civil rights as any other (post angry comments below).

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  • Twined: Ornette Coleman

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/15/09 8:18pm
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    The style of playing that’s most often associated with Ornette Coleman is a difficult one. It isn’t necessarily tied to all too much that came before it. It is, of course, related to bop – its closest predecessor. But in that link, there isn’t all too much that can be figured as similar. Part of bop’s apotheosis, though, was as an anti-dance music. And Coleman’s work is certainly that. But beyond that, the way in which the saxophonist perceives what a solo is and should do is drastically removed from the musics’ forbearer.

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  • The Eric Dolphy Memorial Barbecue

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/13/09 3:59pm
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    The myth or sensation surrounding a number of players is often more important than what the individual actually achieved. It’s difficult to figure when and where this applies and I can’t say that Eric Dolphy’s career is one of these instances or not, but due to his death at a rather young age, it can surely be said that the spate of inconsistent reissues bearing his name wouldn’t have occurred other wise.

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  • Hyperion and Theia: Sun Ra

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/13/09 11:47am
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    It’s really difficult to discuss Sun Ra – or his music – without using some string of adjectives that basically means weird. Of course, if that’s all one has taken away after listening to his work, than the point of it all has been lost. But still, he’s kinda weird. That’s not good or bad. But it probably informed a vast many decisions that he made regarding composition as well as his choice to use an electric keyboard before most folks in the United States knew what that even was.

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  • Harping: Dorothy Ashby

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/10/09 2:14pm
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    As with so many other jazz players, Dorothy Ashby had been perpetually surrounded by music from the time that she was a small child. Her father, guitarist Wiley Thompson, was in the practice of bringing friends back to his family’s home to jam. And on occasion, a young Dorothy would help the combos out by playing piano alongside of them. It was obvious that music would be her career in one way or another.

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  • Miles Davis: Live in Copenhagen, 1960

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/8/09 3:05pm
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    I’ve been ensnared all too many times in the argument pitting Miles Davis against John Coltrane. And regardless of whether or not there’s an answer as to who was the better player or who impacted the genre to a greater extent, listening to both men play on the same session is more rewarding than the discourse that surrounds either player.

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  • McGriff and Parker: Soul Blue

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/7/09 10:21am
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    By the time he was thirty years old Junior Parker had performed in a group with a young BB King, worked with Sonny Boy Williamson and Howlin’ Wolf and was signed by Ike Turner to Modern Records before Sam Phillips swooped in and whisked the singer off to Sun Records. That in and of itself is more than a career. But that would only comprise the first half of his recording career.

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  • Q: Who? A: Tony Scott

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/3/09 5:59pm
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    The ‘60s, for jazz were a time of experimentation, just like every other genre. The changes that took place during that time have resonated not just within the genre, but generally throughout society. It was during this time that the notion of world music came about, but before you start in on how you had a roommate that jammed Enya, there’re works out there that won’t make you want to light some incense, drink herbal tea and meditate. Maybe just the last one…

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  • John Coltrane's Ascension

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/2/09 7:34pm
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    Coming half a decade after the Ornette Coleman Free Jazz (1960) disc, it’s somewhat confusing that Coltrane’s Ascension (1965) is generally thought of as the true beginning of the sub-genre. Having been working to this furious disc over his previous few recording dates, Coltrane sees fit to surround himself with pretty much the top tier of the new thing at this point. His accomplices include Pharoah Sanders, Freddie Hubbard, Archie Shepp, Marion Brown as well as the storied Coltrane rhythm section.

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  • Chording: Andrew Hill

    By cobwebsandstrange on 4/1/09 3:48pm
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    Having left us two years ago this spring, Andrew Hill made as strong a contribution as any post bop band leader – it’s just that no one took too much notice while he was around. That’s not to conjecture that he was ostracized or disrespected, but much of the work that defines Hill’s catalog isn’t as easily digestible as other discs from prominent band leaders during his life time. And to further this, Blue Note – as they’re wont to do – sat on a few pretty notable recordings until recently.

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