May 2009

Prestige 7357Finding a new record store is akin to discovering a long lost relative. And if the clerk (aka record geek) behind the counter is a helpful and interesting individual, all the better. Upon arriving at Mod Lang in El Cerrito, California, the first thing I noticed was that there was as much vinyl as anything else. That's always a good sign. I struck up a conversation with the clerk, who had just tossed on the new Iron and Wine compilation as I arrived. As per usual, I was necessitated to leave my bag at the front of the store, but that only allowed my scrawny arms more freedom as I traipsed through the jazz and rock sections of the store.

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New DayThere is and always will be some allure around the myth of James Brown. His wild side obviously sparked some stories - real or not. Over time, as he slowly devolved into a troubled man, his talent didn't dissipate and neither did his ability to pick out talent and mold individuals into something incredible. The stories involving Brown's strict policies regarding his band - which probably match any trumped up Zappa tale - culminated in fines and the like. But to his credit, it worked. There aren't too many other musical bodies of work that are universally revered in the way that the Brown catalog is - Bob Marley, maybe. But that's about it

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GrooveAs a drummer in not just Galactic, but Garae-a-Trois amongst countless other well known funky, groove based outfits, Stanton Moore doesn't get an enormous amount of the attention in any of these ensembles. It's true that his style of drumming - extracted as much from his New Orleans upbringing as from straight funk bangers from the '60s and '70s - isn't the most overtly imbued with flair. But he's still recognized as one of the finest musicians of his epoch sitting on a drum thrown.

First making a name for himself in the early '90s with Galactic, the band quickly endeared themselves to the jam band crowd, playing festivals with sets engorged with instrumentals and all too danceable breaks. But even in this approach to NOLA based musics, there was and remains a pretty enormous debt to jazz in all of its forms. The playing of not just Moore, but everyone that he surrounds himself with - from George Porter, Jr. to Skerik - have a very specific, playful and exploratory bent to their playing.

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Duke Ellington is responsible for some of the most well known and memorable melodic figures in jazz, if not in American music. His compositions have been adapted in every land, for every purpose imaginable. And while, he counted an enormous cast of supporting players, Duke sought to work with their individual talents as opposed to forcing each man into some mold that he wasn't fit for.

Perhaps the songs that Duke is most associated with, "Caravan" for example, weren't even his compositions. But because of his inclusive attitude towards creating music, he never begrudged an underling some opportunity to feature a talent, composition or solo. And for that, Duke can have said to have maintained a well endowed big band for almost fifty years, some players remaining in his employ for decades.

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LiveThere's nothing traditional about today's entertaining jazz players. If anyone new jazzbo sets out to begin some ensemble - and not be completely ignored - it's pretty much a necessity to incorporate a modicum of out moments. Figuring that, it still seems that there are a few too many jazz groups working in a traditional mold. And while those tropes are, obviously, still important repeating them again, doesn't seem like a good use of time - the players' or the listeners'.

But Steven Bernstein understands all of this. His music, while incorporating enough New Orleans' style decadence, brings in disparate elements as to not allow listeners to guess at what's about to happen. So, while there are those countless disposable jazz groups, Bernstein's Sex Mob is not one of them.

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LameIn writing and listening to entirely too much jazz, it's become at least semi apparent that the '70s were occasionally a troublesome time for the medium - not in the same way that the '80s were. But that decade, while featuring some extraordinary heights of musicality as well as vision, at points, gave away to indulgent nonsense.

The inclusion of spiritual overtones began in the '60s with Coltrane's ascent to the pantheon of artists that folks aren't allowed to dislike. But in his wake a slew of players copped the spirit and made off into the night with it. Pharaoh Sanders worked, for a time at least, with these precepts, but even he, at times, hit the low points of music. Experimentation, obviously, has its draw backs

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New, New, NewPicking up the cello at a young age as a result of his father playing the instrument in large group settings, Grachan Moncur III began his musical career as unassuming as the next dilettante player. It can't be said that he didn't exhibit talent, but by the time that he settled upon the trombone as his instrument of choice, few others were working that instrument out during the hey day of be-bop.

After completing high school - the Laurinburg Institute in North Carolina where Dizzy Gillespie was a student as well - Moncur toured with Ray Charles, the Jazztet and Sonny Rollins. So, even if his choice of instrument seemed to place him a bit out of the norm, it was more than offset by his talent and ability to work with some enormous personalities. Despite have made such an impact on the jazz recording industry, Moncur still had a few years to wait before earning the right to lead his own date.

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OneHaving a recording career that spans just about sixty years is as impressive as any other achievement a musician might count. But even in those rare situations where longevity isn't all too important, the quality throughout much of the Ahmad Jamal catalog is on par with many of the most well known 20^th Century masters. He's not a Coltrane, or a Hancock, but Jamal gets the job done in economical fashion.

And it's for this reason that both Miles Davis and Coltrane utilized compositional ideas - and even progressions - from Jamal's work. It can't be said that Kind of Blue wouldn't exist if not for Jamal's influence, but take a listen to anything off of the album by Davis and then toss on some mid '50s work from Jamal and figure the relationship.

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