Jazz Articles about Bud Powell

Bud Powell: Bebop

by AAJ Staff
June 13, 2005

By P. Christopher Dowd

Bud Powell, forever known for his groundbreaking bop piano, represents a key link to the evolution of an art form, but he's also a glaring reminder that jazz is first and foremost black music. Powell is a testament to the horrors of racism and the musical expression that emerged from the black American experience. While his contemporary Dave Brubeck enjoys the sunset of his career, Powell was never afforded that opportunity. After being hit on the ...

Bud Powell: Eternity

by AAJ Staff
May 8, 2005

The great Bud Powell casts a very long shadow over all jazz piano players, not to mention most melodic/harmonic improvisers, regardless of instrument. His best recordings are simply indispensable. However, it is also known to jazz fans that Powell's life “unraveled, after what today would be called a hate crime brought on a crescendo of mental illness and physical damage. Those knowledgeable fans also know that there are quite a few records made from the later years of his life ...

Bud Powell: Eternity

by Jack Bowers
November 20, 2004

Let me begin by saying that I'm no Bud Powell aficionado. I understand there were undoubtedly times when he played far better than this, and times when he may have played even worse. All I can say with assurance is that had I not seen Powell's name and picture on this album, I never would have guessed it was him.

These unrehearsed sessions were taped in Paris between 1961-64, long after Powell's best days were behind him. This is Powell ...

Bud Powell: Eternity

by Jerry D'Souza
November 5, 2004

It is common knowledge that Bud Powell recorded several tunes while he lived in the house of Francis Paudras in Paris. Paudras sheltered these recordings, but he left the archives in the care of Celia Powell, Bud's daughter. The tracks were selected in conjunction with Jessica Shih of Piadrum Records.

Paudras had a piano in a room that formed an alcove. Powell would use the nook to play when he wanted to and not when he was asked ...

Bud Powell: Eternity

by Jim Santella
October 10, 2004

These solo piano sessions by Bud Powell were recorded between 1961 and 1964 in Paris at the home of his friend, Francis Paudras. The recordings, while made informally and never released, have preserved the sound and the spirit that the pianist espoused as a pioneer of bebop and as an influential force on many aspiring jazz artists. Like most dedicated pianists, Powell played out of a love for the music. Among the song titles, you'll recognize his grandchildren's names, as ...

Dance of the Infidels: A Portrait of Bud Powell

by Larry Koenigsberg
March 8, 2004

Dance of the Infidels: A Portrait of Bud Powell Francis Paudras 355 Pages ISBN: # 0-306-80816-1 Da Capo Press 1998 We should all have a friend like Francis Paudras, who nursed the great pianist Bud Powell back to health after rescuing him from an abusive caretaker. This story, presented in loose fashion some years ago in the movie “Round Midnight," is the subject of Paudras' book, published in translation here for the ...

Bud Powell: Parisian Thoroughfares

by C. Michael Bailey
November 7, 2003

Parisian Thoroughfares follows The Paris Sessions as the second installment in Pablo’s release of Bud Powell performances from the private archives of the late Francis Paudras, Powell’s French benefactor. As with The Paris Sessions, this set includes live performances from the Club Saint-Germain, the Radio Télévision Française Studios, and the Blue Note Café, all in Paris. These recordings were made between November 1957 and January 1961.

Performances include a pensive trio treatment of “Yesterdays" and a thorazine-stilted “Shaw ...