Interview News

David Amram on Bobby Jaspar

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
June 10, 2010

Bobby Jaspar is all but forgotten today. Back in the late 1950s, the Belgian tenor saxophonist recorded with Hank Jones, Tommy Flanagan, Eddie Costa, J.J. Johnson, Herbie Mann and many other notable New York jazz artists of the period. Married to singer Blossom Dearie, Jaspar's best-known recordings are probably Interplay for Two Trumpets and Two Tenors (1957), for which he was teamed with John Coltrane, and Chet Is Back (1962), recorded with Chet Baker after the trumpeter's release from an ...

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Interview: Dick Collins (Part 2)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
June 9, 2010

In the 1950s, Dick Collins was one of those rare trumpeters with a gorgeous round sound and smart, simple ideas. Both qualities made him ideally suited for the big bands of Woody Herman and Les Brown--orchestras in the 1950s that focused as much on style and sensitivity as on power and swing. Dick could effortlessly roll up a scale to create drama, linger ruefully on a note before tagging a few others on his triplet descent. The melodies Dick invented ...

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Interview: Dick Collins (Part 1)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
June 8, 2010

In the big band era of the 1950s, the jazz trumpeter was perhaps the most important musician of all in an orchestra, along with the band's drummer, of course. The first trumpet was the section's leader and set the tone for the horns. But the third chair, or jazz trumpet, had the solos and gave a band its personality and flavor. Once the LP era started in earnest in the mid-1950s, the jazz trumpet played an even more vital role, ...

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Saxophonist David S. Ware Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
June 10, 2010

It wasn't the kidney transplant that brought saxophonist David S. Ware very close to wheelchair confinement. Last September (2009), there were early signs of organ rejection, so he was placed on a course of steroids. These came with side effects that were more debilitating than last year's operation itself. Since then, Ware has been in a state of recuperation, although his definition of resting is nowhere near the same as that understood by most folks.

In the ten years prior ...

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Charles "Baron" Mingus: 1945-49

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
June 4, 2010

How did Charles Mingus become Charles Mingus? Most listeners are familiar with the bassist's dynamic and provocative recordings of the 1950s and 1960s. Many may even be up on Mingus' jazz-pop dates with vibraphonist Red Norvo and guitarist Tal Farlow in 1950 and 1951. But before those sessions, Mingus was a ferocious up-and-comer on the West Coast. His first recording session was in February 1945 as part of Jazz at the Philharmonic, when Norman Granz staged the all-star series in ...

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Guitarist Martin Taylor Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
June 9, 2010

Guitarist Martin Taylor is about as multi-faceted as any player on the modern scene. Whereas many guitarists have reached similar heights within the jazz world, Taylor has developed simultaneous reputations for his solo jazz guitar playing, his Gypsy-inspired band, the Spirit of Django, his solo finger-style guitar work, as well as his small group jazz playing. Among guitarists, he is known as a player's player-- someone who reaches across genres to integrate his many influences, while at the same time ...

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The B3 Guru: Jazz Organ Legend Dr. Lonnie Smith Addresses His Life and Craft

Source: All About Jazz @ Spinner
June 9, 2010

With the passing of Jimmy Smith in 2005, Dr. Lonnie Smith (no relation) is now at the top of the Hammond B3 organ food chain. The latter Smith broke into the New York scene in the mid-'60s as a member of George Benson's quartet and quickly became the go-to organ guy for folks like Lou Donaldson, who is still a good friend and occasional collaborator. After burning out near the end of the '70s, Smith returned to music full time ...

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Vocalists Julia Dollison and Kerry Marsh Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
June 8, 2010

It's nice when people of similar interest and ambitions come together. Nicer still, when those things form the basis of a personal relationship; a partnership that results in the ultimate collaboration--marriage. For Julia Dollison and Kerry Marsh--singers who are also heavily involved in education, heightened by their successful operation of the jazz vocal program at California State University, Sacramento--their journey is starting to extend more outside of the classroom and into projects for music fans to enjoy.

Enter their new ...

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