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Video / DVD

The Brief Genius of Alice Clark

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
January 13, 2021

When Bob Shad started Mainstream Records in 1964, his mission was to record what he liked. Freed from the confines of Mercury and EmArcy in the 1950s, Shad created a catalog at Mainstream that was highly diverse, from Johnny Mandel's Harper soundtrack to Big Brother & the Holding Company's first album. One of the artists he felt obliged to record was singer Alice Clark. Not much is known about Clark or how she came to the attention of Shad i ...

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Video / DVD

Gary Peacock: West Coast (1959-62)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
January 12, 2021

Bassist Gary Peacock, who died in September of 2020, was probably best known for Trio '64, his sole album in 1963 with Bill Evans, as well as his work with Albert Ayler, Paul Bley, Marc Copland and Keith Jarrett. But before Trio '64, Peacock spent several years in Los Angeles working as a sideman. On the West Coast, Peacock emerged as part of a school of conversationalist bassists who didn't just keep time but were expected to engage with a ...

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Video / DVD

Video: Bill Evans in Barcelona

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
January 7, 2021

On November 28, 1979, two days after recording The Paris Concert live at Espace Pierre Cardin in Paris, Bill Evans was in Barcelona with his final trio—bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Joe LaBarbera. There, the trio performed for about 45 minutes at RTVE studios in the Esplugues de Llobregat section of the city. Your eyes don't deceive you. Evans wasn't playing the piano and drums. All three players wore the same sports jackets that night, and Joe was in the ...

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Video / DVD

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Six musicians to watch in 2021

Source: St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
January 3, 2021

As the new year begins, no one is sure exactly when live music will resume on a widespread, regular basis or when touring artists will be able to start traveling again. We can, however, still keep an eye and ear on some of the jazz artists who seem likely to be influential over the next 12 months. So let's take a look at some performances from six musicians who made news in the year just ended and are poised for ...

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Video / DVD

Five Michel Legrand Duets

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 18, 2020

For some reason, I felt like hearing the music of Michel Legrand yesterday, but I couldn't figure out why. The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized that with snow falling here, the ending scene from The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (above) were likely projecting on the walls of my mind. Movies aside, here are five fabulous duet performances with Michel Legrand... Here's Legrand and Tony Bennett in 1982... Here's Legrand and Kuh Ledesma, a wonderful Filipina pop ...

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Video / DVD

Bill Evans at Ease Abroad

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 16, 2020

Want to hear Bill Evans in his prime in five different venues? Dig this gorgeous Jazz Icons video that runs an hour and a half. First, here's the song lineup with four different rhythm sections... Sweden 1964—My Foolish Heart and Israel, with Chuck Israels on bass and Larry Bunker on drums. France 1965—Detour Ahead and My Melancholy Baby with alto saxophonist Lee Konitz, bassist Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen and drummer Alan Dawson. Denmark 1970—Emily, Alfie and Someday My Prince Will Come, ...

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Video / DVD

New Video: Bill Evans, 1975

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 5, 2020

Two weeks ago, the following video went up at YouTube of Bill Evans and Eddie Gomez performing a 30-minute set in July 1975 at the Antibes/Juan-les-Pins Jazz Festival on the French Riviera. As you'll hear, Evans and Gomez sounded fantastic—clear, spry, poetic and with a swinging snap. What's more, the set was Nardis-free! The songs were Elsa, All Mine, I Love You, What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life? and On Green Dolphin Street. Evans working with Gomez ...

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Video / DVD

Basie and Ella Docs

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 1, 2020

There are dozens of documentaries on jazz but precious few about the private lives of great jazz musicians. Eagle Vision recently released two—Count Basie: Through His Own Eyes and Ella Fitzgerald: Just One Of Those Things. In both cases, the use of footage, still images and interview subjects are compelling and the music is rich. While a bulk of the material in the films covers familiar ground, you'll likely discover a few things about these artists' private lives you may ...

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