Results for "Dave McMurdo"

Dave McMurdo

John Macleod: The Toronto Sound

by Jack Bowers
May 4, 2018

Yes, this is Canada's John MacLeod and the Rex Hotel Orchestra. And yes, this is the ensemble's third CD, The Toronto Sound. But close your eyes and listen carefully and it modulates into no less than an earnest albeit clandestine homage to Rob McConnell and the peerless Boss Brass. Is that a good thing? Beyond any ...

Buddy Rich: In a Zone of His Own

by Jack Bowers
February 10, 2013

One of the channels that came with my Dish Network package is Classic Arts Showcase, which is a treasure trove of film clips documenting classical, ballet, folk, pop and other forms of music that one is unlikely to see anywhere else (although some footage is presumably available on YouTube, which more and more seems to encompass ...

The "Desert Island" Revisited

by Jack Bowers
May 7, 2012

Back in the last millennium, shortly after this column first saw the light of day, I posted a list of twenty “desert island" albums, those that would be snugly ensconced in a crash-proof, water-tight carrying case should yours truly ever be marooned on a miniature atoll with nothing to relieve the boredom save palm trees, coconuts, ...

Stan Kenton-UW Eau Claire / Kirk MacDonald Orchestra / Kansas City Jazz Orchestra

by Jack Bowers
April 5, 2012

Stan Kenton Orchestra/UW-Eau Claire Jazz Ensemble 1Double Feature, Vol. 3Tantara Productions2012 Volume 3 in Tantara's ongoing two-CD series of Double Features, encompassing heretofore unissued music by the Stan Kenton Orchestra and guests, covers parts of five Kenton concerts spanning the years 1971-77 on Disc 1, and presents ...

John MacLeod & His Rex Hotel Orchestra / Tim Davies Big Band / New England Jazz Ensemble

by Jack Bowers
September 3, 2011

John MacLeod & His Rex Hotel OrchestraOur First SetSelf Published2010 Those who mourn the passing of the great trombonists Rob McConnell and Dave McMurdo and, with them, two of the most renowned big bands Canada has ever produced, should take substantial comfort from this superlative debut recording ...

Jack's Gone! No He Isn't; Yes He Is; No He Isn't...!

by Jack Bowers
July 8, 2011

As I sat down to write this month's column, word came that trumpeter Jack Sheldon had died. No sooner had I written a few words about that when word came that trumpeter Jack Sheldon had not died. After some back-and-forth on the internet (is he or isn't he?), the last report, it seems, was the true ...

DIVA Jazz Orchestra / Paul Read Orchestra / Andy Farber and His Orchestra

by Jack Bowers
February 8, 2011

DIVA Jazz OrchestraJohnny Mandel: The Man and His MusicArbors Jazz2010 Note to NARAS members: please do not cast your vote for Best Big Band Album of 2011 without first having listened to Johnny Mandel: The Man and His Music, recorded in concert at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola in Manhattan ...

Rob McConnell: Boss of Bosses

by Jack Bowers
June 3, 2010

Even though largely unknown to most of us south of the border, a number of world-class big bands have made their home in Canada over the years. For nearly three decades, however, there was one whose name and influence rose conspicuously above the others. That band was, of course, the incomparable Boss Brass, and the reason ...

Strike Up the (Unsung) Bands

by Jack Bowers
December 5, 2009

The big band era is known for producing a number of enormously successful ensembles whose leaders were household names: Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Jimmie Lunceford, Fletcher Henderson, then on through Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, the brothers Jimmy Dorsey and Tommy Dorsey, Charlie Barnet, Artie Shaw, Harry James, Cab Calloway, Lionel Hampton, Dizzy Gillespie and, ...