Results for "JazzWax by Marc Myers"

Happy 80th, Henry Grimes

November 3, 2015

Today is Henry Grimes's 80th birthday. While Henry is known as free jazz's most eminent bassist, he also appeared on a significant number of important mainstream jazz albums earlier in his career. Henry's sound has always been strongly supportive as a time-keeper and fiery in intensity, pushing musicians to take creative risks. As Sonny Rollins notes ...

Neal Hefti: The Band Years

November 2, 2015

Hearing Neal Hefti: Forever in Time, a newly released double-CD from the U.K.'s Jasmine label, reminded me how superb Hefti was in the 1950s as a composer, arranger and conductor of his own studio orchestras. Most of these dates were of the jazz-pop, dance-band ilk, with an emphasis on clever melodic hooks, patient swing and sectional ...

Sinatra on TV in '65

October 30, 2015

As years go, 1965 marked a significant cultural turning point. With teen audiences screaming at concerts for the Beatles and the Supremes, pop-rock and soul began to lock up a sizable slice of the record market. At the exact same time, the future was becoming a national obsession, helped along largely by the space race and ...

Mose Allison: Live in California

October 29, 2015

If there's an artistic link between jazz and blues-rock, then Mose Allison is one of the early bridges. In the late 1950s and early '60s, the jazz pianist from Tippo, Miss., had a remarkably casual, original blues style that touched many rockers. Mose's singing voice was just as seductive as his playing—more hick poet than bop ...

Shirley Scott + Clark Terry

October 28, 2015

In August 1966, organist Shirley Scott and flugelhornist Clark Terry came together to record an album for Impulse. The album, Soul Duo, also featured bassists George Duvivier and Ben Cranshaw and drummer Mickey Roker, and was recorded four months after another date together—Roll 'Em: Shirley Scott Plays the Big Bands (Impulse). Unfortunately, Soul Duo would be ...

Bill Evans: In the Wild

October 27, 2015

The best Bill Evans recordings were made live without his knowledge or in Europe. In both cases, he was most loose and lyrical, taking risks with his art to elevate piano pieces to impossibly higher melodic and harmonic standards. I should point out that in my opinion, there are no bad Evans albums, just great and ...

Bill Evans: Documentary '82

October 23, 2015

George Shearing: Late '60s

October 22, 2015

So much of George Shearing's extensive Capitol catalog is disappointing. I'm not complaining about Shearing's playing, which was mostly lively and thoughtful. Rather, it's the unevenness of his individual albums during this period and from one album to the next. It's almost as if the suits at Capitol had no clue what sounded good and what ...

Pete Jolly: Accordion, 1955

October 20, 2015

Four well-known jazz pianists of the 1950s started out as accordionists. The trend owed much to the accordion's affordability by families that couldn't afford a piano and the instrument's appeal at weddings and other parties, allowing budding squeeze-boxers to earn a few bucks. The list includes George Shearing, Joe Mooney and Marty Paich. The fourth may ...

Bill Kirchner: Evening of Indigos

October 19, 2015

Saxophonist Bill Kirchner was on a roll in 1993. He had studied with saxophonist Lee Konitz, pianist Harold Danko and arranger Mike Crotty. He was leading a nonet that recorded several albums. His arrangements had been recorded by Konitz, Dizzy Gillespie and Patti Austin. And he had annotated numerous projects for a range of major labels. ...