Results for "JazzWax by Marc Myers"

Mike Wofford: It's Personal

June 26, 2013

Pianist Mike Wofford doesn't waste notes. Each one has purpose, as if his improvisations were worked out in advance. Of course, that's not the case. But his taste and beautiful choices say a great deal about his craftsmanship and the many moods he's able to create with engaging chord voicings. Wofford is a pianists you want ...

Dave Pell on Boots Brown

June 25, 2013

Yesterday I posted about Shorty Rogers and his rock-and-roll recordings for RCA as Boots Brown and His Blockbusters. Those recordings included the cream of the West Coast jazz scene, including tenor saxophonist Dave Pell. Today, I gave Dave a buzz to find out why Rogers—and everyone else—bothered and shunned credit. First, a word about Dave, who ...

Shorty Rogers: Rock Sessions

June 24, 2013

Shorty Rogers led a double life in the 1950s. By day, he was one of West Coast jazz's founding fathers—standing out as a dynamic bandleader and prolific big-band and small-group arranger. On his off hours, he had an alter-ego—Boots Brown, an early rock-and-roller who recorded about a dozen jump-boogie singles. Why Rogers bothered and went incognito ...

Ted Heath Plays Tadd Dameron

June 20, 2013

The U.S. had Glenn Miller and Stan Kenton. The U.K. had Ted Heath. Born in 1902, the trombonist played in jazz bands from the 1920s through the mid-1940s, when he formed his own big band on D-Day. Inspired by Miller's Army Air Force Band, with its precision and dramatic moodiness, Heath grew in popularity after the ...

Kenny Barron: Brazilian Knights

June 19, 2013

Pianist Kenny Barron's first bossa nova album—West Side Story Bossa Nova—was recorded in March 1963. The session was led by Barron's older brother Bill, a gifted arranger and saxophonist. Kenny Barron played on three tracks—Jet Song, Something's Coming and Maria. The other tracks were handled by pianist Steve Kuhn, along with Willie Thomas (tp) Kenny Burrell ...

Dizzy with Ernie's Almost Big Band

June 18, 2013

Al Haig Captured on Video

June 15, 2013

I've never seen a video clip of pianist Al Haig, have you? Yesterday I found one of Haig playing with James Moody (alto sax), Ray Brown (bass) and Kenny Clarke (drums). It comes from Dizzy Gillespie's Bebop Reunion—a 1975 PBS SoundStage show in Chicago. I'm alerted that my good friend Doug Ramsey featured the clip earlier ...

David Allyn: Where You At?

June 14, 2013

Singer David Allyn joined Jack Teagarden's band in early 1940—just months after Frank Sinatra began singing with Tommy Dorsey. Both singers learned a great deal about phrasing from their trombonist bosses. When Sinatra left Dorsey in '42 to record as a solo artist at Columbia, Allyn went into the Army. After Allyn returned to the States ...

Steve Lindeman: Day After Yesterday

June 14, 2013

The finest new orchestral jazz album I've heard this year is Steve Lindeman's The Day After Yesterday (Jazz Hang). The intelligence of the compositions and arrangements can only be described as breathtaking. The melodies and harmonies are tender and braided beautifully, and the one vocal track is splendidly executed, with overdubbing that rivals the Singers Unlimited—without ...

Rock Doc: Album Cover Art

June 10, 2013

Ever wonder how iconic California rock album covers came together in the 1960s and '70s? Reader Bob Rosenbaum alerted me to a documentary up at YouTube that details the events behind the scenes through the eyes of photographer Henry Diltz and art director/artist Gary Burden. The documentary also sheds light on the bands photographed. You can ...