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Backgrounder: Rosinha de Valença (1964)
Rosinha de Valença was a Brazilian singer-songwriter and one of her country's finest acoustic guitarists. Born Maria Rosa Canelas in 1941, she learned to play by accompanying music on the radio. Translated into English, her professional name means Rosinha from Valença, a city in the state of Rio de Janeiro. The name was given to her ...
Perfection: David Allyn - Love Is a Serious Thing (1962)
Frank Sinatra had a soft spot for singer David Allyn. His affection and help in Las Vegas wasn't based on pity. David had suffered psychologically during his service in World War II and went to prison for eight years on drug charges after attempts to self-medicate led to addiction. Sinatra admired Allyn because he was a ...
John Von Ohlen: The Baron (1973)
The Fender Rhodes electric piano was most popular with jazz and soul musicians and groups from 1970 to 1978, when affordable synthesizers began to replace the warm, dreamy-sounding instrument. For me, the greatest concentration of top-notch Rhodes albums arrived between 1971 and 1973. As you might imagine, I'm a bit of a Rhodes nut and have ...
Oscar Moore: Enchanting Guitar, 1945-'65
One of the finest and most rewarding box sets to cross my desk this year is The Enchanting Guitar of Oscar Moore: The 1945-1965 Years. Released by Fresh Sound, this three-CD set with terrific liner notes by Jordi Pujol is both captivating and illuminating. Best known as the guitarist in the famed Nat King Cole Trio ...
Roy Ayers (1940-2025)
Roy Ayers, a vibraphonist, record producer and composer who created a new jazz sound in the mid-1970s that combined electronic jazz, trippy funk and soothing soul that rested heavily on mellow chord sequences and lyrical melodies, died on March 4. He was 84. Ayers began by recording hard bop in 1962 with Curtis Amy and recorded ...
Backgrounder: A.K. Salim on Savoy
One of the least researched and virtually forgotten master arrangers of the 1950s is Ahmad Khatab Salim—better known as A.K. Salim. He had a muscular, orchestral style and lyrical instrumental approach that caught the ear and packed a punch. Salim also arranged for Dizzy Gillespie and had one of the finest Latin-jazz pens, scoring Machito's Kenya ...
Perfection: Machito - Conversation (1957)
In the 1950s, many top New York jazz musicians found additional work playing in top Latin bands. The mambo and cha-cha-cha were in full swing, and the demand for live bands was high, especially in the smaller clubs in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens. The jazz players were top sight-readers, which was a big plus. So ...
Johnny Richards and Stan Kenton
Johnny Richards arranged several crackerjack albums for Stan Kenton. They include Cuban Fire!, tracks on Back to Balboa, Kenton's West Side Story and Adventures in Time. Even more exceptional are Richards's albums recorded as a leader, including Something Else, Wide Range, Walk Softly/Run Wild and Aqui Se Habla Español. With Kenton, Richards came a long way ...
Wes Montgomery: 'Incredible Jazz Guitar' (1960)
Guitarist Wes Montgomery recorded many exceptional albums, but the one that stands out for me is The Incredible Jazz Guitar (Riverside). Backed by Tommy Flanagan on piano, Percy Heath on bass and Albert “Tootie" Heath on drums, Montgomery is presented in classic form in this January 1960 recording produced by Orrin Keepnews. The album has just ...
Backgrounder: Al Sears - Swing's the Thing (1960)
Al Sears was one of those versatile tenor saxophonists who could slide between jazz and R&B in the 1950s. Born in 1910, he landed his first major professional job as the replacement for Johnny Hodges in Chick Webb's group in 1928. In the 1940s, he played with Andy Kirk (1941-42), Lionel Hampton (1943-44) and Duke Ellington ...
