Jump to content

stevebop

Members
  • Posts

    187
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Donations

    0.00 USD 

Everything posted by stevebop

  1. stevebop

    Helen Merrill

    Helen came down with flu-like symptoms and was advised not to travel. Get well soon!
  2. stevebop

    Helen Merrill

    I will get to see Helen for the first time this coming Saturday night, July 11th. She is singing at The Upstairs Club in Montreal as part of this years Jazz Festival. She will be doing two sets each on Friday and Saturday nights. I am very much looking forward to this gig,
  3. In today's Boston Globe: Charlie Mariano, saxophonist, musical sojourner By Joan Anderman, Globe Staff | June 17, 2009 Charlie Mariano, the Boston-born saxophonist who gained world renown as a performer with his former wife, Toshiko Akiyoshi; Stan Kenton; and Charles Mingus, among many others, died yesterday at Mildred Scheel Hospiz in Cologne, Germany, his longtime home. Mr. Mariano, who had battled cancer for years, was 85. “He was the dean of Boston jazz musicians,’’ says jazz impresario George Wein, a Boston native who resides in New York and was a colleague and friend of Mr. Mariano’s since the 1940s. “Charlie was a wanderer, and he left his mark wherever he went.’’ Born Carmine Ugo Mariano in 1923, he was weaned on his father’s beloved Italian operas and the big bands he heard on the radio: Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, and Count Basie, whose saxophonist Lester Young became Mr. Mariano’s first musical hero. He would not get his own saxophone until his 18th birthday, but in short order, the ambitious young musician was playing nightly at Izzy Ort’s bar and dance hall in what was then known as Boston’s combat zone, for $19 a week. Mr. Mariano was drafted in 1943, but never saw combat. He was tapped to play in one of the several small music ensembles that entertained at officers’ clubs. Near the end of the war, Mr. Mariano, who was stationed on an air base north of Los Angeles, heard Charlie Parker play live for the first time, during Parker’s first West Coast gig, at Billy Berg’s jazz club in Hollywood. “He completely turned my head,’’ Mr. Mariano said of Parker in “Tears of Sound,’’ a 1993 biography of Mr. Mariano published in Germany. Taken with the sax great’s inventive harmonics, newfangled rhythmic figures, and breakneck tempos, “I chased Bird’s sound, his way of phrasing. I listened to his solos on recordings for hours, wrote them down, and played it.’’ As it was for many alto saxophonists, Mr. Mariano found his muse and musical foundation in Parker’s ground-breaking sound. After leaving the Army in 1945, he drifted to Chicago, then Albuquerque, picking up work where he could, and finally wound up back in Boston. When the big-band era began winding down and many local clubs were closed, the largely self-taught Mr. Mariano enrolled in music school for the first time, at the Schillinger House of Music, which would later be renamed Berklee College of Music. Mr. Mariano started to develop his own sound under the tutelage of Joe Viola, and he became a fixture on Boston’s vibrant jazz scene, collaborating with Nat Pierce, Jaki Byard, and fellow students Herb Pomeroy and Quincy Jones. In 1950, Mr. Mariano released his first recording as a bandleader, and several years later founded the Jazz Workshop, a hands-on school that emphasized experience over instruction and later evolved into a popular nightclub. At the end of 1953, the financially strapped Mr. Mariano received a life-changing call from Stan Kenton, who tapped the saxophonist for his big band. After a couple of years on the road, Mr. Mariano settled in Southern California, where he joined drummer Shelly Manne’s band and worked as a session player. But he soon grew disenchanted with the hours spent behind the wheel of a car and the relentlessly “cool’’ jazz scene in L.A., and in 1958 Mr. Mariano accepted a teaching position at Berklee. He only lasted two terms before moving back west, accompanied by the young piano phenom Toshiko Akiyoshi. The pair married in 1959 and over the course of several years bounced from New York, where they formed the Toshiko Mariano Quartet and Mr. Mariano performed and recorded with Mingus, to Tokyo, back to New York, and then to Boston, where Mr. Mariano returned to teaching in the mid-1960s. “I had him for an ensemble, and every week he would stop the band and pick on somebody,’’ said Mr. Mariano’s former student, saxophonist Arnie Krakowsky of Boston. “Four, five, six weeks go by, and he didn’t stop me, and I thought I must be doing better than I think. Then one day, he stopped the band and pointed at me and said: ‘You. When you go home this weekend, I want you to tell your mother and father that you want to be a doctor or a lawyer.’ That was his way of telling me I needed to practice. When we saw Charlie walking the halls at Berklee, we would walk the other way. We were petrified of him. He was that good.’’ Mr. Mariano also became known for his work on the nadaswaram, a South Indian woodwind instrument he discovered on an extended trip to Kuala Lumpur. After divorcing Ms. Akiyoshi in 1967, Mr. Mariano wandered the globe for years, commuting between the United States (he had yet another go teaching at Berklee) and Europe (where he eventually settled). Following the formation of Osmosis, his early jazz fusion group, Mr. Mariano devoted his last several decades to exploring musical amalgams inspired by other cultures, as well as by pop and rock. He was diagnosed in 1995 with advanced prostate cancer and given a year to live by his doctors, but with the help of alternative therapies and conventional treatment he lived another 14. “His music was the music of a traveler,’’ says Eric Jackson, longtime host of the WGBH show “Jazz with Eric in the Evening.’’ “Just look at the places Charlie called home in the course of his life. He was on a lifelong musical journey.’’ Mr. Mariano leaves his wife, painter Dorothee Zippel Mariano of Cologne; his sister Connie Rosato; six daughters, Sherry of Salisbury, Cynthia and Melanie Lamar, both of Merrimac, Celeste Perrigo of Berwick, Maine, Monday Michiru of Long Island, N.Y., and Zana of Toronto, Canada; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Mr. Mariano is being cremated in Germany, and the ashes will be entombed at the family grave in Boston.
  4. How sad. Rest in Peace, Charlie. The entire four hours of my radio program, "Jazz from Studio Four" will be devoted to Charlie Mariano. This Friday night, June 19th, 8p-midnight. Included will be some music that WGBH recorded in 2000 at The Regattabar in Cambridge, MA. This was a reunion between Charlie and trumpeter Herb Pomeroy and pianist Ray Santisi. The music has never been commercially released and is only available on 89.7FM.
  5. From the Los Angeles Times Jack Nimitz, baritone sax player, dies at 79 Nimitz played with Woody Herman, Stan Kenton and Herbie Mann and had a busy career as a studio musician in Hollywood. From A Times Staff Writer 8:08 PM PDT, June 15, 2009 Jack Nimitz, a jazz baritone saxophonist who played in the Woody Herman and Stan Kenton big bands and in the group "Supersax," died Wednesday of complications from emphysema at his home in Studio City. He was 79. Born in Washington, D.C., in 1930 Nimitz began playing clarinet at an early age and alto saxophone at 14. He was still a teenager when he began playing professional gigs at Howard Theatre in Washington. He soon fell in love with the baritone saxophone. "It sounded so warm and nice and dark and rich," he told The Times some years ago. "The bottom notes are the best notes in the whole orchestra, because if you don't have a good bottom, nothing really works." He bought his first baritone saxophone at the age of 20 and three years later was playing baritone in Herman's band. Through the 1950s, he played with Herman, Kenton and, later, Herbie Mann. On the advice of colleagues in Kenton's band, he came to Los Angeles in the early 1960s and established himself as a first-rank studio musician for scores of film soundtracks and recording sessions. He worked frequently for songwriter Johnny Mandel. He also played with such jazz luminaries as Benny Carter, Gerald Wilson and the Lighthouse All-Stars. In the early 1970s, he added his baritone to the Charlie Parker tribute band "Supersax." His first album as a leader was the 1995 session on Fresh Sound records called "Confirmation," which focused heavily on bebop tunes. "Bebop is the most sophisticated form of jazz," he told The Times. "It's very challenging but also rewarding because it feels so good when it happens." A memorial service will be held Saturday at 3 p.m. at Chapel of the Hills, Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills.
  6. San Mateo-based jazz station plans benefit concert By Sean Maher San Mateo County Times KCSM-FM, the only remaining all-jazz radio station in the Bay Area, is banking on a one-time-only benefit concert to keep the station from going silent. On June 30, Yoshi's in Oakland will host a trio of solo pianists spanning three generations of Bay Area jazz piano playing to support the financially struggling station. "We're one of the very few, one of the last remaining all-jazz stations in the country, in the world," said program director Melanie Berzon, who lamented the recent format change from soft jazz to classic rock at KKSF-FM. "They're dropping like flies. We're losing jazz stations and jazz formats hand over fist.'' KCSM (91.1 FM), licensed to the San Mateo County Community College District, has received the bulk of its funding from listeners for years, Berzon said. But a 12 percent chunk of its operating budget expected from the school district fell through this year when the district, which is funded by the state, experienced deep cuts, she said. The station's recent pledge drive drew more donations and more cash than ever, but the station is still trying to bridge a $40,000 gap by June 30, when its fiscal year ends and the school has to decide whether to keep the station running, Berzon said. Three local pianists hope to help. Denny Zeitlin, Jon Jang and Taylor Eigsti, each known as an inventive and fascinating musician, will take the stage at Yoshi's to benefit the station. "It's kind of a one-time summit, and that's really the appeal to it," said Chuy Varela, the event's organizer and music director for the station. "When you think about the tradition of Bay Area jazz piano, you think of Dave Brubeck, Vince Guaraldi, the many others who have been there. These guys have carried the torch from there." "Denny is kind of the old-schooler, and he's getting a lot of respect right now for all he's done, all his early work for Columbia," Varela said. "He's also a practicing psychiatrist; he's also written scores for 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers' and other movies. He's quite an innovator." Jang, who grew up locally and worked with renowned drummer Max Roach, "has been really instrumental in the Asian-American jazz movement," Varela said. "For him to do solo piano like this really takes away the bridles, if you will. He'll be able to move around freely." The young buck of the ticket is Eigsti, who in the past three years has become one of the major pianists emerging in the U.S., Varela said. "You get these three pianists, all very much stylists, individuals who all have something to say, and they're going to say it in a warm and intimate room in a solo piano concert," Varela said. "We're not using any amplification. The room is such a beautiful sounding room, this will just allow it to breathe and have this organic presentation to it." Tickets will run $50 each, and if both performances sell out, the station should be safe, Varela said. "People want to help, and part of it is that there are folks that are hurting, and there are folks that are not hurting, but they're being more cautious," he said. "Maybe they see this as a worthy cause and one they have a feeling for, that it will help make this a success." General manager Marilyn Lawrence said the situation is even more serious at KCSM's television station, and layoffs have been announced. On June 24, she said, she will make a presentation to the board of trustees for the station, at which time she expects they will decide whether to keep both stations or sell one or both. "In hard times, the first thing to go is culture," Berzon said. "I understand that; we all need to eat, put roofs over our heads, feed our families. But culture, whether it's music, art, literature, it gets us through difficult times and feeds us in a way I personally think is necessary." KCSM-FM broadcasts at 91.1 and can be streamed online for free at www.kcsm.org. For more information about the event or to donate to the station, visit the Web site or call 800-477-5276.
  7. http://wfiu.org/nightlights/buddy-montgomer-rip/
  8. Life in the Big City: JAZZ RADIO IN BOSTON GETS CUT - WFNX, WGBH MAKE BIG CHANGES IN PROGRAMMING Sue Auclair [jazzwoman@earthlink.net] Sent: Monday, May 11, 2009 12:52 PM May 11, 2009 For Immediate Release: IN ONE WEEK BOSTON JAZZ RADIO LANDSCAPE GETS CUT DRAMATICALLY WFNX AXES JEFF TURTON WGBH CUTS AL DAVIS, RON GILL and KEVIN BALL Boston-MA--May 11, 2009--Jazz host Jeff Turton announced today that WFNX FM has cancelled his show, The Sunday Jazz Brunch, as of his show yesterday and after 26 years on the air on Sunday mornings. “I got a call late last week informing me that this past Sunday would be my last show. The reason being given is budget cuts related to diminished revenues at both ‘FNX and at the Boston Phoenix. While I wasn't surprised, given the nature of the newspaper business and radio in general, I am incredibly disappointed. I’m not sure where to go next but I guess I'll sleep in for a couple of weekends and then figure it out. I still plan on being active in some way but everything happened pretty quickly so I really haven't had much of an opportunity to figure out what's next,” noted Turton in an e-mail Monday morning. Legendary jazz concert promoter Fred Taylor weighed in. “I think it shows WFNX’s total lack of acknowledgement of Boston’s arts community. To cut one lonely jazz show like this which represents a basic American art form from the station’s 24-7 programming is unconscionable,” he said upon hearing the news. “Jeff Turton has been a jazz resource for Boston listeners for 26 years. He hosted the go-to show on Sunday morning radio, and he will definitely be missed.” stated noted jazz writer and Marsalis Music Creative Consultant Bob Blumenthal. Last week came the news that WGBH FM jazz host Ron Gill would be moving to South Carolina to live with relatives after 23 years on the radio here and the jazz scene held its collective breath and wondered who would be his replacement host. Then the word came that his show would be covered by a syndicated show taped on the west coast by Bob Parlocha. Next there was a call from WGBH 9 year veteran jazz DJ Al Davis. “I can’t book any guests on the show until I speak with WGBH. They’ve called me in for a meeting and it sounds serious,” said Al to publicist Sue Auclair. Tuesday, May 15 brought the news that ALL of the Jazz Gallery hosts would be departing at the end of May. That included Davis on overnight Fridays, 15 year veterin Kevin Ball overnight on Saturdays and Ron Gill, overnight on Sundays. All live-hosted weekend jazz shows will be gone, as of May 26 and the new programming will feature “Jazz With Bob Parlocha,” the program that is syndicated nationally and now already airs on 89.7 FM overnights on weeknights. While it’s good that jazz will still be on the air on WGBH FM, it disconnects the regional audience from the live Boston experience, say some.
  9. Ralph Peterson brings his Unity Project to WGBH radio, 89.7fm, Boston, on Wednesday, May 6th, from 9-10 pm. Ralph is living in the Boston area and is teaching at the Berklee College of Music. The Project includes organ, tenor saxophone and trumpet along with Ralph on drums. They will appear on "Eric in The Evening" hosted by Eric Jackson. I will be Producing the broadcast. Tune in to hear the program live or by going to: www.wgbh.org/jazz and clicking on "Listen Live" Enjoy!
  10. Roy is in Boston/Cambridge this week working with and conducting classes with the Harvard (U) jazz bands culminating in a concert this Saturday night at Sanders Theater in Harvard Square. Before that, on Firday night, April 17th, he will be my guest on my radio show, "Jazz From Studio Four." The show is on from 8p-midnight. Roy will visit from 9-10pm. We'll play some music that he's been involved in (Is there any that he hasn't been involved in?)and chat. Tune in to 89.7FM or on line at: www.wgbh.org/jazz Click on "Listen Live"
  11. Pianist Denny Zeitlin turns 71 years old today. Born 4/10/1938. I will be featuring his music throughout my radio program tonight, from 8p-midnignt. Jazz from Studio Four, on WGBH, 89.7fm, Boston or worldwide on demand at www.wgbh.org/jazz. Enjoy!
  12. A friend of mine related this anecdote to me, about listening to Schapp on KCR as he and his wife were heading back to Boston: "Steve, we were driving out of New York City listening to Phil Schapp. We didn't hear any music until we got to... CONNECTICUT !!!" 'Nuff said!
  13. From the Los Angeles Times OBITUARIES Bud Shank dies at 82; alto saxophonist was immersed in West Coast jazz scene By Jon Thurber April 6, 2009 Bud Shank, the alto saxophonist who was a key figure in the West Coast jazz scene of the 1950s, has died. He was 82. Shank died Thursday night at his home in Tucson of pulmonary failure, friends said. A versatile musician with an adventurous nature, Shank also played flute and -- during a productive period of studio work -- had pivotal solos on the popular 1960s pop tunes "California Dreamin' " by the Mamas and the Papas and "Windy" by the Association. He had an early interest in music without borders, playing and recording with Brazilian guitarist Laurindo Almeida several years before the Bossa Nova craze. In 1962, he recorded an album with Indian sitarist Ravi Shankar. For many, however, he is best known for his work in Los Angeles with Stan Kenton starting in the late 1940s, followed by his association with Howard Rumsey's Lighthouse All-Stars at the fabled Lighthouse Cafe jazz club in Hermosa Beach. Born Clifford Everett Shank Jr. in Dayton, Ohio, on May 27, 1926, Shank was raised on a farm. He started playing clarinet at 10 and tenor saxophone at 12. He was a music major at the University of North Carolina but quit school to go on the road with a band that broke up after just a few weeks. He decided to try his luck in Los Angeles instead of returning to the classroom. While rooming with a couple of other young musicians, he added flute to his repertoire, picking up lessons from a roommate who was learning from a professional instructor. Shank was in bands led by Charlie Barnet and Alvino Rey before joining Kenton's new Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra in the early 1950s. Kenton's group featured a who's who of West Coast jazz talent, including Art Pepper, Shelly Manne, Bob Cooper, Shorty Rogers and Almeida. Despite the talent, however, the end result was far less than it could have been. Author Ted Gioia wrote in "West Coast Jazz: Modern Jazz in California, 1945-1960" that the band "often sagged under the weight of Kenton's Wagnerian ambitions." Shank also expressed mixed feelings about the group. "That band was too clumsy to swing -- because of the instrumentation and voicings. On the other hand the sounds that came out of it were really big noises, really impressive. That's what that band was all about, making these really big noises. As far as swinging, it never did swing," Shank told jazz writer Gene Lees. Shank joined the Lighthouse All-Stars in August 1953 and stayed with them until early January 1956. According to jazz writer Doug Ramsey, who wrote an essay that became the booklet for the Mosaic label boxed set "The Pacific Jazz Bud Shank Studio Sessions," Shank's major contribution to the All-Stars was as a "first-rank alto player." "But he also played flute to Bob Cooper's oboe," Ramsey said. "He and Cooper did an album playing flute and oboe, and from that point on the flute became a substantial part of his arsenal." Shank led his own quartet from 1956 until 1963 and recorded a number of albums for the World Pacific and Pacific Jazz labels from the mid-1950s to the late '60s. He spent much of the '60s working as a studio musician for a diverse array of recordings and film scores, including the original version of "The Thomas Crown Affair," "The Sandpiper" and "The Summer of '42." He also scored the Bruce Brown surfing movies "Slippery When Wet" and "Barefoot Adventure." In the 1970s, he, bassist Ray Brown, Almeida and a revolving cast of drummers played in the L.A. Four, which fused "cool-toned bop, Brazilian-oriented music and ballads," jazz writer Scott Yanow wrote in the "All Music Guide to Jazz." Some critics didn't know what to think of the sound and dismissed it as bland. The group recorded eight albums for Concord Records before disbanding in the early 1980s. For much of his career, Shank believed that the musical accomplishments of the West Coast jazz era -- his own and his colleagues' -- were underappreciated. His playing over the last 30 years took on a harder-edged, more powerful sound more reminiscent of Phil Woods than Lee Konitz. He also dropped the flute and concentrated primarily on the alto sax. His last gig in the Los Angeles area was at the Jazz Bakery in January. Survivors include his wife, Linda. Information on services was not immediately available. jon.thurber@latimes.com
  14. Lazaro, That will be fabulous. I will be tuned in. Fred is amazing, not only for his playing but for the incredible physical recovery he has gone through over the past year and a half. Mark the date of Friday, May 15th in your calendar. Fred was in Boston a couple of weeks ago and agreed to come in to WGBH and do an hour performance/conversation with me. He got to play our 9' Hamburg Steinway "D" Concert Grand piano. He fell in love with it! We're holding the show until the 15th so we can get as much forward promotion from 'GBH as possible. Member magazine, website, on-line, on air promo spots etc. The hour will be broadcast on Friday, May 15th from 9-10pm during Jazz from Studio Four. You can hear it by going to www.wgbh.org/jazz and click on "Listen Live" Keep up the good work,
  15. JAZZ from STUDIO FOUR Friday, March 13, 8pm–midnight, WGBH 89.7 Boston CELEBRATING PIANIST STEPHEN SCOTT'S 40TH BIRTHDAY (b. 3/13/1969) Listed by artist: selection, album (label) 8:00pm THEME: Horace Parlan Quintet: Wadin', Speakin' My Piece (Blue Note) 8:05pm Avery Sharpe, Onaje Allen Gumbs, Winard Harper; recorded @ WGBH 11/08/2008: Palace of The Seven Jewels, Autumn Moonlight (JKNM Records) Avery Sharpe: Morning Glow, Live @ WGBH Fraser Performance Studio, 10/15/2008 (ONLY ON 89.7FM) 8:23pm Stephen Scott: Everything I Have Is Yours, Something To Consider (Verve) Stephen Scott: Poinciana, Renaissance (Verve) Stephen Scott: When God Created Woman, Aminah's Dream (Verve) 8:43pm Yoron Israel @ Organic; Celebrating Roy Haynes (b. 3/13/1925) at Union United Methodist Church, Boston, 3/14/2009: Like Sonny, Live @ WGBH, October 7, 2003 (ONLY ON 89.7FM) Roy Haynes; (b. 3/13/1925): Star Eyes, Homecoming (Evidence) 9:05pm Sonny Rollins; featuring Stephen Scott: Cabin in The Sky, Sonny Rollins + 3 (Milestone) Clifton Anderson; featuring Stephen Scott: We'll Be Together Again, Decade (Doxy) Stephen Scott: La Mesha, The Beautiful Thing (Verve) 9:30pm The Harper Brothers; featuring Stephen Scott: Always Know, Rememberance (Verve) The Harper Brothers; featuring Stephen Scott: Elocin, The Harper Brothers (Verve) Justin Robinson; featuring Stephen Scott: Master Scott, The Challenge (Arabesque) 9:51pm Ann Hampton Callaway: Over The Rainbow, At Last (Telarc) Bob Mover: Stairway to The Stars, It Amazes Me (Zoho) Tierney Sutton: Cry Me A River, Desire (Telarc) 10:13pm Stephen Scott: Virgo, Vision Quest (Enja) Stephen Scott: Young Confucius, Aminah's Dream (Verve) Ron Carter; featuring Stephen Scott: Bye Bye Blackbird, Dear Miles (Blue Note) 10:35pm Hargrove, McBride, Scott Trio: April in Paris; Yarbird Suite; Klactoveesedstene, Parker's Mood (Verve) 10:50pm The Blue Note 7: The Outlaw, Mosaic (Blue Note) Horace Silver: Senor Blues, Live at Newport 1958 (Blue Note) Rob Jacoby: The Cape Verdean Blues, Step Up (Garagista Music) 11:15pm Ben Markley: One For Cedar, Second Introduction (Origin) Scott Reeves: The Soulful Mr. Williams (Dedicated to James Williams), Shape Shifter (Miles High Records) 11:34pm Betty Carter; featuring Stephen Scott: Make It Last, Look What I Got! (Verve) Terell Stafford; Stephen Scott: My Romance, Centripetal Force (Candid) Joe Henderson; featuring Stephen Scott: Drawing Room Blues, Lush Life, The Music of Billy Strayhorn (Verve) 11:55pm Stephen Scott: The Pit and The Pendulum, Aminah's Dream (Verve) Only on 89.7! performances and recordings are exclusive WGBH Radio productions and are not commercially available.
  16. Today is the anniversary of Dexter Gordon's birthday, born February 27th , 1923. To celebrate I will be featuring Dexter's music on my radio program tonight. The entire four hours will be about Dex, from his early mid-1940s dates to his last dates in the mid-1980s. A fantastic 40 year career. Tune in or log on:
  17. I always pronounced his name Jap-PAR but in listening to a live recording he did in NY, the guitarist Mundell Lowe introduces him as Jasper. That started me wondering. His birthday is next Friday and I'll be featuring his music on my show. I didn't want to sound like a jerk. Thanks for the help. Jas-PAR it is!
  18. Refering to Belgian saxophinst/flutist, is it Bobby Jas-PAR or Bobby Jasper? Thanks!
  19. The next in our on going series of live performances will take place on Wednesday, February 11th. Pianist Mike Melvoin will be Eric Jackson’s guest on “Eric in The Evening.” http://www.mikemelvoin.com/ Mike and Eric will have some conversation but the focus will be on Mike’s playing. We have a 9’ Steinway Hamburg Concert Grand piano in our Fraser Performance Studio. Mike is very much looking forward to playing this magnificent instrument. Tune in if you can to WGBH, 89.7FM, Boston, from 9-10pm or log on and listen on line: www.wgbh.org/jazz Click on “Listen Live” I will be the Producer for this hour and Eric, of course, the Host. Don’t miss it,
  20. How sad! First Fathead and now Hank but we seem to have forgotten a third member of the Charles band who also recently passed. Leroy "Hog" Cooper. His obit from the LA Times: PASSINGS January 24, 2009 Leroy Cooper Musician in Charles band Leroy Cooper, 80, who played baritone saxophone for Ray Charles from the 1950s through the 1970s and at times served as bandleader for the R&B pianist, died of heart failure Jan. 15 at his home in Orlando, Fla., the Orlando Sentinel reported. Cooper spent two decades with the Charles band, a stretch that began in 1957. His tenure included the recording sessions that yielded the film theme "In the Heat of the Night," "Crying Time" and Charles' stirring rendition of "America, the Beautiful." Cooper also contributed to a wide array of other recordings, including blues man Lowell Fulson's classic "Reconsider Baby," and sessions with Dr. John, Joe Cocker, Kenny Neal and Lightnin' Hopkins. He also toured with the Righteous Brothers for a time. After leaving the Charles band in 1977, Cooper moved to Orlando for a job at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom. He was a bandleader and performer on Main Street U.S.A. for about 20 years. The son of a bandleader, Cooper was born in Dallas on Aug. 31, 1928. He learned to play the sax as a child and also became proficient on the clarinet and flute.
  21. Friday, Jan 30, 8pm–midnight, WGBH 89.7 Boston ROY "LITTLE JAZZ" ELDRIDGE (b. 1/30/1911) WHAT'S NEW AND REISSUED ON COMPACT DISC Listed by artist: selection, album (label) 8:00pm THEME: Horace Parlan Quintet: Wadin', Speakin' My Piece (Blue Note) 8:05pm Benny Golson: Grove's Groove, New Time, New 'Tet (Concord) Alan Broadbent: Along Came Betty (Golson), Moment's Notice (Chilly Bin Records) Antonio Ciacca: I Remember Clifford (Golson), Rush Life (Motema) 8:30pm Steve Davis: Bosco, Outlook (Positone) Clifton Anderson: So Wrong About You, Decadae (Doxy) 8:52pm Roy Eldridge: The Gasser; Jump Through The Window; Stardust; I Can't Get Started; Embraceable You, After You've Gone (Decca/GRP) 9:10pm Bill Henderson: You Are My Sunshine, Beautiful Memory (AHUH Productions) Ann Hampton Callaway: Over The Rainbow, At Last (Telarc) Cassandra Wilson: Gone With the Wind, Loverly (Blue Note) Patricia Barber: In The Still of The Night, The Cole Prter mix (Blue Note) 9:37pm Donald Harrison: To NOLA with Love, The Chosen (Nagel Heyer) Mike Clark; featuring Donald Harrison: Conchita's Dance, Blueprints in Jazz, Volume I (Talking House) 10:00pm Ran Blake: I Loves You, Porgy, Driftwoods (Tompkins Square) Mike Melvoin: For All We Know, The Art of Conversation (City Light) Kenny Barron: Memories of You, TheTraveler (Sunnyside) 10:22pm Eric Dolphy; featuring Roy Eldridge: Body and Soul, Candid Dolphy (Candid) Coleman Hawkins; featuring Roy Eldridge: Bean Stalkin', At The Opera House (Verve) Lester Young; featuring Roy Eldridge: I Guess I'll Have To Change My Plan, LEster Young-The Jazz Giants (Verve) 10:55pm Miles Davis: Bye Bye Blackbird, Broadcast Sessions 1958-59 (Acrobat Music) Claudio Roditi: Tune Up, Brazilliance X 4 (Resonance) Generations: So What, Tough Guys (International Center forThe Arts) 11:20pm Denny Zeitlin: All of You, Trio In Concert (Sunnyside) Roger Kellaway: Someday My Prince Will Come, Live at the Jazz Standard (ipo Records) 11:42pm The Blue Note 7: Criss Cross, Mosaic (Blue Note) Ravi Coltrane: Epistrophy, Blending Times (Savoy) 11:56pm Roy Eldridge: The Song is Ended, But the Melody Lingers On, Little Jazz, The Best of The Verve Years (Verve)
  22. This is a strange coincidence but Fathead's section mate in the Ray Charles band, Leroy "Hog" Cooper died about a week ago in Orlando, Florida. I don't have any more details than that. RIP Fathead and Hog!
  23. Here's the playlist from last nights program: JAZZ FROM STUDIO FOUR Friday, Jan 16, 8pm–midnight, WGBH 89.7 CELEBRATING CEDAR'S 75TH: CEDAR WALTON (b. 1/17/1934) Listed by artist: selection, album (label) 8:00pm THEME: Horace Parlan Quintet: Wadin', Speakin' My Piece (Blue Note) 8:05pm Cedar Walton: Milestones, Underground Memories (HighNote) Cedar Walton; Ron Carter: A Beautiful Friendship, Heart & Soul (Timeless) Cedar Walton: I'll Let You Know, Cedar (Timeless) 8:26pm Roy Hargrove: I'm Not So Sure (Walton), earfood (Emarcy) David "Fathead" Newman; featuring Cedar Walton: Black (Walton), Davey Rules (HighNote) Cedar Walton: Plexus, Seasoned Wood (HighNote) 8:48pm J.J.Johnson; featuring Cedar Walton: Shutterbug, J.J. Inc. (Columbia) The Jazztet; featuring Cedar Walton: Blues On Down, Blues On Down (Chess/GRP) Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers; featuring Cedar Walton: That Old Feeling, 3 Blind Mice (Blue Note) 9:12pm Cedar Walton; Eastern Rebellion: Theme For Ernie; Young And Foolish, Live @ RegattaBar, Cambridge, MA 4/25/1992 (ONLY ON 89.7FM) 9:35pm Cedar Walton: Afternoon In Paris, Manhattan Afternoon (Criss Cross) Cedar Walton: 'Round Midnight, My Funny Valentine (Evidence) Cedar Walton: A Flower is A Lovesome Thing, Lush Life, The Music of Billy Strayhorn (Discovery) 10:00pm Kenny Dorham; featuring Cedar Walton: Autumn Leaves; From This Moment On, This Is The Moment, Kenny Dorham Sings and Plays (Riverside) Cedar Walton: Turquoise Twice; Head and Shoulders, Cedar! (Prestige) 10:24pm Frank Morgan; featuring Cedar Walton: The Rubber Man (Walton), Easy Living (Contemporary) Charles Lloyd; featuring Cedar Walton: Clandestine (Walton), Acoustic Masters I (Atlantic) Phil Woods; featuring Cedar Walton; featuring Johnny Griffin: Hand in Glove (Walton), The Rev & I (Blue Note) 10:49pm Cedar Walton; featuring Etta Jones: Don't Go To Strangers, Three Sundays in The Seventies, Live at the Left Bank (LAbel M) Milt Jackson; featuring Cedar Walton; featuring Joe Williams; Five O'Clock in The Morning: The Prophet Speaks, Qwest Cedar Walton; featuring Abbey Lincoln: The Maestro, 32 Jazz Etta James; featuring Cedar Walton: The Nearness of You, Time After Time (Private Music) 11:15pm Cedar Walton: Blue Monterey, Roots (Astor Place) Cedar Walton; featuring George Coleman: Bolivia, Eastern Rebellion (Impulse) Cedar Walton: The Vision, Composer (Astor Place) 11:40pm Cedar Walton: Li'l Darlin'; Without A Song; Blues for Myself; , Blues for Myself/Solo Piano (Red Records) 11:53pm Cedar Walton: Hindsight, Seasoned Wood (HighNote) Only on 89.7! performances and recordings are exclusive WGBH Radio productions and are not commercially available.
  24. Jazz From Studio Four Friday, Jan 2, 8pm–midnight, WGBH 89.7, Boston REMEMBERING FREDDIE HUBBARD (b. April 7, 1938 / d. December 29, 2008) Listed by artist: selection, album (label) 8:00pm THEME: HORACE PARLAN QUINTET: Wadin', Speakin' My Piece (Blue Note) 8:05pm Freddie Hubbard: Open Sesame, Open Sesame (Blue Note) Freddie Hubbard: Topsy, Topsy-Standard Book (Alfa Jazz) Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Blue Moon, 3 Blind Mice, Volme 1 (Blue Note) 8:27pm Wes Montgomery; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Bock To Bock, Fingerpickin' (Pacific Jazz) John Coltrane; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Dahomey Dance, Ole Coltrane (Atlantic) 8:54pm Freddie Hubbard: Blues For Miles (Hip-Hop Bop), Blues for Miles (Evidence) Dexter Gordon; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Society Red, Dexter Gordon: The Classic Blue Note Recordings (Blue Note) 9:17pm Slide Hampton; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Hi-Fly, Sister Salvation (Atlantic) Joe Henderson; featuring Freddie Hubbard: A Shade of Jade, Joe Henderson Big Band (Verve) Booker Ervin; featuring Freddie Hubbard: L.A. After Dark, Booker 'n Brass (Pacific Jazz) Quincy Jones; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Robot Portrait, Quintessence (Impulse) 9:47pm Freddie Hubbard: High Blues Pressure, High Blues Pressure (Atlantic) Wayne Shorter; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Black Orpheus, Wayning Moments (Koch/Vee Jay) Kirk Lightsey; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Gibralter, Temptation (Timeless) 10:12pm Freddie Hubbard: Lament For Booker, Hub Tones (Blue Note) Freddie Hubbard: God Bless the Child, Bolivia (MusicMasters) Freddie Hubbard: Caravan, The Artistry of Freddie hubbard (Impulse) 10:40pm Oliver Nelson; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Yearnin', The Blues and The Abstract Truth (Impulse) Freddie Hubbard: Body and Soul; Thermo; i Got It Bad, The Body & The Soul (Impulse) 11:03pm Bill Evans; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Interplay, Interplay (Riverside) Jackie McLean; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Blues Function, Bluesnik (Blue Note) Jimmy Heath; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Gemini, Triple Threat (Riverside) 11:28pm Carl Allen; featuring Freddie Hubbard: InThe Still of The night`Piccadilly Square, Timeless George Cables; featuring Freddie Hubbard: Inner Glow, Cables Vision (Contemporary) Freddie Hubbard: I Love You, Above & Beyond (Metropolitan Records) Freddie Hubbard: Cry Me Not, Hub Cap (Blue) 11:54pm Freddie Hubbard: One Mint Julep, Open Sesame (Blue Note)
×
×
  • Create New...