ghost of miles Posted January 14, 2006 Report Share Posted January 14, 2006 (edited) This week on Night Lights it’s “Dear Martin,” a program of jazz tributes to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. King was a jazz fan, and eloquently expressed his admiration for the music in his opening remarks to the 1964 Berlin Jazz Festival. We’ll hear music from Oliver Nelson’s 1969 album Black, Brown and Beautiful; Nina Simone’s performances of “Sunday in Savannah” and “Mississippi Goddam,” from a concert taped just three days after King’s death in 1968; Blue Mitchell’s “March on Selma”; Duke Ellington’s “King Fit De Battle of Alabam”; Mary Lou Williams’ “Tell Him Not to Talk Too Long”; and two 1970 recordings from Louis Armstrong. “Dear Martin” airs on WFIU Saturday, January 14 at 11:05 p.m. (8:05 California time, 10:05 Chicago time), on the eve of King’s birthday. You can listen live, or you can listen right now, because the program is already archived. Next week: Charles Tolliver on Strata-East in the early 1970s. Edited January 18, 2021 by ghost of miles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted January 14, 2006 Report Share Posted January 14, 2006 I'm using my son's computer until my replacement fan gets in, and on his monitor, I swear that this thread looked like "Dean Martin". I kid you not. I was fixing to say, you're a brave man... So, how did the Nelson stuff grab you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 14, 2006 Dino lives, baby! I loved the Nelson stuff, though sadly, I discovered that the 2-LP anthology does not contain ALL of BLACK, BROWN & BEAUTIFUL--but it does have a lot of it. There's one track--one of the larger, orchestral numbers w/Nelson soloing--that sounded almost Coplandesque (I think it was "Martin Was a Man, a Real Man"). Evidently the original LP was larger-ensemble on one side and smaller-group on the other? I hope BMG gets around to reissuing the whole deal some day. Another note: the engineer, who's not generally a jazz fan, really enjoyed the Nelson material. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted January 14, 2006 Report Share Posted January 14, 2006 Evidently the original LP was larger-ensemble on one side and smaller-group on the other? I hope BMG gets around to reissuing the whole deal some day. No - "classsical" material on one side, "jazz" on the other. The jazz stuff is all big-band save for a quartet last cut. I'm wagering that BMG never gets to this one. Call me a cynic, but I bet that they don't even know about it any more... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 14, 2006 No - "classsical" material on one side, "jazz" on the other. The jazz stuff is all big-band save for a quartet last cut. Kind of ironic, eh? A sort of musical segregation on an LP tribute to MLK. I know that Nelson probably wanted it programmed that way, but still... and what OF Nelson's classical work? How much, if any, of it (outside of this project) was ever recorded? I'd really like to do some kind of stand-alone project on Nelson. His son lives just up the road, in Indpls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2006 Up for the holiday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted January 16, 2006 Report Share Posted January 16, 2006 OF Nelson's classical work? How much, if any, of it (outside of this project) was ever recorded? I'd really like to do some kind of stand-alone project on Nelson. His son lives just up the road, in Indpls. Did not know that Nelson had a son or that he was in your area. That may or may not be a lead worth pursuing. I played in a student bib band in college that had 6-7 of Nelson's original charts (photocopies of the original parts) that the leader had obtained directly from Nelson's widow. The leader said that she had all of Oliver's music and was dedicated to seeing it properly archieved and preserved. Supposedly, there was a sizable body of "classical" compositions, most of them unplayed (talk about frustration...). That was almost 30 years ago. She might not even still be alive. And I don't know how successful she was in accomplishing her goal (although I seem to vaguely recall the establishment of an archive at UCLA, or some other large california college). But this son might have all the info, and if the widow's wishes were never fully realized, he might have more than that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazaro Vega Posted January 16, 2006 Report Share Posted January 16, 2006 (edited) Had a chance to listen to Oliver Nelson's son speak at an IAJE convention in Chicago. Nice radio program here, good script, especially; and lately Nina Simone is under my skin. That "Sunday in Savannah" is one reason why. Other pieces we might work in tonight on Jazz From Blue Lake, to carry on the thread, would be something from Blakey's "Freedom Rider." And then three pieces which feature King's own voice with jazz accompaniment: Max Roach "It's Time" from Chatahoochi Red; Leo Smith's "Nuru Light: The Prince of Peace (for Martin Luther King)" on from Spirits of our Ancestors (Nessa); and John Hollenbeck "The Drum Major Instinct" from one of his self produced recordings. Of course we'll cop some of your ideas from this program. Don't have that Mary Lou Williams piece, though. Edited January 16, 2006 by Lazaro Vega Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazztrain Posted January 16, 2006 Report Share Posted January 16, 2006 Had a chance to listen to Oliver Nelson's son speak at an IAJE convention in Chicago. Nice radio program here, good script, especially; and lately Nina Simone is under my skin. That "Sunday in Savannah" is one reason why. Other pieces we might work in tonight on Jazz From Blue Lake, to carry on the thread, would be something from Blakey's "Freedom Rider." And then three pieces which feature King's own voice with jazz accompaniment: Max Roach "It's Time" from Chatahoochi Red; Leo Smith's "Nuru Light: The Prince of Peace (for Martin Luther King)" on from Spirits of our Ancestors (Nessa); and John Hollenbeck "The Drum Major Instinct" from one of his self produced recordings. Of course we'll cop some of your ideas from this program. Don't have that Mary Lou Williams piece, though. Another one that I often use around the holiday is the "Martin Luther King Jr. "/"I Know Love" pairing on Cecil Payne's Strata-East album (Zodiac: The Music of Cecil Payne). Looks like Cecil Payne recorded "Martin Luther King Jr." once more back in 1999 for Delmark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2006 Had a chance to listen to Oliver Nelson's son speak at an IAJE convention in Chicago. Nice radio program here, good script, especially; and lately Nina Simone is under my skin. That "Sunday in Savannah" is one reason why. Other pieces we might work in tonight on Jazz From Blue Lake, to carry on the thread, would be something from Blakey's "Freedom Rider." And then three pieces which feature King's own voice with jazz accompaniment: Max Roach "It's Time" from Chatahoochi Red; Leo Smith's "Nuru Light: The Prince of Peace (for Martin Luther King)" on from Spirits of our Ancestors (Nessa); and John Hollenbeck "The Drum Major Instinct" from one of his self produced recordings. Of course we'll cop some of your ideas from this program. Don't have that Mary Lou Williams piece, though. Please, cop away! Some other pieces I've used in the past include Dizzy Gillespie's "Brother K," Grant Green's "Freedom March," Slide Hampton's version of "Exodus," and James Spaulding's "A Time to Go" off B. Hutcherson's PATTERNS (though beware, the track listing is wrong on the Connoisseur--it's actually track #5, on my copy, anyway. Also, Cuscuna's 1980 liners say that Spaulding wrote the piece upon hearing of MLK's death, yet the recording date is given as 3/14/68. Nice piece, whatever the story behind it). The Mary Lou Williams track came out as a bonus on the Smithsonian Folkways reissue of MARY LOU'S MASS. There's another track, "I Have a Dream," recorded at the same session, which doesn't come off quite as well as "Tell Him Not to Talk Too Long," IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazaro Vega Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 Thanks for the suggestions. AHHHH! The "Black Brown and Beautiful" we have at work is not the Flying Dutchman lp, but this one: http://tinyurl.com/awapu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 No memories of Wadada's "Nuru Light: The Prince of Peace". Only three minutes and eleven seconds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 Thanks for the suggestions. AHHHH! The "Black Brown and Beautiful" we have at work is not the Flying Dutchman lp, but this one: http://tinyurl.com/awapu Yeah, that's the "other" Nelson BLACK, BROWN & BEAUTIFUL (though I believe the title composition is the same--just a different performance, with Hodges soloing, whereas Nelson solos on the original). Jim Sangrey has been a strong advocate for the LP that was an MLK tribute... and rightfully so. We have most of it here on a 2-LP Flying Dutchman anthology of Nelson's work that came out around '76, with liner notes by Nat Hentoff. Seems to have been a sort of memorial release. Sadly, I also have to agree with Jim that it's unlikely BMG's going to get around to reissuing the original BB & Beautiful anytime soon. Still hoping that I can eventually dig up audio of MLK's remarks at the '64 Berlin Jazz Festival. About an hour ago I listened to the "I Have a Dream" speech online. Haven't heard it in several years, but it still gives me chills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 (edited) Up for MLK Day 2007--the program is still archived. Also don't forget jazzshrink's mention of WGBH tonight. Happy MLK Day to all. Edited January 15, 2008 by ghost of miles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 (edited) A couple of weeks ago we put Dear Martin up on Public Radio Exchange, and 10 stations around the country have picked it up for broadcast. Here are the station air dates: WGBH-Boston: Monday, Jan. 21 from midnight-1 a.m. KZYX-Mendocino County, California: Sunday, Jan. 20 at 2 p.m. Pacific time KSJD-Cortez, Colorado: Monday, Jan. 21 at 1 p.m. KCCK-Cedar Rapids, Iowa: Saturday, Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. WSNC-Winston-Salem, North Carolina: Monday, Jan. 21 at 11 a.m. WMUB-Oxford, Ohio: Sunday, Jan. 20 at 7 p.m. South Dakota Public Radio: Monday, Jan. 21 at 8 p.m. WNCU-Durham, North Carolina: no broadcast dates yet reported KMUN-Washington and Oregon coast: no broadcast dates yet reported WVAS-Montgomery, Alabama: Jan. 15 (already aired) Edited January 18, 2009 by ghost of miles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Kart Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 At first glance I thought it was a tribute to Martin Williams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 18, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2009 This week on Night Lights it’s “Dear Martin,” a program of jazz tributes to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. King was a jazz fan, and eloquently expressed his admiration for the music in his opening remarks to the 1964 Berlin Jazz Festival. We’ll hear music from Oliver Nelson’s 1969 album Black, Brown and Beautiful; Nina Simone’s performances of “Sunday in Savannah” and “Mississippi Goddam,” from a concert taped just three days after King’s death in 1968; Blue Mitchell’s “March on Selma”; Duke Ellington’s “King Fit De Battle of Alabam”; Mary Lou Williams’ “Tell Him Not to Talk Too Long”; and two 1970 recordings from Louis Armstrong. “Dear Martin” airs on WFIU Saturday, January 14 at 11:05 p.m. (8:05 California time, 10:05 Chicago time), on the eve of King’s birthday. You can listen live, or you can listen right now, because the program is already archived. We're re-airing Dear Martin: Jazz Tributes to MLK Jr. this week on Night Lights--program available at the preceding link. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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