mjzee Posted May 24, 2022 Report Share Posted May 24, 2022 Listening now to her Prestige twofer, and really enjoying it. I've never heard a harp sound bluesy before! Very tasteful and swinging, and Frank Wess is a perfect accompanist. The overall effect reminds me of the MJQ, but I like this more. I can also hear the comparison to Kenny Burrell. Mark Stryker: do you mention her in your Jazz In Detroit book? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Late Posted May 25, 2022 Report Share Posted May 25, 2022 I can't think of a jazz harpist who swings harder than Dorothy Ashby. To play swinging eighth notes on the harp can't be easy, and Ashby makes it sound effortless. Coltrane doesn't really swing on harp (and that doesn't seem to be her objective), and other harpists, contemporary to Ashby, seem fairly stilted (90 degree angles) in comparison. I haven't heard that Atlantic record posted above, and need to. I will spin Afro-Harping tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Stryker Posted May 25, 2022 Report Share Posted May 25, 2022 5 hours ago, mjzee said: Listening now to her Prestige twofer, and really enjoying it. I've never heard a harp sound bluesy before! Very tasteful and swinging, and Frank Wess is a perfect accompanist. The overall effect reminds me of the MJQ, but I like this more. I can also hear the comparison to Kenny Burrell. Mark Stryker: do you mention her in your Jazz In Detroit book? She's name-checked but I don't go into any depth -- just didn't have the space to cover everyone. One of the things that's interesting about her is she is a product of the famous and unique harp program at Cass Tech -- same high school school that produced Paul Chambers, Ron Carter, Donald Byrd, Roland Hanna, Hugh Lawson, Geri Allen and a zillion others. The harp program dates back to 1925 (!) and continues to this day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teasing the Korean Posted May 25, 2022 Report Share Posted May 25, 2022 Afro Harping and The Rubiyat are the two gems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted May 26, 2022 Report Share Posted May 26, 2022 The Rubaiyat is an incredible record, a real delight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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