Saint Vitus Posted October 27, 2003 Report Share Posted October 27, 2003 I had no idea this one was comin'. Does anyone have the skinny on this one? The track listing is: 01 . Rocky's Overture 02 . Rocky Meets The Duke 03 . Satchmo's Song 04 . Monkeyin' Around With Monk 05 . Ballad For Hawk, A 06 . Skunky Funky Blues, The 07 . Sunday Mornin' Prayer Meetin' 08 . Hallelujah To Ya 09 . Righteous Rumba, The 10 . Lavender Love 11 . Rockin With Rachmaninoff The Bop City homepage is offering the mp3 track of "The Skunky Funky Blues." Bop City Records Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free For All Posted October 27, 2003 Report Share Posted October 27, 2003 I haven't yet heard this one (and I'm a big Horace Silver fan) but I have to say that on another fairly recent release, Jazz Has A Sense Of Humor, I felt that the usually impeccable sense of time found in HS rhythm sections was lacking. Now this could have been due to recording issues (such as the musicians being able to adequately hear each other) or maybe because Horace has lost a step or two. Horns were fine (Ryan Kisor and Jimmy Greene) but I felt uncomfortable about the rhythm section- they just weren't hooking up. When I go back and listen to older Horace sides the rhythm section's sychronization/sympatico is one of the most enjoyable aspects. I haven't been overly impressed with his recent issues, but I tend to cut him some slack because it's Horace, and he's paid his dues big time. But I'm less likely to run out and pick one of these new ones up compared to say an RVG of Cape Verdean Blues! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted October 27, 2003 Report Share Posted October 27, 2003 Horace w/Bop City executives: PRESS RELEASE DH1 Studios Signs Jazz Legend Horace Silver To The Company's Bop City Records Imprint June 2, 2003 (Beverly Hills, California) - Continuing the company's expansion in the music arena, DH1 Studios, and its associated label, Bop City Records under the direction of industry notables Al Schmitt, Elliot Scheiner and Ed Cherney have announced the signing of jazz legend Mr. Horace Silver to the Bop City Records imprint. DH1 President and CEO Steven Saxton said, "We're extremely pleased to have an artist of Horace Silver's stature join our family. He is a musical genius and tremendous performer." Also instrumental in bringing Silver to the company, Ron McCarrell, President DH1 Studios' Music Division and Managing Director of Bop City Records added "Horace Silver is a true jazz icon. He is a tremendous addition to the Bop City roster." Al Schmitt noted, "Over the years, the name Horace Silver has always been equated with musical excellence. He's not only my friend, but also an inspiration to jazz music aficionados all over the world. Horace is truly a living legend and we welcome him to the Bop City label." Silver's debut release for Bop City is entitled, Rockin' With Rachmaninoff. More on Horace Silver: Silver's music reflects his roots, as well his openness to all types of music, embracing Broadway tunes, musicals, and classical music as much as jazz, rock, blues, and folk. His mother and father were African American and Cape Verdean, respectively, and Silver grew up listening to Gospel music in the Baptist Church, though he was equally attracted to the blues, Latin rhythms, and African folk music. "It feels great to be called a legend," he admits. "It's something I never would have dreamed of in my earlier years." He started his musical studies with classical piano lessons and played both tenor and baritone sax in Norwalk, Connecticut. In later years, Silver parlayed this abiding affection for brass into an instantly recognizable trademark: for more than four decades, his quintets have prominently featured trumpet and sax to stunning effect. "It's not only that I like the horns up front in quintets: it's what we started out with, what I'm widely known for. And people love us for it. People will accept Horace Silver in other configurations," he adds, citing the seven-piece ensemble he recorded for Hardbop Grandpop (his 1996 Impulse! Debut) and his use of vocals in U. S. State of Mind (one of several acclaimed releases during his 28-year tenure at Blue Note). "I like to change up but I always return to the quintet," as he did in his 1997 Impulse! Recording, A Prescription For The Blues. Silver's powerful percussive bass lines and buoyant, almost dancing, melodic touch, propelled jazz into uncharted territory. His 1954 gospel-inspired hit, "The Preacher", recorded with his band, the original Jazz Messengers, gave birth to the "soul" movement in jazz - and established Silver as a leader in a new direction of jazz, one that took a sharp 180-degree turn away from the more cerebral bebop style then so prevalent. (That same year, he recorded the historic hardbop classic, "Walkin," with Miles Davis, and "Opus De Funk,") Two years later, leaving the Jazz Messengers in Art Blakely's capable hands, he started his first quintet. Silver is now widely regarded as one of the great composer/melodists whose beloved compositions- "Song For My Father," "Senor Blues," "Doodlin'," "Nica's Dream," "Sister Sadie," and countless others - are core jazz repertory. Through the years, he has tirelessly mentored and showcased countless new talents - Joe Henderson, the Brecker Brothers, Blue Mitchell, Woody Shaw, Louis Hayes, and others among them - and now the bright young players on Jazz Has a Sense of Humor join their ranks. Silver feels strongly about his responsibility to pass on what he knows, acknowledging the value of the lessons he learned while developing his distinctive style and gaining confidence as a performer. "I received help from so many. Stan Getz discovered me in Connecticut and got me on the road to my career," recalling the Getz trio he toured and recorded with in 1950-51. Throughout the early '50s, he was an active sideman at Birdland, where he backed such artists as Getz, Terry Gibbs, Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, and many others. "Miles (Davis), Art Blakely. I learned something from each one of them," Silver states. "The guys who concentrated on the small combo, they're all gone," said Silver, citing the passing of Blakely, Miles, Dizzy Gillespi, and Cannonball Adderly. "Older cats with a wealth of experience, there aren't too many of us left," Silver continues. "Jimmy (Greene) told me I'm gonna pick your brain' and I said, 'Great! It's yours to pick.' I'm glad to help these guys." In addition to the Horace Silver project, Schmitt, Scheiner and Cherney's Bop City have an ambitious slate of releases planned for the remainder of 2003. Upcoming releases by Doc Hollywood and Bop City include releases by 18 year old jazz pianist -- a favorite of David Benoit & Dave Brubeck -- Taylor Eigsti, and outstanding female jazz vocalist, LM Pagano. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted October 28, 2003 Report Share Posted October 28, 2003 Agree with "Jazz Has A Sense of Humor". Hopefully this one will be an improvement but I also have to wonder if time has caught up with Horace I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Does anybody have a list of the personnel on this cd? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indestructible! Posted October 28, 2003 Report Share Posted October 28, 2003 "Miles (Davis), Art Blakely. I learned something from each one of them," Silver states. "The guys who concentrated on the small combo, they're all gone," said Silver, citing the passing of Blakely, Miles, Dizzy Gillespi, and Cannonball Adderly. "Older cats with a wealth of experience, there aren't too many of us left," Hi All, I'm really looking forward to this! And hopefully Horace will play live around here sometime soon in support of this new album! It's killing me that one of my all-time favorite musicians lives just a few miles from me, and yet I may never get to hear him play live!!! And as for the quote I referenced... yet another example of Art Blakey's name getting mangled. At least they didn't mention Alfred Lions! Cheers, Shane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted October 28, 2003 Report Share Posted October 28, 2003 No but they mentioned Cannonball Adderly instead of Adderley. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted October 28, 2003 Report Share Posted October 28, 2003 The cynic in me (which was greatly fueled by reading the rest of that label's "news" section) wants to think that DH1 Studios is thinking long term, that if they get Horace Silver's last album(s) that they'll have a commodity that they can make money off of, through either leasing or releasing, for decades to come. Somebody's ALWAYS gonna want them to complete their collection, ya'know, regardless of how good they are or aren't. That PR photo kinda reminds me of vultures circling an old lion, just waiting for the signal to dive in. But that's just the cynic in me. The optimist in me says that these guys really dig Horace and want to give him every opportunity to create in splendor works worthy of his true greatness. You GO, optimistic self!!! GO!!!!!!! You're gonna be right ONE of these days!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 I'm optimistic that the optimist in you is right at least I hope so. If those guys are trying to exploit Horace I hope they get shit in their Christmas stockings for the rest of their lives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John L Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 (edited) The cynic in me (which was greatly fueled by reading the rest of that label's "news" section) wants to think that DH1 Studios is thinking long term, that if they get Horace Silver's last album(s) that they'll have a commodity that they can make money off of, through either leasing or releasing, for decades to come. Somebody's ALWAYS gonna want them to complete their collection, ya'know, regardless of how good they are or aren't. That PR photo kinda reminds me of vultures circling an old lion, just waiting for the signal to dive in. But that's just the cynic in me. The optimist in me says that these guys really dig Horace and want to give him every opportunity to create in splendor works worthy of his true greatness. You GO, optimistic self!!! GO!!!!!!! You're gonna be right ONE of these days!!!   I wouldn't worry too much about Horace getting "exploited" at this point. The market that you are describing is so thin that I don't think anybody in the record business whould think of basing a money-making strategy on it. Even the rights to the classic Sliver Blue Notes would not put much money in your pocket at this point. The big question in my head is does Horace still have it? I found the last two albums to be quite dull, although the one before that (Hard Bop Grandpop) had some nice moments (IMO). Edited October 29, 2003 by John L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 John L - I hope you're right about not worrying about Horace being exploited and whether or not Horace has it - still has it- is the question. I hope so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 WHOA! Nobody said anything about Horace being exploited. By all accounts, the guy is a damn good buisinessman, and I don't worry about him getting the short end of any stick. That's not what I meant at all. What I'm cynical about, based on the look and feel pf the company's website is why they gave Horace a deal, not the deal itself. Wasn't it Bob Weinstock who said something about the function of a jazz catalog being to reissue it (what's the exact quote?). I'm only saying that even if Horace might be fading due to age, and even if the album he gives this company isn't on a par with his past legacy (legacies, really, given that his "Unioted States Of Mind" and beyond work is a legacy unto itself seperate from the one before), these guys will probably be glad to have it, because it will be fodder for countless cheapo CD issues for years to come. They can lease and lease and lease. Or form countless cheapo labels themselves. Coming soon to a Flying J near you! That's a cynical viewpoint, but until I'm proven wrong... But no, I didn't mean to imply that these guys are trying to screw Horace or anything like that. Horace ain't gonna let himself get screwed, you can bet on that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 Point duly noted. The jazz world like other forms of music gets reissued a lot and in many instances this is not a bad thing I just don't want to see anything bad happen to Horace at the hands of some record label that's happened far too much to far too many artists over the years who didn't deserve it but if Horace is the buisnessman that you say then this shouldn't be an issue.The optimist in me is rooting for that outcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John L Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 Jim: Sorry if I misinterpreted you. I would still say that your "cynical" story is rather unlikely. There just isn't that much money in jazz reissues these days, particularly post-1970s music. A more likely story (it would seem to me) is that they were interested in bringing more attention and prestige to their label from jazz fans. At any rate, the question of why they gave Horace Silver a deal shouldn't necessarily matter from the musical point of view. The label seems to have a genuine interest in jazz, and most likely did not try to manipulate what Horace did. At this stage of his career, I also doubt that Horace would put up with any crap that compromises his artistic control. I think that the ball was most likely in Horace's court. Let's hear what he did with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 Well, I for one have not found Horace's latest efforts to be terribly subpar-I particularly enjoyed "Prescription For The Blues" which reunited the Brecker brothers front line. What is definitely disappointing though is that a year or so ago I corresponded with Brian Lynch who had mentioned a planned recording session with Horace which did not happen due to Horace's health troubles. Hopefully that can be rectified soon, but obviously this recording happened in the meantime. I will definitely be looking for this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 Jim: Sorry if I misinterpreted you. I would still say that your "cynical" story is rather unlikely. There just isn't that much money in jazz reissues these days, particularly post-1970s music. A more likely story (it would seem to me) is that they were interested in bringing more attention and prestige to their label from jazz fans. You may very well be right. I just keep having visions of stuff like that series in the late-70s that Lionel Hampton did for the Giants Of Jazz label. That stuff seemingly turns up in every budget rack in America, always ion different labels. Same thing with those Midem concerts and the Wynton w/Blakey 2 Bubba's. Staples of the budget bins, they are, and on countless different labels. I don't even mean to imply that they don't dig Horace. No doubt they do. I'm just saying that if the rumors are true and Horace is not doing too well these days, the question, "do we give him a deal?" always has the answer, "Sure - worst case scenario is we get his very last session. No fan's collection will be complete without it." How many times have you looked through a budget bin inhopes of stumbling across something really unusual, see the name of a familiar artist, and get your hopes up only to find that it's the same old stuff being repackaged for the umteenth time? "Horace Silver" would certainly be a name that would get my attention, and if I didn't have the material, or if I was a newbie who had heard the name but not much more, I'm spending 5-6 bucks and getting the side. I guess what's really making me cynical is the rest of the label's website, especially their "news" section, which is a collection of press releases and photos, none of which convince me too much that this is not an operation that is more about "product" than anything else. Of course, there's nothing really wrong with that at all. But I'm still leary that there might be a movement afoot to capture some of the legends' last gasps in a manner that does not honor their true stature. For instance, if the way Max Roach sounds on that recent thing he did with Clark Terry is the way he always sounds these days, I'd just as soon he never make another record. Hell, I wish he hadn't made THAT one. Sometimes I get all positive about documenting some folks up until the very end, but sometimes I think it gets kinda ghoulish. Depends on where my head is at. Right now it's in the "let it go" mode, but a month or so from now, it might not be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John L Posted October 29, 2003 Report Share Posted October 29, 2003 I see where you're coming from. At any rate, even if the music is a big disappointment, Horace Silver, like Max Roach, will be remembered for all of the other great records that he made. Only anal retentive fanatics like us will go after the LAST ALBUM at any cost regardless of the content. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted October 30, 2003 Report Share Posted October 30, 2003 Hell, I'd even buy an album of outtakes... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John L Posted October 30, 2003 Report Share Posted October 30, 2003 Hell, I'd even buy an album of outtakes... I sincerely hope that they don't hit us up with the "Complete Last Sessions" 7-cd box set with all the outakes and false starts due to Horace's fragility. That would be a terrible way to be set back another big head 100. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdd Posted October 30, 2003 Report Share Posted October 30, 2003 Who's on this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdd Posted October 31, 2003 Report Share Posted October 31, 2003 Listened to the one MP3 they had on the sight and it sounds about the same as Horace's last few albums. Andy Bey is singing but I couldn't recognize the tenor player. Anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bertrand Posted October 31, 2003 Report Share Posted October 31, 2003 Possibly Jimmy Greene? Bertrand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skeith Posted October 31, 2003 Report Share Posted October 31, 2003 An interesting story about Horace's business acumen. Like Sangrey I have heard Horace is a good businessman. However, the only time I saw him live was in the mid 90's at Fat Tuesday's in Manhattan. It was before he got that recent contract with Verve or Impulse of whoever it is. After finishing an excellent set, he pulled out a ratty cardboard box from under the piano and proceeded to attempt to sell these cds from his own label to members of the audience. This actually brought me to tears! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdd Posted October 31, 2003 Report Share Posted October 31, 2003 An interesting story about Horace's business acumen. Like Sangrey I have heard Horace is a good businessman. However, the only time I saw him live was in the mid 90's at Fat Tuesday's in Manhattan. It was before he got that recent contract with Verve or Impulse of whoever it is. After finishing an excellent set, he pulled out a ratty cardboard box from under the piano and proceeded to attempt to sell these cds from his own label to members of the audience. This actually brought me to tears! He did that for years and I don't think it was a depressing sight. I bought LPs from him after shows a couple of times and he was very gracious and always autographed the records. I believe he wanted to have his own label as he was always a little ahead of his time music business wise. He always kept his own publishing (I think he was the first on Blue Note to do this) and having your own label and owning your own masters was probably just the next step. However when Columbia and Verve come by and throw some big money at you, it might change your thinking a little. The tenor player doesn't sound like Jimmy Greene to me but I'm not that familiar with his playing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted November 3, 2003 Report Share Posted November 3, 2003 (edited) Here's the personnel, from Tower.com: Personnel includes: Horace Silver (piano); Dawn Burnett, Andy Bey (vocals); Andy Martin, Rickey Woodard, Michael Mossman, Ralph Bowen. I'm even more interested with Rickey Woodard aboard. Edited November 3, 2003 by Dan Gould Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdd Posted November 3, 2003 Report Share Posted November 3, 2003 Might be an older recording then. Saw the group with Bowen and Mossman in the late '80s. Is there a recording date? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_forumlogo.png.a607ef20a6e0c299ab2aa6443aa1f32e.png)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.