BFT 144 Discussion

[Hot Ptah]

4 hours ago, Spontooneous said:

OK, here goes, focusing mainly on the things that haven't been identified...

1. Pleasantly surprised by the ID here. I was thinking that the groove pointed to a Ramsey Lewis record, or at least to Chicago and Argo. The first part of the changes could be borrowed from "Well You Needn't," but the rest is obviously not. The pianist's second bridge made me think of Barry Harris. For tenor I was guessing Harold Land, Frank Foster, Jimmy Heath. But that's all moot now.

2. When the piano solo starts, it's pretty clear this is a McCoy Tyner record, probably a Milestone. It's the title cut here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/13th_House People forget how many chances McCoy took with instrumentation and texture over the years, and how it almost always worked smashingly.

That is it! This album, 13th House,  is toward the end of McCoy's run of excellent Milestone albums. This song is arranged and composed by Jimmy Heath. The soloists are Slide Hampton, Ron Carter, and McCoy.

This is the only song on the album composed and arranged by Jimmy Heath.  Frank Foster composes and arranges another song. Slide Hampton and McCoy do the other arrangements.

In the 1980s, I used the first song on this album, "Short Suite", as my song to test stereo components before buying a stereo, as it has some very high pitched piccolo soloing by Hubert Laws, and a lot of percussion parts playing, in addition to the wide range of tones from the multiple horns.  Once at David Beatty's stereo store in the Windmill Shopping Center in Overland Park, Kansas, I played "Short Suite" loudly to test different sets of speakers, which I could switch back and forth between. I liked it when a group of people gathered to find out what the great music was.

4. It's Django's tune – that's "Nuages," isn't it? -- but since it's stereo, obviously it isn't Django. Nice, but a little too chopsy for me, or maybe I'm guitarred out today.

It is "Nuages".  It is not Django himself.

6. The trumpet makes me think of Bill Coleman, or Buck Clayton. Dicky Wells on trombone? Nat Pierce on piano, maybe even Ellis Larkins? If I keep guessing, I might hit something sooner or later...

Out of those guesses, you got Buck Clayton correct.

 

10. Sounds like John Hicks to me. It's that firm left hand while the right floats all over the time. On about the third listen, I'm starting to think the song is "I'll Keep Loving You."

It is not John Hicks. It is not "I'll Keep Loving You", or at least it is not labeled as that song in the liner notes.

12. OK, this is fun. A snatch of melody in the opening section makes me think it might be a fantasy on "I Loves You Porgy," but halfway through it turns into "Come Sunday." Wonderful chops. I give up, but I'll throw out a guess of Dave Burrell, just because.

It is not Dave Burrell. Everyone may be a bit surprised at who this is.

 

13. Kamasi's album reminds me of a nasty remark someone made about Richard Strauss (it might have been Stravinsky) – to the effect that Strauss creates a beautiful painting, then when you think it's done, he keeps painting over it because he still has some paint left.

It is on the verge of excess, if not somewhat over the line. But I think that this is Kamasi's fourth album as a leader. The first three were on his own small label. I have not heard the first three. I am in favor of letting a new artist grow, develop, and have a little bit of the benefit of the doubt. I often read about how music labels no longer let an artist develop, that the labels are very impatient, and how negative that is to musical development. I am trying not to be impatient with Kamasi. I want to hear what he does next.

It was interesting to me that some members here did not know it was Kamasi, and thought it was other well known musicians. So he does not seem to occupy a unique space in the universe of music.

 

 

3 hours ago, The Magnificent Goldberg said:

What a brilliant remark!

MG

It is a funny remark.

[felser]

@Jim.  I'm not totally sure what I mean by "hip-hop" either, but it seems to largely be a rhythmic thing.  I always think of the below album review by Robert Christgau, his comment about which rhythms feel like life to you.  I enjoy that big Arrested Development album from the early 90's, enjoy "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash, enjoy a lot of house music and freestyle music from the late 80's, but don't really care for the Rucker stuff all that much (I will relisten), or for the whole rhythmic concept of almost all the black music I have heard the past 25 years.  So I don't know what I am looking for or looking to avoid!  'Course maybe I'm just old .

Tongue in Chic [Atlantic, 1982]
This is their groove album. Maybe their throwaway album as well, yet I enjoy it fine, because I get from Chic what devotees of Memphis soul used to get from Booker T. & the M.G.'s. Which group you prefer is partly a matter of which rhythms feel like life to you, of course, so I'll add that like New York these are pretty swift. I'll also add that their in-concert theme song makes me wonder what the live album might be like. A-

[Hot Ptah]

On ‎3‎/‎1‎/‎2016 at 2:48 PM, BillF said:

 

Track 6

I've never heard this before, but it has the sound of a Vanguard date from the mid-fifties, so I'll guess Ruby Braff, Edmund Hall and Vic Dickenson. Swings like crazy!

 

You are correct about Edmund Hall on clarinet, and correct that it is a Vanguard 1950s date. Spontooneous has just identified Buck Clayton on this track. So now we know two of the musicians.

[BillF]

3 hours ago, Hot Ptah said:

You are correct about Edmund Hall on clarinet, and correct that it is a Vanguard 1950s date. Spontooneous has just identified Buck Clayton on this track. So now we know two of the musicians.

I think it's got to be this:

[JSngry]

Well, there's Mel Powell.

[felser]

44 minutes ago, JSngry said:

Well, there's Mel Powell.

Very interesting guy, not easily pigeonholed. 

[JSngry]

Not even.

 

[Hot Ptah]

20 hours ago, BillF said:

I think it's got to be this:

Yes, the song is from that album.

Edited March 11, 2016 by Hot Ptah

[Hot Ptah]

I will provide some clues for the tracks which have not been identified at all yet.

4.  Both guitarists on this track recorded with the same jazz giant close to the end of his career.

10.  This composition is by a much respected jazz musician who did not achieve great commercial success in his lifetime. The pianist has recorded mostly as a leader, but has also made sideman appearances on recordings by everyone from swing era masters to avant garde giants.

12.  The pianist is very well known, although not for playing in a style like this. I would say that virtually every member, if not every member, of the Organissimo board knows his name and his music.

 

[mjzee]

I believe #4 is Larry Coryell and Philip Catherine performing Nuages from the album Twin House.  http://www.allmusic.com/album/twin-house-mw0000497028

Re #10: Is this Hank Jones?

Re #12: Is this Keith Jarrett or Oscar Peterson?

Edited March 24, 2016 by mjzee

[Hot Ptah]

1 hour ago, mjzee said:

I believe #4 is Larry Coryell and Philip Catherine performing Nuages from the album Twin House.  http://www.allmusic.com/album/twin-house-mw0000497028

Re #10: Is this Hank Jones?

Re #12: Is this Keith Jarrett or Oscar Peterson?

4. Yes, you have identified the artists, album and song. Both Coryell and Catherine played on Charles Mingus' "Three or Four Shades of Blues" album.

10.  Not Hank. The pianist on #10 has recorded with artists much more avant grade than Hank ever recorded with.

12. Not Jarrett or Oscar Peterson.

Edited March 24, 2016 by Hot Ptah

[JSngry]

10 sounds like Chick channeling Bill Evans, but that cannot be it based on your hint.

[Hot Ptah]

1 hour ago, JSngry said:

10 sounds like Chick channeling Bill Evans, but that cannot be it based on your hint.

It is not Chick Corea or Bill Evans. This pianist has never attained the level of stardom of either of those pianists. He is more of a pianist known and well liked by those deep into jazz.

[JSngry]

12 = an extract from a longer piece? Part of a medley?

Earl Hines? Dave Brubeck?

[JSngry]

No, not Earl Hines, although I found the cut I was thinking it might be, and it's a lot closer to what's on here than a causal thought might suggest.

[Hot Ptah]

1 hour ago, JSngry said:

12 = an extract from a longer piece? Part of a medley?

Earl Hines? Dave Brubeck?

I have previously stated on this thread, in a response to a question from The Magnificent Goldberg, that Track 12 is part of a longer piece. If I had included the rest of the piece, everyone would have known immediately who the pianist is.

It is not Earl Hines or Dave Brubeck.

54 minutes ago, JSngry said:

No, not Earl Hines, although I found the cut I was thinking it might be, and it's a lot closer to what's on here than a causal thought might suggest.

 

I would love to know what cut you were thinking it might be. That would be truly interesting.

[JSngry]

"Come Sunday" from Earl Hines Plays Duke Ellington. I can't begin to recommend that album highly enough.

https://youtu.be/huNtEOsN6s4

[Hot Ptah]

I will post the Reveal on March 31. In the meantime, here are some thoughts I have on some of the tracks on this Blindfold Test.

4.  There has not been much love for this Larry Coryell/Philip Catherine duet. I like their duet album "Twin House", quite a lot. I bought the album when it was first released. I saw Coryell live several times from 1975-79 and he was quite good live. I saw him in an electric jazz fusion setting with the Eleventh House, and in two solo guitar performances, which were excellent.

In 1979, Coryell sat in and played a really good mainstream solo on "Take the A Train" with this group:  John Handy, Joe Farrell, Randy Brecker,,Jimmy Knepper, Don Pullen, Charlie Haden and Dannie Richmond. I believe that this was the first edition of the Mingus Dynasty band. Sue Mingus accompanied the band and introduced it.

So I have positive feelings about Larry Coryell in this period, and "Twin House" is part of that.

6.  Mel Powell's piano solo strikes me as extraordinary on this cut. I love his playing on his 1950s Vanguard releases.

7. Phineas could be such a great player on recordings. On this cut, his blues feeling combined with his chops are very special, I think.

8. To my knowledge, this is the last time that the Jaki Byard/Richard Davis/Alan Dawson rhythm section recorded together, after their successes on albums in the 1960s. I find both Richard Davis' bass solo and Jaki Byard's piano solo to be extraordinary. Both of them add more imagination and originality to their solos than one might expect on such an oft-recorded standard.

 

 

[tkeith]

Bill, sorry!  I thought I had posted my thoughts and guesses.  Turns out I never even wrote them down.  I did listen 3 times when I had the rental car (I typically listen only once).  Sorry 'bout that.  

[Hot Ptah]

13 hours ago, tkeith said:

Bill, sorry!  I thought I had posted my thoughts and guesses.  Turns out I never even wrote them down.  I did listen 3 times when I had the rental car (I typically listen only once).  Sorry 'bout that.  

That is OK! You do a lot for the BFT. I would have enjoyed your impressions.