king ubu

Hm, somehow I find the general negativity and lack of interest towards vocal jazz rather astonishing... I am not someone who listens to vocal jazz of whatever kind (songs, scat, vocalese) all the time, but it's part of the whole thing we call jazz... and hey, the old ones knew you couldn't play a standard without knowing it's clichéd words about love and joy and sadness (and death?)... Sheila Jordan's Monk album (with Clifford Jordan), reissued in Bluebird's First Edition digipack series with several bonus tracks, is another prime example. I think she only has words for the themes, though, and they're not her own, I assume (don't have it at hand). Then of course she does wonders on her Blue Note album, mainly with these Oscar Brown Jr. lyrics, twisting them around for her daughter etc - beautiful! That disc, with Swallow, Galbraith and Denzil Best, is one of the greatest modern jazz vocal discs I know. And Oscar Brown Jr. is the next name, then... his "Sin and Soul" (Sony/Legacy) is another favourite - feel-good music of high quality, with some tunes being classics, notably "Work Song" and "Dat Dere" (which is the one Sheila adapted), and "Signifyin' Monkey" is such a fune tune... I love that disc! Again, his words are for tunes, not solos, so...

Larry, I don't know Robertson as a leader, just from several sidemen albums, live recordings, and one concert (Barry Guy's New Orchestra) - a rather impressive technician, but as far as I am aware of his playing, sort of a role-cast player, too (high, strong, loud...) Some others: Jean-Luc Cappozzo (with Louis Sclavis' great quintet - 2002 ECM album "L'affrontement des pretendants") Stéphane Belmondo (he and his sax-playing brother Lionel did a terrific album with Yusef Lateef, "Influence", released on their own label this year - check it out!) Massimo Greco (with Gianluigi Trovesi Ottetto)

The "Live at Pep's" are terrific! Great band, featuring unsung Richard Williams on trumpet. I don't think these live albums are comparable to the other Impulse albums - I only have "Golden Flute" and "Psychicemotus" - both are very good, but rather different from the live session, which is rawer, more intense, sometimes maybe ragged... As for the Savoys: the early ones I think are even better than the sessions on the "Last Savoy" package. I know the Mood one and "Jazz for Thinkers", both are terrific! The Verve album you mention is great as well! Mostly tenor there, for a change. He certainly is a great tenor sax player, but then I think all together he's *much* more than just that. He was a true pioneer, some of his 50s albums already have a vibe that was to turn into "world music" (whatever that means), exploring musical styles and heritages beyond jazz limits and always turning up great albums in the end... "Eastern Sounds" is a case in point - there's so much more to that than to most other albums of the same time (1961, I think, in this case). This kind of "all-encompassing" thinking is what impresses me most with him, kind of a "universal" musicianship. Maybe it's just this what led him to do all those weird-looking (I haven't heard any, thus "looking") albums he released on his own label in the 70s and 80s? Is there any of those that are recommended? I have heard most of the two tenor albums (and I own the one with Vonski), but nothing else from YAL.

To continue the Atlantic discussion from above: I only have "Blue YL", "YL's Detroit" and "Part of the Search". I enjoy the former two a lot! "Part of the Search" is a rag-bag, some of it is alright, though... but the 32jazz edition I have (pairing it with the 3-side Rahsaan) doesn't even give line-ups for the individual tracks, very carppy. I wouldn't take the Blue and Detroit albums apart, I enjoy them a lot just as they come. I would enjoy hearing more straight ahead Lateef of those years, though... the few quartet cuts indicate he still had a lot going on!

Bringing this one back up. Have heard a fantastic live show of Lateef & Belmondo (on radion only, alas...) and found that even more impressive, with Lateef still playing powerfully, honestly, directly... great that he's still in such astonishing shape! Mark, I dare ask: do you have a few nice photos to share here?

And here's a page with a few names and infos mentioned, not updated for 3 years, though... http://ralf.org/~colomon/vocalese/vocalese.html And if I think about it, there's a disc I got from CDbaby some time ago that has a wonderful take on Ornette's "Peace". There are a few other marvellous things on that disc, and the band includes Matana Roberts on alto, Ed Schuller on bass, and Avishai Cohen on trumpet. Here's her website. Her second disc is out on Tzadik but I haven't heard anything from or about it, seems like a somewhat logical place for her, though, judging from the non-jazz influences discernable on her first disc (which is a "jazz" album, for sure, whatever that means...) Samples on CDbaby, as usual - including "Peace". ON THE EDIT: I realize this is not "bop vocalese" at all, but LHR aren't exactly, either... still, if you're interested, this might be nice to hear, David. She did write her own lyrics onto "Peace", so it's "vocalese" for sure...

dussygoof have it:

Can't say I'm an expert but I picked up Babs Gonzalez' Blue Note disc from Lon quite some time ago and I like that one a lot - you probably have it... Then there's this weird disc on english Spotlite, I found it in a sale last year: Then I think I once had some Spotlite (?) LP from a friend's dad that included some cuts with Dave Lambert and someone else (another male vocalist, that is), maybe featured with Red Rodney? Can't recall for sure... You don't like LHR, or am I understanding you wrong? If you see it, get "Newport '63" - it's with Yolande Bavan instead of Annie Ross, and the band features Clark Terry and Coleman Hawkins... a very nice disc, if you ask me! (I have it as old, jewel-case, french RCA disc, not sure if there are any US and/or later editions.)

A great musician! Saw him twice, first in a "classical" concert (playing C-trumpet), then later with Dhafer Yousef - fantastic concert (with Dieter Ilg on bass and the great Jojo Mayer on drums).

a few that haven't been mentioned yet, I think: Paolo Fresu Franco Ambrosetti Matthieu Michel Thomas Gansch Axel Dörner Dusko Goykovich Herb Robertson Pino! PINO MINAFRA!!! (megaphone included...) I'm sure there's plenty more...

Very sad news. I remember him from 2003 when I was still on AAJ as well.

Arrrghhhh - I have this - this bassist should be the first to come to mind when one plays some funky bass with Ray Brown's tone! Have that one, too...

That's one of the funnier episodes of that great book, but I don't take too many things in it too serious... that doesn't make it any less impressive a work, of course!

And I thought that was Joe Maini's you got

New Horse? VDMK for president? Maybe Brötz could be secretary of defense, then...

Well, now I hadn't read your next post before writing mine... I didn't think it was directed at me - rather a general (and valid) observation.

Good point! Although I plead guilty as using some for introductory purposes, too (O'Day being the most recent one). Some of the earlier, smaller sets (like the Fuller or the marvellous Thad Jones which I forgot above) were good for introduction, but nowadays, boxes are almost all at least 6-7 discs... and the Selects again are probably in many cases not great introductions because they feature lesser known musicians and would for many include too much stuff by those... (people may want "Katanga!" and maybe the one with Booby, but they're not interested in the organ dates and no one ever heard the name of that 'bonist anyway...)

Wow, so much bad words on the O'Day? I haven't made my way through all of it, but I loved all of it, so far! She's a totally astonishing singer and artist, in my opinion! Plus this is one of the "good for money" sets where more or less each disc holds two albums. As for "overrated", throwing a bone some might find displeasant, but I think the ones I could easiest live without are in fact all the BN sets. Now that even the Hills are available as Conns or RVGs, I don't see the point... ok, I have many of them (Rivers, McLean, Morgan, Hill, Parlan, Fuller, Byrd/Adams, Tina Brooks LP - not sure that's all, going from memory) and except for the Brooks have not "upgraded" anything, but in the end it might be cheaper to get the RVGs and Conns, plus they're more easily accessible as single discs, and some may argue they sound better, too... of course you'd lack the nice booklets, but you can't have it all. Anyway, I still think Mosaic is best when doing things like the Classic Capitol or the terrific H.R.S. (single discs on Fantasy, btw - some on the Concord sale list, I think), or then doing more unlikely things like the Bud Shank (much better than its reputation, I'd say - but as JAW said above, it's all a matter of taste), the Jacquet, the Giuffre, the Tristano/Konitz/Marsh, collecting either stuff from various labels or from labels that are not having good reissue series going on (Atlantic - ok, I dislike Collectables... - or Pacific Jazz).

Cortazar's story is fabulous indeed - recommended reading for everybody here!

David, Lateef sounds interesting - I'm becoming more and more fascinated by this man and his music! Did you already read it? Is this a monthly or a bi-monthly magazine? #15 has two months on it, so...

well, bether than fegh one pixel for hours... neverno is on vacation - it's he who's to blame, thus! (q.e.d.)

another 21+ (prob. around 25-30... or more, with the Universal versions having been around for good prizes last year, over here in Europe).

Definitely! I went to their website to find out that no one in Switzerland carries this magazine - looks nice enough to buy now and then if it was around...

Is there some live material in there? I must have slept when this was discussed (I have it most likely, whatever it is - which is why I will only get the 2CD "Round About Midnight"-Deluxe set if I see it really cheap).

Fire eating?