Teasing the Korean

Completely disagree.

Well, I'm generalizing here, but I think it is safe to say that many jazz musicians of a certain time period or a certain stylistic preference gravitated toward tunes with a lot of chromaticism, and certainly a lot of "functional" harmony, lots of ii minor/V7/I chord progressions along the way. It's a chicken and egg question as to whether these kinds of tunes are inherently more "suitable" to jazz improvisation, or whether players' near-total immersion into this harmony over many decades resulted in patterns of improvisation that do not neatly translate to other harmonic situations. And again, I am generalizing. I think that Burt Bacharach is a genius, and while we have certainly had jazz versions of his tunes, I don't think we've had nearly as many as we may have had or even should have had, and I think this is another example of what I'm talking about. One other example: While reharmonization by jazz musicians is usually intended to improve tunes, there are times when it dumbs them down to make a tune easier to blow on. The commonly played chords in bars 3 and 4 of the A section to "Dancing on the Ceiling" by Rodgers and Hart are easy to blow over, but not as interesting as the chords Rodgers wrote. I should add that the only Sondheim song I really know that has music by Sondheim is "Send in the Clowns." Back when I used to do cocktail piano gigs, this was one that I had to have ready. I would play the tune, but I refused to improvise on it. I did not think it lent itself to jazz improvisation. So I would play the melody, let my mind wander for three minutes, and pray that the song would end soon. It's probably still going on somewhere. So I was kind of playing devil's advocate with my question, but not entirely. Regardless, he was comparing apples to oranges.

Could it also reveal something about jazz musicians' bias against certain types of progressions or melodies? I'm not a fan of Sondheim, and I can't name anything he wrote after "Send In the Clowns," but I'm just curious.

I am in the mood for some Bill Evans, so I popped in a random disc from the Riverside box set. And there was Cannonball. I had forgotten that they included the Cannonball Riverside album with Bill Evans in this box.

I have the CD with both the Eric Dolphy albums combined. I think everything is stereo on there.

I hear ya.

Only $3.98! Get it while you can!

For a few weeks this past Spring, I was listening repeatedly to The Household Muse, the original piano version. It was the only music that made sense to me during that stretch.

I didn't get into jazz until I was about 13, but I knew Cannonball's name from the time I was able to read. Why? Because I saw all of his Capitol albums on inner sleeves of Beatles and Beach Boys albums. It's funny how you form opinions at a young age that you have a hard time shaking. I assume that Cannonball has an important place in the pantheon because he was cool enough to be on the Beatles' and Beach Boys' label. This is 8-year-old TTK speaking, not the older, wiser TTK with whom you typically interact. Also worth noting is how many people have gotten into Cannonball because of the David Axelrod angle. I have all those Capitol albums equally for the Adderleys, Zawinul, and Axelrod. My favorite Capitol Adderley Axelrod albums are the one with lengthy orchestral compositions, and the brilliant Soul Zodiac. And then there is this killer Juju Orchestra track that samples Adderley.

8 pm EST. If you go to "schedule" and then click on "Latino 54" on Wednesday night, the most recent show pops up.

Same with Buddy Rich's daughter singing "The Beat Goes On." Aging jazz musicians turning on and tuning in to the moods and vibrations of today!

I think I got it from them for ridiculously cheap.

This LP of themes from Brigitte Bardot films, arranged by Pete Rugolo, inhabits a nice space between cool jazz and 1950s mood music. Strangely, I cannot find it on the InterTubes. It features Rugolo's trademark ensemble writing especially combinations of instruments at extreme ranges, such as the tuba and piccolo, playing together. I can imagine my Dad listening to this album in the evening, wearing a cardigan, smoking his pipe, and drinking bourbon, but I can also imagine my Mom listening to this album in the afternoon, wearing capris, flats, and a sweater, not unlike something that Mary Tyler Moore would have worn on The Dick Van Dyke Show, sipping an iced tea and leafing through Life Magazine. It has been reissued on CD Rhino/WB in the US, and it must be on some grey market releases by now also.

We can only imagine what Coltrane may have accomplished if he had gained a lot of weight, bought a 70s track suit, and allowed a kid to sing on one of his albums.

Did any other saxophone Great release an album with a repeated photo of him/herself in a track suit, carrying his/her massive frame down a flight of steps? I don't think so. This alone places Cannonball in his own pantheon. And this is Cannonball's greatest album, also, because of the cover art. Hey hey hey...

These are honest questions!

OK, final question: Do you still put fat in glass jars and keep it in the fridge?

Thanks. I had no idea. I've been veg since the mid-1980s, but even back then, liverwurst seemed like a relic from another era. Now, do you happen to know if people still have potato and onion bins in their kitchens?

If you go back to the link, the playlist appears directly under the "listen on demand" playback feature. You may have to scroll up. If you scroll up too far, you will be into the previous week's show, so be sure you are looking at Dec. 1. Thank you!

Note my use of the word "some." I was not implying that I fall into this category, not that I play much these days in any key, Db or otherwise.

TTK included the money cut "Agua Dulce" in his stellar set on Latino 54! The show will be archived at the link below for one magical week, before it disappears forever into the ether, along with your memories of the show. https://www.wmnf.org/events/latino-54/

Thanks. My next question is, do people still eat liverwurst? Not for Thanksgiving, but just in general.

TTK had the pleasure of sitting in this evening for Franco Silva on Latino 54 WMNF. I was joined by the lovely Lounge Laura Taylor of Surface Noise fame. I had no time for show prep, but I rose to the occasion, saving the station from two hours of dreaded dead air. I spun a mix of old-skool Afro-Cuban jazz, Latin grooves by >gasp< jazzsters (!), and Brazilian grooves. The show will be archived at the link below for one magical week, before it disappears forever into the ether, along with your memories of the show. No room for squares. https://www.wmnf.org/events/latino-54/

I think that some piano players liked Db for the visual cues. You get the five notes of the pentatonic scale on the black keys, you get the safe spaces provided by C and F, and you more or less avoid E and B, at least if you are playing in a major key with a semi-conventional harmonic structure. Of course, all the notes show up sooner or later.

"I Am Sitting in a Room" is brilliant. RIP.