Lazaro Vega

Well, David Baerwald's lyrics nailed a mood, for sure -- McCaslin and Craig Taborn do, too. Can't play the vocal version of K.C. Blues, which is called "So Long," sung by Jeffrey Wright. But the writer finds a voice inside Bird. Might not be Bird's voice, but it's a convincing character. You know the last bit of theme on KC Blues...he gives it the line, "....you ain't gonna hurt me no more." There's this, too, "such a dynamite little city.....to be from." Goodness. I can't play it on the radio because it builds up to "fuck yoooouuuu Kansas City." "Moose the Mooche" is so right on. This guy dives into drug addiction from a hipster point of view, but it's not one of like "being hip," but just jaded, lost, above it yet consumed by it, and the singers, mostly, get it. Kurt Elling sure does. And so does this Jeffrey Wright. No, it's really something. Eerie. Uncomfortable. Welcoming. It may be a one off, but it's not a tourist point of view. Parts of this record crawl under your skin.

Have any of you heard "The Passion of Charlie Parker" on Impulse?

Heard him wipe everyone out at the Chicago Jazz Festival in 1988, taking chorus after chorus on "Red Top" with a raring to go Marvin "Smitty" Smith taking no prisoners behind him. Today at www.bluelake.org/ondemand “Jazz From Blue Lake” features the music of Sonny Rollins in honor of his 87th birthday.

I just requested that one. Going to play it on the radio!

Who breaks singles of instrumental music on Entertainment Weekly and Rolling Stone? Donny McCaslin. Since saxophonist Donny McCaslin's band became "David Bowie's last band" for the album "Blackstar," McCaslin recorded and released "Beyond Now" in 2016 and played 80 concerts all over the world since. Jazz From Blue Lake features McCaslin's music in the first part of each hour found here: www.bluelake.org/ondemand

Happy 75th birthday to drummer/pianist/bandleader Jack DeJohnette featured on Jazz From Blue Lake here (click to listen): www.bluelake.org/ondemand

Tony Bennett's 91st finds the musician and painter keeping a promising performance schedule, including a concert at Ravinia in Chicago tonight and a celebration in New York on the 8th. Blue Lake Public Radio brings you jazz related recordings by Bennett during all five hours of Jazz From Blue Lake found under "Programs" here: www.bluelake.org/ondemand (In concert photograph by William Ellis.)

In August 1961 drummer/bandleader Max Roach represented the civil rights movement in sound with a band moving into a unique rhythmic soundscape – Eric Dolphy and Clifford Jordan on woodwinds; Booker Little, trumpet; Julian Priester, trombone; Mal Waldron, piano; Art Davis, bass; Roach on drums plus two percussionists and the voice of Abbey Lincoln. “Tender Warriors” is a lyrical, haunting, consonant theme featuring Dolphy’s flute. After an innocent sounding trumpet solo, Dolphy’s bass clarinet interrupts in distressing dissonance – youth and experience represented symbolically in sound. This classic recording is featured in the first part of each hour of Jazz From Blue Lake Lake found under “Programs” here: www.bluelake.org/ondemand

I'd check out their touring -- they're coming across the big water this fall, I believe.

BassDrumBone is actually a trio of bassist Mark Helias, drummer Gerry Hemingway and trombonist Ray Anderson. Right now they're celebrating the 40th anniversary of creating music with a continent jumping tour. Starting in New Haven just after the nation’s bi-centennial, each member had early playing and touring experience with composer/multi-instrumentalist Anthony Braxon. A review at www.bassdrumbone.com says of BassDrumBone’s music, “Variety is a predominant factor here.” Jazz From Blue Lake focuses on the 40th anniversary of BassDrumBone and their new double CD “The Long Road” under “Programs” found here today: www.bluelake.org/ondemand

Bobby Bradford switched permanently from trumpet to cornet in 1973, using the horn for great timbre flexibility and expressiveness in deftly organized spontaneous composition, something he’s excelled at since first coming out of Texas as a boyhood friend of the great Ornette Coleman. Blue Lake Public Radio’s celebration of Bobby Bradford’s 83 birthday is available to hear today under “Programs” and “Jazz From Blue Lake” here: www.bluelake.org/ondemand

Bob Blumenthal typified Milt Jackson’s July 2, 1948 quartet recording session with Thelonious Monk as easily his most important outside of the Modern Jazz Quartet, and one which produced music of the highest level, some of the most celebrated in Monk’s career. Combine those recordings with the July 23, 1951 session led by Monk featuring Jackson on “Four in One” and “Criss Cross” and you’ll be listening to last night’s Jazz From Blue Lake, here: www.bluelake.org/ondemand .

57 years ago Charles Mingus was invited to perform at the Antibes Jazz Festival in Juan Les Pins, France, a concert recorded and finally issued in the 1970's. Last night, in the first part of each hour, Blue Lake Public Radio featured that recording, and later in the evening the sessions Mingus did for Candid recordings in the fall of 1960. This 5 hour episode of Jazz From Blue Lake is available today under "Programs" https://www.bluelake.org/ondemand . You may want to read this while listening: https://www.thenation.com/article/argument-instruments-charles-mingus/

With this coming up -- http://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/ornette-coleman-jazz-visionary-ready-prime-time-n779871 -- I was prompted to revisit a 1992 radio program on the soundtrack to this film including interviews with Ornette Coleman and film composer Howard Shore. You'll find the half hour long broadcast under "Interviews" at www.bluelake.org/ondemand

Geri Allen. You've read the tributes flowing out of Michigan's jazz scene about her, and the jazz world's incredible appreciation of this dynamic creative artist. Tonight on Jazz From Blue Lake at midnight eastern time we'll rebroadcast a 2008 solo piano performance she gave live on the radio from the Blodgett Recital Hall at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. Streaming from www.bluelake.org/listen . Geri went to Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp as a 6th grader (the camp is for high school students).

This 5 hour broadcast is now available from www.bluelake.org/ondemand under "Jazz From Blue Lake."

Tonight on Blue Lake Public Radio from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. in the first part of each hour, in honor the solstice, we're featuring this recording by Alex Cline and his 14 piece Flower Garland Orchestra, "Oceans of Vows," Cline's meditation on inner-being.

Glad you liked it: thanks for listening!

It was a year ago that Sir Charles Thompson passed away. Last night we remembered his clear, concise piano playing and lovely melodies during part of Jazz From Blue Lake, which you'll find on line today to stream from www.bluelake.org/ondemand .

Jazz From Blue Lake featuring the music of Miles Davis in the first part of each hour is available right now from www.bluelake.org/ondemand.

Jazz From Blue Lake is available from www.bluelake.org/ondemand. In the first hour of the program we hear music by Cecil Taylor’s bands featuring saxophonist Archie Shepp, The Jazz Datebook, and music by Thelonious Monk from 1959, including some of the newly recovered film soundtrack. The other four hours of the program feature Shepp in the first 20 minutes, with “Out On Blue Lake” in the 3rd hour. Get into some massive sound via an avant gardist who joined the mainstream, whose depth of interpretation in blues and spirituals will fill you up.

Jazz From Blue Lake celebrated the music of Sun Ra, jazz’s sun god, yesterday evening and the program is available today on demand from www.bluelake.org/ondemand . As his biographer John Swed said, Sun Ra believed music has a power that is closest you can come to certain God-like experiences. Music is a model for a kind of reality that’s not otherwise available directly to the mind. The broadcast includes part of a special live performance by the Blue Lake studios from saxophonist Marshall Allen and bassist Henry Grimes. (Image by Jan Persson, thanks to Stephen Haynes )

Two weeks after recording Miles Davis's album "Kind of Blue," on May 4, 1959, John Coltrane recorded his classic album "Giant Steps" which Blue Lake Public Radio featured Friday evening in the first part of each hour of Jazz From Blue Lake. You can hear that broadcast of Jazz From Blue Lake here: www.bluelake.org/ondemand

On Sunday, April 23rd, The Underground Music Series at LaFontsee Galleries featured trance inducing music by Karuna, the percussion duet of Adam Rudolph and Hamid Drake. It was a meditative, mesmerizing ending to season three of the Underground Series, presented by Adventuremusic.org . Here is Kalamazoo area writer John Ephland's review of Karuna's concert in Grand Rapids, https://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=560189

Nice! Timely. Featured him last night on Jazz From Blue Lake. He's playing this weekend in Grand Rapids with Hamid Drake. The show is up today only under Jazz From Blue Lake, all 5 hours, here: www.bluelake.org/ondemand