MartyJazz

Kenny Dorham is not only a sorely underrated trumpet player but jazz composer as well. Very expressive and identifiable and the hero of many a young trumpet player that I've met throughout the years. Check out these compositions on a variety of Blue Note and other label CDs: Tahitian Suite La Villa Sao Paulo Lotus Blossom Sunrise in Mexico El Matador Escapade Speculate The Prophet Short Story Minor's Holiday Horn Salute Great stuff.

Was it the same Taft Jordan that played with Chick Webb big band... Whoa...

I once had the inexplicable and unforgivable nerve to put down Clark Terry (I have since re-evaluated my assessment in a much more positive direction) to Taft Jordan when I met the latter at the West End Cafe in NYC some 30 years ago. Mr. Jordan justifiably took me to task, stating "Clark Terry is terrrrrrrible" (meaning, of course that he's great). Don't know how and why I had the temerity to do it but chiefly regret that I was so wrong at that time. I guess, if you're not stupid at least some of the time, you haven't really experienced anything.

Well, it appears to me that the original poster to this thread meant to use the word "obscure" rather than "underrated". I can't think of any obscure ones who should be better known other than perhaps John Marshall whom I saw perform in a club some 15 years ago. Not aware of any CDs by him. As for underrated trumpet players, I nominate the following: Benny Bailey: BIG BRASS (Candid), a really fiery player in a 1960 session Bobby Bradford: I'm thinking of the two Flying Dutchman collaborations with John Carter (FLIGHT FOR FOUR and SELF DETERMINATION MUSIC), circa 1969 Valery Ponomarev: PROFILE (Reservoir), a '91 date with Joe Henderson Claudio Roditi: TWO OF SWORDS (Candid), a '90 date with a terrific version of the standard "Secret Love"

IMO, the best Jackie on Prestige is a date wherein he is a sideman, a true desert island disc: LIVE AT THE CAFE BOHEMIA, led by George Wallington. The charts are first rate and with McLean and Donald Byrd in the front line and P.C. and Art Taylor anchoring the rhythm section, it's a joy to listen to from start to finish.

There is always at least one track where you say to yourself, in view of the fact that one's turn to do a BFT comes up every 3+ years (if one looks at the master list), how could anyone include such a dull piece of music as this? (If I offended anyone, tell your friends).

I don't own the vinyl of this either but my CD copy is Japanese and consequently, the original cover is reproduced as are the liner notes which, of course, require a magnifying glass to read. B) Thanks for posting that Japanese site. I'll enjoy going there, I'm sure.

Thanks for posting that, Jim R. An American original LP is worth quite a bit, I would say. Looks like you have a British release or did you cop that jpg on a website?

Little known point of fact. I believe the reason that the CD is listed under McGhee's name rather than Freddie Redd is due to contractual matters that may have existed then. While the album cover does say "composed by Freddie Redd", Redd himself is listed as "I. Ching" in the personnel listing and in the original liner notes when discussing the pianist on the date.

This of course correlates with the fact that there are two complete recordings of Freddie Redd's score for "The Connection", the more famous Blue Note quartet session featuring Jackie McLean, and the lesser known Felsted quintet session that has Howard McGhee and Tina Brooks in the front line. Both highly enjoyable.

Here in southeast Florida I'm listening this evening to WLRN (91.3 FM) coming out of Miami with a wonderful birthday salute to Miles. DJ is concentrating on the two "great quintets", i.e., the mid '50s group with Trane-Red-PC-Philly Joe and the mid '60s outfit with Wayne-Herbie-Ron-Tony. Have had and enjoyed this music for years and years, but it's nice to listen to someone else do the programming besides me.

A friend of mine, Vladimir Simosko, has written a comprehensive bio-discography on Shaw and he did so with the latter's cooperation. The book is a bit pricey however ($70) - fortunately, I obtained a reviewer's copy - but done with much love for the artist and insight into his work. It can be found on the following website with an Amazon link: http://www.crimsonbird.com/cgi-bin/a.cgi?j=0810833972 Vladimir has also written a book on Eric Dolphy and is the author of several monographs on Serge Chaloff (he also wrote the booklet for the Mosaic box on Chaloff), John Gilmore and others.

Another must, must have. I love the '44-45 band with Eldridge, Marmarosa, Kessel, etc. Of all of Shaw's bands, I like this one the best even though it was nowhere near as commercially successful as the '38-39 ("Begin the Beguine") band nor the '40 with strings outfit ("Stardust"). Band is very forward looking and the arrangements are solid. I picked up this Hep 3 CD set at Artie Shaw's website. Wherever you can obtain it, do so.

These are the last recordings of who I believe was the greatest jazz clarinetist ever. As such, they are very much of the same quality as the initial Last Recordings 2 CD set and therefore worth having. Hard to believe that at the relatively young age of 44, Shaw stopped playing for good. A terrible waste as these recordings indicate that, unlike Benny to whom he was always compared, Shaw was ever the modernist and was not content to simply recapitulate an earlier style. Pick this 2-fer up!

Great, great record. Sonny's sound in the '60s is just what jazz is all about to me. Taut ferocity is the best way I can describe it - absolutely no fat content. With Don Cherry on board, Sonny stretches the boundaries as much as he ever has, and that's saying quite alot. You have to experience it for yourself. But do yourself a favor, when you play the 25 minute version of "Oleo", make sure there are empathetic souls in your household (or car) if you cannot be by yourself, and turn up the volume. It will knock you out.

Can this be obtained anywhere?

Yeah, I have both of those Kenny Cox LPs that feature Joe Henderson's younger brother, Leon. Both are in a late '60s Miles vein and are very good. I wouldn't hold out much hope for them ever appearing on CD however - the personnel consists of complete unknowns. Elvin's "Genesis" is another fine LP. The Andrew Hill that I'd love to see re-issued on CD is "Andrew!!!" , a great session with Hutcherson and Gilmore.

Perhaps as the rhythm section is not of the "classic" Blue Note variety (with the exception of Art Taylor), I nominate this Dizzy Reece session as one that is overlooked: Some great Tubby Hayes on this one as well as the added, somewhat superfluous, presence of Donald Byrd. The title track is a real cooker!

As one who pleads guilty to using the word "soul" in previous notes to this thread (and I like Eric Alexander, BTW), I never mean it in a black-white context. To me "soul" simply connotes an honest feeling that is so palpable, it is pleasurably conveyed in the playing (be it blues, ballad or just straight ahead playing) of whoever I'm ascribing that quality to. Words are unfortunately inadequate to describe what I mean, but definitely race has nothing to do with it. For example, when it comes to alto playing, for my taste, Frank Strozier has more "soul" than does Bobby Watson, Jackie McLean more so than does Phil Woods, etc.

Let me tell you a story you may find funny concerning this album. Back in '71, I was working at a record store specializing in jazz in Greenwich Village. Booker had passed away the previous year. Anyway, a Caucasian woman (reference to race will be appreciated later) walks into the store and asks for this album, the only one Booker ever recorded for Blue Note. I'm a hot shot "jazz expert" and not fully appreciating this album at that time, I try to turn her on to a couple of Booker's Prestige LPs (e.g., "Heavy", etc.) that I felt were superior. After patiently listening to me extol the virtues of various Booker LPs other than the one she came in for, she tells me that she is Booker's widow and that she really wanted this one as she did not yet own it. I've stuck my foot in my mouth plenty of times but that's one occasion I remember doing so quite vividly. I mean, looking at her how was I to naturally expect that she had been married to him? (BTW, she may have been the "Tyra" that's the title of the last track on that album). Needless to say I have the album (on LP only).

Well, as one who joined Organissimo somewhat recently, I have received BFTs 7 through 11 and have partaken in all the discussion threads. However, let me here express my thanks to Mssrs. Man with a Golden Arm, Jim Dye, Alexander, rockefeller center and RDK for affording me challenging, enlightening and interesting hours of listening. (I wish my turn was sooner than #41 as I'd love to reciprocate ASAP).

Thanks for responding. You evidently created quite a firestorm here which I guess is the order of the day in today's world. No, I've never had difficulty telling Pres and Vice Pres apart, but I always thought it was ironic that when Pres complained of everyone trying to sound like him, the one that most emulated him (Quinichette) escaped criticism. Rather he was, as you say, referred affectionately as "Lady Q" by the master himself. In fact, Getz as the most successful pupil of the Pres attack, bore the brunt of Pres's criticism (in the critical opinion of that day) yet IMO Getz was then and increasingly became even more so, a highly original player. Where does all this lead? Well, I'm always reminded of a conversation I had with Sam Rivers back around '76 when he said about the state of jazz, "it's all been done". Most of us cherish our Bird, Trane, Rollins, Blue Notes, etc., for very good reasons which I won't bother to state. But, as we live in the here and now, we continually search for the contemporary player who strikes a chord. Finding the player who reflects the spirit of the times we live in and who does so, in an aesthetically pleasing way, is what I find most challenging.

I very much enjoyed the above 1982 response to McDonough. You raise points however that I have always found troublesome when evaluating musicians that I tend to gravitate to or to shy away from. The question of emulation has a time component, in my view. While I love Pres, Hawk and Ben, I generally cannot bear to listen to Scott Hamilton who has synthesized aspects of all three in his playing. Now, what is one to make of a musician who appeared many more years ago than Hamilton such as Paul Quinichette? Here's a musician whom I've never seen criticized in print. He was on lots of excellent dates, yet he wasn't called the "Vice Pres" for nothing - his playing is a complete theft, in my view, of Lester Young's style. How about Barry Harris? I have several dates of his I absolutely love, e.g., LUMINESCENCE, BULLSYE, etc., yet can anyone discern the kernel that is Barry from the stalk that is Bud Powell? I think Quinichette and Harris escape criticism because they appeared in the immediate aftermath of their idols and while the latter were still alive. Likewise, Oscar Peterson is considered a giant (I've never dug him, but that's my taste) yet does he ever begin where Art Tatum (whom I do dig) left off? You denigrate a few musicians (David Murray, Lew Tabackin) who obviously have been influenced by masters, but who I believe, have developed a sound that is recognizably their own. More importantly, in my view, they have added in some measure to this music we love. (Similarly, I can hear all the Aylerisms in the playing of the late George Adams, but I enjoyed the Adams-Pullen quartet immensely when they were gracing the scene in the '80s). Among contemporary musicians, it's obvious that Dizzy has greatly influenced Jon Faddis (who does nothing for me) and that Rollins and Dolphy have been great influences on Bennie Wallace (who does alot for me). So where does all this leave a musician like Eric Alexander? Yeah, it's obvious that Dexter and George Coleman have been profound influences on him. The bottom line for me however has always been, does this guy (or gal) cook and/or does he or she have that nebulous quality called soul? If in my view, the answer is affirmative, then I'm a fan. Consequently, I dig Alexander.

Granted, it's not what you'd expect to hear from any woman (at least, I've never been that lucky), but what makes it "work" in the context of the film is Harrison Ford's take in response to it. Funny and it points to why Ford was very good box office for a considerable period of time.

Discs just arrived today and have listened to the first one. I'm afraid that I can't add much to what's been stated already except that, since I do own the CD from which the vocal on track #13 appears, it can be found here (track #2).