Mark Stryker

This looks intriguing. Looks to be previously unpublished materials. http://yalepress.yale.edu/book.asp?isbn=9780300214529

Tony had just turned 17 when he first met and played with Jackie at Connolly's in Boston in December 1962 -- that when and where this picture was taken. So he was 17. Jackie tell the story in the liner notes of "One Step Beyond." It's so beautiful to see a picture from that gig. It really brings everything down to human scale. FWIW, I used "Blue Rondo" as my break tune for a number of years with my own band, and the basic frontline of my group was always based on the alto/trombone sound of Jackie and Grachan Moncur. (For you Chicago folks, my partner was the great bass trumpet player Ryan Shultz, whose instrument, of course, is pitched like a trombone. This was back in the mid '80s in Urbana.) Lot of material in our book either written by Jackie, arranged by him or associated with him -- "Capuchin Swing," "Blue Fable," "Snuff" ("Iddy Bitty" with modal changes) "Marilyn's Dilemma," "Blues in a Jiff," "The Three Minors," "The Way I Feel," "I Love You," "I Hear a Rhapsody," "Formidable."

I met Carmen (and Sue) a couple years ago when she played a gig in Detroit. Very nice guy. He is still playing well in a kind of understated Chet Baker vein. She sounded tremendous. He was born in Detroit, attended Cass Tech. They had picked up a group of locals for the gig. Very detailed charts, including one on "There Used to be a Ballpark Right Here," which included a slick little quote of "Take Me Out tot he Ballgame" as a coda. I thought the setting was a little too scripted, more cabaret than jazz if you know what I mean. I saw two "shows" and it was the same set done twice and Sue, as good as she sounded, felt constrained, though I later learned she gets nervous with players she doesn't know and stays on script. The best moments came at the end of the night -- I had been talking to the trombone player on the break about how I wish Sue would just sing a standard like Body and Soul off the cuff -- and at perfect time the trombone player said to her, "Hey, why don't you just sing 'Body and Soul' with the piano." They picked a key, and Goddamn, it was incredible. Beautiful phrasing. Her voice is well preserved; actually all of her is, and I don't mean that salaciously. She just looks good.

Happy birthday, young man!

After many years, I finally found a copy of "Air Time" -- thanks Chuck! Of all the Air LPs with the original line-up, I'm now only missing the two on Black Saint, "Live Air" and "Air Mail."

Special resonance in Detroit: Marcus Belgrave

I love this story. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/11/arts/music/jason-stein-puts-a-jazz-spin-on-the-stand-up-of-his-half-sister-amy-schumer.html?mwrsm=Facebook&_r=0

This recital mixes old and new so gives a good idea who she is http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0007X6T3C/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?qid=1449578797&sr=8-5&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70&keywords=leila+josefowicz&dpPl=1&dpID=61cf5DN0BrL&ref=plSrch If you like the Salonen in the recital you can go to his concerto http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B008W5TDP8/ref=pd_aw_sim_15_of_5?ie=UTF8&dpID=51%2BxbCB%2BZHL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_SL500_SR100%2C99_&refRID=0JHRZ6ASZV1P4DZ9QXF5 I haven't heard the Shostakovich concerto disc but I once heard her play the shit out of it live. The Oliver Knussen is another -- might look for these via spotify to sample. The Tchaikovsky/Sibelius was her debut recording as I recall. I haven't heard it in 20 years so can't vouch; I also heard her give the best performance I've heard of John Adams' Violin Concerto but she hasn't recorded it.

Leila Josefowicz is terrific. She grew up as a prodigy -- Curtis as a young teen, big recording contract and big career at 17 or so. But what has been so rewarding is that as she got older she got very interested in contemporary music and rather than just make a ton of bread playing Tchaikovsky, Sibelius and Brahms, she started exploring 20th C. rep like Messiaen and then the music of her own time -- Adams, Ades, Knussen, Salonen, etc. She was married for a while to conductor Kristjian Jarvi (Neeme's son and the brother of Paavo), and Kritjian's career has been largely defined by new music. I think that had a big impact on her. The marriage didn't survive, but her interesting in contemporary music has. I've heard her a bunch for free in my job, but I'd gladly pay to hear her play pretty much anything.

There's some hellacious routing in there: Three nights in a row: Vancouver to Detroit (long blow, losing 3 hours as you go), and from there to Buffalo in the middle of Feb.

I heard Schneiderman for three nights in Urbana when I was in school in January 1983 with a Rufus Reid Quartet including Bob Rockwell and Victor Lewis. Rob was a sub -- these might may have been his first nights with the band -- for Jim McNeely, who was supposed to have been on the gig. We had been especially looking forward to Jim because it would have been a homecoming, since he went to school in Champaign-Urbana. Rob sounded good those nights, very bebop oriented and, in fact, I recall a particularly hip and groovy block-chord solo on "Visitation" -- not in a Red Garland style with right hand octaves and maybe a fifth stuck in the middle, but full chords in both hands and all the voices shifting as he went. I have tapes of those nights ...

Sorry to be pain, but I am without access to Lord, so can anyone tell me how many sessions featured (1) Hank Jones, Barrry Galbraith, Milt Hinton, Osie Johnson; and (2) Hank Jones, Wendell Marshall, Kenny Clarke? (3) How many session listings there are for Hank in any setting? Thanks much for the research help.

What festival outside of Detroit are you talking about here? This was 14 years before I arrived here, but, still, I'm curious ...

Yeah, your hat ... nice block and color!

Yeah, I would have used a track from "Royal Flush" rather than "Free Form" specifically to get Pepper on there. But we're quibbling. Not that we're wrong, of course. But, still, big picture ...

This television (I presume) broadcast is from that era. It's all on youtube in parts: Joe with Steve Erquiaga (g), Ratzo Harris (b), Mike Hyman (d). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYgPV8LU5GI

This is a really nice thing on the way. It helps to have friends in high places. http://www.freep.com/story/entertainment/music/2015/11/06/blue-note-release-honors-detroit/75224334/

Related: What's the story behind this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUq-bw_qQrw

Archie Shepp, Pharoah Sanders, Gary Burton, Wendy Oxenhorn (service) https://www.arts.gov/news/2015/recipients-nations-highest-award-jazz-announced

Solo piano, 1986: Medley: "Monk's Mood," "Criss Cross," "Ruby My Dear."

As it happens, I found Davis' 1979 solo LP, "A Being Such as You" (Red), last week at Encore Records in Ann Arbor. I had no idea it even existed. Fantastic! http://www.discogs.com/Walter-Davis-Jr-A-Being-Such-As-You/release/3824561

In honor of what would have been Pavarotti's 80th birthday today, I'm reposting the 1979 clip from La Scala of him singing "Che gelida manina" from "La Boheme." You can sing it differently than this, but you can't sing it any better. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9268sIt5mk

Assuming it is Trane, there still is a lot of Dexter in his playing.

Includes a 1 min clip, set in studio during recording of "Porgy and Bess." Not sure what to think. Does this make you more or less optimistic? http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowandact/be-wrong-strong-watch-first-footage-from-don-cheadles-miles-ahead-20151008

My friend, trumpeter Jeff Helgesen, just hipped me to this. I didn't remember the reference from Porter and no time to do any research. But folks will want to hear this. https://crownpropeller.wordpress.com/2015/10/08/nestor-records-early-john-coltrane-content/