Mark Stryker

A few quick thoughts: I agree that "In Europe" is underrated but as a one-stop for this era I still prefer "My Funny Valentine." There's nothing that compares to the perfection and equilibrium achieved on "Stella By Starlight" -- Miles' drama/control/pacing! Herbie's comping/harmony/touch! The Trio's telepathy! George Coleman's melodic improvising!-- someone earlier mentioned this was a career night for Coleman and certainly that solo on "Stella" is off-the-chart inspired in his idiom. Don't get no better than that. "All of You" (especially Herbie's unbelievable tag in his solo) is right up there too. Never warmed to "Four and More" (too hectic) and agree that the sequencing of "My Funny Valentine" is an example of producers making the record experience better than the concert. The whole everyone-was-pissed thing, miserable experience, thrash-metal result is just so much bullshit. Yes, the cats were pissed when they found out that they were expected to play for free (without being asked and after a several week layoff), and Ron Carter has written that he started to pack up his instrument, before Miles said, "OK, how much do you want?" Carter writes that they told Miles it wasn't the amount but the principle. So Miles agrees to pay everyone (no amount is specified) and the cats go on knowing they're going to get a taste. Could the pre-show drama have amped up everyone's antennae and helped lead to greater risk taking? Of course. Were they taking their aggression out at Miles through the music? Um, no way. They played how they always played but better. What's more remarkable to me is that I've read where the cats had trouble hearing each other onstage -- pre-monitors, of course -- so the telepathy and absolute precision in the context of breaking up the time and not getting sloppy is incredible. I don't recall seeing/hearing Herbie dogging Coleman in print for being a lick player. Anybody got a reference? I do very much recall Tony Williams disliking the way George played for those same reasons -- too safe, pattern-oriented, clichéd, etc. Maybe Herbie didn't like it either, but if he had a big issue it's then hard to understand how he ended up on "Maiden Voyage." Come to think of it: Has it ever been explained why George is on that record instead of Wayne? Herbie of course is as spontaneous a soloist as they come, but he was not above stealing directly from Nicolas Slonimsky's "Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns." Herbie once pointed out to me that there's a moment in his solo on "Driftin'" from "Takin' Off" where there he plays one of the scales verbatim. You can hear it at the 3:42 mark on the track. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZeakh2yIOI Coda: Here's a transcription of Herbie's solo on "All of You." Wow. https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B41fDOJWTOV0NjExM2QyZTctNzNiNC00Y2M1LTgzY2QtOGE0MmM4OTY5ODNl/edit?hl=en_US&pli=1

I would like to find that in a bin someday. I just found it a few weeks ago at Encore Records in Ann Arbor, one of the great used record/CD shops in the country. It's really a strong and intriguing record, showcasing Jones at his most modern but in a slightly different vein than his Great Jazz Trio LPs with Ron Carter and Tony Williams, perhaps because it's quartet so you get to hear him comp. Great blindfold test LP in that way. Jordan sounds typically great too.

I'm with Jim -- those Tappan LPs were strong, especially "Ancient Dynasty" with Joe Henderson along for the ride. Though I haven't heard it for a long time, I also recall liking "Fi Fi Goes to Heaven" from the mid 80s. Had a brighter melodic sound to it than I often associate with Brackeen. Here she is with Joe's band; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khOd1oRCXPA

For some reason I keep stumbling upon film of Von that I've never seen: Chicago Reunion Band, 1994, with Brad Goode, Jodie Christian, Rufus Reid, Jack DeJohnette. Label says Harrisburg, PA (of all places?) There are five or six different clips: Here's Von's ballad features, "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square."

Coda: Nice brief shot about halfway through the ad of the marquee from Baker's Keyboard Lounge in Detroit, the world's oldest continuously operating jazz club.

Stumbled upon this today: A "Soundstage" program from Chicago in 1975 focused on jazz singing with Jon Hendricks, Annie Ross, Eddie Jefferson and Leon Thomas. Looks the show was conceived by Ben Sidran. The very first sound you hear during the opening credits is Von's unmistakable tenor. He gets some feature time later in the show. Skip to the 38:30 minute mark for his most prominent appearance, playing an intro chorus and then a solo on "Centerpiece." Later in the show he solos on Thomas' feature "Straight No Chaser." So great to see footage of Von from this era.

Detroit jazz great Johnny Allen, a pianist-arranger you probably don't know by name if you're not from here, has died at 96. An amazing breadth to his career, from pre-war big bands to proto-bop, staff arranging jobs at Motown and Stax and a Grammy w/Isaac Hayes for their arrangement of "Shaft." http://www.freep.com/article/20140131/ENT04/301310148/1035/ent/Detroit-pianist-arranger-Johnny-Allen-dies-96

Not many details but looks like composer Daniel Schnyder -- whose music I don't recall hearing -- has been commissioned by Opera Philadelphia to write an opera about Charlie Parker. Caveat emptor, of course, but here's hoping for greatness. http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/30/be-bopera-charlie-parkers-yardbird-coming-from-opera-philadelphia/?_php=true&_type=blogs&smid=nytimesarts&_r=0 Coda: Upon reflection I may have come across Schnyder's music in passing on records with the Absolute Ensemble (chamber orchestra led by Kristjan Jarvi) but can't recall specifics. Will look into this when I have time.

My impression is that Barrett Deems, best known for his time with Louis Armstrong in the '50s, was still playing regularly (and maniacally) right up until the end of his life at age 85. Our Chicago board members can furnish details or corrections.

In the newsroom yesterday, a colleague nearby said out loud at one point to nobody in particular: "Oh, the professor died!" To a person, the half dozen of us within earshot all instantly knew she was talking about the guy from "Gilligan's Island" without any additional clue. Of a certain age ...

Unfortunately, I haven't seen any film of Joe soloing with the band. However, there are bootleg recordings that can be found on CD that have him playing (his ass off) on "Don't Get Sassy," including one from Basle (Basel) and one from Paris. I'm pretty sure film exists somewhere because at least parts of two concerts were captured by presumably European TV. The question is whether either (or others) picked up a tune with Joe soloing. I'm not sure if he played on any other tunes they were regularly performing at that time. Eddie Daniels plays, for example, on "Mean What You Say." Bret Primack has posted this fantastic footage of Joe soloing with Thad and Mel from this particular tour. This is the first I have scene and am ecstatic to find it. Also great to see Thad in action in front of the band, shaping performance on the fly.

Baraka reading "In the Tradition." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgmCpn_jILk Wow.

The Star-Ledger is reporting that Amiri Baraka has died at age 79. Wasn't sure where to post this info -- chose here because this was one of the longer threads I can recall and it started with a dicussion of Baraka's work and aesthetic. Here's the news: http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2014/01/hold_hold_hold_amiri_baraka_former_nj_poet_laureate_and_prolific_author_dead_at_79.html Forgive me if somebody posted this reading/performance previously in this thread.

So, I have Big Band Modern on "The Very Best of Gerald Wilson" (Master Classics) but there is no personnel, liner notes or discography information included. I'm trying to nail down info on this date and want to throw some questions out to the board: 1. Can someone confirm that the flute soloist on "Algerian Fantasy" and "Lotus Land" is Bill Green, a conservatory trained reedman who became one of the first black studio musicians in LA? 2. Can anyone tell me who the trumpet soloist is on "Bull Fighter" (a transcription of the traditional fanfare melody known as "La Virgen De La Macarena")? 3.I understand the record was released original on 10 inch LP on Federal under the title "Progressive Sounds" and then reissued on Audio Lab. Earlier in this thread it was reported that reissue came on '59 but I saw an online discography of Audio Lab that said 1960. Does anyone have the LP who could literally look as see if there's a date? Thanks.

There but for the grace of God and all that ...

Interesting you mentioned Gozzo: In a conversation that grew out of a discussion about Porcino and Young, a credentialed trumpet player friend (excellent small group player who was also on the Ray Charles band ) told me that Gozzo is revered among other trumpeters.

Unfortunately, I haven't seen any film of Joe soloing with the band. However, there are bootleg recordings that can be found on CD that have him playing (his ass off) on "Don't Get Sassy," including one from Basle (Basel) and one from Paris. I'm pretty sure film exists somewhere because at least parts of two concerts were captured by presumably European TV. The question is whether either (or others) picked up a tune with Joe soloing. I'm not sure if he played on any other tunes they were regularly performing at that time. Eddie Daniels plays, for example, on "Mean What You Say."

Porcino and Young side by side with Thad & Mel,1969. The two finest post-war lead players in the same section. Pretty sure it's Porcino playing first trumpet here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZLvqXFddu0

Absolutely one of the finest lead players of the post-war era -- guys with that much power and high chops but also with the ability to swing and the taste to know what not to do are rare. I preferred Snooky Young because the swing was just a hair more relaxed but Porcino definitely had a pocket and knew how to stay there and might have been more flexible in terms of hooking up with all kinds of different drummers who put the beat in different places. He was a sign of quality and consistency on any recording on which he appeared. I've been listening to a ton of Gerald Wilson in the last week while revamping a piece and it's been a pleasure to hear Porcino on those Pacific LPs. Coda: A trumpet player friend notes insightfully that while Porcino was a pure lead player, Young was also a soloist and thus also brought that aesthetic into his lead playing.

Thanks for this -- appreciate it. That's not a record I know at all. Quite a press roll (!) leading to Wilson's intro, after the bebop choruses on top ...

Hey gang, Does anyone know whether Gerald Wilson's great arrangement of "Perdido" that appears on Duke's "The Great Paris Concert" from 1963 was recorded previously by Ellington? What a roaring chart ... (though the beboppish two-tenor intro that Jimmy Hamilton and Paul Gonsalves play was conceived if memory serves by Clark Terry and Hamilton.

In addition to my Lateef obituary for the Detroit Free Press that Michael Weiss linked to last night in post #34 (and which I'll repost below for convenience), here are some others I've seen posted today. Don Heckman's piece in the LA Times is excellent. http://www.latimes.com/obituaries/la-me-yusef-lateef-20131225,0,7549278.story#axzz2oPXoozGp Peter Keepnews iin the New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/25/arts/music/yusef-lateef-innovative-jazz-saxophonist-and-flutist-dies-at-93.html?_r=0&hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1387919951-ODBquGyKdOb9uaTU+LP0Fw Howard Mandel's more personal reflections: http://www.artsjournal.com/jazzbeyondjazz/2013/12/unforgettable-sounds-and-best-videos-of-yusef-lateef.html Finally, here's my piece in case you missed it and want a look. http://www.freep.com/article/20131223/NEWS08/312230128/yusef-lateef-dies-obituary-jazz There is confusion over his original name. Older sources have his original name as Williams Evans, which was the formal name he was using before converting to Islam (and he was known on early recordings as Bill Evans). However, more recent sources, list his original name as William Emanuel Huddleston -- except that in the very first sentence of his 2006 autobiography he spells his middle name with two m's as in Emmanuel. His website has it spelled Emanuel. I chose to go with the autobiography on the theory that there was a great chance that the website, which has other errors in the bio, was more likely incorrect than literally the first sentence of his autobiography which he would have proofed himself and which would have gone through his collaborator, additional copy editing at the like. But this is one that I don't think you'd solve without seeing the birth certificate. In the autobiography, "The Gentle Giant," written with Herb Boyd, Yusef says his father changed the family name to Evans after arriving in Detroit for reasons that he never knew. The book, by the way, is very disappointing. Yusef apparently was not interested in telling stories and painting scenes, so there's little sense of atmosphere or character in what is a very flat narrative. I spoke with him a number of times, but interviewed him only once at length and while I got a little good stuff I recall it being a bit of a struggle to draw him out.

Thanks Michael for linking. We have posted an updated version. A very difficult deadline as the news came very late and I didn't have much time for polishing.

Epic ballad medleys appeared in several of Sinatra's annual TV specials. Quite theatrical, end-of-love-affair stuff. Typically he'd use one song as a linking device (previously "Just One of Those Things" and "It Was a Very Good Year") opening with say, 8 bars, then returning to that song in between each new tune in the medley. This particular one was structured a little different, opening with a taste of "Glad to Be Unhappy" but never returning to it. Instead the coda circles back to "Here's That Rainy Day," the first full song of the medley. Note: he dons a trench but there's no cigarette. The arranger of "Rainy Day" was Gordon Jenkins. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iwwfFexeSg He does have a cigarette for this version (1959) with Red Norvo small band. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UESWN--L43Q The 1966 medley: Wow. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-l8RDKUigj4 Finally, the 1965 progenitor. Wow again. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5AW4noPhbQ