Mark Stryker

I can understand that criticism of some of the Novus LPs, especially production wise, but "Moving Forward" is a magisterial exception -- there's some synthesizer here and there, but Moody plays the hell out of "Night Has a Thousand Eyes"(!), "Autumn Leaves" and an interesting arrangement of "Giant Steps," plus the ballads. (Rhythm section is Kenny Barron, Todd Coolman, Akira Tana, synths on three tracks by Onaje Allen Gumbs; Tom McIntosh is credited as arranger.) As a group, the Warner Bros. dates are probably better. Each has a concept -- "Young at Heart" is a Sinatra tribute arr. by Gil Goldstein with a small group and some orchestra; "Moody Plays Mancini" is all small group also arr. by Goldstein. Moody plays great on both. The real overlooked gem is "Warner Jams, Vol 2: The Two Tenors," which has him facing off with Mark Turner (with Goldings, Wolfe, Penn). Hearing Moody next to Turner throws into relief just how much Moody has continued to develop and how contemporary his harmonic conception has remained.

Thanks for the responses so far. Yeah, "Never Again" is great. I've got an old cassette from college but am always looking for it on LP. Never came out on CD did it? I've also got the Scepter LP "Running the Gamut." Are there any others on Scepter? I thought that was it. The tricky thing about compiling the kind of recommendation box I'm after is you have to balance personal favorites and essentials with stuff that's actually in print, and it's got to be brief. As of now, I'm thinking: "Moving Forward," "Feeling It Together," something that includes "Great Day" if possible, one early thing that grabs "Moody's Mood" and the recent "Our Delight." I can sometimes mention stuff that's out of print that people might be able to find without too much hassle. But if some Moody-o-Phile has a nomination for something that's in print and that I'd be an absolute fool not to include, I'd consider it. Addendum: Appears that in addition to "A Great Day" the Spanish Lonehill release mentioned by Brownie also includes "Running the Gamut."

For a sidebar to a James Moody story I'm working on, I'm putting together a short list of recommended recordings, but the Amazon listings and discographies are confusing on a couple of points. So, does anyone know if "A Great Day" and "Last Train to Overbrook" are in print/available in some effecient form? Also, any suggestions for the most efficient approach to the earlier material, including the 1949 original and later vocal version of "Moody's Mood"? Thinking out loud 1: Moody's '80s and '90s recordings for RCA Novus and Warner Bros. are to me his most satisfying records. Almost none of this material is in print -- though the tremendous "Moving Forward" (Novus) appears to be a welcome exception -- and taken together these would be a great Mosaic Select. Thinking out loud 2: "Feeling it Together" (1973) on Muse is the other great Moody LP that I find myself going back to the most.

These aren't errors -- the list is defined in the paper as covering the last 12 months rather than the calendar year of 2009, which is an editor's trick of building in enough wiggle room to account for the fact that the list is published before the end of the year and is probably put to bed by the middle of the month because of deadlines (no pun intended). Both Cox and Cavanaugh happened to die on Dec. 19, 2008 -- too late for inclusion in last year's roundup.

Varying levels of obscurity here, but these come to mind quickly: Kenny Werner, "Introducing the Trio" (Sunnyside) with Ratzo Harris and Tom Rainey. http://www.amazon.com/Introducing-Trio-Kenny-Werner/dp/B0000035YB/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1262102201&sr=1-18 Hal Galper, "Tippin'" (Concord) with Wayne Dockery and Steve Ellington http://www.amazon.com/Tippin-Hal-Galper-Trio/dp/B0000006LK/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1262102417&sr=1-11 Mal Waldron, "Impressions" (New Jazz) with Addison Farmer and Tootie Heath http://www.amazon.com/Impressions-Mal-Waldron-Trio/dp/B000000Y7O/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1262102762&sr=1-6 Roy Haynes, "We Three" (New Jazz) with Phineas Newborn and Paul Chambers http://www.amazon.com/We-Three-Roy-Haynes/dp/B000OLHG5M/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1262103222&sr=1-3 Wynton Kelly, "Kelly at Midnight" (VeeJay) with Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones http://www.amazon.com/Kelly-at-Midnight-Wynton/dp/B000024YHV/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1262103378&sr=1-1 Paul Bley, "Footloose" (Savoy) with Steve Swallow and Pete LaRoca http://www.amazon.com/Footloose-Paul-Bley/dp/B000001CQZ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1262103770&sr=1-1 Hank Jones, "The Oracle" (Emarcy) with Dave Holland and Billy Higgins http://www.amazon.com/Oracle-Jones-Holland-Billy-Higgins/dp/B0000047B2/ref=sr_1_26?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1262103641&sr=1-26 Also, I second Stanley Cowell's "Illusion Suite."

Rjjazz -- thanks for alerting us to the YouTube clip. All: here's the link: It's from October 1956. They play a swift bebop tune with Pollard on piano and then an even quicker "Now's the Time" with both Gibbs and Pollard trading off on a single set of vibes. She's a wizard. On piano, it's a scampering Bud Powell conception, but I hear a lot of similarities with early Horace Silver in the pinging evenness of her articulation, the blues allusions and the rumble in her left hand. Anybody else hear this? (Blue Note trio Horace, when he was still playing longer 8th note lines, before he distilled his right hand to short, jabbing ideas.) Chas was nice enough to send me a copy of her Bethlehem 10" LP and I was struck by some of the same qualities -- it's a fine record. Her energy and drive are really something. I'm sorry I never heard her live.

Having never heard the Don Patterson version of "People," I can't comment on the performance specifically. However, I can say for certain that there is no Stephen Sondheim song called "People." Sondheim did write lyrics to a song called "Some People" for the show "Gypsy" (1959) with music by Jule Styne, who also wrote the "People (Who Need People)" under discussion, with lyrics by Bob Merrill from the show "Funny Girl" (1964). Perhaps this is the source of the confusion. Surely the Patterson recording is the latter, right? The discography says it was recorded in May 1964, which is about six weeks after "Funny Girl" opened on Broadway. In a ridiculously arcane footnote, I can report that Sondheim also wrote a very early song (music and lyrics) called "The People Will Hear" when he was about 18 that appeared in a show called "All That Glitters" produced at Williams College in 1949 when he was a student there. Other Sondeim songs with the word "people" in the title include: "Silly People," which was cut from "A Little Night Music" (1973); "So Many People" from the show "Saturday Night," which was originally to be produced on Broadway in 1955 but abandoned when the producer died and finally staged for the first time in 1997 in London; and "Another Hundred People," an anthem from "Company" (1970) But I digress ...

Brownie, thanks for posting. Space was rather limited, so I didn't have room to include some other stories that Terry Gibbs told me. Apparently, he has film of an appearance he and Pollard made on the Steve Allen Show in 1956 in which they both play vibes. Gibbs said he's played it for Stefon Harris and other younger vibes players that his son Gerry has brought by the house. Gibbs says her bebop command and fluidity just blows them away -- most of them have never even heard of her. Gibbs also said that when he brought her to New York, she used to constantly get offers to join other bands, including one from Charlie Parker when he heard her right when she hit town. Anybody seen that video? Also, anybody own her Bethlehem album? Finally, if you click on the smaller picture that ran with the obituary, you can clearly see that it's Pepper Adams performing with Pollard. I don't know where the photo was taken but assume it's from the '70s before her stroke.

I'm guessing 1969. I think earlier in the interview they show a clip from "The Producers" so it's possible that it's '68 -- but I'm not certain.

Mel just nails this Sinatra impression on every level. Not only is the accent there ("ammbur," "puhpull") but the actual musicianship is really sophisticated -- his pitch, phrasing and modulations. On a related note, anyone know who the pianist was in the house band on the Cavett show? He's right on it here.

Hm, very weird interview... I get the impression it's fabricated - many all-too-general statements, it seems like either Fuller just didn't answer the questions, or they just had a chat and the interviewer later made up some questions to put into the transcript. Also sorry to say, but the language is pretty... "holprig" I'd say in german. Anyway, it's great that Fuller's still going strong, and I wish him all the best and that he can go on for as long as he wants to! Thanks for the perspective. I should have added that I don't speak German at all -- beyond what I can recall from "Hogan's Heroes" as a kid -- so I was just acting as the messenger.

http://www.taz.de/1/leben/musik/artikel/1/ich-habe-keine-zeit-zu-verschwenden/ If you speak German ...

My list from the Detroit Free Press. The same top 10 were submitted to the Village Voice (along with reissues, vocal, Latin and debut categories). A couple notes: Last three out were probably: Alex Cline, "Continuation" (Cryptogramophone); Vijay Iyer, "Historicity" (Act); Steve Lehman,"Travail, Transformation and Flow" (Pi). I also didn't get "Vonski Speaks" in time to consider, but it probably would have made the list. (Bought it locally, by the way, at Dearborn Music, which has a terrific jazz department -- three cheers for great old-fashioned record stores!) Also, as I scan other lists, it amazes me that even with the ridiculous amount of recorded music I consume in a year and how much I am priviledged to receive for free as a working critic, I still don't come close to hearing everything of value. New Releases 1. Henry Threadgill Zooid, “This Brings Us To” (Volume 1) (Pi) 2. Tom Harrell, “Prana Dance” (HighNote) 3. Miroslav Vitous Group, “Remembering Weather Report” (ECM) 4. John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble, “Eternal Interlude” (Sunnyside) 5. Jeff “Tain” Watts, “Watts” (Dark Key) 6. Clayton Brothers, “Brother to Brother” (ArtistShare) 7. Steve Kuhn, “Mostly Coltrane” (ECM) 8. Chris Potter Underground, “Ultrahang” (ArtistShare) 9. Dana Hall, “Into the Light” (Origin) 10. Grant Stewart, “Plays the Music of Duke Ellington & Billy Strayhorn” (Sharp Nine)

To Larry's original post, if the notion is: Branford Marsalis doesn't have a distinctive voice so how can you tell that Strickland has absorbed him, I would respectfully disagree. Value judgements aside, I think Branford's playing has focused in recent years to the point that I would say he has an identity (not the same as an original style). I can usually identify him on record by the combination of a dark sound, lively vibrato, a kind of Wayne Shorterish articulation and a furioso attack, especially on fast, burn-out type modal tunes, which is where the influence on Strickland is perhaps audible. I also think it's true that a lot of straight-ahead musicians of Strickland's generation (he was born in 1979) have studied Marsalis' records. We can argue whether that's good or bad, but I don't think on the surface Ratliff's description is necessarily wrong. For the record, I wasn't a big fan of Strickland's disc, though I liked parts of it. When I've heard him live, I've always distrusted the fact that he always sounds good coming out of the gate but seems to get less interesting as the set wears on -- and really comes up short on ballads. On the other hand, he's still young.

I'm a day late but hopefully not a dollar short -- happy birthday.

In honor of the freezing cold weather that has blown in this week, I've been enjoying this 1951 clip of Sinatra singing "I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm." It's a fascinating clip to me, because it seems to capture the nascent beginnings of the grown-up tom cat approach to swinging standards that defined the upcoming Capitol era. You can almost sense him inventing it on the spot. Lots of signature moments -- in the third A section of the first chorus he connects the line "So I will weather the storm/what do I care" without a breath to create one ridiculously long phrase. He really lays back the first time he does it, and the time almost gets away from him. He does the same trick on the final A of the tune (with more secure time), and then uses the "lookey-here now" interjection as a kind of climatic tag. I like the arrangment too -- anyone know who did it? -- and the pianist plays some hip shit starting in the second bridge. Another interesting detail is that in that final A, Sinatra unbottons his jacket and flips open his collar as he sings, "My hearts on fire/with one desire." That's obviously a deliberate gesture -- a tiny piece of theater.

I don't believe that Count Basie's "I Told You So" (1976) has been mentioned. The big draw here is that the charts were all written by Bill Holman; It's the best Basie big band album from the 70s or 80s that I've heard -- though, caveat emptor, I haven't head them all. http://www.amazon.com/Told-You-Count-Basie...4835&sr=1-1

It's from 1962 -- settings of the songs from the Charles Strouse-Lee Adams musical of the time that is best known for the songs "Once Upon A Time" and "I've Just Seen Her." I now see upon consulting Walter van de Leur's "Something To Live For: The Music of Billy Strayhorn" that eight of the album's ten arrangements were Strayhorn's: "Back To School," "I've Just Seen Her," "Which Way?", "If I Were You," "Once Upon a Time," "Our Children," "I Couldn't Have Done It Alone," and "We Speak the Same Language." I think I came to the album thanks to an enthusiastic contemporary review of it by LeRoi Jones that appeared in the literary magazine Kulchur (which also published some of John Litweiler's early work). Thanks for this -- I've read the Van de Leur book but didn't recall the discussion of these arrangements. Unfortunately, I didn't turn up a copy yesterday -- though I did stumble across a copy of Art Blakey's "Golden Boy," which I didn't buy since I already own, but I did mention in another post on that topic over in Jazz In Print. But I digress. Also, on the All Star Road Band album if anyone is still confused, the two-LP set under discussion came out in the early '80s and was just labeled "All Star Road Band" but didn't included the designation of Vol. 1; the cover was red. When a second set came out shortly thereafter, it was called "All Star Road Band, Vol 2." It was yellow. From the photos posted, it appears that "Vol. 1" was added to some CD versions. Regardless, the set list is the one that opens with two versions of "A Train" followed by "Such Sweet Thunder."

For anyone in the metro Detroit area interested in this album -- and it's a great one! -- I saw a copy yesterday at Encore Records in Ann Arbor in excellent shape for $18.87.

One of the things I like most about this site is that I get reminded of things I had once known but had forgotten and I learn things I never knew. Based on Chuck's list, I've been re-checking out "All Star Road Band," which I haven't listened to in probably 20 years. I get it -- great spirit, a more populist repertoire (dance setting) compared to the concert recordings, but still a nice cross section of music and the lack of formality pays big dividends in the inspiration of the playing. We talk a lot here about the way the music once functioned within the community and this is a great example of timeless art growing out yet another one-nighter for the people in a 40-year string of them. And, Lord, what incredible vibrations and timbre that saxophone section could create ("Bassment!"). Now, pace Larry, "All American in Jazz" is actually completely new to me. I'll look for it today -- we are blessed in metro Detroit with several kick-ass used stores -- but in the meantime, anyone want to enlighten me about this one?

Nos. 1 and 2 are actually very easy for me, but No. 3 is ridiculously difficult and changes every time I think about it. 1. The Far East Suite 2. The Great Paris Concert 3. Anatomy of a Murder/Afro Bossa/And His Mother Called Him Bill

Leaving aside the inanity of some of the nominees and categories, I can at least recommend these specific albums that are mentioned as records that I liked a lot this year. Opinions may vary. Jeff Watts, "Watts" Dark Key) John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble, "Eternal Interlude" (Sunnyside) Clayton Brothers, "Brother to Brother" (Artist Share) John Patitucci Trio, "Remembrance" (Concord) Miguel Zenón, "Esta Plena" (Marsalis Music) Kurt Elling, "Dedicated To You: Kurt Elling Sings The Music Of Coltrane And Hartman." (Concord)

Yes, this is what I was trying to gauge, thanks. If anyone else has an opinion, please jump in.

I'm not sure I was clear enough with my second question: I'm trying to get a handle on whether these records were generally available (or not) prior to their reissue this year. Clearly, they're all available now. I'm trying to judge their value at least partially on whether they were previously out of print or unavailable for, say, 2 years, 5, years, 10 years, whatever. The notion is: The harder they were to acquire before this year, the more valuable their reissue becomes (leaving aside, of course, their relative merit artistically).

Hey gang, couple questons: 1. Anyone know if the "One Step Beyond" disc was eventually replaced? 2. I'm trying to process a lot of information for some year-end best-of lists and I'd like to hear opinions on the relative pre-2009 availibility of the following Blue Note reissues in any other reasonable editions. I haven't followed the comings and goings of these things as closely as many of you, and in judging the relative merit of these reissues it would be helpful to know if any have been especially hard to come by in recent years. Here are the ones I'm curious about: One Step Beyond Some Other Stuff Spring Green Street Bluesnik Thanks in advance for your obsessiveness.