mjzee

June 2: Ernie Royal, trumpet, 1921 Marty Napoleon, piano, 1921

For the last half-century, summer has traditionally been jazz festival season. But when New York's centerpiece event, the JVC Jazz Festival, suddenly tanked last year, it left the avant-garde-oriented Vision Festival to hold the fort all by itself. But if 2009 was the year of the Jazz Recession, 2010 marks the start of the Jazz Recovery: Not only is there a replacement for the venerable JVC, but the annual Vision Fest has announced its most ambitious program to date. And, there's a whole new event in town as well. Jazz in June is back. More here: WSJ

June 1: Hal McKusick, alto sax, 1924 Lennie Niehaus, alto sax, composer, 1929

May 31: Louis Hayes, drums, 1937

May 30: Frankie Trumbauer, melody saxophone, 1901 Benny Goodman, clarinet, bandleader, 1909

Very intelligent player. I've enjoyed everything I've heard of his. I like his work with Milt Jackson.

May 29: Hilton Ruiz, piano, 1952 Kenny Washington, drums, 1958

May 28: Andy Kirk, bandleader, saxophone, 1898 Tommy Ladnier, trumpet, 1900

May 10: also: Mel Lewis, drums, bandleader, 1929 Alex Foster, alto sax, 1953 Also: John Marshall, trumpet, 1952 May 22: also Jackie Cain, singer, 1928 May 25: also Jimmy Hamilton, tenor sax, clarinet, 1917 May 27: Bud Shank, alto sax, flute, 1926 Dee Dee Bridgewater, singer, 1950

Amazon This title will be released June 29.

May 21: Fats Waller, singer, piano, composer, 1904 Bill Holman, composer, arranger, bandleader, 1927

Happy birthday, Chuck!

Yes, sad. A friend of mine used to have copies. The layouts, the quality of the photos, the texture of the paper were all wonderful. I don't read a word of Japanese, so the articles were indecipherable, but I'd love to leaf through them nonetheless.

May 20: Rod Cless, clarinet, 1907 Rufus Harley, bagpipes, 1936

I listen in the car (CDs, but soon to be iPod, as I'm having a head unit installed that has an iPod input), in the morning while getting ready for work (iPod through speakers), at work sometimes if I need to concentrate and there's lots of chatter in the office (iPod through headphones), and in the evening while on the computer (iPod through speakers). All iPod listening is via shuffle. I'm having trouble with the second part of the questionnaire, as I'm not sure what it means to listen. When I hear a track, I can focus on so many different things: the tone of the soloist, the way the soloist interacts with the tune or with the supporting musicians, the sound as a whole, the sound quality, the rhythm, reflecting on the rhythm in historical contrast, the length, the way the tune is constructed... And none of this is a conscious approach. Sometimes I can hear a tune and hear nothing, because I've heard it all before, like some chewing gum that has no more flavor. Is that intense listening? Rumination? Background listening? In-and-out listening? I dunno.

I was grooving this morning to Sonny Rollins doing "Rosita's Best Friend" (from Reel Life), and I thought of this thread. Wouldn't it be great to compile all of Sonny's calypso/West Indian tunes into one album and give it a theme, ala The Latin Bit? Sonny could be dressed on the cover in some traditional costume...it would be a hoot!

May 19: Cecil McBee, bass, 1935 Sonny Fortune, alto & soprano sax, 1939

I've had this JBL for a few years. Great for traveling, and sounds OK: Amazon

I agree with both sides of this. Goin' West sounds desultory - there's a reason it was in the can until 1969. I'll bet Grant and Alfred Lion had an interesting relationship. These 3 genre albums, taken together, are really cool - they're concept albums, before the term was popular.

I didn't see a smiley, so I'm proceeding under the assumption you don't know this. Bill Graham's real name was Wolfgang Grajonka. When he presented concerts, he had in the contracts the right to tape the concerts; these are the tapes.

May 18: Kai Winding, trombone, 1922 Jim McNeely, piano, 1949

Rare for Ibrahim to do a backing gig. I'll have to check that one out.

Thanks for posting the link; I'm enjoying it now. Who's the other sax in the first clip?

We'll still have all the wonderful music he made. RIP, Mr. Jones. Interesting little bit of trivia from the NY Times obit: "He also participated in a celebrated moment in presidential history when he accompanied Marilyn Monroe as she sang “Happy Birthday” to President John F. Kennedy, who was about to turn 45, during a Democratic Party fund-raiser at Madison Square Garden in May 1962."

I've always liked The Latin Bit. Sounds very unselfconscious and fun. He makes My Little Suede Shoes his own, no mean feat considering Bird also recorded it.