Very Early Keith Jarrett recording

[Guy Berger]

link

This is about a year before Keith's first official recordings (w/Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers). His playing isn't as strikingly individual as it would be a year later and he's in a much more orthodox "hard bop" mode. Interesting!

(His solo after the bass solo is definitely quite Jarrettish, though.)

Back in 1965 I was a full-time engineer doing piano gigs whenever.  Each year my wife and I threw a jazz party and invited friends and musicians that I had worked with.  That year I invited a drummer with whom I had worked, Danny Fullerton, to be the drummer at out party.  Danny asked if he could bring a friend, a piano player. (Danny said he didn't want the guest piano player to crowd my act!)  I said "fine," no problem.  So Danny showed up with a kid (see picture) and a bass player, Kent Carter.

After I played for awhile, I asked the kid if he'd like to play.  He sat down and started playing the standard tune, Tangerine.  I said "WOW!" and dragged out an old Bell 2-track tape recorder (mono).  I had an old condenser mic which I plopped down in the middle of the drum, bass, and piano.  The piano was a "no-name" baby grand (Bradbury).

I was so excited that I wound the take-up end of the tape (a 95-cent Radio Shack bargain) around the hub of the tape recorder - rather than the take-up reel itself.  (When I went to remove it later, you can imagine the pile of spaghetti tape I had on my hands.)  The resulting misalignment of the tape accounts for some gaps in the recording.

The recording of Tangerine is a tour-de-force of the young Keith.  After a few chorus of "regular" playing (right-hand solo lines, left-hand chords), he gets into some two-handed octave lines that are pretty incredible.  During the bass solo, he silently sets up chords using the selective sustain pedal - the middle pedal, then strums the strings to get the harp-like effect - which is immediately answered with some regular piano chords.

After the Kent Carter bass solo comes an awesome solo right-hand exercise.  This leads into Danny's drum solo.  Keith's left hand emerges from the drum solo with yet another prodigious display of technique.

Then the crowd-pleaser final chorus.

Edited July 29, 2005 by Guy

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Actually, Jarrett's first official recording is with Don Jacoby. I have the record, titled "Swinging Big Sound" - by Don Jacoby and the College All-Stars. It's on Decca DL 4241 from 1962. Here's from the notes:

"Not so incidentally, Keith Jarrett at sixteen is the youngest member of the ensemble. His versatility is interesting and typical. Accompanied by his mother (not Jacoby) he auditioned for Berklee by brilliantly executing concerti by Brahms and Gershwin, and finishing with several of his original jazz compositions."

Dee Barton and John Von Ohlen are also in the band.

Mike

[Guy Berger]

I'd heard of the recordings you mention -- for some reason I thought they were unofficial. Have you heard them, Mike?

Guy

[Robert J]

He really had it together at 19. Very Bud-like at some points and then some long lines that we'd expect from Keith.

Love the pic

[RDK]

Damn. That kid's got a future...

Great link!

[JSngry]

Actually, Jarrett's first official recording is with Don Jacoby. I have the record, titled "Swinging Big Sound" - by Don Jacoby and the College All-Stars. It's on Decca DL 4241 from 1962. Here's from the notes:

"Not so incidentally, Keith Jarrett at sixteen is the youngest member of the ensemble. His versatility is interesting and typical. Accompanied by his mother (not Jacoby) he auditioned for Berklee by brilliantly executing concerti by Brahms and Gershwin, and finishing with several of his original jazz compositions."

Dee Barton and John Von Ohlen are also in the band.

Mike

←

I'd heard of the recordings you mention -- for some reason I thought they were unofficial.  Have you heard them, Mike?

    Guy

←

I can tell you that Don Jacoby was a "musician's musician" - a highly-respected lead player amongst those who were in the circle to have concerns about such things - and a "trumpet guru" of the highest order in these parts for several decades. Not as an improvisor, but as a trumpeter who knew the mechanics of the instrument inside and out, and who could (and did) teach them in such a way that if you did what he taught, your playing would improve dramatically. In a day when things such as playing lead trumpet in a section are significantly less in-demand than they once were, that might not seem like such a big deal, but I can tell you that for years, Don Jacoby was "the man" around here when it came to all things related to the pure mechanics of trumpet playing.

I knew he had an album on Pompeii (Don Jacoby Brings Down The House or something like that), but was unfamiliar with the Decca recording. Interesting that two future Kenton stalwarts were on that. Or was Barton already doing the Kenton gig in 1962?

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Yes, I've got the LP (price tag says $1.99). I'll have a chance to give it a spin again later today.

I'm amused that KJ's appearance has come full circle, after his days with the massive 'fro.

I should also add that the reference to Jacoby in the excerpt I posted is a bit cryptic. Earlier on, the notes mention that Jacoby is referred to as "mother" (no, not "mutha") for his organizational/leadership skills.

Mike

[Robert J]

I'm amused that KJ's appearance has come full circle

Except that this picture shows Keith with his butt actually on the bench.

[Michael Fitzgerald]

The Don Jacoby record is a nice enough big band record, but nobody gets much room (Jacoby himself takes every trumpet solo). There are 8 tunes on each side, all arranged by Glenn Osser, reminiscent of Woody Herman stuff. It's a mix of bebop (Groovin' High, Dizzy Atmosphere), standards (Teach Me Tonight, You Don't Know What Love Is, Lover Man, The End Of A Love Affair, etc.) and originals credited to Glenn and Edna Osser.

The arrangements are solid, but very conservative (they were being published and sold to schools). When you get a saxophone solo it's 8 bars only, followed by 8 bars of saxophone soli, followed by 16 bars of tutti, followed by 16 bars of trumpet soli, etc.

Here's the band:

Al Beutler, John Giordano (as) Bob Pierson, Don Melka (ts) Jerry Keys (bar, as) Don Jacoby, Gary Slavo, Tom Wirtel, Bob Crull, Chris Witherspoon (t) Dee Barton, Willie Barton, Loren William Binford, Dave Wheeler (tb) Don Gililland (g) Keith Jarrett (p) Toby Guynn (b) John Von Ohlen (d)

According to the notes, Dee Barton and his brother Willie were both with Kenton at the time of the recording. I see no evidence of Willie ever recording with SK. Further checking finds that Pierson did time with Woody Herman, Slavo and Crull with Kenton later, Wirtel and Wheeler with Kenton earlier, and Binford with various Chicago groups. There's a lot of Texas history here - even though only Von Ohlen and Gililland are listed as from NTSC, Guynn from SMU, Keys from Sam Houston, and Giordano from Texas Christian, others apparently also had NTSC hookups at one time or another - Wirtel, Keys, Guynn, Dee and Willie Barton, as well as Guynn are credited on a 1961 NTSC record. Binford appeared on one in 1969 and Guynn again in 1979.

Jarrett plays some cocktail piano fills behind melody and solos on "Just For A Thrill" and "Sleepy Serenade". Here's what he had to say about the album in the Ian Carr bio, p.16:

"I was not in college yet, so we just pretended I was at Berklee. I think Don Jacoby heard about me from someone who was at Fred Waring's [shawnee] Inn. I had to get on a bus, go to Chicago and stay at the Mayflower Hotel. I had never been in a recording studio before. The sheet music was, like, blank for the piano and then once in a while there were Basie chords, and then it was blank again. In the ballads I was allowed to do a little frilly work. It's not bad, actually, the album's all right."

The band sounds *very* professional and Von Ohlen kicks it - but it would have been really nice to hear more stretching.

Mike

[slide_advantage_redoux]

If memory serves me well (that is debatable), I recall seeing a Jarrett record in his name on which he played all instruments - and a buttload of them too. In addition to piano and soprano sax, he played guitar (and bass I think) Overdubs obviously.

I am pretty sure this LP existed, but the name of it escapes me.

[Dan Gould]

If memory serves me well (that is debatable), I recall seeing a Jarrett record in his name on which he played all instruments - and a buttload of them too. In addition to piano and soprano sax, he played guitar (and bass I think) Overdubs obviously.

I am pretty sure this LP existed, but the name of it escapes me.

←

This sounds about right. Whenever I hear Keith Jarrett, I usually think of butt loads.

[Stereojack]

If memory serves me well (that is debatable), I recall seeing a Jarrett record in his name on which he played all instruments - and a buttload of them too. In addition to piano and soprano sax, he played guitar (and bass I think) Overdubs obviously.

I am pretty sure this LP existed, but the name of it escapes me.

←

I believe it was called "Restoration Ruin", his third release on the Vortex label.

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Yes, Restoration Ruin (1968, Atlantic, reissued as part of a 2-fer on Collectables, oddly enough paired with Art Ensemble of Chicago) - he sings too. Some pieces have string quartet, which are the only instruments not done by KJ. And just to pick a nit - isn't RR the second Vortex?

http://www.JazzDiscography.com/Labels/vortex.htm

There's also "Spirits" on ECM from much later (1985) where KJ plays everything. It's not a piano-centric album, more flutes and percussion and stuff.

Mike

Edited July 31, 2005 by Michael Fitzgerald

[Stereojack]

Yes, Restoration Ruin (1968, Atlantic, reissued as part of a 2-fer on Collectables, oddly enough paired with Art Ensemble of Chicago) - he sings too. Some pieces have string quartet, which are the only instruments not done by KJ. And just to pick a nit - isn't RR the second Vortex?

Obviously the catalog numbers prove your point. I bought all these as they were released, and my memory tells me that Somewhere Before was second, but all these years have turned my memory banks into Swiss cheese.

[barry]

I had a memorable experience with Keith Jarrett and Danny Fullerton one afternoon in a downstairs Newbury St. practice room at Berklee - I'm a pianist and was supposed to jam with Danny and a bassist who didn't show up (c. 1964?) - Alan Dawson came down and did a couple of tunes with me on pno and Danny on the bass that was there - later an unidentified young man came in and sat down at the piano - I picked up the bass (which I can't play) and Danny played drums - we did a version of I Believe in You (in Ab), after which the mysterious stranger left and Danny asked if I knew who it was - I didn't, tho of course I had heard about this Jarrett fellow. If I hadn't been struggling with the bass I might have been able to enjoy what he was doing!! Now I tell folks that I was, for a very short time, a member of the Keith Jarrett trio.

Thanks for posting the Knowlton link!

barry

[Rosco]

Yes, Restoration Ruin (1968, Atlantic, reissued as part of a 2-fer on Collectables, oddly enough paired with Art Ensemble of Chicago) - he sings too.

←

Doesn't he sing on all his albums?

[catoengerdalen@gmail.com]

Actually, Jarrett's first official recording is with Don Jacoby. I have the record, titled "Swinging Big Sound" - by Don Jacoby and the College All-Stars. It's on Decca DL 4241 from 1962. Here's from the notes:

"Not so incidentally, Keith Jarrett at sixteen is the youngest member of the ensemble. His versatility is interesting and typical. Accompanied by his mother (not Jacoby) he auditioned for Berklee by brilliantly executing concerti by Brahms and Gershwin, and finishing with several of his original jazz compositions."

Dee Barton and John Von Ohlen are also in the band.

Mike

HELP! How do i get hold of that album by Don Jacoby feat. Keith Jrrett?

[jeffcrom]

Actually, Jarrett's first official recording is with Don Jacoby. I have the record, titled "Swinging Big Sound" - by Don Jacoby and the College All-Stars. It's on Decca DL 4241 from 1962. Here's from the notes:

"Not so incidentally, Keith Jarrett at sixteen is the youngest member of the ensemble. His versatility is interesting and typical. Accompanied by his mother (not Jacoby) he auditioned for Berklee by brilliantly executing concerti by Brahms and Gershwin, and finishing with several of his original jazz compositions."

Dee Barton and John Von Ohlen are also in the band.

Mike

HELP! How do i get hold of that album by Don Jacoby feat. Keith Jrrett?

I would save an Ebay search - it shows up there periodically.

[chewy-chew-chew-bean-benitez]

im gonna listen to this, and if you-know-what happens, im gonna lose it

[Dan Gould]

"Not so incidentally, Keith Jarrett at sixteen is the youngest member of the ensemble. His versatility is interesting and typical. Accompanied by his mother (not Jacoby) he auditioned for Berklee by brilliantly executing concerti by Brahms and Gershwin, and finishing with several of his original jazz compositions."

Fortunately no one on the audition committee cleared their throat mid-audition, or they might have gotten the Full Jarrett.

[jeffcrom]

HELP! How do i get hold of that album by Don Jacoby feat. Keith Jrrett?

On Ebay now.

[kent carter]

link

This is about a year before Keith's first official recordings (w/Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers). His playing isn't as strikingly individual as it would be a year later and he's in a much more orthodox "hard bop" mode. Interesting!

(His solo after the bass solo is definitely quite Jarrettish, though.)

Back in 1965 I was a full-time engineer doing piano gigs whenever.  Each year my wife and I threw a jazz party and invited friends and musicians that I had worked with.  That year I invited a drummer with whom I had worked, Danny Fullerton, to be the drummer at out party.  Danny asked if he could bring a friend, a piano player. (Danny said he didn't want the guest piano player to crowd my act!)  I said "fine," no problem.  So Danny showed up with a kid (see picture) and a bass player, Kent Carter.

After I played for awhile, I asked the kid if he'd like to play.  He sat down and started playing the standard tune, Tangerine.  I said "WOW!" and dragged out an old Bell 2-track tape recorder (mono).  I had an old condenser mic which I plopped down in the middle of the drum, bass, and piano.  The piano was a "no-name" baby grand (Bradbury).

I was so excited that I wound the take-up end of the tape (a 95-cent Radio Shack bargain) around the hub of the tape recorder - rather than the take-up reel itself.  (When I went to remove it later, you can imagine the pile of spaghetti tape I had on my hands.)  The resulting misalignment of the tape accounts for some gaps in the recording.

The recording of Tangerine is a tour-de-force of the young Keith.  After a few chorus of "regular" playing (right-hand solo lines, left-hand chords), he gets into some two-handed octave lines that are pretty incredible.  During the bass solo, he silently sets up chords using the selective sustain pedal - the middle pedal, then strums the strings to get the harp-like effect - which is immediately answered with some regular piano chords.

After the Kent Carter bass solo comes an awesome solo right-hand exercise.  This leads into Danny's drum solo.  Keith's left hand emerges from the drum solo with yet another prodigious display of technique.

Then the crowd-pleaser final chorus.

I remember this very well. I was the bass player. We were putting together a trio at the time. far out... kent carter

[JohnS]

Thanks for the link Guy and welcome Kent Carter.

[brownie]

Very nice to have Kent Carter sign in.

Warm welcome and hope you'll add to the discussions here!

[paul secor]

Very nice to have Kent Carter sign in.

Warm welcome and hope you'll add to the discussions here!

Another welcome to Mr. Carter.