THANKSGIVING FOR GREAT JAZZ

By Dee Dee McNeil

November 15, 2023

CAL TJADER – “LIVE AT THE PENTHOUSE 1963 – 1967 – CATCH THE GROOVE” – Jazz Detective

1963 RECORDINGS: Cal Tjader, vibraphone/composer; Clare Fischer, piano; Fred Schreiber, bass; Johnny Rae, drums/timbales; Bill Fitch, conga/percussion. 1965 RECORDINGS: Cal Tjader, vibes: Lonnie Hewitt, piano; Armando Peraza, congas/bongos; Terry Hilliard, bass; Johnny Rae, drums/timbales; 1966 RECORDINGS: Cal Tjader, vibes; Al Zulaica, piano; Monk Montgomery, bass; Carl Burnett, drums/timbales; Armando Peraza, congas/bongos; 1967 RECORDINGS: Cal Tjader, vibes; Al Zulaica, piano; Stan Gilbert, bass; Carl Burnett, drums/timbales; Armando Peraza, congas/bongos.

Precious recordings turn back time and remind the world of jazz musicians long gone, but not to be forgotten.  Their music lives on to remind us of the wonderful legacy they implanted in our lives. Music, still sweet and fragrant, like freshly bloomed gardenias.

The amazing vibraphone talent of Cal Tjader contributed greatly to the popularity of Latin jazz.  Percussion master, Poncho Sanchez played with Cal Tjader from the 1970s until his death in 1982.  Eddie Palmieri was a colleague of Cal’s in the 1960s, and his comments are included in a delightful book that accompanies this album. You will also read remarks and memories from Clare Fischer’s son, Brent Fischer, drummer Carl Burnett and remembrances from three vibraphone icons, Gary Burton, Terry Gibbs, and Joe Locke. This release is a package of brilliance that sparkles from the first strains of “Take the ‘A; Train,” a familiar tune that open this two-disc treat. It was recorded on February 2, 1963, at the famed jazz club in Seattle, The Penthouse.  Thanks to the diligence of Zev Feldman, several iconic albums from the past have been released using tapes discovered in the Penthouse radio show archives. They follow this energetic opening tune with “In Your Own Sweet Way” (a Brubeck composition), also presented with excitement and energy.  When they finally settle down, it’s on the standard, “It Never Entered My Mind” that is arranged as a ballad and played with sensitivity and charm.  Tjader’s love for Latin music is tangible during the arrangement of “Morning of the Carnival” and the composition, “Insight.” In the next breath, the music swings on tunes like “Sunset Boulevard” with Lonnie Hewitt on piano joined by Terry Hilliard on bass. Cal keeps Johnny Rae on the drums and Armando Peraza becomes the new percussionist on these dates.  Although the band members play musical chairs, Tjader is the power force propelling this music forward in an unforgettable way. When Cal Tjader plays “Here’s That Rainy” day, he melts my heart with his emotional rendering of this tune.  Both of Tjader’s original compositions “Davito” and “Leyte” are arranged with Latin inspiration.  In 1966, the band changed again.  This time Tjader brings to the bandstand, Monk Montgomery on bass, along with the dynamic Carl Burnett on drums. They play one of my favorite Milt Jackson tunes, “Bags’ Groove” with all the ‘swing’ and reverence that makes this song timeless.

No matter the personnel, this double-set recording brings joy and authenticity to America’s great artform of jazz.  These master musicians will entertain you, from straight-ahead arrangements, to Latin music, shuffles, blues and ‘swing,’ all played with the same precision and dedication that great jazz always inspires.  Cal Tjader is one of our unsung heroes of the jazz vibraphone.  Here are some of the comments and opinions about Cal Tjader by some of our legendary jazz musicians:

EDDIE PALMIERI: “Cal was unique.  He was able to play the most complicated rhythmical patterns in the world.  Those rhythmical scales began in the continent of Africa and were later crystallized in the island of Cuba.  That’s what we were playing when Cal came in and he was able to comprehend these extremely complex rhythmic patterns.  Of course, he was also a drummer.  On the vibes, he did a tremendous job.  We recorded on of his ballads, a bossa nova, “Samba do Suenho” which I play now constantly because it’s one of the most beautiful Bossa Novas I ever heard in my life.”

CARL BURNETT: “Cal Tjader was a friendly guy, easy to get along with.  Everybody liked him, both because of his attitude and for his great musical abilities.  He was a wonderful guy, a pleasant person to be around.  He not only loved playing Latin music, which was really his heart, he loved playing music, period!  … I first heard Cal Tjader in ’59 or so, after I got out of high school.  At that time, Latin jazz was growing in popularity.  Some friends of mine and I had a band: Roy Ayers, Henry Franklin, and others.  We were high school friends. … Cal Tjader was someone I listened to because we were playing Latin Jazz around LA.  I was playing vibraphone, timbales, and drums. … Cal loved to play drums. When I first joined him, the band was Cal, Armando Peraza, Al Zulaica, Monk Montgomery and me.  A wonderful band. …Because I was able to play vibes and Cal loved to play drums, we would switch off occasionally.”

BRENT FISCHER: “I have many great childhood memories of Cal and my father (Dr. Clare Fischer) hanging out, telling jokes, discussing music and of course, performing and recording together. … When I learned vibraphone, as part of my percussion degree at California State University Northridge here in Los Angeles, my having studied close-up what Cal did gave me the inspiration to progress quickly on this grand instrument.  …It took me time as a young musician playing with my father’s group to reach the point where dad and I could be inside each other’s heads and anticipate what the other was going to do next.  Cal Tjader and Clare Fischer had that together from the first gig.”

TERRY GIBBS: “I met Cal Tjader in around 1947.  I was playing in San Francisco with buddy Rich and Cal came into the club and told me that he was playing drums in a trio with a piano player called Dave Brubeck, who was completely unknown at the time and that he was fooling with the vibes.  He said, ‘I sure would love it if you would give me a lesson or two.’  I was only a year older than Cal, but I had much more experience.  I’d been a classically trained xylophone player and I had been playing vibes professionally for a while back then.  What we did was, we went over to the club after-hours.  I had a key.  I showed him my short mallets that I prefer.  Eventually, he had his own mallets made.  They were short because when you play with a long mallet that mallet is going up your sleeve and everything else. … Cal really was one of the best jazz vibe players.  And the wildest thing is, this was told to me by Tito Puente, who was my close friend.  He said that Cal Tjader, for not being a Latin, was as good as any Latin band leader. … That was a big compliment.”

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THE DAVE STRYKER TRIO WITH BOB MINTZER – “GROOVE STREET” – Strikezone Records

Dave Striker, guitar/composer; Bob Mintzer, tenor saxophone/composer; Jared Gold, organ/composer; McClenty Hunter, drums.

When I see Dave Stryker’s name, I know that I’m in for an album that swings hard and upholds the legacy of jazz organ and guitar.  This time Stryker has added the talents of Bob Mintzer on tenor saxophone to his trio.  Sometimes the very best music is made when it’s on-the-spot and unrehearsed.  Although Mintzer had guested with the trio on a few tours, they had never played this current song list together.  The musicians arrived at the studio expectant and energized. 

They open with Dave Stryker’s classic jazz shuffle and the title tune, “Groove Street.” It’s a swinging number that lets the musicians introduce themselves to the audience with individual solos. Even though the music was new to the ensemble, most of these songs were recorded on the first take.  That’s what seasoned professionals and A-team musicians can do. They bounce off of each other, read and improvise what’s on paper, but even more importantly, they reflect the beauty of musical communication and camaraderie.  I hear that brotherly love in these songs.

Bob brought a couple of originals to the session.  Track #2 is Mintzer’s original called “Overlap” with a melody that dances over the organ changes as Mintzer and Striker play it in unison.  I enjoyed their ‘cover’ of the Eddie Harris hit song, “Cold Duck Time,” as well as the way they put their groove into “The More I See You,” shuffling the tune into place. I spent many a night in the Southern California Valley Club of Jimmy & Lola Smith, listening to Jimmy grind out groove after groove of spectacular jazz on his organ.  I am thankful that Stryker and his trio, (McClenty Hunter on drums and Jared Gold on organ), are keeping the jazz organ and guitar tradition alive and well. 

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CIARA MOSER – “BLIND SO WHAT” – Independent Label

Ciara Moser, bass/producer/composer/arranger/spoken word; Aditi Malhotra & Nishant Shekar, lead vocals; Lumanyano Mzi, drums/ assistant producer/electronic design/backing vocals & spoken voice; Juan Sebastian Sanchez & George Lernis, percussion; Warren Pettey, keyboard/producer; Stephanie Weninger & Anastassiya Petrova, piano/keyboard; Amaury Cabral, Liam Garcia & Isaac Romagosa, guitar; Salim Charvet, alto saxophone; Shahar Amdor & Lihi Haruvi, soprano saxophone; Masa Vujadinovic & Nishant Shakar, backing vocals; Shivaraj Natraj, backing vocals/beat boxing.

I am drawn to this artist as soon as I hear the voice of Nishant Shekar, lead-singing Ciara’s original composition. Shekar’s voice is so pure, honest, and emotional. The lyrics are clear and the story of living life, putting trust in others is a universal lesson, not confined to just the blind community. When a bass solo steps into the spotlight, I snatch the CD cover up from my office desk. Who is that playing the bass?  It’s Ciara Moser. The artist is a brilliant bassist, producer, songwriter, and arranger.  Moser’s bass solo is masterful, and Ciara’s songwriting floats fresh across my listening apace.  Her music is a lovely combination of smooth jazz and the traditional, historic jazz of Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. I hear it when the lead vocalist sings scats to Ciara arrangements. These lead vocals sound nothing like either of these legendary divas, still, I can hear the roots of jazz pushing upwards, blending traditional jazz with Ciara Moser’s modern jazz genre.

Moser’s debut album also presents a package of fusion jazz intended to raise awareness for the blind community. She’s making her unique artistic contribution to the music world in a very transformative way. Her songs reflect the various perceptions that blind people have of the world.  They inform us, while at the same time, introducing the listening audience to a very talented female musician.

During her time pursuing a master’s degree at the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, Ciara made up her mind to include social consciousness in her music, as well as focusing on her journey as a blind musician.  However, like the title of this album, “Blind, So What,” she is unapologetic and tenacious in her own abilities and talent.  Although Ciara Moser wants to raise awareness about the blind community, I am listening to an artist who shares her heart with us and who plays her bass instrument with talent and power.

The second track is called “I Trust” and speaks of how unsighted people trust friends and family to help them navigate through a sighted world. On a tune she calls, “Memory” Aditi Malhotra uses the art of performing percussion with her voice, inspired by South Indian Carnatic music and perhaps reflecting a bit of the late great Al Jarreau.

Memorizing is crucial to a blind person; Ciara reminds us in her liner notes.  It takes discipline and determination, concentration, and energy to not only recall melodies, chords, and lyrics, but directions, physical placement of belongings, the simple task of walking, cooking, cleaning, or just living life. Ciara Moser says she has internalized music and uses it, like a language or a code. 

Every musician is aware of how important it is to communicate with their listening audience. Moser’s accompanying musicians present a supportive and sensitive addition to interpreting her original music.  On “Traveling” we hear the tenacious drums of Lumanyano Mzi, who also lends his talents as assistant producer, electronic design specialist, backing vocals and spoken word.  Stephanie Weninger shines on piano and keyboard.  The alto saxophone of Salim Charvet is a haunting prayer atop this original music with Middle Eastern overtones.  Her eleventh song really drew me in, like the open doors of a cathedral or a prayer rug beckoning my subservience. The final tune, “The Lady With A Green Cane” features Ciara Moser’s spoken word, gliding above the rhythm section offering us prose to ponder. 

Here is an artist who is developing her own style, while employing a fusion funk groove. This CD makes me thankful that young people are taking up the shield and fighting for jazz relevance, while expanding the artform like a rainbow over universal musical horizons.

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RAY GALLON, RON CARTER, LEWIS NASH – “GRAND COMPANY” – Cellar 20 Music Group

Ray Gallon, piano/composer; Ron Carter, bass; Lewis Nash, drums.

The crisp, clean sound of a great jazz trio can inspire and entertain like no other.  Pianist, Ray Gallon has joined talents with the legendary Ron Carter on bass and the sensationally gifted Lewis Nash on drums.  This piano master brings spark and fire to his current trio project as a bandleader.  Gallon is also an impressive composer.  On his tune, “Acting Up,” I hear a great deal of Thelonious Monk influence in the melodies he plays, as his fingers race across the piano.

After this swiftly moving, up-tempo presentation, Gallon settles down to play another original titled, “Zombette,” as a ballad.  The trio is a dream-come-true for the piano connoisseur.

“Both Ron and Lewis played significant roles in my musical development, particularly during formative years.  Recording a trio album with these two remarkable artists has been at the top of my bucket list, ever since doing it at Rudy Van Gelder’s on that hallowed Steinway B, was icing on the cake.  The date was smooth sailing, with everything recorded in one or two takes,” recalls Gallon in his press package.

Another original composition he calls “Two Track Mind” is a blues and you can never lose with the blues.  I enjoyed his take on the Miles Davis standard, “Nardis.”  Once again, I hear quite a bit of Monk in Gallon’s approach and interpretations.  His arrangement of “If I Had You” painted the familiar tune with fresh colors and gave Ron Carter a bright spotlight during his bass solo. Lewis Nash stepped out of his shuffle to tap-dance a solo on his trap drums.  All in all, Ray Gallon is a jazz pianist and composer that is splashing his way onto the music scene and making big waves.

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LES McCANN – “NEVER A DULL MOMENT! – LIVE FROM COAST TO COAST – 1966 – 1967” – Resonance Records

Les McCann, piano/composer; Stan Gilbert, LeRoy Vinegar & Victor Gaskin, bass; Paul Humprey, Frank Severino & Tony Bazley drums.

Les McCann knows how to put the blues into everything he plays and has a natural ability to pump funk, gospel, and energy into music that is uniquely his. McCann both entertains and inspires his audiences.  That’s why I was so excited to receive this newly released Les McCann album on the Resonance record label titled, “Never a Dull Moment!”  It’s a three-disc CD set, with the first disc featuring my old friend Stan Gilbert (R.I.P.) on bass, recorded in January of 1966, with the dynamic percussionist, Paul Humphrey playing drums.

“When my manager, Alan Abrahams, told me that there were some recently uncovered recordings from the 60s that have never been released before, I was really curious if they were any good.  People were always sending me cassettes that they have come across over the years and the sound was usually shit.  When I was informed that these live recordings were from the Penthouse in Seattle (a cool venue) and also from the Village Vanguard in New York (another really cool venue), I held my breath.  Then I heard them, and I said, damn!”  exclaimed Les McCann.

A distinctive pianist, exceptional singer, composer and bandleader, Les McCann was born September 23, 1935, in Lexington, Kentucky.  His dad loved jazz and his mother was said to hum opera songs around their house.  As a youth, McCann played tuba and drums, performing in his school marching band. He picked up piano with an uncanny, natural ability to play the eighty-eight keys without much study or piano education. It seemed to come natural to him. Les, along with his siblings, attended church regularly.  You can clearly hear the gospel influence in his playing.  He has the ability to merge gospel, soul, funk, and world rhythms into his arrangements. A master of both upright, grand and electric piano, clavinet, synthesizer and, I must remind you that Les has a beautiful voice.  He was one of the first to add electric instruments to his concerts.  This came before electronic jazz was popular.  I would say, Les McCann helped to make electronic jazz acceptable.

However, on this early performance, McCann and his group are all acoustic.  Recorded ‘live’ at the Penthouse in Seattle, his recent release opens with a Dizzy Gillespie composition, “Blues ‘n’ Boogie” that sets the mood for the Les McCann genius, style, and piano technique to introduce himself to concertgoers.  McCann has a formidable style.  Once you hear Les McCann, you won’t forget him.  The second song on this exciting release is “Could Be,” a Les composition, originally recorded with Gerald Wilson’s Orchestra.  The third cut is a Monty Alexander tune called, “The Grabber.”  It swings hard at an up-tempo pace with lots of staccato notes dancing beneath Les McCann’s fingertips. 

You may not know this, but some years back, it was Les McCann who brought Monty Alexander from Kingston, Jamaica to the United States, introducing him to the world on an LP titled, “Les McCann Introduces Alexander the Great.”  Humphrey shines like a meteor shower during his drum solo.  The next piece is a song he calls “Yours is My Heart Alone.” It’s a beautiful ballad, where his left-hand trembles against the mid-register, while his right hand tenderly plays the melody.  I am stunned when he reaches inside the grand piano to caress the strings, strumming them as he pulls surprising music out while using this technique.  It’s as though he’s playing a harp. 

“The Shampoo” was one of the Les McCann big hit records back-in-the-day. It still sounds like a hit, incorporating a drum lick that comes close to being a tambourine player.  This song takes you to church and to the juke joint, all in the matter of five and a half minutes.  Stan Gilbert steps into the spotlight briefly to show off his double bass skills. I used to work often with Gilbert in my trio, and he always knew how to padlock the groove into place.  Between him and the groove master himself, Les McCann, this tune will make you want to walk the room and wave a white hanky.  

The Baptist church continues to inspire McCann’s arrangements, holding hands with the blues on “Wait for it,” another McCann original. They close with Steve Allen’s standard tune, “This Could Be the Start of Something Big.”  It’s arranged at a thrilling pace, with Humphrey’s drumsticks sounding like machine guns firing rounds.  This is just the first of three discs in this wonderful package of music.  There’s not one bad tune on this complete “live” recording.  You will feel as though you are seated in the front row center section at this concert.  This CD is a historic treasure and will add entertainment and value to any album collection.

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SARAH McKENZIE – “WITHOUT YOU” – Normandy Lane Music

Sarah McKenzie, vocals/piano/composer; Romero Lubambo, guitar; Peter Erskine, drums; Geoff Gascoyne, bass; Rogerio Boccato, percussion; Jaques Morelenbaum, cello; Bob Sheppard, flute/saxophone.

An Australian vocalist, currently based in Los Angeles, brings her warm voice and piano excellence to interpret music by the legendary Carlos Jobim.  She also offers us her composing skills and woos us with her original and well-written songs.  I am happy to hear a voice that is not nasal and that makes me believe the lyrics.  Sarah McKenzie, with her pitch-perfect tone, offers familiar tunes like Gentle Rain, Corcovado and Wave in her own comfortable and lovely way.  She took piano lessons from age five.  At fifteen, she heard Oscar Peterson’s Night Train record and knew that she wanted to play jazz like that for the rest of her life. She also admires Gene Harris, Ahmad Jamal, Nat King Cole, Harry Connick Jr., Shirley Horn, and Blossom Dearie.  In 2012, Sarah McKenzie arrived in America to attend Berklee School of Music. She has spent time working in Paris, in London and played at the Montreux Jazz Festival while signed to the Impulse label.  I am impressed with her original tune, “Quoi. Quoi, Quoi.”  Sarah collaborates with her guitarist, Romero Lubambo, adding lovely lyrics to his song titled, “Without You.”  Her voice is perfect for the Portuguese songs she sings on this current project.  Her simplicity of style and occasional scat vocals colorfully decorate some of McKenzie’s arrangements. She illuminates her talents without over-the-top vocal gymnastics and offers a sense of honesty that sells these songs. 

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WES MONTGOMERY/WYNTON KELLY TRIO – MAXIMUM SWING – THE UNISSUED 1965 HALF NOTE RECORDINGS” – Resonance Records

Wes Montgomery, guitar; Wynton Kelly, piano; Paul Chambers, Ron Carter, Larry Ridley & Herman Wright, bass; Jimmy Cobb, drums.

Be still my heart!  When I opened my mail and saw that a never-before released album of music featuring Wes Montgomery, Wynton Kelly and Jimmy Cobb lay trembling in my palms, I was full of anticipation! It did not disappoint.  I felt as though I was sitting in New York’s Half Note Club, sipping cocktails with friends in 1965. The greater part of this incredible music was aired on a radio broadcast hosted by Alan Grant for his WABC-FM radio show, “Portraits in Jazz.”  Now, it’s a priceless collectors album.

Ron Carter clearly recalls the night he subbed for Paul Chambers to join this iconic trio.

“I remember there were no music stands and I was trying to figure how to hold the music up for the songs I didn’t know. Still, it felt good to walk into a situation with the great Jimmy Cobb, the fabulous Wynton Kelly and this smashing guitar player Wes Montgomery. …but to walk into that meeting place with all those guys and perform with them live onstage was astonishing for me.  There were other guys they could have called for this sub gig, but I got chosen.  No one in the band complained,” Carter proudly shared in the press package.

You’ll find some of the most energized, exciting, and inspired samples of the Wes Montgomery genius on guitar during this performance.  His freedom and joy bounces off my CD player and plants a huge smile across my face.

As one of the masters of the guitar, Wes Montgomery has inspired a number of today’s jazz guitar legends like George Benson, Pat Martino, John Abercrombie, Lee Ritenour, Emily Remler, John Scofield and Pat Metheny.  Metheny credited the Smokin’ at the Half Note release in 1965 on the Verve label to be an album that “taught me how to play.”

Of course, pairing with the iconic Wynton Kelly on piano just propels the music to the highest standard possible.  The way they interact and complement each other is both entertaining and impressive. Needless to say that Jimmy Cobb, on drums, is the cherry on top of a rich, delicious musical sundae.

On Disc 2 you’ll enjoy a dynamic solo by Jimmy Cobb, during their up-tempo arrangement of “All The Things You Are.”  Next, the trio swings hard on the standard jazz tune, “I Remember you.” In fact, there isn’t one bad song on this two-set disc.  This trio presents pure and historic pleasure at “Maximum Swing.”

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BILL EVANS – “TALES – LIVE IN COPENHAGEN (1964)” – Elemental Music

Bill Evans, piano/composer; Chuck Israels & Eddie Gomez, bass; Larry Bunker & Marty Morell, drums.

It was the very first European tour for Bill Evans, and he had to be excited.  Bill and his trio arrived in Copenhagen, Denmark to perform on August 10^th and 25^th of 1964.  The concert was recorded by the Evans bassist at that time, Chuck Israels.  One recording happened at the Danish radio’s Radiohuset Studio.  The other was recorded in front of a ‘live’ audience.  What a find for Zev Feldman, fondly known as the Jazz Detective.  These are never before heard of tapes.  Historically, they are the earliest known European recordings by Bill Evans.  Israels fondly recalls that European tour with Bill Evans. 

“The thinking when I started with Bill was, you can play quarter notes, you can play half notes.  You can play dotted quarters and quarter-note triplets, and you can play anything that fits the pulse and makes a good counterpoint with the melody.  You can make it all feel rhythmically propulsive and swinging.  So why be restricted when music really doesn’t need to be that restricted?  … I didn’t feel restricted at all.  I was just so glad to be part of Bill’s musical design, the texture of how that trio worked, how Bill planned the music; how he set it up so that you could fit yourself in with personal expression and freedom to find nuances and details that occurred to you. Bill would leave room for that to happen,” Chuck Israels remembered.

They open with the Evans jazz standard, “Waltz for Debbie.”  This is followed by a tender and emotional rendition of “My Foolish Heart.”   Track #4 swings hard as they interpret ”Sweet & Lovely.”  Bill Evans opens “I Never Knew What Time it Was” with a rubato solo for the first two verses of the song.  Then Israels and Bunker join in, putting the swing in place.

Bassist, Chuck Israels replaced Scott LaFaro after his sudden death in a car accident.  The new bass player was still settling in with the trio, sounding similar to Scotty, but very much bringing his own bass style.  The three musicians work in harmony like a well-oiled machine.  My heart melts when I hear them play “My Foolish Heart” again on track #7.  It’s totally fresh, pensive, and uniquely different from their former recording of this beautiful composition.  In fact, you get to hear four of the first five songs as “take #2’s” during this awesome listening experience.  The tempos change and the moods differ, refreshing the songs and making them sound brand new. 

There is an accompanying book with this album, containing interviews with former musicians and historic photographs.  However, the most compelling piece of this album is the elegant, august, gorgeous music performed by Bill Evans and his trio.

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THE DAVE BRUBECK QUARTET “LIVE FROM THE NORTHWEST, 1959”  –  Brubeck Editions

Dave Brubeck, piano; Paul Desmond, alto saxophone; Eugene Wright, bass; Joe Morello, drums.

It was April of 1959.  Wally Heider, the legendary sound engineer, had just packed up his Ampex 350-2 tape recorder, packed it into his station wagon, then put the pedal to the metal on his way to Portland, Oregon.  Brubeck’s Quartet was appearing at the historic Multnomah Hotel in Portland and the next night at Clark College. That was where this “Live from the Northwest, 1959” album was created.

The Dave Brubeck Quartet opens this amazing and historic recording with “When the Saints Go Marching in.”  The quartet swings right out the gate, propelled by Joe Morello’s drums and featuring Paul Desmond with that warm alto saxophone sound.  Once Desmond completes his solo, Dave Brubeck’s solid trio soaks up the spotlight like three sponges in a bathtub full of champagne. The pumping bass of Eugene Wright (fondly called “the Senator”) locks step with Morello’s drum licks and they provide a platform for Brubeck’s piano to dance.  This recording was made just months before their album “Time Out” made the world stop, listen, and take note.

The talent and skills of these four musicians remain a heated topic of conversation. Some say it was their contrapuntal abilities that wooed crowds across the planet.  They did it with such ease, even though it was happening spontaneously. You hear it prominently in their arrangement of “Basin Street Blues.” 

Dave Brubeck’s Quartet flies through “Gone with the Wind” at a surprising pace, swinging harder than a George Foreman punch. Brubeck has recorded two original songs.  One is the “Multnomah Blues” and the blues speaks for itself.  The other is called “Two Part Contention,” attacked with Brubeck’s two-fisted piano brilliance. Here is music that is over sixty years old and still sounds vibrant and fresh. This is a surprise addition to Dave Brubeck’s amazing discography and a pleasant piece of ear candy for the public’s consumption.

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UNUSUAL & UNFORGETTABLE JAZZ RECORDINGS

By Dee Dee McNeil

November 5, 2023

ARUÁN ORTIZ – “PASTOR’S PARADOX” –  Cleanfeed Records

Aruán Ortiz, piano/voice/composer; Don Byron, clarinet/bass clarinet/voice; Pheeroan Aklaff, drums/voice; Lester St. Louis, cello; Yves Dhar, cello; Mtume Gant, spoken word.

The power and purpose of Dr. Martin Luther King’s words, spoken some sixty years ago at the March on Washington, are still relevant today.  They have become the inspiration for this experimental jazz project featuring the compositions and piano playing of Aruan Ortiz and a host of other respected jazz musicians.

Don Byron’s bass clarinet opens the title tune, “Pastor’s Paradox” and settles the mood down to a thoughtful, but richly dark place.  It is sad and heartbreaking that all these years later, the loving words in Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech are still blowing in the wind and dancing on the page, but humanity has not embraced racial, socio-economic justice in our current world. We are still polarized, one human being against another human being; religion against religion; race against race. Cuban-born, Aruán Ortiz, who is currently based in Brooklyn, NY, explores and reflects on King’s 1968 speech, also on “The Drum Major Instinct” speech delivered a few months before Dr. King’s assassination.

This year, Ortiz celebrates half a century on earth.  He brings an edginess, a wiseness, and an Avant-garde perspective to his musical interpretation of Dr. King’s frustrations with society. He shares with us Dr. King’s consistent fight for freedom and justice with words and music. During the composition titled, “The Dream That Wasn’t Meant to be Ours” Pheeroan Aklaff soaks up the spotlight on drums.  His trap drums tell the story, along with the rich cello of Lester St. Louis.  When the voice of Mtume Gant brings prose to the bandstand, words slap us across the face like a wet rag. Gant refers to the ‘Drum Major Instinct’ speech, and I praise the engineer who mixed these instruments and vocals to perfection.  We hear every word, every beat, each cello note, in St. Louis’ crystal-clear delivery.

You will feel anger, rebellion, and power in many of these compositions.  But you will also hear the tenderness and selflessness of a movement to help others. These musical messages are wrapped like sacred gifts in angel-wing paper. 

“He was very revolutionary for this time.  He was fighting for not only racial equality for Black America, but also for women’s rights and Latino rights, oftentimes against a very turbulent backdrop.  Acknowledging that is where I got the idea for the title, Pastor’s Paradox,” Aruan Ortiz explains in his liner notes.

Throughout “Pastor’s Paradox” the band depicts turbulence and cacophonous sounds of police, brutality, loud sirens, and the desperate cries of a people under siege.  You hear it in the music and feel it in your spirit.  I was especially touched by the brutal energy and screaming clarinet and arpeggio piano excursions that interpreted “From Montgomery to Memphis (to April 4^th).” That date brings back bitter memories for me, because I was alive and conscious when Dr. King was assassinated on April 4^, 1968. 

Ortiz pushes the political clutter out of his way to hone-in on withering injustice.  His improvisational and heavily Avant-garde music has been written for jazz ensembles, orchestras, dance companies, chamber groups and feature films. On this project, as a pianist, violist and composer, Aruán Ortiz has created a 21^st century chamber-music/jazz work that celebrates the power of music to represent the enduring influence of history.  His compositions represent the never-ending determination of humanity to become more good, than evil; more loving, than hateful; more artistic, than capitalistic.  In this work, Aruán Ortiz endeavors to offer us hope for a better future and musical prayers for a more peaceful world.

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TERELL STAFFORD – “BETWEEN TWO WORLDS” – Le Cog Records

Terell Stafford, trumpet/flugelhorn/composer/arranger; Bruce Barth, piano/composer/arranger; David Wong, bass; Johnathan Blake, drums; Alex Acuña, percussion; Tim Warfield, tenor & soprano saxophones.

It’s amazing how the pandemic affected our jazz community.  Music becomes a historic reference when you listen-back and recall what you were going through when a certain song was popular. It’s a historic marker when you’re composing music, or when you recall playing music during a certain period in life.. Perhaps Terell Stafford exemplifies this when he explains, in his press package, how he felt when he brought his sextet to the famed Village Vanguard New York jazz club in July of 2020.

“It really impacted me emotionally and spiritually, driving into an empty city with no traffic, to make music at a time when the world was shut down was mind-blowing to me,” Terell recalls.

The empty room was startling.  Four cameramen were there to capture the concert for posterity and livestream. Those four human beings were the only ‘live’ audience.  Surrounded by an all-star band, the title tune composed by Victor Lewis spoke to Stafford in a way that inspired this album and embraced that time in our lives. A time when we lost over one-million American citizens to COVID. Three years after this unforgettable plague, we are still shell-shot, like victims of war, with masks in our dresser drawers that remind us of a shut-down, grievous time. “Between Two Worlds” is Stafford’s emotional, musical response to a terrifying time.

The band comes racing off my CD player like the Indianapolis 500; full speed ahead.  On this Victor Lewis opening tune, you meet each music master in Stafford’s sextet.  The group is furiously propelled forward by Johnathan Blake on trap drums and Alex Acuña on percussion.  Stafford’s trumpet bolts out of the gate with full force.  Each of his ensemble steps energetically into the lonesome spotlight with kick-ass solos. I feel the anxiety and release in this arrangement as these master musicians, all masked up and ready for battle, musically reflect the beauty of the music and the terror of the times.

The next tune that wraps arms of sincerity around me is one written by Terell titled “Two hearts As One.”  It’s a very sensuous ballad with a stunning solo by David Wong on double bass.  The Straight-ahead composition that follows is also written by Stafford and swings its way into my listening room like Jackie Robinson when he smacked the ball out the stadium. You can tell on that July 2020 evening; those jazz musicians came to play their blues away and kick down the isolation door. “Room 608” quickly becomes another favorite with Bruce Barth offering a swinging piano solo richly embellished by Blake’s demanding drums. Billy Strayhorn’s “Blood Count” tune is beautifully played and arranged by Bruce Barth. Barth also contributes his composition, “Manaus at Dusk,” where Tim Warfield puts his tenor saxophone down and picks up his soprano saxophone to deliver a memorable solo. Acuña shines on percussion.

Terell sounds absolutely gorgeous interpreting McCoy Tyner’s tune, “You Taught My heart to Sing.”  There’s an old saying, accompanied by a wink, and spoken in music circles that says: “You can’t lose with the blues!”  Terell and his group remind us of this truth with their final original tune, “Wruth’s Blues.”

“Between Two Worlds” clearly describes the life of Terell Stafford in a wider way than just the pandemic. It reflects the dual roles in his personal life, sometimes as sideman, other times as bandleader; as musician and educator, serving as Chair of Instrumental Studies and Director of Jazz Studies at Temple University.  He’s a husband and father, administrator and teacher, composer, arranger, and a trumpet player with a strong perspective. Yes, this album title seems appropriate on many levels, as Terell offers music that will move you, invigorate you and rejuvenate life’s importance. With his music, Terell Stafford reminds us that in some ways, we are all life-jugglers carefully balancing “Between Two Worlds.” 

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BOWMANVILLE – “BOWMANVILLE” – Stoneagle Music

Ethan Adelsman, violin/composer; Graham Nelson, vocals/harmonica; Mason Jiller, guitar/composer; Oliver Horton & Ethan Phillion, bass; Noah Plotkin, drums.

The “Bowmanville” group, based in Chicago, offers us a totally unique sound of their own that combines aspects of Django Reinhardt’s style from the Hot Club of France days, with their gutsy Chicago Blues history.  It’s quite captivating.  The use of harmonica and violin in close harmonic arrangements, along with mason Jiller’s strong guitar technique, transports us to another space and time.  Mason has composed track #2, “Metal Bird” carefully mixing Latin music, swing, and a bluesy, country/western-two-step-kind of music style into the arrangement.  Like a quilt of many cultures, this music covers me with a warm, happy feeling. Ethan Adelsman’s sweet violin opens “Don’t Forget It” and he has also composed this tune.  Ethan, along with Mason Jiller on guitar, hold a short conversation until Graham Nelson’s harmonica joins the conversation.  This is a very lovely, melodic song. 

Violinist, Ethan Adelsman has performed gypsy jazz, bluegrass, rock, classical and Latin jazz before forming this “Bowmanville” group.  I hear all those musical styles within this production.  On “Boiano Campobasso” they are back to the Django Reinhardt’s influence and the group swings hard. “Fly Me To the Moon” is that old familiar standard we all know and love, featuring Graham Nelson on sometime off-pitch vocals.  I prefer the group as an instrumental ensemble and enjoy Nelson’s talents on harmonica.  On “Caravan” the arrangement sounds very Middle Eastern.  “La Vie En Rose” is presented sweetly featuring Adelsman’s violin and then surprises me by moving into a spirited swing groove.  This unforgettable production is both well-written and the musicians present a tight, entertaining, instrumental package. The vocals probably work in ‘live’ performances, but they don’t add to the musical quality of Bowmanville as a complete recorded package.

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RUSS JOHNSON QUARTET – “REVEAL” – Calligram Records

Russ Johnson, trumpet/composer; Mark Feldman, violin; Ethan Philion, bass; Timothy Daisy, drums.

To “Reveal” is to make previously unknown or secret information known.  Trumpeter Russ Johnson has written nine compositions for this project that he is sharing with his listening audience for the first time, unveiling his composition skills along with his trumpet mastery.  This is a quartet without piano or guitar, often referred to as a chord-less ensemble.  The string master of mark Feldman’s violin and Ethan Philion’s bass create a unique rhythm section with Timothy Daisy on drums.  This quartet embraces Avant-grade jazz and freedom with the same pulse of breathing in and out.

They open with “Skips” a tune that conjures up happy children skipping down the avenue.  Track #3 is titled “Long Branch (for Jamie Branch)” and is seven minutes of the trumpet and violin sharing a creative and continuous conversation, with Ethan Philion’s bass supporting their musical speeches.  I might note that Jamie Branch, who died in August of 2022, was a well-respected avant-garde trumpet player.  She blended Punk Rock intensity with her commitment to experimentation and invigorated the music scene of both New York and Chicago.  She was only thirty-nine years old when she passed.

“My entire career has been built on playing music in the cracks between ‘modern jazz’ and more ‘improvised’ music,” explains bandleader, Russ Johnson, who tributed a tune to young Jamie.

“Mark Feldman is obviously one of the great violinists and improvisors of our time.  We met in New York, but only played together a couple of times.  When Mark moved to Chicago, I knew I had to create a new project around him,” Johnson, a Chicago based musician shared.

“Veiled Invitation” gives a platform to bassist, Ethan Philion where he blends with the violin to set mood and tempo, then steps into the spotlight with a solo that dazzles.  This tune is quite beautiful, with a melody that appears like a rainbow after the other stormy tunes have played-out.  It shows the tender side of Russ Johnson’s trumpet.  On “Dog Gone It” Daisy brings the funk to the party on his drums, locking hands with Philion’s bass line.  Mark Feldman let’s his violin tremble and fly above the funky groove, while Russ Johnson’s trumpet scats emphasis and energy, singing along with the violin, at times in unison and other times harmonically pleasing.

If experimental music is something you treasure, this is a crucial work of fluid improvisation and modern jazz to please your ears.

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KEVIN SUN – “THE DEPTHS OF MEMORY” – Endectomorph Music

Kevin Sun, tenor saxophone/composer; Adam O’Farrill, trumpet; Dana Soul, piano; Walter Stinson & Simon Willson, bass; Matt Honor & Dayeon Seak, drums.

This music by Kevin Sun, developed during the pandemic lockdown, reflects on life, healthy living, and metamorphosis. In a double disc album set, Sun opens with seven tunes. The first suite is titled “From All This Stillness.”  The composer and tenor sax man, Kevin Sun, opens with “Frozen in Profile” featuring his saxophone as the central instrument. Soon, Dana Soul joins on piano, playing the upper register like a lovely tune from a music box. Track #2, “Interior Choruses” is rooted deeply in modern jazz and experimental music, as the players shift from space to space, solo to solo, each gives the other room to expand and explore. 

The “Eponymous Cycle” consists of three compositions simply titles 1, 11, and 111.  All the compositions are over seven minutes long and the first is quite beautiful and nearly nine minutes in length.  I look up the meaning of the noun ‘eponym.’  It reflects celebration of a name or word derived from a person or a discovery or an invention.  In this case, his press package explains that the person he is celebrating is Charlie Parker. Sun was inspired by a live 1950 Charlie Parker recording that featured Bird’s extended solo, dancing atop the changes of the blues tune, “Fine & Dandy.”  Sun enjoyed pulling the raw material from the Bird solo and expanding on the great man’s creativity to compose these three nameless songs. 

With time on his hands during the pandemic, Sun explained, “What I really wanted to do was get together with my friends and play, but we couldn’t do that.  So, my imagination ran wild.”

To further explain this two-disc release he said:

“I wanted the feeling of being swept along on a current of musical thought over a long period of time.  I was hoping to capture that relatively rare feeling of just taking a long walk when it’s nice out, looking at leaves and trees, feeling the wind.  It should be a transporting experience as opposed to the more normal daily experience, where we live with a virtual world full of constant interruptions, disruptions, and notifications.”

This is a conceptual explanation, but I did not always feel this way while listening to Sun’s music.  Admittedly, music affects different people in different ways. Like the title of this column, I did find the music unusual.

Disc #2 “The Depths in Slow Motion” continues with music that is improvisational and gives Sun’s modern jazz musical ensemble an opportunity to step center stage and share their talents with us, using individual solo opportunities.  Many of the Disc Two compositions, and the resulting arrangements, left me feeling a bit perplexed.  I missed the lyrical beauty and warm grooves that I’m drawn to, music that makes me tap my toes or makes me smile. Disc #2 did not encourage my smile to appear. It was, at times, repetitious and reminded me of the new era of Hip Hop ‘loops.’

Kevin Sun has performed extensively in China and served as Artistic Director of the Blue Note China Jazz Orchestra.

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CARLOS HENRIQUEZ – “A NUYORICAN TALE” –  Independent Label

Carlos Henriquez, bass/chorus; Jeremy Bosch, flute/vocals; Robert Rodriguez, piano/chorus/ Fender Rhodes; Anthony Almonte, congas/chorus; Obed Calvaire, drums; Melissa Aldana, tenor saxophone; Marshall Gilkes, trombone; Terrel Stafford, trumpet; Mike Rodriguez, trumpet/ chorus.

The choir pumps the joyful music of Carlos Henriquez into my listening room, as they sing with gusto, “Nuyorican Soul.”  Henriquez, a Bassist, and composer, is deeply rooted in the Nuyorican culture. One purpose of this album is to shine a light on the complexity of Puerto Ricans who relocated to New York City, bringing their happy music and colorful culture to the shores of America.

Carlos is the bass player for the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.  One of his musical goals has been to record the wonderful stories of the Puerto Rican People, and for that he has received wide acclaim.  “A Nuyorican Tale” becomes a history lesson that documents, with musical anecdotes and composition titles, stories of his people.  All music is composed by Carlos Henriques and Track #2, called “Bodegas Groove” has a slow sexy pulse, plush with percussion.  Henriquez takes a bass solo that’s rich and provocative, using his bow to coach the melody from his instrument. What I love about the Carlos solo is his ability to swing hard, keeping the groove alive-and-well, making me shout “Yeah” like I’m in a club. The trumpet solo soars and Jeremy Bosch struts his stuff on flute.  Each song rolls off this very energy-driven project with ebullience.  The bass of Carlos Henriquez spurs the original music ahead and the horn section adds color and power to the production.  Henriquez tributes Thelonious Monk with his “Afro Monk” original tune.  Carlos takes a creative solo and then gives Robert Rodriguez an opportunity to have his piano spotlighted with the keys splashing Latin, African, and swing rhythms. Henriquez’s composition “My Isla Bonita” is a sweet ballad with a lyrical melody. 

Following in the footsteps of his GRAMMY-nominated 2021 album, “The South Bronx Story,” Henriquez’s latest album is reflective of his Puerto Rican roots and his egalitarian cultural life stories are reflected in the compositions on this album.  When you hear “Robert’s Red Line” a joyous sounding song with the choir singing and led by Jeremy Bosch, the lyrics are actually not so happy:

                “ Red-line in the city, that’s incomplete. The prouder you are the harder you fall to succeed.  Look down by the riverside and you’ll see. They’re breaking us down, building as far as you see.”

This is actually the story of “red-lining” by the powers that be, when urban planner, Robert Moses, declared a mostly Puerto Rican neighborhood a slum, causing residents to find it impossible to get loans to help them relocate when city planners came to restructure their neighborhood.  This is one of my favorite compositions by Carlos Henriquez on this album. I love the horn harmonics on the “Ritmo’s 53” tune, featuring a demanding trumpet solo and a bass line that walks briskly beneath this production, making this tune Afro-Caribbean, Straight-ahead, all at once.  Marshall Gilkes shows off his mad talents on trombone.  This quickly becomes another favorite.  The ensemble closes on a hopeful note, with “Winds of Change” blowing a hopeful melody through the bell of the horns and featuring a delightful solo by Melissa Aldana on tenor saxophone, accentuated by Anthony Almonte’s congas and Obed Calvaire’s power-driven drums.  This is a musical experience that brings history, culture, and jazz together as a well-written package of Puerto Rican pride and ethos.

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GREGORY LEWIS – “ORGAN MONK GOING HOME” – Sunnyside Records

Gregory Lewis, organ/composer; Kevin McNeal, guitar; Nasheet Waits, drums.

What a wonderful surprise to discover this “Organ Monk Going Home” album of Gregory Lewis interpreting the compositions of Thelonious Monk on his organ.  He offers us seven arrangements of Monk’s tunes and one original that he composed called “Jaclyn’s Eyes.”  Lewis called on the powerful talents of Nasheet Waits on drums and Kevin McNeal on guitar to join him in this creative exploration of Monk’s genius. 

Gregory Lewis recalls first discovering Thelonious Monk music in his father’s stack of LPs.  Even as a child, he was fascinated by Monk’s unique and unforgettable music.  Years of practice and patience has led to this recording.  Lewis has long been fascinated by his African roots and the historic music of jazz, developed by Black Americans to represent freedom in a country that consistently has denied them.  Consequently, a trip to Zimbabwe inspired his CD cover.  Returning to his motherland of Africa was a long-term dream that finally came to realization after the COVID pandemic subsided.  Now with his roots solidly planted in Monk music and his visit to the Zimbabwe community, Gregory Lewis has named this musical exploration “Organ Monk Going Home.”  He embraces the history of both a continent and a jazz man whose music changed the complexion of America’s classical and original music called jazz!  You will enjoy the Gregory Lewis interpretations of familiar tunes like “Evidence” and “Brilliant Corners” and some more obscure compositions by Thelonious like “Brake’s Sake” and “Gallop’s Gallop.”  This is a fresh and satisfying album of Monk’s music, using an organ perspective to interpret the great composer’s music in Gregory’s own remarkable way. Kevin McNeal’s guitar accompaniment, and Nasheet Waits on drums bring their own sense of urgency, style, and brilliance to this project.

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ELSA NILSSON, SANTIAGO LEIBSON, MARTY KENNEY, RODRIGO RECABARREN – “PULSES” – Ears and Eyes Records

Elsa Nilsson, flute/FX/composer; Santiago Leibson, piano; Marty Kenney, bass; Rodrigo Recabarren, drums.

The haunting beauty of a flute announcement stuns the silence. Santiago Leibson tinkers with the piano keys, answering the reed instrument and encouraging conversation.

            “A Rock, a river, a tree,” recites Maya Angelo from her poem “On the Pulse of Morning.”

Her voice surprises and warms me.

            “Hosts to species long since departed, marked the mastodon, the dinosaur, who left dried tokens of their sojourn here on our planet floor, any broad alarm of their hastening doom is lost in the gloom of dust and ages.  But today, the rock cries out to us,” she continues. 

The piano plays unison with Angelou’s poetic warning.  The drum enters and it beats out a percussive message, encouraged by Rodrigo Recabarren.  This is a project of message and moods, a protest for freedom.  It’s an exploration into experimental music and improvised solos from each musical participant. Arrangements that carefully support the poem and the poet.  Angelou’s poem speaks of war, peace and promise.  It is broken up into pieces, and these musicians sing it wordlessly, imploring us to listen, LISTEN!

            “The African, the Native American, the Sioux, the Catholic, the Muslim, the French, the Greek, the Irish, the Rabbi, the Priest, the Sheik, the gay, the straight, the Preacher, the privileged, the homeless, the teacher.  They hear.  They all hear the speaking of the tree,” Maya reminds us of our humanness, our frailness, our warmongering amidst all creation.

Here is a heartbeat on disc, a march without feet that beats and stomps like a caged man.  It’s also a lovely way to introduce the unread to the work of grand poetess, Maya Angelou, and to seal her work in vinyl, in cardboard, and in plastic. Elsa Nilsson and her band are keeping it safe for the next generation and all those to follow. This music is meant to open us up, like a can of truth, and spill over into the ever-after, onto the rock, and soak into the roots of the tree.

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