I really started to explore jazz more in 2014. Prior to that time I had a few favorites I listened to regularly. Those artists included mostly Wes Montgomery and Jimmy Smith and occasionally Freddie Hubbard and McCoy TYner. When I set out to expand my jazz listening I would review both the Jazz Charts at both the Roots Music Report and JazzWeek. Additionally, I would review the Jazz Birthday Page at All About Jazz.
So I used the picture at the top of this post to introduce the new focus of this blog. All of the items were purchased on our last trip to Goodwill for the hefty total price of $6.00! I love the prices and I love to support Goodwill. They worked tirelessly with my son Nick to help him get a job!
Anyway, while the prices were great on both the CDs and books, the better aspect of the purchase is that the books and the CDs are all from favorites.
The two books I bought were =&1=&from the writing duo of Preston & Child and The English Spy by Daniel Silva.
=&2=& is book # 14 of the 19 book in Preston & Child’s Agent Pendergast series. While =&3=& is the 15th book in Silva’s Gabriel Allon series.
The lead characters of both series are outstanding characters. Here is a brief biography of Agent Pendergast from Wikipedia…
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Back in the 60s there was a time when all genres appeared together on the pop charts. You might listen to an instrumental by Hugh Masekela and then a tune from The Beatles. Maybe something from Smokey Robinson and the Miracles followed by a song like “Mercy,Mercy, Mercy” from Cannonball Adderley. I loved to hear all kinds of music from the radio. So I often think fondly on those days. They were days for someone with ADHD.
Trumpet player Brian Lynch was born on September 12th in 1956 in Urbana, Illinois)
Brian ….
=&0=& from Brian Lynch and Emmet Cohen. I listened to it again today. It‘s a terrific album.
One of my favorite albums over the last month or two is the latest release from Grammy-winning trumpeter, Brian Lynch, Questioned Answer. Actually, I should say the latest from Brian Lynch and up and coming jazz pianist Emmet Cohen. While I love Lynch’s trumpet on this album, its Cohen’s piano, that at least for me, makes this album special. Here’s what Brian Lynch says about his meeting and connection with Emmet Cohen…..
I first had the pleasure of making Emmet Cohen’s acquaintance in January 2011 on that year’s Jazz Cruise, where I was playing as a soloist and he was showcased with his trio from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, where he was then a student. I was really impressed with his playing, and I dug the young man’s personality, enthusiasm and knowledge of the jazz tradition.
Fast forward a few months, and I found myself in Miami as the new Professor of Jazz Trumpet at Frost (through a series of events precipitated on that cruise, a story for another time), and in proximity to Emmet on a daily basis as he finished his last year of undergraduate work. We were able to take advantage of the educational environment to schedule weekly playing sessions (“lessons”) where we could explore a lot of music in a duo format; at the same time.
I was more fully exposed to the breadth of his talent as a player and composer through frequent sessions and performance situations. He checked out my music and picked up a few tips from me at the same time. Read More
Questioned Answer has ten tracks. Emmet Cohn wrote three of the tracks: “Dark Passenger”, “Distant Hollow” and “Petty Theft”.! Brian Lynch also wrote three tracks “Cambois”, “Buddy” and the title track “Question Answered”. Both “Cambios” the opening track and “Dark Passenger” are favorites of mine! Brian Lynch says this about the tracks “Buddy” and “Question Answered”…
Buddy is named for one of my mentors, pianist and vibist Buddy Montgomery (Wes’s brother). It’s a little reminiscent of his sophisticated Latin/funk tunes. The way the minor chords work through the outside sections can be interesting to the improvisor; you can either run the unorthodox movements or play soulfully (maybe even both?). You can get a groove happening on this one.
I would look for both older and younger artists whose music I was not familiar. I would also check out artists with foreign names or foreign instruments. Finally, I would look for musicians, who played my favorite instruments, particularly, vibraphone, Hammond B-3 and guitar.
I have mentioned before that I often use a review of the birthdays listed at AllAboutJazz.com as a way to explore new music. Many times I write a post about whose music I have discovered. The following posts was written back in 2013, about Lurrie Bell…..
Lurrie Bell carrying on the Chicago Blues tradition of his father Carey
From Wikipedia:
1947 – Carl Giammarese, American singer-songwriter and musician (The Buckinghams)
1949 – Loretta Devine, American actress and singer
1949 – Daniel Sivan, Israeli scholar and academic
1950 – Patrick Juvet, Swiss singer-songwriter and model
1951 – Eric Goles, Chilean mathematician and computer scientist
1951 – Chesley V. Morton, American businessman and politician
1952 – Keith Hart, Canadian firefighter, wrestler, and trainer
1952 – Glenn Hughes, English singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer
1952 – Jiří Paroubek, Czech soldier and politician, 6th Prime Minister of the Czech Republic
1952 – Bernadette Porter, English nun and educator
1952 – Joe Strummer, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2002)
1953 – Ivan Stang, American author, publisher, and director
1954 – Archie Griffin, American football player
1954 – Steve Smith, American drummer (Journey)
1954 – Mark Williams, New Zealand-Australian singer-songwriter
1956 – Kim Cattrall, English-Canadian actress
1956 – Jon Tester, American farmer and politician
1957 – Frank Pastore, American baseball player and radio host (d. 2012)
1958 – Mark Williams, Australian footballer and coach
1959 – Anne Hobbs, English tennis player and coach
1959 – Jim McMahon, American football player and coach
1961 – Gerardo Barbero, Argentinian chess player and coach (d. 2001)
1961 – V. B. Chandrasekhar, Indian cricketer and coach
1961 – Stephen Hillenburg, American marine biologist, cartoonist, and animator
1962 – John Korfas, Greek-American basketball player and coach
1963 – Mohammed VI of Morocco, King of Morocco
1963 – Nigel Pearson, English footballer and manager
1964 – Gary Elkerton, Australian surfer
The two highlighted names on the above list are the artist whose music is a part of my music library. Interestingly, the music included in my library is not from the bands most typically associated with each artist. Glenn Hughes is usually associated with Deep Purple. However, the music in my library comes from the time he spent with the band Black Country Communion.
Likewise, the music of Carl Giammarese is not from The Buckinghams but rather from the time after The Buckinghams disbanded and Carl formed a duo with his band mate Dennis Tufano. They recorded three albums as The Tufano & Giammarese Band.
I actually picked up the self-titled Tufano & Giammarese album after my future wife and I saw them at the Main Point in Bryn Mawr, Pa Dennis Tufano and Carl Giammarese were founding members of The Buckinghams of “Kind of a Drag” fame, which we didn’t know at the time!
From Wikipedia
Marty Grebb left The Buckinghams and eventually formed the band “The Fabulous Rhinestones.” Nick Fortuna left to play in R&B bands, forming his own band, “Crystal,” and John Poulos pursued music management. Giammarese started writing songs, as did Dennis Tufano. Tufano and Giammarese decided to form a duo. Leaving behind national teen idol images and reputations, they used the names “Dennis and Carl” as they played small Chicago club venues.
The duo recorded a demo of their compositions and used several members of the group Poco as session players on the recording session. Acting as their first manager, John Poulos took the demo to multiple Grammy winner Lou Adler, who signed the duo immediately and insisted on producing their first album, which carried their new identity as the title: “Tufano & Giammarese.”
Lou Adler generously shared publishing rights and royalties with the new duo. Dennis and Carl wrote material for three albums recorded for Adler’s Ode Records, “Tufano & Giammarese,” “The Tufano-Giammarese Band,” and “The Other Side (released on the Ode/Epic label)”
They worked with Adler, Jack Richardson (of Nimbus 9 Productions), Tom Scott and Hank Cicalo as producers on the second and third albums, respectively. Their first single from their self-titled album, “Music Everywhere,” went to the Top 50 on the charts as the duo chose not to capitalize on their previous identities as members of The Buckinghams.
Adler sent them on tour[6] with colleagues from Grammy winner Carole King, with good results, to Cheech and Chong, whose personalities clashed with the acoustic duo. Three albums later, the duo split and Tufano remained in California to pursue an acting career. Giammarese returned to Chicago. Read Full Biography
Anyway Tufano & Giammarese is a nice, laid back folk rock type album My favorite tracks on the album include: “Music Everywhere” , “Communicate” and a terrific cover of “I’m a Loser”
So let’s give a shout out to all those boomers who are celebrating their birthdays today. And to those like Joe Strummer who left us too early, we all miss you!
I’ll end with a special Happy Birthday to Carl Giammarese!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Carl Giammarese
From Wikipedia
Peter Edward “Ginger” Baker (born 19 August 1939) is an English drummer, best known as the founder of the rock band Cream.[1] Baker’s work in the 1960s earned him praise as “rock’s first superstar drummer”, although his individual style melded a jazz background with his interest in African rhythms. Baker is an inductee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Cream and is widely considered one of the most influential drummers of all time, recognised by his induction into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2008,[2] and his induction into the Classic Drummer Hall of Fame in 2016.[3] Baker is credited as a pioneer of drumming in genres like jazz fusion, heavy metal and world music Read More
I always say to my sons whenever we hear a drummer solo – “Well it’s good, but it’s no “Toad”. “Toad” is Baker’s 14-17 minute plus drum solo that can be found on Cream’s Wheels of Fire album. While Cream disbanded after 2 years., their impact has been felt throughout the history of rock. After Cream Baker joined one of the first super-groups. He teamed with Eric Clapton, Stevie Winwood and Rich Grech to form Blind Faith Blind Faith was another short-lived band. From Wikipedia
After briefly working with Clapton in Blind Faith and leading Ginger Baker’s Air Force, Baker spent several years in the 1970s living and recording in Africa, often with Fela Kuti, in pursuit of his long-time interest in African music.[5] Among Baker’s other collaborations are his work with Gary Moore, Masters of Reality, Public Image Ltd, Atomic Rooster, Bill Laswell, jazz bassist Charlie Haden, jazz guitarist Bill Frisell, and another personally led effort, Ginger Baker’s Energy.
Robert Plant is maybe the most recognizable voices in the history of rock music Consider the following from Wikipedia
Plant is regarded as one of the greatest singers in the history of rock and roll; he has influenced fellow rock singer-songwriters such as Freddie Mercury, Axl Rose and Chris Cornell. In 2006, Heavy Metal magazine Hit Parader named Plant the “Greatest Metal Vocalist of All Time”. In 2009, Plant was voted “the greatest voice in rock” in a poll conducted by Planet Rock. In 2008, Rolling Stone editors ranked him number 15 on their list of the 100 best singers of all time. In 2011, Rolling Stone readers ranked Plant the greatest of all lead singers ! Read More
I know that when you listened to that first Led Zeppelin album WAY back in 1969, you knew you were listening to something special!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Ginger Baker and Robert Plant
Woo! Hoo! Today is the Winter Solstice!! That of course means, today is either the shortest day of the year or the longest night! I prefer to look at it as the shortest day and from here until the Summer Solstice the days keep getting longer!! I used to hate it when it was dark when I went to work in the morning and again when I came home in the evening.
For years i ran at 5:30 after work. I always hated it when daylight savings time ended and it would get dark before 5! I particularly hated it the night I sprained an ankle coming off of a sidewalk and not seeing the two by fours that someone had put along the curb so they could jump the curb! From that night on I have been leary of running at night!
Now that I work in the mornings and could run in the afternoon before it gets dark, I am not running at all! That has got to change soon!! The only thing I due hate now with these short days is getting up and ready for work in the dark! Come On Spring!!
Morning Exercises and Meditation
