New faces in old places

[Serial_Apologist]

Sat 2 April
4.00 Jazz Record Requests
Alyn Shipton introduces more listener requests, including 1920s jazz from Louis Armstrong's Hot 5 and their contemporarries, the New Orleans Wanderers

http://www.alynshipton.co.uk/blog

Sat 2 April
5.00 Jazz Line-Up
Julian Joseph introduces music from the South Coast Jazz Festival, recorded in late January in Shoreham-by-Sea, with performances by clarinettist Arun Ghosh and his band. Their set also features a tribute to the late David Bowie, in the form of Ghosh's arrangement of The Man Who Sold the World

South Coast Jazz - is that hot, cold, or just greasy??

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b075p043

Sat 2 April
12.00 Geoffrey Smith's Jazz
Philadelphia-born saxophonist-composer Benny Golson, now 87, has divided his career between solo playing with the likes of Art Blakey and writing standards such as I Remember Clifford. Geoffrey Smith celebrates both sides of a formidable talent. First broadcast in 2014

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04hvrg0

Mon 4 April
11.00 Jazz Now - New Series
In the first edition of Radio 3's new regular jazz slot, Jazz Now, Soweto Kinch introduces a concert set from Kings Place, London, by the new British trio Malija

Malija consists of saxist Mark Lockheart - one of the better players to emerge from Loose Tubes, imv; Dane Jasper Hoiby on bass; and the much admired (by me!) Liam Noble on piano. The link for the programme took some time to find through the BBC labyrinth - other info to be found on there.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b075fpjs

[Serial_Apologist]

According to Barbara Thompson, The Keith Emerson single "version" of Meade Lux Lewis's most famous tune, comprising Disc 11 on this afternoon's JRR, was backed by the New Jazz Orchestra. By this time the band didn't actually go under the NJO name but was still being assembled for Neil Ardley's projects, such as the "Kaleidoscope of Rainbows" of the year prior to this track; and she didn't say Neil was involved in this single, which got into the charts, and I imagine that accounts for the utube clip below. There are glimpses of Barbara and of a male sax player I thought might be Alan Skidmore, except for this being an alto from what I can make out - the footage being very blurred.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Va1WyPdxyqs

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

From Record Collector...Found...A rare 1963 recording recorded in the front room of Keith Emerson's council house by his trio...
"Reproduced to the same specifications as the original 10" acetate you can now get an amazing look into the genesis of one of the world's greatest keyboard (Whaaaaa?) players as he runs through some great jazz standards by the likes of Hank Mobley, Oliver Nelson as well as 57 Blues composed by Emerson himself and named after the house number where the recordings were made. This is vinyl heaven, British Jazz, a legendary prog-rocker and a mega rarity"

I think we'll be the judge of that...

BN.

[Ian Thumwood]

I am surprised that some of the selections on JRR didn't prompt further comment. It was a bit sad to hear of the passing of so many musicians including the great Nana Vasconcelos who I first encountered with Jan Garbarek in the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh. He has always seemed to me to be the perfect conduit through which people from outside jazz would be able to get in the music. Someone once told me that he got in to recording after he was seen teaching handicapped children where his charisma and arsenal of peculiar percussions instruments would have been immediately appealing. He was one of the great characters in contemporary music as my musical tastes expanded in the 1980s and it was good to be acquainted once more with the Egberto Gismonti track. These days ECM can be a pretty humourless record label and maybe a bit too earnest but it is nice to be reminded that, at one time, it was refreshingly original and fun too. I think that the Bill Evans track was very much a precursor to what ECM would ultimately offer. Wondered if fans checking out his music then could have predicted Manfred Eicher issuing a multitude of piano trios that took their cues from performances like "Jade Visions." Evans was probably the principle jazz musician to have eluded Eicher's attentions but there can be no other group that has had such an influence on a whole record label as Evans' original trio - albeit they were probably a little bit noisy judging by ECM's current standards.

However, the vintage tracks were the more interesting selections. I love Andy Kirk's band from the 1930's and it is easily one of the most recognisable big bands of that era. Later editions of the band were never as good as the original outfit which benefited from Mary Lou Williams' brilliant writing and playing as well as the most criminally under-rated of tenor titans from that era, Dick Wilson - much admired by his contemporaries. The Wanderers and Hot Five sessions were a brilliant contrast. This would make a good theme for later requests, perhaps. It is hard to appreciate just how radical Armstrong was but, to my ears, the stiff playing of the banjo in the first track accounted for as much of the archaic nature as the absence of Armstrong. I have always been curious about George Mitchell as he was a cornet player who elevated Jelly Roll Morton's RHP sessions with an urbane assurance that didn't really deserve to be wiped out by Armstrong's innovations. Dodd's clarinet playing was also impressive and it is remarkable to consider just how much that instrument had been even more transformed by Benny Goodman. It is almost tragic that the first generation of jazz musicians became a nostalgia act since first recording and that the whole process happened even quicker than the duration of Jazz on 3. Had Jez been around in the 1930's, it would have been intriguing to see how he would have considered his choices of music to have been "cutting edge" as the music was changing so fast.

Like the Ernestine Anderson tracks too. Nice to be able to agree with Claire Martin for one - probably a first for me.

[Serial_Apologist]

Mon 4 April
11.00 Jazz Now - New Series
In the first edition of Radio 3's new regular jazz slot, Jazz Now, Soweto Kinch introduces a concert set from Kings Place, London, by the new British trio Malija

Malija consists of saxist Mark Lockheart - one of the better players to emerge from Loose Tubes, imv; Dane Jasper Hoiby on bass; and the much admired (by me!) Liam Noble on piano. The link for the programme took some time to find through the BBC labyrinth - other info to be found on there.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b075fpjs

Did anyone else give this a listen?

I thought it was OK - give it time to bed in and Soweto will sound less like he's reading from a script, and for me, speaking of Tord Gustavsen, he sounded just the right note of equivocation. Liam Noble's project was a good one to start off the new transmission. The two other interviewers sounded comfortable as well - it's be interesting to hear how well Emma Smith deals with guitar players in talking to John Etheridge next week. Terrific tracks of Larry Young and Woody Shaw in Paris in '64 at the end, but details of the rest of the personnel were missed on, unless my attention was deflected. I get the impression that Jazz Now is going to be more in the style of Jazz Line-Up than Jezza's programme.

[Quarky]

Yes I gave it a listen this morning.

In overview, I found it very acceptable and pitched at the right level for me. Soweto came across very well and personable. Jazz Line Up - even shades of "In-Tune"!

Jezz unfortunately often went over my head, and I suspect, many of the mainstream Jazz listeners. However I wish Jezz well in his new assignment, in the cold hard world of commercial radio!

[Old Grumpy]

Yes I gave it a listen this morning.

In overview, I found it very acceptable and pitched at the right level for me. Soweto came across very well and personable. Jazz Line Up - even shades of "In-Tune"!

On the basis of the first half hour (too late for a full listen - will catch up) I agree entirely.

Edit: Enjoyed the rest too. Looking good!

Jezz unfortunately often went over my head, and I suspect, many of the mainstream Jazz listeners. However I wish Jezz well in his new assignment, in the cold hard world of commercial radio!

Getting colder and harder at the Beeb now as well, I suspect.

OG

[Jazzrook]

This Friday(8 April, 7-9pm) on BBC 6 Music, Iggy Pop & New York Times jazz critic Ben Ratliff "give an American perspective to an exploration of what was happening in music during the 1950s".
Hopefully, some jazz recordings will be included.

JR

[PUSB]

Iggy usually plays some jazz but didn't know who Lee Morgan was (his taste is usually good, though).

[Jazzrook]

Iggy usually plays some jazz but didn't know who Lee Morgan was (his taste is usually good, though).

I was amazed that Iggy didn't know who Lee Morgan was but he can be forgiven for playing tracks by Miles, Mingus, Coltrane, Dolphy, Sun Ra & Pharoah Sanders in the past.
Should be worth a listen with Ben Ratliff on BBC 6 Music tonight(Friday, April 8, 7-9pm).

JR

[PUSB]

Completely agree Jazzrook - he can be forgiven and he seemed to think the name was familiar.