The passing of Chico Hamilton this week reminded me of how great Gerry Mulligan was. I doubt whether there's any video of his early '50s quartet with Chet Baker and Hamilton, but fortunately, there is some footage of his late '50s version with Art Farmer, trumpet; Bill Crow, bass; and Dave Bailey, drums. From Newport in 1958 and the film Jazz on a Summer's Day (1959), here's "As Catch Can."
If you'd like a longer set by the same quartet, this is an hour-long 1959 concert from Rome. Mulligan even plays some piano. About half the songs are from the 1959 LP What is There to Say?
West Coast jazz drummer Chico Hamilton died Monday, November 25, in Manhattan at the age of 92. He is known
for his “subtle and melodic” approach to drumming that featured
mallets as well as sticks, and for a quintet he led between 1954 and
1959 that was unique in its instrumentation and its integration of
jazz with classical music.
Foreststorn Hamilton was born on
September 21, 1921 in Los Angeles. His brother was the actor Bernie
Hamilton. The nickname “Chico” came from the fact that he was
small in stature. At Jefferson High School, he studied with jazz
teacher Sam Browne, where his classmates included Dexter Gordon,
Charles Mingus and Buddy Collette. His first gig came in 1940 with
Lionel Hampton's band, and he played with other swing bands such as
Count Basie and Charlie Barnet. After serving in World War II, he
worked as an accompanist to Lena Horne, and became immersed in the
laid back “cool jazz” sound of Southern California.
He was an original member of baritone
saxophonist Gerry Mulligan's pianoless quartet, which also featured
Chet Baker on trumpet. Here's a brief sample.
Given the opportunity to record by
Pacific Jazz, he formed a quintet in 1954 that consisted of Collette
on flute and alto sax, Fred Katz on cello, Jim Hall on guitar and
bassist Carson Smith. This is their 1956 version of “The Wind.”
Over the years, there were several
personnel changes. Musicians who played with Hamilton's quintet
included saxophonists Paul Horn, Eric Dolphy and Charles Lloyd, and
guitarists Gabor Szabo and Larry Coryell. This clip from the 1959
film Jazz on a Summer's Day was recorded at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival and features Eric Dolphy
on the flute.
Although
it's now out-of-print, The Complete Pacific Jazz Recordings
of the Chico Hamilton Quintet on
Mosaic is highly recommended. He also recorded for Impulse, Columbia
and Soul Note. When cool jazz lost favor in the '60s, Hamilton
switched to a more aggressive, hard bop style. Here is his 1966
recording, “The Dealer,” featuring Coryell.
After writing soundtracks for The
Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
and Roman Polanski's Repulsion,
Hamilton began producing film and television music. He led various
groups through the '80s, and remained active until his death. He has
a CD scheduled for release in 2014. He spent two decades teaching at
the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York. He
received the Jazz Master award from the National Endowment for the
Arts in 2004, and the Kennedy Center's Living Jazz Legend award in
2007. Here is an interview done in conjunction with the release of his 2009
CD, Twelve Tones of Love.
As noted in Part 1, I've been called on to evaluate six self-produced CDs for the Blues Foundation. Here are my mini-reviews. I have nominated the first two for advancement to the next round of the competition. The others are in alphabetical order.
Kat Danser, Baptized By the Mud
Kat Danser is a singer-songwriter from
Alberta, Canada. The guitar work by
Steve Dawson, who also produced, is top notch throughout. He also
plays banjo and pedal steel. Daryl Havers' piano, when called upon,
is appropriately funky. Background vocals add texture to several of
the songs.
Ms. Danser's natural singing voice is a
strong contralto, similar to Tracy Chapman, but she's also capable of
excursions into a higher register. Of the twelve songs, she wrote eight. Danser's songs are mostly about personal relationships, but
her lyrics are several notches more sophisticated than most contemporary blues. On “Sweet Baybay,” she modestly compares herself to her lover.
“Crazy For You” is a love song in
the guise of a European travelogue (or vice versa). Her self-image, as reflected by “Winsome,
Losesome,” is of someone who is capable of intense highs and lows.
In a slightly different context, “Hear Me Out, Think It Over”
would make a great '50s doo-wop song. The title song, featuring
banjo and accordian accompaniment, has (for me) no obvious interpretation, but
it sounds mythic and intense. “Notes From the Other Side” is
written from the perspective of someone who is dead.
The program is nicely balanced by four
covers. There is an effective arrangement of the spiritual, “Oh
Mary, Don't You Weep,” and the somewhat obscure Barry Mann-Cynthia
Weil-Brenda Russell civil rights anthem, “None of Us Are Free,”
from Solomon Burke's CD Don't Give Up on Me. Finally, there
are two traditional blues: “You Gotta Move” by Mississippi Fred
McDowell, and Ma Rainey's lesbian manifesto “Prove It on Me
Blues,” which casts an entirely
different light on the lyrics of some of the other songs.
The packaging is absolutely
top-of-the-line, featuring beautiful artwork by A Man Called
Wrycraft, and lyrics to all of the songs. For a while, the entire CD is available here, but you have to consent to some loss of privacy.
Big Jim Adam, Cajun Moon
From the opening notes of Robert
Johnson's “Come in My Kitchen,” it is clear that Big Jim Adam is
an accomplished slide guitarist with a relaxed but powerful singing
voice. A veteran blues man from Colorado, now living
in Florida, he is a previous contestant in the International Blues
Challenge, along with pianist John Stilwagen. Adam functions as a
one-man band on all but three of the twelve songs, playing slide
guitar, harmonica and doing percussion with his feet—and yes, he
does sound a bit like Dr. Ross at times.
This CD has some liabilities. It's not
all blues. The title song, written by Adam, is a country waltz
featuring violin by Jody Adams. The pop tune “If It Hadn't Been
for Love” also has a country flavor. The last thing blues fans needed was new versions, no
matter how competently done, of “Frankie and Johnny” and “John
Henry.” (My need for covers of these songs ended almost 50 years
ago, when I heard Mississippi John Hurt's definitive versions.)
Finally, there is a throwaway cut, “Heard It From Big Llou,” an
R&B duet with Adam's friend, Big Llou Johnson, with Stilwagen on
piano.
But when he is good, he is very, very
good. In “If I Was the Devil,” he tells us how he would tempt—and
scare—us into misbehavior. He would "promise you comfort, in trade for control." There are four other original tunes. “What
Owns You” is a social commentary on consumerism. On “Gumbo
Ya Ya,” about gossip, he gets strong support from
saxophonist George Whitesell. The haunting “Grasping at the Wind”
claims lyrics based on the Book of Ecclesiastes. (I wouldn't know.)
“Down on My Knees,” continues with the religious theme.
Finally, there are two well-chosen
covers, “Come in My Kitchen,” and in an interesting
contrast, a soft version of Keb Mo's “Henry.” Here's a low fidelity live take of "Kitchen." It sounds much better on the CD.
Chris Antonik, Better For You
Chris Antonik is a
singer-guitarist-songwriter from Toronto whose songs fall into the
category of blue-eyed soul. Not only does he have a tight band with
organ, bass and drums, but five of the songs have horn accompaniment
and there are some background vocals. This is a highly professional
CD.
Antonik is willing to share the
spotlight. He sings only six of the eleven songs. Organist Josh
Williams sings three, plus there is one each by guest artists Shakura
S'Aida and Mike Mattison (of the Tedeschi-Trucks Band).
The CD gets off to a rousing start with
“Long Way to Go,” an up tempo rocker featuring Steve Marriner on
harmonica. But the highlights of the CD are three Southern soul
ballads. “Broken Man” features an intense Mattison vocal. Here it is:
But
Antonik also has a nice way with slow tunes. On “Tell Me What You
Need,” he plays with time, stretching verses beyond the standard 16
bars. The inspirational ballad “I'll Help You Through” is a fine
choice to conclude the album.
Another highlight is a lively version
of Big Walter Horton's “Have a Good Time.” The vocal is by
Johnson, who also plays harmonica. He's accompanied by Antonik on
acoustic guitar. It's the only tune not written by Antonik and/or a
member of his band. It's an outlier, and a welcome change of pace.
Blind-Dog, Ashbrooke Sessions
Blind-Dog is Michael Gatewood, a
singer, slide guitarist and harmonica player from Indiana. I found
out his given name from the internet; there are no liner notes. I'm
not sure whether he is blind; the cover photo shows him wearing
shades. He is a solo artist. He chats briefly between songs, but
there is no audience. At the conclusion, he thanks us for listening.
Two of the songs are instrumentals—one
on guitar and the other, harmonica. The authors of the songs are not
indicated, but I don't recognize them and I assume they are
originals. Although unfamiliar, they have familiar themes such as
“Gone to California” and “High Water.” My favorite is “Blow,
Whistle, Blow,” about a man fleeing the cops who is waiting to hop
on a train. The chords sound great on Blind-Dog's National steel
guitar, and his strong harp is an effective stand-in for the train
whistle. Instrumentally, my only complaint is that some of his slide
playing sounds a bit too chattery for my taste.
This CD could have been my second
choice but for one problem. It has seven songs songs for a running
time of less than 25 minutes. You might say it's an EP rather than
an LP. To evaluate it simply on the basis of the average quality of
these songs seems unfair to the other contestants.
The Eric Hughes Band, Drink Up
The
Eric Hughes Band is a popular, veteran group that plays well-known
clubs in the Memphis area. He recently celebrated his tenth
anniversary on Beale Street. This is his fourth CD. In spite of the
band's apparent prosperity, the packaging is minimal, not even
indicating the authors of the songs. I'm going to assume they are
originals, with the exception of “Mama Don't Allow,” which is
given a John Lee Hooker-style treatment and Sleepy John Estes' “Going
to Brownsville.”
The
title song leads off the CD and announces loudly and clearly that
this is a bar band. The problem is that what sounds good as
background music when you're drinking and talking with friends may
leave something to be desired when you're sitting alone, giving your
full attention to the music.
For me
there were two highlights. “Tested Positive For the Blues“ is a
novelty number which reminds me of some of Rick Estlin's recent
tunes. “That's My Baby's Mama” is a catchy pop tune with an
original way of stating a common theme—that the singer is still
hung up on one of his ex-girlfrends.
“Going
to Brownsville” has its highs and lows. It begins with some
presumably deliberate microphone distortion, perhaps in the hope of
giving it an old-timey sound. It doesn't work for me, but once the
band starts playing, it settles into a very nice groove.
Unfortunately, it goes on too long, with Hughes singing the same
chorus over and over. I mention this because the same thing happens
on the guitar instrumental, “Raining on Beale.” It has a great
hook, but they run it into the ground by repeating about 20 times.
Rather than these boring repetitions of
the melody, wouldn't it be better to give the musicians more solo space?
Lady
Dee, Me and the Boyz, It Will Be Done
Lady
Dee is, I presume, Deanna Custard, a soul singer from Wichita with a
voice that reminds me of Tina Turner. She is backed by a
mediocre-sounding band consisting only of guitar, bass and drums. It
would be interesting to see what she could do with more and better
instrumentation.
She is
at her powerful best on two soul ballads. The opening song, “Never
Believe,” is the highlight of the set, and “Living in the Past”
is a close second. Both songs were written by Lady Dee, who also
wrote the up-tempo title tune.
Unfortunately,
I found the rest of the CD to be entirely forgettable. There
are two instrumentals by Spencer Cummings, who is probably the
group's guitarist, and three covers, including Johnny “Guitar”
Watson's desultory “I Want to Ta-Ta You.”
Here's Otis Rush performing at the American Folk Blues Festival in 1966. The song is his first hit, "I Can't Quit You, Baby," recorded a decade earlier. He's accompanied by Jack Myers on bass and Fred Below on drums. The introduction is by Roosevelt Sykes.
Each year, the Blues Foundation
encourages less well-known blues artists without recording contracts
by giving an award for the best self-produced CD. In 2007, I was
invited to be a judge at the semi-final
level. They sent me two CDs, and I was to pick one for advancement
to the finals. I chose Sophisticated Ladies
by Sue Palmer and her Motel Swing Orchestra. Sue Palmer is a
boogie-woogie pianist who plays jump blues in the style of late-'40s,
early-'50s women like Camille Howard and Hadda Brooks. It's music
from back in the day when the was considerable overlap between the jazz, blues and R&B markets. I loved it. My judgment couldn't have been
too far off the mark, because the album went on to win the prize.
Nevertheless, I was
never asked to be a judge again until a couple of weeks ago, when I
got an email from Joe Whitmer, Deputy Director of the Blues
Foundation. I told him I no longer have a radio program, but I guess
they were desperate. I think I'm participating in the first round of the contest this time. Yesterday I got a package containing six CDs. I'm to simply pick my first and second choices; no
justification is needed. My decision is due on the 28th,
Thanksgiving Day.
There are 77 CDs entered in the competition. Each was nominated by a local blues society affiliated with the Blues Foundation. The Blues Society of Western PA has an entry, Empty Roads, by Dan Bubien. The winner will be announced at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis on January 25.
These are the six CDs they sent me:
Big
Jim Adam, Cajun Moon
Chris
Antonik, Better
For You
Blind
Dog, Ashbrooke Sessions
Kat
Danser, Baptized By the
Mud
Lady
Dee, Me and the Boyz, It
Will Be Done
The
Eric Hughes Band, Drink
Up
Of the six, I'm
only slightly familiar with Eric Hughes, whose music has appeared on
a couple of samplers issued by Blues Review and Big City
Rhythm and Blues magazines.
Here are the
criteria, in descending order to importance.
Blues
content (Is this a blues recording?)
Musical
performance (musicianship)
Audio
quality of the presentation (production values, levels)
Cover
art and design (professional packaging, ready for the rack at your
favorite musical outlet?)
Credits
and liner information (informative, professional)
Since
a couple of the CDs have only minimal packaging and liner notes, I'm
wondering how I will weight this if they turn out to have the best
music. Music rules, I think. It should be fun. Everyone likes to
be asked their “profesional opinion.” I'll let you know how it
goes.
Along with all his other activities, DJ Alan Freed fronted a great band in the '50s. It played at all his live shows and released three LPs. These two clips are from the 1956 film Rock, Rock, Rock. The tenor saxophone soloist on "Rock and Roll Boogie" is Freddie Mitchell. He wrote the song and had previously recorded it under the title "Moondog Boogie." ("Moondog" was a Freed nickname, but he had to abandon it when he was sued by a street performer who used the same name.) Unfortunately, there is a totally distracting voice-over by Freed.
This second tune, "Right Now, Right Now," features Big Al Sears, who was also its composer. It eventually became Freed's theme song.
You may recognize two familiar faces among the dancers. Tuesday Weld was the film's lead actress. Her boyfriend was played by Teddy Randazzo, lead singer of the pop group, the Three Chuckles (ho, ho, ho), who also had a brief solo career. Freed's third tenor sax soloist, Sam "the Man" Taylor, doesn't appear to have been present when this was filmed.
For a brief time in 2006-2008, Watermelon Slim was the flavor of the
month in blues. He released three successful albums—Watermelon
Slim and the Workers (2006), The Wheel Man (2007) and No
Paid Holidays (2008)—and walked off with some end of year
awards. His off-key Southern drawl and unpolished style seemed
refreshing. I managed to put aside my reservations about his
politically incorrect nickname when I heard his populist lyrics. But
then he released a couple of country CDs and seemed to disappear from
the blues scene. He's back with a new album of mostly blues. It
doesn't seem nearly as refreshing.
Watermelon Slim is William Homans, a retired truck driver from
Oklahoma City. He plays the harmonica and slide guitar with a great
deal of enthusiasm and not inconsiderable skill. His music is a
mixture of blues, country and gospel. The present album contains six
covers and ten originals, nine of which are written by Slim. The
tenth, a harp-guitar instrumental, “The Wobble,” was penned
by drummer Michael Newberry.
He leads off the album with a spirited version of Junior Wells'
“Tomorrow Night,” which features his most nuanced harp solo. Here is a less polished version from a 2010 performance.
He covers Slim Harpo's two best-known songs, “I'm a King Bee”
and “Scratch My Back,” without improving on them. Woody
Guthrie's “Vigilante Man” is done to a rock background and a
marching snare drum. The other two covers are a cappella
versions of the gospel song “Take My Mother Home” and a folk
song, “Northwest Passage.”
Slim's writing is inconsistent. The title tune is an up-tempo
variation on the standard, “Little Red Rooster,” in which Slim
tries to one-up the original's double entendre.
My favorite cut on the CD, “Blue Freightliner,” is musically almost a copy
of Junior Parker's “Mystery Train.” “Trucking Class,” in
which Slim's defends the honor of truck drivers against the criticism
of an intellectual snob, is pure country in its lyrics and
accompaniment. “Prison Walls,” the only other cut posted on the
internet, is a typical inside-the-prison lament with a monotonous
rock background.
Two political songs, “A Wrench in the Machine” and “Foreign
Policy Blues” also suffer from overloud backgrounds which overwhelm
some of the lyrics. The same could be said for the trivial “I
Ain't Whistlin' Dixie.”
The brown cloud that hangs over the entire proceedings is Slim's
vocals. The embarrassment is most evident on “Over the Horizon,” a
country ballad in which Slim duets with Danielle Schnebelen to honky tonk piano accompaniment by Dennis Borycki. It's a nice piece
of writing about a couple no longer in love but afraid to abandon
their security for an unknown future, but Slim ruins it with his
off-key singing. (But thanks for not changing your name, Danielle.)
As noted, Slim had the courage to tackle two songs a cappella.
His pitch is steadier on “Take My Mother Home,” which is more
comfortably within his range, but I couldn't stomach the sanctimonious
lyrics. On “Northwest Passage,” he is lost in the wilderness in
a song that seems to go on forever. “Words Are Coming to an End,”
the closing ballad with acoustic accompaniment by Gary Nicholson, is
Slim's take on mortality. It manages to be gloomy without being
enlightening.
I haven't been listening to Slim in recent years, but he hasn't
changed much. There are some good moments on this CD, but overall I can't recommend it. What seemed novel seven years ago now
makes me wonder what I could have been thinking.
Tracks:
Tomorrow Night; Bull Goose Rooster; Over the Horizon; Vigilante Man;
A Wrench in the Machine; I'm a King Bee; Prison Walls; Blue
Freightliner; Scratch My Back; I Ain't Whistlin' Dixie; Take My
Mother Home; The Wobble; Trucking Class; Northwest Passage; The
Foreign Policy Blues; Words Are Coming to an End. (62 min.).
Personnel:
Watermelon Slim, vocals,
harmonica, slide guitar; Ronnie “Mack” McMullen, guitar; Cliff
Belcher, bass; Michael Newberry, drums; Dennis Borycki, piano (1
track); Ike Lamb, guitar (1 track); Gary Nicholson, guitar (1 track);
Danielle Schnebelen, vocal (1 track).
This is a half-hour TV program, The Sound of Miles Davis, which was broadcast on CBS in April 1959. It starts with the Miles Davis Quintet doing "So What?" from Kind of Blue. In addition to Miles, they are John Coltrane, tenor sax; Wynton Kelly, piano; Paul Chambers, bass; and Jimmy Cobb, drums. Then they're joined by Gil Evans and the Orchestra to do three songs from Miles Ahead, "The Duke," "Blues for Pablo," and "New Rhumba."
The director, Jack Smight, did dozens of TV dramas and 17 feature films, i.e., Harper, with Paul Newman. The announcer is Robert Herridge, whom I don't remember at all.
The
big news is that the readers have elected Pat Metheny to the Downbeat
Hall of Fame. Each year, both the critics and the readers elect a
new member. This year, the critics chose Charlie Haden. It is interesting that Metheny did not even place in the critics'
poll. The magazine listed the top 21 vote-getters and Metheny was
not among them. In addition, the critics chose Bill Frisell as the
best guitarist, with Metheny finishing a distant second. Pat
Metheny, of course, has a reputation as a jazz lightweight, although some of his recent albums have received better critical receptions.
On the
other hand, both the critics and the readers agreed that this was
Wayne Shorter's year. They both chose him in the following
categories: jazz artist, jazz group, jazz album (Without a
Net) and soprano saxophone.
Here are the winners in all the categories.
Critics
Readers
Hall of Fame
Charlie Haden
Pat Metheny
Jazz Artist
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter
Jazz Group
Wayne Shorter Quartet
Wayne Shorter Quartet
Big Band
Darcy James Argue's Secret Society/Maria Schneider Orchestra
(tie)
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra
Trumpet
Dave Douglas
Wynton Marsalis
Trombone
Wycliffe Gordon
Trombone Shorty
Soprano Saxophone
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter
Alto Saxophone
Rudresh Mahanthappa
Kenny Garrett
Tenor Saxophone
Joe Lovano
Sonny Rollins
Baritone Saxophone
Gary Smulyan
Gary Smulyan
Clarinet
Anat Cohen
Anat Cohen
Flute
Nicole Mitchell
Hubert Laws
Piano
Jason Moran
Keith Jarrett
Keyboard
Robert Glasper
Herbie Hancock
Organ
Joey DeFrancesco
Joey DeFrancesco
Guitar
Bill Frisell
Pat Metheny
Bass
Christian McBride
Christian McBride
Electric Bass
Stanley Clarke
Stanley Clarke
Violin
Regina Carter
Regina Carter
Drums
Jack DeJohnette
Jack DeJohnette
Vibes
Stefon Harris
Gary Burton
Percussion
Cyro Baptista
Poncho Sanchez
Miscellaneous Instrument
Bela Fleck (banjo)
Bela Fleck (banjo)
Female Vocalist
Cassandra Wilson
Diana Krall
Male Vocalist
Kurt Elling
Kurt Elling
Composer
Wadada Leo Smith
Wayne Shorter
Arranger
Darcy James Argue
Maria Schneider
Jazz Album
Wayne Shorter, Without a Net
Wayne Shorter, Without a Net
Historical Album
Miles Davis, Live in Europe, 1969
Miles Davis, Live in Europe, 1969
Record Label
ECM
Blue Note
Blues Artist
Dr. John
B. B. King
Blues Album
Dr. John, Locked Down
Dr. John, Locked Down
Beyond (neither blues nor jazz) Artist
Robert Glasper Experiment
Robert Glasper Experiment
Beyond Album
Jose James, No Beginning, No End
Donald Fagen, Sunken Condos
The critics and readers agreed on 16 of
34 categories. This total is somewhat inflated by some categories in
which there are few viable candidates, i. e.,
baritone saxophone, violin. Although Trombone Shorty may appear to
be an outlier, he finished third among the critics. The readers'
choice finished fifth or lower among the critics in the following
categories: big band, trumpet, alto saxophone, flute, piano,
percussion, and female vocalist.
In
case you were wondering which albums the readers preferred, the top
ten are:
Wayne
Shorter Quartet, Without a Net
Keith
Jarrett/Gary Peacock/Jack DeJohnette, Somewhere
John
McLaughlin and the 4th
Dimension, Now Here This
Chick
Corea/Gary Burton, Hot House
Branford
Marsalis Quartet, Four MFs Playin' Tunes
Pat
Metheny, Unity Band
Darcy
James Argue's Secret Society, Brooklyn Babylon
Frank Wess, a tenor sax and flute
player known for his long tenure with the Count Basie Orchestra, died at the age of 91 in Manhattan last Wednesday, October 30. The cause
was a heart attack related to kidney failure.
Frank Wess was born in Kansas City on
January 4, 1922, and grew up in Oklahoma. His parents were
schoolteachers who encouraged his interest in music, and he began
playing the saxophone at age 10. In 1935, the family moved to
Washington, D.C., where, while in high school, he met his lifelong
friend, Billy Taylor. He played tenor saxophone and clarinet in the
Army Band during World War II.
After the war, he played with the Billy
Eckstine Orchestra and smaller groups led by pianist Eddie Heywood
and R&B shouter Bullmoose Jackson. Meanwhile, he studied flute
at the Modern School of Music in Washington. In 1953, he got a call
from Count Basie.
For 11 years, Wess was a vital member
of Basie's “New Testament” band, where he regularly engaged in
“battles” with fellow tenor sax man Frank Foster. Foster was the
“tough guy,” while Wess had a softer tone, reminiscent of Lester
Young. This is their 1954 recording, “Two Franks,” by Neal
Hefti. The person who posted this video has alternated pictures of
Wess and Foster to let you know who is soloing. (Wess solos first.)
Wess was more responsible than anyone
else for establishing the flute as a jazz instrument. He won the
Down Beat critics' poll on
flute every year from 1959 to 1964. Here he is with Basie
doing “Cute” in 1960. Sonny Payne is the drummer.
Wess also composed and arranged for the
Basie band. This is not his arrangment, but I found a 1962 video in
which Wess solos on the Basie classic, “Corner Pocket.” The two
trumpeters are Thad Jones and Al Aarons.
After leaving Basie, Frank Wess
performed and recorded regularly, both as a sideman and as a leader,
and was featured in orchestras on Broadway and television. In the
'80s, he and Frank Foster formed a quintet, Two Franks, that remained
together on and off for two decades. This song, “Shufflin'” is
from the 1962 LP Southern Comfort
and features Al Aarons on trumpet, Tommy Flanagan on piano and Ray
Barretto on congas.
Frank
Wess continued to play and record beautifully into his nineties. In
2006, he and pianist Hank Jones recorded the critically-acclaimed CD
Hank and Frank, which
was followed by Hank and Frank II
three years later. In February, he released Magic 101
with pianist Kenny Barron. A Magic 201
is said to be in the can.
We end with the piece de resistance, Frank Wess, introduced by Billy Taylor, playing
“Lush Life” at the Manchester Craftsman's Guild in Pittsburgh in
2004.
The talented but underrated blues
singer, guitarist and songwriter Bobby Parker died of a heart attack on Friday, November
1, at the Bowie Health Center in Bowie, MD. He was 76. Despite
being recognized by many rock musicians as an important influence, he
spent his life scuffling and only briefly made the pop music charts
in 1961.
Robert Lee Parker was born in
Lafayette, LA on August 31, 1937. His family moved to Los Angeles
when he was six, where he was exposed to jazz and blues on Central Avenue. In the mid '50s, he won a talent show sponsored by
R&B legend Johnny Otis. This led to his first regular gig, as a
guitar accompanist to Otis Williams and the Charms. He was probably most influenced by his time in Bo Diddley's band, but he also backed up LaVern Baker, Sam Cooke,
Clyde McPhatter and Jackie Wilson, among others.
In 1956, he toured with the Paul
Williams band and made his first record under the name “Bobby
Parks.” He sang the vocals on “Suggie, Duggie, Boogie Baby”
and “Once Upon a Time, Long Ago, Last Night,” two undistinguished
Williams efforts released on the Josie label. But in 1957, he recorded a blues classic, “Blues Get Off My Shoulder,” backed
with “You've Got What It Takes” on Vee Jay. Both songs were
written by Parker.
In 1959, “You've Got What It Takes”
was covered by Marv Johnson for Motown producer Berry Gordy, Jr., and
reached #2 on the R&B charts. In yet another example of Gordy ripping off performers, the label gave songwriting credits
to Gordy, his sister Gwen Fuqua and Roquel Davis. “Berry Gordy just stole it out from under me, just put his name on it," Parker said, "And what could I do? . . . How
was I going to go on and fight Berry Gordy, big as he was, and Motown
Records?”
In 1959, Parker recorded an R&B ballad, “Foolish
Love” (Amanda 1001), backed by an uncredited vocal group. His most
successful recording was “Watch Your Step,” recorded for
Washington, D. C. label V-Tone in 1961. It crossed over to #51 on
the pop music charts. Its distinctive guitar riff was used by the Beatles
on “I Feel Fine” and Led Zeppelin on “Moby Dick.” It has
been covered by artists such as the Spencer Davis Group, Piano Red (as Dr. Feelgood) and Carlos Santana.
Parker released five more singles between 1963 and 1968. He settled in the Washington, D.C.
area and played locally for several decades. In the '90s, he
recorded two excellent CDs on the Black Top label, Bent Out of
Shape (1993) and Shine
Me Up (1995). He has been a
regular performer at blues festivals for the last couple of decades.
He remained active until his death.
I was afraid there might be little to document Parker's career available on the internet, but I was mistaken. This biographical feature dates from 2009.
But here's the real treat: Bobby Parker doing a 71 minute set at the Montreux (Switzerland) Jazz Festival in 2004, with Carlos Santana joining him for the last three songs. The program: "Straight, No Chaser," "Break It Up," "Feel Like Breaking Up Somebody's Home," "Nothing But the Blues," "So Glad I Found You," "I Ain't Superstitious," "It's Unfair," "Drowning on Dry Land," "Chill Out," "Mellow Down Easy," and "Watch Your Step."
The quality of John Lee Hooker's singing and playing declined sharply as he got older, so I was pleased to find this clip of "Hobo Blues" from the American Folk Blues Festival's 1965 European Tour.
