Percy Sledge (1940-2015)

Southern soul balladeer Percy Sledge, best known for his 1966 hit, “When a Man Loves a Woman,” died on April 14 in Baton Rouge, LA, at the age of 74. He underwent surgery for liver cancer in 2014. Sometimes called the King of Slow Soul, he was known for his distinctive tenor voice and his pleading delivery.

Percy Tyrone Sledge was born to a poor family in rural Leighton, AL, on November 25, 1940. As a child, he picked cotton, sang in a church choir, and listened to country music, the only music available on his local radio station. He first performed at the age of 15 as a member of an a cappella vocal group.

He was working as a hospital orderly, while performing in local clubs with the Esquires Combo, when a patient heard him singing “Why Did You Leave Me, Baby?” in the hallways. He wrote the song after his girlfriend left town to pursue a modeling career. The patient brought him to the attention of record producer Quin Ivy. At Ivy's direction, the song was rewritten with the help of bassist Calvin Lewis and organist Andrew Wright of the Esquires, and retitled “When a Man Loves a Woman.” It was recorded at Muscle Shoals studio with Spooner Oldham's organ chording slowly in the background. The record was picked up by Atlantic Records, who signed him to a contract. It reached #1 on both the pop and R&B charts.

Here he is singing his signature tune about ten years ago.

For reasons that are unclear, the songwriting credits went only to Lewis and Wright. Sledge says he “gave” them the song, a decision which he later regretted. It cost him a considerable amount in royalties, since the song appeared on several film soundtracks and reached the top of the charts again in 1991 through a cover version by Michael Bolton.

Worst decision I ever made. But I am not at all bitter. It was God's will for me to give it to them. But if I had my time again, I wouldn't do it. Because of my children.

Eight of his other single records made the R&B charts between 1966 and 1974, including “Warm and Tender Love,” “It Tears Me Up,” and “Take Time to Know Her.” He also released four fine studio albums on Atlantic. Many of his album cuts were covers of Southern soul classics. A 4-CD collection of his Atlantic recordings was released on Rhino and is highly recommended if you can find it.

Percy Sledge continued to perform around the world and to record intermittently for almost 50 years. His 1994 CD, Blue Night, on the Sky Ranch label, was nominated for a Grammy award in the contemporary blues category. His 2004 Varese-Sarabande album, Shining Through the Rain, was also well-received. His final CD was a collection of gospel songs released in 2013.

Percy Sledge was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005. He is also a member of the Alabama Music Hall of Fame and the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame, and received a Rhythm and Blues Foundation Pioneer Award. “When a Man Loves a Woman” was ranked 53^rd on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest records of all time.

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Bobby Womack (1944-2014)

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Clark Terry (1920-2015)

© Reuters

Clark Terry, the jazz trumpeter, composer and educator, who was a member of the bands of both Count Basie and Duke Eliington, and who was said to have been a mentor to Miles Davis and Quincy Jones, died on Saturday, February 21, at the age of 94. He passed away at a hospice near his Pine Bluff, Arkansas home of complications from diabetes. Known for his technical proficiency and good humor, he had a career that spanned over 70 years, during which he was one of the country's most frequently recorded musicians. In addition to the trumpet, he helped popularize the flugelhorn and was a tongue-in-cheek scat singer.

Clark Terry was born to a poor family in St. Louis on December 12, 1920, the seventh of eleven children. His mother died when he was six, and his father discouraged his interest in music. Nevertheless, after graduating from high school, he started his carreer by barnstorming with local bands. In 1942, he joined the Navy and was assigned to the band. After the war, he joined the big band of George Hudson. This was followed by gigs with Charlie Barnet and Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson.

He rose to prominence as a member of Basie's band from 1948 to 1951, and with Ellington from 1951 to 1959.

After a brief stint with Quincy Jones, he became a staff musician with NBC and was a member of the Tonight Show band until 1972 when the program moved to Los Angeles. He became a household name through his bantering with Johnny Carson during “Stump the Band” sketches. Throughout this time, he played and recorded with small groups in both swing and hard bop styles. Here is playing flugelhorn on “Argentia,” a song he wrote and recorded with Thelonious Monk in 1958.

Beginning in 1967, Clark Terry was a member of Jazz at the Philharmonic. He played often with big bands at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and around the world, and toured in small groups with musicians such as Oscar Peterson, J. J. Johnson, Gerry Mulligan and Bob Brookmeyer. His discography includes about 80 albums as leader or co-leader and many more recordings as a sideman. Here he plays "Samba de Orfeu" at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1977.

While with Oscar Peterson he recorded “Mumbles,” a comic scat singing number which became one of his signature tunes. This performance is from 2007.

For many years, Clark Terry was an adjunct professor at William Paterson University in Wayne, NJ, which has an archive of his memorabilia. He received the NEA Jazz Master Award in 1991, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010, was inducted into the Jazz at the Lincoln Center Hall of Fame in 2013, and holds 16 honorary doctorates. His autobiography, Clark, was published in 2011. The 2014 documentary Keep On Keepin' On tells the story of his relationship to pianist Justin Kauflin, a student of his at William Paterson, with whom he continued to work after his diabetes forced him to retire to Pine Bluffs.

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Frank Wess (1922-2013)

Buddy De Franco

Our New Family Member, Django

When our beloved dog Chomsky passed away at age 14 in August, we thought it would be a long time before we adopted another. But then Tina found this one-year-old border terrier mix on the internet. He was once scheduled for euthanasia, but was rescued by Tracy's Dogs.

We've named him Django. We think it has a nice ring to it. It also honors jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt; Sergio Corbucci and Franco Nero, writer-director and star of the 1966 film Django; and Quentin Tarantino and Jamie Foxx of Django Unchained. He isn't completely socialized yet, but he's curious and bright and is learning quickly.

Video of the Week #100

There is very little video of B. B. King prior to his 1969 crossover hit, "The Thrill is Gone." This clip is far better than any others I've seen. It's a 30-min appearance on Jazz Casual from May 1968. He is backed by a small group of his band members:  Mose Thomas, trumpet; Lee Gatling, tenor sax; James Toney, piano; and Sonny Freeman, drums.  The songs are:

1. Whole Lotta Love
2. I've Got a Mind to Give Up Livin'
3. (I Think I'll Move to) The Jungle
4. Darling, You Know I Love You
5. That's Wrong, Little Mama

This is followed by an interview with host Ralph J. Gleason. He finishes with a slow blues instrumental which is probably untitled.

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Video of the Week #99

This week, some rare footage of guitarist Django Reinhardt, with Stephane Grappelli on violin and the Quintette du Hot Club de France playing "J'attendrai." This 1939 clip is from a documentary that tries to explain the meaning of jazz. You will notice that Reinhardt did not have the use of the last two fingers of his left hand, which were injured in a fire when he was 18.

Spaghetti western fans will be familiar with the 1966 film Django by Sergio Corbucci. (Quentin Tarantino paid tribute to it, and its star, Franco Nero, in Django Unchained.) Corbucci named the title character after Django Reinhardt. In the film, Django's hands were crushed by the bad guys, but he was still able to operate a machine gun in the final shootout.

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Johnny Smith (1922-2013)

Jim Hall (1930-2013)

CD Review: Various Artists, Speak Easy: The RPM Records Story, Volume 2, 1954-57

Not Recommended

As promised, Ace Records in the U. K. has followed up Volume 1 with a second 2-CD set of hits from the RPM label owned by the Bihari brothers of Los Angeles. This one covers the years 1954 through 1957. It is disappointing, in part because the recordings they have to choose from are not as good as the earlier RPM sides, and also due to some questionable choices of what songs to include.

The good news is that B. B. King recorded some of his best sides between 1954 and 1957, and this set includes nine of them. An interesting oddity is an extended alternate take of B. B. covering Tennessee Ernie Ford's hit “Sixteen Tons,” complete with a lengthy false start, an apology, and a completed version. There are also five terrific songs from Johnny “Guitar” Watson, and four rare selections by Chicago harmonica man George Smith, one of them the classic instrumental “Blues in the Dark.”

However, Ace's policy of including alternative takes when the master take has already been issued on another CD is called into question by what appears to be a blooper. The alternate take of Johnny Watson's “Ruben” features only a backing track by the band during the break. Missing is Watson's guitar solo, the highlight of the song. A mistake of a different kind is including Eugene Fox's two part lame attempt at comedy, “The Dream.”

I have two main problems with this set. First of all, beginning in 1956, RPM tried to expand into the pop market. There is, for example, an embarrassing early effort by Paul Anka. There are five rockabiily songs. As a result, the second CD includes about ten songs that are of little interest to R&B fans, who are, after all, the primary consumers of this set.

Next to B. B. King, RPM's biggest hits during this period were by R&B vocal groups. I've noticed that European R&B reissue labels prefer up tempo vocal group sides, while American collectors prefer ballads. Given my bias, not surprisingly, I'm disappointed with Ace's choices.

The Biharis' most successful group was the Jacks, who had six RPM releases and also recorded on Modern as the Cadets. (In general, the Jacks sang ballads and the Cadets did up tempo songs, but there were exceptions.) The Jacks receive only two selections here, their big hit “Why Don't You Write Me?” and the undistinguished jump tune “Sugar Baby.” Left on the table are several fine ballads by their smoky-voiced lead singer Willie Davis. If they felt the need to include an up tempo side, “How Soon” would have been a better choice. Fortunately, the entire Jacks/Cadets output is available on two Ace CDs.

Arthur Lee Maye and the Crowns were a top-notch West Coast group who had three RPM releases. Only one of them makes it onto this set. (By the way, did you know that Maye was also a major league outfielder/first baseman. As Lee Maye he for played 12 seasons (1959-1971), primarily with the Milwaukee Braves.) I can't quarrel with the inclusion of “Eddie, My Love” by the Teen Queens, since it was one of the label's biggest hits, but I'm unimpressed with their other two choices from this group. Clydie King and the Teens' cover of the Six Teens' “A Casual Look” has to be one of the “youngest” teen hits ever. And so it goes.

This set is not without its unexpected pleasures. I had heard of, but not heard, Little Eddie Lang (real name Langlois), a New Orleans singer-guitarist known for his row of gold front teeth. CD 2 contains one side of each of his two 1956 RPM releases, the only records he made. He is not to be confused with jazz guitarist Eddie Lang (real name Salvatore Massaro), who recorded some great instrumental duets with Lonnie Johnson and died in 1933.

There is some excellent R&B on these two CDs, but not enough to justify their purchase.

Disc 1: The Meadow Larks, Real Pretty Mama; Pass the Gin; Quinn Kimble, Feel My Broom; Connie Mack Booker, Love Me, Pretty Baby; Earl Curry, One Whole Year, Baby; Lover Boy (Ike Turner), The Way You Used to Treat Me; Lonnie the Cat, I Ain't Drunk; B. B. King, Don't You Want a Man Like Me?; You Upset Me, Baby; Every Day I Have the Blues; Crying Won't Help You; Preacher Stephens, Whoopin' and a-Hollerin'; The Chanters, She Wants to Mambo; Buddy Milton and the Twilighters, O-O-Wah; The Fox (Eugene Fox), The Dream, Parts 1 and 2; Johnny “Guitar” Watson, Hot Little Mama; Too Tired; Those Lonely, Lonely Nights; Arthur Lee Maye and the Crowns, Truly; Joe Houston, Shtiggy Boom; The Jacks, Why Don't You Write Me?; Little George Smith, Blues in the Dark; Oopin' Doopin' Doopin'; Donna Hightower, Doggone It; Hands Off; Johnny Wright, Suffocate. (74 min.)

Disc 2: B. B. King, Sixteen Tons; Did You Ever Love a Woman?; Sweet Little Angel; Bim Bam; I Wonder; The Teen Queens, Eddie, My Love; Billy Boy; Rock, Everybody; Johnny “Guitar” Watson, Ruben; She Moves Me; Little George Smith, Cross-Eyed Suzzie Lee; Down in New Orleans; The Jacks, Sugar Baby; Pat Cupp, Do Me No Wrong, Long Gone Daddy; Little Clydie and the Teens, A Casual Look; Richard Berry, Yama Yama, Pretty Mama; Eddie Lang, I'm All Alone; You Got to Crawl Before You Walk; Paul Anka, Blau-Wile-Deveest-Fontaine; The Jewels, She's a Flirt; Donna Hightower, He's My Baby; Maxwell Davis, Cool Diggin'; Jack Lewis, Bippin' and Boppin'; Prentice Moreland, Memories of You; Vido Musso, Speak Easy; Darrell Glenn, Hello, Baby; Don Cole, Snake-Eyed Mama. (73 min.)

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Joe Bihari (1925-2013)

CD Review: Various Artists, No More Doggin': The RPM Records Story, Volume 1, 1950-1953

Video of the Week #98

Thanks to the American Folk Blues Festival, a series of European tours organized by Willie Dixon in the 1960s, we have some of the best--and in some cases the only--video of many Chicago blues artists. Here, harmonica great Big Walter Horton plays an instrumental, "All Star Boogie," and a vocal, "It Ain't Right," accompanied by Lafayette Leake, piano; Lee Jackson, guitar; Willie Dixon, bass; and Clifton James, drums.

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Video of the Week #97

Here is J. J. Johnson playing "Like Someone in Love," from a 1961 French television program. He is accompanied by Pierre Michelot on bass and Kenny Clarke on drums.

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Video of the Week #96

Lloyd "Tiny" Grimes is one of the unsung heroes of the period when jazz and rhythm and blues were pretty much the same thing. His first major gig was in 1940 as guitar accompanist to the vocal group, The Cats and the Fiddle. In 1943 and 1944, he was a member of the Art Tatum Trio. For the next decade, he recorded with his own groups. One of those was an historic early bebop session from 1944 featuring Charlie Parker. In 1953, he played the guitar solo on The Crows hit record, "Gee."

In the early '50s, he billed himself as Tiny Grimes and his Rockin' Highlanders. Benny Golson, his tenor saxophonist for a short time, recalled being embarrassed at having to bar walk wearing kilts. His primary tenor man during this period was Red Prysock and his lead vocalist was Jalacy Hawkins, later known as Screamin' Jay Hawkins.

This is a soundie, "Never Too Old to Swing," from 1945, with Tiny taking the vocal. I'm not sure who the others are. My guess would be that it's John Hardee on tenor sax.

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Video of the Week #95

I can find very little video of jazz piano virtuoso Art Tatum (1909-1956). In this brief 1954 television appearance, he plays "Yesterdays."

Tatum also showed up at a jam session in the 1947 film The Fabulous Dorseys. The song is his composition, "Art's Blues." The other participants are Tommy Dorsey, trombone; Jimmy Dorsey, clarinet; Ziggy Elman, trumpet; Charlie Barnet, tenor sax; George Van Eps, guitar; Stuart Foster, bass; and Ray Bauduc, drums.

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Pianist Otis Spann was a member of Muddy Waters' band from 1952 until shortly before his death of cancer at age 40 in 1970. His solo recordings are among the best examples of Chicago blues from this classic era. "Spann's Blues" was performed at the 1963 American Folk Blues Festival. He is accompanied by Matt Murphy, guitar; Willie Dixon, bass; and Bill Stepney, drums. The introduction is by Victoria Spivey.

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Video of the Week #93

I hope this video will serve as a reminder of what a great pianist Erroll Garner was. This 35-min set is from a 1964 European tour. He is accompanied by Eddie Calhoun on bass and Kelly Martin on drums. Although I only recognized about half of these songs by name, fortunately someone has published a playlist:

• Honeysuckle Rose
• No More Shadows
• Mambo Erroll
• Penthouse Serenade
• Jeannine (I Dream of Lilac Time)
• Medley:  On the Street Where You Live/I Could Have Danced All Night
• All Yours
• The Lady is a Tramp
• Erroll's Theme

If you'd like to see and hear more, there's another Garner video from this same time period that runs slightly over an hour. It includes his signature tune, "Misty." Because it combines footage from two concerts, some of the songs are repeated.

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Jesse Fuller (1896-1976), largely forgotten today, was very popular during the folk-blues revival of the '60s. He was a one-man band, simultaneously playing 12-string guitar, harmonica or kazoo, the fotdella (foot-operated bass) with one foot and percussion with the other. This 14-minute clip from 1968 features "John Henry," "Red River Blues," and his signature tune, "San Francisco Bay Blues."

If you'd like hear more of the same, here's part 2.

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Video of the Week #91

I've been offline for a while due to problems with my Verizon internet connection, so I'm playing catch-up. Here are a couple of soundies from 1951.

Bob Crosby, younger brother of Bing, was a singer and bandleader from the '30s through the '50s. His band-within-a-band, the Bobcats, specialized in Dixieland jazz. Here they play "The March of the Bobcats." Five members of the octet are identified on screen. The others are Warren Smith, trombone; Nappy Lamare, guitar; and Bob Haggart, bass.

And now for something slightly different, a duet between Ray Bauduc and Bob Haggart, "Big Noise from Winnetka."

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Jackie Wilson replaced Clyde McPhatter as lead singer of the Dominoes in 1953 and remained with them for three years. He went on to a successful solo career that lasted almost two decades until, in 1975, he had a stroke on stage that left him in a vegetative state until he died nine years later. This sharp-looking clip from The Ed Sullivan Show comes from early in his solo career. The last of these three songs to be recorded was "Alone at Last" in 1960, so that's probably the date.

A bonus:  The picture is not as sharp, but the song, "Higher and Higher," released in 1967, is a Chicago soul classic.

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Video of the Week #59 (Otis Redding)

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Video of the Week #89

Jazz pioneer Earl "Fatha" Hines appears on Jazz Casual in 1963, accompanied by Johnny Green, bass, and Earl Watkins, drums. The set opens with "The One I Love Belongs to Somebody Else" and closes with "Love is Just Around the Corner." In between, Hines is interviewed by host Ralph J. Gleason and does a demonstration of how his piano technique changed during his career.

You might also want to check out this version of "Memories of You" from 1965.

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Video of the Week #88

I remember Louis Prima from the '50s and early '60s, when he was a jump blues singer whose act featured quite a bit of comedy. But he changed with the times. This surprisingly sharp looking 9-minute short, Swing Cat's Jamboree, is from 1938, when he fronted a New Orleans style jazz band and played more trumpet. Here's the program:

1. “Way Down Yonder in New Orleans”
2. “I Can't Give You Anything But Love” (Shirley Lloyd, vocal)
3. “Please Be Kind”
4. “You're an Education” (Ted Gary, vocal; Gary and Mitzi Dahl, dancers)
5. “Loch Lomond”

In addition to Prima, the band consists of Meyer Wemberg, clarinet; Frank Pinero, piano; Frank Prederico, guitar; Sherman Masinter, bass; and George Hirsh, drums and vibes. Some of the singing is corny, but be sure to stick around for “Loch Lomond.”

Since Louis Prima appeared on television often, there is no lack of clips from the '50s. Here's he is singing his biggest hit, “Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody,” with his wife, Keely Smith and his band, Sam Butera (tenor sax) and the Witnesses.

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Tim Hauser (1941-2014)

They [Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers] sang “I Promise to Remember” a cappella. I swear that was my turning point. That was God's way of saying, “Here's your gig, son, and if you don't get it, it's not my fault”

Tim Hauser, the founding member of Manhattan Transfer, has died at age 72. He was taken ill with pneumonia while preparing for a performance in Elmira, NY, and passed away in the hospital of cardiac arrest on October 16. Manhattan Transfer—Janis Segal, Cheryl Bentine, Alan Paul and Tim Hauser—was the most successful jazz vocal group of the last four decades, recording over 20 albums and winning 10 Grammy Awards in both the jazz and pop categories.

Timothy DuPron Hauser was born December 12, 1941 in Troy, NY, and grew up in Ocean Township, near Asbury Park, NJ. As a teenager, he listened to Alan Freed's radio program and was attracted to R&B vocal groups, especially Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers. (The opening quote describes a time he overheard them rehearsing.) Along with his friend Thomas Picardo, aka Tommy West, he formed a vocal group of his own, the Criterions, who had two releases on the Cecilia label in 1959, and toured with Dion and the Belmonts.

While he was studying economics at Villanova University, Hauser and Picardo/West formed a folk trio, the Troubadours Three. After graduating from college in 1963 and spending some time in the Air National Guard, he went to work in advertising in New York City, while continuing to pursue his musical interests. He formed the first Manhattan Transfer group in 1969. The name is the title of a 1925 novel by John Dos Passos. The group, which included Erin Dickens, Marty Nelson, Pat Rosalia, and later Gene Pistilli, released an album, Jukin', on Capitol in 1971, and lasted until 1973.

The second Manhattan Transfer was formed in 1973 when Hauser met Laurel Masse while driving a cab. She introduced him to Segal and Paul, and their night club performances developed a following in New York. Ahmet Ertegun heard and signed them, and they recorded their first Atlantic album, Manhattan Transfer, in 1975. It included the pop hit “Operator,” a gospel tune. They also had a summer TV series on CBS in 1975. They recorded three more albums with this lineup. In 1978, Laurel Masse was injured in a car accident and left the group. She was replaced by Cheryl Bentine, and the third Manhattan Transfer has remained intact ever since. Here's a video of the group doing “Java Jive,” featuring Laurel Masse (on the right).

The group recorded in virtually all vocal group genres, including the pre-war pop styles of the Ink Spots and the Andrews Sisters, gospel, '50s R&B, and girl groups of the '60s. A highlight of their live performances was their version of “Gloria,” originally by the Cadillacs. Their biggest hit, “The Boy From New York City” (1981), a cover of the Ad Libs' 1965 girl group song, made the Top 10 of the Billboard pop charts. Here's another of my favorites from among their R&B covers, “Baby, Come Back to Me,” (aka, “Morse Code of Love”), originally by the Capris. It's a lip sync, but at least you can see who sang what part.

However, the dominant style in which Manhattan Transfer performed was vocalese, a style of jazz singing popularized by the trio of Dave Lambert, Jon Hendricks and Annie Ross in the '50s, in which new lyrics are written to fit jazz instrumentals, including classic solos. The Transfer's 1979 album Extensions included “Twilight Zone/Twilight Tone,” and their classic, “Birdland,” by Joe Zawinul of Weather Report, with lyrics by Jon Hendricks.

Their greatest success occurred during the '80s. They won the Downbeat poll as best jazz vocal group every year of that decade. Check out Bodies and Souls (1983) and Bop Doo-Wopp (1984). In my opinion, their best album was Vocalese (1985), which included “Killer Joe,” “Joy Spring” and “Ray's Rock House” (Ray being Ray Charles). Their 1987 album, Brasil, featured songs from that country, including “Soul Food to Go.” Although the fidelity is not great, this 80-minute concert from 1986 features Manhattan Transfer during their heyday.

Manhattan Transfer continued to record and perform up to the present. One of their latter-day successes was Tonin' (1994), a collection of '50s and '60s hits with guests stars such as Ben E. King, Smokey Robinson and Frankie Valli. Here they are doing “The Thrill is Gone” with Ruth Brown and B. B. King.

Tim Hauser recorded a solo album, Love Stories, in 2010, which is probably best forgotten. Manhattan Transfer was in the first class inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998. Here's a recent version of “Birdland” from about 2007.

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The Human Orchestra

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Video of the Week #87

This half-hour French TV show from the '60s begins with four instrumental selections from stride pianist Joe Turner (1907-1990). He played in the bands of Louis Armstrong and Benny Carter. After World War II, he moved to Europe, where he was popular for many years. He is not to be confused with blues/R&B shouter Big Joe Turner, who had many hits for Atlantic Records in the '50s.

However, the real attraction begins at 13:45 into the program:  Four great songs from the New Orleans blues singer and pianist Champion Jack Dupree. Enjoy!

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Video of the Week #86

From a 1962 TV program Jazz Scene USA, here are West Coast drummer Shelly Manne and his Men doing "Speak Low." Featured are Richie Kamuca, tenor sax; Conte Candoli, trumpet, and Russ Freeman, piano. The bassist is not identified, but I think it's Monty Budwig.

I found two other clips from the same program, "Fantan" and "The King Swings."

Does anyone recognize the host? It's singer Oscar Brown, Jr.

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