Duke Ellington plays

Alright I know I've been a complete slacker lately, but honestly there is so much great music out there that it is difficult sometimes to offer something different. I'm hoping this all too short offering will keep the wolves at bay.
 In keeping with tradition, I'm offering you all this Duke Ellington 10"er. I know it is next to impossible to offer rare Ellington, the dude is well documented after all. Just the same, I have just shy of 100 Ellington lps and this is the only place I have all but 2 of these tracks. Of those two tracks, "It Shouldn't Happen To A Dream" melts me every time.

Duke Ellington plays

1. Hiawatha 

2. Minnehaha

3. It Shouldn't Happen To A Dream

4. Diminuendo In Blue

5. Happy Go Lucky Local - Pt 1.

6. Happy Go Lucky Local - Pt.2

7. Tulip Or Turnip

No recording credits are printed on the sleeve but I am sure some ambitious soul could easily dig these up on a Duke discography somewhere.

Allegro 4038

John Lewis - Grand Encounter

I will be the first to admit that I am not a big MJQ fan. Nor did I ever really buy into the Third Stream thing. Like everything else it had its high points, not to be dismissed but much like prog rock, it was best to be avoided.
 Now that I have led you down that path, let me assure you that that is not what we have here.Lewis penned the title tune and it's no slouch but it is the handful of standards the make up the rest of this lp, that really speak for it.  Even though Lewis is the obvious leader on this date, it is the under appreciated Bill Perkins that plants this record firmly in the Pacific Jazz west coast pantheon. I overlooked this lp far too long. Don't make the same mistake.

1. Love Me or Leave Me

2. I Can't Get Started

3. Easy Living

4. 2 Degrees East - # Degrees West

5. Skylark

6. Almost Like Being In Love

John Lewis - piano

Percy Heath - bass

Bill Perkins - tenor sax

Chico Hamilton - drums

Jim Hall - guitar

PJ-1217

I Miss Monk

This is not a proper lp but a recording of a show from NPR. It may not be of interest to everyone, but what the hell, it is cool and it's less than an hour long. You can listen to it while doing the dishes and folding the clothes. Also a nice accompaniment to cooking dinner or dusting the apartment. Kinda pointless while running the hoover though.

While probably offering no new insight to old fans, it is nice to hear some of his contemporaries speak of him. Hosted by Nancy Wilson, the was released as part of a Jazz Profiles series.

Monk passed away 30 years ago today. Which means I've been a fan for over 35 years. Damn time flies.While many many pianists have appeared on the scene since then, I cannot think of one who surpasses Monk's legacy.

I first posted this two years ago today.


Monk

Kenny Drew Trio - Introducing the

Being on BN, I would have thought this would be a little easier to run across. Mine is a replica of a very rare 10'er.
 This Drew's first outing as a leader. Even though there are only two originals, this is a great example of just past bebop jazz. the version of "It Might As Well Be Spring" is an absolute smoker. i listened to this record this evening as the sun was setting and the grill was wafting the sweet smell of charcoal and apple wood. I was amazed at how long it had been since I played the wonderful record. I am happy to share it here.

1. Yesterdays

2. Stella By Starlight

3. Gloria

4. Be My Love

5. Lover Come Back To Me

6. Everything Happens To Me

7. It Might As Well Be Spring

8. Drew's Blues

Kenny Drew - piano

Curly Russell - bass

Art Blakey - drums


link in comments

Mingus Big Band - Glasgow

I've been meaning to get this up for awhile so with the great scare going on right now I figured this was the perfect time. I'm damn sure Mingus would be on our side in sharing these recordings.

 The backstory - This recording appears to be taken from a radio broadcast. I acquired it when I belonged to the IAJRC. I made a copy of a pair of cassettes from their lending library...onto cassette because cd burners were not happening just yet for us regular folk. As soon as I was able to transfer to disc I did. Unfortunately I have since...uhhh...misplaced the original cassettes which certainly contain at the very least, recording info, if not also track listings.
 I'm sure I will run across these in the near future but for now you too can enjoy the mystery of identifying these tracks. Feel free to post in the comments and I will assemble the info out front here.

UPDATE - check the comments. Couple of our friends came through with the info.
A-ha and what I have figured out may be of some help. On posted recording "Invisible Lady" is split due to cassette limitations. I also have no idea where the interviews fall on the official program listings as I have moved them to the end.

 The last two tracks are a short interview with Sue Mingus recorded on the tour.


Mingus Big Band - live 1
Mingus Big Band - live 2

DJ Theme Somgs

There was a time I was living on the outskirts of Chicago. I lived in a basement bedroom and WDCB was a ray of light in my dismal existence.Things are far better now but I still enjoy listening to these recordings of some of the shows I made back then. Saved my soul, they did.

This is just one of those shows. If I ran a radio station, I would love to play this stuff. It's short, but certainly worth your time. Enjoy.

Songs written for or inspired by Disc Jockeys

1. One For Daddy - O

2. Chicago

3. Coral Reef

4. At Long Last Love

5. Be-Bop Charlie

6. Nasty Magnus

7. The Mark of Jazz

1. The Cannonball Adderly Sextet

2. Count Basie/Tony Bennett

3. Neal Hefti

4. Frank Sinatra

5. Bob Florence

6. Count Basie

7. Maynard Ferguson

another radio show

Charlie Parker plays Cole Porter

 One of a set of Parker reissues from Verve in glorious mono. Also it was sadly reissued "electronically reprocessed for stereo". This is the shit boys and girls. Scraped right off the vinyl that is older than me.

The alternate take of "I Love Paris" is one of the sexiest songs ever recorded. Had I been aware it years ago, it would have ended up on one of those largely ineffectual seduction cassettes that lonely music geeks were known to make.
 Recorded in 1955, I believe this lp reissue is from 1968. At 44 years of age, this platter is starting to show a little wear. Never the less it still feels good to wrap around it once in awhile.

This post is somewhat cobbed from my sadly neglected Cole Porter blog.

the genius of Charlie Parker #5
Charlie Parker plays Cole Porter

1. I Get A Kick Out Of You*
2. I Get A Kick Out Of You (alt.)*
3. Just One Of Those Things*
4. My Heart Belongs To Daddy*
5. I've Got You Under My Skin*
6. Love For Sale+
7. Love For Sale (alt.)+
8. I Love Paris+
9. I Love Paris (alt.)+

Charlie Parker - alto
Roy Haynes - drums *
Art Taylor - drums +
Jerome Darr - guitar*
Billy Bauer - guitar +
Kenny Kotick - bass
Walter Bishop, Jr. - piano

MG V-8007

Art Pepper - True Blues

Aw hell yeah! this was like the holy grail for me. I searched long and hard for this record. Scored over the holiday season!!
 One of a pair of lps released with Micho Leviev as the leader. The other lp was reissued in the "Laurie Pepper presents" series as "Live at Tony Scott's" but the original title is something about Fisherman's Blues but I can't seem to find the damn thing right now. 
 I paid far too much for this record so dig it cats, you won't see it around much.

The Milcho Leviev Quartet

True Blues

1. True Blues

2. Goodbye

3. G.I. Blues

4. Straight Life

Milcho Leviev - piano

Art Pepper - alto sax

Tony Dumas - bass

Carl Burnett - drums

Mole 5

David Murray - Flowers for Albert

 

 First let me say that while I was looking for a cover image, I found that one of my favorite blogs had already posted this lp. I do believe that they have a copy of the CD with the "Complete Concert" up though. Which in actuality is taken from two different sessions. 

 This is the original lp as presented except that  I cut the tracks at the obvious spot even if the lp lists them as a single track per side.

 Goddamn! Murray was 21 when this lp was recorded. It was his first as a leader and was a fixture in the loft scene. I was 18 and drinking beer and smoking weed in a 100 dollar a month apartment listening to Yes and Pink Floyd on some crappy little stereo. So to say this music is so far past the scope of what I would have listened to at that time that it is crazy is an understatement. Hell 35 years later, I still struggle with it at times, even though Murray has become one of my favorite performers.

Flowers For Albert

1. Joanne's Green Satin Dress

2. Ballad For A Decomposed Beauty

3. Flowers For Albert

4. Roscoe

David Murray - tenor sax

Phillip Wilson - drums

Olu Dara - trumpet

Fred Hopkins - bass

Recorded at The Ladies' Fort, NYC 6/26/76

India Navigation IN1026

 

Happy New Year

Just want to take a minute to wish Happy New Year and best wishes to all my friends who visit here. All told it had been a pretty good year. I have seen a lot of nice new blogs and have met (ethereally) a few new friends. A few shoutouts, in no specific order; Emile for provided one of the most fun blogs on the planet, Arkadin for his continued top notch effort, Uri and Paolo for the great new additions, King Cake for keeping it real, and inconstant sol and orgy in rhythm for hanging in there so long.  LePorc and the crew from you know where. Cheeba, where ever you are my friend, I hope you and yours are doing well and everything worked out. And last but not least, my constant debt of gratitude to Rab. As I have said time and again, I wouldn't even being doing this without his encouragement, and he has remained a staunch supporter.
I'm sorry if I left anyone out because I was truly blessed with many new acquaintances this year.
 This has truly been a labor of love and despite the occasional moaning about the trolls without enough courtesy to say thanks once in awhile, it has been worth it. As long as people want to hear this music, I'll keep sharing it, if I am able.

Keep swingin', ya all

Hook