http://www.billytaylorjazz.com presents Jazz and Violin Part 1, John Blake, violin; Billy Taylor, piano; Chip Jackson, bass; Winard Harper, drums. From January 10, 2001
Jeff Coffin is best known for his work with the Flecktones and the Dave Matthews Band, as well his own group, The Mu'Tet. For more on Jeff, please visit: http://www.jeffcoffin.co
In Bret Primack's film, "Surprise," Joe Lovano talks about breaking both arms in 2009, the recovery process, and his exciting new group, Us Five, which includes Joe on sax, James Weidman on piano, Esperanza Spalding on bass, Otis Brown III and Francisco, Mela, drums.
For more Joe: joelovano.com
http://www.sonnyrollins.com presents the Saxophone Colossus Live in Orange County, April, 2009, featuring Bob Cranshaw, bass; Kobie Watkins, drums; Victor See Yen, percussion; Bobby Broom, guitar; Clifton Anderson, trombone.
http;//www.mosaicrecords.com presents first comprehensive study of Oscar Peterson's earliest trio recordings, the setting for which he was best known, throughout his reign. The collection includes 127 tunes, including five alternate masters that have never appeared on any record, in any format.
Coming up in the era he did, he fell somewhere in between the swing players and the be-boppers, and the two strains wove together into something he never felt any reason to abandon. He and Ray Brown had developed an almost brotherly relationship thanks to the JATP tours they did together, and in Barney Kessel he found another player whose solos could wipe the floor, the walls, and the ceiling. With the JATP tours combined with these Clef and Mercury recordings the trio found the time and opportunity to hone their craft together and become a tight unit. Norman Granz' vision of the "Songbook" album, was perfected by the trio and the series of "Oscar Peterson Meetsâ¦" have long been unavailable and are finally in ...
http://www.mosaicrecords.com presents the great tenor man Stanley Turrentine. The six Blue Note dates collected on this Mosaic set are in a class by themselves; they are pure hard bop in the selection and treatment of the material and in instrumentation with Stanley Turrentine sharing the front line with a trumpet player or trombonist equal to him in talent. Mosaic Records is delighted to offer these excellent but overlooked hard bop sessions.
http://www.mosaicrecords.com presents a unique 8 CD box set. Listening to this music in its entirety, you hear how the simplest tune could become the canvass for a singer's art. And understand why fellow musicians appreciated her talent. Vaughan could hit a note head on and hold it, pure and clean. Or, at her command, add a pretty vibrato. A wide range allowed her to soar in the upper register, and roar down below. All with a luxurious, rich, buttery roundness.
This set contains a huge number of jazz classics and popular standards that everyone will recognize - songs by Monk, Adderley, Ellington and Waller as well as Rodgers and Hart, Gershwin, Van Heusen and Arlen. Her arrangers included the finest the era had to offer - Jimmy Jones, Gera Wilson, Quincy Jones, Lalo Schifrin, Benny Carter and Billy May among them.
Johnny Mercer's Centennial Celebration is intended to serve as a portal into the rich, lyrical world that Mr. Mercer created, to show how the music of one man continues to light creative fires in today's music scene.
Free Download: http://www.***********/sonnyrollinsapp
Sonny Rollins, the Saxophone Colossus, has just released an iPhone App. Use the App to preview and purchase music, get concert tickets, view the Photo Gallery, get the latest Sonny Rollins news, and watch cool videos
From Mosaic Records: http://www.mosaicrecords.com
Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong revolutionized the art of singing and changed the course of American music forever. Of course, they did it with recordings like âJust One More Chanceâ and âHeebie Jeebiesâ rather than âWhite Christmasâ and âHello Dolly.â
Recently, the Bing Crosby estate has begun cataloguing and restoring music recorded for Crosbyâs various radio programs. The 160 songs in this Mosaic collection were recorded with the Buddy Cole Quartet between 1954 and 1956 for Bingâs CBS show are absolutely revelatory. Crosbyâs early jazz roots informed his influential career as a pop singer. To our knowledge, these are the only recorded performances of Crosby singing the Great American Songbook in an informal atmosphere with a consummate small jazz ensemble. Without the pressure of phonograph recording sessions which by definition are always in search of hits, these recordings put Crosbyâs artistry in bold relief and redefine the depths of his ...
Side Steps is a 5-CD set captures John Coltrane in a supporting role, as a sideman to leaders like Sonny Rollins, Gene Ammons, Red Garland, Tadd Dameron and others. The collection of 43 tracks represents the entirety of Coltrane's session work as a Prestige sideman, from mid-1956 to early 1958.
For more, please visit:
http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/albums/Side-Steps/
Concord Records Centennial Celebration series features the music of Lionel Hampton, Ben Webster, Lester Young, Art Tatum and Johnny Mercer, on the 100th anniversary of their birth.
For more, please visit: http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/jazz/
This collection celebrates the mature Lester Young of the 1950s, a reminder of a time when he would blow into town for a week performing with a local rhythm section, or for a one-night appearance as part of an all-star, Jazz at the Philharmonic tour. A time when his powers of eloquence and subtlety remained undiminished, while his tone had developed a more mature-one could say darker-edge.
For more, please visit:
http://***********/lesteryoung
One hundred years after his birth, Ben Webster remains one of the weightiest of all Jazz tenor sax players. One can still hear the signature elements of his influence: That breathy phrasing. That lilting devotion to melody. That unmistakable tone, so reverberant and roomy. So airy and large.
From the late â50s into the â60s, Webster maintained a free agent status, recording for a number
of labels until 1964 when he relocated in Copenhagenâanother American jazzman preferring the relatively racist-free comfort of Denmark. There he lived out the remainder of his days playing when and where he chose.
Culled from albums released by a number of labels during Websterâs last few years as a U.S. resident, Concord Records' "Ben Webster Centennial Celebration" reveals his musical resilience and enduring popularity with the leading jazz producers of the day.
For more Ben Webster, please visit:
http://***********/benwebster
From the series, Ray Charles, Genius, a comprehensive look at the way Ray Charles interpreted ballads. Features interviews with Al Kooper, Steve Turre, Marcus Belgrave, Gregg Field and Angela Workman, as well as a rare performance.
The Concord Music Group, home to one of the largest jazz catalogs in the world, celebrates the 100th anniversary of the birth of Lionel Hampton â as part of the labelâs ongoing Centennial Celebration series with the release of "Lionel Hampton - Centennial Celebration." Featured here are recordings with Art Tatum and Buddy Rich, Harry Sweets Edison, and the Golden Men of Jazz.
Lionel Hampton was the first jazz vibraphonist and was one of the jazz giants beginning in the mid-'30s. He has achieved the difficult feat of being musically open-minded (even recording "Giant Steps") without changing his basic swing style. Hamp started out as a drummer, playing with the Chicago Defender Newsboys' Band as a youth. His original idol was Jimmy Bertrand, a '20s drummer who occasionally played xylophone. Hampton played on the West Coast with such groups as Curtis Mosby's Blue Blowers, Reb Spikes, and Paul Howard's Quality Serenaders (with whom he made his recording debut in 1929) before joining Les Hite's band, which ...
28 Ray Charles albums, most long out-of-print, have been released digitally by Concord Records. This episode of the series Ray Charles, Genius, previews the 295 tracks that are now available at your favorite digital music store.
Pianist Billy Taylor has always been on the cutting edge of technology and his latest release is "Jazz Piano," an iPhone App that features his music and unique story.
To download the free App:
http://***********/jazzpiano
On the eve of his 79th birthday, Sonny Rollins offers a few words on fellow tenor sax giant Lester Young. 2009 is the 100th anniversary of Lester Young's birth. "The Centennial Celebration," is a compilation of great Lester Young on Concord Record's Original Jazz Classics.
For more Concord's Centennial Collection:
http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/albums/Centennial-Celebration-Lester-Young/
For more Sonny Rollins:
http://www.sonnyrollins.com
Video
Bret Primack
Joe Lovano's Us 5 is in the studio, recording their Blue Note release, "Folk Art." Us 5 is Joe Lovano, saxophones; James Weidman, piano; Esperanza Spalding, bass; Francisco Mela and Otis Brown III, drums.
For more Joe, please visit http://www.joelovano.com
Video: Bret Primack
Influenced by Louis Jordan, Charles Brown and Nat Cole, Ray Charles' voice was a "Window To His Soul," as explored in this episode of the series, Ray Charles, Genius, featuring some stirring vocal performances and interviews with Dr. Billy Taylor, Dan Morgenstern, Ira Gitler, George Wein, Gregg Field, John Burk, and, songwriter/producer/musician, Al Kooper.
Francisco Gonzalez is a musician, composer, and specialist in Mexican and Chicano music. During the last three decades he has worked in many capacities within Chicano/Mexican music: in performance around the world as a string musician specializing in Mexican harp; composing musical scores for films, doing lecture demonstrations, and in theater as a musical director.
His new recording, The Gift, is on 17th Street Records
For his many contributions to Jazz, and to democracy, a Tribute I produced for Larry Ridleys NAJRI Jazz Hall of Fame, featuring Congression John Conyers.
In 1987, the Honorable John Conyers, Jr., Congressman (D-MI) a champion of jazz, introduced a bill to the House and the Senate that cited the critical need to have Americaâs most unique and original art form afforded a status commensurate with its value and importance in the United States.
The bill passed unanimously: âJazz is hereby designated a rare and valuable national American treasure to which we should devote our attention, support and resources to make certain it is preserved, understood and promulgated.â
Conyers is one of the 13 founding members of the Congressional Black Caucus, and is considered the Dean of that group. Formed in 1969, the CBC was founded to strengthen African-American lawmakers' ability to address the legislative concerns of Black and minority citizens. He has served longer in Congress than any other African-American. In ...
Interviews with Steve Turre, Gregg Field, Marcus Belgrave and Angela Workman along with some rare performance video provide a unique perspective on what it was like to play with Ray Charles. From the Concord Records series, Ray Charles, Genius.
Music: Ray Charles Berlin 1962
Video Producer/Host: Bret Primack
http://www.leonware.com presents a visit with the singer/songwriter. Leon Ware (born 6 February 1940, Detroit, Michigan) is a soul music singer, songwriter and producer who found his biggest success crafting the hit album, I Want You, for friend and Motown icon Marvin Gaye in 1976. Ware also is notable for writing the Top 5 R&B single, "I Wanna Be Where You Are", for a young Michael Jackson in 1972, and creating the Body Heat album along with Quincy Jones. He also collaborated with Maxwell on his debut album Maxwellâs Urban Hang Suite.
Video: Bret Primack
http://www.mosaicrecords.com presents "Artie Shaw Classic Bluebird and Victor Sessions," a 7 CD set remastered from original metal parts and prestine vinyl test pressings from the Victor and Bluebird vault.
This set includes over 150 tracks on 7 CDs and presents for the first time anywhere, 12 unissued performances.
Life on the Road with Ray Charles is the subject of this episode of the video podcast series, Ray Charles, Genius, which includes interviews with Marcus Belgrave, Steve Turre, Dr. Billy Taylor, Gregg Field and Angela Workman. Featured recording: Genius Hits The Road
Video Producer/Host: Bret Primack
Bebop piano legend Walter Bishop, Jr. performs solo piano versions of his own compositions in an excerpt from his 1987 VHS Master Class.
Video: Bret Primack
Jazz piano legend Walter Bishop, Jr. discusses and demonstrates comping and chord voicings, with the help of vocalist Kathy Farmer.
Walter Bishop, Jr. (April 10, 1927 January 24, 1998) was an American bop and hard bop jazz pianist.
He was the son of composer Walter Bishop, Sr..
In high school his friends included Kenny Drew, Sonny Rollins, and Art Taylor. He began his musical career after World War II, and played and recorded with Art Blakey, Charlie Parker, Oscar Pettiford, Kai Winding, Miles Davis, Jackie McLean, Curtis Fuller, Terry Gibbs, Clark Terry, Blue Mitchell, and Supersax. In the early 1960s he also led his own trio with Jimmy Garrison and G. T. Hogan. He continued performing into the 1990s.
Video: Bret Primack
The piano of Ray Charles is featured in this episode of the series, "Ray Charles, Genius." Includes rare performance video and interviews with George Wein, Billy Taylor, Ira Gitler and Steve Turre. Video Producer/Host: Bret Primack
Mike Post, one of the most successful composers in TV history, first met Ray Charles when he was the Musical Director of the Andy Williams Show. Ray liked a chart Mike wrote, and invited him to do another for his 1972 release, "A Message from the People." Bret Primack's Filmmaker's Blog from the series, Ray Charles, Genius
http://www.billytaylorjazz.com presents the Billy Taylor Trio performing Billy's composition "His Name Was Martin" dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King, recorded on "It's A Matter of Pride."
Billy Taylor - Piano
Chip Jackson - Bass
Steve Johns - Drums
http://www.billytaylorjazz.com presents a Tribute to Oscar Pettiford featuring Billy Taylor's Trio and Billy's composition, "One for the Woofer," featuring Chip Jackson on bass.
Oscar Pettiford
In 1942 he joined the Charlie Barnet band and in 1943 gained wider public attention after recording with Coleman Hawkins on his "The Man I Love." He also recorded with Earl Hines and Ben Webster around this time. He and Dizzy Gillespie led a bop group in 1943. In 1945 Pettiford went with Hawkins to California, where he appeared in The Crimson Canary, a mystery movie known for its jazz soundtrack. He then worked with Duke Ellington from 1945 to 1948 and for Woody Herman in 1949 before working mainly as a leader in the 1950s.
As a leader he inadvertently discovered Cannonball Adderley. After one of his musicians had tricked him into letting Adderley, an unknown music teacher, onto the stand, he had Adderley solo on a demanding piece, on which Adderley performed impressively.
Pettiford is considered the pioneer ...
http://www.bobbybroom.com presents guitarist's Bobby Broom's unique tribute to Thelonious Monk, featuring his Trio with Dennis Carroll on bass and Kobie Watkins on drums
Purchase: http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/albums/Modern-Sounds-in-Country-and-Western-Music-Vols-1-/
The story of "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music," the landmark 1962 recording by Ray Charles, is featured in this edition of the podcast series, "Ray Charles, Genius," produced by Bret Primack for Concord Records.
http://www.sonnyrollins.com presents the tenor saxophone master discussing his music. Also features an excerpt from Sonny's Doxy Records DVD, In Vienne, distributed by Universal Music.
Video: Bret Primack
http://www.mosaicrecords presents Duke Ellington's Classic Small Group recordings. Ellington is widely regarded as one of the most important composers in the history of music and many would agree that at the time of these recordings, he was at the beginning of his creative peak developing "The Ellington Effect". This set gathers together all the small group sessions led by Duke Ellington and his sidemen Rex Stewart, Barney Bigard, Cootie Williams and Johnny Hodges, during the years 1936-40.