A New Episode of Palm Coast Jazz!

Here's the latest podcast from Palm Coast Jazz, featuring the best original jazz from the state of Florida, hosted by yours truly! Nothing to it, just click & listen! - Kendo

1. Errol Rackipov Group - "Folk Dance"
2. Lisa Casalino - "No Denying"
3. Gerald Stockton - "Blue Steel"
4. Christian Tamburr - "It Rained Again Last Night"
5. Michael Ross - "Yak Attack"
6. Michael Petrovich - "San Juan Nights"

Long-Ass Car Ride Review - Cory Weeds Celebrates Jackie McLean!

Long-Ass Car Ride Reviews: I take long-ass car rides, I listen to albums, I let you know if they are worthwhile.

Cory Weeds - "Condition Blue" (2014) 7.75/10
Cory Weeds - alto sax
Mike Ledonne - Hammond b3 organ
Peter Bernstein - guitar
Joe Farnsworth - drums

In a word: Invigorating

A seriously swinging set. Nothing earth-shattering...it is of course a tribute album; but it's a killer one and Jackie McLean is certainly worthy of the honor. Weeds and company do an A-1 job of evidencing that here, with a great and diverse collection of tunes associated with McLean. If you like your jazz straight-ahead, this is one hella-fine album. The performances are invigorated and very enthusiastic - everyone is grooving hard and playing their hind-quarters off. The best cut is "'Snuff". Other highlights include "Bluesanova", the driving "Capuchin Swing", an excellent "Marilyn's Dilemma" (penned by

drummer Billy Higgins) and the sleeper title track. As I mentioned earlier, it swings hard (look at that line-up!) without one boring moment. Great!

Playlist for 10-13-2015 WFCF - Jazz Greats!

"City Listens to Jazz" - Katerin Siryk
oil on canvas
Visit the artist's website!

No theme for today's show but a lot of recent recordings as I gear up for this years Top 55 Jazz Tracks list! Also went thrift shopping yesterday and found one of those frames that holds album covers, with a Kai Winding lp in it. When I opened it up, the vinyl was inside and in great condition! We'll listen to a chunk of a side in the second hour. Tune in today (10/13) from 3-7pm eastern by clicking here. See you then! - Kendo

Hour One:

Joe Magnarelli - "NYC-J-Funk" - Three On Two (2014)

John Pizzarelli - "Silly Love Songs" - Midnight McCartney (2015)

    3:15 Jazz Coffee Break

Duke Pearson - "Canto Ossanha" - I Don't Care Who Knows It (1970)

Anita O'Day - "Peel Me a Grape" - Time for Two (1962)

Christian Tamburr - "A Team" - Voyage (2014)

Johnny Smith - "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)" - Johnny Smith Plus The Trio (1960)

Clifford Brown and Max Roach - "Powell's Prances" - At Basin Street (1956)

Johnny Smith
photo by William "PoPsie" Randolph

Raquel Cepeda - "East of the Sun" - I'm Confessin' (2012)

Scott Healy Ensemble - "Summit Avenue Conversation" - Hudson City Suite (2012)

Marlena Shaw - "You're My Everything" - Dangerous (1996) - 4:44

Hour Two:

Rod McGaha - "The Challenge" - The Black Flower Project (2014)

Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong - "Moonlight In Vermont" - Ella and Louis (1956)

Peter Zak - "Jackie" - The Disciple (2013)

Thelonious Monk 1947 - William Gottlieb

Thelonious Monk - "Carolina Moon" - Genius of Modern Music (1952)

Ed Reed - "Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby" - I'm a Shy Guy (2013)

Kai Winding - "Dirty Dog" - Dirty Dog (1966)

Kai Winding - "Sunrise, Sunset" - Dirty Dog (1966)Kai Winding - "Cantaloupe Island" - Dirty Dog (1966) 

Adam Scone - "I Scream Scone" - I Scream Scone! (2015)

Giacomo Gates - "Hazel's Hips" - Everything is Cool (2015)

Bob James & Nathan East - "Waltz for Judy" - The New Cool (2015)

Hour Three:

~~ Flagler Files~~

Stanley Turrentine with Milt Jackson - "Introspective" - Cherry (1972) Ride Home!

Cecile McLorin Salvant - "Wives and Lovers" - For One to Love ()

Dan Jordan - "Triste" - Pure Joy (2015)

Dexter Gordon - "Backbone" - A Swingin' Affair (1962)

Chris Connor - "They Can't Take That Away From Me" - Sings George Gershwin (1956)

Jared Gold & Dave Stryker

Jared Gold - "God Has Smiled On Me" - Metropolitan Rhythm (2014) 5:50 Gospel Express

Ella Fitzgerald - "Prelude to a Kiss" - Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book (1957)

Hour Four:

Brother Jack McDuff - "Down Home Style" - Down Home Style (1969)

Mark Egan - "Slinky" - About Now (2014)

Soul Manne & the Brothers - "Ellie's Love Them" - Shaft (1970)

Donald Fagen - "Planet D'Rhonda" - Sunken Condos (2012)

Michael Ross - "Yak Attack" - Ginger (2013)

Lorraine Feather - "I'd Be Down With That" - Flirting With Disaster (2015)

John Ellis & DOUBLE WIDE - "Booker" - Charm (2014)

Wayne Wallace Latin Jazz Quintet - "Equinox" - Intercambio (2015)

George Cables - "Lotus Blossom" - In Good Company (2015)

Long-Ass Car Ride Review - Scott Healy Ensemble!

 Long-Ass Car Ride Reviews: I take long-ass car rides, I listen to albums, I let you know if they are worthwhile.

Scott Healy Ensemble - "Hudson City Suite" (2012) - 8.75/10
 
Scott Healy - piano, Tim Hagans - trumpet, Jeff Driscoll - soprano sax,
Kim Richmond - alto sax; Tom Luer - clarinet/tenor sax, Alex Budman - tenor sax, Doug Webb - baritone sax, Bill Churchville - trumpet, Brian Swartz - trumpet, Tim Hagans - trumpet, Andrew Lippman - trombone, George Thatcher - bass trombone, Carlitos Del Puerto - bass, Bill Wysaske - drums, others...

In a word - marvelous!

Aside from highly listenable compositions and presentation, Scott Healy's gift is one of architecture. His use of dynamics to build tension and pace a chart so that it thrills rather than overwhelms the listener is marvelous. Solos are spaced apart by brilliant ensemble passages, and the unit is ridiculously responsive and tight!

"Hudson City Suite" is an impressionistic description of life in a mythical city - influenced by Ellington in the best possible ways but also highly original. Many of the pieces are either tone-poems or descriptive musically. Highlights include "Central Trolley" - a ride that begins with the pastels of a morning's hush in solitude, growing more brash as the train fills with caffeinated people heading downtown. Of note is Kendall Kay's brush work, first resembling the soothing rhythms of the trolley, slowly building to full blown stick bashing - driving the whole piece. The ingenuous "Summit Avenue Conversation" is just that: dialogue of all forms human, from everyday brass to sass-talkin' saxes, building wonderfully with great solos from Andrew Lippman, Tim Hagans & Alex Budman, ending in a very clever repartee between only plain brass and the languid sax section.

"Princess Tongora" is more impressionism with muted trumpets, tinkling piano and river-like melodies. Jeff Driscoll lights this one up on soprano sax. The composer's piano solo is mesmerizing, fraught with longing. A brief "Interlude" paints a magnificent still-life of big city existence. The bluesy and tradional "Franklin Steps" has much to love, particularly from drummer Kay, along with some cool poly-tonality. The soloing is a bit par for the course from just about everybody except Healy - who has a stellar turn on piano. "Gaslight" is expectedly film-noir, not quite establishing itself but boasting a truly wonderful ending.

Packed with intrigue is "Koko On the Boulevard"; more fabulous dynamic build ups over fun and ambiguous form with lush, complex harmonies and a seriously shining solo from Doug Webb on baritone sax. It all gets wrapped up by a neat combo of muted brass and clarinets. The closing "Prelude" (actually the first of the set to be composed) in particular evokes Ellington; more femme fatale music complete with Johnny Hodges-style vibrato and a mellow trumpet solo from Brian Swartz (just about all the soloists on this album are knockouts). Some of the best writing is saved for the end of the suite with lovely, shimmering ascending and descending lines.

One hesitates to toss around the word masterpiece these days in regards to a larger jazz composition, since there are so many. "Hudson City Suite" is one, perhaps the first true masterpiece of the new millenium. If you like Ellington, you will absolutely love it; a very, very strong work that is highly enjoyable to listen to straight through (rare!) Check it out! 

Playlist for 10-6-2015 WFCF - Trains and Things!

"Go West" - Marcel Thériault

Acrylic
Visit the artist's website!

A recent InstaCollection post was the inspiration for the 1st and 4th hour of this week's show, with locomotive themed tracks from the likes of George Benson, Duke Ellington, James Moody & Rosemary Clooney! Lots of other great stuff from albums new to the library including Brian Pareschi and Greg Abate, and as always plenty of new releases! Tune in Tuesday 10/6 from 3-7 eastern by clicking here. FM signal at 88.5FM for St. Augustine, Palm Coast, Green Cove Springs, Palatka, Flagler Beach, Ormand Beach and South Jacksonville! See you then! - Kendo




Hour One:

Jimmy Smith & Wes Montgomery - "Night Train" - Dynamic Duo (1966)

Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra - "Take the 'A' Train" - Best of the Centenial Edition (1940)

    3:15 Jazz Coffee Break

Jimmy Giuffre 3 - "The Train and the River" - Jimmy Giuffre 3 (1956)

Duke Ellington - photo by William Gottlieb

Rosemary Clooney - "Blues In the Night" - 16 Greatest Hits (1952)

Antonio Adolfo - "Trem Da Serra (Hillside Train)" - Tema (2015)

George Benson - "Last Train to Clarksville" - The Shape of Things to Come (1968)

James Moody - "Last Train from Overbrook" - Last Train From Overbrook" (1958)

George Benson - "Little Train" - White Rabbit (1971)

Jeff Rupert - "The Southern Norfolk RR" - From Memphis to Mobile (2009)

Modern Jazz Quartet - "Don't Stop This Train" - Blues on Bach (1973)


Cecile McLorin Salvant - "The Trolley Song" - For One to Love (2015)

Hour Two:

Joe Morello - "Just In Time" - It's About Time (1961)

Eric Alexander - "Little Boat" - The Real Thing (2015)

Brian Pareschi
photo by David Willems

Brian Pareschi - "I Believe In You" - Brian Pareschi & the BP Express (2013)

John Coltrane - "My Ideal" - Bahia (1958)

Mike LeDonne - "Let It Go" - Awwlright! ()

Gerald Stockton - "Simple Samba" - My Gentle Breeze (2015)

Gil Melle - "Tomorrow" - Gil's Guests (1956)

Ed Reed - "Unforgettable" - I'm a Shy Guy (2013)

Greg Abate - "Conflict" - Motif (2014)

Hour Three:

~~ Flagler Files~~

Tim Warfield - "I Remember You" - Eye of the Beholder (2012) Ride Home!

John Scofield - "Museum" - Past Present (2015)

Hampton Hawes - "Yesterdays" - Bird Song (1956)

New Jazz

Bud Powell - "John's Abbey" - Time Waits (1958)

Hour Four:

George Benson - "Chatanooga Choo Choo" - The Shape of Things to Come (1968)

Billy Childs (with Ricki Lee Jones) - "Been On a Train" - Map to the Treasure - Reimagining Laura Nyro(2014)

Steps - "Bullet Train" - Step by Step (1979)

John Coltrane

John Coltrane - "Locomotion" - Blue Train (1957)

Christian McBride - "Dream Train" - People Music (2012)

Joshua Redman - "Stop This Train" - Walking Shadows (2012)

Stanley Clarke - "Last Train to Sanity" - Up (2013)


Gerry Mulligan - "K-4 Pacific" - The Age of Steam (1971)


Gerry Mulligan - "Grand Tour" - The Age of Steam (1971)

PoPsie! - The 1950 Metro All-Stars

photo by William "PoPsie" Randolph

A neat little assembling of musicians in this photo by the great photographer William "PoPsie" Randolph of the 1950 Metronome All-Stars! Serge Chaloff - baritone sax, Kai Winding - trombone, Billy Bauer - guitar, John LaPorta - clarinet, Lee Konitz - alto sax, Stan Getz - tenor, Miles Davis - trumpet. The two sides they recorded at this session held January 23rd, 1951 (with George Shearing & Terry Gibbs not shown) are "Local 802 Blues" and "Early Spring".

InstaCollection - Jazz Inspired By Trains!

InstaCollection! - start or freshen up your jazz collection with DJ Kendo recommendations! Buy downloads for your phone/pc using the handy links below or just load the titles into your favorite music streaming service!

Trains have been inspiring composers since their invention; from the first chugs away from the station to the repetitive, clackity rhythms down the line, or a distant, lonesome whistle. Add to that the relaxed, hypnotic passenger ride and the far-away places the bobbing cars take you to, and you have instant mood-setters that are romantic and fascinating to just about every human on the planet.

Jazz is no exception, with some of its most familiar titles referencing trains: "Blue Train", "Take the 'A' Train" & "Night Train" - heard here as a rocking version by Jimmy Smith & Wes Montgomery, with a glorious Oliver Nelson big band arrangement. (This tune is supposedly an un-credited composition of Duke Ellington!)

Brilliant saxophonist Jeff Rupert's catchy "The Southern Norfolk RR" portrays the driving motion of a train as well as a youthful excitement about all things locomotive. Kenny Drew Jr.'s energetic performance on piano supplies forward motion and spark. Jimmy Giuffre's creative "The Train and the River" is also exuberant with a storytelling, down-home feel featuring Jim Hall on guitar.

"Take the 'A' Train", Billy Strayhorn's fantastic subway tribute, is heard in the swinging version that made it famous - by the Duke Ellington Orchestra in 1941. The Monkees' hit "Last Train to

Clarksville" gets a good-natured turn from George Benson, in prime form on an early CTI recording that features harmonica and country groove. James Moody's "Last Train from Overbrook" from 1958 is forward thinking and appealing with an almost film noir, late-night feel.
 
And finally it's tough to choose between Frank Sinatra's lonelier "Blues in the Night" and Rosemary Clooney's classic recording, so I'll let you decide! Johnny Mercer's lyrics reference a late night train evocatively:


"Now the rain's a-fallin'
Hear the train a-callin'
"Whoo-ee!"(My mama done told me)
Hear that lonesome whistle
Blowin' 'cross the trestle
"Whoo-ee!"(My mama done told me)
A-whooee-ah-whooee
Ol' clickety-clack's
A-echoin' back
The blues in the night."

Whatever your own iron horse dreams might be here are seven tracks for your digital jazz collection that are not only innovative classics but will mix so well with the rest of your library. Enjoy! - Kendo

Tune in this Tuesday (10/6/15) at 3pm eastern to WFCF on iHeart for an hour of train inspired jazz, including the titles mentioned above; plus an extra hour of train songs at 6pm eastern! Listen by clicking here. The show broadcasts every Tuesday from 3-7pm eastern!