BYOV - Meeting #12

Here we are: A full year into my listening session experiment. There have been some great turnouts and tremendous music heard. There have been some less than stellar turnouts and some contemporary country tunes. A total crapshoot but it is always fun.

If you are reading these posts and have the opportunity, I hope that you’ll join us for an upcoming meeting of BYOV. If you want to be on the email list, send me a note at bret.sjerven@gmail.com. Thanks for reading.
  

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Summer sessions have proven to be a hard sell. Many musicians are busy on the European festival circuit. Critics are hiding in their AC caves. The normal folks have gotten the hell out of New York.

That said I was happy to get a small but varied crowd for BYOV #12. It was held on July 8^th in the cozy back room of Barbès in sun scorched Park Slope, Brooklyn.

The difficulty level of our themes has gotten tougher and tougher.

Here were this session’s challenges:

a) Persona Non Grata - Bring your favorite recording by an artist while they were in exile (forced or otherwise).

b) "It's aiiigght..." - Song you really want to like, or feel that you should like, but don't. 

c) Lit rock. - Bring your favorite literary inspired musical work, any genre. And yes, you can do better than Led Zeppelin's "Moby Dick." 

On to the show.

1.  Charles Mingus – “The Chill of Death” from Let My Children Hear Music (Columbia C 31039, 1972)

Presented by Robert Futterman – LP – Theme: C

Robert was primed to give us a few selections that he had picked for our literary theme.

He prefaced this selection by mentioning that he felt this piece was at once “pretentious, ponderous and lighthearted.”

We heard a large ensemble of strings and winds. Shortly after, a husky voice started to ramble on a poem that stretched the length of the piece.

Steve: “Is it Mingus’s ‘The Clown’?” Close.

“It is Jean Shepherd, though? He provided the vocal on ‘The Clown’.”

It did turn out to be a Charles Mingus composition but it wasn’t Shepherd, however. It was Mingus himself lending his voice.

Robert went on to say that he felt the piece was “egomaniacal.”

“I can’t even listen to it. It is an impossible record.”

Funny to hear since Mingus himself found Let My Children Hear Music to be one of his better efforts. The album was a grand concept that mingled a career’s worth of Mingus compositional material into a clustered but ultimately intriguing recording. The hero of the hour was the guy that had for so long made sense out of Miles Davis’s “directions in music,” Mr. Teo Macero.

Macero got props for arranging and editing this monster into a coherent recording.

The conversation turned again to Mr. Shepherd, who had hosted a legendary radio show on WOR that ran in the late 1960s into the 1970s. In 1957, he was featured on the Mingus composition “The Clown” as he delivered an improvised vocal.

      2.   Steve Lacy Sextet – “Morning Joy” from The Condor (Soul Note SN 1135, 1986)

Presented by Robert Futterman – LP – Theme: C

Robert’s next piece was another tune featuring poetry.

This principle artist was guessed right away. Steve Lacy wouldn’t escape this crowd.

Ted: “Is it one of his poetry records?” Yes – each composition featured a poem by one of four poets including Anna Akhmatova, Franco Beltrametti, Nanni Balestrini and Bob Kaufman.

The track featured the saxophone duo of Lacy and Steve Potts along with pianist Bobby Few, bassist Jean-Jacques Avenel and drummer Oliver Johnson. Lacy’s wife, vocalist/violinist Irene Aebi handled the duties of reciting/singing the poem by poet Bob Kaufman.

Jason was familiar with Kaufman. The poet was born in New Orleans to a German-Jewish father and a mother of Martinique heritage. He was one of the original beat poets. Like Lacy, Kaufman relocated to France where he was later dubbed “Rimbaud Noir.”

Ted had just finished Jason’s book of collected Lacy interviews. What happenstance that writer, reader and subject met…

“It could only happen here…”

      3.  George Russell ft. Jon Hendricks – “Manhattan” from New York, N.Y. (Decca, 1958)

Presented by Robert Futterman – LP – Theme: C

The final selection that Robert presented was the one that he felt was the strongest example of mixing poetry and jazz music.

The introductory drum solo before the all too familiar vocal was enough for this crew of jazz scholars.

Everyone knew the familiar “Manhattan” by musical polyglot and theorist George Russell. The Jon Hendricks vocal has been classic material for half a century.

Steve: “The drummer was Charlie Persip. Whew…”

Robert: “I like that Hendrick delivers the poem with no vocalese.”

“John Coltrane was on this, right?” Yep.

Apparently, Coltrane was brought in for the session as a burgeoning star. As he took fifteen minutes to look the piece over, the studio musicians scoffed - they thought he couldn’t read. As they ran through the piece, Trane knocked out a tremendous solo. Turned out that not only could he read, he had been adding his own harmonic additions to the structure.

Thomas mentioned that he had read Russell’s famed Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization for Improvisation. He thought that the book was both beautiful and disastrous as it presented an amazing concept and legitimization of a certain type of composing and arranging but also led to the world of jazz education - which has tended to homogenize the music. Thomas has favored the trial and error method over the institutionalized educational system.

In the book, Russell reflected on Coltrane’s solo as being a perfect example of using imagination and harmonic thought in a presented structure.

Robert: “This is a long one. We don’t have to listen to it all.”

Ted: “But that’s what we’re here for.”

“Who was the guitarist on this?” Barry Galbraith.

Ted mentioned that Adam Rogers had studied with the forgotten legend who never had a chance to record an album of his own.

Another famous solo on the tune was Bill Evans’s one-handed piano solo. Steve called it “sitting on his left hand.” He also did this on “All About Rosy” later on.

Evans and Russell had been close. They had served in the army together and Russell had brought Evans to accompany vocalist Lucy Reed on her This Is Lucy Reed recording for which he had done some arrangements. They subsequently worked together on a number of far reaching projects, including a number of small groups and a large group recording under Evans’s name called Living Time.

      4.   Tristan Honsinger – “Violets” from Picnic (DATA Records 852, 1985)

Presented by Thomas Heberer – LP – Theme: A

Before presenting, Thomas had a question or rather a confession.

“We all love Steve Lacy and we have no reason to question his actions and decision making. But I have a hard time listening to recordings that he made with Steve Potts and Irene Aebi.”

It seemed as though Thomas had a point in his collecting where he was going weeding through his collection trying to determine whether he would ever listen to certain records again. Being a fan of Lacy, he had discovered that he couldn’t listen to records featuring Potts or Aebi.

Thomas mentioned that he probably owned 30 or so Lacy recordings but had gotten rid of most of the recordings with Potts or Aebi. He was looking to our panel to give him a reason to keep the rest.

Thomas added that he had also played with Potts and found Potts’s playing especially annoying due to the saxophonist’s lack of regard for intonation. He found it odd that Lacy loved working with Potts as Lacy’s pitch was extremely controlled.

Our Lacy expert Jason has heard all the cries of dissension about Aebi in the past, though just as many concerning Potts, whose playing he has enjoyed for some time.

Jason’s opinion on the Aebi influence on Lacy was that Lacy separated from the American jazz scene and had adapted himself to a more open European aesthetic – using European folkloric and classical ideas to add a jolt to his music. There was also the effort to incorporate his life partner into his work.

Thomas wasn’t too impressed with the answer as he has long been a member of this particular European “art music” scene.

Ted mentioned that he felt that Potts had come from an American swing based tradition but had gone on to a more post Ornette Coleman position when he began performing with Lacy. Of course, Potts’s relocation to Paris, the crossroads for the most experimental jazz during the late 1960s and 1970s, played a big part in his musical development and collaborations.

Steve found it strange that Lacy actually let Potts occasionally double on soprano, as their styles certainly didn’t mesh.

Jason: “Do you have a problem when Lacy includes a second horn player?”

Thomas: “No. I like the material he did with Roswell Rudd and the stuff that he did with George Lewis was great.”

No consensus was reached. Aebi would remain a polarizing figure in the world of Lacy-ites. And now Steve Potts has become part of that conversation.

There wasn’t much of a tie in with Lacy on the piece Thomas had selected, although the saxophonist on the track played with hints of Lacy’s style and may have lived in Paris for a short time.

The album was recorded by a sextet, though one voice was missing on this track. The musicians were from five different nations from four different continents. Two of the musicians had been persona non grata.

“Why were they ‘non grata’?” One had opposed Apartheid in South Africa and the other had refused to serve in Vietnam.

As we listened, we heard an off kilter melody shared between a trumpet and soprano saxophone. There was plucking strings and crashing cymbals.

Steve looked to me: “Do you know it?” I didn’t but I was worried that it might have been the artist that I wanted to present later (stay tuned).

“When was it recorded?” 1985.

Ted took a wild guess: “Is it Sean Bergin?” The saxophonist was indeed Bergin. A South African that made his home in Amsterdam.

The ensemble was led by cellist Tristan Honsinger - who had fled the USA to avoid the draft during the Vietnam War. The rest of the ensemble was Japanese trumpeter Toshinori Kondo, French bassist Jean-Jacques Avenel and American percussionist Michael Vatcher.

Ted wondered about the Vietnam flight as he thought the draft had ended in 1973 while Honsinger claimed to have left in 1974.

The answer to that riddle was that Honsinger originally left the States for Montreal in 1969. He later moved to Europe in 1974.

Thomas has collaborated with Honsinger and finds the cellist/composer very intense but with a hidden super romantic side.

I wish I had known of this one before. Great record all around.

      5.   Fred Hersch Ensemble – “Part 2: The Sleepers” from Leaves of Grass (Palmetto, 2005)

Presented by Ted Panken – CD – Theme: C

Ted mentioned that his selection was “music featuring literature with a capital L.” He was also happy that there was a Brooklyn connection with the piece. He felt the piece “somewhat artisanal” apropos to the Park Slope surroundings.

Steve: “Is that Kurt Elling?” Yes. “Horrible…”

Ted: “Hmm… I really like Elling.”

Steve: “So is this a John Hollenbeck project?” No. Though it did happen to feature Hollenbeck on drums.

“Glenn Patscha?” No, it wasn’t the keyboardist and leader of the rootsy Ollabelle.

“That was Tony Malaby on tenor, though? Right?” I believe so.

No one guessed the leader or the literary connection.

The literary element was a poem by the former Brooklynite Walt Whitman.

The project was pianist Fred Hersch’s setting of Whitman poems to his own original compositions and arrangements.

Ted: “This also happens to be one of my favorite Whitman poems.”

      6.   Bill Evans – “A Sleepin’ Bee” from Trio 64 (Verve V6-8578, 1964)

Presented by Steve Futterman – MP3 – Theme: C

Steve wanted to present a quick one that he felt everyone would get but he had just thought of.

As soon as the piano started, it was easy to tell that it was - seemingly a crowd favorite – Bill Evans. It was his trio of bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Paul Motian that was recorded in New York City on December 18, 1963.

The composition was by Harold Arlen but the tune’s original lyrics were provided by literary great and altogether strange guy, Truman Capote.

      7.   Carlos d’Alessio & Marguerite Duras – "India Song (Orchestre)" from India Song Et Autres Musiques De Films (Le Chant Du Monde LDX 74818, 1984)

Presented by Jason Weiss – CD - Theme: A

We heard a slinky piano groove that built up with cornet, clarinet and violin -reminiscent of early jazz and blues.

Steve: “Is it a Sidney Bechet piece?” No but it was certainly in the spirit.

Jason told us that the piece was written for an art house film from the 1970s. There was certainly an early American jazz meets French cabaret feel.

Steve: “So the composer was in exile?” In a way.

Composer Carlos d’Alessio was an Argentinean native who lived in France. This particular work was composed for writer/director Marguerite Duras’s film India Song. Duras wrote the play in 1972 and later released the film adaptation in 1975.

The setting of the movie was Paris in the 1930s – thus the early jazz sound that would have been extremely popular during the period.

Jason also mentioned that this particular song had a connection with another BYOV fav, Kip Hanrahan, as it was performed on his first recording Coup De Tête (American Clavé AMCL 1007, 1981) with Carla Bley featured on vocals and piano.

      8.   Brion Gysin – “Kick” from Self-Portrait Jumping (Made to Measure MTM 33, 1993)

Presented by Jason Weiss – CD – Theme: C

The trumpet just kicked in when Thomas chimed: “It sounds like Don Cherry.”

It certainly was.

The tune had a certain new wave / world fusion feel that Cherry went on to champion in the 1980s. But he wasn’t the main artist.

No one was able to guess artist and performance artist Brion Gysin. Most well known for his drawings and paintings, Gysin was involved in music and writing, too. He helped his friend William Burroughs edit a number of writings and even helped devise a “cut-up” system that Burroughs used to write Naked Lunch.

“Kick” came from an album Gysin recorded with French guitarist Ramuntcho Matta called Self-Portrait Jumping that featured his own vocals and lyrics over tracks that included illustrious jazz musicians like Don Cherry and Steve Lacy (with whom he had collaborated extensively).

      9.   Bad Plus – “Frog and Toad” from Give (Columbia CK 90771, 2004)

Presented by Chris Morrissey – CD – Theme: C

Chris brought in an instrumental tune inspired by a series of children’s books by Arnold Lobel entitled Frog and Toad.

Steve: “Did this come out recently? I know I’ve listened to this recently.”

It was recent. At least in the scope of the past ten years, as it was released in 2004.

Jason: “It is interesting to know the name of the song while listening to the tune. You can put the image together and hear a certain energy the song tries to capture.”

No one tried to guess the artist(s). Chris hinted that the composer was a drummer from Minnesota.

Ted guessed the Bad Plus, the consistently trailblazing modern jazz (and other stuff) trio featuring pianist Ethan Iverson, bassist Reid Anderson and drummer Dave King. Each member has composed for the group but this particular tune was written by King.

The question of the group’s substantiality in the world of jazz came up as it inevitably does in any conversation about the Bad Plus.

“Is there anything beyond the rock and roll covers?”

Chris took exception: “As a disclaimer, these guys are friends of mine. They may be a polarizing group just because of their wide recognition. Their music isn’t schtick or tongue in cheek and they certainly aren’t insensitive to the music.”

Ted echoed Chris’s sentiments: “The group’s approach isn’t so calculated.”

Ted went on to say that the ensemble never aimed at being a group that covered rock and contemporary tunes to attract listeners.

The fact that the Bad Plus has had success beyond that which most jazz ensembles have attained has only garnered them with detractors in the jazz community. What should have been seen as a modern attempt at drawing from popular song has put the group in the crosshairs of the jazz cognoscenti.

The easiest target has seemed to be drummer Dave King. Once again his drumming came into question at our roundtable as someone mentioned that - to all intents and purpose - King was a rock drummer.

Chris: “Dave and many of his fans would vehemently deny that claim. He can play any style and has developed his own distinct concept and style.”

The fact of the matter was that the ensemble has brought together three individuals with many varied musical interests and concepts. Each of the members has proven his worth as a composer and improviser.

While the group has moved past these arguments, at least they’ve kept the music relevant and developed a following that might not have reached out to jazz otherwise.

      10.   Harry Miller Quintet – “Schooldays” from Down South (VARA Jazz 4213, 1985)

Presented by Me – LP – Theme: A

We heard a plucked bass and scattered drums. There were some chuckles as some muffled vocalese and human squawking was heard. The horns came in as the drums swung into double time.

And they were off!

I mentioned that the make up of this ensemble was mainly European with some others.

Thomas: “It isn’t the Brotherhood?” It wasn’t the Chris McGregor led Brotherhood of Breath but Thomas was thinking along the right lines.

Ted: “I was thinking Dutch. Maybe Willem Breuker or Wolter Wierbos?” Though Breuker wasn’t there, it was the Dutch trombonist Wierbos blasting away.

It also turned out that the group was listening to saxophonist Sean Bergin for the second time that afternoon.

No one guessed the other exile, Bergin’s fellow countryman.

It was the great South African bassist Harry Miller most well known for his time with the Brotherhood of Breath, adventures in the UK and European free jazz scenes and his creation of Ogun Records with his wife Hazel.

The rest of the ensemble included the under-appreciated British trumpeter Mark Charig and the iconoclastic Dutch percussionist Han Bennink.

This particular record was released posthumously, Miller having perished on December 16, 1983 from injuries he received in a car accident on November 27. Two other musicians also died in the early morning disaster. The recording was made on March 3, 1983 in Amsterdam and released in February 1984.

Thomas mentioned that the accident was still mentioned as caution whenever musicians took to the road by car.

      11.   Bob Dylan – “I Shall Be Released” from The Bootleg Series, Vols. 1-3: Rare and Unreleased, 1961-1991 (Sony, 1997)

Presented by Steve Futterman – MP3 – Theme: A

Steve: “I want to play a quick example of an artist that went into a sort of voluntary exile.”

Chris: “Isn’t that just called moving?”

The vocalist was obviously Bob Dylan. This was material from the Basement Tapes that were made as Dylan took time away from the limelight and started to piece together what was to become the Band.

The singer/songwriter had a motorcycle accident in 1967, which he used as an excuse to escape the touring life of which he was fairly exhausted. Dylan had just come off a big European tour and “he didn’t want to do it again.”

Ultimately, this led to new developments in Dylan’s craft, vocal style and the creation of one of the folk/rock’s favorite groups, the Band.

Jason: “So it was more of an internal exile.”

Steve: “At least he made good use of his time.”

BYOV - Meeting #6

A month since my last post!?! That sucks. I have been working on a few pieces. They have required some interaction and some research. Hope to have at least one of them up within a week or two.

Once again, it is that time of year. I did manage to escape that web on Black Friday.

Sometimes things just don’t go your way. I had been concerned about attendance for our sixth installment (Nov. 20) because of a slight change in time, 1pm instead of the usual 3pm. Then it had to be a gorgeous, warm and sunny Sunday afternoon. Recipe for disaster. I should have wished for a black Sunday...

To top it off, my friendly relationship with my MacBook ended when it decided not to work at all that afternoon, thus making it impossible to play CDs. Fine, fine… The show must go on. And it did to a smaller crew than usual. But what we lacked in size, we made up for in spirit!

We had one theme for BYOV #6:

Everyone's an expert. Presenters should bring a recording they find best represents the work of an artist they feel that they really get. Then explain what makes them so special. Mariah Carey's biggest fan? Bring your favorite track by your gurl. Bix Beiderbecke gets you revved? Haul out your 78s. Be prepared to defend your choices. We have some critics hanging around.

Before we played any music, there was a long discussion covering a wide range of musical topics. It began with Steve Futterman inquiring if anyone had seen any live music over the previous week. He and his brother Robert had been to see Chick Corea at the Blue Note, both with differing but altogether positive reviews. I admitted not being much of a Corea fan, at least not since his earlier works on Blue Note or ECM (I don’t think I said so much but hope it was implied).

Sorry to sidetrack but some of this will come up again later…

Anyway… This led to a discussion of musicians and their choices of musical direction. David Sanborn’s name came up rather quickly. Most of us had a huge respect for his abilities as a saxophonist but not in his choice of material. It has been interesting to note that many saxophonists from the past couple of decades were weaned on Sanborn and hold him in the highest regard. Discussion entered on where he had played in some more “interesting” musical settings. There were his recordings with Butterfield Blues Band, Stevie Wonder, Tim Berne and the Gil Evans Orchestra.

As I typically present last, I was asked to present first and as fate would have it the first recording happened to be of that aforementioned Gil Evans Orchestra (which happened to include Mr. Sanborn).

1. Marvin “Hannibal” Peterson w/ the Gil Evans Orchestra – “Zee Zee” from Svengali (Atlantic SD 1643 (1973))
Presented by Me – LP

I knew that these guys would guess this track immediately, after all that talk. I put the needle to the groove and as soon as those low brass tones came in:

“Those first notes…”

Everyone knew that it was Evans and the Orchestra. I believe Steve guessed that it was the Svengali recording. Though I had thought of presenting Evans, I was more concerned with the soloist on this particular track.

Then came that trumpet.

Robert: “Is that Hannibal?”

Yes, sir. Marvin “Hannibal” Peterson, aka Hannibal Marvin Peterson, aka Hannibal Peterson, aka Hannibal, aka Hannibal Lokumbe.

I had been juggling the names of a few musicians for my submission, including Mr. Evans, as his arranging work (particularly his later stuff) has been some of my favorite material for years. I decided to go with Hannibal because I thought that he really deserved to be recognized as both an impressive instrumentalist and composer, though he seemed to have disappeared long ago.

“Zee Zee” was an Evans original composition that was essentially a harmonic bed of eerie, moody low tones. The focal point of the song was an extended trumpet solo by Hannibal. This performance has gone on to become the most well known example of the Texas born trumpeter’s playing.

Steve: “That track was a gift from Gil.”

Robert: “Man… I haven’t heard that track for a long time. I must have it on vinyl.”

Hannibal presented a well-defined tone and boundless ideas on the trumpet along with a brute force that really cut through the loose arrangement of Evans.

Hannibal was born in 1948 and started on the trumpet during his early teens. He quickly started his own ensemble, the Soul Masters, which backed many soul and blues greats as they toured throughout Texas. He attended North Texas State University for two years before moving to New York in 1970. Hannibal then joined up with Rahsaan Roland Kirk before settling in with Evans as a principal soloist for nearly 10 years. He later went on to perform in groups led by Pharoah Sanders, Roy Haynes and Elvin Jones.

While Hannibal was being featured in these various settings, he also maintained his own ensembles that featured his unique compositional voice. Most famously with his Sunrise Orchestra.

2. Hannibal Marvin Peterson & The Sunrise Orchestra – “Movement 1. Forest Sunrise B. Song of Life” from Children of the Fire (Sunrise Records 1944 (1974))
Presented by Me – LP

I brought this one along just to give a taste of where Hannibal had begun as a composer and music conceptualist.

Children of the Fire was a larger ensemble piece that was written by Hannibal and arranged by the talented David Amram. The album also was produced in part by his employer and biggest fan, Gil Evans.

The pieces on the record were written in tribute to the children of Vietnam and presented a feast of eclectic folk sensibilities alongside a strong dose of spiritual jazz. The outcome wasn’t far from where Don Cherry was at the same period with the Eternal Rhythm and JCOA recordings. Peterson might have been a stronger trumpet soloist, however.

The 1970s saw a handful of other releases from Hannibal and more pared down versions of the Sunrise Orchestra, mostly on the Japanese Baystate, German MPS and Enja labels. From the 1980s on, Hannibal’s releases began to be entirely theme oriented. The Angels of Atlanta was a tribute to the victims of racism-fueled bombings of Atlanta. One with the Wind and African Portraits dealt with the African diaspora and how it has been dealt with in modern American history. His latest release Dear Mrs. Parks (Naxos, 2009) was a commission from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra that celebrates the contributions and cultural legacy of African Americans, including that of Mrs. Rosa Parks.

Steve heard a Freddie Hubbard influence on Hannibal’s solo playing along with the obvious references to Strata East and Charles Tolliver.

“I called this stuff ‘acoustic fusion.’ Blending jazz, Eastern and African influences with soul and blues.”

Jason discussed the lack of depth that much spiritual jazz had. His example: a 1970s performance of Pharoah Sanders at Keystone Korner in the Bay. He said that the entire thing had been very predictable and that Pharoah had even left the stage after he was done soloing, as if it had only been routine. Many such performances were equally fomulaic.

I was asked where I found the record. I had picked it up at Jazz Record Center in midtown at a pretty unbelievable price ($25). Great shape, too. This led to a long diatribe about the record market and how it has been shaped over the past 20 years or so. I should expound about that topic at length at some point.

3. Paul Desmond Quartet – “Jazzabelle” from The Paul Desmond Quartet with Don Elliott (Fantasy 3-235 (1956))
Presented by Jeremy Udden – LP

I’m so proud. Jeremy brought an LP.

We heard an alto sax and what seemed to be a trombone playing in a quartet with bass and drums, quite unusual instrumentation for a quartet that seemed to be dating back to the 1950s.

“Is it Brookmeyer?” Nope. Head scratching…

The trombone being the quirkier of the two lead instruments, everyone tried to go for that first.

“It is a valve trombone, isn’t it?”

Not a trombone, valve or otherwise. Hmm…

Once the saxophone tone got settled, I guessed Paul Desmond. The correct guess.

We all agreed that Desmond had an amazing sound and ability on the alto, even though: “Miles said alto shouldn’t be played that way.”

Robert: “I didn’t think Desmond could play a solo of that length.”

Jeremy had to tell us that it was Don Elliott performing on a mellophone.

The tune had a particularly intriguing section that featured a fugue in counterpoint between Desmond and Elliott. Apparently the section had been fully improvised.

That brought Jeremy to mention what he finds as Desmond’s most important contribution as a musician besides his peerless tone: Desmond’s completely compositional direction. Everything that Desmond did was in service to the overall composition. Even his improvisations were extensions of the theme.

Steve: “It its own way, that is some outrageous drumming.”

The drummer was credited as Joe Chevrolet (a pun on his actual name, Joe Dodge) in the notes penned by the comedian Mort Sahl. Funny. The drummer took a very minimalist role, especially while comping solos, as he mainly focused on the rim of the snare.

Sahl had been a prominent comedian in the Bay Area, where Desmond had emerged. A bigger celebrity than Desmond, apparently. It was interesting to note that on the record sleeve, Sahl had quite a bit of room for his own material and even gets a choice photo placement (there wasn’t one for the leader). Rumor has it that Desmond later slept with Sahl’s wife and the friendship was ended. Touchy.

It was also interesting that Desmond didn’t feature a pianist in his ensemble. He was after all most well known for his work with a pianist, Dave Brubeck. Jeremy thought there might have been an agreement with Brubeck that if Desmond released a recording of his own that there wouldn’t be a piano.

We did listen to another track from the same album, “Sacre Blues.” It featured a very uncharacteristic solo from Desmond including a venture into the altissimo register of the horn.



Though Desmond didn’t receive the respect that he should have from younger generations of saxophonists, he still managed to make an impression on some rather diverse players, including Anthony Braxton. It shouldn’t be surprising then that, as Jeremy mentioned, one of Desmond’s biggest influences was a “jump” style saxophonist named Pete Brown. Quite a stylistic distance from where Desmond ended up.

“If there was an underground poll, he’d be in the top three saxophonists.”

Desmond had an obvious jazz/pop appeal and some wondered if he hadn’t been the David Sanborn of his generation.

Jeremy had mentioned that Jerry Bergonzi had said that he never really got into Desmond but had told him, “It takes balls to play that way.”

4. Ruby Braff – “Royal Garden Blues” from Bravura Eloquence (Concord 423 (1990))
Presented by Steve Futterman – MP3

Steve presaged his selection by stating, “This was the best trumpeter of the past 40 years besides Hannibal.”

The ensemble featured here was a trio of trumpet, guitar and bass. The trumpeter’s facility was pretty extraordinary. Comments were made regarding his breadth of range and dexterity throughout registers.

We needed some hints from Steve. He told us that the trumpeter’s career spanned back to the 1950s.

“Still alive?” No.

Steve: “Apparently, he was the most ornery guy in jazz.”

“He was from Boston and white.”

No one could guess.

Jeremy knew the tune and was impressed with the arrangement: “Kinda like a little big band arrangement.”

No one could guess.

Braff was born in 1927 in Boston. His music career began while he was still very young, in the 1940s, with his real foray into the jazz world beginning in the 1950s. He was well regarded in the jazz community for his ability as a trumpeter in the Louis Armstrong fashion and gained respect as he had been a young white guy able to hang with the black guys. It was interesting that he dedicated his life to the pursuit of an Armstrong ideal, as it wasn’t a popular choice when he was trying to make a name for himself.

Steve found that his most confident playing could be found on his recordings from his peak, much later in his career, from the 1970s to 1990s. As he wasn’t a writer, his recordings found him flexing his chops on well-known jewels like this featured on a 1990 Concord session.

“What does Wynton think of Ruby?”

Steve: “Can’t say that I’ve seen a word written about it.”

This got us into our monthly rant on Wynton.

Speaking of which, had you heard that Jazz @ Lincoln Center has decided toopen new locations around the world, including Dubai?

5. Maze featuring Frankie Beverley– “While I’m Alone” from Maze featuring Frankie Beverly (Capitol C2-91244, 1977)
Presented by Zak Shelby-Szyszko – YouTube.com

Zak can always be counted on to derail the jazz express. This time he was able to use the magic of the internet to give us a soul group that many of us had never explored.

Steve: “Is that ‘What You See, Is What You Get’?” No…

We heard a rather breezy, bass heavy groove. A tenor with a slight rasp comes in with a wordless, scat-ish vocal.

“Donny Hathaway?” An emphatic no – at least from Zak and myself.

Hints?

Zak: “From the West Coast.”

“Group with a band name or the name of the featured vocalist?”

Zak: “It is a band with a featured vocalist.”

“What year?”

Zak: “1977.”

Me: “I’m embarrassed to say I don’t recognize the vocalist, Zak.”

Steve: “Can we have the singer’s initials?”

Zak: “FB.”

No one had it.

Zak gave us a break – Maze featuring Frankie Beverley. Beverley and Maze had originally come from Philadelphia where they performed as the Butlers. They didn’t quite gel with the “Philly Sound” made popular by Gamble & Huff so they moved to California where they changed their name to Raw Soul.

The group’s break came when they were introduced to Marvin Gaye, who had them tour as an opening act. He also suggested the group change their name to Maze.

“While I’m Alone” was the group’s first hit single from their debut album. Not their biggest hit, by any means. Zak also played the group’s “Happy Feelings” from the same album to see if we had heard it.



Though some of us liked the tune, some thought it kind of boring.

“Sounds like a vamp looking for a tune.”

“There didn’t seem to be a hook.”

Zak mentioned that the group still toured and sounded good when they played in Brooklyn last summer. He felt that they should have been better known in their prime but they were never able to break through into the white mainstream, though they had a similar sound to that of the extremely popular Earth Wind & Fire.

6. Steve Lacy – “The Uh Uh Uh” from Dreams (Saravah SH 10058, (1975)
Presented by Jason Weiss – CD (Couldn’t play – computer meltdown)

Jason had seen baritone saxophonist/Lacy devotee Josh Sinton’s group Ideal Bread play this tune a few nights before our meeting. He decided to present Lacy as he had been a big fan of the soprano saxophonist for years and had conducted many interviews with him, which he later presented in a fine collection (here).

“The Uh Uh Uh” featured a typically strong Lacy melody alongside an ensemble featuring a more subdued Derek Bailey, who avoided playing his more typical language of squiggles for one that was a little more approachable (I still hear some clangs). The tune was a tribute to the late guitar legend Jimi Hendrix, who’s music Lacy was familiar with via a long relationship with Gil Evans (we come around, yet again).

Jason looked back to this period of Lacy’s career as one of the better ones. Though he played in many different situations, his own groups were pretty well established. Lacy had always looked to establish long term relationships with musicians he played with, most notable were his relationships with Mal Waldron and Roswell Rudd. This period was also before he added vocals to his music, which alienated some fans.

The fan base for Lacy’s music has been large and dedicated. Jason himself has been involved with a particularly devoted gang of Lacy aficionados, including four Frenchmen. They have been trading recordings of Lacy’s for years. He remembered meeting a European couple that would come to New York on their vacation to hear every set of Lacy’s annual, week-long stand at Sweet Basil.

Jason’s own fondness for Lacy’s music stemmed from the saxophonist’s singular sound and writing. Lacy’s soprano sound was completely unique. He was possibly the only saxophonist to fully identify with the smaller horn and never got caught up in using the horn in a purely “Eastern” esthetic, as many doublers would in the future. Lacy was also a creative composer who wrote memorable themes with melodic hooks and plenty of repetition. The songs have stood out.

Jason: “Just like with Monk. I can remember the tune but not the name of the tune.”

In interviews that he conducted with Lacy, Jason was able to learn about Lacy’s writing style. Lacy would write with lyrics in mind, which Jason thought added another dimension to the music.

Jason: “I like to compare the vocal to the instrumental version of Lacy’s songs. I prefer the instrumental.”

Lacy’s wife and collaborator Irene Aebi would typically take the vocal duties on these tracks later on. Her voice has been equally heralded and derided for decades.

Robert: “My wife has always made me stop the record when she heard Irene and, believe it or not, Abbey Lincoln.”

Strange bedfellows…

Lacy created his own brand of art song while putting others’ words to music. Jason mentioned that most of his meetings with Lacy were spent talking about books. This tradition has been kept alive recently by a number of musicians. Some that came to this group’s collective mind were John Hollenbeck, Frank Carlberg and Sam Sadigursky.

Steve: “Do you think that Lacy recorded too much?”

Jason: “I almost think he did.”

Lacy has been one of the most prolifically recorded jazz musicians ever. The race between him and David Murray could be very close. The amount of recordings could be seen as a sign of the times he lived in. Much of his income derived from recording sessions from numerous independent European labels during the 1970s, where the music was more appreciated.

“Is he an inimitable figure?”

Jason: “Yes and no.”

Jason explained that Lacy’s work on the soprano stood alone. Listening to Lacy’s soprano had ruined him for other saxophonists that have taken up the instrument, mostly on the side. Lacy had mastered the horn as others merely added it to their repertoire.

We discussed the best starting points for Lacy newbies. Most thought that starting with his early recordings and easing your way in might be best, the same strategy might prove to be helpful in tackling the music of Cecil Taylor. Another method would be listening to Lacy interpret tunes of well-known composers, which he did quite often. He was recognized as one of the best interpreters of Thelonious Monk and Herbie Nichols and did some interesting interpretations of Ellington, as well.

Example below.

Steve Lacy - "Prelude to a Kiss" from 10 Of Dukes + 6 Originals (Senators Records SEN 01 (2002))

Next BYOV will be on Dec. 11th. Come get some cake.