Midweek Mailbag: Sept 4, 2024
Listening, Reading, & Celebrating: Emmet Cohen, Oscar Peterson, Big Bands and more!
In the Listening Room
Emmet Cohen Vibe Provider
I recommend spending some time with the latest from pianist Emmet Cohen, Vibe Provider, issued last month via Mack Avenue Music Group. I spent a day with Emmet at his apartment a few weeks back, and we talked deep into the afternoon about the record, his influences, and his Live From Emmet’s Place lockdown sessions. Emmet is a thoughtful, engaging, optimistic guy with a deep bench of jazz knowledge and a great sense of humor. I left his apartment that day with deep respect for him as a musician and human, and glad that Mack Ave sent a videographer to capture Emmet’s insights throughout our conversation. Here’s Emmet discussing the inspiration for Vibe Provider, which is rooted in the passing of his dear friend (and friend of the broader jazz community), Michael Funmi Ononaiye (1968- 2023):
We covered a lot of ground during our chat. Emmet’s love of jazz and joy in bringing music into the world is infectious, and time slips away as he sits at the piano and plays music to accompany his thoughts or emphasize a point. Vibe Provider blends originals and standards and combines a variety of musicians in various combos to make it one of the most engaging new jazz records I’ve heard this year. I also admire Emmet’s direct-to-fan platform strategy, which is something many independent jazz players should study. Taken as a whole, it may not be suitable for everyone, but there are pages from his playbook that make a lot of sense.
Oscar Peterson—A Jazz Portrait of Frank Sinatra
I give this vinyl reissue three thumbs up—two for the album overall and an extra for bassist Ray Brown, who gives a masterclass in acoustic standup bass that DEMANDS your attention! The legendary pianist Oscar Peterson was highly prolific, with well over 200 records as a leader. A Jazz Portrait of Frank Sinatra is one of 16(!!!) records Peterson recorded in 1959, a year when he focused on interpreting the works of Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Harold Arlen, Duke Ellington, Richard Rogers, and others. I’ve yet to hear all of them, but all that I have listened to are excellent, and I hope Verve has its eyes on a few for future reissue plans. This Sinatra tribute is right in the Peterson pocket—massive swing, occasional jaw-dropping lines that make the piano seem like it has more than 88 keys and an incredibly tight trio. Drummer Ed Thigpen is as essential a player as Brown and Peterson, but my ears keep returning to Brown, who repeatedly steals the show throughout the record. For those (like me) who’ve had mixed experiences with the Verve By Request series, I’m happy to report that mastering and pressing are quite strong, and after a thorough cleaning, the vinyl was dead quiet. There’s an occasional harshness to the piano when Peterson is leaning in during the first couple of tracks on Side A, but nothing excessive, which would prevent me from recommending it. Oscar Peterson remains under-represented in my library, so I’m pleased to add this title to the collection! If I didn’t make it clear before, Ray Brown FTW!
Lee Morgan—The Gigolo
If The Gigolo is absent from a conversation about top-tier Lee Morgan records, it’s time to reevaluate. I don’t have peer-reviewed research or data to explain why this LP seems to fall into the “excellent but overlooked” category of Morgan’s Blue Note run. But rather than speculate, let’s live in the now—Blue Note Classics has just delivered a fantastic reissue that should please even the most discerning enthusiast. The pressing compares favorably to my Music Matters 45RPM double LP at 10% of the price, so I’m looking forward to a combination of widespread availability and reasonable price shining a much-deserved spotlight on this superb music. For this 1965 date, Morgan is reunited with fellow former Jazz Messenger Wayne Shorter on tenor sax and supported by a killer rhythm section in Harold Mabern-piano, Bob Cranshaw-bass, and Billy Higgins-drums. The five Morgan originals have a lot of depth (and I hear a bit of Shorter’s compositional influence, if not assistance) and include one of my all-time favorites, “Speedball.” That track becomes a centerpiece down the road on the bandstand and a highlight (4X) on The Complete Live at the Lighthouse box, recorded in 1970. The title track is a modal beast featuring lethal drumming by Higgins and a BLISTERING Morgan solo—it’s another one of my all-time favorite Morgan compositions. “Trapped” builds to a boil with tension/release soloing and riff-trading between Morgan, Shorter, and Mabern (who deserves a medal for his contributions to the entire record). The Gigolo closes with the standard “You Go to My Head,” a perfect way to send you into that mellow good night—another winner from the Blue Note Classics series.
Good Reads
The New York Times continues its excellent 5 Minutes That Will Make You Love Jazz series today, focusing on Big Band Jazz. While you’ll find some of the usual suspects there, I’m pleased to see shout-outs for numerous artists who challenge many hackneyed, banal big band tropes. Namechecks and contributors worth investigating include Darcy James Argue, Horace Tapscott, and Maria Schneider. But special recognition to writer and influencer
, who calls out two of my all-time favorites on the Strata-East label from Charles Tolliver’s Music Inc. Both the self-titled Music, Inc. big band record and the follow-up Impact are superb. Autocorrect wants me to replace “big” with either “extensive” or “significant,” and both adjectives are appropriate for these albums. Vinyl is elusive, but track down the Mosaic box.I want to bring two more big band records to your attention that raise my drawbridge and challenge the stereotype of identically dressed men swinging in unison like they were playing at your grandparents’ wedding:
The Tubby Hayes Big Band—100% Proof. Britain’s jazz legend had plenty of big band experience besides his small combo work. But Tubby Hayes never made a record like 100% Proof before, nor would he make another like it again. 100% is spot on—this monster band gives it their all. Clever arrangements, tight ensemble playing, and virtuoso performance on tenor, flute & vibes from bandleader/composer/arranger Tubby Hayes. There’s not a big band cliche to be found here. Instead, you get ripping, wild, edge-of-your-seat takes on classics like “A Night in Tunisia,” “Milestones,” and “Nutty,” along with the epic, 14+ minute title track. The entire record swings like Thor’s Hammer if Thor had taken a massive dose of LSD, with an intensity that EXPLODES from your speakers. Don’t settle for a mono copy on vinyl—the sonic wallop is GARGANTUAN and requires stereo. The Complete Fontana Albums CD collection has an expanded edition with many outtakes and bonus material that will stomp you flat if you can find it. In a good way.
John Beasley & the Frankfurt Radio Big Band—Returning to Forever. Pioneering fusion outfit Return to Forever dabbled in augmenting their core quartet with horns, but this project supersizes the music far beyond those experiments. Not beyond recognition, though—Beasley was in active dialog with keyboardist Chick Corea about arrangements and charts for this project, though sadly, Corea flew from this world before it was completed. Still, this is a helluva job in taking small combo electric fusion and expanding it to mammoth proportions, without making anything sound forced or unnatural. I love Return to Forever and know their music well, but my skepticism that this would work vanished by the end of “Captian Señor Mouse.” Dig it.
It’s only mid-week, but I'll be surprised if another article comes along that bests this one. I’m fascinated (bordering on obsessed) with the various means of music discovery, and “How did you hear about this?” may be my most-asked question whenever I hear someone speaking enthusiastically about an artist or album they believe I need to hear. Props to
for an engaging Substack post—I encourage you to read about how music circles back around again and the lure of nostalgia.
Happy Birthday This Week
Horace Silver The Jody Grind
A tip of the hat to hard-bop hero Horace Silver, who’d be celebrating his 96th lap around the sun this week! Huzzah! One never needs an excuse to spin a burner like The Jody Grind, but birthdays are to be celebrated, right? The hard-bop that Silver played a massive role in popularizing remains prominent, though it’s clear the times are a-changin’, as there’s a whiff of modal and post-bop in the air. Not to mention album art that feels like a reaction to a changing world. Rock & roll had captured the minds and ears of youngsters everywhere, pushing jazz to the back burner, and The Jody Grind would be the final Blue Note LP before Liberty took over the company. But like I said, The Jody Grind doesn’t stray far from the established Silver playbook. His band is fiery, with Woody Shaw and the under-recorded Tyrone Washington overflowing with ideas and the chops to deliver them. Fans of Roger Humphries rejoice—he gives his best performance on record here (IMNSHO). That’s saying a lot, given he’s also the drummer on Silver’s iconic Songs for My Father. Rudy Van Gelder deserves a shout-out for an ace job at the mixing desk, and he manages to tame this energetic crew from going into the red while still bringing out a fantastic sense of space and clarity. Sadly, The Jody Grind master tapes are missing in inaction, so a modern reassessment via Tone Poet or Blue Note Classics remains a dream unless they turn up. But I encourage you to seek a second-hand copy or go digital—this album is a standout in a discography filled with standouts. Dig that cover, too—it wouldn’t surprise me if they all finished the photo shoot and ended up as extras in Rowan & Martin’s ‘Laugh-In’ dance scene.
Clifford Jordan Glass Bead Games
If I’m going to catch flack for overposting one jazz record too often, it’s not one of the usual suspects like Kind of Blue or Mingus Ah Um. I’ll happily take any shade thrown in my direction for posting again about Glass Bead Games, one of the most played records here at Jazz and Coffee HQ. This is a celebratory post—we’re all here to celebrate Mr. Clifford Jordan, who would have turned 93 this week, and his magnum opus, Glass Bead Games. Jordan’s inspiration is Herman Hesse’s novel The Glass Bead Game, an allegorical treatise on the horrors of fascism while reflecting on how the arts can enable or fight against it. Hesse also raises ethical questions about the reactions and responsibilities of artists and the intelligentsia as authoritarianism takes root. The glass bead game is the centerpiece—a metaphysical challenge to synthesize and connect concepts from music, math, art, science, and philosophy. “Winning” involves identifying relationships between these threads that can be woven into a cohesive meta-understanding of humanity. But there’s also a cautionary tale—ideas in isolation are ineffective against totalitarianism, and understanding the context of the game is also a teachable moment. Hesse’s allegorical fight against rising Naziism resonated strongly with Jordan, who transformed Hesse’s tale into a series of mesmerizing jazz journeys. Recorded Oct 29, 1973, with two different quartets, Jordan’s Glass Bead Games gets everything right—brilliant writing, excellent musicianship, catchy melodies, Coltrane-inspired flights of fancy, toe-tapping grooves, and deep mindfulness—the replayability of this record is off the charts. I’ve recommended it relentlessly, and nobody has complained that I overhyped it. Original pressings (like this) are scarce and pricey. Instead, I suggest the Mosaic Complete Clifford Jordan Strata-East Sessions CD box. It’s much cheaper, boasts great sound and excellent liner notes, and contains all of Jordan’s recordings for the legendary Strata-East label. The music transcends the medium, so hear it however you can, but my fingers remain crossed for a legit vinyl reissue someday!
Some great shoutouts this week. That Peterson record feels like one of the few from that 1959 batch that I haven't heard. The Gigolo is great, but yeah, Glass Bead Games is on a whole other level. Making a mental note to check out the Tubby Hayes. I recognize his name from a Dizzy Reece date I researched. https://thejazztome.info/dizzy-reece-blues-in-trinity/