The Jazz Real Book

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The Green Mountains and Roy Haynes Oct 04, 2026

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“The Green Mountains” and Roy Haynes (137)

“The Green Mountains,” from Gary Burton’s 1969 album Country Roads & Other Places, features guitarist Jerry Hahn, bassist Steve Swallow, and legendary drummer Roy Haynes. The composition stands out for its open harmonic sound, moving between major seventh and suspended chords, along with syncopated melodies and smooth descending bass lines. Haynes brings his unmistakable rhythmic personality to the recording, using crisp cymbal work, unexpected accents, and constant interaction with the ensemble. A veteran of groups led by Charlie Parker, Sarah Vaughan, John Coltrane, and others, Haynes helped connect several generations of jazz while continually adapting his distinctive drumming style.

Gary Burton

Francesco Chiapperini

The Jazz Real Book Playlist Vol.2

Abraham Burton Interview Oct 01, 2026

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Abraham Burton Interview

Saxophonist Abraham Burton has developed a reputation for a powerful and expressive sound rooted in the jazz tradition while maintaining a voice distinctly his own. Growing up in Greenwich Village, Burton was surrounded by music from an early age.

His most important mentors were Jackie McLean and drummer Arthur Taylor taught him one of his most important lessons: technical ability means little if it does not serve the music. Today, Burton carries those experiences into his work as an educator at Rutgers University and with organizations such as Jazz House Kids.

Grand Central and Cannonball Adderley Quintet In Chicago Sep 27, 2026

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“Grand Central” and Cannonball Adderley Quintet In Chicago (136)

“Grand Central” is a John Coltrane composition recorded on February 3, 1959, for Cannonball Adderley Quintet in Chicago. The session featured Cannonball Adderley, Coltrane, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, and Jimmy Cobb—the same core musicians who, less than a month later, would participate in Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue. Played at approximately 256 BPM, the melody mixes rapid eighth-note lines with longer resting notes. Harmonically, Coltrane moves through a series of ii–V progressions that frequently avoid their expected resolutions. The result is a tune that is constantly moving forward, both melodically and harmonically, offering an early glimpse of the increasingly complex harmonic language Coltrane would explore over the next several years.

Coltrane and Cannonball

Pancho Sachez

The Jazz Real Book Podcast Vol 2.

Good Evening Mr. & Mrs. America & All the Ships at Sea and Tom Scott Sep 20, 2026

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“Good Evening Mr. & Mrs. America & All the Ships at Sea” and Tom Scott (135)

“Good Evening Mr. & Mrs. America & All the Ships at Sea” was composed by drummer John Guerin and recorded by Tom Scott and the L.A. Express for the 1975 album Tom Cat. The title references broadcaster Walter Winchell’s famous opening line. The track is a great example of 1970s jazz fusion, combining jazz harmony and improvisation with funk and rock rhythms. It is also a tune you rarely hear called at a jam session—and for good reason. Compared with most jazz standards, its form, melody, harmony, and rhythms are unusually demanding. The arrangement moves through several contrasting sections, including an extended solo form. Much of the piece is built around a funky bass line and unique chord movement. Later sections introduce dominant chords loaded with tensions, shifting meters of harmonic activity, challenging sixteenth-note figures, and unexpected movement. Guerin’s driving backbeat and Scott’s saxophone ultimately hold the complicated arrangement together.

Tom Scott and L.A. Express

The Jazz Real Book Podcast Vol. 2

Ben Allison Interview Sep 13, 2026

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Ben Allison Interview

Ben Allison is an American jazz bassist, composer, bandleader, and educator known for bringing a distinctive contemporary voice to the acoustic bass. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1966, Allison studied jazz at New York University before becoming an important figure in New York’s downtown jazz scene. In 1992, he co-founded the Jazz Composers Collective, an influential organization that provided musicians with opportunities to perform and develop original music outside the traditional jazz-club system.

As a bandleader, Allison blends jazz with rock, funk, folk, and contemporary classical influences. His playing emphasizes groove, melodic invention, and interaction rather than simply serving as a traditional rhythm-section foundation. He has recorded numerous albums, including Buzz, Cowboy Justice, Little Things Run the World, and Action-Refraction. Allison has also championed the music of overlooked jazz composer Herbie Nichols. His work demonstrates how the modern bassist can function equally as accompanist, composer, bandleader, and musical innovator.

Golden Lady and Stevie Wonder Sep 06, 2026

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“Golden Lady” and Stevie Wonder

Stevie Wonder’s “Golden Lady,” from his landmark 1973 album Innervisions, represents everything that makes Wonder such an extraordinary musician. On the surface, it is a warm and uplifting love song, but underneath it is a sophisticated mixture of soul, funk, pop, rock, and jazz influences. Wonder’s inventive harmonies, memorable melodies, rhythmic feel, and use of keyboards and synthesizers give the song a sound that remains remarkably fresh.

“Golden Lady” also demonstrates Wonder’s strong connection to jazz. Although he has never been primarily considered a jazz musician, jazz harmony, improvisation, and musical experimentation have always been important parts of his work. That connection began early with The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie and continued throughout his career, including collaborations with major jazz artists. More than fifty years later, “Golden Lady” remains a great example of Wonder’s genius: sophisticated music that never sounds complicated, combining remarkable musicianship with an immediately memorable song.

Stevie Wonder

Soulive

The Jazz Real Book Playlist Vol 2

Boris Kozlov Interview Aug 29, 2026

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Boris Kozlov Interview

Boris Kozlov’s connection to Charles Mingus runs far deeper than simply directing the Mingus Big Band. Growing up in the Soviet Union, Kozlov first encountered Mingus through photocopied music, playing “Pussy Cat Dues” before he had even heard Mingus’s recordings. After moving to New York, hearing Mingus Ah Um proved transformative—Kozlov describes it as such a perfect recording that it could be sent into space as a representation of “what human jazz is.”

Kozlov joined the Mingus Big Band in 1998 as a last-minute substitute and quickly earned Sue Mingus’s confidence. Within weeks, she entrusted him with creating what became Charles Mingus: More Than a Play-Along. Now the band’s frequent musical director, Kozlov brings that nearly three-decade relationship to the group. His philosophy remains wonderfully Mingus-like: don’t imitate the master—use his music to find your own voice.

T.S. Monk Interview Aug 17, 2026

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T.S. Monk Interview

T.S. Monk has built a remarkable career both as a musician and as the steward of his father Thelonious Monk’s extraordinary legacy. A respected drummer, bandleader, composer, and recording artist, he performed with his father as a young musician before establishing his own career, eventually devoting significant energy to preserving and expanding awareness of Monk’s music.

Today, T.S. Monk is helping lead an important new chapter through the Thelonious Monk Estate and Rhythm-A-Ning Entertainment. The newly unearthed and fully restored Monk Live in Paris, 1967 Volume One represents the first official release from the Monk Estate and launches a series devoted to reclaiming rare and previously unauthorized archival recordings.

The Paris recording captures Monk with Charlie Rouse, Larry Gales, and Ben Riley, joined by guests including Phil Woods, Jimmy Cleveland, Ray Copeland, and Johnny Griffin. Volume Two, featuring Clark Terry, is scheduled for October 9, 2026. For T.S. Monk, these releases are about more than rediscovery—they represent preserving, protecting, and reintroducing his father’s revolutionary music for future generations.

José Feliciano’s- Feliciano! (RCA-Victor) Aug 15, 2026

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José Feliciano’s Feliciano! (RCA-Victor)

Released June 1968

Bonus: Season Corrections and Omissions

José Feliciano’s Feliciano! is a remarkable example of how a great interpreter can completely reinvent familiar material. Released in 1968, the album consists entirely of covers, but Feliciano transforms them through his distinctive combination of classical guitar, jazz, Latin rhythms, folk, blues, and soul. His versions of “California Dreamin’” and especially “Light My Fire” are the centerpieces, demonstrating his ability to make established songs sound completely new. The musicianship is exceptional, with jazz legend Ray Brown on bass, Milt Holland on percussion, and Jim Horn on flute and woodwinds supporting Feliciano’s extraordinary guitar playing and soulful vocals.The album reached No. 2 in America, while “Light My Fire” reached No. 3, helping Feliciano earn two Grammy Awards. Feliciano! is a masterclass in interpretation—proof that covering someone else’s music can become an original artistic statement. (S5-EP30)

Blood, Sweat & Tears- Self Titled Aug 12, 2026

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Blood, Sweat & Tears- Self Titled (Columbia Records)

Release Date: December 11, 1968

Blood, Sweat & Tears’ self-titled 1968 album proved that sophisticated, horn-driven jazz-rock could also be enormously commercial. With David Clayton-Thomas replacing Al Kooper as the band’s focal point, BS&T combined jazz, soul, blues, classical music, Latin rhythms, and rock with remarkably tight arrangements and musicianship. Three singles—“Spinning Wheel,” “And When I Die,” and “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy”—reached No. 2, while the album topped the charts and eventually won the Grammy for Album of the Year. The album has been certified quadruple platinum with sales of more than four million units in the U.S. Beyond the hits, tracks such as “Smiling Phases” and the brilliant reinvention of Billie Holiday’s “God Bless the Child” demonstrate the band’s authentic connection to jazz and willingness to experiment with changing time feels, improvisation, and complex horn writing. Producer James William Guercio helped give the record precision without sacrificing energy. It remains a masterful achievement and proof that advanced musicianship could compete with the psychedelic studio experimentation dominating late-1960s rock. (S5-EP29)

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