Discovering Jazz

Latest Episodes:

Episode 112: Tiger Rag,Invitation,I Didn’t Know What Time,How Insensitive,Gypsy in My Soul Jun 23, 2020

Show notes

Five more jazz standards today….with a few different versions of each and some interesting stories.

Hilights? I’d give the #1 highlight to Mitchell Ruff Trio’s version of Gypsy in My Soul. What an under-rated group! Vancouver’s Karin Plato sings a nice version too.

Then there’s that glorious contrast between that same time (which has the old ‘Heart and Soul’ chord sequence with Invitation—where each of the 12 tones of the scale is used at least once as the root of the chord. I play two great versions of the tune, one by Patricia Barber, the other by Lucky Thompson.

There are three versions of Tiger Rag, one being a ‘train wreck’, the other the opposite—one of the very first so-called jazz recordings ever made. The third version is a pleasant surprise thrown in at the end of the episode.

With How Insensitive you get a couple demonstrations of the influence of Chopin. In fact this whole episode starts with his Prelude in E Minor. Also versions by Stacey Kent, Joao Gilberto, and Gene Bertoncini.

I also play the classic Frank Sinatra recording of I Didn’t Know What Time It Was, as well as a recording by George Shearing with Toronto bassist, Don Thompson.

One request I have from any of you who enjoy these podcasts (no! It’s not money……I don’t want any financial compensation for the hard work I put into these programs). Could you just post a short review or give a rating on itunes/apple podcasts in whatever country from which you access them? It encourages me to keep these podcasts going. I have made the podcast charts at various periods in Denmark, Japan, Brazil, Hong Kong, Sweden, Korea, Canada, Spain, Turkey, Italy, New Zealand, Australia, and a few other places. So I know you’re out there! I’d love to hear from you. -Larry

Episode 111: More Jazz Standards Jun 16, 2020

Show notes

This week I play a couple different versions of five different jazz standards.

The five are: I Want To Be Happy, Embraceable You, Milestones, God Bless the Child, and Impressions.

One of those tunes came about after another tune by the same name was recorded by the same artist. Guess which one.

Then there was the ‘happy’ lyricist who lived to the age of 101.

You’ll hear a free jazz exponent play Gershwin.

Then there’s the song that was written as a result of one of the writer’s being in a rage when her mother refused to loan her money.

And the last one illustrates the influence of a classical ‘symphonette’ on a well known jazz composition.

Episode 110, Racism–Jazz as Part of the Solution. Jun 09, 2020

Show notes

It was Eldridge Cleaver who was best known for saying “You either have to be part of the solution, or you’re going to be part of the problem”.

Jazz is music born of the African-American experience, and, in order to be part of the solutions, all of us who are involved in this music are ‘duty bound’ to recognize its origins. Jazz also has a long history of fighting oppression and violence against African Americans as well as other minorities, and have been (to quote Randall Cline, artistic director of SF Jazz) “on the front lines of change”.

This week’s program is my attempt to show support for African Americans and others who are fighting oppression.

You’ll hear some amazing music and lyrics by black artists, as well as something by an Aboriginal-Canadian group.

As well, I read out a few of my favourite posts social media that demonstrate that discrimination and violence, some of them posted by people who acknowedge their own ‘privilege’ as they expose systemic oppression. And such acknowledgment is an important first step.

Hopefully this week’s episode will help us all feel more connected. And at the same time, we can enjoy the great music.

You’ll hear selections by The Last Poets, Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, Eugene McDaniels, Terence Blanchard, A Tribe Called Red, Oscar Peterson, Archie Shepp, Nina Simone, Weather Report, and The Liberation Music Orchestra.

-Larry

Episode 109: Late Bloomers Jun 02, 2020

Show notes

This program features jazz artists who started playing their primary instrument relatively late in life. ‘Relatively’ might be anything later than early childhood (considering how many were child prodigies). Others started playing early but didn’t come into full bloom (whether in their careers or their skill) until later. Then there were a couple (Pat Martino, Frank Morgan) whose careers were interrupted for various reasons, then came back with a vengeance.

Some of the names that came up were Wes Montgomery, his brother Monk, Alan Holdsworth, Tal Farlow, Wilton Felder, Kate McGarry, Jeff Goldblum, Gregory Porter, CrazyDaisyDoo, Duke Ellington, Borah Berman, Joe Manelli, Wayne Shorter, Bobby McFerrin, Freddy Cole, Jane Bunnett, Bill Withers, Richard Whiteman (bass), Abbey Lincoln, Fuat Tuac. None of them were probably real ‘late bloomers’ in the sense of starting out in their more ‘senior’ years.

I’d be interested to hear if anybody knows any jazz musicians who did start out playing later in life.

In the meantime I’ll play you some great music by some of those artists mentioned above.

Episode 108: Great Recordings Friends Recently Sent Me. May 26, 2020

Show notes

I find that with jazz, like any genre of music, there might be one to five percent of the music that truly resonates with me. With the posts that reach me through facebook or gmail, I end up having to listen to a lot of them in order to find that 1 to 5 %.

My discoveries over the past couple months are featured in this week’s episode. Most of the artist were familiar, but the particular recordings weren’t. And there are a few that are brand new to me. Jazz artists’ you’ll hear are:

Alan Pasqua (with Peter Erskine and Derak Oles)

Renee Rosnes Trio

Chet Baker

Paul Jost

Hubert Rostaing

Mike Murley, Ed Bickert, and Steve Wallace

Richie Cole (with Eddie Jefferson and Manhattan Transfer)

Bill Frisell.

For each tune I give a ‘shout-out’ to how I discovered it: the facebook or gmail friend who posted it.

I’m always on the lookout for new discoveries.

If you are enjoying these podcasts, please leave some feedback on the itunes site—or on whatever site on which you listen to podcasts. Thank you.

-Larry

Episode 107, Six More Great Songs (and their stories). May 19, 2020

Show notes

I’ll tell you the stories—-and you can figure out which tune I’m talking about. Or, better yet, listen to the podcast and find out :).

#1: The primary writer was a member of the National Association for The Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and was put in jail for refusing to enlist in the U.S. army due to it’s racial segregation policies. Described as a ‘one hit wonder’, in fact, he later became a successful songwriter in France, penning hits for Maurice Chevalier and Josephine Baker.

#2: The bridge of this particular tune used chord changes that later inspired what have been called “Coltrane Changes”—the ones he used in Giant Steps.

#3: This may be the only song that can be considered a link between The Everly Brothers, Charlie Parker, and The Three Stooges.

#4: One of the world’s most played jazz compositions, this instrumental was first recorded as a vocal by Sarah Vaughan under the name ‘Interlude’.

#5: Fats Waller wrote it quickly, then promptly forgot it. Now it’s one of the world’s best known jazz standards.

#6: A song written by a rarity in 1940’s songwriting success—a black female. She went under the name of Glenn Gibson to hide the fact that she was female.

I will tell you some of the artists you’ll hear in this episode of Discovering Jazz. You’ll hear Paul Bley, Ruth Brown, Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, Bill Coon & Oliver Gannon, Steve Turre, Coleman Hawkins, Angela Verbrugge, Jason Moran, and Fats Waller, and a bit of James Edward Davis.

If you like this episode, ratings and comments on the itunes podcast site or on whatever site you listen to these podcasts are not just welcome but cherished.

Episode106:Caravan,Smile, Days of Wine & Roses, Solar,Speak Low,Stella by Starlight. May 12, 2020

Show notes

Six more compositions jazz players like to play and a few tidbits of information about each one.

You’ll hear some of the famous Miles Davis composition, Solar, under the name “Sonny”—written and recorded on an acetate 8 years before Miles Davis claimed to have written it. This recording is NOT available anywhere on youtube. I also play a great modern version of the tune by Japanese saxophonist Hisatsugu Suzuki with organist Jun Miyakawa and bassist Dairiki Hara.

I also play two versions of Caravan—the original, and an 8 1/2 minute rendition by percussionist Ed Graham with the great Earl Hines.

Canadian jazz artists Lenny Breau and Robi Botos are featured in the two versions of The Days of Wine and Roses.

Kurt Weill and Ogden Nash wrote Speak Low—-and you get to hear Kurt Weill himself actually singing it. You’ll love his accent! Then I follow it with a duet by two very famous singers.

We begin the program with a Smile—first a wonderful acappella quartet, then a pianist named Alan Pasqua. Thanks to Ken Seidman for introducing me to his piano stylings.

The podcast ends with a tune written for a horror movie: The Uninvited, and an excerpt from the film where the tune is first introduced. A vocal version by Anita O’Day with Oscar Peterson, with the Jim Hall Trio takes us home.

Episode 105: Six Great Songs and their Stories May 05, 2020

Show notes

You’ll hear anywhere from one to three versions of each of these 6 jazz compositions. Two of those recordings are also a tribute to two jazz artists who recently died as a result of COVID19: Lee Konitz and Wallace Roney.

The tunes are: East of the Sun (West of the Moon), There is No Greater Love, Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most, Desafinado, Airegin, and Hey There.

P.S. Upon posting, I learned that Discovering Jazz made it up to #7 on the Hong Kong music podcast charts (it’s currently riding at #18). Hello to all the Hong Kong listeners. I’d love to hear from you.

Episode 104: My Own Jazz Roots. Apr 28, 2020

Show notes

Today is an exploration of my own jazz roots, a continuation of episode 100 where I first introduced you to some tunes that influenced me to discover more about this interesting musical genre.

Most of those ‘root’s are old ones. But I’m also growing new roots….as I keep ‘discovering’ new music. The newer jazz roots include Amy Winehouse and Canadian guitarist Mike Rud.

You’ll also hear recordings by Tony Bennett, Stan Getz & Charlie Byrd, Buddy Greco, The Memphis Jug Band, Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, Bill Evans, Ray Charles, The Viscounts, Jimmy Forrest, Andrew Hill, and The Don Shirley Trio.

Episode 103: Songs for Covid19. Apr 21, 2020

Show notes

Even during the most trying times we deserve to have a bit of fun.

This week we’ll make the best of a bad situation and hear some music that relates to what we are going through.

I play recordings by the late Bucky Pizzarelli, as well as Karin Plato, Noel Acchote, Warren Vache Sr. & The Syncopatin’ Seven, Yusef Lateef, Eugene McDanels, Kelly Eisenhour, Bob Dorough & Donna Anotow, Wayne Shorter, Tete Montoliu, and Joe Henderson.

You’ll experience a nice combination of reality and hope, and some humour as well. A fun program to help you address and transcend the current situation.

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