Discovering Jazz

Latest Episodes:

Episode 84: Discovering New Jazz Vocalists w. Angela Verbrugge Nov 26, 2019

Show notes

Special guest, singer and songwriter Angela Verbrugge, has sent me (upon my request) some recordings from jazz singers I probably never heard of. These recordings are the subject of this week’s and next week’s podcast.

I make it an exchange by presenting one or two to her that she’s probably never heard of.

This week you and I will discover the delightful singing of Lucy Yeghizaryan, Gabrielle Stravelli, Greta Matassa, Camille Thurman, Susannah McCorkle, and Dave Tull. Recordings I chose to present to Angela are by Lorraine Nygaard, Alex Samaras (with Chelsea McBride’s Socialist Night School), and …….Angela Verbrugge.

Hearing some of Angela’s insights about these artists and about these recordings is definitely a highlight of this week’s Discovering Jazz episode.

I invite any of you who are interested in reviewing this program to go to the itunes or Apple site, click the ‘ratings and reviews’ tab, and post a comment. It would be much appreciated.

-Larry

Episode 83: Giants of Jazz-Hawkins,Webster,Basie,Teagarden,etc. Nov 19, 2019

Show notes

Part 3 of Time-Life’s Giant’s of Jazz series, this time featuring Sidney Bechet, Coleman Hawkins, Jelly Roll Morton, Jack Teagarden, Ben Webster, plus Canadian born orchestrator Gil Evans.

You’ll also hear Dizzy Gillespie’s first recorded jazz solo. And How Art Tatum, at age 16, changed the course of jazz using Coleman Hawkins as a vehicle. And a very famous jazz tune that was originally called “Blue Balls”.

Episode 82, more Giants of Jazz w Billie Holiday, Benny Goodman, etc. Nov 12, 2019

Show notes

More from that great Time-Life series, The Giants of Jazz, with such fascinating information about each of the 28 early jazz giants. This episode features Bix Beiderbecke, Art Tatum, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Coleman Hawkins, and—surprisingly—the unorthodox clarinet of Frank Teschemaker. I also explore the mystery as to why Teschemacher was included as one of the 27 jazz ‘giants’, especially when Artie Shaw stated that he wasn’t very good and had no influence on the development of jazz.

In addition I play Clark Terry performing a Bix Beiderbecke composition. And I add one Canadian who isn’t part of the series, but would have been if they had considered some more contemporary giants. That’s Oscar Peterson—who as well as being an amazing pianist, was a fine singer.

Episode 81, Mostly Piano, Manha de Carnaval, New Acquisitions. Nov 05, 2019

Show notes

This week I’m catching up on some cd’s that I recently acquired, many of which feature great piano playing. One of them by Victoria pianist Tom Vickery includes a version of Manha de Carnaval (Black Orpheus), which inspired me to play a few versions of that great tune. One of my favourites is by McCoy Tyner and Freddie Hubbard.

You’ll also hear Renee Rosnes, Bellita, Kelley Johnson & John Hansen, Wes Carroll Confabulation, some amazing scat singing by Sarah Vaughan, and Fred Hersch.

Episode 80, Giants of Jazz-The Time Life Series Part 1 Oct 29, 2019

Show notes

Time-Life surveyed a number of jazz scholars and as a result put together 28 three-record album sets dedicated to one jazz ‘giant’. Each one includes a 30 to 40 something page booklet. I subscribed to this series and would get one set each couple months in the late 1970’s to early 80’s.

I’m now going back to those records and giving them another listen and the booklets another read, and will present a tune or two from each one in a series of Discovering Jazz programs. They are virtually all from the beginnings of jazz—mostly from the swing era.

I’m also going to take a detour and throw in one Canadian jazz artist each time (just because).

This week, you’ll hear about Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Bessie Smith, Joe Sullivan, Johnny Dodds, and Bunny Berrigan. One of the tracks has been described as a ‘train wreck’.

I’ll also talk a bit about the origins of the recording industry in Canada, and play the best known Canadian recording artist of the early 20th Century—even if nobody except for Louis Armstrong ever thought of him as really being “jazz”.

Archives, Episode 53: The Jazz Solo (part 2) Oct 22, 2019

Show notes

My 3-part series of programs on the jazz solo last year invoked a lot of positive response. I already re-broadcast the first one on an earlier archives program, and now I’m going to present you with part 2. This is for those of you who either missed it the first time, or want to hear it again.

I start it out with John Coltrane’s classic solo on Giant Steps. So many ways this solo has been described—and jazz critics are so good at finding wild words so they don’t keep having to say ‘it’s terrific’ or ‘I love it’.

So you get words like what writer Aidan Levy uses when he tries to describe what Coltrane does in this piece of art. He talks about the ‘architectonics’ of Coltrane building a house in under five minutes. I had to google that one. And he refers to it as a “vertiginous solo”. It means a whirling or turning action that can cause vertigo—a dizziness that comes with heights. A great metaphor, I think. Keeping that word in mind allows you to discover if, at the height of Coltrane’s solo, you notice yourself getting dizzy.

I also talk a bit about Tommy Flanagan’s piano solo, which has been described as being not so great, as the tune was thrown at him, had complex changes, and was played much faster than he expected. Most say he struggled through it. And while it pales in energy to what Coltrane did, my own untrained ears didn’t think it was so bad.

Also in this program you’ll hear classic solos by Cannonball Adderley, Clifford Brown, Sarah Vaughan, Charlie Christian, McCoy Tyner, Canadian Guido Basso on fluegelhorn, drummer Elvin Jones, and free-jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman.

Episode 79, 10 Used Lp’s I Just Bought Oct 15, 2019

Show notes

It seems to be increasingly hard to find good second hand vinyl jazz albums at low prices through thrift stores or used record stores. But I found some, and I finished listening to them. I play at least one track from each. They include albums by Shorty Rogers, Pat Martino, Peggy Lee, Jeremy Steig, The Steve Kuhn/Sheila Jordan Band, Jack Teagarden, Moe Koffman, Uzeb, George Shearing with French Hornist Barry Tuckwell, and one album with 12 versions of a single jazz standard.

I talk about why I bought some of them, and throw in a few interesting tidbits about each album or artist.

If you like these programs I invite you to comment on my facebook “Discovering Jazz” page, or even better, write a review on the itunes site of whatever country from which you listen to these podcasts.

-Larry

Archives, episode 38, Jazz and Politics, Part 1 Oct 08, 2019

Show notes

Since we’re in the midst of a federal election here in Canada, I thought I could revisit part 1 of my four-part series from last year on the role of jazz in promoting social and political activism.

I address topics of civil rights, diplomacy during the cold war, the interconnectedness between motherhood, mother earth, and social justice or the needs of the people. Also Cuba, the domination of money over everything and the lack of empathy on the part of the powers that be for the population, are all explored here.

You’ll hear music by Billie Holiday, Mose Allison, Oscar Peterson, Jazzmeia Horn, Yasek Monzano, and the Liberation Music Orchestra, plus a voice clip from Arturo O’Farrill talking about Cuban musicians who have betrayed Cuba.

Episode 78, New Discoveries (2019) Oct 01, 2019

Show notes

Today I’m playing and talking about some jazz tracks that I recently discovered—some are new recordings, some are older. And I’m letting them inspire me to create ideas for future podcasts.

There appears to be quite the Peterborough-Victoria connection here, as I reflect on my wonderful years listening to (and occasionally playing) jazz in Peterborough, and now continue to discover new and amazing musicians and singers in Victoria. Much of that is thanks to Hermann’s Jazz Club—a club that I’ll talk more about in future programs. Hermann’s also hosts monthly themed UJAMS with this months theme being Music from Around the World. So I’m going to try a French song that has been translated into English—-but I’m hoping to use the version by Quebec chanteuse Chantal Chamberland and Toronto musicians Robi Botos and Rob Piltch of La Mer to inspire me.

From Peterborough I play an ‘exclusive’ sent to this podcast by a very young Peterborough saxophonist, Noah Abrahamse. It also introduces us to the delicate piano stylings of Ian Webster.

The Victoria connection is singer and songwriter Angela Verbrugge, who added delightful lyrics to a tune written by New York pianist Ray Gallon—who also plays on this recording.

You’ll also hear one of the last recordings of Stan Getz, three months before he died of liver cancer. Playing with pianist Kenny Barron.

One more from pianist Fred Hersch and his critically acclaimed “Live in Europe” record from last year.

I bought a cd at a thrift store by a Cuban pianist/singer named Bellita, released in 1997. Wow! I play one track from that.

The program ends with a thought about bellweathers. This is a term used to describe the behaviour of sheep—and how they end up making decisions. The bellweather is a sort of leader who may not even know he or she is a leader. They are the primary catalyst for any new trend (read Bellweather by Connie Willis) and are ‘leaders’, not because they are more brilliant or creative, but because they seem to have their finger on a ‘pulse’. In jazz—it would be an artist who other jazz artists follow and record tunes or play in a style similar to theirs. Who do you think would be one of the most prominent bellweathers in jazz? (Someday I will do a whole program on bellweathers, as its such a fascinating concept).

Archives: Episode 52, The Jazz Solo. Sep 24, 2019

Show notes

Here is a rerun of the first of a 3 part series I recorded a few months ago on the jazz solo—trying to explore what makes a great one—-and why people ‘in the know’ consider them great.

I also wonder how much of those solos are spontaneous and thought of in the moment, and how many might be a repeat of something they did before. More and more I’m becoming a ‘believer’—-that the great solos truly are ‘in the moment’, even if they are capitalizing on the brilliance of their own playing, and the playing of their mentors.

I have a list of what have been termed “Essential Solos” according to Jazz Times magazine, who asked some magazine contributors and some top musicians to give a list of 5-10 improvised jazz solos they consider to be their favourites—lines they’ve been humming for years.

The magazine described 40 of them. In this series I presented a few of them, usually playing the whole track or at least most of the track, since those solos don’t exist in a void.

This archived program is Part 1 of the series. You can hear the other parts by going to Episodes 53 and 54. This episode starts with the one that had far more votes than any of the others.

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