Spiritual Jazz 4

In 2012, Jazzman Records was responsible for two of the year's best compilation releases with volume two and three of their acclaimed Spiritual Jazz series. This spring, the label continued their exploration into the world of spiritual jazz, releasing the fourth volume of the series Americans in Europe: Modal, Esoteric & Progressive Jazz from the European Underground 1963-1979. Unlike the last two volumes, which focused solely on European artists and the music that came out of that region, this volume takes a look at some of the best rare gems that were recorded by American artists while they were temporarily residing or touring in Europe. As this brilliant compilation helps highlight, Europe became a very fruitful place for many American jazz artists. During the sixties and seventies, jazz was beginning to take a backseat in many record executives' eyes to rock, soul and other forms of popular music. This shift made it much harder for aspiring jazz artists to make a recording, as well as find a consistent working gig. This therefore caused many notable and up-and-coming jazz artists to make their way to Europe, were there was still a heavy demand for jazz and it didn't come with all the social, racial, and economic issues and pressures that were, at the time, very present in the states. Europe also was a place were American artists could experiment and perform with some of the brightest musicians coming out of Europe. On Spiritual Jazz 4, this collaborative effort is on full display, which includes American flautist Sahib Shihab working with Swiss guitarist Pierre Cavalli, Don Cherry performing alongside Krzysztof Penderecki, and pianist Hampton Hawes in collaboration with notable sound library composer Johnny Hawksworth to name just a few. The are tons of great masterpieces included on this compilation including "Five, Four, & Three" by Lee Konitz, "T & W" by Frank Wright Sextet, "Born & Shake" by Clarence Peters, "Summertime" by Albert Ayler, "The Creators" by Bobby Hutcherson and Harold Land. Overall, Jazzman Records has brilliantly managed to come full circle in this series by showcasing the important contributions in jazz that were made in a collaborative effort by both American and European musicians. Definitely one of the year's best releases!

Johnny Hawksworth & Hampton Hawes - Jazz Rule



Frank Wright Sextet - T & W

The Malcolm X Memorial (A Tribute in Music)

Ever since his time with Sun Ra's Arkestra during the late fifties and early sixties, Phil Cohran has been one of the leading artists when it's comes to the overall exploration of spiritualism and artistic expressionism in jazz. After Sun Ra moved east in 1961, Cohran stayed in Chicago and helped establish the AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians), a non-profit musician based organization that featured, at the time, some of jazz music's most creative artists including Art Ensemble of Chicago, Jack DeJohnette, Anthony Braxton, Chico Freeman, Muhal Richard Abrams and many others. During this same time, Cohran and his group, The Artistic Heritage Ensemble, released a number of landmark recordings on his own Zulu Records including On The Beach (1967), The Spanish Suite (1968), Armageddon (1968), a number of limited 45 singles, as well as one of my favorite spiritual jazz recordings titled The Malcolm X Memorial (A Tribute in Music) in 1968.

As the record's title suggests, The Malcolm X Memorial album is a conceptual tribute piece for the late Malcolm X. Each piece of the 4-song tribute suite focuses on a different period of Malcolm's life, with titles that include "Malcolm Little", "Detroit Red", "Malcolm X", and "El Hajj Malik El Shabazz". The recording has an overall spiritual, yet righteous groove that tends to build from one track to the next, featuring a heavy dose of exotic percussion and horn passages. The original release of the record was was put out by Cohran himself, and was limited to only 1,000 copies. The record has recently been made more available with the help of Mississippi Records, who released a reissued version of the album a few years ago. In all, this brilliant tribute is arguably one of Philip Cohran's greatest recorded works as both a musician and a band leader.

Philip Cohran & TAH Ensemble - Malcolm X

Cedric "Im" Brooks, 1943-2013

Last week, we sadly lost a true music pioneer in Cedric "Im" Brooks, who passed away at the age of 70. The Jamaican native, who mostly played tenor saxophone and flute, was one of the more well-regarded musicians to have bridged the gap between reggae, funk, Afro-Caribbean roots and jazz. Brooks first made a name for himself as part of a duo with trumpeter David Madden in the late sixties, releasing a series of instrumental singles on the legendary Studio One label. During the seventies, Brooks recorded and released a number of albums and singles as both a solo artist and with groups like The Mystic Revelation of Rastafari and Divine Light (later called The Light of Saba), as well as playing as a regular studio musician on many recording sessions. Overall, Brooks was one of Jamaica's most talented and adventuresome musicians, who constantly was exploring and incorporating new sounds and elements into his music. He surely will be missed.

Here is one of my favorite selections, in "Africa", off of The Light Of Saba's 1979 album Sabebe.

The Light Of Saba - Africa

Fats Waller Dance Party Tonight!

Tonight I have the great honor of kicking off Jason Moran's Fats Waller Dance Party with an hour long deejay set at the SFJAZZ Center. This won't be your "typical" Fats Waller tribute show, with Moran breaking down melodies and riffs from Fats Waller's swinging songbook and twisting them into full-on funky dance grooves. Moran, who will be wearing a giant sized paper mache mask of Fats Waller (shown in the photo above), will be backed by a solid group that includes renowned bassist and vocalist Meshell Ndegeocello. I will be opening the night with a set full of funky Afro grooves (as requested by Moran) that will surely get the place warmed up before Moran, Ndegeocello and company turn the SFJAZZ Center into a 700 person night club. Should be a memorable performance!

To buy tickets to tonight's Fats Waller Dance Party, CLICK HERE.

Happy International Jazz Day!

Today is the 2nd Annual International Jazz Day. This day, which was originally established by the international community at the 2011 UNESCO General Conference, was established to help celebrate the virtues of jazz "as an education tool, as a vehicle for peace, unity, dialogue, and for enhanced cooperation between peoples," as declared by UNESCO. Building on the success of last year’s inaugural event which included concerts at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, New Orleans’ Congo Square, and the UN General Assembly Hall in New York, UNESCO in partnership with the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz(TMIJ) is hosting the 2nd Annual International Jazz Day Concert in Istanbul, Turkey. Similar to last year's celebratory events, this year's concert features an amazing lineup full of iconic jazz musicians led by UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Herbie Hancock, as well as Wayne Shorter, Zakir Hussain, Esperanza Spalding, Robert Glasper, Branford Marsalis, Hugh Masekela, Abdullah Ibrahim and many more! If you've missed any of this year's performances, the video footage will be archived and available to watch in it's entirety at jazzday.com. In all, UNESCO, TMIJ, Herbie Hancock, and all the many participants have captured the magic of last year's inaugural concerts and once again done a brilliant job in successfully creating an international spotlight on jazz music and the influence it's had around the world. Cheers to International Jazz Day!

To learn more or to watch this year's concert celebration visit jazzday.com.

Happy Birthday Duke!

With today (well, I guess a half an hour ago) being jazz icon Duke Ellington's birthday, we celebrate one of the greatest composers to ever live. To help celebrate, I thought I would feature one of my favorite Ellington compositions titled "Amad" from 1967's The Far East Suite. Even though I don't like to compare Duke's music to anyone else, Mingus fans will surely enjoy this selection. Overall, it's just one of the many brilliant compositions that Duke wrote during his remarkable life.

Happy Birthday Duke!

Duke Ellington - Amad

Happy Birthday Joe Henderson!

I'm obviously a day late in getting this Joe Henderson Birthday post out. I became extremely busy with a number of things yesterday, therefore you'll have to forgive me for not getting this blog post out. I did however post a related article on the SFJAZZ Blog that I recommend checking out.

Anyways, by now I'm sure many of you know that yesterday would have been Joe Henderson's 76th birthday. The late tenor saxophonist is by far one of my favorite musicians of all-time. Browsing through many of the hundreds of jazz records I have at home, it's easy to come across his name either as a leader or, in many instances, as a sideman. During his life, Joe Henderson contributed to more than 200 recording dates while also making a name for himself with his own releases on labels like Blue Note, Milestone and Verve. Like John Coltrane, Henderson had a signature tone and sound that many jazz enthusiasts could often identify by just hearing it. Overall, Joe Henderson played a major role in jazz, including being an important player in bridging the gap between the hard bop days of the late sixties and the more funky fusion jazz music that came out of the seventies. Even though it saddens me that the jazz great is no longer with us, passing away in 2001 at the way too young age of 64, it's always good to know that he left behind so much music to enjoy in his memory.

Happy Birthday Joe!

Joe Henderson - If You're Not Part Of The Solution, You're Part Of The Problem



Joe Henderson - Foregone Conclusion



Joe Henderson - Afro-Centric



Joe Henderson - Las Palmas



Here is a 90-minute mix I put together back in February featuring a choice selection of personal favorites recorded by the saxophonist during both his time with Blue Note and Milestone Records.

Joe Henderson SFJAZZ Hotplate Mix

Playlist Stream Audio | Download
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01. Joe Henderson - "Tress-Cun-Deo-La" - 1961
02. Joe Henderson - "Power To The People" - 1969
03. Joe Henderson - "Foregone Conclusion" - 1972
04. Joe Henderson - "El Barrio" - 1965
05. Joe Henderson - "Las Palmas" - 1975
06. Joe Henderson Sextet - "Mamacita" - 1967
07. Joe Henderson - "Caribbean Fire Dance" - 1966
08. Joe Henderson - "Afro-Centric" - 1969
09. Joe Henderson - "Terra Firma" - 1972
10. Joe Henderson - "Fire" - 1974
11. Joe Henderson Quintet - "If You're Not Part of The Solution, You're Part of the Problem" - 1970

The Louis Hayes Group - Variety Is The Spice

During the 50's, 60's and 70's, Louis Hayes was one of the most active and accomplished drummers, playing alongside Yusef Lateef, Horace Silver, Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Clark, Oscar Peterson and others. Even though he often accompanied artists as a "sideman", Hayes also led on a number of recording projects. One of his most notable recordings as a leader took place at the end of the seventies in 1979, when the drummer recorded and released Variety Is The Spice with a group that included Frank Strozier(alto saxophone & flute), Cecil McBee(bass), Harold Mabern(piano) and a cast of percussionists. This record has an overall soulful modal feel similar to some of the sessions he recorded with pianist Cedar Walton. Another fascinate of the record is the multi-layering of groove-oriented percussion led by Hayes and backed by Titos Sompa (congas) and Portinho. Overall, Variety Is The Spice easily represents one of Hayes' finest moments as a band leader.

The Louis Hayes Group - Kelly Colors