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The late Vince Guaraldi is known to most people only as the pianist on the soundtracks to the Peanuts TV specials and especially as the genius behind the most famous jazz Christmas album in history, A Charlie Brown Christmas. That is a real shame for a man who died too young of a heart attack at age 47 just after completing work on another Peanuts TV show earlier that day. Fantasy Records released this fourteen-song greatest hits disc on vinyl in 1980 and on CD in 1989. It's far from being a complete retrospective because it only contains music Guaraldi recorded for that label, but it still serves as a very nice overview of this intriguing jazz man's work. Guaraldi started making records in the mid-50s as a sideman for Cal Tjader. He also sat in with Woody Herman. Later he played with percussionist Mongo Santamaria and Dave Brubeck's bassist, Eugene Wright. In 1959 Guaraldi set out on his own. It would be 1963 before he hit paydirt when "Cast Your Fate to the Wind...

Merriam-Webster defines mojo as " a seemingly supernatural power, influence, or ability.   Mojo, the UK's excellent, popular music magazine may not have supernatural powers, but it possesses both influence and ability in abundance. The monthly publication easily keeps up with current artists and trends - this month Courtney Barnett, Mumford and Sons, and The Hold Steady are spotlighted - but the magazine has also targeted Baby Boomers ever since it hit the newsstands in 1993. That's why you see articles on The Beach Boys, Johnny Cash, The Kinks, David Bowie, NRBQ and a tribute to Bob Weir. April's cover story celebrates the 100th birthday of Miles Davis with a twelve-page spread. The entire issue is 122 pages in total, so you can see that Mojo offers their readers a lot of content. April's  Mojo Filter is "Y our guide to the month's best music."   It offers readers 147 reviews of new albums, reissues, music books ...

There's a store near me - appropriately named The Archive - that sells used books, comics, magazines, old trading cards, old post cards, records, CDs, DVDs, video games, toys, pop culture memorabilia and more. Are you looking for old Mad Magazines? They have them. Old Atari game cartridges? It's a possiblity. The place looks, feels and smells just like the musty warehouse it is, and I love it. None of The Archive's music is ever sold at collector's prices. Anyone can go in and pay a buck a piece for CDs and even their more in-demand vinyl is nicely priced. I visit there on occasion just to see what I can find. That's where I discovered the genre bending, classic album by Ray Charles, Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music ,   originally released by ABC-Paramount Records on a 12-inch LP way back in 1962 and on CD by Rhino Records in 1988 with three bonus tracks. First, a little background for those of you who are unaware of the original ...

Are you tired of Paul McCartney being treated as a musical wimp? The people who dislike his "granny music" - as John Lennon once called it - get stuck on an extremely small sample of the legend's tremendously huge catalog with The Beatles, Wings and as a solo artist. McCartney's granny songs didn't sound the least bit off-putting to me, possibly because - as I've mentioned here before - I grew up listening to my mother's big band records. I've always believed it was wrong that one of the most important men who helped shape rock music in the 60s was criticized for having broader tastes, and since when is writing melodies a crime? McCartney was greatly influenced by his father. Jim McCartney led his own jazz band and Paul liked what he heard. His first instrument was a trumpet given to him by his dad, but the future star traded it in for a guitar so he could sing while playing. It turned out to be a very smart move on his part. ...

Hammond B-3 jazz master Jimmy Smith (1925 - 2005) is someone whose music I've always enjoyed, but I've never owned any of his work until recently. While perusing the used jazz bins at a local, independent record store I saw his 2001 collaborative CD and grabbed it without reading any of the liner notes, so I really didn't know what I was buying. I would have preferred to have picked up a set that was truly a showcase for Smith's virtuosity, but it's my fault that I didn't. The disc, Dot Com Blues , is over an hour long with eleven tracks. Five of them feature guest vocalists, and that's more than any other full-length record Smith has ever released. William Ruhlmann of AllMusic  accurately described this album as Smith's version of Santana's  Supernatural  record - an attempt to "broaden his appeal" by bringing in a lot of guests. All of the singers spotlighted here identify more with blues than jazz and h...

Jazz may have its roots in New Orleans, but New York City has always been synonymous with the art form that has sometimes been called "America's Classical Music." The Big Apple is as much of a jazz town as New Orleans is, so this CD, New York, New York: The City in Song -   at one time available only through The Metropolitan Museum Of Art   which is where I bought my copy back in  2008 - is an entirely appropriate salute to the city that never sleeps. All of the song titles reference America's largest city in some way. The disc is loaded with vintage jazz. Louis, The Duke, and The Count are all here and there is even an Armstrong/Ellington duet on "Drop Me Off In Harlem." Stan Kenton contributed "Stompin' At The Savoy" and Buddy Rich shines on the lengthy "West Side Story Medley." Peggy Lee, Dakota Staton, and Lena Horne all sing their hearts out while The Modern Jazz Quartet, Benny Green, Bud Powell, and George Shearin...

Louis In London is a live album of a concert Louis Armstrong and his All-Stars recorded for the BBC on July 2, 1968. It was first aired by the network on September 22, 1968. Armstrong died in 1971 and his health was already taking a a sad turn when this concert took place. It's often been called his last great performance because his health deteriorated significantly shortly thereafter, and his ability to tour was severely limited. When the great tumpeter and singer received a tape recording of his London show he marked it "for the fans" because he was so proud of it. He also made copies on his recently installed high-end Tandberg tape system for each member of the All-Stars. In 1970, nine of the thirteen tracks from this new CD were released on LP as  Louis Armstrong's Greatest Hits Recorded Live  on Brunswick Records in both America and in the UK. The CD was digitally transfered form the original BBC telecast recording and no...

Doc Severinsen made dozens of albums with various outfits while working for Johnny Carson and leading The Tonight Show Band from 1967 until Carson retired in 1992, but it took the trumpeter until 1986 to take his TV band into the studio to record a very good album, The Tonight Show Band With Doc Severinsen . Severinsen led a large, high energy group of nineteen musicians if you count the boss who was the primary soloist on nine of the thirteen tracks. While Severinsen and his men didn't break any new ground, much of the CD is loaded with extremely well-played, modern arrangements of old 30s and 40s big band standards, including instrumental hits of trombonist Tommy Dorsey ("I'm Getting Sentimental Over You"), clarinetist Artie Shaw ("Begin The Beguine"), and vibraphone player Lionel Hampton ("Flying Home"). The set also includes three Benny Goodman classics, "King Porter Stomp," "Don't Be That Way,...

The Vince Guaraldi Trio would probably be forgotten today if it wasn't for their much loved holiday album,  A Charlie Brown Christmas . It was released in 1965 to accompany the television cartoon of the same name. The importance of Guaraldi's 1962 single, "Cast Your Fate To The Wind" - and how it helped spawn his Christmas LP that probably wouldn't exist without his only non-holiday, top 40 entry - cannot be underestimated. The instrumental peaked at #22 at a time when it was still possible for a jazz record to make an impact on the the Hot 100. It inspired TV producer Lee Mendelson - who liked what he heard on the radio - to commission the piano player to compose the soundtrack to A Boy Named Charlie Brown , a television special that was never aired because the producer couldn't find a sponsor. However, a soundtrack album,  Jazz Impressions Of A Boy Named Charlie Brown,  from the untelevised program was released and included a tune...

I'm sure classical music fans will howl about the crimes committed by The Brian Setzer Orchestra so let this be a warning to those of you whose ears are easily offended: Wolfie and Ludwig never rocked like this. Even to Setzer's most ardent fans Wolfgang's Big Night Out may appear to be the biggest gimmick this side of Weird Al Yankovic but somehow it's a contrivance that works. I don't know if Setzer meant this album as a joke or not. He takes some of the world's most famous classical masterpieces and hilariously renames them after totally reinventing them. Beethoven's "Fur Elise" became "For Lisa," "Blue Danube" has flowed into "Some River In Europe," "God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman" became "Take A Break Guys." The "1812 Overture" is now "1812 Overdrive." The title track was derived from Mozart's "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" and Mendelssohn's famous wedding march wa...

The passing of the legendary Tony Bennett at age 96 was announced this morning. Most websites will post a traditional tribute to him with a detailed biography. Instead - in order to contribute something a little different - I'm simply re-posting a concert review that first ran here on my wife's birthday, December 2, 2013. It was a very big one for her and going to this concert at the Borgata in Atlantic City was how we celebrated. I believe Bennett was the last of the great jazz and pop vocalists that began their careers in the pre-rock era. I'm unable to think of another one who is still living. ________________________________ You should always think twice if someone asks you to spend your hard earned cash to see an 87 year old singer in concert – unless, of course, that singer is Tony Bennett. The famous jazz legend performed a very good set Saturday evening, entertaining an Atlantic City casino crowd of over 3,000 for an hour and fifteen minutes. It's true that B...

One of the truly outstanding Internet radio stations is The Jazz Groove , a streaming service that specializes in music that is mellow, or to use the station's own descriptive words,  "cool and elegant." The station plays melodic fare that still manages to possess an eclectic edge.   It's not elevator music. It's the stuff you'll hear in smokey bars late at night that's also suitable for romantic, candlelight dinners. At any given moment, you may hear Al Di Meola, Vince Guaraldi, Oscar Peterson, Diana Krall, Billie Holiday, Quincy Jones, Nat King Cole, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Chris Botti, Miles Davis, Chet Baker, Herbie Hancock, George Benson, Coleman Hawkins, Dave Brubeck, Frank Sinatra, Jon Batiste and many more. There are other online radio stations that play mellow jazz and many of them do ...

What The Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears?  is a new documentary released only in theaters about the famous jazz-rock hitmakers of the late 60s. For a short time Blood, Sweat & Tears (BS&T) were among America's most popular musical artists. They were even one of the headliners at Woodstock. Unfortunately, their days in the sun were fleeting because people of all political persuasions eventually discovered reasons to hate them. To use today's overly trite terminology, they were canceled. The movie takes place in the Spring of 1970 when the nine musicians committed an unforgiveable sin. At that time it wasn't a good career move to cooperate with the United States government in any way, but at the request of our State Department BS&T toured three of Eastern Europe's communist bloc nations -Yugoslavia, Romania and Poland - as part of a cultural exchange program. Because the band worked wit...

How Swing of Many Colors by Jazz Arts Trio was created makes no difference to me because the end result is pleasing piano jazz. But, I'm sure many of the genre's true aficionados will be appalled as soon as they discover how the album was made - even without ever hearing a note. The trio's goal while making this album was to exactly duplicate recordings originally made by great jazz pianists they admire. Almost all of the selections on  Swing of Many Colors  were transcribed note for note - including the bass and drums - and recorded much like classical musicians recreate works that are centuries old. That's the part I believe may upset some of the more devoted jazz fans. It's a genre that takes pride in improvisation and you'll find little of it here. Jazz Arts Trio are Frederick Moyer on piano, Peter Tillotson on bass, and drummer Peter Fraenkel. They were high school friends who played in a band together, went in separate directions after graduation, then re...

Photos by Karin Ricci Large stadium concerts have never been my favorite places to watch live music. Unfortunately, in the case of many of planet Earth's most popular artists they're the only venues I'll ever have a chance to enjoy them until they reach legacy status and play smaller concert halls many years from now. Such is the case with Michael Bublé who performed for almost two hours in Philadelphia's not-quite-sold-out basketball and hockey arena, The Wells Fargo Center. Bublé performed many of his best-known songs - twenty-four in all - in a mostly energetic, flashy extravaganza featuring everything from neon lights to pyrotechnics. It was Vegas all the way but that isn't a criticism because even with several hi-def video screens offering closeups the concert-goer's intimacy  with the performer just wasn't there. That meant big entertainment became the modus operandi for the evening. Bublé endeared himself to the local crowd early in the set by acknowl...

Big band -  A large dance  or jazz band  of ten musicians or more, usually featuring improvised solos by lead players but otherwise playing orchestrated music . When most people think of big bands today they often conjure up faded, black and white images of Glenn Miller, Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Harry James, Artie Shaw, Duke Ellington, Stan Kenton, Count Basie and Woody Herman. Those men led some of the more popular outfits whose heyday was during the latter part of The Great Depression and the Second World War - approximately 1935 to 1946. It's the only time in history that jazz was at the forefront of American popular music. As a kid I became a fan of these large ensembles through my Mother's old, scratchy, breakable, 78 RPM records. My fascination with big bands continued into my early adulthood and was a significant influence in giving birth to any interest I have in jazz today. Despite the fact he r...

Career: 1952 - 1988 does an excellent job of showcasing all facets and time periods of Chet Baker’s career. This retrospective evenly divides the two talents Baker was known for: one disc is entirely instrumental and is called Trumpeter and the other is simply titled Singer . Each CD is in chronological order and includes both rarities and some gems. There are both vocal and instrumental versions of Baker's signature tune, "My Funny Valentine." The first one - from 1952 - opens the first CD, and the second version closes the vocal set and was recorded less than a month before he died in 1988. Trumpeter shows off Baker's versatility as a prominent member of the cool jazz movement of the 50s and 60s and beyond. While he was less known and respected for his singing the second disc also provides a true overview of Baker’s controversial but still appealing voice. The vocal disc is also a bit sad because, using his singing as a barometer, the listener can tell how far B...

Steve Howe has now been in the spotlight for over fifty years. While the virtuoso will always be remembered as a prominent member of the world's most successful prog-rock band he has also recorded a lot of work outside of Yes - and his later band, Asia - that is worth hearing. Such is the case with  New Frontier  (2019),   the third album - and second studio effort - released under the name of The Steve Howe Trio. New Frontier  is a jazz-fusion set that shares the spotlight with rock just as much as it does jazz. It features Howe on electric and acoustic guitars; Ross Stanley, a quite talented Hammond B3 player; and the leader's son, Dylan Howe , on drums. The boss isn't selfish. Stanley gets lots of space to stretch out and drummer Howe gets to shine when the situation calls for it. The trio doesn't employ a bass player, but there is so much happening on each track that the bottom end isn't missed. This music isn't for everyone, but for fans of Howe or those l...

Roger Ebert memorably described One From The Heart , Francis Ford Coppola's 1982 flop  as “a major disappointment" saying the  director had released “an interesting production but not a good movie."  In addition, a ccording to Wikipedia , the film was "a colossal critical and commercial flop." I've never seen it so I'll just have to take everyone's word that the movie deserved its fate.  Fortunately, the same can not be said about the accompanying soundtrack album that was entirely written and performed by Tom Waits and featured Crystal Gayle as his guest vocalist. He invited the country star to sing on the soundtrack after his first choice, Bette Midler, was unable to participate due to scheduling conflicts. After Midler declined Waits' offer, he heard Gayle sing "Cry Me A River" on the radio, and the job was hers. My copy of the album is on an old bootlegged, twelve-song cassette that I just transferred to CD using my home stereo ...

Temples Of Sound is a great book! I delved into it gradually during my spare time over a period of a year, and even re-read much of it on a recent vacation because I read the first parts of it so long ago. Temples Of Sound offers the reader fifteen chapters about the great American recording studios, how they came to be, how they rose to their great heights, and where they are today. Most of these studios began in the 1950s or early 60s but others, including Miami's Criterion Studios and Philadelphia's Sigma Sound Studios came to prominence in the 70s. The intriguing thing about this book is that no matter what kind of music was recorded in these "temples" there seemed to be one common factor among most of them. Many of the great studios were started from scratch by young entrepreneurs who were naive about the music business. Most of the studios were makeshift in nature, housed in stark old buildings that frequently needed massive rehabilitation, and built on ten...