Bloggerhythms

Transcriptions were studio recordings made exclusively for radio broadcast that were never intended to be released to the public via commercial records. Transcriptions began in the 1930's and were used on radio for decades. Even as late as the 60s The Beatles used the transcription process for their British radio show appearances, most of which have since been released on their two double-set Live At The BBC releases in 1994 and 2013. Micheal Cuscuna, a long time jazz fan and impressario, explains further in his excellent liner notes for the King Cole Trio's excellent Transcriptions box set on Blue Note Records . "In the 1930's, when radio featured live music, the playing of commercially available 78 rpm recordings was frowned upon on the premise that the listener was less likely to go out and buy a record that he or she could hear over the airwaves for free. Many records issued in the 30s and 40s even stated on the label: "not licensed for broadcast". ...

After Midnight was Nat King Cole's last jazz album and it was a beautiful return to form for the piano playing genius jazz fans dearly missed after the star decided to become a lounge singer/pop balladeer, a genre he also excelled at. The trio included Cole on piano and vocals, John Collins on guitar, and Charlie Harris on bass. Lee Young (brother of Lester) was added on drums. What makes this album so special is that Cole's regular group is joined by several guest soloists, all of them all-stars, who are featured on different songs: Harry "Sweets" Edison (formerly with Count Basie) was the trumpeter, Willie Smith (Harry James and Duke Ellington) checked in with his alto sax, Juan Tizol (Ellington again) played valve trombone, and Stuff Smith, one of the first jazz violinists, completed the guest list. The expanded lineup allowed Cole to add color to arrangements that his drummerless trio could not and the album is all the better for it. As usual, the leader...

Below is an edited and updated blast from the past that was published on Bloggerhythms in its original form on December 1, 2006. Since then I've listened to a lot of new Christmas music so, seven years later, it's time for the 2013 edition of The Top 10 Christmas Albums Of All Time . You can see the older version here . _________________________________________________________ Every year, new holiday fare is released to the public to satiate their never-ending desire to hear Christmas music. It amazes me how the music industry continues to recycle the same Christmas songs year after year in various packages, by every conceivable artist known to man, and we keep buying. From James Galway, to Willie Nelson, to Lynyrd Skynrd, and everybody in between, Christmas music sells and sells and sells. One of the nice things about this time of year is we all enjoy music by artists that we would never otherwise think of listening to the rest of the year. A case in point is my adult daug...

Every year, new holiday fare is released to the public to satiate their never-ending desire to hear Christmas music. It amazes me how the music industry continues to recycle the same Christmas songs year after year in various packages, by every conceivable artist known to man, and we keep buying. From James Galway, to Willie Nelson, to Clay Aiken, and everybody in between, Christmas music sells and sells and sells. One of the nice things about this time of year is we all enjoy music by artists that we would never otherwise think of listening to the rest of the year. A case in point is my daughter. She knows nothing about Nat King Cole except for his Christmas album and his perennial chestnut (pun intended), "The Christmas Song." While she enjoys this standard holiday tune very much, she would never consider listening to anything else he recorded without poking fun at the old folks who realize that Cole was one of the great jazz and pop singers of his era. At what other time o...