Jazz on the Beach 187 & Blues Beach 75: Chet Baker, Emanuele Cisi, ABNA, Kenny Burrell, Ofri Nehemya, Emma-Jean Thackray, Andy Bey, Chiminyo
Jazz and blues radio playlists and listen again links
Following a torrid time in Europe and deportation from Germany, the brilliant but deeply messed up trumpeter Chet Baker recorded five albums' worth of material for Prestige in New York over the course of one week in August 1965. These records were released over the next two years as Boppin’ with the Chet Baker Quintet, Smokin’…, Groovin’…, Comin’ On… and Cool Burnin’…, and they’re about to be reissued as Five From ’65: The Quintet Summer Sessions (New Land, 12th September), a Kevin Gray remastered 5 LP box set.
On this week’s playlist there’s Madison Avenue, the opening track from Groovin' with the Chet Baker Quintet. I don’t know these albums with Chet playing flugelhorn particularly well, they’re more West than East Coast and were a little out of sync with what was currently happening. But I’m enjoying what I’m hearing from Baker and the terrific lineup of tenor saxophonist George Coleman, pianist Kirk Lightsey, double bassist Herman Wright and drummer Roy Brooks.
Meanwhile in London….after a two year wait there’s something new from ABNA with the excellent single Short Days (Jedediah Records, 3rd May), featuring alto saxophonist Sam Tunnicliffe, bassist and producer Jedd Bailey-Smith, drummer Blake Cascoe and percussionist Richie Sweet.
There’s producer and multi instrumentalist Emma-Jean Thackray’s Save Me from her intensely personal and brave Weirdo (Brownswood Recordings, 25th April), which she wrote, recorded and mixed on her own in her South London flat. A terrific groove and deeply soulful vocals triumphing over adversity.
The drummer, percussionist and producer Tim Doyle aka Chiminyo captures the feel and energy of the London music scene on Luminescence from NRG 4: Live at Ronnie Scott’s (NRG Discs, 9th May), featuring tenor saxophonist James Akers, harpist Marysia Osu, keyboardist Lyle Barton, bassist Daniel Casimir with live electronics from Tilé Gichigi-Liperé.
Up to Glasgow for producer Rebecca Vasmant’s Blessed from the rather wonderful Who We Are, Becoming (Women in Jazz /New Soil, 9th May), with vocals by Nadya Albertsson and fellow Weegies including tenor saxophonist Harry Weir, trombonist Chris Grieve, bassist Joe Rattray and drummer Graham Costello.
I’ve been hugely enjoying the Italian saxophonist Emanuele Cisi’s new album Rushin’ (Right Tempo/Mono Jazz, 9th April), featuring the sensational pianist Dado Moroni, Belgian double bassist Nicolas Thys, Spanish drummer Jorge Rossy and guest trumpeter (and Cisi’s student) Cesare Mecca on two tracks. I’ve chosen Pharoah’s Message, a warm tribute to Pharoah and Coltrane that retains a strong personality of its own.
The Australian guitarist Leo Larratt is now a certified New Yorker and takes on one of jazz guitar’s holy grails with Out of This World from his upcoming Casa Roxa (Bandstand Presents/La Reserve, 25th July). Kenny Burrell’s version from Bluesy Burrell (Moodsville, 1963) may be untouchable, but Larratt succeeds brilliantly with a more straight ahead approach that swings mightily. He has great players around him with pianist Emmet Cohen, drummer Aaron Kimmel and double bassist Russell Hall whose version of The Sorcerer was featured last week.
That leads nicely on to guitarist Kenny Burrell with drummer Art Blakey’s On View at the Five Spot Café: The Complete Masters (Blue Note, April), an expanded 3 LP set of the original album, recorded on 25th August 1959 and released the same year. For this week’s show I’ve chosen Clifford Brown’s Swingin’ which first appeared as a bonus track on the CD release in 1987, and features Burrell and Blakey with tenor saxophonist Tina Brooks, pianist Bobby Timmons, double and bassist Ben Tucker. Fellow Substacker Syd Schwartz writes the sleeve notes too.
Tina Brooks is also present in his own right with Up Tight’s Creek from his hard bop classic True Blue (Blue Note, 1960), with trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, pianist Duke Jordan, double bassist Sam Jones and drummer Art Taylor.
There’s some seriously hot jazz fusion this week from Israeli drummer Ofri Nehemya on Just Sayin’ from his debut album Time Traveller (Adhyaropa Records, 2nd May). I was blown away by the playing of brothers Nitzan and Tomer Bar on guitar and piano, and double bassist Tal Mashiach. Here’s a video of Nehemya and the Bar brothers at the Pit Inn, Tokyo, from a couple of years ago.
And finally, a sad goodbye to pianist and singer Andy Bey who died aged 85 last month. There’s his philosophically funky Celestial Blues from Experience and Judgement (Atlantic Records, 1974), featuring bassist Wilbur Bascomb, violinist, Selwart Clarke, guitarist George Davis, drummer Buddy Williams, with percussion from producer William S. Fischer.
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Blues Beach
It’s all prizes and no surprises on Blues Beach this week, with a playlist of tracks that you (mostly) know and love from artists like Elmore James, John Lee Hooker, Jimmy Reed, Albert King, Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Buddy Guy, B.B. King and Slim Harpo.
There actually are a couple of wild cards such as J.B. Lenoir’s Eisenhower Blues and Guitar Slim’s Guitar Slim, but they fitted right in when the show went out live on Deal Radio last night.
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Jazz On The Beach broadcasts every Wednesday evening from 10:00 PM to midnight (UK time), repeating on Monday morning from 2:00 AM to 4:00 AM (UK time).
Blues Beach broadcasts every other Thursday from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM (UK time).