Spinning Vinyl

This is the special Saturday night after-dinner nightcap version of Spinning Vinyl. After an outstanding Italian dinner, we returned home for a nightcap and a card game and some music, all featuring pianists. 

First up was side two of Diana Krall's From This Moment On 2006. There isn't anything earth-shattering about this particular Diana Krall Record, but it is a solid outing of standards featuring the Clayton/Hamilton Jazz Orchestra and Krall's lovely voice and fine piano. It is a swell selection of songs performed flawlessly and arranged beautifully. Day In Day Out, Come Dance With Me, and Little Girl Blue stood out, but the whole side is just about perfect.

Next was Allen Toussaint's swan song American Tunes 2106, side one, featuring Toussaint's Delores' Boyfriend, Fats Waller's Viper's Drag, Professor Longhair's Mardi Gras In New Orleans, and Billy Strayhorn's Lotus Blossom, and everything works.The record is a mix of Toussaint solo piano recordings from 2013 and what would have been a new studio record that was unfinished before he died in 2015. The 2015 recordings are done with a stellar cast including Bill Frisell, Jay Belerose, Greg Leisz, Charles Lloyd, David Piltch, Adam Levy, and Van Dyke Parks. It is a wonderful Toussaint record, almost as good as his high water mark The Bright Mississippi 2009.

My wife and I are both huge fans of Ahmad Jamal. We both saw him live many moons ago and then had a chance to see him together in Seattle in 2006. I love his work from the fifties and sixties as much as any jazz pianist, and he continued to make great music in his rhythmically inventive style until 2019, just four years before his death at age 93. Saturday Morning 2013 is merely another of his great late career masterpieces. We listened to side one, with the title track and Back To The Future (both by Jamal) as well as I'll Always Be With You, the 1945 Perry Como hit.

Lastly we heard Ellis Marsalis' For All We Know 2020, side two. This recording is just outstanding, and Marsalis plays with his son Jason on vibes, who gets to shine frequently. The record, on the audiophile vinyl-only Newvelle records, has amazing sound, with both piano and vibraphone beautifully captured. Marsalis is a wonderfully fluid player, song selection is lovely, and we get to hear Marsalis' relaxed style one more time just months before his passing.

The one thing all these records have in common (other than piano) is great sound. Tommy LiPuma always made Krall's records sound great, as did Joe Henry on Toussaint's last three albums. Saturday Morning was recorded in France by some talented engineers using state of the art equipment, and everything on Newvelle Records is lovingly produced with attention to sonic detail. That doesn't matter if the music isn't up to the same high bar, but all of these performances are truly special.

Jazz from the 1950s and 1960s

I'm a melody kind of guy. Raised on pop and rock with some folk mixed in, music fits me better when I can hum or whistle along. So the jazz I most like is the cool jazz and West Coast jazz of the fifties and sixties that lived in the same moment as the bebop and hard bop that I find overly aggressive and challenging. I understand that those hard boppers are highly talented and wildly creative, but they are clearly not mellow, and I like my jazz mellow. So here are a few of my favorites, in no particular order (well, actually alphabetically).

Kenny Burrell's Midnight Blue 1967 is classic blues/jazz at it's best. Burrell fronts a great band, including Stanley Turrentine, and everything comes out perfect.

Nat "King" Cole's After Midnight 1957. Before becoming a pop crooner singing with an orchestra, Cole was a pianist who led a jazz trio, and was widely considered one of the best. In 1957 Cole returned to his roots for the last time, and recorded this amazing session. If you never knew Cole as a jazz pianist, this is the place to start. The trio, supplemented by percussion, and horn (and violin) soloists, swings like crazy, and Cole's singing and piano are both stellar.

I can add nothing to the discussion of this great record. Sunday At The Village Vanguard 1961 is everything it is touted to be, and deserves the hype today as much as it did on it's release. Both Sunday At The Village Vanguard and Waltz For Debbie 1961, recorded at the same session, have been in print and available for purchase since their release. The pinnacle of the piano trio, with Scott LaFaro on bass and Paul Motian on drums, the three operated almost as one mind with six hands. You can just sit and enjoy it, or you can study it to death, either way, it holds up.

The Chico Hamilton Quintet featuring Buddy Collette 1956 is a fascinating West Coast jazz ensemble. Drummer Hamilton is joined by sax/flute/clarinetist Collette plus bass, cello, and guitar. It is an unusual ensemble, and they are spectacular. 

At The Pershing: But Not For Me 1958 was one of the biggest hits of it's time, staying on the charts for 108 weeks. It includes Jamal's first version of Poinciana, and it is a delightful record. Swinging and easy to love. 

Sinatra'a In The Wee Small Hours 1955 might be the very first concept album, and Sinatra would return to themed records several more times in the 50s and 60s. Great songs, Nelson Riddle's arrangements, and Sinatra at the peak of his understated power, it is one of Sinatra's finest.

Favorite Live Shows

I've seen plenty of great shows, and I am going to fail to remember them all here. But these have left a lasting enough impression that, well, I still remember. There are many that didn't make this list, and I want to give kudos to Sal over at Burning Wood for bringing the topic up. One of my friends is going to call me and say "What?! You didn't include ________!"  Trust me, I just can't remember them all. I saw NRBQ, but it was after Big Al left. I saw Van Morrison and the Kinks put on weak shows that I wanted so much to love. Todd Rundgren, Joe Jackson, Eric Clapton, Boz Scaggs (2 or 3 times), Trisha Yearwood, Robert Palmer, Dwight Yoakam, and many others, all entertained me. But when it comes to that mix of great performance, great vibe, and great timing, these might be my favorite shows:

The Band 1970 Cleveland Music Hall
I was 15 years old. I already loved The Band. My father drove my girlfriend and I to downtown Cleveland to see the show. They were between The Band and Stage Fright albums. They were incredible. No warm-up act. They came out and played two sets, about two hours total. The only time they said much other than "Thank You" at all was when Robbie introduced Lookout Cleveland and said he was thinking of us. I think he meant Cleveland, Tennessee all along, but that didn't matter.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band 1973 John Carrol University Fieldhouse
The John Carrol Fieldhouse was a pretty big basketball arena by Jesuit college standards. Bruce was about to release The Wild, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle, and the band on the back of that record jacket was the band I saw. Vinnie Lopez might not have been what Bruce wanted, but this band kicked butt that night for sure. And Springsteen was the only guitar player, he was super-hot, and they played for three hours, and totally rocked the crap out of the place. They got tighter, and maybe more professional, as a band, but they never got wilder.

Sons of Champlin, The Tubes, 1975 Some small outdoor amphitheater, San Diego, CA
So back in 1969 my older brother sent me and my middle brother seven albums for Christmas. Go ahead, divide seven by two. And do it with adolescent males. Anyway, one of those records was the Sons of Champlin debut, Loosen Up Naturally. I've loved the Sons ever since. In 1975, after finishing school, I road-tripped to California and while visiting a high school buddy in San Diego, I visited a record store. I found the recently self-released Sons of Champlin album (on Gold Mine records, which would later be reissued by Areola) and when I bought the album, the guy behind the register said, "Hey, dude, are you going to see them tonight?" Right then I bought tickets even though the guy I was staying with had to work that night. He went to work. I went and saw the Sons. Champlin, Haggerty, and Palmer were all spectacular. I was surprised, but I liked the Tubes, too.

It really seems like there should be something else between 1975 and 1979. How odd.

Elvis Costello and the Attractions, The Rubinoos, 1979, The Agora Ballroom
Costello was doing This Year's Model and some of Armed Forces and the debut. Oh My God. 75 minutes of full steam ahead Costello and the Attractions. Not more than 30 seconds between songs, and no talk at all. The Rubinoos were playful and charming in the opening slot. They did I Think Were Alone Now and Sugar, Sugar.

Talking Heads 1983 Blossom Music Center
It was the big suit tour, which was made into the movie and album Stop Making Sense. It was very much worth seeing live. The concept was very cool, with David Byrne doing Psycho Killer solo with a beat box, then Tina Weymouth came on for Heaven, and it kept building until there were 10-12 people on stage. Burning down the house indeed.

Ahmad Jamal, 1990? The Purple Onion, Toronto
I went to Toronto to take my wife to see The Phantom of the Opera. The night before (or after?) we went to see Ahmad Jamal at the Purple Onion jazz club. I was mesmerized by Ahmad Jamal's trio. Such an amazing piano player. We sat at the bar about fifteen feet from Jamal, and we could see his hands on the keyboard. Breathtaking.

The Subdudes, 1986? Peabody's Down Under
If you ever have a chance to see the Subdudes, they put on a great show. Peabody's was relatively small, and they rocked it. Their soulful Louisiana funk was a unique. Tommy Malone was a triple-threat singer, songwriter and guitarist. Steve Amedée's tambourine replaced a drum kit way better than it should have.

The Neville Brothers, 1980s, Tipitina's, New Orleans

The Neville Brothers played Tipitina's most Fridays in the 80s, and were scheduled the Friday we arrived, but then the show was cancelled as they were opening for someone on tour. The vacation was already planned, so I went with disappointment in mind. Sitting in a bar I told the bartender the story, and he said that the tour show cancelled and they were playing that night. We went early and held our ground right in front of the stage for many hours through the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, until the Nevilles started about 11:30. They were still playing when we went outside for air at 3:30. It was a super hot night and a super hot show. 

Don Dixon and Marti Jones, 1986-88?, The Empire
The Empire was a less than great venue in Cleveland, but this was when they were trying pretty hard to break Marti Jones. The band included Jim Brock and Jaime Hoover, and they were so incredibly tight. One of my favorite live recordings of all time is Marti's Live From Spirit Square, and this show was all of that, albeit on an considerably earlier tour.

Lucinda Williams, 2001 The Odeon
There is no need to exclude sentimental favorites. My soon-to-be-wife and I saw Lucinda touring behind Essence. Lucinda and the band were smokin' hot. The definition of sultry. I'm sure there were people that went home talking about the way we danced.

Proclaimers, 2008 Beechland Ballroom
They had the full band with them, and they are just such great songwriters and singers and so much good fun. Rock that doesn't mind the pop. And delivered with verve. My friend Bob was aghast that not everyone was dancing! I've seen several other fine shows at the Beechland. It's a great room when the sound is right.

Ahmad Jamal Ballades 2019

Ahmad Jamal will turn 90 this year, and his late career work has been consistently strong. 2007's It's Magic, 2011's Blue Moon, 2013's Saturday Morning, and 2016's Marseille are all fine outings. Playing in a quartet of piano, bass, drums and percussion, the extra percussionist seems to play perfectly with Jamal's innate sense of rhythm.

This time it is different. This time it is solo piano (with bass on three tracks). And from what I know and can research of Jamal's discography, this is a first. These ballades (a term used by Chopin to describe his short single movement piano pieces) are beautiful, and recorded beautifully. Pressed on heavy vinyl at 45 rpm, the sound is stunning.

The tracks were recorded in 2016 while Jamal was in France recording Marseille. There is actually a fourth version of the song Marseille on this set (there were three versions- two with vocals- on the Marseille release). There's a new solo version of the Jamal favorite Poinciana. There are only three Jamal originals in the ten song set (one is the composed-while-recorded Because I Love You), and lots of classics from Rogers and Hart, Cahn, and Mandel. All done in these pristine solo piano versions by the master of rhythm, subtlety, nuance and expression.

Jamal takes a melody apart like no one else. Sometimes he stretches things far from the root, while other times he plays so very close to the lyric. In fact, lyrical might be an excellent description of his playing. This is a really beautiful record, both a new expression and one consistent with Jamal's lovely body of work. Ahmad Jamal has been known to call jazz "American classical music". I don't know if it is classical, but it is classic all the way.

Ahmad Jamal Trio At The Pershing But Not For Me 1958

It's 1958. You're sitting in a nice cocktail lounge, and Ahmad Jamal, Israel Crosby (bass), and Vernell Fournier (drums) are playing wonderfully melodic, endlessly rhythmic jazz. I don't know that much about jazz, but I know what I like. And I know why this was a number one selling jazz record that stayed on the charts for 107 weeks. It's just lovely music. You can let it play in the background or you can listen to every note. None are wasted, none are wrong.

Jamal went on to a long, productive, and influential career. In fact, another great jazz recommendation that's easier to find is Jamal's It's Magic, from 2008. At age 81, he's still gigging. If you can get a chance to see him, don't miss it. I've seen him live twice, and he's wonderful.