The Quarantined Jazz Voyager
Adapting and accepting the mask wearing, social distancing and self-quarantining has made life so much easier from this jazz voyager’s perspective. As we experience continued spikes in the coronavirus as the vaccine is rolled out, we still need to make the conscious effort to do our individual part to stave the spread.
So continuing my uninterrupted time to kick back, relax and listen to music, the album I have chosen The Sting Variations by vocalist Tierney Sutton. The recording session was arranged and produced by Trey Henry at LAFX Recording Services, The Doghouse Studio in May 2016, and released on September 9, 2016 for BFM Records.
The album was engineered and mixed by Zackary Darling, mixed and mastered by Michael Aarvold– mastering, mixing and earned the Tierney Sutton Band a Grammy Award nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album.
Track List | 67:00- Driven To Tears ~ 5:47
- If You Love Somebody Set them Free ~ 5:53
- Seven Days ~ 6:17
- Shadows In The Rain ~ 4:37
- Walking In Your Footsteps ~ 3:50
- Fragile/Gentle Rain (Sting/Luis Bonfa/Matt Dubey) ~ 4:37
- Message In A Bottle ~ 4:27
- Fields Of Gold ~ 4:45
- Fortress Around Your Heart ~ 4:04
- Language Of Birds (Sting/Rob Mathes) ~ 5:09
- Every Little Thing He Does Is Magic ~ 3:02
- Every Breath You Take ~ 4:46
- Synchronicity ~ 4:11
- Consider Me Gone ~ 5:35
- Tierney Sutton – vocals
- Christian Jacob – piano
- Ray Brinker – drums, percussion
- Kevin Axt – double bass
- Trey Henry – double bass, bass guitar
This pandemic is here for the long haul. In the meantime, stay vigilant, wear masks and remain healthy and we’ll all be jet setting sooner than we think.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Shinobu Ito was born in Oiso, Kanagawa, Japan on January 28, 1951. While a young boy, his interest was in American pop songs, so his father bought him a guitar and gave him lessons. Devoting great efforts to his study of the guitar, in junior high school he organized his own pop music group and performed at various musical events. He became interested in jazz guitar during his high school days when he listened to Wes Montgomery. While attending Tokai University, he studied guitar with Ikuo Shiosaki, and became a member of the university’s Jazz Workshop.
He began his professional career at this time, performing at clubs and on recordings. In 1975, during a 6-month stay in Los Angeles, California he met Toshiko Akiyoshi, who introduced him to many musicians and strongly suggested to him that he go to New York to learn and play jazz on his next visit to the States.
When he returned to Japan in 1975, Shinobu joined vocalist Yoshiko Kimura’s group, and also resumed activities with top Japanese musicians such as Kohsuke Mine, Seiichi Nakamura, Shigeharu Mukai, Hidefumi Toki and Takao Uematsu. He also performed with Tete Montliu, Bill Reichenbach, Ronnie Foster, Stanley Banks in this era.
Back in New York City again in 1977 he became a member of a 10-piece band directed by Reggie Workman, joined Teruo Nakamura & his Rising Sun Band and Shinobu appeared on pianist Tsuyoshi Yamamoto’s album in 1981. Once settled he performed and recorded with Joe Jones Jr., Sadik Hakim, John Orr, Tommy Turrentine, Bob Mintzer, Rickey Ford and Kenny Kirkland, Valery Ponomarev, Lonnie Plaxico, Eddie Henderson, Lonnie Smith, Jesse Davis, Kenny Davis and Jeff Williams, Mike Formanek, Vincent Herring and Judy Niemack among others.
Shinobu released his first CD in 1991 with Tom Harrell, Danny Gottlieb, Gary King, Mark Soskin and Dick Oates. While Shinobu is known as a jazz guitarist who plays with a pick, he also plays only with his fingers, and his improvisations effectively fuse classical guitar and jazz.
As an educator he has worked as an instructor in the Jazz Division of the Senzoku College of Music in Tokyo, Japan. Returning to New York City in 2009 guitarist Shinobu Ito resumed performing and recording and continues to explore new directions.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Charlie Holmes was born on January 27, 1910 near Boston, Massachusetts and began playing alto saxophone at age 16 and emulated the style of his childhood friend, Johnny Hodges.
Beginning his professional career a week later, after moving to New York City Charlie worked for a variety of groups, including Luis Russell in 1928. Between 1929 and 1930 he recorded with Red Allen. He would work with Russell again a few times and in 1932 joined the Mills Blue Rhythm Band. He was in John Kirby’s Sextet, Cootie Williams’ Orchestra, and Louis Armstrong’s band for much of the next two decades.
Leaving music in 1951, Holmes did not return for twenty years then worked in Clyde Bernhardt’s Harlem Blues & Jazz Band. He later played for the Swedish band Kustbandet. He never acted as a leader in any recording or group.
Alto saxophonist Charlie Holmes, best known for composing Sugar Hill Function, not only performed during the swing era but also played clarinet and oboe for the Boston Civic Symphony Orchestra, passed away on September 19, 1985 in Stoughton, Massachusetts.
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Three Wishes
When Monk Montgomery was asked by the Baroness if given what his three wishes would be he responded by telling her:
- “My first wish would be that the older people let the younger people think for themselves.”
- “I wish they would give jazz an opportunity.”
- “I wish I could beat you just one time at Ping-Pong.”
*Excerpt from Three Wishes: An Intimate Look at Jazz Greats ~ Compiled and Photographed by Pannonica de Koenigswarter
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Arthur Crawford Wethington was born on January 26, 1904 in Chicago, Illinois and graduated from the Chicago College of Music. Working under pianist Lottie Hightower in the mid-1920s, he then took a position in Carroll Dickerson’s band in 1928. 1929 saw this ensemble playing with Louis Armstrong in New York City.
Between 1930 and 1936 Crawford played with the Mills Blue Rhythm Band, recording several times with the group. He recorded with Edgar Hayes in 1937 and also worked with Cab Calloway, Red Allen, and Adelaide Hall.
After 1937 Wethington quit performing full-time but was active as a music teacher, and in the 1960s he took work in New York City as a supervisor for a transit line power plant.
Saxophonist and educator Crawford Wethington, who was never recorded as a leader, passed away on September 11, 1994 in White Plains, New York.
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