The Quarantined Jazz Voyager
As life moves forward and I remain steadfast in social distancing, I was reminded of an album produced by hard bop, soul~jazz organist Shirley Scott. This was a very personal album for the artist as it is filled with the music she always wanted to create but the demands of her vibrant career always overshadowed. With her friend and executive producer Maxine Gordon, they produced and recorded the session that became the album titled One For Me. This album was made to please no one but the artist herself.
Given two monikers, The Queen Of The Organ and Little Miss Half-Steps, the latter given to her by saxophonist George Coleman, this Philadelphian raised the funds to make the record, she had complete control over her masters and with her dream band, recorded in November 1974 at Blue Rock Studios in New York City. The album was released on the Strata~East label in Januray 1975. It has been re-released in 2020 on Arc Records.
Track List | 41:54- What Makes Harold Sing? ~ 8:53
- Keep on Movin’ On (Harold Vick) ~ 9:52
- Big George ~ 5:22
- Don’t Look Back (Vick) ~ 8:56
- Do You Know a Good Thing When You See One? ~ 8:51
- Shirley Scott – organ, mellotron
- Harold Vick – tenor saxophone
- Billy Higgins – drums
- Jimmy Hopps – cowbell, triangle (track 2)
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Barney Jean Wilen was born on March 4, 1937 in Nice, France. His mother was French, his father was an American dentist turned inventor. He began performing in Nice nightclubs after receiving encouragement from Blaise Cendrars who was a friend of his mother.
His career was boosted in 1957 when he worked with Miles Davis on the soundtrack Ascenseur pour l’Échafaud. In 1959, Wilen wrote his two soundtracks Un Témoin Dans la Ville and Jazz sur scène with Kenny Clarke, and two years later composed the soundtrack for Roger Vadim’s film Les Liaisons Dangereuses working with Thelonious Monk. In the mid-to-late 1960s he became interested in rock, and recorded an album dedicated to Timothy Leary.
Returning to composing for French films in the 1980s and 1990s, touring Japan for the first time in 1990. He ventured into the world of punk rockers before returning to jazz in the early 1990s. Barney played with modern jazz musicians until his death in 1996.
In 1987, French comic book artist Jacques de Loustal and author Philippe Paringaux paid homage to Wilen in their “bande dessinée” Barney et la note bleue (Barney and the Blue Note).
Tenor and soprano saxophonist and jazz composer Barney Wilen, passed away from cancer in Paris, France on May 25, 1996.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Dupree Bolton was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on March 3, 1929. His father was a musician who earned a meager living working in the defense industry.
The Bolton family later moved to Southern California where Dupree spent most of his childhood and teenage years. He picked up the trumpet at an early age, becoming a professional by the time he was around 15, It was at theat point in his life that he ran away from home to join Jay McShann’s band.
Trumpeter Dupree Bolton, known for his recordings with Harold Land and Curtis Amy, passed away on June 5, 1993.
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Three Wishes
Pannonica asked Benny Golson his three wishes and replying said:
- “Everlasting life.”
- “Equality for everyone.”
- “Infinite musical knowledge.”
*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…
Bernard “Bunny” Brunel was born in Nice, France on March 2, 1950 and took up the electric and acoustic bass when he was fifteen. A self taught musician, he did attend for a time a classical conservatory to learn the basic technique of playing with the bow on the bass.
Brunel is a founding member of the jazz fusion band CAB along with Dennis Chambers, and Tony MacAlpine. Since their formation in 2000, they have released four studio albums and two live albums. Their second album, CAB 2, received a nomination for Best Contemporary Jazz Album at the 2002 Grammy Awards. Other musicians who have been members of CAB include Patrice Rushen, Virgil Donati, David Hirschfelder, and Brian Auger.
Bassist Bunny Brunel, who has played with Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, and Wayne Shorter, and who has recorded ten albums as a leader, is involved in musical instrument design, film and television scoring, continues to perform and record.
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