Daily Dose Of Jazz…

John Henry Windhurst came into this world on November 5, 1926 in New York City, New York and was a self taught trumpeter. At the age of 15 he played his first public performance at Nick’s, and made his professional debut during the spring of 1944 at one of Eddie Condon’s concerts at the Town Hall, both venues in New York City. By eighteen he replaced Bunk Johnson in Sidney Bechet’s band for a Savoy Cafe gig in Boston, Massachusett, which launched his career as a trumpeter.

Going on to play with Art Hodes and James P. Johnson at the Jazz at Town Hall concert in 1946, Johnny then moved to the midwest and after a brief stint in the Chicago, Illinois jazz scene he returned to the Savoy Cafe as a member of Edmond Hall’s band. Eventually he moved west to experience the west coast jazz scene in California. However, his inability to read music forced him to decline gigs with Benny Goodman and Woody Herman, emphasizing his preference for informal jamming.

Over the years, he played with Louis Armstrong, Nappy Lamare, Eddie Condon. Ruby Braff,George Wettling, Jack Teagarden and Barbara Lea. He also led his own band, Riverboat Five, through Columbus, Ohio and Boston for several years, opting to play colleges and small venues instead of the most popular east coast venues and nightclubs.He also did some off-Broadway work with Conrad Janis in the musical Joy Ride.

Windhurst only made one recording with his swing quartet called Jazz at Columbus Avenue, for the Transition label in 1956. On the record label Jazzology, George Buck released The Imaginative Johnny Windhurst which showcased his unique trumpet style. The LP was recorded at a showcase in Massachusetts, where the decision to record it was made on the spot just as the show began. The spontaneous set flaunts his innovative playing on timeless numbers such as Back In Your Own Backyard, Strut Miss Lizzie and Lover Come Back to Me.

He eventually moved upstate to Poughkeepsie, New York with his mother, where he finished his career in a dixieland band at Frivolous Sal’s Last Chance Saloon. Trumpeter Johnny Windhurst passed away from a heart attack at the age of 54 on October 2, 1981 in Dutchess County, New York.

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The Quarantined Jazz Voyager

In our ongoing practice of social distancing and wearing our masks, this week’s selection comes the very talented interpreter and vocalist Nnenna Freelon who has delivered her latest Time Traveler. The songs for the album were recorded over a span of two years on March 13~15, 2018, October 24, 2018, August 20, 2020 and September 3, 2020. It was released on May 21, 2021 on the Origin Records label.

The album was recorded at Manifold  Records in Pittsboro, North Carolina, Overdub Lane, Durham, North Carolina and Tedesco Studios in Paramus, New Jersey. It was produced by Nnenna Freelon, with musical direction by Miki Hayama. The engineers were Jason Richmond (1~6, 8~11), Ian Schreier (1,3~5,7,9) Tom Tedesco (1~3,8) and John Plymale (2,8).

The cover design and layout was by John Bishop, photography by Chris Charles, clothing stylist ~ Katina Bryson, makeup ~ Sharon Davis, hairstylist ~ Anes El and henna and face artist Shemora Sheik made up the production team.

She draws from her life story the songs of her youth and has helped her navigate the process of loss and healing and steps through an imagined doorway where past, present and future collide. She reminds us of a time when grace and elegance were a standard and that is timeless. There is a reverence in the lyrics that was lost in my youth but has been captured with age.

Tracks | 55:03

1. I Say A Little Prayer For You (Burt Bachrach/Hall David) ~ 5:07
2. Marvin Medley: If This World Were Mine/Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing/Ain’t No Mountain High Enough ( Marvin Gaye, Ashford & Simpson) ~ 6:05
3. Just You (Nnenna Freelon) ~ 5:32
4. Betcha By Golly Wow (Thom Bell, Linda Creed) ~ 4:54
5. Time In A Bottle (Jim Croce) ~ 6:59
6. You Make Me Feel Brand New (Thom Bell, Linda Creed) ~ 5:06
7. Moon River (Henry Mancini, Johnny Mercer) ~ 5:57
8. Time After Time (Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne ~ 4:58
9. Come Rain Or Come Shine (Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer) ~ 5:55
10. Time Traveler (Freelon,Curry,Robinson, Scott) ~ 4:30

• Nnenna Freelon ~ Vocals
• Miki Hayama ~ Piano 1,3,5,7,8 Rhodes 2,4,9 Synth 2,8
• Chuckey Robinson ~ Keyboards 10,11
• Brandon McCune ~ Hammond Organ 1,3
• Keith Ganz ~ Guitar 2~6,8~11
• Noah Jackson ~ Acoustic Bass 1,3~5,7,9
• Gerald Veasley ~ Electric Bass 2,8
• Lance Scott ~ Electric Bass 10,11
• E. J. Strickland ~ Drums 1,3~5,7,9
• Adonis Rose ~ Drums 2,8
• Jon Curry ~ Drums 10,11
• Beverly Botsford ~ Percussion 2,4,8
• Trineice Robinson-Martin ~ Background Vocal
• Kirk Whalum ~ Tenor Saxophone, Flute 4
• Shana Tucker ~ Cello 5

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Joe Sullivan was born Michael Joseph O’Sullivan on November 4, 1906 in Chicago, Illinois. The ninth child of Irish immigrant parents, he studied classical piano for 12 years and by age 17, he began to play popular music in silent-movie theaters, on radio stations, and then with the dance orchestras, where he was exposed to jazz. Graduating from the Chicago Conservatory he was an important contributor to the Chicago jazz scene of the 1920s.

Sullivan’s recording career began towards the end of 1927, when he joined McKenzie and Condon’s Chicagoans. Other musicians in his circle included Jimmy McPartland, Frank Teschemacher, Bud Freeman, Jim Lanigan and Gene Krupa. In 1933, he joined Bing Crosby as his accompanist, recording and making many radio broadcasts.

Contracting tuberculosis in 1936, while convalescing at a sanitarium in Monrovia, California in 1937, Crosby organized and appeared in a five-hour benefit for him at the Pan-Pacific Auditorium in Los Angeles, California on May 23, 1937 in front of an audience of six thousand. The show was broadcast over two different radio stations, with fourteen bands attending and raised approximately $3,000 for Sullivan.

After suffering for two years with tuberculosis, Joe briefly re-joined Bing Crosby in 1938 and the Bob Crosby Orchestra in 1939. In 1940, when leading Joe Sullivan’s Cafe Society Orchestra, he had a minor hit with I’ve Got A Crush On You. By the 1950s, he was largely forgotten, playing solo in San Francisco, California, and marital difficulties and excessive drinking caused him to become increasingly unreliable and unable to keep a steady job.

In 1963, he met up with old colleagues Jack and Charlie Teagarden plus Pee Wee Russell when they performed at the Monterey Jazz Festival. Pianist Joe Sullivan passed away on October 13, 1971 in San Francisco at the age of 64.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Joe McPhee was born November 3, 1939 in Miami, Florida and grew up in Poughkeepsie, New York. He began playing trumpet when he was eight, before learning other instruments. He played in various high school and then military bands before starting his recording career. His first recording came in 1967 when he appeared on the Clifford Thornton album titled Freedom and Unity.

McPhee taught himself saxophone at the age of 32 after experiencing the music of John Coltrane, Albert Ayler, and Ornette Coleman. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, he lectured on jazz music at Vassar College.

In 1975, Werner Uehlinger started the Swiss label Hathut Records with the specific intent of showcasing McPhee’s music. In the 1980s, he met Pauline Oliveros, began studying her musical theories, and worked with her Deep Listening Band.

Not having been signed with any major label in his native United States, Joe was better known throughout Europe until the 1990s. His 1996 album As Serious As Your Life, which takes its title from the jazz book by Val Wilmer, has been said to arguably be the finest of his solo recordings, according to the AllMusic review.

He has recorded or performed with Ken Vandermark, Peter Brötzmann, Evan Parker, Mats Gustafsson, Jeb Bishop, The Thing, Clifton Hyde, Jérôme Bourdellon, Raymond Boni, and Joe Giardullo. Since 1998, he, Dominic Duval, and Jay Rosen have performed and recorded as Trio X. In the 1990s Dominique Eade and McPhee had a jazz ensemble called Naima.

He has written reviews and commentary for Cadence magazine and was awarded the Resounding Vision Award by Nameless Sound. Multi-instrumentalist Joe McPhee, who plays tenor, alto, and soprano saxophone, trumpet, flugelhorn and valve trombone, is most notable for his free jazz work done from the late 1960s to the present day.

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Three Wishes

Curtis Fuller responded to the question of three wishes posed by the Baroness by telling her: 

1. “Health.”
2. “Love.”
3. “Understanding.”

*Excerpt from Three Wishes: An Intimate Look at Jazz Greats ~ Compiled and Photographed by Pannonica de Koenigswarter

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