Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Alphonse “Alphonso” Trent was born on August 24, 1905 in Fort Smith, Arkansas and played piano from childhood, working in local bands in Arkansas through his youth.
He led his first band in the mid-1920s, possibly as early as 1923. In 1924 he played with Eugene Cook’s Synco Six, then took over leadership of the band until 1934. They played mostly in the American South and Midwest, as well as on steamboats.
Despite success in New York around 1930, Trent chose not to work further on the East Coast. He left music in the mid-1930s but returned with another band in 1938. His sidemen included Terrence Holder, Alex Hill, Stuff Smith, Snub Mosley, Charlie Christian, Sweets Edison, Mouse Randolph, and Peanuts Holland.
As a leader he only recorded eight sides: four in 1928, two in 1930, and two in 1933. His small recorded legacy has made him a somewhat obscure figure today, but the sophistication of his arrangements and the precision with which they were executed inspired awe in contemporaries.
Pianist and territory band leader Alphonso Trent, who performed in the biggest and finest hotels in the South, died on October 14, 1959.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Nadine Chase was born August 23rd and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. A versatile vocalist over the years, she has performed with her trio and big band orchestras in many of Boston’s finer hotels and jazz clubs.
Each year, she and her trio volunteer their time and talents to Brookline’s First Light celebration to help support the arts in Brookline schools. They play major fundraisers for the Fenway Community Health Center and perform at inaugural celebrations and special events.
She is active in the Institute of Noetic Sciences, and the Society for Organizational Learning about creativity in business and assisting individuals to help find their voice. In 2001 she recorded and released her debut album Cut To The Chase which was nominated for a Grammy as Best Jazz Vocal Album.
Vocalist Nadine Chase, who is a member of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, the Boston Musicians Local 9-535, and the Boston Association of Cabaret Artists, continues to perform.
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The Jazz Voyager
Since I’ve been hanging out in the Big Apple for two weeks, I thought I’d head upstate to Tarrytown for a change of seasons and take in the fall colors that are always so beautiful. This week I’ll be at the Lyndhurst Mansion overlooking the Hudson River on the land that was originally hunting grounds of the indigenous Lenape/Munsee tribe that were the first inhabitants of the Hudson Valley. I’m traveling to this location to partake in the Summer Concert Series promoted by the Jazz Forum Arts.
The concert series is free but there is a ten dollar fee to enter the estate. Little expense to view the grounds and be entertained by swing/bop vocalist Nancy Kelly who is headlining this evening. I love being introduced to new places and performers I’ve never heard before. This should prove to be an amazing time.
Lyndhurst is located at 635 S Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591. For more information visit https://www.jazzforumarts.org.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Jack Payne was born John Wesley Vivian Payne on August 22, 1899 in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England. He is the only son of a music publisher’s warehouse manager and it wasn’t until he was serving in the Royal Flying Corps that he played the piano in amateur dance bands. Towards the end of World War I, he led dance bands for the troops and was part of a voluntary group The Allies Concert Party that performed to wounded soldiers convalescing around Birmingham.
He played with visiting American jazz bands at the Birmingham Palais during the early 1920s, including the Southern Rag-a-Jazz Orchestra in 1922, before moving to London in 1925. He played in a ten-piece band which became the house band at London’s Hotel Cecil. Three years later Payne became the BBC Director of Dance Music and the leader of the BBC’s first official dance band.
After leaving the BBC in 1932 he returned to playing hotel venues and switched labels to Imperial, followed by Rex from 1934. Payne took his band on nationwide tours and made a couple of films, composed and published waltzes, and recorded jazz working with Garland Wilson.
>Returning to the post of Director of Dance Music at the BBC until 1946. Bandleader and composer Jack Payne, who authored two autobiographies, died in Tonbridge, Kent, England on December 4,1969, aged 70.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Tom Kennedy was born on August 21, 1960 in St. Louis, Missouri and is the son of a professional trumpet player. He began playing acoustic bass at the age of nine on a double-bass brought home by his older brother, jazz pianist Ray Kennedy. It wasn’t long before he began to perform with such as Freddie Hubbard, James Moody, Nat Adderly, Sonny Stitt and Stan Kenton passing through the Midwest.
Specializing in acoustic jazz until he picked up the electric bass at the age of 17. Soon he was dividing his time between mainstream and progressive jazz fusion. Tom gained a reputation beyond St. Louis and he relocated to New York City, where he quickly found work with multiple groups. He recorded with guitarist Bill Connors and toured with Michael Brecker in the jazz-fusion group Steps Ahead. He went on to have tours and recordings with Tania Maria and Al DiMeola.
In 1998, Kennedy became an integral part of Dave Weckl’s band, a group he toured, composed and recorded with for over nine years. They have continued to perform and record together on various projects for other artists, including Mike Stern, Didier Lockwood, Dave Grusin and Lee Ritenour.
He has recorded six albums as a leader and another twenty as a sideman with Dave Weckl, Bill Connors, Don Grolnick, Ray Kennedy, Al DiMeola, Planet X, Derek Sherinian, and Mike Stern.
Tom has also performed and recorded with top contemporary players Simon Phillips, Steve Gadd, Frank Gambale, Steve Lukather, David Sanborn, Jeff Lorber, Ricky Lawson, Joe Sample, Renee Rosnes and George Garzone and fusion band Planet X.
Double-bass and electric bassist Tom Kennedy, who moved to New York City in 1984 and immersed himself in the hard bop, fusion and swing genres, continues to perform and record.
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