Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Red Kelly, born Thomas Raymond Kelly on August 29, 1927 in Shelby, Montana initially took lessons on drums, but he was unable to work the hi-hat because polio had inhibited the use of his feet. Switching to double-bass during his teen years, in 1949 he began playing bass in a big band led by Charlie Jackson.

In the early 1950s he toured with Charlie Barnet, Herbie Fields, Claude Thornhill, and Red Norvo. It was while working with Norvo that led to the moniker Red. Kelly and bassist Red Mitchell were living in the same apartment, and when Norvo called Mitchell to invite him to tour, he got Kelly on the phone instead.

He played with Woody Herman for several years, including on a 1954 tour of Europe, and around this time Red also recorded with Dick Collins and Nat Pierce. Relocated to the West Coast, he started playing briefly in Seattle, Washington and then in Los Angeles, California with Maynard Ferguson, Med Flory, Stan Kenton, and Lennie Niehaus.

He was a member of the Modest Jazz Trio with Red Mitchell and Jim Hall, who recorded an album in 1960, and worked with Harry James for most of the 1960s. Later in his life he moved to Tacoma, Washington where he left the music business and ran his own restaurant, Kelly’s. Double-bassist Red Kelly passed away on June 9, 2004 in Tacoma, Washington.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Linda Ciofalo was born on August 28, 1972 in New York City, New York. She began singing from a very early age, first appearing in public at the age of nine. The music at this time in her life was traditional church music but later, after deciding upon a career as a singer, she studied at the Juilliard School of Music.

Encouraged by educator Howlett Smith to explore jazz, Linda studied at jazz workshops, learning from singers such as Sheila Jordan and Mark Murphy. She also performed with Murphy, as well as pianist Barry Harris.

In the mid-80s her professional career was launched when she was chosen from three hundred applicants to sing with a big band. Although her chosen field is jazz, Ciofalo has also sung with reggae and rock bands, and has performed in the musical theatre. Her performances take her from small clubs to festivals, and is mainly centred on the East Coast states.

Vocalist Linda Ciofalo, who is also an accomplished songwriter, sings a wide-ranging repertoire, incorporating sultry ballads and raunchy blues songs.

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The Quarantined Jazz Voyager

The Quarantined Jazz Voyager is continuing to practice social distancing and as my personal quarantine continues, I’m selecting one of my favorite albums, Speak Like A Child by Herbie Hancock.

This is the sixth album by pianist Herbie Hancock, recorded and released by Blue Note Records in 1968. This session features Hancock’s arrangements for an unusual front line of alto flute, bass trombone and flugelhorn.

The pianist wanted to represent here a childlike, but not childish, philosophy. He felt this music didn’t reflect the social turmoil of the late 1960s in America, that is riots and a problematic economy but a picture of a more upbeat, brighter future, He wanted to go back and rediscover certain childhood qualities that are lost to adulthood. There is a purity, a spontaneity that children have and it is then they are at their best. Hence this album aims to translate as think and feel in terms of hope, and the possibilities of making our future less impure.

The cover photograph was taken by David Bythewood, an acquaintance of Hancock. The photo depicts Hancock in silhouette kissing his wife-to-be, Gigi Meixner.

Track Listing | 37:05

All compositions by Herbie Hancock, except First Trip, composed by Ron Carter.

Side A

1. Riot ~ 4:40
2. Speak Like a Child ~ 7:50
3. First Trip ~ 6:01

1. Toys ~ 5:52
2. Goodbye to Childhood ~ 7:06
3. The Sorcerer ~ 5:36

• Herbie Hancock — piano
• Ron Carter — bass
• Mickey Roker — drums
• Jerry Dodgion — alto flute (not on #3)
• Thad Jones — flugelhorn (not on #3)
• Peter Phillips — bass trombone (not on #3)

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Tony Crombie was born Anthony John Kronenberg on August 27, 1925 in Bishopsgate, London, England. He was a self-taught musician who began playing the drums at the age of fourteen. He was one of a group of young men from the East End of London who ultimately formed the co-operative Club Eleven, bringing modern jazz to Britain.

In 1947 traveling to New York City with his friend Ronnie Scott, he witnessed the playing of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, then took it back to the UK along with Scott, Johnny Dankworth, and Dennis Rose. 1948 saw Crombie touring Britain and Europe with Duke Ellington, who only brought Ray Nance and Kay Davis with him. Picking up a rhythm section in London, Ellington chose him on the recommendation of Lena Horne, with whom he had worked when she appeared at the Palladium.

Tony would go on to depart from jazz and set up a rock and roll band in 1956 he called The Rockets. Modelled after Bill Haley’s Comets and Freddie Bell & the Bellboys, he released several singles for Decca and Columbia record labels. By 1958 the Rockets had become a jazz group with Scott and Tubby Hayes. During the following year Crombie started Jazz Inc. with pianist Stan Tracey.

In 1960, he composed the score for the film The Tell-Tale Heart and established residency at a hotel in Monte Carlo. In May 1960 he toured the UK with Conway Twitty, Freddy Cannon, Johnny Preston, and Wee Willie Harris.

During the next thirty years he performed with Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, Illinois Jacquet, Joe Pass, Mark Murphy and Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis. In the mid-1990s, after breaking his arm in a fall, he stopped playing the drums but continued composing until his death in 1999. Drummer, pianist, vibraphonist bandleader, and composer Tony Crombie, who was an energizing influence on the British jazz scene for over six decades, passed away on October 18, 1999 in Hampsead, London at the age of 74.

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Three Wishes

The Baroness asked Donald Byrd what his three wishes would be and he replied: 

1. 1. “Health.”

   2. “Education.”

   3. “Long life.”

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

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