Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Theodore G. Brown was born into a musical family on December 1, 1927 in Rochester, New York. He learned banjo and violin from his father who also taught him to read music at six, and clarinet and tenor sax from his uncle. After playing in army bands from 1945 to 1947 and then in Hollywood, California for the following year, he moved to New York City.

He worked with Lennie Tristano and fellow pupils and associates Lee Konitz and Warne Marsh for two years beginning in  1955. During that time Ted recorded a session for Vanguard, worked with Ronnie Ball, and played a date in Hollywood with Warne Marsh.

>Returning to New York City he worked extensively in clubs. Brown recorded with Konitz in 1959, and again in 1976, while leading his own group in the late Seventies. He also worked and recorded with Art Pepper and Hod O’Brien.

Cool jazz tenor saxophonist Ted Brown, who recorded as a leader or co-leader thirteen albums and as a sideman was a part of five albums with Tristano, Marsh and Konitz, is 97 years old.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Nathan Gershman was born Nathan Gerschman on November 29, 1917 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He received classical training at the Curtis Institute of Music, graduating in 1940 and from that point in his life he played with the Cleveland Orchestra.

In 1947 Nathan moved to New York City to work as a studio musician, then worked in the same capacity in Los Angeles, California after 1954. Three years later he replaced Fred Katz as cellist in Chico Hamilton’s band, playing and recording in his band until 1961. As a jazz musician, he worked with Nat Adderley, Gábor Szabó, and Ronnie Laws during the 1970s.

Gershman was frequently active as a session player and studio musician for television, theater, and recordings in and around Los Angeles from the Sixties into the 1990s. He recorded on albums by David Axelrod, The Beach Boys, Geronimo Black, David Bromberg, Neil Diamond, Lee Hazlewood, Wayne Henderson, Van Dyke Parks, Esther Phillips, and Pleasure.

Cellist and session musician Nathan Gershman, who played in popular music, jazz, and classical idioms, died on September 13, 2008 in the North Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Terry Plumeri was born John Terryl Plumeri on November 28, 1944 in Greensboro, North Carolina, and grew up in Tampa, Florida. He began studying music when he was 10 and while attending Chamberlain High School, he was introduced to the double bass by band director Robert Price. He went on to attend the Manhattan School of Music in New York City, studying with Robert Brennand, then the principal bassist in the New York Philharmonic. Later, he studied composition and conducting with Antal Doráti.

During his military service, Terry was a member of the Air Force Band. After his discharge he played with among others John Abercrombie, Cannonball Adderley, Herbie Hancock, Woody Herman, Quincy Jones, Yusef Lateef, Les McCann, Wayne Shorter, Frank Sinatra, Ralph Towner, and Joe Williams.

He performed, toured, and recorded with Roberta Flack from 1969 to 1974, playing electric and acoustic bass. He appears on the albums Chapter Two, Quiet Fire, Killing Me Softly, and wrote the song Conversation Love on the latter album.

Moving to Los Angeles, California to work in the film industry, Terry wrote the music for over 50 feature films, and his score for the film  One False Move was nominated for Best Score by the IFC Independent Spirit Awards. In later years, he was guest conductor for the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra and was a frequent guest lecturer, teacher, music producer, and photographer.

Double bassist, classical and film score composer, orchestra conductor, lecturer, teacher, and producer, and composer Terry Plumeri was murdered by burglars during a home invasion on March 31, 2016 in Dunnellon, Florida. He was 71.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Wilber Morris (November 27, 1937 in Los Angeles, California and followed in the footsteps of his older brother Butch into the music industry and jazz. He began playing frums as a child but switched to the double bass during his tour of duty in the Air Force from 1954 to 1962.

He played around San Francisco, California with Pharoah Sanders and Sonny Simmons but after his discharge he returned home and played with Arthur Blythe and Horace Tapscott. 1969 saw Wilber back in San Francisco for a short period but it wasn’t until he moved aross the country for New York City in 1978 that his career took off. His association with Billy Bang from 1979 to ‘83 rendered five albums and multiple touring dates. He then became a mainstay in David Murray’s octet well into the 1990s which produced seven albums.

He put together a trio of players under the name Wilber Force in 1981 and recorded his debut album as a leader, Collective Improvisations, and would go on to record six more as a leader or co-leader. His final recording came in 2019 titled Monks, which is a collective interpretation of Thelonious Monk compositions.

Morris founded the One World Ensemble in 1995, and participated in John Fischer’s one-off reunion of INTERface and performed well into the new millennium.

Wilber performed with Pharoah Sanders, Steve Habib, Sonny Simmons, Alan Silva, Joe McPhee, Horace Tapscott, Butch Morris, Arthur Blythe, Charles Gayle, William Parker, Charles Tyler, Dennis Charles, Roy Campbell, Avram Fefer, Alfred 23 Harth, Borah Bergman and Rashied Ali.

As a sideman recorded thirty-one albums with Marshall Allen, Billy Bang, Thomas Borgmann, Rob Brown, Bobby Few, Avram Fefer, Charles Gayle, Steve Habib, Frank Lowe, Makanda Ken McIntyre, David Murray, Kevin Norton. Positive Knowledge, Alan Silva and Steve Swell.

Double bass player and bandleader Wilber Morris died on August 8, 2002 in Livingston, New Jersey from a previos bout with cancer that returned.

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Jazz Poems

THE SYNCOPATED CAKEWALK

In it, I see Miss Hand and her Five Daughters

rubbing myback and the backs of my legs

Nat King Cole provides the music and the words

It’s 1949, Finished with them, I take off

on a river boat, down the Mississippi, looking for work.

On deck the got the Original Dixieland Jazz Band

doing “Big Butter and Egg Man.”

A guru haas the cabin next to mine and everybody

who visits him whimpers something terrible!

Stood on deck after dinner watching the clouds

form faces and arms. The Shadow went

by giggling to himself.

An Illinois Central ticket fell from his pocket.

Snake Hips picked it up, ran.

Texas Shuffle, who sat in with the Band last night,

this morning, dropped his fiddlecases

in the ocean and did the Lindy all the way

to the dinning room

I got off at Freak Lips Harbor.

Boy from Springfield said he’d talk like Satch for me

for a dime. I gave him a Bird,

and an introductory note to the Duke of Ellington.

Found my way to the Ida B. Wells Youth Center.

Girl named Ella said I’d have to wait to see Mister B.

Everybody else was out to lunch.

In the waiting room got into a conversation

with a horse thief from Jump Back. Told him:

My past life is a Saturday morning cartoon.

In it, I’m jumping Rock Island freight cars, skipping

Peoria with Leadbelly; running from the man,

trying to prove my innocence. Accused of being

too complex to handle.

Meanwhile, Zoot, Sassy, Getz, Prez, Cootie, everybody

gives me a hand.

Finally, Mister B comes in. Asks about my future.

All I can say is, I can do the Cow Cow Boogie

on the ocean and hold my own in a chase chorus

Fine, says Mister B, you start seven in the morning!

CLARENCE MAJOR

from Jazz Poems ~ Selected and Edited by Kevin Young

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