Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Mikio Masuda 益田 幹夫, also known as Mickey Masuda, was born on August 14, 1949 in Osaka, Japan. Largely self-taught, he played bass at the age of 16, before switching to piano and performing in various Osaka clubs. Moving to Tokyo, Japan In 1969 he played around the Japanese jazz scene, notably in a quartet with Motohiko Hino, Shunzo Ohno and Terumasa Hino.
Recording his debut album Trace for East Wind Records in 1974, he followed it with his sophomore jazz-fusion album Mickey’s Mouth in 1976. The following years saw Masuda working with a number of Japanese musicians prior to moving to New York City in 1978. He recorded the album Corazón, and worked in New York City with David Matthews. He recorded the trio album Black Daffodils in 1996 with Ron Carter and Lewis Nash, and Blue Dumplings in 1998 with Ron Carter and Grady Tate.
In the field of jazz he was involved between 1972 and 1998 in 46 recording sessions, most recently with Chie Ayado. Pianist Mikio Masuda continues to be active on the jazz scene.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Chuck Israels was born Charles H. Israels on August 10, 1936 in New York City, New York. He was raised in a musical family which moved to Cleveland, Ohio when he was 10 and his stepfather Mordecai Bauman was a singer who performed extensively with composer Hanns Eisler. With music a part of normal daily activity, folks like Paul Robeson, Pete Seeger, and The Weavers were regular visitors. In 1948, the appearance of Louis Armstrong’s All Stars in a concert series produced by his parents gave him his first opportunity to meet and hear jazz musicians.
In college, Israels had the opportunity to perform with Billie Holiday. His first professional job after college was working with pianist Bud Powell in Paris, France. His first professional recording was Stereo Drive a.k.a. Coltrane Time with John Coltrane, Cecil Taylor, Kenny Dorham, and Louis Hayes.
>Israels is known for the Jazz Repertory as Director of the National Jazz Ensemble from 1973 to 1981. He made recordings with the Kronos Quartet and Rosemary Clooney in 1985. He was the Director of Jazz Studies at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington until 2010. In 2011, he created the Chuck Israels Jazz Orchestra and recorded Second Wind: A Tribute to the Music of Bill Evans in 2013.
He has worked with Billie Holiday, Benny Goodman, Coleman Hawkins, Stan Getz, Herbie Hancock, J. J. Johnson, John Coltrane, and Judy Collins. Bassist, composer, arranger and bandleader Chuck Israels, who is best known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio, continues to perform.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Andile Yenana was born on August 9, 1968 in King William’s Town, South Africa. His love of music was triggered at an early age and he grew up in a household where music was really loved. His father, Felix Thamsanqa Yenana, had a huge collection of music, ranging from jazz to Motown, and other forms of urban black music and this had a huge influence in his life.
Andile began music studies under Darius Brubeck at the University of Natal’s School of Jazz and Popular Music It was here that he became friends with saxophonist Zim Ngqawana and trumpeter Feya Faku.
Joining the Zim Ngqawana Quartet and worked with Zim on all five of his albums, including San Song recorded with Bjorn Ole Solburg and his Norwegian San Ensemble. He also worked on the Pan-African music project Mahube with saxophonist Steve Dyer and others. He has also worked as arranger for Sibongile Khumalo, Gloria Bosman and Suthukazi Arosi. In 2005 he was selected as the 2005 Standard Bank Young Artist for Jazz.
Pianist Andile Yenana, who made an indelible mark on the industry by switching from teaching to studying jazz, continues to perform and record.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Eddie Lee McFadden was born on August 6, 1928 in Baltimore, Maryland and as a small child tried the piano but later settled on guitar. After his military service, he concentrated on jazz guitar. By the 1950s the guitarist was playing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania clubs. From 1957-58 he was in organist Jimmy Smith’s band and recorded a dozen albums with Smith as part of a trio and sextet. The trio included Donald Bailey on drums.
Staying with organists he next joined Johnny “Hammond” Smith and during the period 1960–63 and one more in 1966, McFadden made eight recordings. Two further sideman appearances on albums came to fruition in the late 1970s.
In November 1967, the Al Grey & Eddie McFadden Quartet played at Count Basie’s Lounge in New York. During the late Seventies he recorded with Sonny Phillips and Don Patterson.
Guitarist Eddie McFadden, who also wrote music for some of his bands, passed away on September 23, 1992 in Philadelphia.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Roy Crimmins was born in London, England on August 2, 1929. Originally self-taught, he was later mentored by the American bass trombonist with the Philarmonia Orchestra, Ray Premru, and the then Ted Heath principal trombonist, Don Lusher. He turned professional when he joined the Mick Mulligan band in 1952.
Collaborating with Alex Welsh in 1954, the pair started their own band and recorded with American guest stars such as the clarinetist Pee Wee Russell and Wild Bill Davison. For the next decade they performed until Roy moved to Germany in 1965 where he kept a consistent line-up and a regular group. Residing in Switzerland from 1970 until 1977 he formed his own band under the pseudonym Roy King and recorded three albums.
Touring Europe extensively during this era, he had his own television show in Vienna, Austria for five years. The late 1970s saw Crimmins returning to England and working once again with Welsh until he died in 1982. In the mid-1980s he was approached to join his Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington orchestras,interpreting the original Lawrence Brown, Tricky Sam Nanton and Juan Tizol trombone solos. He performed at the Nice and North Sea Jazz Festivals.
As an advisor to the Mayor of Eilat, Israel, his involvement in this venture led to the renowned Red Sea Jazz Festival. Soon after, Roy and his family moved to Tel Aviv, Israel where he established the Israel Jazz Ensemble, and was commissioned by Musica Nova to write a concerto, which premiered in the Tel Aviv Museum of Art to great acclaim. His music is still broadcast regularly.
Trombonist, composer and arranger Roy Crimmins, whose career spanned over fifty years, passed away on August 27, 2014 at the age of 85. He is buried on a hill overlooking the Sea of Galilee.
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