Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Edwin James Costa was born on August 14, 1930 in Atlas, Pennsylvania, near Mount Carmel, in Northumberland County. He was taught and influenced on piano by his older, musically trained brother, Bill, and a local piano teacher. He took paid jobs as a pianist from the age of 15, and in contrast to his piano training, he was self-taught on vibes.
In 1949 he played and toured for a few months with violinist Joe Venuti. He then worked for his brother in New York until 1951, when Eddie was drafted into the army. During this time in the armed forces, he performed in Japan and Korea. After his discharge, he returned home and worked around the New York area, including for bands led by Kai Winding, Johnny Smith, and Don Elliott.
n 1957 he was chosen as Down Beat jazz critics’ new star on piano and vibes – the first time that one artist won two categories in the same year. He became known for his percussive, driving piano style that concentrated on the lower octaves of the keyboard.
Costa had an eight-year recording career, during which he appeared on more than 100 albums, with five of them were under his own leadership. As a sideman, he appeared in orchestras led by Manny Albam, Gil Evans, Woody Herman, and others; played in smaller groups led by musicians including Tal Farlow, Coleman Hawkins, Gunther Schuller, and Phil Woods; and accompanied vocalists including Tony Bennett and Chris Connor. Costa died, aged 31, in a car accident in New York City.
His first recording as a leader was in 1956, with his trio featuring bassist Vinnie Burke and drummer Nick Stabulas. Around this time, he was nicknamed The Bear by Burke for his powerful playing. He and Burke joined Tal Farlow and became the resident trio at the Composer Club. In 1957 Costa was again leader, recording Eddie Costa Quintet with Woods, Art Farmer, Teddy Kotick, and Paul Motian. He would go on to record 1958’s Guys and Dolls Like Vibes with Bill Evans, Wendell Marshall, and Motian.
Late at night on July 28, 1962, pianist, vibraphonist, composer, and arranger Eddie Costa passed away in a car crash, involving no other vehicles, on New York’s Westside Highway at 72nd Street in New York City.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Michel De Villers was born July 13, 1926 in Villeneuve-sur-Lot, France and learned to play alto saxophone as a teenager. He would later expand to clarinet and baritone saxophone. Playing in the latter half of the 1940s with Jean-Claude Fohrenbach, Django Reinhardt and Rex Stewart, he then joined the Edward VII Theatre band in Paris.
In the 1950s he worked in the bands of Geo Daly, Jack Diéval, André Persiany, and Gérard Pochonet. He also played with touring American musicians such as Buck Clayton, Bill Coleman, Jonah Jones, and Lucky Thompson. The Seventies saw De Villers as less active as a musician, working as a jazz writer and radio screenwriter. In the 1980s he became active again as an educator and performer, working later in his career with Christian Garros, Pierre Michelot, Roger Guérin, and Marc Fosset.
Saxophonist, clarinetist, and bandleader Michel De Villers October 25, 1992, Mont St. Aignan, France.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Jacques Pelzer was born in Liège, Belgium on June 24, 1924, and got his inspiration from Benny Carter, then Charlie Parker and Lee Koni. His first exposure to jazz was after World War II when he joined the Bob Shots, a legendary Belgian bop band that included at various time pioneers such as Bobby Jaspar, René Thomas, and Sadi. He also played with other historical figures of Belgian jazz such as pianist/arranger Francy Boland, guitar and harmonica player Toots Thielemans, bassist Benoît Quersin. His work with René Thomas continued for several years, leading to several recordings.
Pelzer’s evolution in the Sixties and Seventies included free jazz and fusion, recorded the soundtrack of the film “Le Départ” with Don Chery, Philip Catherine, and Gato Barbieri. He had three tours of the United States with Chet Baker, resulting in a lasting friendship and musical partnership and ultimately met Dexter Gordon, Archie Shepp, Stan Getz, Lee Konitz, Philly Joe Jones and Bill Evans.
The next two decades saw Jacques returning to straight-ahead jazz, acoustic jazz, and bebop standards, modern compositions with an accent on lyricism and expression. Moving back to the studios in 1990 to record his CD Never Let Me Go with his band the Open Sky Unit along with Barney Wilen, Michel Graillier, Eric Legnini as guests. This recording received the Sax Prize for best jazz album of the year 1991.
Three magnificent Belgian jazz musicians, guitarist Philip Catherine, bassist Philippe Aerts, and drummer Bruno Castellucci joined for his final album Salute To The Bandbox. Alto and soprano saxophonist and flutist Jacques Pelzer passed away on August 6, 1994 in his hometown.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Phillip Robert Lee was born on April 8, 1943 in London, England and studied guitar with Ike Isaacs as a teenager. He was a member of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, including their performance in the 1960 Antibes Jazz Festival. By the 1960s he was playing with John Williams and Graham Collier, was resident at Ronnie Scott’s Old Place, and in a band that included Bob Stuckey, Dudu Pukwana, and John Marshall.
During the 1970s, he played in jazz-rock bands such as Gilgamesh and Axel with Tony Coe and with Michael Garrick, Henry Lowther, and John Stevens. He recorded Twice Upon a Time in 1987 with Jeff Clyne.
Later in his career, he worked with Gordon Beck, Andres Boiarsky, Benny Goodman, Lena Horne, Marian Montgomery, Annie Ross, Dardanelle, Harry Edison, Ken Peplowski, Eddie Daniels, Jimmy Smith and the London Jazz Orchestra.
Phil Lee began playing jazz in the 1960s and. Since then he has recorded and appeared live with a vast range of musicians. including Pat Smythe, Duncan Lamont, Norma Winstone, Michael Garrick, Jimmy Hastings and Martin Speake. Phil has toured with Charles Aznavour, Michel Legrand, Gordon Beck and recently Jessye Norman.
In the 1970s he was a member of the fusion band Gilgamesh. His musicianship is held in high regard not only by fellow jazz players but also by musicians in other genres. His film credits include brief appearances in Eyes Wide Shut and Alan Plater’s TV film Misterioso and his playing featured in The Last of the Blonde Bombshells. Guitarist Phil Lee continues to perform, record and tour.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Woody Witt was born on March 16, 1969 in Omaha, Nebraska and started on the clarinet in fourth grade and switched his focus to saxophone the following year. A professional musician from the age of 16, he studied at the University of Houston, earned a Master’s degree in Jazz Studies from the University of North Texas, and a doctorate from the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music.
As a saxophonist, Witt has recorded ten albums as a leader and over twenty-five albums as a sideman. He has collaborated with major jazz artists such as Randy Brecker, Tim Hagans, Jim Rotondi, the late James Moody, David Liebman, and Tim Armacost, Conrad Herwig, Larry Ham, Joe LoCascio, Mark Levine, Louis Hayes, Adam Nussbaum, Billy Hart, and Nancy King. He has worked with the Houston Symphony and Houston Ballet and has been featured on major third-stream works that blend together jazz and classical music.
The winner of the 2010 Chamber Music America French American Cultural Exchange grant and the 2014 International Jazz Saxophone Competition in Taiwan, Woody is the booker and the artistic director at Houston’s top jazz club, Cezanne. He has taught at Houston Community College since 2000, is an Affiliate Artist at the University of Houston, and conducts a countless number of workshops and masterclasses throughout the United States, France, Romania, Germany, and Asia. Currently, saxophonist Woody Witt is involved in several different group projects.
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