Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Raymond Allen Draper was born on August 3, 1940 in New York City. He attended the Manhattan School of Music in the mid-1950s. As a leader, he recorded his debut album, Tuba Sounds in 1957 for Prestige Records at the age of 16, with a quintet. His sophomore album, The Ray Draper Quintet featuring John Coltrane, was recorded at the age of 17 with slight changes in his quintet, including John Coltrane.
His drug use got him imprisoned, however, after his release in the late 1960s, Draper formed the first jazz rock fusion band composed of established jazz musicians of the day. This preceded Miles Davis’s Bitches Brew, which is normally recognized as the first jazz rock fusion group and recording by two years.
Original band members included George Bohanon on trombone, Hadley Caliman on tenor sax, John Duke on upright bass, Paul Lagos on drums and Tom Trujillo on guitar. This band, after its first live performance at Hollywood’s Whisky a Go Go and was offered numerous record deals and booked solid at rock venues for the rest of the year. Lagos went on to tour with John Mayall and was one of the founders of the group Pure Food & Drug Act, featuring Don ‘Sugarcane’ Harris.
He began using heroin again and the more experienced band members quit, except for the youngest member, guitarist Tom Trujillo and his landlord, Chuck Gooden. He hired San Diego trumpeter Don Sleet and saxophonist Ernie Watts. Eventually Draper brought drummer Paul Lagos back, along with saxophonist Richard Aplanalp, trumpeter Phil Wood, and bassist Ron Johnson, becoming a new group named Red Beans and Rice.
They recorded the album Red Beans and Rice Featuring Sparerib Ray Draper on Epic Records. They disbanded, he got hooked on drugs again, and left California for a couple of years in London, England. He was seen sporadically performing and recording. Returning to New York City in the hopes of becoming clean, he remarried and had two children, and continued to compose for other musicians.
He went on to play for a time with Max Roach, and in 1982 he joined the Lionel Hampton Orchestra. Tha year, coming out of a bank in Harlem, he was held up by a gang of juveniles. The 13-year-old leader of the gang shot him, after he had given him his money.
Tuba player Ray Draper, who had been clean of drug use and was working on a composition found in his attaché case, died on November 1, 1982.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Kemba Cofield was born on August 2, 1972 in and grew up in Frankfort, Kentucky. As a young girl she sang in talent shows, beauty pageants, musicals and church. It was only after seeing Sarah Vaughan perform at age 12 that she knew she wanted to sing jazz. However, it wasn’t until she moved to Atlanta, Georgia that opportunity knocked, allowing her to learn the technical aspects of jazz.
Former Freddy Cole drummer, Bernard Linnette, heard Kemba sing during a Tuesday night jam session and was impressed by her voice. She soon began gigging with his sextet and Linnette became her mentor. She taught chorus and piano lessons to students during the day, absorbed jazz during the night and completed her Masters in Music at Northern Illinois University in 2006 and a Masters of Education in 2013 from Cambridge College on summer breaks.
Meeting trombonist Wycliffe Gordon in 2003 earned her an invitation to sing with his ensemble as well as to appear on his album, In The Cross. Her relationships with Linnette and Gordon exposed her to new audiences and provided her with an entrée into the broader jazz scene.
Whether singing in the church choir, teaching scales to students, gigging with the likes of Wycliffe Gordon, Don Braden or Bernard Linnette, she leads her own ensemble.
Vocalist Kemba Cofield, who sings with a soulfulness that wraps itself around the song, continues to She reminds us of how music transforms and how the essence of jazz transcends.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Charlie Harrington ws born on August 1, 1972 in child prodigy, he has played drums since the age of 5 and performed professionally since the age of 15. He studied with and became the protégé of jazz drumming legend Ray Bauduc. He went on to study with classical percussionist Tim Tull. His drumming influences include Buddy Rich, Louie Bellson, Ed Shaughnessy, Joe Morello, and Peter Erskine.
Additionally he leads his own band, Charlie Harrington and the Jazz Express. He has shared the stage with Woody Herman, Freddie Green, Stan Mark, Kirk Whalem, Larry Coryell, Kurt Elling, John Scofield, Benny Golson, Barbara Streisand, Dave Brubeck, Richie Cole, Tony Bennett, Ira Sullivan, Carly Simon, Ari Brown, Junko Onishi and Eddie “Cleanhead” vinson.
As a bluesman he performed with Joe “Guitar” Hughes, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. He has taken master classes with Ed Soph, Louie Bellson, Jack DeJohnette, Donny Osborne, Johnny Rabb, Clayton Cameron, Butch Miles, Steve Smith, Joe Morello, Jeff Hamilton, Bill Stewart, Steve Gadd, Billy Cobham, Jeff Tain Watts, Peter Erskine, and Ed Shaughnessy.
The highly inventive and skilled drummer Charlie Harrington, who has yet to record as a leader or sideman, continues to build a body of work and performs in trio, small group settings and big band ensembles.
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The Jazz Voyager
The Jazz Voyager is back in New York City for another evening of music at Columbus Circle. It sits in the middle of Broadway, connected to Central Park West with 59th Street heading east along the southern border of Central Park. Overlooking the park is the jazz club named after one of the greatest trumpeters of the 20th century, Dizzy’s, a name that is household renowned for jazz heads.
Bassist and composer Buster Williams brings his rich tone, infectious swing, and joyful spirit to the stage. A beloved fixture of the New York jazz scene, he’s played alongside greats like Herbie Hancock, Art Blakey, and Betty Carter, and now leads his dynamic group Something More. Get ready for a night of deep grooves, soulful melodies, and the kind of musical chemistry that makes live jazz unforgettable.
Performers: Buster Williams, bass | Steve Wilson, saxophone | Brandon McCune, piano (7/31 and 8/1) | Steve Nelson, vibes (8/2) | Lenny White, drums
Cover: $25.00 ~ $65.00
Dizzy’s is located at 3 Columbus Circle, Suite 1200, New York, NY 10019 For more information contact the venue at https://jazz.org/dizzys.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Peter Edwin Bocage was born on July 31, 1887 in New Orleans, Louisiana. At 21, he played violin as the leader of a ragtime band, the Superior Orchestra, which included Bunk Johnson.
He played trumpet in the Tuxedo Orchestra, the Onward Brass Band, and as the leader of the Excelsior Brass Band. He played with King Oliver’s band, the Fate Marable Orchestra, and A. J. Piron.
Heading to New York City he performed with Sidney Bechet and at the Cotton Club. He made records with Piron’s New Orleans Orchestra in 1923, and later with his band the Creole Serenaders.
As an educator he taught Louis Armstrong how to read music notes. Both jazz musicians met during jam sessions and created a friendship through music. In later years he performed at Preservation Hall in New Orleans.
Trumpeter and violinist Peter Bocage died in his hometown on December 3, 1967.
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