Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Britt Woodman was born on June 4, 1920 in Los Angeles, California. A childhood friend of Charles Mingus, he first worked with Phil Moore and Les Hite. After serving in World War II he played with Boyd Raeburn before joining with Lionel Hampton in 1946.
During the 1950s he worked with Duke Ellington. As a member of Ellington’s band he can be heard on twenty-five recorings such as 1957’s Such Sweet Thunder, Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book, and 1958’s Black, Brown, and Beige and Ellington Indigos.
1960 saw Britt departing from Ellington to work in a pit orchestra. He went on to later work with Mingus and can be heard on the album Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus released in 1963. In the 1970s he led his own octet and recorded with pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi. In 1989, he was part of the personnel for the album Epitaph dedicated to the previously unrecorded music of Charles Mingus.
He recorded Playing For Keeps and In L.A. as a leader, and leaves a sideman recording catalogue of ninety-three albums with Toshiko Akiyoshi – Lew Tabackin Big Band, Bill Berry, Ella Fitzgerald, Lionel Hampton, Johnny Hodges, Jimmy Smith, Gene Ammons, Ray Brown, Ruth Brown, Frank Capp, Nat Pierce, Benny Carter, Rosemary Clooney, John Coltrane, Randy Crawford, Tadd Dameron, Miles Davis, Booker Ervin, John Fahey, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Golson, Chico Hamilton, Jimmy Hamilton, Hank Jones, Oliver Nelson, Philly Joe Jones, Jon Lucien, Galt MacDermot, Teo Macero, Junior Mance, The Manhattan Transfer, Wade Marcus, Blue Mitchell, Grover Mitchell, James Moody, Maria Muldaur, Oliver Nelson, Oscar Peterson, Zoot Sims, Billy Taylor, Clark Terry, Teri Thornton, Jimmy Woode
Trombonisit Britt Woodman died in Hawthorne, California at the age of 80, having suffered severe respiratory problems on October 13, 2000.
More Posts: bandleader,history,instrumental,jazz,music,trombone
SABERTOOTH
Founded around 1990, Sabertooth is led by two saxophonists: Cameron Pfiffner & Pat Mallinger. The band started out with the unique pairing of its two lead reedmen at an old musicians hang called Jazz Bulls in Lincoln Park West neighborhood of Chicago. From that night’s collaboration the idea of Sabertooth began to take shape with a driving force behind the widely varied stylings best summed up as, just groove it.
The group has often ventured beyond soul-jazz and hard bop and moved into post-bop and modal territory with John Coltrane’s modal recordings of the early to mid-’60s influencing the groups sound. Sabertoothis both a post-bop group and a soul-jazz/hard bop group with a highly diverse repertoire that includes many original compositions and jazz classics by Duke Ellington, Horace Silver, Wayne Shorter, Lester Young, John Coltrane, as well as covers by the Beatles, Grateful Dead, Bob Dylan, Allman Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Bob Marley.
Special invited guests who have performed with the group have included Harry Connick Jr., Kurt Elling, Joe Lovano, Roy Hargrove, Wynton Marsalis Band, Jack McDuff, Joey DeFrancesco, Umphrey’s Mcgee Band, and many others.
Showtimes: 6:00pm-7:15pm & 8:15pm-9:30pm
Cover: $15.00
More Posts: adventure,bandleader,club,genius,jazz,music,preserving,saxophone,travel
Daily Dose Of Jazz…
John Troy was born on June 3, 1989 in Buffalo, New York. He began playing the saxophone at age twelve. After showing exceptional ability in the classical realm throughout middle school, with the tutelage of William Eicher, his attention gradually turned toward the study of Jazz Saxophone. He honed his skills with lead alto saxophone for Concert and Jazz All-County Ensembles, and New York All-State Bands as well.
John played both lead alto and tenor in the Fredonia Jazz Ensemble, student big band. He can be heard on the 2009 release of the FJE’s, Still Kickin’ and his debut album All Ahead Flank. He led his own small groups, Jazz Quintessential, and an organ trio, the JT Trio both with significant success.
He has performed and/or studied with the likes of Eric Alexander, Grant Stewart, Ralph Lalama, Todd Coolman, Tim Armacost, Chris Potter, Tom Harrell, Stacy Dillard, Hal Galper, Arturo O’ Farrell, and Pete Malinverni, among others.
Tenor saxophonist John Troy continues to find his musical way through performance and recording in the hard bop genre..
More Posts: bandleader,history,instrumental,jazz,music,saxophone
Daily Dose Of Jaz…
Zalman “Porky” Cohen was born on June 2, 1924 in Springfield, Massachusetts and began performing publicly in his mid-teens, and studied with trombonist Miff Mole. By 19 he was playing with the Charlie Barnet Orchestra, often featured as a soloist. Stints with Tony Pastor and Glen Gray’s Casa Loma Orchestra followed, and in 1948 during the segregation era in the jazz and blues worlds, he was one of a few white musicians to perform with the Lucky Millinder Orchestra.
Porky married, settled down and limited his performing career to local gigs in Rhode Island and southeastern New England. He did, however, join the Grammy winning jump-blues band Roomful Of Blues from 1981 to 1987, touring all over the U.S. and Europe. During this phase of his career, he recorded with jump-blues greats Big Joe Turner, Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson, Jimmy Witherspoon and Earl King.
Having had enough of the rigors of constant touring, in 1987 he returned to Providence, Rhode Island and again played with various area bands. He continued performing until increasitg ill-health sidelined him Trombonist Porky Cohen died of complications resulting from a stroke on April 14, 2004 at age 79 in Providence.
More Posts: bandleader,history,instrumental,jazz,music,trombone
Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Hilaria Kramer was born on June 1, 1967 in Frauenfeld, Switzerland and began playing the trumpet when she was ten years old. Beginning in 1983 she attended the vocational school department of Jazz School St. Gallen, where she studied under Benny Bailey and Art Lande.
After graduating she went on to work in Italy with the Claudio Fasoli Quintet, with Gianluigi Trovesi. She performed with Steve Lacy, Enrico Rava, Joe Henderson, Bob Mover, Sal Nistico, Chet Baker and Sangoma Everett. 1988 saw her recording her debut album leading her own quartet. The album was released in the spring of the following year on Unit Records.
1991 had Hilaria performing on the TV program Ladies in Jazz with singers Nina Simone and Carmen McRae. Over the next few years, she performed with Uli Scherer in Vienna and also toured around Europe.
In 2014, Kramer was awarded the Jazz Prize of the Fondation Suisa for her services as a musician, composer and band leader as well as her work in various organizations that support Swiss jazz.
Trumpeter and composer Hilaria Kramer, who has a discography of eighteen albums as a leader and sidewoman, continues to record, perform and tour.
More Posts: bandleader,composer,history,instrumental,jazz,music,trumpet