Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Gene DiNovi was born Eugene Salvatore DiNovi on May 26, 1928 in New York City. While in his teens he worked with Joe Marsala and Chuck Wayne and by the late Forties was very active live and on record. During this period he worked with Buddy DeFranco, Benny Goodman, Chubby Jackson, Brew Moore, Boyd Raeburn, Buddy Rich, Artie Shaw, Lester Young.

At the end of the decade and into the 1950s Gene worked extensively as an accompanist for vocalists, starting with Peggy Lee, Tony Bennett and Anita O’Day. He recorded with Lena Horne multiple times in the late 1950s and early 1960s and accompanied her on European tours. He also led his own small combos with sidemen including Danny Bank, Johnny Carisi, Bill Crow, Tony Fruscella, and Dave Schildkraut.

He began working more as a studio musician and film score composer in the 1960s. Toward the end of the decade he played with Carmen McRae, then moved to Canada to take a position as a house pianist with the CBC in Toronto. In the 1980s he worked with Ruby Braff and toured and recorded in Japan, and continued to be active as a performer into the 1990s, working with James Campbell, Don Thompson, Memo Acevedo, Dave Young, and Terry Clarke.

Pianist and composer Gene DiNovi, now 95, lives a quiet life.

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Three Wishes

Francis Paudras replied to the query of three wishes by the Baroness with:

1. “To ‘ave ze Beatles naked on ze stage on all fours, cut zeir ‘air, and zen close zem up, and force zem to listen to ze works of Monk, twenty-four hours on twenty-four!”
2. “Zat ze world of music take conscience of ze importance, ze true place of Bud Powell in music, not just jazz.”
3. “I would like for jazz coming ze ambassador for peace in ze world.”

*Excerpt from Three Wishes: An Intimate Look at Jazz Greats ~ Compiled and Photographed by Pannonica de Koenigswarter

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Edgar Junius Hayes was born on May 23, 1902 in Lexington, Kentucky and attended Wilberforce University, graduating with a degree in music. In 1922 he toured with Fess Williams, and formed his own group in 1924, the Blue Grass Buddies, in Ohio. The following year he played with Lois Deppe. Later in the decade he led the groups Eight Black Pirates and the Symphonic Harmonists.

For five years from 1931 to 1936 Hayes played and arranged for the Mills Blue Rhythm Band. Hayes again led his own orchestra from 1937 to 1941 and Kenny Clarke was among his sidemen. His most popular recording was a version of the song Stardust and the original recording of In the Mood which was later covered by Glenn Miller; both songs were recorded in 1938.

Moving to California in 1942 and led a quartet there for most of the decade. Following this he played solo, continuing to perform live into the 1970s. He recorded under his own name several times between 1937 and 1960.

Pianist and bandleader Edgar Hayes transitioned in San Bernardino, California on June 28, 1979.

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Requisites

Bud Powell ‘57 ~ Bud Powell | By Eddie Carter

I wanted to hear something soothing after dinner a few nights ago, so I chose one of my favorite records by pianist Bud Powell. This morning’s album from the library comprised three sessions and was initially released as Jazz Original in 1955 and reissued two years later as Bud Powell ’57 (Norgran Records MG N-1098). He’s leading two trios in a program of nine standards. Percy Heath (tracks: A1 to A3), Lloyd Trotman (A4, B2 to B5) on bass, Max Roach (tracks: A1 to A3), and Art Blakey (A4, B2 to B5) on drums. My copy is the 1981 Verve Original Jazz Classics Japanese Mono audiophile reissue (UMV 2571) by Polygram Records.

Deep Night, by Charles E. Henderson and Rudy Vallée, opens the album and is introduced by Bud, then Percy and Max join him to complete the melody. Powell is the song’s only soloist and gives a briskly efficient interpretation complimented by the rhythm section’s compelling understructure leading to the climax. Next, the trio takes on That Old Black Magic by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer. It made its debut in the 1942 film Star Spangled Rhythm. The trio opens the song with a deceptively simple melody before Bud makes a tremendous statement toward the ensemble’s exit.

‘Round Midnight by Thelonious Monk, Cootie Williams, and Bernie Hanighen is one of the most recorded compositions in jazz. Powell opens with a hauntingly beautiful introduction which grows into the trio’s gorgeous melody. Bud has the spotlight and demonstrates delicacy over Percy and Max’s subtle accompaniment ahead of a pretty ending. Thou Swell by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart comes from the 1927 musical, A Connecticut Yankee. The trio picks up their pace to a medium tempo, and Powell leads Trotman and Blakey in the melody. The pianist feeds off their energy and does an excellent job freshening up this old chestnut with a bright performance.

Side Two starts with Like Someone in Love by Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke, a solo performance by Bud that premiered in the 1944 film Belle of The Yukon. Powell has the showcase alone here, and right from the song’s entrance, he brings out its warmth of lyricism, tenderness, and sincerity in one of the album’s prettiest performances. Someone To Watch Over Me by George and Ira Gershwin is from the 1926 musical, Oh, Kay! Initially known as a torch song, the group’s interpretation is performed flawlessly, with Powell showing the utmost respect during the melody and in his solo. Trotman and Blakey anchor him politely, preceding the closing chorus.

The tempo moves upward again for Lover Come Back To Me by Sigmund Romberg and Oscar Hammerstein II. It appeared first in the 1928 musical, The New Moon, and it’s a catchy tune beginning with the threesome’s lively opening chorus. Bud opens the song’s only solo at a brisk gallop, complemented by Lloyd and Art leading to the trio’s finale. Tenderly by Walter Gross and Jack Lawrence is an enchanting song about finding love. Powell’s piano makes the introduction which grows into a delicately gentle theme; then Bud reminisces nostalgically in an excellent interpretation preceding the ending.

The album ends with How High The Moon by Morgan Lewis and Nancy Hamilton. It’s an infectious tune with a driving beat that takes off after Bud’s introduction. The pianist swings to Lloyd and Art’s zesty foundation into the theme’s reprise and climax. Norman Granz supervised the initial album, and it’s unknown who was the recording engineer. However, the reissue’s sound quality is excellent, with a stellar soundstage that brings the musicians into your listening room with incredible clarity. The record is pressed on virgin vinyl and silent until the music starts. If you’re in the mood for a relaxing album to enjoy after a long day or week, I offer for your consideration Bud Powell ’57. It’s an endlessly satisfying trio album that I’m sure you’ll enjoy!

~ Jazz Original (Norgran Records MG N-1017) – Source: Discogs.com ~ How High The Moon, Like Someone In Love, Lover Come Back To Me, ‘Round Midnight, Someone To Watch Over Me, Tenderly, That Old Black Magic, Thou Swell – Source: JazzStandards.com ~ Deep Night – Source: Wikipedia.org © 2023 by Edward Thomas Carter

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Johnny Alf was born Alfredo José da Silva on May 19, 1929 in Vila Isabel, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and began playing piano at age 9. His father died when he was 3 and was raised by his mother, who worked as a maid to raise him. He attended Colégio Pedro II, receiving support from his mother’s employers who had appreciation for music. He was enrolled at the IBEU, Instituto Brasil-Estados Unidos, and it was there that he received his first formal musical training, studying classical piano with instructor Geni Bálsamo.

Influenced by Nat King Cole and George Sheaing, Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby and Brazilian born Dick Fame, he eventually gained membership into the Sinatra~Farney Fan Club, a performers collective. Alf’s membership allowed him regular access to a piano as well as a group of musically sympathetic peers with which to play and experiment. They would finally get the payless opportunity to play in a few well known venues.

By 1950 he was pursuing a professional musical career and received his first professional break in 1952 when he was hired as the pianist at the newly inaugurated Cantina do César, owned by the popular radio host César de Alencar.  With free musical reign. Johnny would receive frequent visits from pianist João Donato, vocalist Dolores Duran, and guitarist/vocalist João Gilberto who would sit in on the way to their gigs.

He would begin to combine Samba-cançãoes and foxtrots with American jazz styles. He would go on to record his first two albums, however, the recordings garnered no more than a pittance of recognition for Alf at the time, but would later in the early Sixties be hailed as the progenitors of the Bossa Nova style.

He continued to find nightly work in the Rio clubs and work with musical companions João Gilberto, João Donato, and the young pianist Antonio Carlos Jobim, all following him from venue to venue provided they could afford the cover fee. By 1954 he was performing regularly at the Hotel Plaza nightclub. Due to its haunted reputation Johnny was able to play his own compositions plus hold early evening jam sessions and these improvisatory collaborations that the harmonic and rhythmic structures eventually blossomed into the style now known as Bossa Nova.

Moving to Sao Paulo in 1955 he became the house pianist at a new club, Baiúca and formed a short-lived duo with double-bassist Sabá. Unfortunately the group only established a moderate following before Baiúca was closed down for health-code violations. In 1961 he declined the invitation to play at Carnegie Hall’s historic Bossa Nova Festival because he didn’t like the connotation bossa nova brought with it. That decision sent him towards obscurity and very little was heard from Alf, although he infrequently produce albums throughout the 60s and early 70s. He would continue to collaborate, record and perform to earn a living and eventually landed a position at a local conservatory of music.

Pianist, vocalist, composer and educator Johnny Alf, who is widely considered the Father of Bossa Nova, transitioned from complications caused by prostate cancer on March 4, 2010 in Santo Andre, just outside São Paulo, Brazil. This was his home for the last fifty years of his life. He left no immediate survivors.

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