The Jazz Voyager
The Jazz Voyager is back in sunny Miami, Florida for a visit to the Koubek Center that sits on the campus of Miami Dade College. This historic landmark remains true to its pioneering heritage, the celebration of its multicultural community with workshops, art exhibitions, theater performances, literary readings, concerts and more.
This evening I will have the pleasure of hearing vocalist Leesa Richards, who has performed with Gerald Austin, Peabo Bryson, and Dionne Farris as well as toured worldwide with Whitney Houston. Also on the night’s ticket is trumpeter Jean Caze, who has worked with Herbie Hancock, Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey, Al Jarreau, Roy Hargrove, Arturo Sandoval, and George Duke, to name a few. Both Leesa and Jean bring with them their own quartets.
The venue location is 2705 SW 3rd Street, 33135. For tickets and more information go to https://notoriousjazz.com/event/leesa-richards-quartet-jean-caze-quartet.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Jacques Butler was born on April 29, 1909 in Washington, D.C. but didn’t pick up the trumpet until his late teens. He began playing professionally with Cliff Jackson and Horace Henderson in New York City, then joined Marion Hardy’s Alabamians in 1931 for a year.
Leading his own ensemble in New York and touring from 1934-1935, Jacques also made recordings with Willie Bryant before relocating to Europe in 1936, where the two performed together until 1939. During that period he played with Frank “Big Boy” Goudie as well as with his own bands. He would tour Scandinavia before WWII and in 1940 he became well known in the Norwegian jazz community, and while visiting Oslo he recorded one 78 rpm. Returning to New York City that same year he played and recorded with Mercer Ellington, Art Hodes, Mezz Mezzrow, and Bingie Madison.
After a brief stay in Toronto he moved back to Europe in 1950, remaining there until 1968 as a regular at the La Cigale club in Paris, France. He appeared in the 1961 Paul Newman/Sidney Poitier film Paris Blues. In the 1970s he came home to the States and was seen working often in New York City, as a sideman with Clyde Bernhardt among others, and in the studio.
Trumpeter and vocalist Jacques Butler, who was sometimes listed as Jack, died in 2003. The date of his death is unknown.
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LEESA RICHARDS QUARTET & JEAN CAZE QUARTET
As a part of Miami’s vibrant music scene, singer/songwriter Leesa Richards grew up in music-rich Detroit and started showing an inclination towards the arts at a very early age. “My parents listened to a lot of jazz and I would record myself over and over singing along to Nancy Wilson records,” she says. But when she saw Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, she knew she wanted to be a dancer. She graduated from University of North Carolina School of the Arts with a degree in dance and began her career on stage performing with a variety of dance companies.
She began honing her vocal chops with soul greats Gerald Austin and Peabo Bryson and contemporary soul maverick Dionne Farris. Her first world tour was as a dancer with legendary singer Whitney Houston after which she combined her love for music and dance to earn the role of Mary Magdalene in the national tour of the Broadway musical, Jesus Christ Superstar, earning critical acclaim which led to featured performances throughout the US and Europe.
Renowned jazz trumpeter Jean Caze, stands as a prominent figure in today’s jazz scene. His magnetic performances have graced stages alongside icons such as Herbie Hancock, Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey, Al Jarreau, Roy Hargrove, Arturo Sandoval, and George Duke, among others. Currently serving as the featured soloist for Michael Bublé worldwide, Jean’s musical journey traces back to his roots in Queens, NY, where his passion ignited at the age of nine. By his senior year, he showcased his talent on national television with “Chicago” on NBC.
Jean’s dedication to his craft earned him scholarships, accolades, and widespread recognition, culminating in a Bachelor’s degree from Manhattan School of Music and a Master’s from Florida International University. Noteworthy achievements include securing second place in the 2007 Thelonius Monk International Jazz Trumpet Competition and claiming victory in both the 2004 National Trumpet Jazz Competition and the 2006 International Trumpet Guild Jazz Competition.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Glenn Paul Zottola was born in Port Chester, New York on April 28, 1947. He started playing jazz professionally in 1960.
Glenn is known for his work with Lionel Hampton, Benny Goodman, and Bob Wilber, and has accompanied a broad range of vocalists, including Mel Tormé, Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, and Joe Williams.
He has recorded over 50 albums with Butch Miles, Bob Wilber, Mousey Alexander, Steve Allen, Phil Bodner, George Kelly, Peggy Lee, George Masso, George Masso, and Maxine Sullivan, among numerous others.
In 1988, was a featured soloist at the 50th anniversary of Benny Goodman’s Carnegie Hall Concert. In 1995, Zottola was bandleader on the Suzanne Somers daytime TV talk show at Universal Studios.
Trumpeter and saxophonist Glenn Zottola, who has recorded twenty-two albums as a leader, continues to perform and record.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Mike John Brett Daniels was born April 23, 1928 in Norbiton, Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, London, England. He had an early interest in jazz at a very young age while studying at Aldenham School from the age of 13 in 1941 as a pupil until 1945. Taking up the trumpet at 16, his family moved to Stanmore, Middlesex, where he organized a new group called the Stanmore Stompers in 1947.
He is probably best known for his work with his own seven piece group, The Delta Jazzmen. He led this group from 1948 to 1974 and again in the 1990s. He moved to Spain briefly in the mid-1960s. He had very little recorded output during his lifetime but he recorded two albums worth of material, one of which was titled Mike on Mike from 1960.
There exists some well recorded performances by the Delta Jazzmen which featured Daniels from 1958 to 1963, along with additional input from trombone player Gordon Blundy and John Barnes on reed instruments. The rhythm section is accompanied on these works by banjo-tuba-drums.
Mike was regarded as an ensemble-orientated player who provided a solid lead combined with laid-back solos. Some of his other bands have featured talents such as Keith Nichols and John Chilton. The British Lake Label produced ‘Limited Edition’ recordings of Daniels’ work.
Trumpeter Mike Daniels, who aspired to reproduce the original styles of King Oliver, Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong, died on October 18, 2016 at the age of 88
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