Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Augustus “Gus” Aiken was born on July 26, 1902 in Charleston, South Carolina. He started playing trumpet with the Jenkins Orphanage band.
He was first recorded professionally in 1919. In the 1920s he worked with several groups, but his best known work would be with Louis Armstrong. He went on to play with Sid Catlett, Roy Eldridge, and Elmer Snowden before his career declined. The end of the Big Band era and the rise of rock and roll is seen as causing the decline.
Trumpeter and cornetist Gus Aiken, who also played blues, passed away on April 1, 1973 in New York City.
Daily Dose Of Jazz…
John James Chilton was born on July 16, 1932 in London, England to working-class parents and was evacuated to Northamptonshire, where he began playing the cornet at the age of 12. Switching to trumpet at 17, after doing two years in the RAF, in 1952 he formed his own jazz band.
He worked in Bruce Turner’s Jump Band from 1958 to 1963 which also had a film of their exploits called Living Jazz in 1961. He went on to play in Alex Welsh’s Big Band. During the 1960s he played piano on some pop recordings, worked in Mike Daniels’ Big Band. He formed his own Swing Kings band which backed touring American jazz musicians including Buck Clayton, Ben Webster, Bill Coleman and Charlie Shavers. He also recorded The Song of a Road, one of the radio ballads by folk singers Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger in the 1950s for the BBC.
He would go on to work with cartoonist Wally Fawkes, form John Chilton’s Feetwarmers, and began accompanying jazz singer George Melly. Together they made records and toured the world for nearly 30 years. In 1983 and 1984 they had their own BBC television series called Good Time George, and appeared on countless other TV shows.
A songwriter and composer, one of his songs, “Give Her A Little Drop More”, was used in the film St Elmo’s Fire. John is one of the few European writers to win a Grammy Award for his album notes on Bunny Berigan and was nominated again in 2000. He won the British Jazz Award for Writer of the Year, his Who’s Who of Jazz was described as one of the essential jazz books, and he wrote award winning books on Coleman Hawkins, Louis Jordan Sidney Bechet and Louis Armstrong. Trumpeter John Chilton continued to play trumpet with the clarinetist Wally Fawkes in London until he passed away on February 25, 2016 in London.
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Requisites
To Duke With Love~Art Farmer | By Eddie Carter
I was looking for something to play a few nights ago when I came across a 1976 album by one of my favorite trumpet players, Art Farmer. To Duke With Love (East-West EW-8012) is this morning’s choice from the library submitted for your consideration. I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed this record and after listening, began writing about it for this week’s column. This album was one of my Mom’s favorites and she loved the velvety softness of Art’s flugelhorn. It was because of her love of jazz and the joy of listening to the albums together that I became a fan also. Art plays the flugelhorn exclusively on this six-song letter to Duke Ellington and he’s working with a brilliant trio, Cedar Walton on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums. My copy used in this report is the 1978 Stereo reissue (Inner City Records IC 6014).
Arthur Stewart Farmer’s first album as a leader was Work of Art (1954). He co-led The Jazztet with Benny Golson from 1959 to 1962. After the group disbanded, he had a successful twenty-year solo career until the band reformed in 1982 to 1986. Art reunited with The Jazztet again during the nineties to perform live at various festivals. He was comfortable in any setting and could play anything, on an uptempo tune, Farmer played vigorously with a fiery passion. At midtempo, his gift of expression was precisely defined, and with slow-tempo ballads and standards, Art skillfully constructed them with innocence and romanticism.
Cedar Walton was an immensely gifted and prolific pianist who typically built perfect solos from simple ideas, proving himself an exemplary accompanist and versatile leader in large ensembles and small groups.
Sam Jones had a beautiful sound on bass with a splendid technique and a marvelous grasp of harmony, he’s best known as one-third of the rhythm section in The Cannonball Adderley Quintet and Sextet. Sam was among the first to make the cello sound plausible on a jazz album, and his bass lines always enhanced any record as the leader of the date or as a sideman. Billy Higgins was the drummer of choice on some of the most memorable Hard-Bop and Free Jazz recordings. He appeared on over seven hundred records including Funk and Rock albums. There was an unmistakable power in his playing, but when called upon, Billy’s drumming could also be considerate and thoughtful, and he brought his A-game every time he sat behind the drums.
Side One opens with the 1935 jazz standard, In a Sentimental Mood by Duke Ellington and Manny Kurtz. Art makes an enticingly delicate introduction to the melody, then takes the lead on a slow and sultry statement. Cedar follows with an impressively tender interpretation into the foursome’s luscious close. The 1931 Duke Ellington, Irving Mills standard, It Don’t Mean a Thing begins with an energetic introduction by Jones backed by just Higgins before Farmer and Walton come in to state the theme. Walton takes off first with a briskly stated opening chorus after a brief riff by Higgins. Farmer follows, adding some searing heat on the next performance. Jones gets the last word with an exuberant closing statement ahead of the quartet’s exit.
The Star-Crossed Lovers appeared on Such Sweet Thunder (1957) as part of a twelve-part suite based on the works of William Shakespeare. This Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn tune gives Farmer a showcase to emerge ever so gently on the theme after a luscious introduction by Cedar. Art gives a pretty presentation as sweet as Johnny Hodges achieved on the original song. Cedar also performs beautifully on a gorgeous finale before the coda. Duke Ellington’s The Brown Skin Girl In The Calico Gown was first recorded by Duke and Ella Fitzgerald on Ella at Duke’s Place (1965). It starts Side Two with a duet by Farmer and Jones, segueing into the ensemble’s touching theme. Farmer has the first spot with an attractive interpretation. Walton takes the reins next and is enchanting preceding the unison ending.
The standard Lush Life is afforded a slow, meditative treatment on the opening chorus. Billy Strayhorn wrote the song in 1933 but fine-tuned it until 1938 when he performed it for Ellington. The song’s lyrics describe the author’s weariness of the nightlife after a failed romance. Art paints from a seductive palette of delicacy and elegance on the first solo. Cedar infuses the next reading with a tender expression of love, culminating an exquisite rendition. The album wraps with Duke Ellington’s Love You Madly, written in 1950 and featured on Duke’s Big 4 (1974). After a short Walton introduction, the ensemble provides a happy aura led by Farmer who grooves at midtempo on the melody and lead solo. Walton eases into a medium groove on the final reading that’s an absolute joy.
To Duke With Love was recorded in 1975 by East-West Music in Japan, less than one year after Ellington passed away. The engineer is Ben Taylor and Stan Ricker mastered the album at JVC Cutting Center. It has an excellent soundstage, effectively capturing the essence of Art’s tastefully restrained tone. Farmer recorded over sixty albums as a leader, over seventy as a sideman, and an additional twelve as a member of The Jazztet. He passed away from a heart attack on October 4, 1999, at age seventy-one. If you’re a fan of Art Farmer and in the mood for some soothing jazz, To Duke With Love is a great session honoring one of the greatest composers of all time, Duke Ellington. It’ll repay its owner with many listens for years to come and I highly recommend it for a spot on your shelf! ~Duke’s Big 4 (Pablo 2310-703), Ella at Duke’s Place (Verve Records V-4070/V6-4070), Such Sweet Thunder (Columbia CL 1033) – Source: Discogs.com ~In a Sentimental Mood, It Don’t Mean A Thing, Lush Life – Source: JazzStandards.com ~Art Farmer, The Star-Crossed Lovers, The Brown Skin Girl In The Calico Gown, Lush Life, Love You Madly – Source: Wikipedia.org © 2021 by Edward Thomas Carter
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The Quarantined Jazz Voyager
As cities begin to open back up I am remaining vigilant in my social distancing and trust you are doing the same. Wary of large groups or crowded public transportation, I am staying to my schedule of grocery, doctor visits, home.
I’ve selected Jazz in Film, a studio album by trumpeter Terence Blanchard released on March 2, 1999 on Sony Records. The recording was split into two sessions, the first on March 17~18, 1998 at Signet Soundelux in Los Angeles, Californiaand the second on April 7, 1998 at Clinton Recording Studios, Studio B, New York City.
The album was meant to be a portrait of jazz in cinema history, a way to chronicle the evolution of jazz score from the late 1940s to present day. It featured highly influential themes from classics like Anatomy of a Murder, Taxi Driver and seminal noir The Man With the Golden Arm. Blanchard has carved out a little space for himself, revisiting one of his compositions written for Spike Lee’s Clockers.
The album features an all-star lineup backed by a string orchestra arranged by Blanchard. Steven Mercurio and J.A.C. Redford were the conductors for the sessions.
Track Listing | 68:19- A Streetcar Named Desire (Alex North) ~ 7:55
- Chinatown (Jerry Goldsmith) ~ 8:23
- The Subterraneans (André Previn) ~ 9:08
- Anatomy of a Murder (Duke Ellingtn) ~ 8:25
- The Pawnbroker (Quincy Jones) ~ 7:02
- Taxi Driver (Bernard Herrmann) ~ 7:12
- Degas’ Racing World (Ellington) ~ 7:57
- Man With The Golden Arm (Elmer Bernstein) ~ 4:13
- Clockers (Terence Blanchard) ~ 8:01
- Terence Blanchard – trumpet, arranger
- Joe Henderson – tenor saxophone (3, 6, 7, 8, 9)
- Steve Turre – trombone (1, 4, 8)
- Donald Harrison – alto sax (1, 4, 5)
- Kenny Kirkland – piano
- Reginald Veal – bass
- Carl Allen – drums
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The Quaratined Jazz Voyager
Still not all that anxious to mingle as safeguards are being lifted and society is comfortable in bigger groups. I am staying to my schedule of grocery, doctor visits, home.
The album I’ve chosen for this week is the 1970 Blue Note album Fancy Free by trumpeter Donald Byrd. It was recorded May 9, and June 6, 1969 at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. The album was produced by Duke Pearson.
This album has Byrd leading a large ensemble that prominently featured Frank Foster on tenor, Lew Tabackin and Jerry Dodgion on flute, along with several percussionists. This date has Duke Pearson playing electric piano and marks the first time Byrd utilized the instrument. On this project the trumpeter concentrated more on grooves and beats, accompanying them on his trumpet rather than being driven by them.
Track Listing | 39:10- Fancy Free (Donald Byrd) ~ 12:06
- I Love the Girl (Donald Byrd) ~ 8:48
- The Uptowner (Mitch Farber) ~ 9:16
- Weasil (Charles Hendricks) ~ 9:00
- Donald Byrd – trumpet
- Julian Priester – trombone
- Frank Foster – tenor and soprano saxophone
- Jerry Dodgion (#1, 3) – flute
- Lew Tabackin (#2, 4) – flute
- Duke Pearson – electric piano
- Jimmy Ponder – guitar
- Roland Wilson – bass guitar
- Joe Chambers (#2, 4), Leo Morris (#1, 3) – drums
- Nat Bettis – percussion
- John H. Robinson Jr. – percussion
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