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Jazz for aficionados

Jazz for aficionados

I'm going to review records in my collection, and you'll be able to decide if they're worthy of your collection. These records are what I consider "must haves" for any jazz aficionado, and would be found in their collections. I wont review any record that's not on CD, nor will I review any record if the CD is markedly inferior. Fortunately, I only found 1 case where the CD was markedly inferior to the record.

Our first album is "Moanin" by Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers. We have Lee Morgan , trumpet; Benney Golson, tenor sax; Bobby Timmons, piano; Jymie merrit, bass; Art Blakey, drums.

The title tune "Moanin" is by Bobby Timmons, it conveys the emotion of the title like no other tune I've ever heard, even better than any words could ever convey. This music pictures a person whose down to his last nickel, and all he can do is "moan".

"Along Came Betty" is a tune by Benny Golson, it reminds me of a Betty I once knew. She was gorgeous with a jazzy personality, and she moved smooth and easy, just like this tune. Somebody find me a time machine! Maybe you knew a Betty.

While the rest of the music is just fine, those are my favorite tunes. Why don't you share your, "must have" jazz albums with us.

Enjoy the music.
orpheus10
schubert
7,386 posts
 
Second nature to hear whether a piece is locked in once you are tuned in for it .
Fantastic example of a string player who is tighter than two drums is Cynthia Phelps, Principal Viola of NYP . Some clips on You Tube ..
Not hard to hear why he is tops in bongo  land .My lame brain lies  to me when it says to play both melody and beat at same time requires 4 hands .
frogman
7,562 posts
 
Cynthia Phelps is a monster musician and all-around lovely person.  

More on the subject of tempo and so my comment is not misunderstood.  Tempo is simply how fast or how slow a tune is played and is a choice made by musicians which has nothing to do with whether it is a studio or a live recording.  The slickness and “intervention” of a studio recording or the potentially looser and more raw quality in a live version is an entirely different issue.  In the case of the two Winehouse clips I think that if the live band had played the tune at the slower tempo of the studio version combined with the looseness and less controlled feel of live it would have been best of all.  Although subjective to a degree, certain tunes just seem to lock in at a certain tempo more so than at other tempos even when the difference is very subtle.

I have a real soft spot for this record and I’m sure I have posted some of  it before.  One of the very first jazz records (well, it’s really a Brazilian bossa/samba record) I bought many years ago featuring the great Cannonball Adderley playing some beautifully lyrical and melodic improvisations: 

https://youtu.be/69uh2T1TtTY

https://youtu.be/PA0G2Uz9tfo

https://youtu.be/iudyMkulp-I



schubert
7,386 posts
 
I’ve heard there is a healthy jazz scene in Nashville . If this "locked" in Granny is any example they are telling the truth !
https://youtu.be/HsJavr4AI5M

P.S Frogman, every time I hear Phelps I think of Ray Still , monsters of a feather I guess .
frogman
7,562 posts
 
Not meaning to belabor the point about the “perfect” tempo and being “locked in”, but....

Say what one will about Frank Sinatra, but although he was by no means my favorite singer his phrasing and feel for picking the right tempo were stellar. “Fly Me To The Moon” is a song that he practically owned. Compare the tempo of the Nashville granny’s version with Sinatra’s classic recording of the tune. Exactly the same! And locked in as Schubert points out.  Coincidence?

https://youtu.be/l7XPg-CacMs

Too fast; not nearly as locked in:

https://youtu.be/qVCgf6_M7i4

Ray Still!!! Anyone who wants to hear fantastic oboe playing should check out Chicago/Reiner “Rossini Overtures”. Amazing oboe playing.
mary_jo
1,525 posts
 
"Tempo is simply how fast or how slow a tune is played and is a choice made by musicians which has nothing to do with whether it is a studio or a live recording."
Not necessarily. In the controlled studio conditions, the tempo is usually perfectly controlled, which is not the case with the live performance where it can differ. At some point the musician can lost the track. Since it's alive, it cannot be corrected, what is played is played.  But I was not thinking on the tempo precisely, when mentioning the "lost parts" in the live performance, I was referring to the perfect and clean sound. 
And yes, although one can argue about it and it's merely the matter of taste, I agree that certain tune fits particular tempo. The lullaby for baby will be surely performed in a slower tempo.
By the way, some very nice tunes you posted. Sinatra nails it, Diana not (God forgive me). Do you think that she does not have any chance in nailing it 'cause using faster tempo? Could it be done like Sinatra does it but with the tempo that she is using? An example. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJ_4cRG8B1g
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