Jazz

Selaws said:
Its annoying as its genuinly really rare, so I hate to think one of the few remaining copies is now damaged. Luckily the record itself is all good!

Yes that is strange. With them being in Paris I would of assumed you would have yours way before me? Maybe the Christmas holidays have affected it? I have a big parcel I should of received yesterday but the courier had to return it to the depot because he has too many parcels to deliver and couldn't get around to getting mine to me before his work day ended.
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And we are in the middle of a global huge strike in France so who knows where is my parcel?
 
Lee Newman said:
So... I’m sitting here having my mind melted by the new reissue of Azar Lawrence’s Summer Solstice from Jazz Dispensary. It got me to thinking, we’ve all been delving into this Prestige and Strata East and ECM stuff from the sixties and seventies... there is just soooo much Jazz that seems amazing to me and I never would have heard of without these labels doing these represses and the good folks here pointing the way. Why do some things sort of catch the Zeitgeist and everyone knows it, whether it’s Miles and KOB or Coltrane and A Love Supreme or Herbie with The Headhunters; but other stuff like Azar Lawrence, Harold Alexander, etc that is legit amazing gets forgotten in the annals? I guess it happens in other music, it just seems like there is more legit forgotten masterpieces with Jazz.
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I LOVE that Summer Solstice album. I had a similar reaction to it that I had when I recently listened to Lonnie Liston Smith's Astral Traveling reissue from Real Gone Music (which on a side note has put out some fantastic classic Christmas music this year). That I have a lot of awesome underground/under-listened jazz to explore.

For better or worse, I think jazz more than most genres views music through the lens of its idols. The classic Blue Note performers and other revered giants are the measuring stick for every era and flavor of jazz. To me it's a limiting effect of the genre, that new performers always have the idols lurking over their shoulders and older (non-idol) performers are judged on who they worked with.

Think about when a new rock artist comes along. Are they comped against giants like The Beatles, The Stones, Led Zeppelin, etc. before they get their cred? Did they have to play with Eric Clapton or Bob Dylan to get some critical acclaim for their own project or sound? I don't think so -- they're free to do their own thing and create music on their own merits and creative interests.

But if an Azar Lawrence blends in some Latin or a Lonnie Listen Smith goes avant-garde, it doesn't fit into the classic jazz aesthetic so it's not going to get worshiped with the same reverence.

I think we're all guilty of perhaps over-listening to the classics. I know I get in cycles where I'm hopping from Lee Morgan to Grant Green to Art Blakey to Bill Evans to [insert classic artist] and staying on that merry-go-round. But lately I've shelved the classics and am exploring other artists from the '70s-forward, forgetting about the classic genre rules and pigeonholes, and letting my listens breathe on their own. It's been fun for sure.
 
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dropsonde said:
I LOVE that Summer Solstice album. I had a similar reaction to it that I had when I recently listened to Lonnie Liston Smith's Astral Traveling reissue from Real Gone Music (which on a side note has put out some fantastic classic Christmas music this year). That I have a lot of awesome jazz underbelly to explore.

For better or worse, I think jazz, more than most genres, views music through the lens of its idols. The classic Blue Note performers and other revered giants are the measuring stick for every era and flavor of jazz. To me it's a limiting effect of the genre, that new performers always have the idols lurking behind their shoulders and older (non-idol) performers are judged on who they worked with.

Think about when a new rock artist comes along. Are they comped against giants like The Beatles, The Stones, Led Zeppelin, etc. before they get their cred? Did they have to play with Eric Clapton or Bob Dylan to get some critical acclaim for their own project or sound? I don't think so -- they're free to do their own thing and create music on their own merits.

But if an Azar Lawrence blends in some Latin or a Lonnie Listen Smith goes avant-garde, it doesn't fit into the classic jazz aesthetic so it's not going to get worshiped with the same reverence.

I think we're all guilty of perhaps over-listening to the classics. I know I get in cycles where I'm hopping from Lee Morgan to Grant Green to Art Blakey to Bill Evans to [insert classic artist] and staying on that merry-go-round. But lately I've shelved the classics and am exploring other artists from the '70s-forward, forgetting about the classic genre rules and pigeonholes, and letting them breathe on their own. It's been fun for sure.
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and to add a small tiny bit to this great note: If you live in a city where it is accessible, and it is within your financial means -- go see as much live music by "new" artists as you can. It makes a massive difference to their lives, their ability to create, and contributes in huge ways to the music we all love.
 
dropsonde said:
I LOVE that Summer Solstice album. I had a similar reaction to it that I had when I recently listened to Lonnie Liston Smith's Astral Traveling reissue from Real Gone Music (which on a side note has put out some fantastic classic Christmas music this year). That I have a lot of awesome jazz underbelly to explore.

For better or worse, I think jazz, more than most genres, views music through the lens of its idols. The classic Blue Note performers and other revered giants are the measuring stick for every era and flavor of jazz. To me it's a limiting effect of the genre, that new performers always have the idols lurking behind their shoulders and older (non-idol) performers are judged on who they worked with.

Think about when a new rock artist comes along. Are they comped against giants like The Beatles, The Stones, Led Zeppelin, etc. before they get their cred? Did they have to play with Eric Clapton or Bob Dylan to get some critical acclaim for their own project or sound? I don't think so -- they're free to do their own thing and create music on their own merits.

But if an Azar Lawrence blends in some Latin or a Lonnie Listen Smith goes avant-garde, it doesn't fit into the classic jazz aesthetic so it's not going to get worshiped with the same reverence.

I think we're all guilty of perhaps over-listening to the classics. I know I get in cycles where I'm hopping from Lee Morgan to Grant Green to Art Blakey to Bill Evans to [insert classic artist] and staying on that merry-go-round. But lately I've shelved the classics and am exploring other artists from the '70s-forward, forgetting about the classic genre rules and pigeonholes, and letting them breathe on their own. It's been fun for sure.
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You know what, this is a great point.

Im just about finished with Herbie Hancock's autobiography and the common theme each time his new album was presented to the label bosses was 'this doesn't sound like 'x', how are we meant to market this?'. A great example he used was when he knew the label wouldn't like one of his albums as it was so different to anything else he made. Instead of playing it to them he actually played the B side of Miles Davis' Kind Of Blue (which had just come out and was very different to anything else at the time). At the end the bosses dismissed it and said it would be impossible to market and wouldn't sell. At that part Hancock came clean and told them that not only was it selling like hotcakes, but it was also at the top of the chart with more than double the sales of the one in the 2nd position.

The point is that people, especially industry experts, are usually against change so comparing a new artist or album with a successful artist or album is just ingrained into the normal.
 
HuddieLedbetter said:
and to add a small tiny bit to this great note: If you live in a city where it is accessible, and it is within your financial means -- go see as much live music by "new" artists as you can. It makes a massive difference to their lives, their ability to create, and contributes in huge ways to the music we all love.
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Amen to that.

I live in Houston, and the jazz scene is interesting in that there’s a sizeable collective of really great jazz musicians that either live here or are from here but there’s not a much of a live jazz presence. This is a rap/hip-hop city.

I go a small jazz club about once a month and the intimacy and quality of music is outstanding, but unfortunately it’s typically just really good musicians getting together to play classic standards.

I wish there was a mix of full-time bands or artists doing original material but I guess that isn’t what draws here.
 
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Selaws said:
You know what, this is a great point.

Im just about finished with Herbie Hancock's autobiography and the common theme each time his new album was presented to the label bosses was 'this doesn't sound like 'x', how are we meant to market this?'. A great example he used was when he knew the label wouldn't like one of his albums as it was so different to anything else he made. Instead of playing it to them he actually played the B side of Miles Davis' Kind Of Blue (which had just come out and was very different to anything else at the time). At the end the bosses dismissed it and said it would be impossible to market and wouldn't sell. At that part Hancock came clean and told them that not only was it selling like hotcakes, but it was also at the top of the chart with more than double the sales of the one in the 2nd position.

The point is that people, especially industry experts, are usually against change so comparing a new artist or album with a successful artist or album is just ingrained into the normal.
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Thanks for sharing that, I hadn’t heard that anecdote before.

The irony of all this is that Blue Note was built on Alfred Lion’s concept of utter and complete artistic freedom. Fast forward to today where the classic sounds and artists of BN are the measuring stick of fans who crave that sound and labels who want the commerce.

The wild success of that artistic freedom created a genre lockbox that almost limits or de-incentivizes post-BN artistic freedom and exploration!
 
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dropsonde said:
Thanks for sharing that, I hadn’t heard that anecdote before.

The irony of all this is that Blue Note was built on Alfred Lion’s concept of utter and complete artistic freedom. Fast forward to today where the classic sounds and artists of BN are the measuring stick of fans who crave that sound and labels who want the commerce.

The wild success of that artistic freedom created a genre lockbox that can almost limits or de-incentivizes artistic freedom and exploration!
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Hahaha thats such a great point, id never thought of that.

The Hancock book is full of great anecdotes like that. He was also one of, if not the, first musician on Blue Note to record an full album of original compositions. He told Alfred Lion that he was being drafted (which was a white lie) and that he wanted to record an album before he left. It was custom for Lion to have the musician record a few standards (which were easy to market and sell) in each album, but after hearing Watermelon Man Lion said Hancock could fill the album with originals.

Next comes the best financial move Hancock ever made. Just before he set off to the studio Hancock was advised by Donald Byrd (who he was living with) to demand the rights to each of his compositions. Lion refused at first as Blue Note usually retained all the rights, but as Hancock was about to leave Lion backtracked and agreed to it. Hancock made enough royalties from Watermelon Man alone that he was able to live comfortably for years and years, and was even happy to lose a TON of money touring with his Mwandishi group as the regular money that came in was more than sufficient.
 
Does anyone know about this bitches brew exclusive through rough trade? is it only available from their physical stores or just online? I actually don't own a copy so if it isn't overpriced I'd like to find this.

www.discogs.com

Miles Davis - Bitches Brew

View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 2019 Vinyl release of "Bitches Brew" on Discogs.
www.discogs.com www.discogs.com
 
Selaws said:
Well this was a cool unexpected surprise. I put a few photos and a little write up of Muriel Grossmann’s new album on on Instagram and she messaged me to say thanks and that’s she really liked what I said. She went and put a link on her story as well. Really cool of her.

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Well deserved. These writings are super interesting and I am happy to see artists sending messages to thank you.
 
@Mr Moore @Selaws @Poly-Rythmo I don't want to take you down this new rabbit hole with me but you should give more attention to Mad About Records, a Portuguese reissue label dedicated to jazz, soul, funk and Brazilian records. The owner is Joaquim Paulo, known as the biggest jazz records collector in Portugal (he is behind Jazz Covers and Funk&Soul Covers, both edited by Taschen) and he mainly uses original tapes (or OG vinyls when tapes are lost). According to a few interviews I read, all these releases are legit and pressed in Holland on 180g vinyl. He says he humbly asked for recommendations from people like Paulo at Superfly Records, Gérald at Jazzman or Mr Bongo staff. He is also a Gilles Peterson long time friend. When you know these people you know you can't go wrong with MAR.

madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com

MAD ABOUT RECORDS

MAD ABOUT RECORDS. Portugal.
madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com
 
Skalap said:
@Mr Moore @Selaws @Poly-Rythmo I don't want to take you down this new rabbit hole with me but you should give more attention to Mad About Records, a Portuguese reissue label dedicated to jazz, soul, funk and Brazilian records. The owner is Joaquim Paulo, known as the biggest jazz records collector in Portugal (he is behind Jazz Covers and Funk&Soul Covers, both edited by Taschen) and he mainly uses original tapes (or OG vinyls when tapes are lost). According to a few interviews I read, all these releases are legit and pressed in Holland on 180g vinyl. He says he humbly asked for recommendations from people like Paulo at Superfly Records, Gérald at Jazzman or Mr Bongo staff. He is also a Gilles Peterson long time friend. When you know these people you know you can't go wrong with MAR.

madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com

MAD ABOUT RECORDS

MAD ABOUT RECORDS. Portugal.
madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com
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Been eyeing the Mike Selesia and Gideon Nxumalo up. Gonna have to wait until after Christmas though.
 
Skalap said:
@Mr Moore @Selaws @Poly-Rythmo I don't want to take you down this new rabbit hole with me but you should give more attention to Mad About Records, a Portuguese reissue label dedicated to jazz, soul, funk and Brazilian records. The owner is Joaquim Paulo, known as the biggest jazz records collector in Portugal (he is behind Jazz Covers and Funk&Soul Covers, both edited by Taschen) and he mainly uses original tapes (or OG vinyls when tapes are lost). According to a few interviews I read, all these releases are legit and pressed in Holland on 180g vinyl. He says he humbly asked for recommendations from people like Paulo at Superfly Records, Gérald at Jazzman or Mr Bongo staff. He is also a Gilles Peterson long time friend. When you know these people you know you can't go wrong with MAR.

madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com

MAD ABOUT RECORDS

MAD ABOUT RECORDS. Portugal.
madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com madaboutrecordslabel.bandcamp.com
Click to expand...

Good to know that they are really legit. I recently picked up one of their albums and was impressed.

www.discogs.com

Edson Frederico - Edson Frederico E A Transa

View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 2019 Vinyl release of "Edson Frederico E A Transa" on Discogs.
www.discogs.com www.discogs.com

Been eyeing a few others as well.
 
JAMAN - Sweet Heritage (Mad About Records new reissue)

Reissue for the first time Worldwide
Deluxe Numbered Limited Edition with OBI
Rare Private Press Spiritual Jazz

Jazz Funk Ultra Rarity reissue for the first time

Rare private press Jazz-Funk with breaks and some spiritual influences reminiscent of Brother Ahh at times. They cover Stevie Wonder’s “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” plus play originals that include “Sweet Heritage,” “Free Will,” “One of a Kind (Love Affair),” “Serene Beauty,” and “In the Fall of the Year.” This is a beautiful sounding record with elements of straight Jazz, Soul/Jazz, and some funky stuff including some Free and Afro-centric influences.

The main man is Jaman himself (J.E. Manuel) on keyboards, who in the past had worked with R&B bands and many people in the Jazz world (Turrentines, Bostic, Stitt, Joe Farrell, Lenny Welch, Ethel Ennis).

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