United

Waving goodbye to 2019 with a swinging six pack of fine jazz tracks I've been grooving to of late. Just dig in and dig.

Archie Shepp - Naima
Ahmed Abdul-Malik - Summertime
Kenny Drew - Weird-O
Sonny Clark - Blues Blue
Charles Mingus - Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting
Larry Young - The Moontrane

All That Jazz

Just got the sad news that Rudy Van Gelder passed away last week. The brilliant recording engineer was 91. RvG helped shape a ton of legendary jazz albums for illustrious labels as Blue Note, Prestige, and Impulse. Here's a swinging six pack in his honour. Miss him.

Miles Davis - If I Were A Bell
John Coltrane - Witches Pit
Kenny Drew - Groovin' The Blues
Dexter Gordon - I Was Doing All Right
Eric Dolphy - Something Sweet, Something Tender
Sonny Clark - Eric Walks

Four Sonnys

Why is it that so many legendary jazz musicians are called Sonny?

Sonny Clark - Something Special MP3

Sonny Criss - When Sunny Gets Blue MP3

Sonny Rollins - Tune Up MP3

Sonny Stitt - Easy Does It MP3

Wild Weekend Vol. 17

All geared up for the sweet seventeen edition of Wild Weekend? Good. The ghost in the iPod has made its choices, and diversity´s the word once again. Some reggae, some jazz, a weird cover and a lovely tribute. Plus a very recent track from a band called Great Divide and an oldie from the Captain himself. "What's the meaning of this? Poor Harry, I guess..."

Been awhile since we enjoyed any Don Van Vliet magic around here, so I´m glad the lovely Harry Irene - a duo that lived in the green and ran a canteen - came up today. Whistling galore. Meanwhile on the island of Jamaica, a young Peter Tosh describes just what will happen on judgement day to people puttin´ other people down. The rocks will be melting, the sea will be boiling and there´s nowhere to run to really. All that and more in a pointy Lee Perry production.

Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band - Harry Irene MP3

Peter Tosh & The Wailers - Downpresser MP3

Time for Wreckless Eric now, the self-proclaimed Donovan Of Trash, saluting British producer Joe Meek in style. Meek´s Tin Pan Alley was a homestudio in a simple London flat. As Eric sings: "On the second floor of number 304, above a handbag store..." A beautiful tribute to a legendary eccentric. And talking ´bout eccentrics, next up is Eugene Chadbourne, who was fond of playing freepunk versions of classic rock songs on an electric rake. I saw him live once with his band Shockabilly and I´m still a bit flabbergasted. Something tells me you´ve never heard a Creedence song butchered quite like this.

Wreckless Eric - Joe Meek MP3

Shockabilly - Born On The Bayou MP3

Here´s something new I just got in. Great Divide is obviously inspired by Songs In The Key Of Life-era Stevie Wonder, with maybe a touch of Little Feat thrown in. A bit too slick for me after a couple of plays, but these guys just might go far. You decide. And we´ve come to the end of another Wild Weekend with the soothing sounds of pianist supreme Sonny Clark. Cool struttin, baby... Philly Joe Jones shuffles behind the drums and Jackie McLean shines on the alto sax. The sound of jazz perfection, dig?

Great Divide - Fleetwood MP3

Sonny Clark - Cool Struttin´ MP3