Oct 31, 2009
It’s Hallowe’en again, and so it must be time for the annual Straight No Chaser Spooky Song Showcase. Podcast 166 features a scary cross section of sinister titles, so click here to enjoy:
Eldar – “The Exorcist” from Virtue. Hopefully you listened to my interview with this 22 year old piano wizard, who...
Oct 30, 2009
Part two of the birthday boy’s podcast tributes comes with recordings made by Gordon Sumner
himself, tapping into his jazz vein. He was quoted in 1985 when asked why he drafted jazz musicians for his backing band:
"I want freedom and the privilege to surprise people. With this new band, I want to destroy the...
Oct 29, 2009
Rock musician Sting – born Gordon Sumner 58 years ago this month – is one of the jazzier pop stars of the past forty years. Although he reached fame first as the bass player of the punk rock-styled band The Police, his first professional gigs during college and during breaks from being a school teacher were in jazz...
Oct 21, 2009
“He’s a
genius beyond most young people I’ve
heard.”
-Dave Brubeck
Heavy words from a jazz master, particularly when he is talking about 22 year old Eldar Djangirov, a keyboard player whose latest CD, Virtue, confirms that he is among the most talented players on the scene today. Born in Kyrgyzstan (what was at...
Oct 20, 2009
Jackie McLean was approaching the top of his game when he went into Rudy Van Gelder Studio, in Englewood Cliffs, NJ, fifty years ago today. He was leading a quartet that day composed of McLean on alto sax, Walter Bishop Jr. on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass and Art Taylor on drums.
He had graduated from Art Blakey's Jazz...