JazzWax

The Free Soul of Ornette

Abstraction came late to jazz. New York's abstract expressionism art movement emerged in the late 1940s and flourished throughout the 1950s. Architecture and sculpture were inventing new design rules as well. By contrast, free jazz didn't coalesce as a genre until the late 1950s, though there were inklings of the style in the music of Lee Konitz, Lennie Tristano, Teddy Charles, George Russell, Jim Hall and Jimmy Giuffre throughout the decade. Not until alto saxophonist Ornette Coleman and his followers did free jazz become a robust jazz approach starting in 1959. While the music can be difficult to grasp for listeners accustomed to structure and familiar songs, it is breathtaking once you re-calibrate your aesthetic sensitivity and open your mind to a new set of rules of expression.

To help you along, here's a two-part documentary on free jazz and Ornette Coleman, who was born 88 years ago on March 9. He died in 2015:

Here's Part 1...

And here's Part 2...

The Syncopated Soul of Bix

In the 1920s, syncopation was the iPhone and social media of its day. Invented by New Orleans musicians and popularized in gangland Chicago, the infectious sound of off-beat rhythms enhanced by wailing trumpets and cornets became a cultural phenomenon. Whether you were rich or poor, black or white; it made no difference. The appeal of syncopated music transcended class and race.

It could be heard on 78 records and in ballrooms and bars. The music's earthy, care-free personality permeated fashion, ushering in loud suits and more risque dresses. It also altered architectural design, store signs and even common language. When historians refer to the "Jazz Age," they're really talking about the wild embrace of syncopation in the years after World War I and before the Great Depression.

Among those whose sound is closely identified with syncopation and this era is cornetist Bix Beiderbecke. March 10 will mark the 115th anniversary of his birth. What made Beiderbecke special was the clarity of his horn's cooler tone and its conversational melodic articulation. A chronic alcoholic at a time when sustained consumption of raw, illegal liquor could lay waste to internal organs, Beiderbecke died in August 1931 at 43-30 46th Street in Sunnyside, Queens, N.Y. (above, today). He was 29.

Here's a short bio...

Here's singer-songwriter Hoagy Carmichael on Beiderbecke...

And here's more than 90 minutes of Beiderbecke. Just listen and let Bix enter your soul. You'll know it's in there when your feet start moving...

Bobby Paunetto: Latin Vibes

Vibraphonist Bobby Vincent Paunetto recorded only five known albums. The are El Sonido Moderno (1967), Paunetto's Point (1974), Commit to Memory (1976), Composer in Public (1996) and Reconstituted (1999). As an instrumentalist, a composer and arranger, Paunetto was enormously gifted—in the same league as many of his Latin-jazz peers. And yet, he wasn't from Cuba, Puerto Rico or Mexico.

Born in 1944, Paunetto began playing vibes at 17 and became friends with vibraphonist Cal Tjader, who encouraged his approach. To develop as an arranger, Paunetto studied at Boston's Berklee College of Music from 1969 to 1973. Then in 1979, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and all but gave up playing the vibes in 1981. Despite his illness, Paunetto continued to compose, and he conducted two albums in the 1990s. 

Paunetto was born in Brooklyn to an Italian and Catalonian family. The Paunettos soon moved to the Bronx, where he became aware of his mother's ability to sing and dance. His family spoke English at home, but his mother spoke enough Spanish that she wrote lyrics to some of his early singles. In the 1960s, Paunetto recorded his first album—a stunning and hip blend of the cha-cha-cha and the boogaloo. He was exposed to stylized dance through his brother, Ray, a regular at Manhattan's Palladium.

With the advent of salsa in the very early 1970s, Paunetto's Point in 1974 was much jazzier and featured a range of leading musicians: Tom Harrell (tp,flhrn); Ed Byrne (tb,v-tb); Billy Drewes (sop,as,ts); Todd Anderson (fl,ts)' Ronnie Cuber (fl,b-cl,as,bar); Bobby Paunetto (vib,p,el-p,cowbell); John Marrero (p,el-p); Andy Gonzalez (b,perc); Tom Sala (d); Fred Munar (timb,chequere,bell tree); Jerry Gonzalez (cga,quinto,chequere,perc); + guests : Mario Rivera (fl-ts,bar); Charles Burnham and Alfredo De La Fe (vln); Ashley Richardson (viola); Ronald Lipscomb (cello); Manny Oquendo (perc); Johnny Rodriguez (perc) and Milton Cardona (perc).

Commit to Memory in 1976 was even more spectacular, with strong, sophisticated arrangements. It featured Tom Harrell (tp,flhrn); Glenn Drewes (tp); Ed Byrne (tb); Billy Drewes (ts,as,sop); Todd Anderson (ts,fl); Ronnie Cuber (bar,b-cl,fl); Bobby Paunetto (vib,p); Eddy Martinez and Armen Donelian (p);Jon Kass (vln,vla); Mike Richmond (b); Abraham Laboriel (el-b); Tom Sala (d); Frankie Malabe (cga); Fred Munar (timb); Guests: Gary Anderson (fl,sop); Steve Slagle (fl); Paul Moen (sop); Justo Almario (as,sop); John Scofield (g) David Eyges (cello); Eddie Rivera (b); Doug Florence (d); Gene Golden (bata-d); Steve Thornton (perc); Milton Cardona (perc); Andy Gonzalez, Jerry Gonzalez (perc); Orpheus Gaitanopoulos and Bretton Scott (vocal color)

When you hear these albums, you realize how unfortunate it is that Paunetto wasn't able to compose and arrange dozens more albums. He had a gorgeous Latin-jazz touch. Paunetto died in 2010. [Photo above of the first Latin Music Awards at the Grammys in 1975. From left, Bobby Paunetto, Elliot Sachs, Harvey Averne, Larry Harlow, Nancy Rodriguez, Jerry Masucci, Eddie Palmieri, Mongo Santamaria, Johnny Pacheco and Ray Barretto]

JazzWax tracks: You'll find Bobby Vincent Paunetto's Modern Sound here, Paunetto's Point and Commit to Memory here, just Paunetto's Point here, Composer in Public here and Reconstituted here.

You'll also find Modern Sound at Spotify.

JazzWax clips: Here's Mi Flor Tropical from Modern Sound...

Mi Flor Tropical

Here's A Hybrid Situation from Paunetto's Point...

A Hybrid Situation

And here's Taz from Commit to Memory...

Taz

Jazzwax notes: For articles on Bobby Vincent Paunetto, go to Wax Poetics (here) and Radio Salsero (here).

A special thanks to Bill Kirchner.

Nanette Fabray (1920-2018)

When Nanette Fabray died on February 22 at age 97, most baby boomers hadn't a clue who she was. In her time, Fabray was an extraordinarily gifted singer, dancer, actress and comedian. In the 1940s, she shuttled between film parts and stage roles. In the '50s, she became a regular on early TV comedy shows, paving the way for Mary Tyler Moore's character on The Dick Van Dyke Show in the early '60s. Fabray also briefly hosted her own TV shows in the early '60s—The Nanette Fabray Show and Yes, Yes Nanette—before disappearing into game shows and sitcoms as the tenor of comedy and variety shows changed.

Despite all of her many talents, Fabray never held the spotlight the way Lucile Ball did in the '50s or Carol Burnett did in the late '60s and '70s. Instead, she was a frequent guest on Burnett's show as well as on many other leading variety and comedy specials. Had she been able to change her approach in the '60s, starring in Disney films, appearing in teen suburban sitcoms or won a part as a Batman villain, maybe things would have been different. As a footnote, her niece, Shelley Fabares, starred on The Donna Reed Show and with Elvis Presley in three of his movies.

For whatever reason, Fabray never clicked with younger audiences. Maybe she was too fresh-faced or maternal. Or maybe she came across as mechanical and tightly wound. Or perhaps it was her clinging to an overheated, vaudeville-like approach to comedy that was popular in the 1950s but became outdated overnight in the '60s. Or it may have been her close association with Ronald Reagan's campaign for governor in the 1960s during the state's student upheaval.

Nevertheless, Fabray was among only a handful of multitalented female comedy performers at the dawn of television, and her work and drive were inspiration for many female performers who followed in her footsteps. In her time and in her element, Fabray was irrepressibly optimistic, vivacious, quick-witted and an equal in song, dance and comedy to any of her on-screen male counterparts. Here are clips that prove my point:

Here's Fabray stealing the show in 1956 on The Jack Benny Show...

Here she is with Fred Astaire and Jack Buchanan in The Band Wagon in 1953...

Here's Fabray with Astaire, Buchanan and Oscar Levant singing That's Entertainment in The Band Wagon...

Here's Fabray on Sid Caesar's Caesar's Hour in 1955...

And here's part 1 of a six-part interview with Fabray in 2008...

Joan, Whitney and Bix

This week in The Wall Street Journal, I interviewed Joan Baez for my "House Call" column on growing up in multiple locations around the country (go here). Her father was completing his studies in physics and took various university jobs as he wrestled with his conscience. Through the interview, you get a clear sense of the events that shaped Joan as the first major solo female protest singer in the post-Elvis age. Before Joni, Judy, Laura, Carly and all the rest, there was Joan in 1959. Joan has a new album out, Whistle Down the Wind. Here's Joan in concert in 1965...

Also in the WSJ, my "Anatomy of a Song" column for the Life & Arts pages on the Pet Shop Boys' Being Boring (go here). The 1990 song was never a pop hit in the States, though it did reach #10 on the Billboard dance chart. What makes the song important is its heavy use of analog synthesizers, its influence on electronic dance music and the folk quality of its narrative. As the Pet Shop Boys' Neil Tennant told me, it was an elegy to a friend who had died of AIDS. If you're a Pet Shop Boys fan, all of their albums are being re-issued with remixes from Parlophone. Several are out already with more to come. Here's the official Being Boring video directed by Bruce Weber...

And finally, I interviewed actress, comedian and director Whitney Cummings on Mary Chapin Carpenter's He Thinks He'll Keep Her and the song's impact on her own life growing up (go here). [Photo above of Whitney Cummings courtesy of Twitter]

Here's a trailer for Whitney's new insanely funny film, The Female Brain, in theaters now...

Ornette and Bix radio. Unfamiliar with saxophonist Ornette Coleman and cornetist Bix Beiderbecke? You're in luck. WKCR-FM in New York will present its annual Ornette Coleman and Bix Beiderbecke Birthday Broadcasts back to back on March 9 and 10—for 24 hours each day. To access the radio marathon on your computer or phone from anywhere in the world, go here.

What the heck. Here's David Clayton Thomas with Blood Sweat & Tears in 1971 singing You've Made Me So Very Happy...

Oddball album cover of the week.

Ouch!

Documentary: Hugh Masekela

You probably read a little about South African jazz trumpeter Hugh Masekela when he died in January. Here's a BBC documentary on Hugh's life that explains why he was important...

A special thanks to Jimi Mentis

Many Birds With Strings

I love Charlie Parker With Strings. The music is so pretty and soulful, by one of the first jazz artists to cross over to the American songbook with an easy listening twist. I know many readers share my passion for these Parker recording sessions. Let's listen to an example so those who aren't familiar have a sense...

Yesterday, I went on YouTube and hunted around for tributes to the Parker with Strings oeuvre. To my surprise and pleasure, I was able to net quite a cache of Bird with mice. Let's dig in: 

Here's the mighty Phil Woods with the Orchestre du Conservatoire National Regional de Toulouse from the Marciac Jazz Festival in 2005 playing I'll Remember April...

Here's Phil Woods in Redondo Beach, Calif., in 2001, with Hank Jones on piano playing Everything Happens to Me...

Here's Ernesto Aurignac playing East of the Sun (and West of the Moon)...

Here's Danny Janklow playing Just Friends...

Here's Nick Biello and the Highline Chamber playing Just Friends...

Here the Highline Chamber playing Neal Hefti's Repetition...

Here's Aaron Johnson playing Repetition...

Here's Clark Gibson playing Just Friends...

Here's Henry Solomon on Just Friends...

And finally, here's Robert Anchipolovsky playing Just Friends...