The 1950s produced two pop superstars—Elvis Presley and Miles Davis. Both began the decade recording for smaller labels and were launched into the mainstream by larger ones—Presley on Sun and then RCA, and Davis on Prestige and then Columbia. Both were perceived as ultra cool and a departure from the norm, both were viewed as sex symbols and both achieved fame through a conversational lyricism—Presley with his vocal approach and Davis with his trumpet.
What's more, both Presley and Davis are still thought of as cultural starting points for their musical realms in the 12-inch LP era. Presley is still viewed as the king of rock 'n' roll and Davis is still considered the first jazz superstar. Interestingly, both started their trajectory to fame and fortune between 1954 and '55.
In the case of Davis, two album he recorded for Prestige offer a glimpse of the trumpet star waxing: Walkin' (recorded in April 1954) and The Musings of Miles (recorded in June 1955). Walkin' wasn't released until 1957, thanks to a deal worked out by Columbia producer George Avakian.
Eager to sign Davis to Columbia in 1955 with the onset of the 12-inch pop LP, George convinced Bob Weinstock of Prestige to have Davis record the four remaining albums he owed the label all at once in a marathon session.
As George said during one of our many conversations, he told Weinstock that by releasing these albums slowly along with any 12-inch reissues of the 10-inch material released years earlier, Prestige would be able to boost sales by riding the coattails of Davis's popularity at Columbia. Weinstock immediately saw the value and agreed.
Walkin' was a 12-inch LP of material previously released by Prestige on two 10-inch LPs. The title track, credited to Jimmy Mundy and Richard Carpenter, is often mischaracterized as the first hard bop recording. In fact, that honor belongs to the Lou Donaldson/Clifford Brown Quintet's New Faces, New Sounds album recorded in June 1953.
The first two tracks of Walkin'—Walkin' and Blue 'n' Boogie—features Miles Davis (tp), Lucky Thompson (ts), J. J. Johnson (tb), Horace Silver (p), Percy Heath (b) and Kenny Clarke (d). The last three—Solar, You Don't Know What Love Is and Love Me or Leave Me—combines Miles Davis (tp), David Schildkraut (as), Horace Silver (p), Percy Heath (b) and Kenny Clarke (d).
The Musings of Miles was Davis's first 12-inch LP and featured Miles Davis (tp), Red Garland (p), Oscar Pettiford (b) and Philly Joe Jones (d). This album was also the first to provide an inkling of Davis's tender approach that he'd exploit at Columbia starting with 'Round About Midnight, recorded in 1955 and '56 and released in 1957.
The tracks on Musings are Will You Still Be Mine?, I See Your Face Before Me, I Didn't, A Gal in Calico, A Night in Tunisia and Green Haze.
Now, Craft Recordings has remastered and reissued both albums on 180-gram vinyl with their original cover art and back-cover liner notes by Ira Gitler. They sound warm and deep.
For vinyl fans who want to have fun, listen to Walkin', then Musings of Miles followed by 'Round About Midnight (Columbia) for a full sense of Miles Davis's chronological evolution, from trumpet innovator in 1954 to stylist in 1955 and '56 and jazz superstar in 1957.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find the LP reissues of Walkin' and The Musings of Mileshere and here.
Or listen on all major streaming platforms. YouTube's Musings stream is here. Craft doesn't seem to have posted a Walkin' one yet.
In The Wall Street Journal this week, I interviewed actor Michael Gandolfini, son of the late James Gandolfini, who played Tony Soprano on TV's The Sopranos, for my House Call column in the Mansion section (go here). Michael is in Warfare, one of the most powerful and gripping anti-war movies I've ever seen. [Photo of Michael Gandolfini as Lt. McDonald in Warfare, courtesy of A24]
Here's Michael as the teenage Tony Soprano in The Sopranos' prequel film, The Many Saints of Newark...
Worthwhile stuff that has started or will start soon...
Bosch Legacy S3 (Prime)
1923 (Paramount+)
Mobland (Paramount+)
Dark Winds S3 (AMC)
Long Bright River (Peacock)
Good American Family (Hulu)
Alto Knights (film)
The Four Seasons (May 1/Netflix)
The Better Sister (May 22/Prime)
Deep Cover (June 12/film)
My favorite streaming series, ranked...
Babylon Berlin
My Brilliant Friend
The Promised Life
Killing Eve
The Crown
Mad Men
The Americans
Younger
Fleabag
Band of Brothers
The Sopranos
Enlightened
Friday Night Lights
Justified
Good American Family
Feud: Bette and Joan
The Old Man
Downton Abbey
The Blacklist
Goliath
The Gentlemen
Turn: Washington's Spies
Unbelievable
Landman
Voiceless (Bella da morire (2020/MHz)
Black Doves
Web Therapy
Past recommended series, films and documentaries...
TV series
TheAffair—(2014-2019/Hulu)
Alaska Daily—(2022/Prime)
The Americans—(2013-2018)/Prime)
Anatomy of a Scandal—(2022/Netflix)
Apples Never Fall—2024/Peacock)
Babylon Berlin (2017-2024/MHz via Prime Video)
Band of Brothers—(2001/Netflix)
The Bay (2019-current/BritBox)
Black Doves (2024/Netflix)
The Blacklist (2013-2023/Netflix)
Belgravia—(2020/Prime Video)
Blue Lights—(2023/BritBox)
Bosch—(2014-2021/Prime)
Bosch: Legacy—(2022-current/Prime)
The Crown—(2016-2023/Netflix)
Cherif—(2013-2019/Prime)
Dark Winds—(2022/AMC)
The Diplomat—(2023/Netflix)
Downton Abbey—(2020-2015/Prime)
The Dropout (2022/Hulu)
Elizabeth 1 (2005/Max)
Emily in Paris—(2020-present/Netflix)
Enlightened—(2011-2013/Max)
Feud (S1): Bette and Joan—(2017/Hulu)
Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans—(2024/FX, with streaming on Hulu)
Fisk—(2021/Netflix)
Friday Night Lights (2006-2011/Netflix)
The Gentlemen—(2024/Netflix)
Godless—(2017/Netflix)
Goliath—(2016-2021/Prime)
The Gilded Age—(current/Max)
High Water—(2022/Netflix)
Homeland—(2011-2020/Showtime)
Il Commissario Manara (Inspector Manara) (2009-2011/MHz)
Jane Eyre—(2006/Britbox)
Justified—(2010-2015/Hulu)
Killing Eve—(2018-2022/Netflix)
Life & Beth—(Seasons 1& 2, 2022-present/Hulu)
Lincoln Lawyer—(2022-present/Netflix)
Lioness—(2023-current/Paramount+)
Loudermilk—(2017-2020/Netflix)
MI-5, the Series—(2002-2011/BritBox)
Monsieur Spade—(2024/AMC)
Murdaugh Murders: The Movie, Parts 1 and 2—(2023/Lifetime)
My Brilliant Friend—(2018-current/Max)
The Night Agent—(2023-present/Netflix)
1923—(2022-present/Paramount+)
1883—(2021-2022/Prime)
The Old Man—(2022/Hulu)
On Call—2025/Amazon Prime)
Outlander—(2014-present/Netflix)
The Perfect Couple—(2024/Netflix)
Poldark—(2015-2019/Prime)
The Promised Life—(2018/MHz via Prime Video)
Reacher—(2016-present/Netflix)
Ripley—(2024/Netflix)
Scott & Bailey (2011-2016/Prime)
The Spy—(2019/Netflix)
Turn: Washington's Spies—(2014-2017/Prime)
Unbelievable—(2019/Netflix)
Under the Banner of Heave—(2022/Hulu)
Veronica Mars—(2004 to 2019/Hulu)
Voiceless (Bella da morire—(2020/MHz)
The Watcher—(2022/Netflix)
The Way Home—(2023-current/Peacock)
Who Is Erin Carter—(2023/Netflix)
The Woman in the Wall—(2024/Showtime)
The Veil—(2024/Hulu-FX)
Web Therapy—(2011-2015/Fandango)
Wilder—(2017-current)
WPC 56—(2013-2015/Britbox)
Yellowstone—(2018-present/Paramount Network)
Younger—(2015-2021K/Netflix)
Films
The Accountant—(2016/Hulu)
American Gangster—(2007/Max)
Armageddon Time—(2022/Prime)
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs—(2018/Netflix)
The Ballad of Lefty Brown—(2017/Netflix)
Blackout (2022/Netflix)
TheBricklayer—(2024/Netflix)
The Commuter (2018/Netflix)
The Dig—(2021/Netflix)
Eiffel—(2021/Prime)
Enola Holmes 1 and 2—(2022/Netflix)
Enrico Piaggio - Un Sogno Italiano (An Italian Dream) (2019/MHz)
The Equalizer 1, 2 and 3—(2014-2024/Prime)
The Great Lillian Hall—(2024/Max)
The Family Man—(2000/Netflix)
Fury—(2014/Netflix)
God's Country—(2022/Hulu)
Guy Ritchie's The Covenant—(2023/Prime)
I Used to Be Funny (2023/Netflix)
Jack Reacher (the movie)—(2012/Paramount+)
Just My Luck (2006/Paramount+)
Kill Chain—(2019/Max)
Killers of the Flower Moon—(2023/Apple+)
La Palma (2024/Netflix)
Knight and Day—(2010/Roku)
Last Night in Soho—(2021/Prime)
Last Seen Alive—(2020/Netflix)
The Little Things—(2021/Netflix)
Lonely Planet—(2024)/Netflix)
Man on Fire—(2004/Max)
Manchester by the Sea—(2016/Prime Video)
MI-5—(2015/Max)
The Mule—(2018/Netflix)
The Night Agent—(2023/Netflix)
Nobody—(2021/Prime)
Nobody Wants This—(2024/Netflix)
Ordinary Angels—(2024/assorted platforms)
The Pledge—(2011/Peacock)
Purple Hearts—(2022/Netflix)
The Queen—(2006/Paramount+)
The Queen's Gambit—(2020/Netflix)
Queenpins—(2021/Pluto TV)
Reptile—(2023/Netflix)
Ruthless—(2023/Hulu)
The Secret: Dare to Dream—(2020/Netflix).
Sicario (2015/Netflix)
Self Reliance—(2023/Hulu)
Seraphim Falls—(2006/Netflix)
Some Girl(s)—(2013/Amazon Prime)
Somewhere in Queens—(2022/Hulu)
Spy(ies)—(2009/Prime)
The Stranger—(2022/Netflix)
Toscana—(2022/Netflix)
The Two Popes—(2019/Netflix)
Up in the Air—(2009/Max)
Woman in Gold—(2015/Max)
Wonder Wheel—(2017/Prime)
Documentaries
Aftershock: Everest and the Nepal Earthquake—(2022/Netflix)
The Beach Boys—(2024/Disney)
Carole King: Live in Central Park—(2023/PBS)
The Comeback—(2005 and 2014/Max)
Cunk on Earth—(2022/Netflix)
Cyndi Lauper: Let the Canary Sing—(2023/Paramount+)
Facing Nolan—(2022/Netflix)
Five Came Back—(2017/Netflix)
Jane Fonda in Five Acts—(2024/Max)
Kate Hepburn: Call Me Kate—(2023/Netflix)
The Only Girl in the Orchestra—(2023/Netflix)
Suzi Q: Suzi Quatro—(2019/Prime)
The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari—(2022/Netflix)
'Tis Autumn: The Search for Jackie Paris—(2007/go here)
Roger Kellaway on Sonny Rollins. Following my post on a new British jazz box from Cherry Red, I heard from legendary pianist Roger Kellaway:
"Hi Marc. I remember playing with several players from the box your posted about along with tenor saxophonist Ronnie Scott in the 1960s and '70s at the Half Note in New York. I had this glorious experience again in 1978 when I lived in London for a year.
"I also loved your reference to Sonny Rollins’s Alfie album from 1966—one of my favorites that I had the pleasure of playing on. On the track Transition Theme for Minor Blues, I wound up taking two piano solos when I was just supposed to take one. During the session, I took my first and I could see Sonny from across the room. Sonny then soloed until he suddenly stopped and squatted down, as if to rest. I knew immediately there was going to be dead space on the track, so, I jumped in with another solo. I have no idea why he did that.
"Just after recording Alfie, I was playing a jazz concert at Lincoln Center's Philharmonic Hall. As I stood backstage, an elevator door opened. The only person in there was Sonny, in the far-left corner, squatting down. I guess he did that a lot either to rest or to think.
"That same year, I was playing a gig at New York's Half Note in Greenwich Village with the Clark Terry/Bob Brookmeyer Quintet. On a break, I was outside the club when an Alfa Romeo pulled up. It was Sonny, wearing a cowboy hat. He looked at me and I looked at him. He said, 'Hey, Kellaway!' I said,'Hi, Sonny.' Those two greetings add up to our entire verbal relationship to this day. The rest was communicated through music."
Here'sTransition Theme for Minor Blues, from the Alfie soundtrack, with two solos by pianist Roger Kellaway...
Jimmy Mundy. After my post on swing arranger-composer Jimmy Mundy, I heard from Alan Matheson, a jazz pianist and trumpeter as well as an educator at the University of British Columbia in Canada [photo above of Paul Whiteman]:
"Hi Marc. Many thanks for your great tribute to Jimmy Mundy, an absolute master. Your post included Mundy's arrangement of Tea for Two for Artie Shaw. Listening to it, I realized that Mundy had recycled part of an earlier arrangement for the Shaw chart.
"Back in 1995, we performed Mundy's arrangement of A Zoot Suit during a tribute concert at CBC Vancouver’s Studio One. He had written it for Paul Whiteman in 1942. After listening to the Artie Shaw clip, I realize Mundy had used part of his shout chorus for A Zoot Suit as the shout chorus for his arrangement two years later of Tea For Two.
"By the way, Mundy wrote a number of excellent arrangements for the 1940-42 Whiteman band, including: Tangerine and Take the A Train, which weren’t recorded, and Travelin’ Light and I’m Old Fashioned, which were. Whiteman had hired Mundy to modernize his book of arrangements during this period. We played them all back in 1995, and they sounded great."
[Editor's note: A shout chorus is when the entire band plays together on a chorus, often loud and with high energy.]
Here's Mundy's arrangement of Tea for Two, played by the Artie Shaw Orchestra in 1944 (the shout chorus comes at 2:33)...
And here's Mundy's arrangement of A Zoot Suit, played by the Paul Whiteman Orchestra in 1942 (the shout chorus comes at 2:27)...
Bonus:Here's Mundy's arrangement of Travelin' Light for Whiteman in 1942...
And here's Mundy's arrangement of I'm Old Fashioned for Whiteman in 1942...
Maynard Ferguson. Bret Primack recently sent along a link to a live radio broadcast of the Maynard Ferguson Big Band at Birdland on December 31, 1963 [photo above of Maynard Ferguson]. Go here...
Buster Keaton was one of the funniest and most daring of all the comic silent-film stars. Here's an impossibly clever scene from Keaton's Sherlock Jr. (1924) [photo above of Buster Keaton]...
Julia Child. I can totally relate to the following. I often feel tears coming on when something creative is overwhelmingly beautiful and perfect—whether that's music, writing, acting, art or food. Here's Julia Child (above), choking up and on the verge of crying over a perfect dessert. Watch the entire episode—or move the time bar to 21:12, when Nancy Silverton's tart comes out of the oven...
Charles Mingus radio. WKCR-FM in New York will present its annual Charles Mingus Birthday Broadcast on Tuesday, April 22, presenting the music of the legendary bassist and composer. The radio tribute will last for 24 hours and will start at 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Monday night. You can listen from anywhere in the world by going here. [Photo above of Charles Mingus, courtesy of Spotify]
And finally, move this video clip to 34:30 and enjoy two of the world's greatest jazz-pop vocalists singing together on a duet in London in 1961...
By 1954, the 10-inch 33 1/3 and seven-inch 45 album formats had made strong inroads with record buyers and were fast replacing the 78. On the West Coast, labels that had been cultivating Los Angeles musicians already came to realize that jazz out there had its own sound.
With the 10-inch LP expected to expand to 12 inches within the year and become the industry standard, and the 45 likely to become used exclusively for rock 'n' roll, R&B and country singles, the record business was on the verge of a boom. RCA, as always, was out front.
Labels were looking for ways to fill their new, 12-inch release pipelines. On the East Coast, jazz had a more muscular, bluesy sound while on the West Coast, jazz placed a greater emphasis on harmony, counterpoint and a breezy articulation. These differences gave RCA producer Jack Lewis in L.A. an idea. [Click liner notes image above to enlarge]
Lewis asked trumpeter Shorty Rogers—one of Hollywood's hottest jazz composer-arrangers—to assemble a group and record three songs. Then he asked tenor saxophonist Al Cohn—one of New York's ace composer-arrangers—to put together a group there and also record three. To keep things even, both groups would use 11 musicians and the exact same instrumentation.
Lewis's goal wasn't to stage a bi-coastal shootout. Instead, the album would be a way for RCA to expand its jazz market. The concept was designed to announce to jazz record fans that there was more jazz out there than they thought. Two different blends, if you will, both top-notch but each with their own personality and mood. The point was to get buyers hooked on two different sounds and widen their buying preferences as the 12-inch LP loomed.
When released in 1955, the six-song RCA album (available on 12-inch vinyl and on three 45s) was called East Coast-West Coast Scene, with two different authors of the back-cover liner notes—one covering the East Coast group and one for the West. It's a gorgeous landmark album featuring the cream of two different region's studio jazz players. You'll love this one.
The ensembles, recording dates and tracks:
Side A/East Coast Scene: Al Cohn and His "Charlie's Tavern" Ensemble, featuring Joe Newman (tp), Billy Byers and Eddie Bert (tb), Hal McKusick and Gene Quill (as), Al Cohn (ts,arr), Sol Schlinger (bar), Sanford Gold (p), Billy Bauer (g), Milt Hinton (b) and Osie Johnson (d) (October 26, 1954)
Inside Out (Al Cohn)
Autumn Leaves (Joseph Kosma)
Serenade for Kathy (Al Cohn)
Side B/West Coast Scene: Shorty Rogers and His Augmented Giants, featuring Shorty Rogers (tp), Milt Bernhart and Bob Enevoldsen (tb), Jimmy Giuffre (cl,ts,bar), Lennie Niehaus and Bud Shank (as), Zoot Sims (ts), Pete Jolly (p), Barney Kessel (g), Curtis Counce (b) and Shelly Manne (d). (September 11, 1954)
Cool Sunshine (Shorty Rogers)
Loki (Shorty Rogers)
Elaine's Lullaby (Shorty Rogers)
Having listened to this album many times, I'd have to call the jazz juxtaposition a draw on every level. Not to be outdone, both Cohn and Rogers gave these tracks everything they had. A special thanks to Todd Selbert for reminding me about this one.
Here's the complete East Coast-West Coast Scene (RCA)...
In 1960, pianist Tommy Flanagan recorded The Tommy Flanagan Trio, an album of easy-going jazz for Prestige's Moodsville line. Joining Flanagan was the exceptional Tommy Potter on bass and the superb Roy Haynes on drums. By then, Flanagan had made a name for himself as a first-call sideman and would soon become Ella Fitzgerald's accompanist.
While the entire album is top-notch, the track that has always stood out for its sheer elegance and beauty is In the Blue of Evening. The song by Tom Adair and Alfonso D'Artega was first recorded by Frank Sinatra in 1942 and was probably written for him. It was one of the last songs performed by Sinatra while he was with Tommy Dorsey, before he went out on his own as a solo act and movie star.
Here's the Tommy Flanagan Trio playing In the Blue of Evening in 1960...
And as a Perfection bonus,here's Sinatra's plush studio recording in June 1942...
Other Perfection tracks in this ongoing series...
Paul Desmond and Jim Hall: Any Other Time,go here.
Like Fletcher Henderson, Don Redman, Edgar Sampson and Sy Oliver, Jimmy Mundy was one of the architects of the swing era in the early 1930s. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1907, Mundy played the tenor saxophone in regional bands, where he developed an ear for arranging and the sound he wanted to hear. [Photo above of Jimmy Mundy]
He first worked as an arranger for Earl Hines in the early 1930s and then joined Benny Goodman in late 1935 after selling the bandleader a chart. Goodman needed a strong, authentic swing arranger who could deliver barn burners. His charts included the hits Sing, Sing, Sing and Airmail Special.
In 1938, after drummer Gene Krupa left Goodman to form his own band, Mundy followed to arrange for Krupa. Mundy also produced a large number of swing charts for Count Basie in the late 1930s and '40s, and for Artie Shaw, Dizzy Gillespie and Harry James.
In the 1950s, he added Broadway musicals to his repertoire, including The Vamp and Living the Life. In 1959 he moved to Paris to work as musical director of the French Barclay label. After his return to the U.S. in the 1960s, Mundy continued to write into the 1970s. He died of cancer in 1983, at age 75.
In tribute to Jimmy Mundy, here are 15 of my favorite clips showcasing his arrangements:
In February, Capitol Records and Universal Music Enterprises, in conjunction with Peggy Lee Associates, released the fourth and final volume of Peggy Lee: From the Vaults. Taken together, these recordings provide a fascinating look at the first female vocalist to turn pop singing into an intimate expression. While Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald were towering jazz singers who started out before Lee, one was known for exploring her pain and the other expressing her joy. Peggy Lee found space in between, delivering songs similar to the way Frank Sinatra did at the start of the 1940s—as intimate postcards from the heart.
Volume 1 of this Lee series features songs recorded from 1944 to 1948, starting when she was 24. Volume 2 features recordings made between 1948 and 1951. Volume 3 includes tracks recorded between 1951 and 1972. And Volume 4 features duets and other specialties recorded between 1947 and 1967. All were for Capitol or Decca, and all are rare and had been previously unavailable on streaming platforms.
Lee's career can be divided into four broad categories: her years with Benny Goodman (1941-1944), her tasty small-group years with guitarist-husband Dave Barbour (1944-1949), her jazz-pop era (LPs in the 1950s and early '60s) and her contemporary era (late 1960s and '70s). Peppered throughout her career, there were plenty of radio and TV performances along with one-off recording sessions with small groups and orchestras.
Remarkably, Lee was routinely backed by excellent orchestras, with arrangements that generally featured rich and compelling song openings. What also remained constant was Lee's hip, cool delivery. Her voice often came in late on the beat and didn't linger long on notes. She had little use for vibrato, and everything she wanted to put forward came in the sweet and sophisticated way she delivered the individual notes themselves.
Like all prolific pop singers, Lee had her share of dreadful choices, and a few managed to surface on Vol. 4: Two songs center on Mister Magoo, and there are gummy novelty numbers such as a Batman tribute, That Man, and My Small Senior. But the rest are warm gems from a vocalist who has never been given full credit for being a masterful songwriter and a singer who broke barriers.
Peggy Lee died in 2002 at age 81.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find all four volumes of Peggy Lee: From the Vaults on all major streaming platforms.
JazzWax clips: Here's He's Just My Kind, with Dave Barbour, on Volume 1...
In the U.S., between 1966 and 1971, American jazz became more funky and soulful as those music styles became increasingly popular on the radio, on records and in the youth culture at large. In the U.K., a shift was taking place as well, but it was slightly different. The transformation is vibrantly illustrated in a new three-CD box set: A New Awakening: Adventures in British Jazz, 1966-1971 (Strawberry/Cherry Red).
Back then, London's young demographic was older—in their late-teen and early 20s—and more pronounced than the pre-teen and teen segment in the U.S. The sound that most influenced jazz there was the city's swinging scene. Instead of America's bohemian hippie movement, you found a slicker, mod look in London swayed by the U.K.'s greatest export since bottled gin: pop culture.
Visitors to London in the late 1960s (that includes me) found a mix of youthful fashion styles—colorful, playful attire on Carnaby Street and Kings Road, but in Mayfair and Soho, you saw guys in black suits with small and sharp lapels, slim pants legs and thin black ties and, for women, Mary Quant skirts and colorful space-age ensembles. Jazz during the mid-1960s was influenced by the lot—the paisley-clad Bohos, the Georgie girls and the modish Alfies and Bond gal types. All were singles on the go eager for a cool soundtrack.
Overall, London jazz had a secret agent-y, Indio-psychedelic and baroque vibe mid-decade that morphed into a cinematic, sports-car feel as the demand for British films worldwide increased. Then rock elements and free jazz slid in by 1969 and the turn of the 1970s. The acoustic age was over.
The 48 tracks on this box are distinctly British, with glorious swinging rhythms. Groups and artists such as the Don Rendell & Ian Carr Quintet, the John Cameron Quartet, the Tubby Hayes Quartet, Harold McNair, Wynder K. Frog, Brian Auger, Ray Russell and even John McLaughlin and Jethro Tull went jazz.
As the 1970s progressed beyond 1971, Britain's dominance would slide. America resumed its top-dog role, becoming a hard-rock heartland thanks to the proliferation of affordable stereo systems from Japan, relatively inexpensive albums and sports arenas doubling as concert venues when teams were out of town. The U.K. wouldn't resume its position of influence until the early 1980s with the rise of MTV and visual music.
What this box illustrates best is a new direction in jazz that never quite appeared in the U.S. and, for the first time, broke with prior American styles. It was music influenced by the U.K.'s new enviable cultural status in the world as the suave inventors of 1960s swing, from the mini skirt and white lipstick to long hair on guys who wore Chelsea boots. In this climate, jazz was reborn as with-it and in sync with the newly mature set.
I loved listening to this box over and over, from start to finish. Think of it as a vast extension of Sonny Rollins's Alfie soundtrack album in 1966.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find A New Awakening: Adventures in British Jazz 1966-1971 (Strawberry/Cherry Red) here.
In The Wall Street Journal this week, I interviewed actress Christina Hendricks for my House Call column in the Mansion section (go here). Christina is in what I feel is the most compelling series of the year thus far—Good American Family (Hulu). Christina, of course, was in TV's Mad Men and Good Girls and has appeared recently in Hacks. [Photo above of Christina Hendricks courtesy of Christina Hendricks/Instagram]
Here's Christina in Mad Men, in her brilliant portrayal of Joan, the ad agency's office manager...
Also in the WSJ this week, my Album@50 essay on Aerosmith's Toys in the Attic, a half-a-century old. How can that be? Go here.
What I'm watching
Currently...
Bosch Legacy S3 (Prime)
1923 (Paramount+)
Mobland (Paramount+)
My favorite streaming series, ranked...
Babylon Berlin
My Brilliant Friend
The Promised Life
Killing Eve
The Crown
Mad Men
The Americans
Younger
Fleabag
Band of Brothers
The Sopranos
Enlightened
Friday Night Lights
Justified
Good American Family
Feud: Bette and Joan
The Old Man
Downton Abbey
The Blacklist
Goliath
The Gentlemen
Turn: Washington's Spies
Unbelievable
Landman
Voiceless (Bella da morire (2020/MHz)
Black Doves
Web Therapy
Worthwhile stuff that has started or will start soon...
Bosch Legacy S3 (Prime)
1923 (Paramount+)
Mobland (Paramount+)
Dark Winds S3 (AMC)
Long Bright River (Peacock)
Good American Family (Hulu)
Alto Knights (film)
The Better Sister (May 22/Prime)
Past recommended series, films and documentaries...
TV series
TheAffair—(2014-2019/Hulu)
Alaska Daily—(2022/Prime)
The Americans—(2013-2018)/Prime)
Anatomy of a Scandal—(2022/Netflix)
Apples Never Fall—2024/Peacock)
Babylon Berlin (2017-2024/MHz via Prime Video)
Band of Brothers—(2001/Netflix)
The Bay (2019-current/BritBox)
Black Doves (2024/Netflix)
The Blacklist (2013-2023/Netflix)
Belgravia—(2020/Prime Video)
Blue Lights—(2023/BritBox)
Bosch—(2014-2021/Prime)
Bosch: Legacy—(2022-current/Prime)
The Crown—(2016-2023/Netflix)
Cherif—(2013-2019/Prime)
Dark Winds—(2022/AMC)
The Diplomat—(2023/Netflix)
Downton Abbey—(2020-2015/Prime)
The Dropout (2022/Hulu)
Elizabeth 1 (2005/Max)
Emily in Paris—(2020-present/Netflix)
Enlightened—(2011-2013/Max)
Feud (S1): Bette and Joan—(2017/Hulu)
Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans—(2024/FX, with streaming on Hulu)
Fisk—(2021/Netflix)
Friday Night Lights (2006-2011/Netflix)
The Gentlemen—(2024/Netflix)
Godless—(2017/Netflix)
Goliath—(2016-2021/Prime)
The Gilded Age—(current/Max)
High Water—(2022/Netflix)
Homeland—(2011-2020/Showtime)
Il Commissario Manara (Inspector Manara) (2009-2011/MHz)
Jane Eyre—(2006/Britbox)
Justified—(2010-2015/Hulu)
Killing Eve—(2018-2022/Netflix)
Life & Beth—(Seasons 1& 2, 2022-present/Hulu)
Lincoln Lawyer—(2022-present/Netflix)
Lioness—(2023-current/Paramount+)
Loudermilk—(2017-2020/Netflix)
MI-5, the Series—(2002-2011/BritBox)
Monsieur Spade—(2024/AMC)
Murdaugh Murders: The Movie, Parts 1 and 2—(2023/Lifetime)
My Brilliant Friend—(2018-current/Max)
The Night Agent—(2023-present/Netflix)
1923—(2022-present/Paramount+)
1883—(2021-2022/Prime)
The Old Man—(2022/Hulu)
On Call—2025/Amazon Prime)
Outlander—(2014-present/Netflix)
The Perfect Couple—(2024/Netflix)
Poldark—(2015-2019/Prime)
The Promised Life—(2018/MHz via Prime Video)
Reacher—(2016-present/Netflix)
Ripley—(2024/Netflix)
Scott & Bailey (2011-2016/Prime)
The Spy—(2019/Netflix)
Turn: Washington's Spies—(2014-2017/Prime)
Unbelievable—(2019/Netflix)
Under the Banner of Heave—(2022/Hulu)
Veronica Mars—(2004 to 2019/Hulu)
Voiceless (Bella da morire—(2020/MHz)
The Watcher—(2022/Netflix)
The Way Home—(2023-current/Peacock)
Who Is Erin Carter—(2023/Netflix)
The Woman in the Wall—(2024/Showtime)
The Veil—(2024/Hulu-FX)
Web Therapy—(2011-2015/Fandango)
Wilder—(2017-current)
WPC 56—(2013-2015/Britbox)
Yellowstone—(2018-present/Paramount Network)
Younger—(2015-2021K/Netflix)
Films
The Accountant—(2016/Hulu)
American Gangster—(2007/Max)
Armageddon Time—(2022/Prime)
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs—(2018/Netflix)
The Ballad of Lefty Brown—(2017/Netflix)
Blackout (2022/Netflix)
TheBricklayer—(2024/Netflix)
The Commuter (2018/Netflix)
The Dig—(2021/Netflix)
Eiffel—(2021/Prime)
Enola Holmes 1 and 2—(2022/Netflix)
Enrico Piaggio - Un Sogno Italiano (An Italian Dream) (2019/MHz)
The Equalizer 1, 2 and 3—(2014-2024/Prime)
The Great Lillian Hall—(2024/Max)
The Family Man—(2000/Netflix)
Fury—(2014/Netflix)
God's Country—(2022/Hulu)
Guy Ritchie's The Covenant—(2023/Prime)
I Used to Be Funny (2023/Netflix)
Jack Reacher (the movie)—(2012/Paramount+)
Just My Luck (2006/Paramount+)
Kill Chain—(2019/Max)
Killers of the Flower Moon—(2023/Apple+)
La Palma (2024/Netflix)
Knight and Day—(2010/Roku)
Last Night in Soho—(2021/Prime)
Last Seen Alive—(2020/Netflix)
The Little Things—(2021/Netflix)
Lonely Planet—(2024)/Netflix)
Man on Fire—(2004/Max)
Manchester by the Sea—(2016/Prime Video)
MI-5—(2015/Max)
The Mule—(2018/Netflix)
The Night Agent—(2023/Netflix)
Nobody—(2021/Prime)
Nobody Wants This—(2024/Netflix)
Ordinary Angels—(2024/assorted platforms)
The Pledge—(2011/Peacock)
Purple Hearts—(2022/Netflix)
The Queen—(2006/Paramount+)
The Queen's Gambit—(2020/Netflix)
Queenpins—(2021/Pluto TV)
Reptile—(2023/Netflix)
Ruthless—(2023/Hulu)
The Secret: Dare to Dream—(2020/Netflix).
Sicario (2015/Netflix)
Self Reliance—(2023/Hulu)
Seraphim Falls—(2006/Netflix)
Some Girl(s)—(2013/Amazon Prime)
Somewhere in Queens—(2022/Hulu)
Spy(ies)—(2009/Prime)
The Stranger—(2022/Netflix)
Toscana—(2022/Netflix)
The Two Popes—(2019/Netflix)
Up in the Air—(2009/Max)
Woman in Gold—(2015/Max)
Wonder Wheel—(2017/Prime)
Documentaries
Aftershock: Everest and the Nepal Earthquake—(2022/Netflix)
The Beach Boys—(2024/Disney)
Carole King: Live in Central Park—(2023/PBS)
The Comeback—(2005 and 2014/Max)
Cunk on Earth—(2022/Netflix)
Cyndi Lauper: Let the Canary Sing—(2023/Paramount+)
Facing Nolan—(2022/Netflix)
Five Came Back—(2017/Netflix)
Jane Fonda in Five Acts—(2024/Max)
Kate Hepburn: Call Me Kate—(2023/Netflix)
The Only Girl in the Orchestra—(2023/Netflix)
Suzi Q: Suzi Quatro—(2019/Prime)
The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari—(2022/Netflix)
'Tis Autumn: The Search for Jackie Paris—(2007/go here)
Tsunami: Race Against Time—(2024/Hulu)
Gerry Mulligan. Following my wildly popular Perfection post on Gerry Mulligan's Night Lights, I heard from legendary bassist Bill Crow, who plays on the track and the album of the same name...
"Hi Marc. All I remember from that record date is how good the whole session was. Gerry hadn't written anything new for a while, and I loved playing together with Gerry, Art Farmer, Bob Brookmeyer, Jim Hall and Dave Bailey. Night Lights is still one of my favorite albums.
"By the way, I recorded Night Lights on my CD for Venus records in 1995 entitled From Birdland to Broadway, with Carmen Leggio, Joe Cohn and David Jones. When I received my first copy of it in January 1996, I was reaching for the phone to call Gerry and tell him it was dedicated to him when the phone rang. It was a friend telling me that Gerry had just passed away."
God Only Knows. In October 2014, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys assembled a good number of his singing friends to record a music video of God Only Knows, the song Brian and lyricist Tony Asher wrote for the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds album in 1966. Here's the video...
You Say You Care. Back in June of last year, I posted a Perfection on John Coltrane's recording of You Say You Care, a song written by Jule Styne and Leo Robin and published in 1949. Last week, Bill Kirchner sent along two more great versions [Photo above of Karin Krog with Dexter Gordon]:
Here's Karin Krog singing, backed by pianist Steve Kuhn, bassist David Finck and drummer Billy Drummond in 2003...
And here's pianist Lou Levy, bassist John Heard and drummer Shelly Manne in 1982...
Tadd Dameron. Last week, Don Frese sent along an email with four fabulous clips of Britain's Ted Heath Orchestra playing Tadd Dameron arrangements. Here's his note:
"Hi Marc. As you know, Tadd Dameron stopped off in London in 1949 on his way home from appearing at Paris jazz festival with Miles Davis. Tadd had written the arrangements specifically for Heath, who recorded them in the fall. Dameron's songs Lyonia and So Easy were new, Euphoria was a Charlie Ventura-Roy Kral composition and The Nearness of You was a standard. As you posted recently, So Easy was part of Artie Shaw's Thesaurus Transcriptions recording in December of 1949." Here they are:
Dave Thompson.Here's Dave Thompson in his practice studio last week working through But Beautiful...
And finally, on Friday, Louisiana singer Ashley Orlando and I shared the Zoom stage at the non-political LaMorinda Rotary Club, in Lafayette, Calif.,where she played and sang, and I followed with a 20-minute talk and Q&A on pop music's influence on mood and optimism. The club very kindly promoted my latest book, Anatomy of 55 More Songs. Here's Ashley...
In February 1943, bassist Oscar Pettiford joined Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie in a Chicago hotel room and jammed on Sweet Georgia Brown, which was captured on a private recording. This was before bebop was codified, and Parker and Gillespie were virtually unknown outside of the big bands they were in. By the end of 1943, Pettiford was in New York recording for Commodore behind tenor saxophone giant Coleman Hawkins.
Rolling forward, Pettiford would become bebop's first major bassist in New York clubs on 52nd Street. He also recorded early bebop with Dizzy Gillespie on the Manor label in January 1945 and led an 18-piece all-star session that month. Next he played and toured extensively with Duke Ellington until 1947, jumped to Woody Herman, and then was on his own by 1950, working with and leading a wide range of modernist ensembles and bands throughout the decade.
Perhaps Pettiford's crowning achievement was his orchestral recordings for Creed Taylor at ABC Paramount in 1956 and '57. There were two studio albums and some live material. The first recording, The Oscar Pettiford Orchestra In Hi-Fi, Vol. 1, in June 1956, featured Ernie Royal and Art Farmer (tp), Jimmy Cleveland (tb), Julius Watkins, David Amram (fhr), Gigi Gryce (as,arr), Lucky Thompson (ts,arr), Jerome Richardson (ts,fl), Danny Bank (bar), Tommy Flanagan (p), Oscar Pettiford (b) and Osie Johnson (d). Over the three sessions, Whitey Mitchell (b) and Janet Putnam (harp) were added on tracks and Dave Kurtzer replaced Danny Bank on baritone saxophone.
The second album, The Oscar Pettiford Orchestra In Hi-Fi, Vol. 2, recorded in August 1957, included Ray Copeland and Art Farmer (tp), Kenny Dorham (tp, replacing Copeland), Al Grey (tb), Julius Watkins and David Amram (fhr), Gigi Gryce (as,arr), Benny Golson (ts,arr), Jerome Richardson (ts,fl), Sahib Shihab (bar), Dick Katz (p), Betty Glamann (harp), Oscar Pettiford (b,cello), Whitey Mitchell (b) and Gus Johnson (d).
My Backgrounder this week is the Complete Oscar Pettiford Orchestra in Hi-Fi, including the live material at Birdland in March and June 1957. Lucky you! Go here...
If all Gerry Mulligan had composed and recorded was the song Night Lights, he'd be extraordinary. The impossibly beautiful and hypnotic ballad appeared on his 1963 album of the same name. To make the track even more compelling, Mulligan plays piano, not baritone saxophone, and he was accompanied by Art Farmer (flhrn), Bob Brookmeyer (v-tb), Jim Hall (g), Bill Crow (b) and Dave Bailey (d).
Here's Gerry Mulligan's Night Lights; do yourself a favor and set the clip to loop, so you can hear it over and over. You do this by putting your cursor over the image of the video, right clicking and choosing "loop" at the top. This way, the song will start again immediately after it ends...
Other Perfection tracks in this ongoing series...
Paul Desmond and Jim Hall: Any Other Time,go here.
Marc Myers writes regularly for The Wall Street Journal and is author of "Anatomy of 55 More Songs," "Anatomy of a Song," "Rock Concert: An Oral History" and "Why Jazz Happened." Founded in 2007, JazzWax has won three Jazz Journalists Association awards.
