Ron Korb, “Patagonia,” from World Café Grammy-nominated, multi-award-winning flutist extraordinaire Ron Korb triumphs with the release…
Song of the Day
Sonny Rollins – “The Bridge”
On this date in 1962, saxophonist Sonny Rollins wrapped the recording session for his album The Bridge at RCA Victor Studio B in New York, laying down to final tunes — “Without a Song” and “The Bridge” — before committing the record to wax.
Stan Getz & Charlie Byrd – “Samba De Uma Nota So”
On this date in 1962, saxophonist Stan Getz and guitarist Charlie Byrd — Brazilophiles both — came together at All Souls Unitarian Church in Washington, D.C., to record Jazz Samba, one of America’s earliest known recordings of bossa nova.
Miles Davis – “My Funny Valentine (Live)”
On this date in 1964, trumpeter Miles Davis performed a concert at the Philharmonic Hall of Lincoln Center in New York City with a quintet that featured George Coleman on tenor saxophone, Ron Carter on bass and Tony Williams on drums and Herbie Hancock on piano.
Bing Crosby with the Duke Ellington Orchestra – “St. Louis Blues”
On this date in 1932, vocalist Bing Crosby, at just 29 years old, recorded this rendition of “St. Louis Blues” with the Duke Ellington Orchestra for Columbia Records.
Hank Mobley – “Soul Station”
Mobley, a stalwart of East Coast hard-bop, is in peak form here, playing with a combination of muscle and high polish on tunes that range from gritty blues to winsome ballads.
Natalie Cole – “Inseparable”
Natalie Cole, daughter of famed jazz singer Nat “King” Cole, was born on this day (February 6) in 1950. “Inseparable,” today’s Song of the Day, comes from her 1975 album of the same name.
Gil Evans – “Straight, No Chaser”
Evans’ arrangement of “Straight, No Chaser” is clear-cut and unfussy. He lets the self-winding simplicity of Monk’s melody speak for itself.
Wadada Leo Smith – “Rosa Parks: Mercy, Music for Double Quartet”
‘Rosa Parks: Pure Love. An Oratorio of Seven Songs’ is a new extended composition by vanguard trumpet Wadada Leo Smith. “Her action generated a movement worldwide for liberty and justice for human beings,” said Smith.
Michael Pagán – “Subir e Cair”
Described as a “brilliant and intense” pianist by KC Confidential and a “dynamic artist and musical force…
Wes Montgomery – “June in January”
Jazz legend Wes Montgomery recorded the tune “June in January” for the album The Montgomery Brothers in…
Roy Eldridge – “The Song Is Ended”
In the lineage of jazz trumpet, Roy Eldridge was a crucial link between the Dixieland-oriented playing of Louis Armstrong and the lightning-fast bebop style of Dizzy Gillespie.
Don Shirley – “At Last”
The film ‘Green Book’ has generated plenty of awards buzz since its release, but more importantly, it has shined a light on Don Shirley, a tragically underappreciated musician and his body of work.
Charlie Parker and Lester Young – “Lady Be Good”
This version of “Lady Be Good” was recorded on January 28, 1946, by saxophonists Charlie Parker and Lester Young, who together shared a bill in that year’s Jazz at the Philharmonic concert series in Los Angeles.
Lucia Jackson – “Feel the Love”
This marks the debut of a promising young jazz singer who displays a fetching voice…
Oscar Peterson Trio – “Jet Song”
“Jet Song” begins in a stormy hush, darkly hued and cautious. But before long, it segues into a swinging major-keyed blues, full of the kind of whirling flourishes that only Oscar Peterson can provide.
Django Reinhardt – “Nuages”
A lesser-known document of Django’s later period, the album found him embracing the sound of the electric guitar and incorporating techniques from modern swing and bebop.
Billie Holiday – “Good Morning Heartache”
“Good Morning Heartache” was written by Irene Higgenbotham, Dan Fisher and Ervin Drake for the vocalist Billie Holiday, who first recorded it on this day —January 22 — in 1946. In the years since its recorded debut, the song, whose lyrics deal with lingering grief of a love affair gone awry, became one of Holiday’s signature tunes.
Miles Davis – “Jeru”
Miles Davis’s Birth of the Cool set the mold for the genre that would come to be known as cool jazz. The trailblazing trumpeter and his musical partner, the imaginative conductor-arranger Gil Evans, began recording the album on this day — January 21 — in 1949.
Diane Hoffman – “Do I Love You”
The album’s title track — a highlight among highlights — moves with a refreshing uptempo swiftness, ushered forward by cartwheeling horn lines and Owens’ crisply kinetic cymbal work.
