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Al compás del mundo - programa #149, 10-10-24, jazz somehow


I once wrote a very perfunctory program summary for this blogsite. It was for a jazz show, like this one, presented on Mexico’s Al compás del mundo radio program. The trick was to include a photo of the performers, each posing with his “ax” (piano, sax, trumpet, etc.) The pictures were worth a thousand words (or several hundred at least). While it made it easy for me, I’ve been warned by the editor that never again was I to foist most of the work on to his broad though burdened shoulders. So be it. Rules are rules. Instead, I’ll do a rundown of the performances presented herein below.

Al compás del mundo - programa #149, 10-10-24, jazz

 Run list

01 Herbie Hancock - It Ain't Necessarily So

02 Roy Campbell - I Remember Lee

03 Jaki Byard - Blues in The Closet

04 Grachan Moncur - Love and Hate

05 Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane – Evidence

06 Archie Shepp & Horace Parlan - Go Down Moses

07 Jackie McLean – Marney

08 Bobby Hutcherson - Blues Mind Matter

09 Terrence Blanchard & Don Was - Dark Room

I heard Herbie Hancock’s “It Ain’t Necessarily So” for the first time recently on a Bay Area radio station. Masterful treatment of a great classic! He and his cohorts toy with the theme over and over without ever rendering it in full. Lyrical suspense and a moody beat maintain interest.

 

Trumpeter Roy Campbell is someone with whom I’d not been terribly familiar, but the energy channeled out of “I Remember Lee” – once the intro has faded – is a burst of positivity.

 

I, for some reason, always connect Jaki Byard’s music with frequent sideman, Roland Kirk (I love me a big saxophone.) This time it’s a trio and Byard’s piano is the main focus. Verging on a ragtime riff at one moment, throwing out a blues trill the next, he remains inventive and unpredictable.

 

Grachan Moncur slows things down to a steady and sultry pace. Ever heard his masterpiece “New Africa”? If not, look for it. This follows that same recipe for solemn pronouncements and explosive punctuations.

 

Monk and Coltrane together. That’s enough about that. How this live recording remained undiscovered until 2005 baffles me. So how many other world-class treasures lie buried in vaults and music archives? Too delicious to think about.

 

Speaking of a match made in heaven, Archie Shepp and Horace Parlan have recorded a couple of albums together without an additional rhythm section. This title comes from “Goin’ Home”, as soulful a compilation of African-American gospel-tunes-become-jazz one could hope for. Almost makes me want to go to church.

 

Jackie McLean, a long-time favorite – did I mention a “thing” I have about saxophones? Shoots straight and hard, his tenor seemingly about to explode, yet always under control.

 

Following McLean with Bobby Hutcherson seemed logical. The vibes absolutely bounce in this recording and relieve any pressure built up from the previous cut. How does he always find the right notes?

 

At last, we finally come to the end conclusion. Trailing off with music taken from one of the all-time great jazz albums, that few people seem to know about. The movie Backbeat was about the Beatles in their formative years, and there is a soundtrack of Beatles tunes performed by rock musicians. Somehow, Was and Blanchard recorded a second jazz soundtrack as well and this is one of several superlative pieces from that album, featuring Dave McMurray on tenor sax. The recording only appeared on YouTube in relatively recent times and awaits your discovery. Good times ahead!

 


Pictures: Top of page Archcie Shep | Jake Bayard; Above 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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