Day 0773 - G.Love and the Special Sauce

G.Love and the Special Sauce "G.Love and the Special Sauce" (1994)

Interesting sound.  G.Love were a white hip-hop group, but made the wise move of not trying to fake it like they were 'legit gangsta'.  The group instead combine guitars, upright bass and drums to create a sound that would be more at home at the beach or the skate park than in the ghetto.

There are touches of jazz and blues backing the tracks about girls (Baby's Got Sauce), brews (Cold Beverage) and even a touch of conscious rap (This Ain't Living).   Wouldn't be out of home in your record collection somewhere between Sublime and the Fun Loving Criminals.

Day 0612 - I'm Your Man

Leonard Cohen "I'm Your Man" (1988) - got it

Cohen moves away from live/organic instruments in favour of synths and drum machines.  A lot of people, even now, praise it as a giant leap forward, but personally it doesn't 'do it' for me.  Don't get me wrong, the songs on "I'm Your Man" are among Leonard's best, but having heard live versions of some of them using live band instrumentation, I just feel like the songs would have been better served that way.

That gripe aside, the album does have an interesting sound.  Leonard picked it as one where he was happiest with his vocals, which is odd as he seems to sing with much less melodic range here (though his voice does sound smooth).  The lyrics here are brilliant as usual, with the title track being a personal favourite of mine.

Day 0598 - The New Tango

Astor Piazzolla & Gary Burton "The New Tango" (1987)

There is nothing I didn't like about this album.  It's like the best mix of a dream and a nightmare.  Beautiful melodies occasionally crash into discordant screeches of violin, or even just a subtle hint of uneasy dischord.

The album features a meeting of Piazzolla, on the bandoneon (an instrument I love the sound of) and Burton, a Vibraphone wizard.  Together they made this album, recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, an album that seems to blur the lines between composition and improvisation.

Highly recommend it.

Day 0548 - Water From an Ancient Well

Abdullah Ibrahim "Water From an Ancient Well" (1985)

 
Abdullah came up with a strong love of Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk, which shows all over the beautiful jazz of this album.  Apparently he was also heavily influenced by the traditional music of his South African homeland, though if I'm honest, I hear that less in the music.  What I do hear is some interesting, peppy, and at times propulsive jazz

Ibrahim had departed South Africa years earlier, leaving apartheid behind him, but that system of segregation was beginning to be challenged.  Ibrahim saw himself as building up a musical language that reflected all of this.

Day 0439 - London Calling

The Clash "London Calling" (1979) - got it

From a ho-hum punk album on day 438 to one of the greats.  To be fair, the Clash were barely 'punk' by this stage.  The attitude remained, and some of the more direct, raw 'rock' tracks still reflect that side of their sound, but the band were pulling influences from all corners: rockabilly, northern soul, post-punk, ska, reggae... even hints of new-wave.

 With a run of 19 tracks, I do tend to get a feeling of 'track fatigue' with it.  Most of these tracks are good and I can pick out pretty much any one track and enjoy it, but it just seems as though 65 uninterrupted minutes of Clash is probably slightly too much in one sitting for me.

Day 0429 - Street Life

Crusaders "Street Life" (1979)

 
Another album featuring a dose of light funk.  Though, that is just one side to their sound, which is more of a jazzy smooth pop-fusion kind of thing. The band used to be called 'the Jazz Crusaders', and though they dropped 'jazz' from their name, the sound stayed very firmly in the music.

These songs sound like they'd work just fine in either a disco/dance club or in a smokey jazz lounge. The pop flavour does dull the jazz edge a little, but it's still spicy enough.

Day 0416 - Siembra

Willie Colon and Ruben Blades "Siembra" (1978)

 
Another of those albums where the book talks about the importance of the band's lyrics.  Given that I'm not much of a lyric person and I don't speak the language that the lyrics are in, I wasn't able to fully appreciate that aspect.

To a certain extent, I don't really need the lyrics though. This is justifiably the highest selling salsa album (or was at the time).  It reads like an encyclopedia of salsa and Latin jazz sounds, and those sounds have been reproduced across the genres in the intervening years. There are complex funky danceable rhythms, and smooth laidback grooves; lush orchestration, through to stripped down arrangements; overt passion, and subtle emotion.

Both Willie and Ruben were accomplished in their own right, Willie was a composer for big jazz bands, Ruben was an activist, singer and actor and together they made something else altogether.

Day 0379 - Aja

Steely Dan "Aja" (1977)

 
Steely Dan ramp up the 'jazz' part of their 'jazz tinged pop' sound.  As much as I love jazz, and a couple of the other Steely Dan albums, this one didn't quite 'ring my bell'.

I enjoyed the album well enough, but where the "Can't buy a thrill" and "Pretzel logic" were brilliant; this is just alright. The pop moments work well enough, and there is some impressive musicianship in jazzy parts but it just feels too polished... just needs a little more 'edge' for my tastes.

Day 0146 - In a Silent Way

Miles Davis "In a Silent Way" (1969)

 
This one has been on my 'to check out' list for a while. I tend to buy Miles' albums, er... sound unheard, so this is a rare case of doing some research first.

It's a nice bit of fusion-jazz with some great atmospheric moments, and lovely textures.  It totally lives up to its name much of the time with it's gentle minimalism, interspersed with flights of jazzy fun within, yet feels more focussed than his rambling fusion albums like 'bitches brew' and 'big fun'.

Day 0053 - A Love Supreme

John Coltrane "A Love Supreme" (1965) - got it

I love this period of music history, where pop/rock albums could sit side by side in popularity with instrumental jazz records and other genres.  I honestly hadn't realised that 'a love supreme' was released this late though!

One of the more popular jazz albums ever released, and, like Miles' "Kind of blue" it's an exploration in modal jazz.
I somewhat prefer Coltrane's "giant steps" album for its concise, hooky yet virtuosic bop.  Also, some of his later more exploratory releases, but a love supreme is still an amazing record.   Coltrane's band at the time was unsurpassed, especially his drummer Elvin Jones... mindblowing ability!

Day 0041 - Getz/Gilberto

Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto "Getz/Gilberto" (1963) - got it

This follows on from the success of 'Jazz Samba', which was apparently also popular in Brazil and not seen as a watered down or inauthentic interpretation of the bossa sound.

For this album Getz recruited actual Brazilian musicians to record with, the resulting album is simultaneously ridiculously catchy, and laidback.
Apparently Astrud Gilberto only featured on the album because the producer wanted a verse of "The Gir from Ipanema' in English and Joao couldn't do it.  Thus one of the more famous vocal performances of the day happened.

Day 0018 - Sarah Vaughan at Mister Kelly's

Sarah Vaughan "Sarah Vaughan at Mister Kelly's" (1958) - got it

I LOVE Sarah Vaughan, she just has the most amazing vocal control and range of any jazz/popular singer I can think of.

I'm not usually a fan of live albums but Vaughan sounds note perfect, the recording quality is great, and you get the added charm of Vaughan's extra vocal gymnastics, her sassy banter with the crowd, and her quick-thinking ad-libs any time she happens to forget a lyric.

It's hard to tell, given that it's a sound recording, but at one point it sounds like she knocked over her lyric sheets.  Certainly at one point she ad-libs and scats the lyrics for an entire song ("how high the moon")

Day 0016 "Lady in Satin"

Billie Holiday "Lady in Satin" (1958)

Exquisite! This was designed to be a comeback album of sorts for Lady Day; it was her first and only (during her lifetime) release on Columbia Records.  After a career steeped in hard swinging jazz, and having heard Ray Ellis' lush arrangements on his "Ellis in Wonderland" album she decided that she wanted to sing over more of an easy-listening sound (she'd also considered recording with Nelson Riddle after hearing his work with Sinatra).

Ellis wanted to put some seriously dense string arrangements behind the singer to compensate for her weathered voice.  She'd been struggling with alcohol and heroin addiction, so sounded more like she was in her 80s than in her 40s.

Holiday had never had a huge vocal range; she's always been more known for her tone and her sense of rhythm.  Even in its worn down state, her voice sounds so pure, so strong and dripping with feeling it manages to work with and against the syrupy sweet arrangements to keep things from getting too maudlin.

The very first cut "I'm a fool to want you" really sets the tone for the rest of the album.

Day 0012 - Birth of the Cool

Miles Davis "Birth of the Cool" (1957) got it

Right out of the gate this is a vital and exciting album! I know that 'Kind of Blue' is seen as Miles' masterpiece, but my favourite of his oeuvre has always been "Birth of the Cool" (with an honourable mention going to "ESP").

Although this was released as an album in 1957, the 3 sessions that gave 'birth' to this material had actually taken place in 1949 and 1950. Miles had been playing in Charlie Parker's band, taking the place of Dizzy who'd gotten tired of Bird's unprofessionalism, alcoholism and drug use. Miles could never really match Diz for sheer technical proficiency and speed; his strengths lie more in melody and musical exploration... both of which feature here.
Miles got together with the arranger Gil Evans who was hosting musical meetings and sessions at his apartment.  With his growing reputation as a jazz arranger he was a great asset in Miles' search for a new sound.

What you get here is a nice mix with the speed and virtuosity displayed in bebop, but generally with a richer texture and a greater focus on melody.  Where bebop was frequently stripped down to allow room for the soloists to 'spread their wings' "Birth of the Cool has almost more of an almost orchestral feel in places, like the beautiful, slightly eerie harmonies of "moon dreams" which nicely offset the perky bebop of the opener "Jeru". The interplay between soloists and the rest of the band is brilliant, much more complimentary melodic interplay than in a standard bebop sound (it should be noted by the way that I love bebop, so I'm not looking to slag it off, only to highlight the differences between this music and what had come before).

As an initial solo artistic statement, this is pretty damned strong... too bad that it went generally unnoticed until Miles had earned greater fame, and the West Coast jazz movement had gained popularity.

Day 0010 - Brilliant Corners

Thelonious Monk "Brilliant Corners" (1957) got it

Monk is an important jazz artist for me personally, because the first jazz album I ever owned was a compilation of his work ("This is Jazz: Thelonious Monk").  After hearing Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers rave about how great Monk was, I went and listened... and had to agree.

The Ken Burns Jazz documentary series outlined what a maverick and weirdo Monk was: getting up and dancing to his own band in the middle of sets, intentionally throwing in crazy discordant notes that sounded like mistakes here and there, and coming in with some odd little wardrobe choices.

Monk helped develop the bebop sound alongside greats like Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, but after getting done on a bogus drugs bust and having his cabaret card revoked, he wasn't able to do much professionally in the music world, until he got in signed by Orin Keepnews.  Keepnews released a couple of his albums (covers of Ellington compositions and then an album of standards) before letting Monk pursue his own compositional id.

One thing that I always love about so many of the jazz records from this era is how many great players are all over each others' records, John Coltrane playing on Miles Davis albums early in his career, Davis himself getting his start with Bird and Diz etc.  Similarly on brilliant corners you get Sonny Rollins (the 'saxophone colossus' himself), Max Roach on drums, and Oscar Pettiford on bass.

There's a nice mix of sounds on this album, with the long and laidback "Ba-lue bolivar ba-lues-are" ,the skittish, quirky "Bemsha Swing" (one of my favourites) and the gargantuan title track that gives everyone a chance to shine.  Roach's drum solo is understated but brilliant. 

Day 0006 - Ellington at Newport

Duke Ellington "Ellington at Newport"

The Duke had suffered the fate of most big jazz bandleaders in the second half of the 20th century a major drop in popularity despite the fact that he continued to tour solidly.

Despite swing's fall from grace, Duke's band's set at Newport ending up being a raging success.  The record company (as record companies are wont to do) rushed to capitalise on it and release this album... only to find that recordings of the show were pretty damaged.  Columbia dealt with this by getting Ellington into the studio to re-record the set.  The album was then patched together using the studio recordings, surviving pieces of the live recordings, and assorted canned applause.

Apparently there has since been a recording pieced together of the original show and it is something special... to be fair though, this version is great too; just a tight band playing some hot music!

Day 0004 - The Wildest

Louis Prima "The Wildest" (1956)

This is an album that I checked out the first time I had a read through the '1001 albums' book (2010 or so) and ended up buying up a greatest hits album that I found in a shop here.  This album is as good as his greatest hits and, at 10 tracks, much more concise a musical statement.

Dismissed as an Italian Louis Armstrong (not helped by covering 3 of Armstrong's tunes here) he is another artist whose career (like Sinatra's, as mentioned on day 0001) was floundering, but he married a young 22 year old singer and added her and a hot young sax player to revitalise his band.  That seemed to do the trick, with that new burst of energy being cut essentially live in the studio.  A great mix of tracks with some great vocal harmonies on the driving "Just a gigolo/I aint got nobody" and Prima and his wife Keely Smith trading lines on (the lyrically dated) "Just for You".

I just think it's an incredibly fun album, even the sweeter tracks like 'buonasera senorita' are performed with a twinkle in the eye.  The band is tight, the playing is hot and, as the book says: "this is irrepressible music that more than matches its glorious cover shot"

Fun fact, Louis also performed the voice of King Louie in the original 'Jungle Book' film.

Day 0001 - in the Wee Small Hours

Frank Sinatara "In the Wee Small Hours" (1955) Got it

I once listened to this album on headphones while walking home on a moonlit night and it was freaking magical!

I'd read a biography of Nat King Cole that said Nat had helped the (at that stage) failed Sinatara, who had been dropped by his record company and had tried to commit suicide, to get his record deal with Capitol and helped put him together with composer/arranger Nelson Riddle.  Both of these moves essentially rejuvenated Frank's career and lead to the golden age of his career... (thanks Nat!)

This is (according to the book) is one of first, (if not the first ) longplaying 12" 'albums', and it is just a thing of beauty.  Riddle's sombre, delicate and imaginative arrangements and Sinatra's voice combine to make something that is #overusedphrase 'timeless'.