If you like funky organ based jazzy jams in your music library, be sure to check out the new album from the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio. I preordered the new LP last year and it arrived early this week. I played it through twice, back to back, that’s how much I enjoyed listening to it. … Continue reading I Told You So
We started watching Pretend It’s a City, the new limited series on Netflix from Martin Scorcese about Fran Lebowitz. We like it so much we’re only watching two episodes a night to make it last as long as possible (it’s seven episodes long). In episode two, Fran discusses her friendship with legendary jazz bassist, Charles … Continue reading Fran’s Jazz
I recently stumbled on the song Celestial Blues by Gary Bartz from his album Harlem Bush Music. The song has is a unique mash up of jazz instrumentals from Gary with vocals by Andy Bey. It’s the lyrics sung by Bey that pulled me in: We must get closer to the essence of life…But be … Continue reading Celestial Blues
When I was high school, I decided to listen to jazz. This was in the mid-90’s when grunge and alternative were all the rage and I had spent plenty of time listening to both. There isn’t a shining moment for my decision to listen to jazz. I didn’t grow up with an older brother or … Continue reading Cosmic Language
Last weekend I stopped by my local record store to browse their tapes for sale. I recently repaired my Sony cassette deck and have been playing any tapes I have on hand. I wanted to find new tapes to listen to, and not necessarily music I was familiar with. I like the idea of finding … Continue reading The Word
A few weeks ago, I was driving on the small back roads of Tennessee and decided to stop at a Goodwill in Shelbyville, TN. I quickly flipped through their records and found a copy of Ramsey Lewis’ Sun Goddess LP. I grabbed it and headed home. Since then I can’t stop listening to Ramsey’s cover … Continue reading Living for the City
A couple of weekends ago, I helped a friend at her record store repair some pieces of gear to sell in her shop. While working, I stumbled on this dubbed tape of John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme and Sonny Rollin’s A Night at the Village Vanguard. I thought it would be fun to have this … Continue reading Coltrane, Rollins & Dan Baird? How Mixtapes Didn’t Kill The Music Industry.
Over Labor Day weekend, my neighborhood record store had a 20% off sale on everything in the store. My wife was interested in purchasing a Bob Ross life size cutout to put in her art room at school so we took advantage of the sale to buy Bob at a discount. While picking up Bob, … Continue reading Further Explorations
Below are two new releases I’ve been listening to this week: John Coltrane – Both Directions At Once: The Lost Album Discovering a lost John Coltrane album in 2018 is nothing short of a miracle, especially a studio album recorded in March of 1963 with Rudy Van Gelder and performed with McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison … Continue reading What I’m Listening To: 7.5.18
I am sucker for jazz drum solos. I stumbled on two this weekend, both by Max Roach and from the same album, Brown and Roach Incorporated. The album features trumpeter Clifford Brown and was released in 1955. The first song, Sweet Clifford, comes at you with break neck, hard bop speed, as if the musicians … Continue reading Max Roach’s Drum Solos
Aaron Hartley 