It was a popular Harlem night club that featured black performers but was restricted to an all-white clientele, which might seem to be a paradox but was a product of the casual racism of the time. The decor, the costumes - even the name Cotton Club - reflected an attitude that's disquieting to us now, … Continue reading Remembering The Music Of The Cotton Club
Category: Jazz
Tinkering With Tubes Leads To Adventures In Paradise
As I was growing up it seemed as if music was always around me in one way or another, so it's not remarkable that I formed an appreciation for it. Even when I was young, I would endlessly spin the old records we had stacked up around the house and I also listened to all … Continue reading Tinkering With Tubes Leads To Adventures In Paradise
REVIEW: Hendrik Meurkens – New York Samba Jazz Quintet
Here are two words I never thought I'd be using together in a CD review -- jazz and harmonica. But that's exactly what's on display in this new Hendrik Meurkens release from Zoho titled simply New York Samba Jazz Quintet, and due out the first week of January. This is the latest for Meurkens, who … Continue reading REVIEW: Hendrik Meurkens – New York Samba Jazz Quintet
My Guilty Secret – Ferrante & Teicher
In the 1950s I had two separate and very different musical preferences. First of all, even though I wasn't quite as hooked on early rock and roll as some members of my generation, I was beginning to find some of it pretty interesting -- and especially captivating when playing on a jukebox surrounded by cute … Continue reading My Guilty Secret – Ferrante & Teicher
REVIEW: Cannonball Adderley – Riverside Profiles
Riverside Records was an important part of the jazz scene during their relatively short life (1952 to 1964) and their catalog is now part of the Concord Music Group, which recently released a set of five commemorative albums. Those albums, which are collectively named Riverside Profiles, each feature a legendary artist: Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, … Continue reading REVIEW: Cannonball Adderley – Riverside Profiles
REVIEW: Johnny Mathis – Gold: A 50th Anniversary Celebration (Music Added!)
Gold: A 50th Anniversary Celebration, a new offering from Columbia/Legacy that's being released very soon now, is part of a larger effort that's been put together to commemorate the long and notable career of Johnny Mathis. It joins the already released A 50th Anniversary Christmas Celebration album, and both tie in with an upcoming PBS … Continue reading REVIEW: Johnny Mathis – Gold: A 50th Anniversary Celebration (Music Added!)
Dinner With Clint Eastwood – Music By Frankie Laine
Clint Eastwood's new movie, Flags Of Our Fathers, is getting a lot of attention lately, and it got me to thinking about the first time I became aware of Clint, and sort of had dinner with him. It goes back before his directing fame, before his solid movie career as a leading man, before his … Continue reading Dinner With Clint Eastwood – Music By Frankie Laine
REVIEW: Kenny G – I’m In The Mood For Love
It might surprise you to hear that Kenny Gorelick, more popularly known as Kenny G, has been appearing professionally for thirty years. From his first appearance as part of Barry White's Love Unlimited band in 1976, he moved on to forming his own group and eventually to finding a formula that made him into a … Continue reading REVIEW: Kenny G – I’m In The Mood For Love
REVIEW: Rez Abbasi – Bazaar
Sometimes it's a little difficult to pin down the work of a particular musician and assign a genre or type to it, and maybe that's not a bad thing. I think that a lot of listeners - and I include myself - have a tendency to make assumptions about an artist before we ever hear … Continue reading REVIEW: Rez Abbasi – Bazaar
From Billie Holiday To Doris Day – The Songbirds
What do Norma Deloris Egstrom, Frances Rose Shore, Eleanora Fagan Gough, and Doris Mary Ann von Kappelhoff have in common? You'd probably have an easier time guessing if I gave you their stage names: Peggy Lee, Dinah Shore, Billie Holiday, and Doris Day. By now you've figured out that they were all famous singers (and … Continue reading From Billie Holiday To Doris Day – The Songbirds
Geezer Music Club 