Tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins has received a Grammy nomination for his new Doxy Records CD Sonny, Please in the “Best Jazz Instrumental Album†category.
Sonny, Please was released in the summer by the saxophonist’s own Doxy label, which takes its name from a famous Rollins composition first recorded by Miles Davis more than 50 years ago. Rollins has been selling the CD at his concerts and on his web site, www.sonnyrollins.com. In October he signed a licensing agreement with Universal Classics & Jazz International for worldwide distribution and marketing of the CD.
Universal released Sonny, Please digitally in the U.S. and Europe on November 21. The CD’s in-store date is January 23, 2007.
Rollins was also honored in DownBeat magazine’s 71st Annual Readers Poll. He was voted Jazz Artist of the Year as well as top Tenor Saxophonist, and his 2005 Milestone CD Without a Song (The 9/11 Concert) was named Best Jazz Album. (Without a Song earned Rollins a Grammy earlier this year in the “Best Jazz Instrumental Solo†category, for the track “Why Was I Born?â€)
sonnyrollins.com
Pat talks all things Metheny, and about his new album with Brad Mehldau. A good interview with Pat Metheny by Doug Collette.
“Through the course of a career that now exceeds thirty years in the limelight, guitarist Pat Metheny has never ceased to surprise. No matter the context within which he chooses to play—his flagship Pat Metheny Group, in a trio, as a collaborator with figures including bassist Charlie Haden or as a guest in large projects such as the recent NYC tribute to minimalist composer Steve Reich—the Missouri-born guitarist and composer will not allow himself to become predictable.”
Check it out in full here.
Jay “Hootie†McShann, a jazz pianist and bandleader who helped refine the blues-tinged Kansas City sound and introduced the world to saxophonist Charlie Parker, died Thursday. He was 90.
McShann, whose musical career spanned eight decades and earned him accolades from both blues and jazz aficionados, was born James Columbus McShann on Jan. 12, 1916 in Muskogee, Okla. Against the wishes of his parents, he taught himself how to play piano, in part by listening to late-night radio broadcasts featuring pianist and bandleader Earl “Fatha†Hines.
He hooked up with Parker in 1937, after hearing the sax genius’ music coming out of a Kansas City club, and the two worked together off and on until 1941. Parker, who earned his nickname “Bird†while playing with McShann’s orchestra, made his recording debut on McShann’s “Hootie Blues†in 1941.
December brings Jim, Bill and Francesco along with others for this weeks My Favorite Things from Russ Neff.
Reflections – Francesco Cafiso Quartet – New York Lullaby
Agua De Beber – Jay Lawrence Trio – Thermal Strut
Fate – Branford Marsalis Quartet – Braggtown
Waltz New – Jim Hall/Red Mitchell – Jim Hall & Red Mitchell
These Foolish Things – Carmen McRae – Fine & Mellow
Samba Diamante – Moacir Santos – Choros & Alegria
I Hear A Rhapsody – Bill Evans Trio – Montreux II
Crazy He Calls Me - Bill Anschell – More To The Ear Than Meets The Eye
S Wonderful - Bill Charlap – Plays George Gershwin
Brush Taps – Taylor/Fidyk Big Band – Live At Blues Alley
Listen to it here.
Enjoy!
“Mezz Mezzrow was the hippest of white hipster jazz musicians in 1920s Chicago and 1930s New York”.
Check it out at allaboutjazz.com