Sandy Brown Jazz
What's New
December 2024
The Nutcracker: It is that time of the year when many people will book to see Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker set on Christmas Eve at the foot of a Christmas tree in a child's imagination. Amidst swirling snowflakes and twirling flowers, Clara encounters the Sugar Plum Fairy, the dashing Cavalier, and a cast of enchanting characters in the Land of Sweets. In 1960, with arrangements by Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington recorded a swinging version of The Nutcracker Suite based on Tchaikovsky’s ballet. Here is the Dorrance Dance Company with Dance Of The Flowers staged in New York in November and here The Peanut Brittle Brigade from Kansas Smitty's with some of the UK's great musicians.
Thank you to all of you who have visited and contributed to the Sandy Brown Jazz website during 2024. I hope you have found things that have interested and entertained you. Ian Maund, Editor.
BBC Young Jazz Musician 2024
Congratulations to bass player Ursula Harrison who has won the 2024 BBC Young Jazz Musician award. Ursula, from Pontygwaith, South Wales was one of four young musicians who played at the final on 24th November. The other finalists were: 18-year-old trumpeter Klara Devlin, from London, 19-year old saxophonist George Johnson from London, and 22-year-old pianist Nils Kavanagh from Sligo. Ursula graduated from Cardiff University in 2024 with BA Hons in Mathematics and Music, studying with bassists Yuri Goloubev and Jim Vivian, and has recently begun her Master’s studies in the European Jazz Masters programme at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. Here is a video of Ursula playing La Fiesta with the Eddie Gripper Trio earlier this year. You can watch the final on BBC iPlayer here.
Don Cheadle To Star As Canyon
Actor Don Cheadle has signed to play a part-time jazz musician and a full-time assassin in a musical thriller ‘Canyon’. The 59-year-old actor is set to star in director Colin Tilley’s upcoming movie for Alcon Entertainment, which will follow Canyon who finds himself as the unlikely protector of a young siren dragged into an all-out war between feuding crime families. ‘Canyon’ will be written by ‘John Wick’ writer Derek Kolstad. While there has not been any confirmation as to when audiences can expect to see ‘Canyon’ in theatres, the film will likely move into production once Kolstad finishes his work on another film, ‘Nobody 2’. Don Cheadle starred in the 2015 film about Miles Davis, 'Miles Ahead'.
National Jazz Archive
Mark Kass, Chair of the NJA writes about Loughton Library where the Archive is based: "Over the next couple of years - and all parties concerned have yet to get the timetable - Essex County Council will hand over the site to Essex Housing to start knocking down the old Library building which is starting to become beyond economic repair to replace it with a state-of-the art 21st Century library and community hub and a new home for our very own National Jazz Archive and 5000 +book National Jazz Library. We will move into temporary accommodation before moving back. This is of course all very exciting but it’s equally frustrating as we’re yet to know when this will all come to fruition. This early “heads-up” does mean that we have started to come up with ‘cunning plans’ for a new national HQ for a “Future NJA” but it is still early days and key to all of this will of course be for all parties to secure funding,…watch this space for updates over the coming weeks." In the meanwhile, the next fundraising gig for the NJA is on 14th December at 1.30 pm at Loughton Baptist Church when Orphy Robinson and his band will feature The Vibes Describes - the story of the vibraphone in jazz. Details are here.
Scott's Jazz Club, Ballyhackamore, Belfast
"If you were to walk past Ballyhackamore Working Mens Club in East Belfast, you could be forgiven for not realizing just what kind of magic lies on the top floor, patiently waiting to be released. Every Friday night, passers-by will hear strains of Charlie Parker, Herbie Hancock and John Coltrane, gently inviting them to come inside and discover world-class music by world-class musicians. Those curious enough to brave the stairs will open the doors and find themselves in a world awash with sound, colour and energy. They might be greeted by bass lines thundering through the manic pace of bebop, drums exploring the tonality of fusion or perhaps even the tender contemplation of a piano ballad. It's all there for anyone to find: it just depends on when they arrive." Enticing wording from the club that has just celebrated its 4th birthday and has now teamed up with local restaurants to offer discounted meals before gigs. Their website is here and details of the discount scheme are here.
GRAMMY Awards 2025
The GRAMMY Awards are made each year by the American Recording Academy. Nominations for the 2025 awards were published in November, including those in the Jazz category - the full list of nominees is here. On 11th November Jazz FM summarised, saying "The 2025 Grammy Nominations have been revealed over the weekend with another great showing for jazz, soul and blues artists including the UK’s own Jacob Collier who’s up for the prestigious Album of the Year prize (for his album Djesse Vol 4). Other nominees include Lalah Hathaway who’s up for best Traditional R&B Performance and best R&B Album, Kurt Elling, Catherine Russell and Samara Joy are fighting it out in the best jazz vocal album category, while Cyrille Aimee, Norah Jones and Gregory Porter’s Christmas Wish project are all in the best traditional pop category. Instrumentalists honoured this year include trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, legendary pianist Kenny Barron and saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin, plus two posthumous nods for Chick Corea. "
Jacob Collier - Three Christmas Songs
Earlier this year, Jacob Collier went to London's Abbey Road studios to record an EP for Christmas Three Christmas Songs – An Abbey Road Live-to-Vinyl Cut. Jacob says: "“As somebody with a deep love for Christmas, it was a proper joy to have this opportunity to record three of my favourite festive songs live-to-vinyl, in Abbey Road’s iconic Studio 2. A last minute call-out to friends and fans resulted in a gathering of people from many walks of life, befriending one another and singing together, for a one-take festive experience. It was our first take – recorded in continuum, with no pauses – what you can hear on the record is exactly as it came out. My hope is that it sparks some joy, and conjures some Christmas spirit at its gentlest, most communal, and most twinkling.” You can watch the video here. Jacob will perform an intimate show at Union Chapel in London on December 12th to ring in the holiday season. Vinyl copies of the recording appear to be sold out, but it is available on Spotify or at Amazon.
Video Juke Box
Click on the pictures to watch the videos..... or take pot luck and click on the picture of the Juke Box and see what comes up.
Pianist and composer John-Paul Muir and lyricist Anjali Bhat introduce John-Paul's new album Home Now released on the Ubuntu label in November. The vocalist here is Brigitte Beraha. [See Recent Releases}
Canadian trumpet player Bria Skonberg and her band ask Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans? The clarinettist is Billy Novick.
London band Raw Odoni [Hu Spall (saxophones); Matthew Shorter (piano); Dan Richards (bass); Christian Lewcock (drums)] play Keeping It Raw from their new EP Ostara (an ancient term for the spring equinox). [See Recent Releases]
Here is Freddie Hubbard on flugelhorn with the McCoy Tyner Trio in 1990 and Gershwin's Embraceable You.
Samara Joy swings I'm Old Fashioned at Emmet's Place in 2021 with Emmet Cohen (piano); Russell Hall (bass) and Kyle Poole (drums). Samara's new album Portrait was released in October.
Henrik Jensen's trio [Henrik Jensen (bass), Esben Tjalve (piano); Dave Smith (drums)] plays Above Your House, the title track from Henrik's new album. [See Recent Releases].
Acker Bilk plays Sweet Georgia Brown in 1987. This video seems to come from the German television broadcaster ZDF. It is not stated on the video who the personnel are but thank you to those who tell us they are: Cambell Burnap (trombone); Mike Cotton (cornet); Richie Byant (drums), Tucker Finlayson (bass) and Colin Wood (piano).
The Danish Red Bossa Trio - Steen Rasmussen (piano); Kaspar Vadsholt (bass) and Celso De Almeida (drums) - play the title track Red Bossa from their new album released on the 28th November [See Recent Releases]
Two Ears Three Eyes
Nat Steele
Photographer Brian O'Connor from imagesofjazz.com took this picture of vibes player Nat Steele when he was playing with pianist Nick Tomalin and the E17 Quintet in August. The band were featuring an evening of tributes to George Shearing to raise funds for the National Jazz Archive.
Nat Steele is a vibraphone player based in London and co-leads a sextet with tenor saxophonist Mark Crooks. Nat says : "Recently I was contacted by a producer working for BMG to write the liner notes for a new double vinyl album of MJQ material that was recorded but never released by Milt Jackson et al in the '80s and '90s, selected from several appearances at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Needless to say I was honoured to be asked to be involved, and also quite daunted because the notes were being approved by none other than Sandra Jackson, Milt's wife!"
Here is a video of Nat and his Quartet playing Autumn In New York at South Hill Park in Bracknell in 2018.
As readers will know, Brian O'Connor recently had a fall when photographing at another gig. Hopefully his arm will be out of a sling and he will be back behind the camera in the new year. Fortunately, Brian's humour remains intact - he has sent me this cartoon:
Did You Know?
Dizzy Gillespie's Trumpet
On January 6, 1953, Dizzy threw a party for his wife Lorraine at Snookie's, a club in Manhattan, when someone fell on top of his horn while it was on a trumpet stand and bent it, but Dizzy liked the sound so much he had a special trumpet made with a 45-degree raised bell, a customization that would become his trademark.
There are other stories that Dizzy dropped the trumpet, but Joseph Stromberg in the Smithsonian Magazine quotes John Edward Hasse, a music curator at the museum: "In 1985, I was a new, fresh curator and I wanted to start collecting in the area of jazz. I wrote Gillespie a letter, at his home address in New Jersey, inviting him to become part of the Smithsonian by donating a trumpet that he no longer played. Weeks and months went by, and no response.”
"A colleague suggested to Hasse that he try writing to Gillespie’s wife, Lorraine, instead. “Four days after sending the letter, this great big box arrives at the museum by UPS!” Hasse says. “In it is his trumpet and a specially built trumpet case to accommodate this unusual shape, with travel stickers from France and various parts of the world. I could hardly believe it.”
"Typically, Hasse says, the donation process involves a number of planning steps, including arranging special shipping and extremely careful packing. “This just came in like ‘boom!" Hasse chose Gillespie as one of the musicians to build the Smithsonian’s jazz collection because of his remarkable influence on music....... But it wasn’t until 1953 that, by happenstance, he acquired his final visual trademark. “Somebody fell accidentally on Gillespie’s trumpet as it was standing up on a trumpet stand, and as a result, the bell was bent,” says Hasse. “Gillespie picked it up, played it, and discovered he liked the sound, and that it projected better over the heads of the audience of people in the back of the nightclub. ..... Ever since that time,” Hasse says, “When he got a new trumpet, he had it specially made for him, with the bell bent at 45 degrees.”
Dizzy's trumpet was so famous, in fact, that it was the most expensive trumpet ever sold. After his death in 1993, his horn was sold at auction for $55,000.
Take Two
Chelsea Bridge
According to Duke Ellington's biographer, James Lincoln Collier, Billy Strayhorn was inspired by a J.M.W. Turner (or James McNeill Whistler) painting of Battersea Bridge during a trip to Europe and perhaps mistakenly named the song after Chelsea Bridge. The bridge does link Battersea to Chelsea, but so does Battersea Bridge, "Battersea Bridge is a five-span arch bridge with cast-iron girders and granite piers. A description that doesn't fit the mood of Billy Strayhorn's composition as well as Turner's painting does.
Battersea Bridge (J.M.W. Turner)
For the first of our two 'takes', it seems appropriate to turn to Duke Ellington's Orchestra. This video from 1966 features saxophonist Paul Gonsalves:
It becomes more difficult to choose our second 'take' There is a lovely video of Ben Webster playing the tune here or interesting archive (crackley) footage of Ben from 1959 here. There are no lyrics to Chelsea Bridge so a number of vocalists have sung wordlessly to the tune as Ella did here. More recently Joe Lovano played a version at the Copenhagen Jazz House here. All are worth hearing, and I am sure there are other versions too, but the idea of Take Two is to feature different jazz approaches to a tune. For our second take then we turn to the Joan Chamorro Quartet with Scott Hamilton. The difference here is young Carla Motis' guitar playing:
Those of us who admire the work of Joan Chamorro and the Sant Andreu Jazz Band in Barcelona will know that Carla is the younger sister of trumpeter Andrea Motis. You can read more about Carla's story here where in interview she says: "Joan has a talent for making you love this music, He makes it fun for the children. He’s a funny person. You absorb his energy, and then, as you grow up, you start listening by yourself, and start to investigate it on your own.”
The Story Is Told
Hetty Goes Clubbing
The Six Bells, Chelsea
'Running a jazz club gave me an illuminating insight into what is quaintly described as 'human nature'. Most people didn't begrudge paying a mere five or six shillings to listen to the cream of the country's jazz musicians, but there were some to whom getting into a jazz club without paying was a cardinal principle. They wouldn't dream of entering a cinema or leaving a restaurant without paying, but jazz clubs involved a different morality. Why, I don't know, but it was one of the facts of a club promoter's life. Some of them would try any physical manouevre and exercise ingenious verbal ploys rather than pay for admission. I discovered that the musicians had an extraordinary number of friends willing to lend support - moral but not financial. My standard rejoinder, which never went down well with these mumpers, was that friendship for individuals on the bandstand was best expressed by paying to see them...
A hazard peculiar to the Six Bells was the 'Chelsea Set' ..... "Oh don't be such a silly little man," spluttered one outraged Hetty when I politely requested payment. I'm six feet tall, but the appellation was indicative of social attitude rather than a reference to my height. "I know the band very well," she cried. "They've been to hundreds of my parties! Now let me pass!" was her most imperious demand.
Her escort was silent until I remarked that she was very unpleasant. His contribution was straight from P.G. Wodehouse. "Oh, I say, look here. I shall jolly well have to ask you to take that back!" She eventually departed snarling malevolently at 'such a silly little man' and protesting that she could 'buy the place over and over again'. An odd claim to wealth from someone not prepared to pay a few shillings' entrance fee .....
Generally we had little real trouble, although I quickly made the discovery that individuals in the more exalted professions don't necessarily have higher standards of behaviour. On the contrary. My problem people were actors, doctors and solicitors .......There was a solicitor, since struck off, who came along solely to conduct the band. He was ferret-like, middle-aged and slightly demented. He had a rival in Johnny the Conductor and one night the band had the benefit of two maestri, each with his own interpretation of tempi, nuance and rhythm ....'
From All This And Many A Dog by Jim Godbolt
You might have seen this film Momma Don't Allow by Karel Reisz and Tony Richardson featuring Wood Green Jazz Club with the Chris Barber band in 1956. It was at one time on YouTube but it is now watchable free from BFI HERE (scroll down to 'Watch for Free). It is valuable archive film from the time, but it is also relevent to Jim Goldbolt's story as the 'Chelsea Set' arrive later in the film.
Anagram
What A Day
Snorre Kirk and Joe Webb
On Collaboration
by Howard Lawes
Danish drummer Snorre Kirk has most often visited the UK during the periodic "Sounds of Denmark" events at Pizza Express showcasing Danish jazz. His releases on Stunt Records have received good, but not rave reviews, so it might come as a surprise to some that his previous album, Top Dog (2023), was Number 1 in the USA according to Jazz Week and over the 52 week period to date was the third most popular album with 4282 radio plays.
His music, reminiscent of classic American smooth jazz and swing, no doubt causes jazz critics sleepless nights as they endeavour to identify the inspiration for Kirk's original compositions. Born in Norway but based in Denmark, Snorre Kirk's debut album, Blues Modernism (2012), was "Jazz Album of the Year" in Denmark and received two nominations for Danish Grammy awards. Kirk's bands are usually homegrown with non-Scandinavian guest performers but for his latest album, What A Day (2024) he has recruited three members of the gone but not forgotten Kansas Smitty's House Band that did so much to popularise the sound of 1920s and 1930s jazz with the modern audience in London.
Snorre Kirk met reedsman Giacomo Smith, leader of Kansas Smitty's in London, who then introduced him to pianist Joe Webb, and immediately Kirk recognised two like-minded musicians. Kirk says "I have worked with many amazing musicians but rarely have I experienced the feeling of shared vision and connection as clearly as with Giacomo and Joe". Bassist and previous Snorre Kirk collaborator, Anders Fjelsted, completes the quartet but ex-Kansas Smitty's guitarist, Alexander 'Honey' Boulton guests on three tracks and plays a similar role to that of Freddie Green in Count Basie's bands.
What A Day is Snorre Kirk's eighth album as leader and the quartet is his smallest band yet. However his feeling is that "the smaller group offers much more freedom, which I enjoy". Kirk takes a dim view of those that categorise jazz into sub-genres, and he says "Regardless of labels you can develop music and make it your own if you approach it honestly and with the right intentions". Snorre Kirk's music has garnered a large audience; his compositions are appreciated for their timelessness and quality, harking back to the classic jazz of yesteryear that never grows old. Tracks on the album include the up tempo bebop style Palagio Shout, Fontainbleu, One For The Road which sounds like a classic blues but in 8 bars rather than 12 and Blues Beat which features a bass solo and Django style guitar. Here is a video of the band playing The Blues (not on the What A Day album):
Via Zoom, Joe Webb talked about being part of Snorre Kirk's quartet, recording the new album and some of his own projects. Joe has been part of Snorre Kirk's European Quartet for a while and has toured in Europe with the band visiting Bremen in Germany, the Riverboat Festival in Silkeborg, Denmark, Paris, where they played out on the street and the Copenhagen Jazz Festival. It has all been great fun and while Snorre and Giacomo seem more concerned about the cut of their suits, Joe and bass player Anders Fjeldsted are more interested in football. Joe says he rarely listens to his recordings and has probably only heard What A Day once, he is much happier playing live and looking ahead to future projects, but here is the band with Opening Night from the What A Day album:
Joe's sideman role, rather than bandleader, in Snorre Kirk's band is more unusual these days although he does play piano on Zara McFarlane's latest album, Sweet Whispers (2024), celebrating the life of Sarah Vaughan and Damian Lewis's Mission Creep Live (2024). Since signing for Edition Records in 2023 Joe has released Collblanc (2024) and SET (2024), which are both EPs, followed by the album Hamstrings and Hurricanes (2024). Collblanc, is a part of Barcelona that is closest to Nou Camp, the home of FC Barcelona, and until 2021, where Joe and his Dad used to watch their hero, Lionel Messi play football. Joe has happy memories of his visits to Barcelona and hanging out in the Bar Marsella, a legendary watering hole for Picasso, Hemingway and Woody Allen. The album SET draws its inspiration from the chaotic beauty of a theatre's set after the show when everyone has gone home, a scene that Joe must know well as live performance is his lifeblood. Joe's busy schedule combines regular gigs at Green Note and 28-50 By Night in London with frequent visits to Europe. The launch of Hamstrings and Hurricanes during the EFG London Jazz Festival heralds the start of a new tour of Europe and the UK. Joe explains that the strange name for the album illustrates, once again, something of an obsession with Lionel Messi who injured his hamstring while playing for his new club, Inter Miami, in a city very much at risk from hurricanes. Joe was born in Swansea and some of the tracks on the album have titles in Welsh, including one, Hiraeth, which means 'Homesick'. Joe has spent more time in Wales recently and has very fond memories of his early life there, including playing at Swansea Jazz Club when he was still at school. Another track is an affectionate tribute to his grandparents.
While primarily a jazz pianist Joe's inspirations are eclectic, ranging from great jazz pianists such as Duke Ellington and Oscar Petersen to '90s rock bands such as Nirvana, who are celebrated with a track on SET. He frequently collaborates with ex-Kansas Smitty's leader, Giacomo Smith while his band members, Will Sach on double bass and Sam Jesson on drums have been playing with him for a long time. Previous collaborators have included guitarist Rob Luft, drummer Corrie Dick and saxophonist Joe Wright who Joe Webb refers to as 'a genius'. Another musician that Joe is completely in awe of is the drummer Shaney Forbes, with whom he collaborated on a project celebrating the singer and pianist Blossom Dearie.
Returning to the collaboration on What A Day, here is a video of the band playing A Thing Like That from the album:
Joe's career prospects in the UK and in Europe with Snorre Kirk look very bright. If What A Day does as well in America as Kirk's previous album, Top Dog, Joe may well end up watching his beloved Messi in Miami as well.
What A Day is available here, and here is another track, Honey:
Lens America
Journalist/guitarist Filipe Freitas and photographer Clara Pereira run JazzTrail in New York City. They feature album and concert coverage, press releases and press kits, album covers and biographies. They are valued contacts for Sandy Brown Jazz in the United States. You can read Filipe's reviews of album releases here and see Clara's gallery of pictures here.
Clara Pereira took this picture of violin / viola player Mat Maneri when he was playing, with pianist Lucian Ban, their interpretation of Hungarian composer Béla Bartók’s folk tunes from their recent album Transalvanian Dance (here) at New York’s Fotografiska .
Filipe Freitas writes: "Pianist Lucian Ban and violist Mat Maneri have been performing together for 14 years, and their deep musical chemistry is evident in every note....The performance was accompanied by projected photographs Bartók himself had taken in Transylvania in 1910, adding an interesting visual layer to the music. ...“Transylvanian Dance”, a lively piece, is marked by Ban’s vamping piano curlicues and Maneri’s expressive use of both arco and pizzicato techniques. Following “Harvest Moon Ballad”, a tearful melancholic song of transcendental beauty, Ban played the original recording of Bartok’s “Make Me, Lord, Slim and Tall” on his phone before tackling it with his own improvisational touch. He explained to the audience that the duo never plays these pieces the same way twice, a clear indication of their improvisational instincts. The concert also featured a song not included on the album, before concluding with the irresistibly enchanting “Poor is My Heart”. The music allowed us to spiritually travel to far-flung lands and ancient times while spreading a sense of warmth and positive energy throughout the room. This dynamic fusion of folk traditions with avant-garde sensibilities demonstrated once again why Ban and Maneri’s partnership is so special."
Here is a brief introductory video for the album.
Who Am I?
I was born in Long Island, New York in 1898. Seems a long time ago now. I started playing the piano and violin then took up the trombone when I was 15. In the 1920s I played with the Original Memphis Five, and in 1926 I got together with Red Nichols for a band under my name. I guess some people thought the band's name was something to do with teeth! I was with Red when he started up The Five Pennies until ‘Big T’ took over on trombone but I joined Paul Whiteman’s Orchestra and Benny Goodman’s too, as well as leading some bands of my own. My health got worse in the late 1950s. A benefit to raise money for my medical expenses was scheduled too late and sadly I died in 1961. It’s nice that people still remember me and my music though.
Click on the picture for the answer
Time Out Ten
Rockin' Chair
The Morning Call Jazz Band
For this item you need to be able to stop for ten minutes.
We are often moving on to the next job, the next meeting, scrolling down social media, taking the next call ......'Time Out Ten' asks you to stop for ten minutes and listen to a particular piece of music; to find a time when you won't be interrupted, when you can put in/on your headphones and chill out. Ten minutes isn't long.
But perhaps this item should come with a warning? Maybe it is better not to take those ten minutes directly after lunch or the chair might claim you for the rest of the afternoon? Unless, of course, you have finished your jobs, your rushing around, in which case a snooze might not be such a bad idea.
Old rockin' chair's got me, my cane by my side
Fetch me that gin, son, 'fore I tan your hide
Can't get from this cabin, goin' nowhere
Just set me here grabbin' at the flies round this rockin' chair
The Morning Call Jazz Band are French jazz musicians; their line up has changed slightly over the past few years with Mathieu Najean (saxophones) and Timothé le Maire (trombone) as continuing members - on this video from 2018 they are joined by Pauline Leblond (trumpet) Matteo Carola (guitar) and Cedric Raymond (double bass).
Hoagy Carmichael's Rockin' Chair was first recorded on February 19, 1929 by Hoagy as a test for Victor Records, but not released at the time. Hoagy Carmichael and his Orchestra recorded a new version on May 21, 1930 featuring Bix Beiderbecke on cornet. This second version is with two vocalists (Carmichael and Irving Brodsky) and has been recorded several times as a "call and response" song between an ageing father and his son (lyrics here).
Sound Man Of Jazz
Rudy Van Gelder
by Robin Kidson
If you take a look at the small print on the jazz album covers in your record collection, then you’ll probably find one name keeps popping up again and again: Rudy Van Gelder, as in 'Recorded by Rudy Van Gelder at Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ' or 'Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey'.
Rudy Van Gelder was arguably the greatest, most prolific recording engineer in the history of recorded jazz. “I think I’ve been associated with more records, technically”, he once said, “than anybody else in the history of the record business”. His expertise brought some of the most iconic jazz albums ever to fruition, including A Love Supreme (John Coltrane), Saxophone Colossus (Sonny Rollins), Out To Lunch (Eric Dolphy), The Sidewinder (Lee Morgan), Somethin’ Else (Cannonball Adderley)…. He worked for a number of labels but is particularly associated with Blue Note.
2024 marks the 100th anniversary of Van Gelder’s birth so now is as good a time as any to remember the life and career of this key figure in the development of jazz. Born on 2nd November 1924 in Jersey City, he became interested in both amateur radio and jazz at an early age. When he was twelve years old, he acquired a primitive home recording device, including a turntable and blank discs. He had some musical training, taking trumpet lessons as a child and playing in his school band.
Becoming a professional recording engineer did not seem possible to Van Gelder at the time so he opted for a career as an optometrist instead. “I felt that studying optometry would give me the mental discipline I needed and a steady income after I graduated”, he said. He qualified as an optometrist in 1946, and then set up his own practice in Teaneck, New Jersey. In the evenings, however, he began recording local musicians in the living room of his parents’ house at 25 Prospect Avenue, Hackensack, New Jersey. The house had only recently been built and Van Gelder had persuaded his parents to let him incorporate various design features in the living room so that it could double up as a recording space.
Van Gelder began to develop a reputation as a recording engineer, helped by the distinctive acoustics of his parent’s living room. In 1952, he met Alfred Lion, producer and co-founder of Blue Note Records. Lion was impressed by the Van Gelder sound and from 1953 to 1959, Blue Note recorded exclusively in Mr. and Mrs. Gelder’s living room.
Other labels also began using his services, notably Savoy and Prestige. Soon, the jazz greats were making the journey out to Hackensack. To take one year at random – 1954, for example – the musicians who recorded at Hackensack that year included Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, the Modern Jazz Quartet, Thad Jones, Sonny Rollins and Charles Mingus. One of the Miles Davis sessions resulted in the classic Walkin’ album; and Monk recorded side one of Monk. Thelonious Monk was so taken with Van Gelder and his studio that he wrote a tribute, Hackensack. Here’s a live version from a BBC concert in 1965 with Monk on piano, Charlie Rouse (sax), Larry Gales (bass), and Ben Riley (drums):
Throughout the 1950s, Van Gelder was recording virtually every day whilst still practicing as an optometrist. “I was examining eyes one day, and Wednesday, I’d be recording Miles Davis”, he said. As well as Walkin’, Miles recorded his Relaxin’, Steamin’, Workin’ and Cookin’ albums at Hackensack. He was also part of the 1957 session that resulted in Cannonball Adderley’s great Blue Note album, Somethin’ Else. Other classics which came out of Hackensack included Sonny Rollins’s Saxophone Colossus, John Coltrane’s Blue Train and Moanin’ by Art Blakey. Here is the title track of Moanin’ , with Blakey on drums, Lee Morgan (trumpet), Benny Golson (tenor sax), Bobby Timmons (piano) and Jymie Merritt (bass). It’s strange to reflect that this icon of fifties jazz was recorded in somebody’s living room by an optometrist in his spare time. There’s a video, a “virtual tour”, showing the layout of the Hackensack studio in the 1950s together with photos of some of the sessions and extracts from the music recorded.
The Jazz Quiz
Place The Face
Trumpet Players
In the quiz this month we give you pictures of ten jazz trumpet players - how many can you recognise?
The December Jazz Quiz is
Jazz Remembered
Freddy Randall
Trumpeter, cornet player, vocalist and bandleader Freddy (Frederick James) Randall was born on the 6th May 1921 in Clapton in the East London borough of Hackney. His father, Henry, was a bus conductor for the London Omnibus Company based in garages in Holloway Road. His mother, Jane, was a housewife. Freddy went to Daubeney Road School where he was introduced to music and he took up the trumpet when he was sixteen. He joined Albert Bale’s Darktown Strutters and Will De Barr’s Band and by 1939, when the family had moved to nearby Layton, Freddy was working as a motor cycle mechanic. He was eighteen when he started his first band, the St. Louis Four and then played as a freelance sideman in the early 1940s. Freddy served with the Rifle Brigade during World War II but was invalided out in 1943. He joined Freddy Mirfield's group the Garbage Men in 1944, a band that also included saxophonist Johnny Dankworth, and won a Melody Maker Individual Award at a concert in September. Here are The Garbage Men in September 1944 playing Good Old Wagon Blues with Freddy Randall (trumpet); Dennis Crocker (trombone); Johnny Dankworth (clarinet); Sam Dowell (tenor sax); Sam Bayles (piano); Bob Coram (guitar); Stan Peacey (bass) and Freddie Mirfield (drums) :
In the late 1940s, Freddy led his own Dixieland jazz groups and in 1946 started his first professional band, appearing regularly at the Cleveland Rhythm Club run by his brother Harry, He recorded for the Parlophone label and the liner notes for one album say “(Humphrey) Lyttelton had secured a recording contract with the major Parlophone label. At that stage his only serious rival was Freddy Randall who also joined the Parlophone ranks in 1951. Lyttelton's band was stylistically evolving, but Randall chose to base his band in the Chicago style of Eddie Condon, Wild Bill Davison and their cohorts. It was driving, foot-stomping stuff led by Randall's fiery trumpet playing. For seven years the band recorded some excellent tracks for Parlophone”. Freddy’s was the first British post-war jazz group to tour the United States in 1956 in exchange for the Louis Armstrong All-Stars, then Freddy gave up music between 1958 and 1963 due to lung problems. During this time he ran a nursing home in Berkshire. Here is his band in 1953 with At The Jazz Band Ball : Freddy Randall (trumpet); Archie Semple (clarinet); Roy Crimmins (trombone); Ronnie Stone (bass); Lennie Hastings (drums); Dave Fraser (piano).
Bernard Victor writes: “I have good memories of the Freddy Randall band back in the late '40s. I was a regular attendee at Cooks Ferry Inn. Unlike most jazz clubs at the time, there was no dancing, you just sat and listened. The Freddy Randall band was quite different from all the other traditional bands at the time. Instead of playing music based on what was considered true New Orleans jazz, they played some traditional numbers but also tunes from the Great American Songbook, in a similar style to the Eddie Condon and Muggsy Spanier bands, and shock horror they had saxophones in their line-up, including I think Bruce Turner and Jimmy Skidmore. I enjoyed it much more than the average trad band, and it helped me progress into listening to modern jazz at The Flamingo club.”
There does not seem to be much film footage online with Freddy Randall, but it is fortunate that Movietone News picked up a story in 1964 when 8 year old clarinettist Brian Ling joined Freddy and the band at Wood Green Jazz Club. (The band personnel are not named):
In the mid-1960s Freddy began recording again, frequently teaming up with clarinet player Dave Shepherd. Here is Freddy however with Dr Jazz and the line-up on this track is Freddy Randall (trumpet); Al Gay (clarinet); Pete Hodge (trombone); Brian Lemon (piano); Gerry Salisbury (bass) and Buzz Green (drums).
In a second return he was part of ‘Britain's Greatest Jazz Band’ described as “a sort of 'fantasy Jazz Band created by two fans. It was put together for a short tour, but proved so successful that, with one personnel change, it became the basis for Freddy's finest band, "The Freddy Randall - Dave Shepherd Jazz All Stars”. With the All Stars he backed many visiting American musicians including Sidney Bechet, Bud Freeman, Wild Bill Davison, Pee Wee Russell, Bill Coleman and Teddy Wilson. He recorded for Black Lion Records in 1972–73, and his band with Dave Shepherd appeared at the Montreaux Jazz Festival. Here is Wild Bill Davison with Freddy's band playing Royal Garden Blues.
Freddy retired from touring in the late 1970s but he still played gigs around the Essex area in the 1980s, usually with his own quintet and recorded with Benny Waters in 1982. Here they are with Sugar:
Freddy finally gave up playing and retired to Teignmouth in Devon in early 1993. He died there six years later aged 78 on 18 May 1999.
A Facebook page dedicated to Freddy Randall was established by someone who sadly died in 2023, but it still seems to be online and can be found here. There is much more of Freddy's music to listen to on YouTube.
If you have memories of Freddy Randall and his band(s) please let us know.
The Hassle Is Real!
by Matt Fripp of Jazzfuel
Matt Fripp set up his own music agency and website, Jazzfuel, in 2016, since when he has established a client base across many countries. Although born in the UK, Matt is currently based with his family in Paris, France, but the international aspects of his work make little difference to his location. What is different about Matt and Jazzfuel is the information that he shares publicly on his website. Matt has kindly agreed to share some of his thoughts as an agent with us from time to time:
There's a market near my office which sells local vegetables, fish, cheese and salt. It's usually pretty busy, so I was surprised to stop by yesterday and find it EMPTY of customers...
The reason? The big area out front is being dug up, so there's no parking. People know it's open, they know it's good, but they can't be bothered with the hassle of finding a space, carrying their bags further and hopping over building work.
Don't underestimate this effect when it comes to your career...
▶️ Promoters put off by slow replies or broken links
▶️ Fans leaving your website because it's a mess
▶️ Journalists passing on your album because the press release isn't coherent
▶️ Agents turned off because the band organisation sounds complicated
▶️ Funders turning you down because the budget isn't presented properly
▶️ Press outlets not tagging you on socials because they can't find you
They might seem like silly reasons, but most people want less 'hassle' in their lives! Whatever you want (gigs, reviews, fans...) consider making it as easy and seamless as possible for those people to say 'yes' to the next step.
p.s. if you're looking for a jazz publicist for your next album, please keep in mind that 'lead time' is often longer than you think! We've already closed up our PR roster for Jan/Feb 2025 and are about to do the same for March.
All the best.
Matt
Forum
Who Is This Band?
Last month, John Mumford asked if we could remember the band in this picture? We have so many images now that it is a huge task to try and identify them without some information. We asked if anyone recognised them?
Our thanks to Guy Sivey who almost straight away gave us this link to a Facebook page saying: "In 1927, Frank Shelton "Red" Perkins (1890–1976) renamed the Omaha Night Owls jazz band as Red Perkins' and His Dixie Ramblers."
Sandy Brown Association
In 1996, Dr John Latham in Swansea, South Wales started the Sandy Brown Association whose membership formed an appreciation group for the music and career of clarinettist and bandleader Sandy Brown. Over the years, John has posted out a monthly A4 sheet Newsletter about Sandy to Association members, but he has also campaigned to get various of Sandy's recordings released, plaques to Sandy put up in a number of places such as the 100 Club in London and has been co-author of Sandy's discography. In December John wrote: "Season's Greetings to all! However, I regret to say that the Newsletter has been going since 1996, and my intention is to close it this month. I am now 84 and it is probably better to end it while I am still compus mentis! So very many thanks to all who have contributed to it over the years, and those who have taken it. I hope it has helped keep the memory of Sandy alive!" [Our thanks to John whose dedication and work has been invaluable - Ed]
Jazz Clubs Worldwide
Peter Maguire who established the website and database Jazz Clubs Worldwide some years ago has written: "Jazz Clubs Worldwide has undergone complete revision and updates this year. Post-COVID, has had a major impact on the global jazz scene. It is however interesting to note, just how resilient it has been. There have been, without doubt, some important losses and changes, but there have also been a significant number of new additions within each sector." The website contains more than just Jazz Clubs. Details are here.
Requests For Information
We have received requests for information about the following topics - can you help?
The Folk Barge, Kingston-upon-Thames
Oscar Rabin
The Viaduct Pub, Hanwell
Departure Lounge
Information has arrived about the following musicians or people connected to jazz who have passed through the 'Departure Lounge' since our last update.
When this page first started, links to newspaper obituaries were free. Then increasingly advertisements were added and now many newspapers ask for a subscription to read a full obituary. Where possible, we initially link to a Wikipedia page which is still free of charge, but we also give links to newspaper obituaries in case you want to read them.
Dave Tomlin
UK saxophonist particularly known for his work with Mike Taylor. We have heard from Dave's brother, Tony, that Dave passed through the Departure Lounge on 2nd November aged 90. There is reference to Dave here.
Quincy Jones
Born in Chicago in 1933, Quincy Delight Jones Jr played piano and trumpet and at 20 joined the Lionel Hampton Orchestra until 1954 when he moved to New York and began writing music. In 1956 he joined Dizzy Gillespie as a trumpeter and music director and in 1957 moved to Paris to study composition and theory. In the 1960s he started writing film scores and working as an arranger for many stars including Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra and others. His production work spread to pop stars, Michael Jackson being a prime example, but he was still involved with jazz, producing Miles Davis' last album. Of course, there was much more which you can read about online. On November 3, 2024, Quincy Jones passed through the Departure Lounge at his home in the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles at the age of 91. Obituaries: Wikipedia : The Guardian : New York Times : BBC : A CBS video looking at Quincy Jones' life is here.
Roy Haynes
Award winning American drummer born in Boston in 1925. He was given the name 'Snap Crackle' and became one of the most recorded drummers in jazz. He played with Lester Young and Charlie Parker's bands, recorded with many musicians including Stan Getz, Bud Powell and Wardell Gray, toured with Sarah Vaughan and also led his own bands including the Hip Ensemble. Roy passed through the Departure Lounge after a short illness in Nassau County, New York on 12th November 2024. Obituaries: Wikipedia : New York Times : The Guardian : A video of Roy Haynes playing Desafinado/Chega de Saudade with Stan Getz, Gary Burton and Steve Swallow is here.
Lou Donaldson
American alto saxophonist born in North Carolina in 1926. He recorded with Milt Jackson, Thelonious Monk and Clifford Brown amongst others, and played in bands with Blue Mitchell, Art Blakey and Horace Silver. Lou passed through the Departure Lounge on 9th November 2024. Obituaries: Wikipedia : New York Times :
The Guardian : A video of Lou Donaldson playing Blues Walk with Jimmy Smith, Kenny Burrell and Grady Tate is here.
Alastair Robertson
Born was born in Aberdeen, in Scotland in 1941. His friend, saxophonist Frank Griffith writes: "A great contributor to UK and USA jazz his label, Hep Records emerged in 1974 and continued to trade until the present day. As a young Aberdonian, Robertson discovered Jazz via the syndicated broadcasts of Voice Of America (hosted by Willis Conover) and The American Forces Network (from Frankfurt) in the early 1950s. Hep was launched while Robertson was resident in Edinburgh teaching Art A-Levels at the Portobello High School. His first LP released in 1974 was The Boyd Raeburn Band , an innovative NYC ensemble from the mid 1940s. Hep’s output consisted of three categories of genres. The Metronome, 1000 and 2000 series. Metronome featured reissues of classic works by the likes of Buddy Defranco, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Claude Thornhill, Alec Wilder, David Allyn and the Dorsey Brothers. Similarly, the 1000 Series would include many of the black big bands from as far back as the 1920s like Fletcher Henderson, Don Redman Bennie Moten, Chick Webb as well as the small groups of jazz icons, Slim Gaillard, Roy Eldridge, Teddy Wilson, Stuff Smith and Coleman Hawkins. Alastair’s unique and possibly most remarkable offering to Jazz was his 2000 Series which commissioned studio recordings from “living” artists from the USA and UK. These would include Jimmy Deuchar, Don Lanphere, Eddie Thompson, Bobby Wellins, Tony Coe, Jim Mullen, Joe Temperley, Tina May and Americans, Frank Griffith, John Hart and Dan Nimmer (Wynton Marsalis’ pianist) among countless others. Hep’s final CD was recorded in June 2024 and is still awaiting release. Referred to by Alastair as “The Last Hurrah” it was a 10tet date celebrating Scots musicians and Scots-themed pieces. Among the stellar ensemble are Malcolm Macfarlane, Gordon Campbell, Dave Milligan, Tom Gordon, Konrad Wiszniewski and Ewan Hastie. I had the privilege of leading and organising the session as well as contributing five pieces along with English trombonist/arranger Adrian Fry, who wrote three pieces and conducted ......." Alastair passed through the Departure Lounge on October 23, 2024 in Perth, Scotland at the age of 84.
Recent Releases
A few words about recent releases / reviews:
Apart from where they are included in articles on this website, I don't have a 'Reviews' section for a number of reasons:
-
I receive so many requests to review recordings it is impossible to include them all.
-
Unlike some publications/blogs, Sandy Brown Jazz is not a funded website and it is not possible to pay reviewers.
-
Reviews tend to be personal opinions, something a reviewer likes might not suit you, or vice versa.
-
It is difficult to capture music in words, so much better to be able to listen and see whether the music interests you.
For these reasons in particular I just include a selection of recent recordings below where I share the notes issued by the musician(s) as an introduction and links to samples so you can 'taste' the music for yourselves. For those who like to read reviews, these, of course, can be checked out on other sites.
Some Recent Releases
You will find the Recent Releases page HERE Where you can scroll down and see the featured releases. Included this month are:
UK
Tommy Smith and John Taylor - Love Unrequited
Henrik Jensen - Above Your House
America
The Joymakers - Down Where The Bluebonnets Grow
Isaiah Collier And The Chosen Few - The World Is On Fire
Brad Shepik - Human Activity : Dream Of The Possible
Caleb Wheeler Curtis - The True Story Of Bears Anbd The Invention Of The Battery
Europe and Elsewhere
Michel Petrucciaci Trio - Jazz Club Montmartre 1988
Lionel Loueke, Dave Holland - United
Steen Rasmussen, Kaspar Vadsholt, Celso De Almeida - Red Bossa