11/15/19 Van Morrison - Bring It On Home

Van Morrison - Bring It On Home To Me (2017)

Somehow, unlike his contemporaries Roger Daltry, Neil Young and Bob Dylan, Van Morrison seems to sound better every year and continues to tour and put out music at a furious rate. In case you didn't notice, he has been putting out two albums a year of new material in the last few years! His latest,
Three Chords And The Truth is another triumph, check it out!

This video from 2017 shows Van doing what he does best, singing a classic Sam Cooke with his soulful band (those back up singers!!)

Van continues his never-ending tour in Las Vegas in January, and Yoshi's in Oakland CA in February.

10/25/19 The WHO, on the Smothers Brothers 1967

52 years ago The Who had already conquered England, and were on their way to becoming world famous as "that rock band that smashes their equipment".

I just saw The Who at the Hollywood Bowl the other night, and they are still rocking. Roger Daltry and Pete Townsend are now well into their 70's, but they sounded great!  Here is a blast from the past, The Who on The Smother Brother's Comedy Hour. Pete claims his hearing problems started when Keith Moon blew up his drums on this show.

https://youtu.be/OiSKu7SbGNQ?t=90

10/18/19 Horowitz Plays Schubert

Horowitz - Schubert Impromptu #3

I had to honor of seeing Vladimir Horowitz at Boston Symphony Hall in 1975. Many people consider him to be one of the greatest pianists that ever lived. This video from 1987 (2 years before he died) at his penultimate public recital is stunning in its focus and apparent simplicity, but a careful listening reveals intricacies that are detailed and carefully crafted.

Watch the video, and it seems like nothing moves except his fingers.

Horowitz's hand position was unusual in that the palm was often below the level of the key surface. He frequently played chords with straight fingers, and the little finger of his right hand was often curled up until it needed to play a note. For all the excitement of his playing, Horowitz rarely raised his hands higher than the piano's fallboard. His body was immobile, and his face seldom reflected anything other than intense concentration.

Horowitz preferred to perform on Sunday afternoons, as he felt audiences were better rested and more attentive than on weekday evenings. Listen to this today, and again on Sunday, in honor of his death, 30 years ago (November 5, 1989)

https://youtu.be/FxhbAGwEYGQ

10/11/19 - Bill Evans -Never Let Me Go

Bill Evans made only a couple of solo recordings, but when you listen to them you realize that this is what he loved most and what he was meant to do: just play piano, for himself and the person that cares to stop and listen. Evans played to audiences of no more than a dozen people, he didn’t care. He had to play, he had to be heard even if by just one person. There was no hero-worshipping this guy when he was alive. Maybe some people took his style for granted, or he was so ahead of his time that people just didn’t notice that what he was doing was legendary. Regardless, Bill Evans was a no-ego guy who just adored his piano. And, naturally, it shows. This recording, made in 1968 when he was in a high period with one of his best trios, in a loving relationship and with his drug habit in remission, is a gem - and it won the Grammy for Best Jazz Album.

https://youtu.be/uEyvjHuMR4E

9/27/19 Eliane Elias - Chega De Saudade

Elaine Elias is the "Brazilian Diana Krall" - only better!  An incredible pianist, singer, and performer, she would be a whole lot more famous if she was from America.  As it is, she continues to win awards for Latin Jazz, but she is so much more than a Latin Jazz artist.  Here she is with a stellar quartet, playing Chega De Saudade (published English version is "No More Blues") by Jobim 
Marc Johnson - Bass (Bill Evans' last bass player)

Rubens de La Corte - Guitar (a fellow Brazilian, also overlooked)
Rafael Barata - Drums

https://youtu.be/IlI5eTr5a-0

 Elaine will be at the Moss Theater with a Jazz Bakery show on

October 4 - don't miss it!

9/20/19 Robbie Robertson and Ringo Starr - "The Weight"

Playing For Change is a movement created to inspire and connect the world through music, born from the shared belief that music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people. https://playingforchange.com/

Their primary focus is to record and film musicians performing in their natural environments and combine their talents and cultural power in innovative videos they call Songs Around the World. Creating these videos motivated us to form the Playing For Change Band—a tangible, traveling representation of their mission, featuring musicians met along the journey; and establish the Playing For Change Foundation.

Their latest video features Robbie Robertson, Ringo Starr and musicians performing together across 5 continents celebrating the 50th anniversary of The Band song, "The Weight"

 https://youtu.be/ph1GU1qQ1zQ

9/6/2019 Bill Evans - Detour Ahead

Many people (yours truly included) feel that Bill Evans represents the peak of the piano trio concept.

Sure there were people (dating back to Fats Waller) playing in the piano trio format, but Bill raised the level by making it a trio of equals, each with their own voice. His  harmonic creativity is still unparralleled. 

Probably best known for playing and writing some of the songs on Miles Davis' "Kind Of Blue" album (though Miles never gave Evans a writing credit), Bill Evans did a European tour with a trio in 1965. There is some debate as to who his rhythm section was on this recording, but most likely the drummer is Alan Dawson, and the bassist is Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen

https://youtu.be/aOQSNR0FnOU

 Please enjoy this beautiful ballad, "Detour Ahead", written by Herb Ellis, Johnny Frigo, and Lou Carter