Gear Up for the JVC Jazz Festival with Some Hot New Recordings
by Steve Matteo
As we do every June, we'll take a look at some jazz and related recordings and events in honor of the JVC Jazz Festival coming to town.
From the Verve family comes an excellent reissue of the Herb Ellis album Ellis in Wonderland. Recorded at the end of 1956 and the beginning of 1957 and produced by Norman Granz, the album features the sometimes unheralded guitarist joined by the likes of Jimmy Giuffre, Oscar Peterson, Harry "Sweets" Edison and Ray Brown. Released as a companion to the book The House That Trane Built (W.W. Norton), by Ashley Khan, The House That Trane Built: The Best of Impulse! Records (Impulse!) offers a singe-disc history of the great record label. Along with the music of Coltrane, this disc includes such Impulse! artists as Oliver Nelson and Albert Ayler. Often overshadowed by Blue Note and Verve, Impulse! featured jazz artists in the 1960s absorbing the burgeoning culture of the times and moving jazz forward in bold new directions. Finally, from the A&M imprint come three albums from Sergio Mendez & Brazil '66: the group's debut, Herb Alpert Presents Sergio Mendez & Brazil '66, originally released in 1966; and Crystal Illusions and Ye-Me-Le, both released in 1969. The debut established the breezy pop style that still has a strong influence on music today, while the other two introduced Oscar Castro-Neves, a more indigenous Brazilian sound and the lush orchestrations of Dave Grusin.
From the Blue Note jazz family come three reissues that represent very different aspects of jazz from the late 1950s and early 1960s. First, Softly As A Summer Breeze (Blue Note), part of the Rudy Van Gelder Edition series, from Jimmy Smith, features the organ legend supported by such artists as Kenny Burrell and Philly Joe Jones. Next, At The Lighthouse (Pacific Jazz Records), from the Jazz Crusaders, features a concert recorded live at the famed 1960s California jazz club, which was one of the hotbeds of the West Coast jazz scene. While the group would go through many changes and launch the careers of such jazz greats as Joe Sample, this live set highlights the group in its early glory.
Finally, on Capitol, is Sophisticated Approach from Stan Kenton, yet another fine example of the hip, brassy big band sound of the man who perhaps more than any other influenced James Bond movie music-maker John Barry.
From Legacy come several jazz collections that should not be missed. Two Columbia double-CD discs worth searching out are The Essential George Benson and The Essential Herbie Hancock. Both discs cover the careers of each artist over many years, changes and record labels. From the Legacy Signature series come excellent single-disc artist retrospectives. From Columbia there are One O'Clock Jump The Very Best of Count Basie, God Bless The Child The Very Best of Billie Holiday, and Send In The Clowns The Very Best of Sarah Vaughn. From Bluebird come Come On-A My House The Very Best of Rosemary Clooney and Night In Tunisia The Very Best of Dizzy Gillespie. Finally, from Arista, is Sneakin' Up Behind You The Very Best of the Brecker Brothers.
Two jazz collections worth searching out are Cocktail Mix (Playboy Jazz), which features the likes of Henry Mancini, Tony Bennett, Cal Tjader, Charlie Byrd and the Vince Guaraldi Trio, and Latin Jazz (Putumayo), featuring Machito with Cannonball Adderley, Poncho Sanchez, Tito Puente, Ray Barretto and Hilton Ruiz.
Although not obviously strictly a jazz singer, Tony Bennett has been very busy of late. In addition to the recent release of his Duets (RPM/Columbia), there have been a number of excellent reissues featuring his music. There were five releases in what is being billed An American Classic Celebrates 80. First up is the classic I Left My Heart in San Francisco, which put the legendary Bennett on the musical map forever. Two collections that neatly sum up his first golden era are Tony Bennett's Greatest Hits Hits of the '50s and another, Greatest Hits Hits of the '60s. There is also Perfectly Frank, which includes interpretations of songs that Frank Sinatra made famous. Finally, there is Bennett's comeback album, the Grammy-winning MTV Unplugged.
There will be a lot of great jazz concerts as part of the JVC Jazz Festival. There will also be a couple of shows in June that, while not part of the festival, will be of interest to jazz fans. Madeleine Peyroux will be playing at the Beacon Theater on June 16, with Josh Rouse opening. Her latest album, Half The Perfect World, her first in three years, demonstrates even further what a major talent she is. While in the past she was doing a jazzy take on Patsy Cline, her latest album shows her growing dramatically in new directions.
Finally, don't miss Cowboy Junkies when the group performs on June 13 at the New York Society For Ethical Culture in support of its latest studio album, At The End of Paths Taken. The band's prior release, Long Journey Home Live In Liverpool (Zoe), recorded on October 7, 2004, is a CD with a companion DVD that includes interviews, behind-the-scenes footage and other extras. It is also worth searching out and should give a hint of what the group's show might be like.
Some fine recent jazz CDs that are not reissues or collections include two from the duo Metheny Mehldau: Quartet and a self-titled release, both from Nonesuch. Also from Nonesuch is the self-titled release from Bill Frisell, Ron Carter and Paul Motian. From Blue Note, check out Remember A Tribute To Wes Montgomery from Pat Martino, Way Not To Lose from the Wood Brothers, and Mythologies from Patricia Barber.
Finally, check out Industrial Zen (Verve) from John McLaughlin, Givin' It Up (Concord/Monster) from George Benson & Al Jarreau, and Return To The Emerald Beyond (Cuneiform), a double-CD from the Mahavishnu Project that is a tribute to the Mahavishnu Orchestra.
