"Testimony" by HOJO - Howard Johnson and Gravity

© -Steven Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.

I must admit to not being a close follower of what Christopher Washburne labels Miscellaneous Instruments in Jazz in his chapter by the same name in Bill Kirchner, ed., The Oxford Companion to Jazz.

Don’t get me wrong, we’ve recently enjoyed listening to and reviewing on these pages CD’s by violinist Tanya Schaap and the group “Tango Extremo;” likewise recent efforts by harpist Carol Taylor and harmonica player Hendrik Meurkens.

But for the most part, unless someone brings artists who play instruments to our attention that are not part of the Jazz mainstream, their contributions to the music often escape our awareness.

I mean, mention tuba player Howard Johnson to me and I’m most likely to think of Christopher Washburne description of him as a player who is “...known for his extended range and virtuosic soloing ability … and heavy grooves. His solo on Gil Evans’ arrangement of Voodoo Chili on Gil Evans Plays Hendrix [RCA] demonstrates his remarkable range and accomplished soloing ability.”

Imagine my delight then when I received a preview disc from Jim Eigo at Jazz Promo Services in which he notes that I should make a “New Year’s Resolution: Check Out Testimony, The Exciting New Album From, Brass Master Howard Johnson.”

For your information, Howard Johnson And Gravity Testimony (Tuscarora Records Item number 17-001 ) has a street date of March 3, 2017.

More details about Howard and the background to both Gravity and the forthcoming CD Testimony can be found in the following insert notes by Elzy Kolb.

“By 2006, when the New York Times' critic Nate Chinen declared Howard Johnson "the figure most responsible for the tuba's current status as a full-fledged jazz voice," the life's work of the multi-instrumentalist had been in progress for more than four decades. At 75, Johnson (born Aug. 7, 1941) has been burning with the fire of bass-clef innovation since well before 1963, when he took an offhand remark from Eric Dolphy as a call to action to move to New York.

As a teen, Johnson had discovered that he could push the tuba's range to previously unheard heights, surpassing the trombone and edging into trumpet territory. He is no novelty act, occasionally blasting notes into the stratosphere to excite an audience; Johnson plays melody lines and solos fluidly and fluently, maintaining tonal integrity and feeling.

Though there was no existing repertoire in the early 1960s for his then-groundbreaking low-brass range, once in the Big Apple Johnson caught the ear — and piqued the imagination — of Charles Mingus. The iconic bassist/composer wrote such adventurous parts for him, that "even trombonists wouldn't welcome seeing those notes on the page," the multi-instrumentalist says. Johnson became the muse of other composers, including Gil Evans and Carla Bley, establishing relationships lasting decades. He always soared to the occasion, overjoyed by challenges.

Every post-Johnson tuba player has been measured by the standard he set. He believes the instrument is capable of a virtually unlimited sonic and emotional range, based on a player's abilities. By demonstrating his skills, Johnson single-handedly moved the instrument out of its traditional place in the rhythm sections of large ensembles into featured roles in small bands.

He influenced musicians by expanding their ideas of the possibilities of the instrument, and showed enormous generosity of spirit, mentoring tuba players, past, present and future. He influenced jazz (and pop) composers and arrangers by bringing a heretofore ignored instrument to the front line of soloists, and changed jazz overall by altering the direction of how jazz used the bass clef — no more oompah-pah, but pure linear bop, swing and rock phrasing that could stand on its own against any "typical" jazz solo instrument.

At a time when jazz-rock fusion was gaining traction, Johnson opened up the music without diluting the tradition, performing with an unwavering jazz sensibility as a founding member of the Saturday Night Live Band. His writing, arranging and playing captured the attention and imagination of pop culture icons such as John Lennon, Paul Simon, Levon Helm and Taj Mahal; Johnson has never dumbed it down, never resorted to spoon-feeding anyone "Jazz 101" level music. He has always been "The Real Thing," as Taj Mahal dubbed the 1971 album that debuted Johnson's innovative multi-tuba brass choir, Gravity.

To this day, Johnson declares that he still burns to play, still has fire in his belly to solo, to increase awareness of the versatility of often-underutilized horns, and to continue to have his say on the definitive way to play them.

This CD proves he's still more than up to the challenge. - Elzy Kolb”

Jim Eigo - www.jazzpromoservices.com - send along the following media release after which you’ll find a video montage set to Howard Johnson’s and Gravity version of Way Back Home from the upcoming Testimony CD.

“Internationally acclaimed multi-instrumentalist and veteran sideman Howard Johnson takes a turn in the spotlight with a new release, Testimony, recorded with his 10-piece tuba choir, Gravity.

Testimony includes eight tunes ranging from soulful to funky to bluesy to cookers. Gravity’s take on Johnson’s  originals as well as compositions by McCoy Tyner, Carol King, and others, testifies to the range and versatility of the tuba.

Over the past half century, Howard Johnson, the eminence grise of low brass, has appeared on hundreds of albums playing tuba, baritone sax, bass clarinet, electric bass and other instruments with the giants of many genres. The New York Times’ critic Nate Chinen credits Johnson as “the figure most responsible for the tuba’s current status as a full-fledged jazz voice.” With Testimony, his third recording with Gravity (and his fourth as a leader) Johnson takes a giant step forward in making the music world safe for tubas and low brass, delighting—and enlightening—listeners in the process.

After arriving in New York in the early ’60s, Johnson appeared with Jack DeJohnette, Abdullah Ibrahim, Lou Rawls, Lee Morgan, Chick Corea, John Lennon, The Band, Paul Simon, Tony Williams, Pharoah Sanders, Hank Mobley, The Saturday Night Live Band, Gato Barbieri, Levon Helm, and literally hundreds of others.

Johnson was also a long-time muse to innovators such as Charles Mingus, Gil Evans, Carla Bley, and George Gruntz, who created music to showcase the multi-instrumentalist’s abilities, and inspired him on his life-long quest to expand the range and repertoire for some of the less familiar instruments in jazz and popular music. Bluesman Taj Mahal helped to spread the word when he invited Johnson and his tuba cohorts to tour and to record with him in 1971. The resulting album, The Real Thing, features Johnson’s brass arrangements and Gravity stalwarts Joseph Daley, Earl McIntyre and Bob Stewart, who also appear on Testimony.

In addition to Johnson on tuba, pennywhistle, and baritone sax, Testimony includes:

Dave Bargeron (tuba), a self-described “proud charter member of Gravity since 1968.” He has played with Blood, Sweat and Tears, big bands led by Clark Terry, Gil Evans, George Russell, George Gruntz, and Jaco Pastorius, and countless smaller ensembles.  

Velvet Brown (tuba), the Penn State professor of tuba and euphonium, is equally at home with the St. Louis Symphony, the New Hampshire Music Festival Orchestra, or the San Francisco Women’s Philharmonic Orchestra.

Joseph Daley (tuba) is the producer of Testimony and a mainstay of New York’s adventurous music scene, having played with the likes of Sam Rivers, Carla Bley, Gil Evans, Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra, and Hazmat Modine.

Carlton Holmes (keyboards) is a top pick of icons like Charli Persip, Cindy Blackman-Santana, Michael Carvin, Freddie Hubbard, Stevie Wonder, and many others.

Nedra Johnson (tuba, vocal) has one of the most powerful and compelling voices you’re likely to hear. Whether playing jazz, womyn’s music, funk, or R&B, she’s known for bringing festival crowds to their feet.

Earl McIntyre (tuba) is a renowned educator, Brooklyn Philharmonic guest conductor. An in-demand bass trombonist as well, he is an alumnus of bands fronted by Charles Mingus, Miles Davis, Cecil Taylor, Lester Bowie, McCoy Tyner, and others.

Melissa Slocum (bass) is an in-demand veteran of stints with Art Blakey, Leon Thomas, Hank Jones, Dee Dee Bridgewater, and Melba Liston. She also shines in settings from symphony to Broadway to baroque.

Bob Stewart (tuba) has worked with the mainstream (Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Wynton Marsalis), the avant-garde (Muhal Richard Abrams, Henry Threadgill,  Arthur Blythe), and the hit makers (Chaka Khan, Dap Kings, Aretha Franklin).

Buddy Williams (drummer) has a list of credits encompassing Valerie Simpson, Sonny Sharrock, Jack McDuff, Jennifer Holiday, Michael Jackson, Herbie Mann, Lena Horne, and David Sanborn.

Album highlights include:

“Testimony”: This 1990 Howard Johnson original is a cooker that testifies to the power and versatility of the tuba, and puts the listener on notice as to what’s to come.

“Workin’ Hard for the Joneses”: Forget keepin’ up with the Joneses! Nedra Johnson’s original is a reminder that addictions, including love, can come at a hefty cost.

“Fly With the Wind”: This Howard Johnson arrangement of a too-rarely heard McCoy Tyner composition proves how nimble and versatile a tuba choir can be: Tubas can indeed fly with the wind!

“(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”: A 1968 Howard Johnson arrangement of the Carole King classic, inspired by Aretha Franklin’s hit version. Besides her brilliant lead work throughout the CD, Velvet Brown’s solo here shows truly authentic command and grace.

“High Priest”: McCoy Tyner’s tribute to Thelonious Monk, the high priest of jazz. From the jaggedness of the melody to the signature lope in the rhythm, Gravity captures what’s best about both McCoy and Monk. Listen up for a brilliant solo from bassist Melissa Slocum.

“Little Black Lucille”: Johnson brings the pennywhistle to the fore with his lilting original folk tune. It’s a tender tribute to his Aunt Lucille, who overcame the privation of her early years to build a loving family.

“Evolution”: A Bob Neloms composition Johnson learned at 18—Neloms was two years younger. “I really liked the rhythm and the hipness of the blues. I’m the only person who plays it, and Bob doesn’t remember writing it,” Howard recalls, laughing.

“Way Back Home”: Penned by saxophonist/bassist/Jazz Crusader Wilton Felder, Johnson wrote an arrangement of this soulful crowd-pleaser for The Saturday Night Live Band, as well as this one for Gravity. “We recently lost Wilton, and we will not forget him,” Howard declares. Full of mellow, rich harmonies, its subtlety challenges preconceptions about the role of low brass in jazz.

Howard Johnson has made it his life’s work to “reveal the range and versatility of the tuba in all its splendor” to a larger audience. With its vibrant spirit and swing, Testimony makes a strong case for repeated listening.

http://www.hojotuba.com

Howard Johnson And Gravity Testimony

(Tuscarora Records Item number 17-001 )

Street Date: March 3, 2017

Mark Lewis: The New York Session

© -Steven Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.

In a perfect world Mark Lewis would need no introduction to jazz fans. A well-traveled alto saxophonist and flutist who has created a vast and intensely stimulating body of music over the past four decades, Lewis has enlivened jazz scenes from Seattle and San Francisco to Rotterdam and Paris, a career itinerary that partly explains why he's not better known. Partnering with a superlative Gotham rhythm section on his gorgeous new album The New York Session, Lewis delivers a tour de force that should help rectify his under-the-radar reputation. The new album, on his Audio Daddio label, features piano legend George Cables, veteran bassist Essiet Essiet, and the supremely swinging drummer Victor Lewis. It's the work of an artist clearly reveling in the company of fellow masters making the most of his tasty compositions.

“I have been writing about jazz for more than-thirty years, and now have ten books on music to my credit. But I rarely write liner notes for new jazz releases. In fact, I've probably only done 3 or 4 in the last decade. But I asked Mark Lewis to let me write something for his new album. I volunteered and refused any payment for my services. You see, even a seasoned music critic like me can also be a fan.

If you lend your ears to this music, I suspect you'll be a fan too. There's so much to savor and admire here. Lewis's musicality, his inventiveness, his humor, his ability to immerse himself in the soundscape of the performance with total emotional commitment—these all stand out here in track after track. ...

I only wish you could meet the man behind the music. I have learned much, from watching Mark Lewis in action. And not just from his activities on the bandstand. I've heard him in analytical discussion with a scientist .on the musical scale implied by the orbit of the nine planets around the sun of our solar system. I've seen him teach a famous jazz drummer the nuances of an African 15/8 rhythm. I've heard him offer a learned disquisition on the relationship between Gustav Mahler and Lennie Tristano. Whenever I encounter Mark Lewis, I am rewarded with something new to consider or some fresh sound to relish.

Perhaps if you get a chance to hear Lewis live in concert you will gain a more complete sense of what a special person he is. And if you have the opportunity to talk to him after the gig, seize it. But even on these tracks, you will get some measure of who he is and what he does. He's a magical man. I've experienced the enchantment; here's a chance for you to do so too.”

- Ted Gioia

Frankly, when a preview copy of the Mark Lewis: The New York Session arrived in a recent postal delivery, I had no idea who Mark was.

But in the company of a rhythm section made up of pianist George Cables, bassist Essiet Essiet and drummer Victor Lewis and with the highly esteemed team of Ted Gioia and Terri Hinte handling the production and public relations functions respectively on behalf of Mark’s latest recording, I thought it was worth a listen.

Now after repeated listenings, I thought I’d bring it to your attention as soon as possible, especially for those of you with ready access to Hermosa Beach and Temecula in Southern California, Scottsdale, Arizona and San Jose, CA as Mark and his quartet will be performing the music on the CD at locations noted on the schedule that closes this feature.

For your edification, here’s the media release that Terri sent along with my preview copy at the conclusion of which you’ll find a video montage set to Mark’s original composition Koan which forms the opening track to The New York Session.

ALTO SAXOPHONIST & FLUTIST MARK LEWIS'S

"THE NEW YORK SESSION"

TO BE RELEASED BY AUDIO DADDIO

JANUARY 27, 2017

GEORGE CABLES, ESSIET ESSIET, & VICTOR LEWIS

LEND INSPIRED SUPPORT

IN A PROGRAM OF ORIGINALS BY THE

SEATTLE-AREA LEADER

“As well-traveled and widely recorded as alto saxophonist Mark Lewis has been over the past four decades, his new CD The New York Session is likely to be the album that helps rectify his current under-the-radar reputation. Recorded last year in Brooklyn with a world-class rhythm section — pianist George Cables, bassist Essiet Essiet, and drummer Victor Lewis — the new disc will be released by Lewis's Audio Daddio label on January 27, 2017. It's the work of an artist clearly reveling in the company of fellow masters making the most of his tasty compositions.

"There's so much to savor and admire here," writes critic Ted Gioia, a self-professed Mark Lewis fan who contributed the CD booklet notes. "Lewis's musicality, his inventiveness, his humor, his ability to immerse himself in the soundscape of the performance with total emotional commitment — these all stand out here in track after track."

Whether he's inviting his listeners to a carnival on "Roberto's Magical World" or waxing philosophical on the introspective "Not As Beautiful As You," Lewis displays an utterly personal mix of authority, playfulness, and interactive immediacy. He's at home in the blues, playing with relaxed soul on the strolling, minor key "DL Blues," and draws on his deep love of African music for several pieces, most obviously on the lilting "Sierra Leone" and the boisterous 12/8 closer "Roll 'Em Joe."

Legally blind, Lewis hasn't let his disability slow him down, traveling the world and establishing deep creative bonds wherever he's landed. But not being able to assess a colleague's immediate reaction to his music may shape his approach to recording.

"I don't see well enough to see facial expressions," Lewis says. "I used simple compositions because I didn't want to clutter the purity of the sound we were trying to get. I think pieces of music are like places

or rooms. You play in those spaces as a musician, in those settings, and they'll make you into slightly different people doing different things, which I think is good."

Born in Tacoma (in 1958) and raised on a farm outside of nearby Gig Harbor, Mark Lewis absorbed music from both sides of his family. A standout player in middle school, he formed his first band at 14. By high school, Lewis's waking hours were filled with music as he played lead alto in the stage band and clarinet in the concert band. Leading several bands around the region, he supported himself while studying composition, flute, electronic music, and piano at Western Washington University and the Cornish Institute of Allied Arts.

Settling in Seattle, Lewis started performing regularly at Norm Bobrow's Jazz at the Cirque showcase and quickly found invaluable mentors amongst resident masters. Drummer Otis "Candy" Finch, who'd moved to Seattle after a sterling New York career, recognized Lewis's budding talent and took him under his wing. He also encouraged him to get out of town, and in 1978 the 20-year-old saxophonist flew to Europe with a one-way ticket, his alto sax, and virtually no contacts.

He ended up making Rotterdam his homebase for the next 14 years, and established himself as a vital force on the international jazz scene as a player, label owner, and producer. Building an extensive network of musical peers amongst Dutch players and American ex-pats ("Johnny Griffin got me my first gig in Europe," Lewis recalls), he maintained three working Dutch groups.

Lewis's record company Audio Daddio became one of the era's essential outlets, releasing recordings by Art Foxall, Vonne Griffin, AI Hood, Art Lande, and David Friesen. The label's last European recording The Rotterdam Session features tenor saxophonist Clifford Jordan, who brought his ambitious "Presidential Suite" to the studio, and legendary jazz drummer Philly Joe Jones, in one of his last recordings. Lewis also maintained a strong presence back in the States, spending several long stints in the Bay Area in the 1980s. He gained a considerable following with a quartet featuring drum maestro Eddie Moore, pianist Mark Levine, and a brilliant young bassist named Larry Grenadier (the group featured on most of his critically hailed 1988 album In the Spirit on Quartet Records).

Now based in Bremerton, a small city west of Seattle on the Puget Sound where he returned to be close to his family, Lewis maintains a busy schedule that includes teaching private students and college clinics. He continues to expand his daunting book of compositions, which number over 1,700. Though he's recorded more than 20 albums, only a fraction of his compositions have been documented on record, another reason why The New York Session is a particularly important release. The discovery of a master improviser is always thrilling, but finding a player/composer at the peak of his powers is a rare occurrence indeed. Though fully aware of his accomplishments, Lewis sees himself as part of a modern jazz continuum. "I try to approach each composition, each performance, with knowledge and technique from studying the masters who came before and also the innocence of a child," he says. "I hope it keeps the music authentic and genuine."”   

Mark Lewis Quartet on Tour:

Wed. 1/4 Lighthouse Cafe, Hermosa Beach, CA, 6-9 pm

with Ron Kobayahi, p; Baba Elefante, b; Steve Dixon, d. Thurs. 1/5 Jazz at the Merc, The Mercantile, Temecula, CA, 7:30-9:30 pm

with Ron Kobayahi, p; Baba Elefante, p; Steve Dixon, d. Thurs. 1/12 Sacred Grounds Jazz Coffeehouse, Scottsdale, AZ, 7:30-9:30 pm

with Nick Manson, p; Jack Radavich, b; John Lewis, d.

Thurs. 1/19 Cafe Stritch, San Jose, CA, 8:30-11:55 pm

with Eddie Mendenhall, p; John Wiitala, b; Jason Lewis, d.

Artist website - www.marklewismusic.com

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/MarkLewisMusic

Media Contact:

Terri Hinte - hudba@sbcglobal.net

Benny Carter, 1907 – 2003: A Tribute [From the Archives]

© -Steven Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.

One bright, sunny day “when the world was young,” a business luncheon found me in Pasadena, CA.

Located a few miles northeast of Los Angeles, CA., and because of this proximity, always considered a part of “old” California, the city is nestled in a valley just below the majestic San Gabriel Mountains.

The site for the meeting was The Athenaeum Club which is adjacent to the California Institute of Technology [Cal Tech] campus.

The Athenaeum is a members-only club that offers dining and lodging privileges to Cal Tech faculty, students and alumni, as well as, to employees of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and at the Huntington Museum/Library, both of which are also in Pasadena.

I was early for the meeting and the maître d'hôtel welcomed me to visit the club’s inner courtyard and gardens while I waited for my party to arrive.

Upon entering these areas, I noticed a vaguely familiar face seated on a bench in a shaded alcove. He was hunched over with this hands on his knees looking at an LP cover.

At his feet was a bag with the distinctive logo of Poo Bah's a record store that for many years was situated in an old house in Pasadena at the corner of Wilson and Walnut.

As I walked in his direction, it dawned on me that the man starring so intently at album cover was saxophonist Bill Perkins.

I had met Bill many years earlier during the making of his Quietly There LP as Victor Feldman and Larry Bunker, both of whom I studied with, invited me to a few of its recording sessions in the fall of 1966.

Bill looked up as I approached where he was sitting, smiled and with a brief nod in my direction, went back to examining the album.

I caught enough of a look at the album cover to recognize it as Benny Carter’s Aspects [United Artists 4017/5017S].

My recognition of it startled me into saying to him: “I have that record and you are Bill Perkins.”

To which he smiled, nodded and ask me to sit down.

I had forgotten that Bill had an engineering degree from Cal Tech which granted him alumni privileges at The Athenaeum. If I remember correctly, he was there to attend some sort of forum on acoustics that was scheduled to take place in one of the club’s small conference rooms. Bill had a long-standing interest in recording music.

After exchanging a few brief pleasantries, Bill looked down at the LP that he was still holding in his hands and said: “I was supposed to play on this date, but couldn’t make it, so Buddy Collette took my place.”

During the course of our brief conversation, I was struck by the respect that Bill evidenced for Benny Carter. I had always known of “Perk’s” fondness for the playing of tenor saxophonist Lester Young, but his knowledge of Benny’s career and his appreciation for his gifts as a musician was something that I hadn’t expected from such a “modern” musician.

When I said as much, Bill commented that while Benny’s first arrangements dated back to those he did for the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra in the late 1920s, the charts on the Aspects album prove that his writing was up-to-date and current. “You might think that you were listening to Hefti or Mancini.”

Bill also offered that much of what Benny wrote during his career went unnoticed because it wasn’t recorded under his own name or because he wrote it for others while not calling attention to himself. “The man was such a Pro: he just did his job and went on to the next one.” [I was almost tempted to say, “Just like you, Bill,” but had the good sense not to]

Bill then looked at me over his reading glasses and said: “Do you realize that Benny Carter has been around since the very beginning of Jazz?”

What neither of us realized when Bill made this statement was that Benny was to also be around for another twenty years! He lived from 1907-2003!!

My luncheon guests arrived and I said goodbye to Bill and thanked him for the nice chat.

When I came across the Aspects CD recently, I remembered this brief visit with Bill and the memory of it also served to remind me that I had been remiss about not honoring Benny Carter – one of the Founding Fathers of Jazz - and his eight-decade contributions to its development with a piece on JazzProfiles plus a tribute video.

What follows is the editorial staff at JazzProfiles efforts to remedy this oversight.

The audio track to this video is Benny Carter’s arrangement of June is Busting Out All Over which features solos by trumpeter Joe Gordon, Frank Rosolino on trombone, Benny on alto saxophone and Shelly Manne on drums.

And here are the insert notes that Ed Berger of the Institute of Jazz Studies at Rutgers University prepared for the CD release of this recording. Ed is also the author of Benny Carter: A Life in American Music.

© -Ed Berger, copyright protected; all rights reserved.

“In a seven-decade recording career as notable for its sustained creativity as for its unprece­dented longevity, Benny Carter has created master­pieces in several eras and many different genres. Yet even amidst this monumental body of work, Aspects is a landmark. Apart from its considerable intrinsic musical value. Aspects attests to Carter's continued mastery of a genre he helped pioneer: big band Jazz. Carter, of course, was a prime architect of the swing era through his prescient arrangements for Fletcher Henderson and others in the late 1920s and earlv 1930s. as well as for his own legendary orchestras beginning in 1933.

By 1958, when Aspects was recorded. Carter was deeply ensconced in the Hollywood stu­dios as an arranger, composer, and player, dividing his time between many diverse film and television assignments and occasional Jazz recordings. The latter included several memorable small group ses­sions but, apart from a few isolated tracks. Aspects was the only big band recording by Carter as leader from 1946 (when he disbanded his last regular orchestra) to 1987 (the year of his epic encounter with the American Jazz Orchestra).

Despite this four-decade hiatus, Carter had by no means divorced himself from big band arranging and composing. In addition to jazz-influenced film and television scores, he wrote material for two Basie albums, Kansas City Suite (1960) and The Legend (1961), which became milestones of the "New Testament" Basie orchestra.

Carter's activities as arranger/conductor for many top vocalists yielded big band gems for Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, and Louis Armstrong, among others. But Aspects stands virtually alone as documentation of his unique orchestral approach during a transitional period for jazz in general and for Carter in particular.

The "jazz calendar" concept might at first glance seem a contrived and limiting marketing department gimmick. Indeed, when the album was repackaged only a couple of years after its release, its title was changed from Aspects to Jazz Calendar to further underscore the theme. But the idea yield­ed some fine material, and for those months for which no appropriate pieces existed Carter (and in one case Hal Schaefer) provided attractive originals.

The musicians Carter assembled for Aspects included many big band veterans who formed the pool of versatile Hollywood studio play­ers. While not a working band, they played togeth­er on a daily basis in various combinations and per­mutations in the exacting world of studio work, often under Carter's baton. What the band may have lacked in individual character it more than made up for in precision and polish.

Furthermore. Carter's writing is so distinctive that any orchestra performing his work—from a college stage band to top-flight professionals such as these — immediately takes on some of the musical character of the arranger.

The reed section is the signature of any Carter-led orchestra, and Aspects is no excep­tion. The saxes serve as a cushion for the soloists, provide melodic counterpoint to the brass, and leap to the fore in the patented solo passages for which Carter is famous. But here Carter achieves a bal­ance among the sections which was not always pre­sent on his early arrangements. Although this orchestral symmetry is evident throughout, it is per­haps best demonstrated by the remarkable "June Is Bustin' Out All Over" where Carter ingeniously alternates melodic, harmonic, and even rhythmic roles among the saxes, trumpets, and trombones.

The unifying clement throughout is Carter's sublime alto. While Carter shines on every track, high points include his two quintessential choruses on his own "March Wind," the way he integrates his solo work into his arrangement on "June Is Bustin...", his brief melody statement and solo on -September Song," and his work on the two small group performances: "One Morning In May" and "August Moon." (Incidentally, some 35 years later Carter incorporated the latter's haunting theme into his Tales Of The Rising Sun suite.)

Among the other fine soloists, Frank Rosolino and the underrated Joe Gordon stand out. The spark supplied by Shelly Manne must also be noted. His swing, drive, and taste show why he was so in demand as a big band drummer before con­centrating on small group settings.

The discovery that the mono and stereo issues of Aspects contain different takes for four tracks is a fascinating discographical anomaly. In the early days of stereo, separate recording setups were used for the stereo and mono versions. Apparently, during mastering, different takes were inadvertently used. Although the routines arc the same, there are slight differences in the perfor­mances. For example, the tempos are faster on the stereo versions of "June Is Bustin..." and "Swingin" In November." Another discographical oddity: Leonard Feather, who wrote the original liner notes, points out that it is Carter who plays the sleigh bells that open and close "Sleigh Ride In July" — yet another double for the multi-instrumentalist!

Almost forty years have passed since the recording of Aspects. By 1958, at age 51, Benny Carter was already being viewed as a historic figure if not an elder statesman of jazz. Incredibly, in 1996, as this album is being prepared for reissue, Carter has just completed two major commissions: one for the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and one for the Library of Congress. Both involved extend­ed works, with Carter himself as the featured soloist. With a constant flow of classic reissues such as Aspects and ambitious new recording pro­jects, this is indeed a fortuitous time for Benny Carter fans.

- Ed Berger

Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University (Co-author, Benny Carter: A Life in American Music)”

Manne on Gunn [From the Archives]

© -  Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.

“Manne’s men do the Peter Gunn music with a kind of tough-guy cartoon expression, but this was a great combo anyway and Candoli and Geller seldom knew how to be boring.”

- Richard Cook and Brian Morton, The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, 6^th Ed.

Traditionally, Monday nights were a “dark night” for gigging musicians.

There were exceptions, of course.  One example that comes to mind is the Terry Gibbs Dream Band which was made up of studio musicians who played local gigs around Hollywood with Terry’s band on Monday nights.

Probably the most famous, let alone most enduring, Monday off-night gig was the one involving New York City studio musicians and the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra at the Village Vanguard, a tradition which continues to this very day.

But for me and many other musicians, one benefit of being off on Mondays was that for a few years, we all got to catch Peter Gunn when it premiered from 9:00 to 9:30 on Monday nights, on NBC-TV.

It starred Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn and also starred Lola Albright as his girl, Edie Hart; Herschel Bernardi as Lt. Jacoby; Hope Emerson as Mother, at whose nightclub Edie sings. The program was created and directed by Blake Edwards who, in a stroke of genius, tapped Henry Mancini as its Musical Director. The Executive Producer was Gordon Oliver, the sponsor was Bristol-Myers and filming was done at Universal-International Studios in Hollywood [when it was still had a “back lot” and before it developed a theme park on it].

The bonanza of Jazz-on-Television the program launched is described in the following excerpt from Lester Koenig’s insert notes to Shelly Manne and His Men Play Peter Gunn [Contemporary S 75-60/OJCCD 946-2]:

Peter Gunn is an adult mystery with a different kind of hero: a private eye who is literate, suave, well-groomed, and—digs jazz. The weekly show hit the NBC-TV network September 22,1958, and zoomed to a success which is, in part, the result of its jazz score, composed and arranged by Henry Mancini, known as Hank to the leading jazz stars in the Los Angeles area who have played for his soundtracks. Since November 1958, Shelly Manne and Victor Feldman have been regular mem­bers of the band which records the show's score. When Shelly became enthused about the idea of recording an album of Mancini originals from Peter Gunn, he invited Feldman to appear with him as a guest star.

Aside from its own considerable merits, the fact that a jazz score has created so much attention is a reflection of the staying power of the new marriage of jazz and TV, a nuptial which seems to have eclipsed the short-lived, annulled wedding of jazz and poetry. Jazz has taken an increasing part in the everyday living of the nation, and a summation of jazz in 1958 reveals, as leading critic Leonard Feather points out in the February 1959 issue of Playboy: 

‘... Jazz — both modern and traditional—filled video screens... CBS' hour-long show, The Sound of Jazz... the first Timex all-star jazz show, emceed by Steve Allen, was seen on NBC... a unique effort to offer it on an educational level was undertaken when NBC launched a 13-week series, The Subject Is Jazz... Bobby Troup's Stars of Jazz was projected to the full ABC network,.. Disc jockey Art Ford kicked off his own weekly show on New York's Channel 13. In Chicago, WBBM-TV presented Jazz in the Round... CBS launched a-five-nights-a-week-series, Jazz is My Beat.’

Other examples come to mind. In September a Westinghouse spectacular featured Benny Goodman, Andre Previn, Shelly Manne, and Red Mitchell. Previn also made a guest appearance on the Steve Allen show. And jazz as part of the score for dramatic pictures and TV shows made a tremendous impact when Walter Wanger engaged Johnny Mandel to write a jazz score for I Want to Live (which featured Shelly Manne); when Revue Productions' Stan Wilson used a jazz group for the score of the weekly M Squad; and when Spartan Productions engaged Hank Mancini as Musical Director for Peter Gunn.”

Pete Rugolo’s Jazz scores for Thriller and Richard Diamond, Elmer Bernstein’s for Johnny Staccato and Lalo Schifrin’s for Mannix would also come into focus, but as Jazz fans everywhere know, this abundance of TV Jazz scores would wane and be pretty much gone by the close of the decade of the 1960’s.

Les Koenig, who owned Contemporary Records, took great care to create a studio atmosphere which took into consideration these factors:

“For jazz musicians to be free to express themselves, and to make personal statements, they need the kind of relaxed atmosphere not commonly found in recording studios. The average record date takes only three hours. But, like a barbecue fire which always seems to be glowing at its best after you've removed the steaks, jazz record dates usually begin to develop a 'feeling' just as the three-hour time limit is up.

At Contemporary we've tried to break this time barrier by scheduling sessions of at least six or nine hours. In the case of Peter Gunn we took four three-hour sessions and as a result an exceptionally close rapport was achieved; each musician felt free to contribute his ideas and suggestions came so thick and fast Shelly was often in the position of a moderator at a heated Town Hall session.

That The Men were able to approach each of Mancini's pieces with a fresh, spontaneous, and valid conception is a tribute to their outstanding talents, as well as to the vitality of Mancini's provocative new jazz themes.”

—LESTER KOENIG January 1959

These notes appeared on the original album liner.

Orrin Keepnews made these comments about Shelly Manne and His Men Play Peter Gunn [Contemporary S 75-60/OJCCD 946-2] when it was released as a CD:

“For the most part, television music was a vast jazz wasteland before the Peter Gunn series debuted in the fall of 1958. The show's score both made a name for composer Henry Mancini and changed the sound of televised drama. It was inevitable that Shelly Manne, Hollywood studio mainstay and a proven champion at jazz interpreta­tions of Broadway shows, would give Mancini's music a more expansive blowing treatment, and the resulting album reminds us that there was more to Peter Gunn than its dramatic theme and the classic ballad "Dreamsville." Fans of Manne's Men should note that the album was taped during the brief tenure of alto saxophonist Herb Geller, and that it makes winning use of the vibes and marimba of added starter Victor Feldman, whose piano would shortly be heard to superb advantage on the band's Blackhawk recordings (OJCs 656-660).”

We've selected A Profound Gass by Shelly and The Men and coupled it with a montage on "beatniks" as our video tribute to Peter Gunn TV series and its era.