Make a Jazz Noise Here

[jowcol]

The title cut on this album is a lot of fun, and Thelma's vocals are great.   the other standout tune is Mocha-- which echoes some of his solo album "Dog Party".

I can't say I found the whole album consistently engaging, but then again, typically with blues and blues rock, you need to cherry pick, and those two songs show up on a lot of my playlists.

[jowcol]

well the album so much more than your standard blues or blues rock album, it's not 3 chord blues at all, its chalk full of harmonic curveballs, unexpected turns, unusual chord sequences, ballsy virtuoso leads, grooves, brilliant arrangements, humorous lyrics...its more a jazz musician playing the blues, or reinventing it ...the album fuses or combines the simplicity of the blues with the complexity of jazz with rock fire, and you hear this throughout quite convincingly.excellent musicianship throughout...and scott's one of the best electric guitarists ever imo, he completely understands gear, tone, attack etc but has a rich vocabulary and knows how to improvise.

As someone who has more blues albums than  classical and jazz combined (and I have a lot of the latter) , I certainly enjoyed his playing and skill, but there are a LOT of great blues performers who mix up rock, jazz and blues and take it in different directions through skillful and spirited improv.  I'm certainly not knocking his chops, nor his band, and I don't think anyone would be wasting their time checking it out.  But the last couple decades have created a lot of very powerful blues (and blues/fusion) albums-- I wouldn't stop at this one and assume that that is all this genre has to say.

You said something very perceptive--  "combines the simplicity of the blues with the complexity of jazz with rock fire"-- that describes the kind of music I have been listening to over the last few years the most when it wasn't "classical".   There is a wonderful sweet spot where the three styles meet.

Of course, if I'm gong to pontificate on blues, I might as well have an an appropriately titled  thread...

[jowcol]

Your not talking to a little kid .... And you don't get gigs as an electric guitarist playing with genius's like Chick Corea & Joe Zawinul by being a musical ignoramus.

No disrespect  intended towards you or Scott-- my apologies if it seemed that way.   

[jowcol]

Just curious .. what are some of your faves, not talkin' gut-bucket blues  .. but "blues" (using the term loosely in this context) album(s) played by musicians (particularly guitarists) steeped in electric jazz.

As a rule of thumb, I tend to prefer electric blues with a lot more emphasis on the improvisation than the composition-- so I'm usually drawn to live albums, or those done "live in the studio".  I tend to go for the jazz equivalent for a blowing session-- I like longer tunes where the emphasis is on the performance, and each "tune" is basically a launch pad for performance.  I'm not so big into horn sections, (unless some of them solo). And a live band chemistry to me is essential- more essential than the soloist.I tend to do a lot of cherry picking-- I'm lucky if I find 20 minutes on a blues album that I want to come back to-- but when I do, I'm in heaven.   Also, although I love a lot of jazz, some of the jazz players to try to do blues don't fully move me.  (Dave Spector, for instance, is incredibly talented and tasteful-- but  it's like white wine at a barbeque-- it doesn't quite work for me.)

Okay, that a long disclaimer to give some idea of what's behind my preferences.  I seem to go more for rock/blues players that try to go jazzy than the other way around, but here are some names that come to mind.


Danny Gatton was one of those fiendishly talented players that could play pretty much anything, and could effortless switch styles.  To be honest, a lot of his material leaves me unmoved emotionally, but the album he did with Joey DeFrancesco mines the blues/jazz line to good effect.  (Particulary the 11 minute The Pitts)


Ronnie Earl has a very jazz-inflected style of playing, and has covered tunes like Coltrane's Equinox(although I wish Elvin Jones had played drums on that...). He's not the most technically impressive, but has wonder phrasing and interpretaiton.  A similar alum from Roomful of Blues, Duke Robillard is another one of those polymaths who can play anything, it seems, but I don't always get a personal connection with him (unless it's his live stuff).  They both recorded an album (Duke meets the Earl) that was in informal jam session that has a couple nice long exploraitons-- the My Tears is really wonderful.




Among the more traditional Chicago Guitarist, Melvin Taylor struck me as having a strong jazz sensibility, but there was always a tension between his playing and the studio.   He did two quickie albums in the studio in Europe with Lucky Peterson (someone who plays multiple instruments sinfully well), including a cover of Chitlins Con Carne, but I think its out of print.




He came back with a power trio type group (the slack band) that mixed Buddy Guy's slash and burn intensity with blues rock.  The most solid one is the first one:


Another artist who has approach jazz from the blues rock side is Derek Trucks-- a very innovative slide player who has his own group (which started heavily weight toward jazz fusion, and then blues, and now some world stuff), and has also been doing a very good job of breathing life into the Allman Brothers as the 2nd guitarist on the side.  He contributed some cuts to the McCoy Tyner Guitars album, which is definitely worth checking out.


Derek's intonation seemed a bit off to me, but it was in a consistent way, and I must admit as a live performer, he's great, as he seems to attack the solos different each night.  (He also has done some Indian-flavored stuff, had backed up Eric Clapton on a recent tour, and has been invited to record with John McLaughlin-- but nothing seems to have come of that.  A massive collection of his live shows is on www.archive.org for free- 850 in all.

http://www.archive.org/details/DerekTrucksBand

It'd start looking first at the ones from 1998-- the band was really starting to gel, and there was a lot more jazz on the setlists.  Some of the funk excursions weren't that interesting, and some of the project he's done with Susan Tadeschi are too low key for my taste.

I've I had to pick a single blues improv album, however, it would be Otis Rush's Live in Europe from 1977. 



This is apparently out of print, and if that is the case, I can upload an MP3 version.  This album has a spectacular rhythm section for a blues band, and, although Otis has had a very erratic career, he was very good at extended modal improvisations, and although he didn't play jazz per se, was quite a fan of jazz. 

Anyway-- that's a start.  FOr the last few years I've focused more on playlists and cherry picking tracks than particulary artists or albums-- I'm sure there are a lot more names I can toss out-- but this is a start.

[jowcol]

What did you think of Henderson's Live album?  To be honest, it didn't do much for me, but I was probably looking for something that wasn't there.  Your mileage may have varied.

[Octo_Russ]

Keith Jarrett - Standards Volume 1, this is my favourite Jazz album, especially the last track 'God Bless The Child', 15 and a half minutes of Jazz bliss!.

When i first got into Jazz i didn't know anything about it, so scanning the racks of Jazz discs in a large store in London, i finally picked this disc, knowing absolutely nothing about the Artist, i now have roughly 200 Jazz discs, and this is still my favourite of all, sometimes i just get lucky like that, or maybe i have super sensory powers!.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Al2MDJL7oY

[jowcol]

Listening to a lot of Weather Report lately ...

• Night Passage
• Tail Spinnin'
• Black Market
• Mr. Gone
• Heavy Weather

These are all killer.

Zawinul ... one of the great masters of electronics, synthesizers, & one of the finest composers in jazz ...

Don't forget Mysterious Traveller....

[jowcol]

What are some of your electric jazz faves ... ?

Miles between 1968 and 75 is real big with me.  (In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew, Tribute to Jack Johnson, Live Evil and Agharta/Pangaea are my faves). 

I'm a big fan of the Mahavishnu Orchestra.  In addition to the studio albums, most of their boots after 71 are really good.  Cleveland in April 72,  Munich in August 72, Berkeley Nov 72, and Tokyo Sept 1973 have good sound and are in circulation.  The Berkeley show has a 14 Minute Birds of Fire

http://theultimatebootlegexperience3.blogspot.com/2010/04/mahavishnu-orchestra-1972-11-09.html

After the Mahavishnu Orchestra, my favorite John McLaughlin tends to be the 1990s album he made with Elvin Jones (athough the boots from that tour are even better), and the Remember Shakti: Saturday Night in Bombay, where he played a full Indian Raga with Shivkumar Sharma on Santur.  (The Indian version of the instrument I play, and Sharma is the greatest!)



Ask the Ages by Sonny Sharrock is a rugged, uncompromising album with Elvin Jones and Pharoah Sanders, and the tune Many Mansions is meant to be played very loud.


I love the electric Violin of Don "Sugarcane" Harris (who many of you may know from Zappa).  His solo albums, unfortunately , are mostly out of print—particulary the later European ones which were much better.  Also,  the New Violin Summit II album from 1971 has a who's who of electric violin.

http://mps-love.blogspot.com/2008/06/15335-various-artists-new-violin-summit.html


I'm also fond of Shawn Lane (with Jonas Hellborg), and the occasional Medeski, Martin and Wood.

For an older electric album with "cool",. Grant Green's Matador is a must.  It was recorded with most of Coltrane's band, and has great covers of My Favorite Things and Duke Pearson's Bedouin.

[jowcol]

Some 'exotic' choices there ... I like Shakti too, the earlier stuff, my fave is ...

http://www.youtube.com/v/HuDO-Knx5BU

Some of my electric jazz faves would be ...

Billy Cobham, Spectrum
Return to Forever, Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy
Mahavishnu Orchestra, Birds of Fire
Tony Williams Lifetime, Believe It
Weather Report, 8:30
Miles Davis, We Want Miles
Herbie Hancock, Thrust
Tribal Tech, Tribal Tech
Allan Holdsworth, Atavachron

A lot of classics there-- we share a lot of the same faves (Birds of Fire was a turning point in my life) .   Some thoughts
The Tony Williams Lifetime Emergency album is some great stuff on it-- its a bit ragged around the edges and the recording wasn't the best, but it doesn't pull many punches.

Return to Forever:  Where I've Known You Before is also a fine album-- I like some of the interludes.

For Herbie Hancock, you may wish to check out his Mwandishi series of electric albums he did prior to HeadHunters (which is a fun album) -- they were electric, but much less pop.  Sextant may be the best of the three.

We Want Miles is my favorite 80s-90s era miles (other than Aura).   There are a lot of good boots from that tour, and they are consistently engaging.

I'll need to check out the Tribal Tech at some point.  I've not been "doing" fusion as much recently, but I do have the itch from time to time.

The earlier Shakti albums are more consistent in a lot of ways-- the one I cited I love because of Shivkumar Sharma, and also that this was the closest I've seen McLaughlin play to a classic Hindustani Raga. 

[jowcol]

The last disc of the Cellar Door Sessions box set by Miles is a winner.

[Henk]

Josh Roseman is Da Bomb!

http://www.youtube.com/v/Hky-MslnnYs

http://www.youtube.com/v/Uez0hruOvOw

[Henk]

Dee Alexander by far my favorite vocalist:

Freakin' out:

http://www.youtube.com/v/bvxiXDQJJ0Y

The album version:

http://www.youtube.com/v/eweCJ_Nq3AM

[Henk]

Another short video of Dee Alexander:

http://www.youtube.com/v/mzl053apbzc

[Henk]

Can't get enough of this woman, two more:

http://www.youtube.com/v/H_bwXJGLMKg

http://www.youtube.com/v/9aSoGq_rNRw

[Henk]

what are some of your absolute fave jazz recordings...

Miles Davis & Gil Evans - Miles Ahead
Andrew Hill - Andrew!!!
Josh Roseman - Treats for the nightwalker
Josh Roseman - New Constellations, live in Vienna
John Abercrombie - Getting there
Marc Johnson - The sound of summer running
Andy Sheppard - Movements in colour
Roy Hargrove Crisol - Habana
Kenny Wheeler - Other people
Dee Alexander - Wild is the wind
Dave Douglas - Mountain passages
Dave Douglas - Spirit Moves

I'm a fan of Andrew Hill. I like most of his recordings.

Henk

[Henk]

[Henk]

Claudia Quintet - For

[KevinP]

We Want Miles is my favorite 80s-90s era miles (other than Aura).   There are a lot of good boots from that tour, and they are consistently engaging.

Seconded. That is a great album. Eighties Miles without the synths.

[bwv 1080]

Love this album  ..



01 Darkness/Earth In Search Of A Sun
02 Light/Sun
03 Oceans And Continents
04 Fourth Day - Plants And Trees
05 The Animals
06 Sixth Day - The People
07 The Seventh Day

Jan Hammer piano, Fender Rhodes electric piano,
Moog synthesizer, Oberheim synthesizer and
digital sequencer, drums, percussion, Freeman string
synthesizer, Mellotron
David Earle Johnson congas and percussion (5,6)
Steve Kindler violin (2,5,6,7)

how similar is it to his playing with Jeff Beck on Wired?

[bwv 1080]

some pre-pre-jazz (mid-19th century minstrel tune on a gourd banjo)

http://www.youtube.com/v/At3vR5czZUs&feature=related