Jazz 101: The Miles Davis Quintet

One of the most storied groups in this history of jazz, The Miles Davis Quintet played together for only a short period from 1955-1957--but they were some very good years!

In this post I call your attention to four must-own releases from the Quintet. These LPs were culled from two recording sessions. They're impressive because of the familiarity born out of playing so many live dates together. Read the reviews and check out the samples below.

Five Superb Musicians
Miles Davis (Trumpet)
John Coltrane (Tenor Sax)
Red Garland (Piano)
Paul Chambers (Bass)
Philly Joe Jones (Drums)
+
Two Legendary Recording Sessions
=
Four Great Albums
Cookin' With The Miles Davis Quintet
Relaxin' With The Miles Davis Quintet
Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet
Steamin' With The Miles Davis Quintet
Here is one number from each album:

The Miles Davis Quintet - My Funny Valentine (buy Cookin')
The Miles Davis Quintet - Oleo (buy Relaxin')
The Miles Davis Quintet - It Never Entered My Mind (buy Workin')
The Miles Davis Quintet - Well, You Needn't (buy Steamin')

I believe that all four albums are available for a very reasonable price at E-Music (a service worth checking out).

If you are interested in jazz trumpet, then please visit my recent "jazz" post over at the Star Maker Machine blog, which include a song from another great LP by the Miles Davis Quintet:

Four Trumpeters From The Golden Age Of Jazz

Jazz 101: Thelonious Monk With John Coltrane

Thelonious Monk & John Coltrane - Ruby, My Dear (buy)

Both Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane were brilliant jazz musicians, and their talents meshed well together. This album, Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane, is pure genius. The featured track, Ruby, My Dear, is deliciously good.

This one, called Off Minor, really highlights Monk's angular, slightly crazy, yet alluring style of composing.

Thelonious Monk - Off Minor (buy)

The sax part on Off Minor is played by Coleman Hawkins.

Get it while supplies last.

Jazz 101: Dexter Gordon - Three O'Clock In The Morning

Dexter Gordon – Three O’Clock In The Morning (buy)

Tenor Saxophonist Dexter Gordon’s best album, Go, closes with this accessible tune. His playing is quite lyrical on this one, sounding almost vocal in parts. Definitely one worth owning if you're interested in getting into jazz.

Jazz 101: Billie Holiday

Billie Holiday was a talented and influential singer. Her magic was in the relatively subtle way she interpreted her material. She expressed herself in a genuine way without showing off. If you are interested in learning more about Holiday's music, but don't know where to start, here's a short run down, organized by the three main labels for which she recorded.

Columbia

During the first phase of Billie's career, available on Columbia records, she typically served as a vocalist fronting fairly large--and quite excellent--jazz bands. Many of these tracks feature great players like Lester Young or Ben Webster. They are all very jazzy and do not make Holiday's vocals the centerpiece quite as much as her other work. The Columbia era recordings are my favorite.

Billie Holiday - Miss Brown To You (buy album)
Billie Holiday - He's Funny That Way (buy album)

If you're interested in Billie Holiday's Columbia period, I highly recommend the nine-CD Quintessential Billie Holiday series which contains nearly all of her work on Columbia and comes with informative liner notes. It's easy to find great deals on these discs on line.

Decca

In her next major phase, with Decca, Billie Holiday became more of the star. Her vocals are more front and center and often accompanied by very lush instrumentation: Lotsa strings, flashy brass, and even some background singers (yikes). While Billie was in absolutely great voice on the Decca sides, I'm not as wild about the instrumentation, which sounds a bit overwrought and dated. Still, its great stuff worth having.

Billie Holiday - God Bless The Child
Billie Holiday - Give Me A Pigfoot And A Bottle Of Beer
(buy ablum)

Verve

In the later stages of her career, Billie recorded mostly for Verve. Her Verve output is more intimate and probably the most accessible music in her catalog. A lot of it is in the small combo jazz-club style, by which I mean the kind of music you'd want to hear at 1:30 a.m. with a cigarette and a glass of bourbon on the rocks. And its mostly excellent!

Billie Holiday - Darn That Dream
Billie Holiday - Embraceable You
(buy album)


Well, there you have it. A few great songs from one of my top 5 artists. I guess that means my blogging "hiatus" is over.

Stay tuned for the final results of the favorite country artists poll. (I will count all votes received up until the results are published.)

Jazz 101: Herbie Hancock - Watermelon Man

The point of this series is to identify great jazz tracks that are most likely appeal to music fans who are new to the genre.

My path to jazz (which I suspect is fairly common) was from rock to blues to jazz. As I started to tire of the repetition of straight blues, I gradually ventured into jazz with blues elements. The familiarity of the blues eased the transition. And it just sounds good!

The other tracks featured in this series (Cristo Redentor and The Sidewinder) also have blues elements, but today's entry, Watermelon Man by Herbie Hancock, might be the best example yet of the sort of blues-based jazz that appeals to both beginners and longtime fans.

Herbie Hancock cut his jazz teeth as a member of Miles Davis' band. This superb blues track comes from Hancock's brilliant first album, Takin' Off, released in 1962. His impressive backing band on this album includes trupeter Freddie Hubbard, tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon, bassist Butch Warren, and drummer Billy Higgins. Takin' Off is not Hancock's greatest achievement (I'd pick Maiden Voyage) but it's a great place to start.

Herbie Hancock – Watermelon Man (buy album)

Cuban percussionist/bandleader Mongo Sanatmaria had a top 10 hit in 1963 with a latin-style cover of Watermelon Man in 1963. Santamaria got the idea to cover the song at a gig when Herbie Hancock sat for Mongo's regular keyboardist, Chick Corea.

Mongo Santamaria – Watermelon Man (buy album)

I like both versions. Herbie's is more enduring, but Mongo's is especially good for use at late-night, torch-lit, summertime cocktail parties.

Jazz 101: Lee Morgan - The Sidewinder

Lee Morgan - The Sidewinder (buy album).

If I had to pick just one track to introduce jazz to fans of rock/pop music, this would be the one. It's funky and extrememly listenable, with great playing by young guns Lee Morgan (age 25) on trumpet and Joe Henderson (age 26) on tenor sax. You'll be hooked almost at once.

Lee Morgan began professional career while still a teenager. He played with greats like Art Blakey and John Coltrane (check out the trumpet solo on Blue Train). After its release in 1964, The Sidewinder registered on the pop charts, a rare accomplishment for a jazz single.

Tragically, Morgan's career was cut short in 1972 when Morgan (at the age of 33) was shot by his common law wife during a scuffle at Slug's jazz club. A court determined that the shooter was insane.

Read more about Lee Morgan at All Music Guide.

Jazz 101: Donald Byrd - A New Perspective

One of my favorite types of music is jazz, but it's not something I've really delved into much here at Setting The Woods On Fire.

This new series is for people who may be interested in jazz but don't know where to start. If you're used to hearing rock or country music, jazz can sound kind of odd. It takes some acclimation, but as you familiarize yourself with the style, your tastes will expand. What once may have sounded odd or unmelodic will begin to sound fresh and interesting. The hard part is finding a starting point.

Listening to jazz is not supposed to be hard work. It should be just as enjoyable as listening to your favorite pop song. I'm going to use this series to highlight the pieces that first caught my attention and made me love jazz.

First up is Donald Byrd's A New Perspective from 1963. Some criticize this LP as being too melodic or too simple, but I think they're missing the point. The appeal of this record is the feeling that Byrd puts into his playing and the mood that is created. The simplicity and the melody are what make this album attractive to new fans. While it may be simple, it's not plain vanilla by any stretch of the imagination. A New Perspective stands out from other jazz albums by Byrd's ingenious use of an 8-voice gospel choir. (Before you reflexively close this page, give it a chance. I'm not a huge fan of the use of choirs in popular music myself--You Can't Always Get What You Want, notwithstanding--but it really works here.)

Check out this bluesy number. I always thought it would be perfect for a movie soundtrack:

Donald Byrd – Cristo Redentor (buy album).

If you like this, the rest of the album won't disappoint.

So, what do you think? Should I keep including some jazz, or just stick to the usual formula here?