The Other Most Important Figure In Jazz

Duke Ellington (piano, b. 1899 - d. 1974)

Next to Louis Armstrong probably the second most important figure in jazz (you can easily switch the two depending on your opinion). Duke Ellington made over a hundred recordings. He shifted from big band recordings to stage and film to occasional small ensemble settings--all of which are phenomenal. His own compositions have now become standards in jazz repertoire. Ellington's work with Elle Fitzgerald, Billy Strayhorn and Mahalia Jackson have also become cornerstones in jazz history. For many, Ellington is another daunting task if you are just getting into jazz. But there are a two recordings that I believe you can gravitate to with ease and show exquisite compositional side of Ellington as well. My final personal favourite is a collection which is not a bad way get into Ellington but I would recommend experiencing a full album first.

Money Jungle (Blue Note)

One of those "difficult" records. This was a session featuring Ellington along side future giants Charles Mingus (bass) and Max Roach (drums), both of whom were influenced by the great pianist. The session is intense due to the battling personalities of Ellington and Mingus. Along side the classic Live At Massey Hall also featuring Mingus, this is one of my favourite jazz albums of all time.

Duke Ellington and John Coltrane (Impulse)

Another session featuring two legends of jazz. Unlike the Money Jungle, this session runs relatively smoothly although the playing is quite conventional. Coltrane at this time was coming into his own and Ellington was experimenting with the small group format. So the two make a perfect combination at the time. Ellington writes most of the material for this date. The performance is exceptional and worth every penny.

The Essential Duke Ellington (Columbia)

An affordable 2 disc set that covers the Columbia Records period. Includes every aspect of Ellington (small sessions, big band and film music). It features collaborations with gospel legend Mahalia Jackson in addition to his legendary recording Such Sweet Thunder. If you want a huge chunk this is a good place to start.

There are more that I should include but I wanted to stick to the ones I listen to most often. If you are a music lover, then CD's by Duke and Satchmo should be in your collection. There is enough out there that is reasonably priced and you can definitely find a disc that you will enjoy. These are not just for show - these are for you listen and learn. Just like the Beatles, almost everything in jazz stems from Ellington and Armstrong. Enjoy...

Portico Quartet: The New Thing

Portico Quartet
Duncan Bellamy (drums)
Jack Wylie (saxophone, electronics)
Milo Fitzpatrick (bass)
Nick Mulvey (hang, percussion)

Portico Quartet are a British quartet that started out as buskers (street musicians). Their sound is slightly difficult to describe but it is lush, melodic and ethereal all at once. The main attraction is their use of percussion--in this case the instrument of choice is called a hang. The hang is Swedish instrument modified from the steel drum used in Caribbean music. The hang looks like two steel drums welded together. It can be played both by hand and with sticks. It makes a beautiful sounds and for Portico Quartet is the perfect accompaniment to the saxophone and upright bass.

While only recording two records, Knee Deep In The North Sea (Babel) and their just released Isla (RealWorld), Portico Quartet have quickly established themselves on the jazz scene in England and in Europe. Their sound combines jazz, African and even Steve Reich (especially the album Music for 18 Musicians). As with such genre-bending groups as E.S.T., Acoustic Ladyland, Cinematic Orchestra--Portico Quartet have become one of those band you definitely need to learn about. Both albums are a delight and rewarding listen.

You can't truly pigeonholed this band but you will be enveloped by the dreamscape they can create over the course of listening to one of their albums. Or witnessing a live show (which is probably the best way to experience them.) So definitely check out both albums--I believe you will find that they really just might be the "New Thing."

The Intersection: The Cinematic Orchestra

The Intersection is a new feature on JazzWrap that looks at artists that blend jazz with electronica (a tradition pioneered by none other than Miles Davis on such classic recordings as On the Corner).

This week's focus is The Cinematic Orchestra.

The Cinematic Orchestra (TCO) creates highly evocative imaginary soundtracks. TCO incorporates much live instrumentation in addition to samples and drum loops. A rotating cast of players on piano, sax, trumpet, electric and acoustic bass fill out the ambient drum&bass compositions by Jason Swinscoe. Not unlike the modal jazz masterpiece Miles Davis's Kind of Blue, Motion coheres beautifully from track to track, offering a seamless listening experience. Combining jazz and funk in a moody, semi-orchestrated fashion, tracks such as "Ode to the Big Sea" and "Channel 1 Suite" deliver the listener into a cinematic state of mind. The only title to make reference to a movie ("Night of the Iguana") actually has nothing to do with the Tennessee Williams' play/movie from whence its title comes.

TCO's Remixes album includes just one Cinematic Orchestra original ("Channel 1 Suite") in addition to TCO's "remixes, extended versions and interpretations" of other artists' material. Pieces by Faze Action, Les Gammas, Kenji Eno and others get the CO treatment, while CO itself gets remixed by Tom Tyler. One of these tracks, a remix of Piero Umiliani's "Panoramica", appeared on Easy Tempo Experience 3. The tracks don't cohere quite as effectively as on Motion, and the degree of cinematic atmosphere is lessened overall, but it's an intriguing listen nevertheless.

Fans of the Cinematic Orchestra's full length debut Motion would not be disappointed by its long-awaited follow-up, Everyday.

Swinscoe's group just may be the perfect example of soundtrack-influenced trip hop/downtempo/nu jazz school of electronic music, pioneered by its record label Ninja Tune.

There are seven tracks here (one for every day?) and each offers compelling evidence of the aforementioned claim. TCO's modus operandi is for Swinscoe to provide a compelling sample for his musicians to play around. As always, the samples that are uniformally serious, never glib or kitschy.

Vigorous drumming lays the bedrock for the jams as bass, horns and keyboards add rich harmonic interplay to complement Swinscoe's samples. At times, the mood is so serious as to sound like something by Philip Glass or Steve Reich, but without the rigor or repetition.

Swinscoe adds a new wrinkle on Everyday, namely the use of vocals by Fontella Bass ("All that You Give" and "Evolution") and Roots Manuva ("All Things to All Men"). While this promises to be a distraction from the music's soundtracky vibe, it proves a good fit after all.

TCO step out with their most ambitious offering yet, a new soundtrack for Dziga Vertov's 1929 silent film Man with a Movie Camera. Swinscoe and company originally intended the score to be a one-off live performance, but ended up performing it at film festivals from Turkey to Scotland.

Presented on CD, free of its formal association, TCO's Man with a Movie Camera is an absorbing listening experience. But for the ultimate experience, the DVD version -- which pairs the music to the film and adds video clips of the band interviews and live performances -- is truly the way to experience the music. The presentation is fantastic.

Like other TCO recordings, this one places heavy emphasis on atmosphere -- tracks develop slowly. Live drumming, double bass, strings predominate, complimented with subtle electronics, the occasional woodwind or horn and electric keyboards. The mood is quiet, hypnotic and intense.

Four years later, TCO recorded an imaginary soundtrack called Ma Fleur, each of its 10 tracks representing a different scene — some featuring mellow vocals by Patrick Watson, Fontella Bass and Lou Rhodes.

Fans of the group will immediate appreciate the album's elegant, languid arrangements featuring horns, acoustic guitar, piano and strings. The jazzier, more rhythmical elements found on earlier albums has all but disappeared, giving way to more spacious, ambient sounds. This may prove disappointing to fans looking for something fast and frenetic, but it's Sunday morning music at its most mellow.

In 2008, TCO released Live at Royal Albert Hall, a concert that favored their newer material and amply demonstrates their instrumental chops more than most electro-jazz groups.

(Some content originally appeared on the author's website www.ScoreBaby.com)

Next week: Skalpel

The Most Important Figure In Jazz

Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong
(trumpet, b. 1901 - d.1971)

There is no denying that Louis Armstrong is the most important figure in jazz. New Orleans best loved son worked with King Oliver and Flecther Henderson before branching off on his own as leader in 1925 with his highly influential group The Hot Fives & Hot Sevens. The Hot Fives & Hot Sevens are essential cornerstones for jazz listeners. Consider it the "Noah's Ark" of jazz. This group created various styles within just a few short years. And it wasn't all about Louis. Two of his bandmates (Baby Dodds (drums) and Kid Ory (trombone)) in particular help shape what would later be termed "improvising". Also in the band was the electrifying Earl "Fatha" Hines on piano. Hines would carve his own place in history just a few years later.

While it may be difficult to hear how influential this band really was to listeners who have been used to hearing the CD or digital sound quality. The Hot Fives & Hot Sevens recordings were done in the 20s and they still sound like that today (with the tape hiss cleaned up nicely). But if you can step back in time for a few moments you can hear how incredible this recordings were for the time period. Louis Armstrong would go on to record countless more albums with his orchestra (see a brief essential listens below).

His popularity after the war waned slightly but his vocal ability and his charismatic appeal keep Louis and his orchestra on the touring circuit and in the studio for years to come. His legendary recordings with Ella Fitzgerald are also a great touch point for anyone interested in jazz and the vocal talents of the great Mrs. Ella. Armstrong would also score a number of chart hits with the classics "What A Wonderful World" and "When You're Smiling" to a name a few.

Louis Armstrong became the benchmark that other trumpet players and band leaders would be measured against (excluding Duke Ellington) as the years went on. In a career that consisted of hundreds of recordings you can imagine that there are a few records that are not up to par but those are heavily outweighed by the ones that are. For anyone interested in the two great periods of Louis Armstrong I would suggest The Essential Louis Armstrong (Columbia/Legacy) and Back Through The Years: A Centennial Celebration (MCA/Decca). Both are two disc collections with The Essential covering his Hot Five & Hot Sevens as well as many great pre-war influential recordings; Back Through The Years brings the listener up to date with the material that you may be more familiar with including vocal recordings and collaborations with Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Jordan.

If you only bought these two collections you would have everything you really need. For those who would love to dig deeper try this on for size.

Plays W.C. Handy (Columbia)
The Complete Ella & Louis On Verve (Verve)
Ambassador Satch (Columbia)
The Complete Town Hall & Symphony Hall Concerts (Fresh Sounds)