What About Chet!?!

Chet Baker (trumpet; b. 1929 - d. 1988)

So I took a look back at some of my discussions over the past few months and realized I forgot to talk about Chet Baker. What the hell was I thinking!?! Chet Baker played in a style very similar to Miles Davis' early recordings--smooth, melodic and sophisticated. Nowhere near as adventurous as Miles, Chet still possessed the ability to craft a rhythm that was just as haunting and brilliant.

Chet Baker is quite regarded among jazz fans but remains somewhat a cult figure for those new to jazz. His unfortunate struggle with heroin destroyed his chances of really scaling the highest of Miles', Clifford Brown or Dizzy Gillespie. Chet Baker played in Charlie Parker's band early in his career before moving out on his own with the legendary piano-less quartet with Gerry Mulligan. Chet would later go on to form his own group and record a series of wonderful albums during the mid-fifties. His drug habit resulted in erratic recording dates throughout the rest of his career even though he still had ability to perform quite well.

There are so many compilations on Chet Baker it almost matches those of Miles Davis. The one I would recommend is Career: 1952-1988 (Shout Factory). It's hard to sum up a career as expansive as Chet's but this collection manages to touch on all the important points for any beginner. One of the things that really set Chet Baker apart from his contemporaries was not only his effortless ability on the trumpet, but also his warm, lush vocals that added to his mystic. Career: 1952-1988 captures both over the span of two discs. From his beautiful classic version of "My Funny Valentine" to the enchanting cover of Elvis Costello's "Almost Blue" this collection has exactly what you would need to learn about one the greatest and often overlooked genius' in jazz history. In addition, I would suggest you also check out Chet Baker's final studio session entitled Peace (Enja Records), recorded in 1988 which was a lovely return to form and a great testament to his legacy.

The Intersection: Squarepusher

The Intersection 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 Squarepusher.

Over the course of nine albums since 1996, Tom Jenkinson aka Squarepusher has hacked the electronica subgenre of drum 'n' bass by cross-wiring it with jazz fusion. As the son of a jazz musician and a talented bass guitar player in his own right (not to mention a multi-instrumentalist), Jenkinson has demonstrated -- perhaps more than any other d'n'b proponent -- how to marry jazz concepts with electronic technology.

Following his impressive debut, Feed Me Weird Things, Squarepusher moved to the head of the d'n'b class with the back-to-back juggernauts of Hard Normal Daddy and Music is Rotted One Note. Over the course of the next several albums, such as Go Plastic and Ultravisitor, Jenkinson continued to experiment with the form, pushing the envelope with increasingly jazz-influenced compositions.

Legend has it that Jenkinson was weaned on the music of Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Charlie Parker and other jazz greats. The jazz influence manifests itself in Squarepusher through the use of complex chord progressions, the influence of bop-influenced drum breaks and Jenkinson's fluid fusion-influenced bass guitar work. D'n'B is an intrinsically complex form of electronic music thanks to the rapid-fire drum programming, but Jenkinson's traditional mastery of the form's basic elements have enabled him to stretch the boundaries of the genre.

The Importance of "Bitches Brew"

Miles Davis
Bitches Brew
(Columbia; 1969)

To say Miles Davis recorded quite a few influential albums is silly. But of those few, none can be more important than Bitches Brew. Bitches Brew was a defining moment in jazz history in that it singled-handedly created the term jazz-rock and jazz-fusion. The year, 1969, was a time of change on all fronts (politics, life and music). Bitches Brew was a mirror of the time and a door way for the future.

Assembled by Miles and longtime producer Teo Macero, Bitches Brew is an album that would influence almost every musician from every genre since. Miles had put together an ensemble cast of musicians, many of whom were becoming highly influential themselves (Joe Zawinul (piano/keyboards), Chick Corea (piano/keyboards), Wayne Shorter (sax), Dave Holland (bass), John McLaughlin (guitar), Jack DeJohnette (drums) to name a few. The album itself grew out of a series of live dates during the beginning of the year as Miles started to introduce new material into the band before the first studio session.

As some of you may already know the striking moment came after the Woodstock Festival and the extra impetus Miles had after witnessing the funk soul sets of Sly & The Family Stone and Jimi Hendrix. Miles would use that energy in the Bitches Brew sessions for more improvised and experimental interaction with the band, all the while still having a vision of a completely different direction of the music. The album flourished with blues, funk, rock, psychedelia and jazz--all pushed to the limits with extraordinary results. It also contains a heavy use of electric guitar, keyboards, bass and distortion on Miles' already muted trumpet. Miles would later incorporate the electric guitar fully into his repertoire after this album.

At the time, you wouldn't have known what to think of Miles' as this record is pouring out of your speakers or at a live concert. This is an album that continues to astound every time I put it on. Tracks like "Pharaoh's Dance", "Sanctuary" and my personal favourite "Miles Runs The Voodoo Down," demonstrates how aggressive, experimental and "out there" Miles was thinking at the time. Bitches Brew many be a classic example of experimentation but that doesn't mean the uninitiated should avoid it. It is an album of sheer beauty and depth that forces you to examine every other album you may own that came after 1970 to see how it was influenced.

Bitches Brew is a road map for many musicians. A road map that says the road is limitless. For those of you interested there are two versions available; the two disc original album (with bonus track) and the four disc deluxe version which I highly recommend to give the full picture of the recording session. The four disc set is a lot of money and probably only for the die-hard, but it you should definitely treat yourself to one of the versions if possible. This is important history.

Best Jazz Albums Of 2009 Recap

Best Jazz Albums Of 2009

Over the last week we have discussed the albums that we have been listening to for the past year. Below is a recap of our listing of the Best Jazz Albums Of 2009. It was a great year, filled with a lot of creativity, some artists returning to what they do best and others continuing to push the ideas of what we've known as jazz. If you have a chance to listen to any of these albums please let us know what you think. How did it affect you? Have a great new year and here's to some awesome music for 2010!

Best Albums Of 2009
The Vandermark 5
Dave Douglas
Julian Lage
The New Mastersounds
Eric Alexander
Jon Hassell & David S. Ware
Portico Quartet
Joshua Redman & Bugge Wesseltoft
Acoustic Ladyland

In addition I really wanted to mention my favourite and most important reissue of 2009 that I hope everyone gets a chance to find and hear at some point during 2010--Manfred Schoof Resonance (ECM Records).

Manfred Schoof (trumpet; b. 1936)
Resonance (ECM Records)


Manfred Schoof's free form style was first developed by the European jazz ensemble Global Unity Orchestra. While Schoof's own material isn't for everyone, it is important to know. A real mixture of classical aesthetics and roaming jazz rhythms, Manfred Schoof would be one of the early forerunners of the European Free Jazz movement that was influenced by Miles Davis and John Coltrane material of the late '60s. The bulk of Manfred Schoof's material was recorded in the '70s and is now extremely hard to find. Almost a holy grail amongst free jazz enthusiasts, Schoof's material is highly sought after.

There are a few albums still available online but a recent collection of three of his most important albums from '70s are now available under the titled Resonance (ECM Records). Resonance features sessions that were only released in Japan but they are a nice treasure trove into the vibe of European during a time that was really dominated by American artists exploring fusion. There is allot here to enjoy even if you are aren't a fan of free jazz. Those familiar with Enrico Rava, Woody Shaw and Tomasz Stanko will find Manfred Schoof recordings intriguing. Manfred has done a lot of sessions since, but Resonance is definitely a great opportunity for anyone looking for something new and adventurous.