Some Jazz For You

Recently I've posted a few jazz tracks and they have been well received. I've included jazz since more or less the start of my blog. At first it wasn't too popular but over the year or so I've been blogging the popularity of the jazz I've included has steadily increased. I don't know if this is because I've gained newer readers that are interested in jazz or because my older readers have decided to try out some of the jazz I've posted and found they've liked it. Perhaps a combination of the two.

Anyway, it's with this in mind I've decided to feature some jazz songs today. I hope you'll enjoy them.

Rhapsody In Blue by Duke Ellington. This is from his album 'Will The Big Bands Ever Come Back?' that was released in 1965. 11 of the 12 tracks on that album, including this one, were included as a bonus disc for the 1989 re-release of Recollections of the Big Band Era, an album recorded in 1692 & 1963 but not released until 1974.

There's too much that I could write about Duke Ellington, anything I do write would omit so much it'd be selling him short. So I'll just give you some random trivia about him. His first major soundtrack work was for the film Anatomy Of A Murder (possibly the finest court-room drama ever). The film was banned in South Africa because of a scene that sees Duke Ellington and Jimmy Stewart play the piano together.



This song is one of my favourite of Ellington's. It's the track I use on my alarm, it's a lovely way to be woken up every morning.

Body & Soul by Charlie Haden Quartet West. Charlie Haden may be the first free jazz bassist. He played on The Shape Of Jazz To Come & Free Jazz: A Collective Improvisation, both Ornette Coleman recordings and may be most famous for these recordings. He's recorded with lots more great jazz musicians, far too many to mention. If you read this blog somewhat regularly then you'll probably be aware of Brad Mehldau's Radiohead covers. Charlie Haden and Brad Mehldau played together on Lee Konitz's album 'Alone Together'. You may also remember Petra Haden's cover of Tattoo, originally by the who. She's one of Haden's children.



Body & Soul is one of the most recorded jazz standards of all time, right up their with Round Midnight and When The Saints Go Marching In. This version is one of the best, I think. Along with haden's playing the saxaphone playing of Ernie Watts is great.

I'll Remember April by Ethan Iverson Trio. If you're only ever occasionally glanced at this blog before you'll know Ethan Iverson. Most well known around here as the pianist from The Bad Plus this track is from the album Deconstruction Zone, an album of jazz standards and a companion to the album of original compositions called, as you can probably guess, Construction Zone. Reid Anderson plays bass on these albums, just like he does with The Bad Plus, but it's Jorge Rossy rather than Dave King who plays drums. The Bad Plus is, at least too me, more of an equally partnership of musicians, but the Ethan Iverson Trio is, as the name suggests, much more about Iverson's playing.