Frank Zappa “Inca Roads”

One of Frank Zappa's best compositions.  This is "Inca Roads".  Check it out. 

Ray Charles "All I Ever Need Is You"

The late, great Ray Charles, known forever and always as "the genius of soul" playing piano, and, would you believe, alto saxophone?  This is a tune written by Jimmy Holiday and Eddie Reeves, called "All I Ever Need Is You".  The performance is in Miami, Florida, in 1999 at the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind, James L. Knight Center. 

Larkin Poe "Wanted Woman"

Roots music duo Larkin Poe perform their original song "Wanted Woman" at SXSW (South By Southwest), 2018.  Check it out.

Joe Farrell, Jimmy Garrison, & Elvin Jones "Gingerbread Boy"

Another jazz classic.  Here is "Gingerbread Boy" performed in 1968, by the trio of Joe Farrell on tenor saxophone, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and Elvin Jones on drums, from the record "Puttin' It Together". 

Howlin' Wolf "Meet Me At The Bottom"

Here is Howlin' Wolf, performing his tune, "Meet Me At The Bottom".  Check it out.

Gregg Allman & Bonnie Bramlett “Win, Lose or Draw”

Recorded on October 13, 1974, here is a duet version of “Win, Lose Or Draw” with Gregg Allman and Bonnie Bramlett.  This version was released, well before the better known version that the Allman Brothers Band did on the album of the same name, as the title track in 1975.  That being said, this duet with Allman and Bramlett, is superior to the studio track done by the Allman Brothers Band.  Check it out.

Col. Bruce Hampton & The Aquarium Rescue Unit "Basically Frightened"

Another kooky number from the off-the-wall jam band, named for it's fearless leader.  Here's the late, great, Col. Bruce Hampton & The Aquarium Rescue Unit, with, "Basically Frightened".

Wes Montgomery "Impressions"

From a 1965 performance in Belgium, here is jazz guitar legend Wes Montgomery covering a composition by another jazz legend, and playing John Coltrane's "Impressions".  The quartet features Montgomery on guitar, Harold Mabern on piano, Arthur Harper on bass, and Jimmy Lovelace on drums. 

Soulbop XL: Randy Brecker & Bill Evans feat. Simon Phillips - Leverkusener Jazztage 2018

Happy Thanksgiving.  Always thankful, for music.  Here is the latest iteration of jazz trumpet maestro Randy Brecker's group, Soulbop, which used to feature his late, great brother, Michael Brecker, on tenor saxophone, and now features Bill Evans on tenor sax.

Personnel:

Randy Brecker – trumpet

Bill Evans - sax

Simon Phillips - drums

Teymur Phell - bass

Otmaro Ruiz - keys

Tracklist:

1. Tit For Tat

2. Dennis The Menace

3. Dixie Hop

4. Bones In The Ground

5. Soulbop

6. Some Skunk Funk

Maynard Ferguson "Birdland"

Check out Maynard Ferguson and his band, on The Mike Douglas Show, playing the Weather Report classic, "Birdland".  Hot stuff!

Howard Roberts "The Real Howard Roberts" - 1977

Howard Roberts, was a great jazz guitarist as well as educator, plus, he was a highly regarded L.A. studio musician to boot.  Gibson guitar reissued a semi-hollowbody jazz guitar, the Howard Roberts Fusion, in a few different iterations, and yours truly, has begun playing one, which led me to wonder about some of Roberts' musical contributions.  Well, here is one of them, aside from his session work.  This is his 1977 "The Real Howard Roberts" record, in it's entirety.

The band lineup is:

Howard Roberts: guitar
Ross Tompkins: piano
Ray Brown: bass
Jimmie Smith: drums

The track listing is:

01.Dolphin Dance (Herbie Hancock)...(00:00)
02.Darn That Dream (James Van Heusen)...(05:29)
03.Lady Wants To Know (Michael Franks)...(10:25)
04.Parking Lot Blues (Ray Brown)...(14:26)
05.Gone With The Wind (H.Magidson/A.Wrubel)...(20:15)
06.Serenata (Leroy Anderson)...(25:47)
07.Angel Eyes (E.Brent/M.Dennis)...(31:48).

Genre:Jazz
Recorded at Sunwest Recording Studios,Hollywood,C.A;August 26, 1977
Label:Concord Jazz – CJ-53
Art Direction – DH Studio
Cover [photo] – Bruce Burr
Engineer – Phil Edwards
Producer – Carl E. Jefferson.

James Williams, January 1992

Leigh interviews the great pianist James Williams. Leigh gets James to talk about many subjects in this wide ranging conversation including Phineas Newborn, James' early influences - both gospel and secular - growing up in Memphis, his time with Art Blakey and Berklee College of Music and getting music back in the community.

Yours truly, will look for more archived Leigh Kamman material.  Stay tuned for more jazz interviews.

Al di Meola "Song To The Pharaoh Kings"

Check out Al di Meola's solo version, of a Return To Forever classic.  This is "Song To The Pharaoh Kings", recorded on di Meola's 1987, "Tirami Su", record.  The band features:

Al Di Meola - guitar
Anthony Jackson - bass
Kei Akagi - keyboards
Tom Brechtlein - drums
Mino Cinelu - percussion
Harvie S - bass

Roy Clark: 1933-2018

Guitarist and writer/contributor to many guitar publications, Michael Ross, writes this obituary on Roy Clark in Premier Guitar magazine.

https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/28202-roy-clark-19332018?utm_source=Premier+Guitar&utm_campaign=6979ca6852-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_11_16_08_42&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_93db14e670-6979ca6852-66082997&mc_cid=6979ca6852&mc_eid=da7d09ee5c

Here is another great performance from "Hee Haw", starring Roy Clark on fiddle and 12-year-old banjo player Jimmy Henley.  

George Duke tribute concert - Java Jazz Festival, 2014

A 2014 concert at Java Jazz Festival in Jakarta, Indonesia, paying tribute to the one and the only George Duke, with an all-star band including Maurice Brown on trumpet, Adam Hawley and the late, great Chuck Loeb on guitars, Gordon Campbell on drums, and the duo of Indra Lesmana and Jeff Lorber on keyboards. 

In Memoriam: Roy Clark

Rest In Peace, country music legend and guitar master, Roy Clark.

https://www.npr.org/2018/11/15/668294131/roy-clark-hee-haw-host-and-country-music-ambassador-dies-at-85

http://www.startribune.com/roy-clark-country-guitar-virtuoso-hee-haw-star-has-died/500606402/?fbclid=IwAR0cFmuzNYYlCstTvwc1UxJBcnQxBwsnzWSQKAhW6mtiHh6jOAN2t1sKyKo

Here are some performances that Clark did with bluesman Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown.

"Take The 'A' Train"

"Frankie & Johnny"

"Going Down The Road Feeling Bad"

"Dark End of The Hallway"

Jimmie Rodgers "Mississippi Delta Blues"

The earliest pioneer of country music, and, a blues pioneer.  This is Jimmie Rodgers, with "Mississippi Delta Blues", circa 1933.

Allan Holdsworth "Non-Brewed Condiment"

What a wildly amazing piece of music, and virtuoso guitar playing.  Dig this track by the late, great Allan Holdsworth, called "Non-Brewed Condiment".  Obviously, it's not beer.  Hehe.  

Pat Metheny, Dave Holland, & Roy Haynes "Change of Heart"

Another selection from Pat Metheny's 1989 "Question And Answer" record, featuring Metheny on guitar, Dave Holland on bass, and Roy Haynes, on drums.  This one is called "Change of Heart".

Keb Mo' & Phil Keaggy with The Chester Thompson Trio "Jamming"

Keb Mo' & Phil Keaggy with The Chester Thompson Trio Jamming live at the Two Old Hippies store in Nashville, TN on 12/11/2011 Celebrating Chester Thompson's Birthday.

Marcus King Band "Confessions"

Another new tune from The Marcus King Band's album "Carolina Confessions", this is the title track called "Confessions".  More Marcus King Band music to come.  Stay tuned. 

Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite "I'm In, I'm Out, & I'm Gone"

Check out Ben Harper, and blues harmonica legend Charlie Musselwhite, performing a tune from their 2013 collaboration album, "Get Up".  Here's "I'm In, I'm Out, & I'm Gone".

In Memoriam: Roy Hargrove

We remember fondly, trumpeter Roy Hargrove, a master of modern jazz, who left this world way too soon, aged 49.  During his career he blended jazz and rhythm & blues, in a style all his own.  Rest In Peace, Roy Hargrove.  Watch the studio session of Roy playing on a track called "Soulful" embedded into the NPR Music obituary.

https://www.npr.org/2018/11/03/663895387/roy-hargrove-grammy-winning-jazz-trumpeter-dies-at-49

Aretha Franklin "Soul Serenade"

Continuing to always remember "The Queen of Soul", Aretha Franklin, with her hit song "Soul Serenade", from her 1967 recording "I Never Loved a Man The Way I Love You".  Luther Dixon and King Curtis, are the songwriters, and King Curtis would later record his own instrumental live version of "Soul Serenade" on his "Live at Fillmore West" record, playing soprano saxophone. 

Peter Green "Fool No More"

Peter Green, of Fleetwood Mac fame, in the early days of the band when he led them as a stone cold blues band, with his solo composition "Fool No More" from his "In The Skies" album, recorded in 1977 and released in 1979.

Marcus King Band "How Long"

The "Carolina Confessions" record, the debut album from Marcus King Band, was released last month, but here, is yet another song that is supposed to be a single from the record. This is "How Long". 

Bill Bruford "The Sahara of Snow"

Another track from Bill Bruford's "One of A Kind" record.  This is a tune that yours truly has shared a live performance of, but never the studio cut, until now.  Check out "Sahara of Snow".

Tony Williams Allstars (feat. Ronnie Montrose) Dennen Coliseum, Tokyo, Japan, June 27th, 1978

A concert by the Tony Williams Allstars, featuring Ronnie Montrose on guitar, live in Tokyo, Japan, at Dennen Coliseum, on June 27th, 1978.

The band lineup is:

Tony Williams: drums

Ronnie Montrose: guitar

Brian Auger: keyboards

Mario Cipolina: bass

Billy Cobham: drums

The track listing is:

1. Red Alert 

2. band introductions 

3. Rocky Road 

4. Wild Life 

5. There Comes A Time 

6. Dragon Song 

7. Tony solo/ Billy Cobham intro 

8. Heads Up 

9. Drum solo 

10. Tropic Of Capricorn 

11. Open Fire 

Sonny Landreth "Pedal To The Metal" (the best video of him on YouTube)

From a 2008 performance at a venue called the Town Crier Cafe, here is Sonny Landreth with "Pedal To The Metal", which showcases his brilliance and mastery of the slide guitar.  The man is just an amazing and completely original player.  Enjoy this one. 

Thelonious and the Keyboard Bugs

From Jazz Video Guy, on YouTube.

Milestones: https://amzn.to/2R6aqNk Pianist, Composer and Poet Walter Bishop, Jr., a bebop legend, reads his poem about Thelonious Monk and his keyboard cousins. Music: Walter Bishop, Jr. Trio, Waltz for Sweetie. Video: Bret Primack

Danny Gatton solos with a beer and a towel

Telecaster magician Danny Gatton decides to do a little showboatin' and plays slide with a full beer and then proceeds to clean his neck off with a towel for the end of his solo. R.I.P. Danny Gatton (1945-1994).