John Mayall, Junior Wells, & Buddy Guy "Messin' With The Kid"

 

From a 1982 concert, here's John Mayall on piano, Buddy Guy on guitar, and Junior Wells on harmonica and vocals playing "Messin' With The Kid".  

Eric Clapton "Tearing Us Apart"

 

Happy 78th Birthday, Eric Clapton!  From a concert in Milan, Italy, on October 12th, 2022, here's Eric Clapton with the tune "Tearing Us Apart" which was the concert's opening number, originally recorded on his "August" record that came out in 1986.  The band lineup is:

Eric Clapton: guitar, vocals

Doyle Bramhall II.: guitar, vocals

Paul Carrack: organ, keyboards, vocals

Chris Stainton: keyboards

Nathan East: bass, vocals

Sonny Emory: drums

Katie Kissoon: vocals

Sharon White: vocals

Some Sugar From Mr. T - Two Takes on Sugar from Stanley Turrentine

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Sugar (Turrentine) Tenor man Stanley Turrentine plays his immortal "Sugar" on Night Music and from a live gig at the Village Gate.

Stanley William Turrentine (April 5, 1934 – September 12, 2000) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He began his career playing R&B for Earl Bostic and later soul jazz recording for the Blue Note label from 1960, touched on jazz fusion during a stint on CTI in the 1970s. He was described by critic Steve Huey as "renowned for his distinctively thick, rippling tone [and] earthy grounding in the blues." In the 1960s Turrentine was married to organist Shirley Scott, with whom he frequently recorded, and he was the younger brother of trumpeter Tommy Turrentine, with whom he also recorded.

Eric Clapton "You Better Watch Yourself"

 

Another track from Eric Clapton's "Rarities" recording.  This is "You Better Watch Yourself".  Check it out.  

Billy Taylor and John Blake Play Duke Ellington's Come Sunday

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

From the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Billy Taylor, piano, John Blake, violin, Chip Jackson on bass and Winard Harper on drums perform Duke Ellington's immortal Come Sunday. #billytaylor #dukeellington #comesunday #kennedycenter

Frank Gambale "High 5"

 

From his "Noteworker" record, here is Frank Gambale, jazz and jazz fusion guitarist extraordinaire, playing the tune "High 5".  

Allman Brothers Band, Live at the Beacon Theater, 2003

Full concert Friday this week, takes us to New York, New York, and the Beacon Theater, for the Allman Brothers Band's legendary run of shows and their DVD concert release from 2003, "Live at The Beacon Theater", in a streak of doing shows at the venue almost every year save for one, between 1989 and 2014.  This concert features their last lineup of Gregg Allman on Hammond organ, piano, & vocals, Warren Haynes on lead & slide guitar, & vocals, Derek Trucks on lead & slide guitar, Oteil Burbridge on bass, Butch Trucks on drums, Jaimoe on drums, and Marc Quinones on percussion.

"Ain't Wastin' Time No More"

"Black Hearted Woman"

"Statesboro Blues" (Blind Willie McTell cover)

"Woman Across the River" (Freddie King cover)

"A Change Is Gonna Come" (Sam Cooke cover)

"Maydell"

"Come and Go Blues"

"Rocking Horse"

"Desdemona"

"Don't Keep Me Wonderin'"

"Midnight Rider"

"Soulshine"

"High Cost of Low Living"

"Leave My Blues at Home"

"Old Before My Time"

"The Same Thing" (Willie Dixon/Muddy Waters cover)

"Melissa"

"Instrumental Illness"

"Worried Down with the Blues"

"Dreams"

"Whipping Post"

"One Way Out"

Bonus Track: "Old Friend" (acoustic rehearsal)

Tedeschi Trucks Band "Bell Bottom Blues"

 

From their November 29th, 2022, concert at the Orpheum Theater in Boston, Massachusetts, here is Tedeschi Trucks Band performing Eric Clapton's "Bell Bottom Blues" which he originally recorded with Derek & The Dominos for the "Layla" record.  

Rare Live Recordings: Basie/Peterson, Bill Evans/Herb Geller and the Clark Terry All-Stars

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Intro 00:00 Basie and Peterson 01:53 Bill Evans and Herb Geller 08:50 Clark Terry All-Stars 15:08 https://www.youtube.com/@FunkSoulBlue... Count Basie and Oscar Peterson Live in Graz, Austria - 1974 Oscar Peterson, Count Basie, piano; Freddie Green, guitar; Niels-Henning Orsted Peterson, bass and Skeets Marsh on drums. Bill Evans Trio with Herb Geller Live in Hamburg, February 14th, 1972. Funkhaus Hamburg/Germany. Bill Evans, piano; Eddie Gomez, bass; Marty Morell, drums, and Herb Geller, flute. Clark Terry All Stars Live at the Newport Jazz Festival, Radio City Music Hall, New York City, July 7th, 1974 Clark Terry, trumpet; Joe Newman, trumpet; Urbie Green, trombone; Charlie Rouse, tenor sax; Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, tenor sax; Charlie Byrd, guitar; Hank Jones, piano; Milt Hinton, bass and Freddie Waits - drums #countbasie #oscarpeterson #billevans #herbgeller #clarkterry #eddielockjawdavis; #urbiegreen; #charlierouse; eddielockjawdavis #charliebyrd #hankjones #milthinton #freddiewaits

Gary Moore "Back On The Streets"

 

From a performance on The Old Grey Whistle Test in 1979, here is Gary Moore with the rock and roll tune "Back on the Streets".  Gary Moore on guitar and vocals, alongside Thin Lizzy's bassist and vocalist Phil Lynott.  The full band lineup also includes the entirety of the Thin Lizzy band as far as I know.  Gary Moore on lead guitar and vocals, Scott Gorham on lead guitar, Phil Lynott on bass and vocals, Don Airey on keyboards, and Cozy Powell on drums.  

You've Got To Have Freedom - The Uncommon Keyboard Versatility of John Hicks

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Intro 00:00 A Night in Tunisia 08:10 Blue Monk 11:35 What Is This Thing Called Love 14:38

A longtime fixture of the New York City jazz landscape, pianist John Hicks was an artist of uncommon versatility, moving effortlessly from pop standards to the avant-garde while retaining the dense physicality and intense energy that were the hallmarks of his approach. Born December 12, 1941, in Atlanta, Hicks was still an infant when his preacher father relocated the family to Los Angeles. He spent the better part of his teen years in St. Louis, and counted among his classmates there the young Lester Bowie. Hicks’ mother was his first piano teacher, and after a stint at Lincoln University in Missouri he attended the Berklee School of Music and the Juilliard School; he later cited influences spanning from Fats Waller to Thelonious Monk to Methodist church hymns, and his catholic listening tastes were instrumental in shaping his far-ranging skills as a player. After touring in support of bluesman Albert King and hard bop tenor saxophonist Johnny Griffin, Hicks backed singer Della Reese during a 1963 New York club residency, and the city remained his home for the rest of his life. In the wake of stints with Kenny Dorham and Joe Henderson, Hicks joined Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers in 1964, collaborating alongside the likes of trumpeters Lee Morgan and Freddie Hubbard. Two years later, he signed on with singer Betty Carter, like Blakey a keen judge of emerging talent. Upon exiting Carter’s band in 1968, Hicks spent the remainder of the decade with Woody Herman and entered the decade to follow as a first-call sideman. He also moonlighted as an educator, and during the early ’70s taught jazz and improvisation at Southern Illinois University.

After backing Carter on her 1976 date Now It’s My Turn, Hicks returned to her backing group full-time. The exposure vaulted him to new renown, and in 1979 he finally led his own studio effort, After the Morning. With 1981’s Some Other Time, cut with bassist Walter Booker and drummer Idris Muhammad, Hicks also emerged as a gifted composer, writing his best-known effort, “Naima’s Love Song,” in honor of his young daughter. He recorded prolifically in the years to follow, concentrating on solo and small ensemble work including stints as member of the Power Trio and the Keystone Trio. He also served as the regular pianist with the Mingus Dynasty Band and for a time led his own big band. Hicks enjoyed his greatest commercial success with a series of tribute LPs celebrating the music of his mentors and influences, highlighted by 1998’s Something to Live For (a collection of Billy Strayhorn compositions), 2000’s Impressions of Mary Lou (Williams, of course), and 2003’s Fatha’s Day (honoring Earl Hines). Hicks’ longest and most rewarding collaboration was his partnership with flutist Elise Wood, which launched in 1983 and after several studio sessions and tours culminated in marriage in 2001, around the time of the release of their duo recording Beautiful Friendship.

#johnhicks #jazzpiano #anightintunisia #bluemonk #whatisthisthingcalledlove #mccoytyner #theloniousmonk #pharoahsanders #youvegottohavefreedom

Roy Bunchanan "Roy's Bluz"

 

From a 1976 performance, I think on Austin City Limits, but I can't be too sure, here is Roy Buchanan with "Roy's Bluz".  The quartet band for this performance has been featured before with other songs from this very show being posted to the blog.  Roy Buchanan on guitar and vocals, John Harrison on bass, Malcolm Lukens on keyboards, and Byrd Foster on drums.  Watch the video on YouTube.  

Jeff Beck "Truth"

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone.  It is another Full Album Friday as we continue to and always will remember the legacy of the one and the only, Jeff Beck.  Here is his debut studio recording, the 1968 record "Truth".

The track listing:

1. Shapes of Things

2. Let Me Love You

3. Morning Dew

4. You Shook Me

5. Old Man River

6. Greensleeves

7. Rock My Plimsoul

8. Beck's Bolero

9. Blues Deluxe

10. I Ain't Superstitious

The band lineup:

Jeff Beck: electric, acoustic, & pedal steel guitars, bass, lead vocals

Rod Stewart: lead & backing vocals

Ronnie Wood: bass

Mickey Waller: drums

Joe Bonamassa "The Thrill Is Gone"

 

From his "Live at The Greek Theater" CD/DVD and a live show at the San Francisco venue, here is Joe Bonamassa paying tribute to the late, great B.B. King playing King's "The Thrill Is Gone".  

Michael Brecker & Joey Calderazzo "My One And Only Love"

 

Michael Brecker and Joey Calderazzo - My One And Only Love 1988 September 25 

New Visions TV Show hosted by Ben Sidran

Guest Mike Brecker

John Scofield, Skerik, Stanton Moore and Andy Hess - "My Babe" at The Jammys | 2002 | Relix

 

John Scofield, on guitar, Skerik (Eric Walton) on tenor saxophone, Stanton Moore on drums, and Andy Hess on bass, play Willie Dixon's classic blues standard "My Babe" at The Jammys in 2002. 

Which Horn For Which Brother? Randy and Michael Brecker

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Some Skunk Funk (Randy Brecker), featuring the Return of the Brecker Brothers Band live a the Mount Fuji Jazz Festival, 1992.  Randy Brecker, trumpet; Michael Brecker, tenor saxphone; Dean Brown, guitar; George Witty, piano; James Genus, bass and Dennis Chambers on drums.

Warning: This Music May Be Too Intense for Some Listeners-McCoy Tyner and Freddie Hubbard

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack, Excerpt - Inner Giimpse (Tyner).  McCoy Tyner, piano; Freddie Hubbard, trumpet; Avery Sharpe, bass and Louis Hayes on drums.

0:00 Intro McCoy Tyner Solo 00:38 Freddie Hubbard Solo 03:03

#mccoytyner #freddiehubbard #johncoltrane #jazzvideoguy

Music to at least try and heal us from the (as Primack puts it) "crazy f***ing world we live in these days."  Too true.  

Page McConnell & Trey Anastasio "Life Saving Gun"

Page McConnell and Trey Anastasio will release their new album, January, this Friday, March 10. January is comprised of eight new originals written by Anastasio and McConnell and is the follow-up to their album December. January was recorded and produced by Bryce Goggin at Trout Studios in Brooklyn, NY, and features McConnell on keyboards and vocals; and Anastasio on guitars, drums, bass, and vocals.

Tracklist:

1. Euphonic Cocoon
2. Dancing In Midair
3. Bell Jar Minutemen
4. Life Saving Gun
5. I Strolled
6. Lunar Nickel
7. Manometric Flame
8. Ambrosia Fire

Photography by Rene Huemer

Page McConnell + Trey Anastasio "Dancing in Midair"

 

Page McConnell and Trey Anastasio will release their new album, January, this Friday, March 10. January is comprised of eight new originals written by Anastasio and McConnell and is the follow-up to their album December. January was recorded and produced by Bryce Goggin at Trout Studios in Brooklyn, NY, and features McConnell on keyboards and vocals; and Anastasio on guitars, drums, bass, and vocals.

Tracklist:

1. Euphonic Cocoon
2. Dancing In Midair
3. Bell Jar Minutemen
4. Life Saving Gun
5. I Strolled
6. Lunar Nickel
7. Manometric Flame
8. Ambrosia Fire

Photography by Rene Huemer

In Memoriam: Gary Rossington

We fondly remember Gary Rossington, the late, great guitarist for Lynyrd Skynyrd, one of my favorites, and a hero, a reason why I picked up the guitar in the first place.  He died recently, at age 71.  He was the final founding member of a wonderful band that I had the honor and privilege of seeing in person, twice.  Rest In Peace, Gary Rossington.  Say hello, to the many friends and bandmates from Lynyrd Skynyrd now jamming in rock & roll heaven.  You will be missed.

Gary Rossington: 1951-2023

https://www.premierguitar.com/artists/guitarists/remembering-gary-rossington

Lynyrd Skynyrd Founding Member Gary Rossington Dies at 71

https://www.npr.org/2023/03/06/1161258556/lynyrd-skynyrd-gary-rossington

Kid Rock and Travis Tritt Share Heartfelt Tributes to Lynyrd Skynyrd Guitarist Gary Rossington

Here are some of Gary Rossington's best slide guitar solos on songs Skynyrd made famous such as "You Got That Right", "Travelin' Man", their cover of J.J. Cale's "Same Old Blues", and of course, "Freebird".  

Rest Easy in rock & roll Heaven, Gary.

Pharoah, Wayne and Me - Remembering Pharoah Sanders and Wayne Shorter

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Performance video from two recently departed Masters, Pharoah Sanders and Wayne Shorter, and my thoughts on their music and lives, along with audience questions and comments.  Live streamed on the day of Wayne's passing, March 2, 2023.

Rare Wayne Shorter Performance of Beauty and the Beast from 1986. Bonus! Wayne Speaks

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Beauty and the Beast (Shorter) Wayne Shorter, soprano saxophone; Mitchell Forman, keyboards; Gary Willis, bass; Tom Brechtlein, drums.  Pori Jazz Festival 1986

"The word 'jazz' means to me, 'I dare you. Let's jump into the unknown!"  Wayne Shorter

Will Somebody Please Call 911 - There's a Fire Here and Herbie Hancock started it

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.  

Eye of the Hurricane (Hancock) Live at the 1987 Mt. Fuji Jazz Festival:  Herbie Hancock, piano; Ron Carter, bass; Tony Williams, drums; Freddie Hubbard, trumpet and Joe Henderson, tenor saxophone.

#herbiehancock #roncarter #freddiehubbard #joehenderson #tonywilliams #eyeofthehurricane #bluenoterecords #mtfujijazzfestival

Wayne Shorter Lives! RIP Wayne Shorter - August 25, 1933 - March 2, 2023

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Memory of Enchantment (Michiel Borstlap).  Herbie Hancock, piano and Wayne Shorter, tenor saxophone.  "Wayne Shorter is not only one of jazz’s greatest composers but its angel of esotericism, an enlightened and arcane elder.” New York Times

Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter played together first with Miles Davis, then on Wayne's Blue Note recordings in the 60s.  They remained close friends and collaborators for the rest of their lives.

In Memoriam: Wayne Shorter

 

We fondly remember one of the greatest jazz saxophonists, greatest jazz musicians ever.  Rest In Peace, the one and the only, Wayne Shorter.  

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Wayne Shorter, (born August 25, 1933, Newark, New Jersey, U.S.), American musician and composer, a major jazz saxophonist, among the most influential hard-bop and modal musicians and a pioneer of jazz-rock fusion music.

Shorter studied at New York University (B.M.E., 1956) and served in the U.S. Army (1956–58). He spent brief periods in the Horace Silver quintet (1956) and the Maynard Ferguson big band (1958) before his first major association, with Art Blakey’s hard-bop Jazz Messengers (1959–63). He joined Miles Davis’s modal jazz quintet as a tenor saxophonist in 1964 and stayed with him during Davis’s early fusion music experiments, leaving in 1970 as a soprano saxophonist.

Throughout the 1970s and much of the ’80s, Shorter and keyboard player Joe Zawinul together led Weather Report, a fusion band that explored an uncommon variety of sound colours. He returned frequently to the tenor saxophone and in later years led his own fusion music groups.

Shorter’s improvising was always notable for its great harmonic and rhythmic sophistication. His early tenor saxophone solos, inspired by Sonny Rollins, featured rare formal unity using thematic improvisation techniques, often with drama and humour (“Afrique,” “High Modes”). A growing concern with lyricism resulted in considerable stylistic revision and the use of more diffuse forms by the mid-1960s; much of his playing suggested a reinterpretation of John Coltrane’s style. His early soprano saxophone work, including the Super Nova album (1969), is especially notable for its melodic flow. A prolific composer, Shorter wrote many of his finest songs for the Blakey and Davis groups, including “Lester Left Town,” “Ping Pong,” “Children of the Night,” and “Footprints.”

Shorter continued to perform into the early 21st century, and his later albums included Atlantis (1985), High Life (1995), Without a Net (2013), and Emanon (2018); the last two were among several that featured the quartet of Shorter, Danilo Pérez (piano), John Patitucci (bass), and Brian Blade (drums). Shorter received more than 10 Grammy Awards, including a lifetime achievement award in 2015. He was named a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts in 1998 and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2018.

Wayne Shorter died on Feburary 17, 2023 after a long illness.  He was 89.

Wayne Shorter, sage of the saxophone, dies at 89.

https://www.npr.org/2023/03/02/768874324/wayne-shorter-sage-of-the-saxophone-dies-at-89

Gator and Groove - Rare Tenor/Organ Video

 

From Bret "Jazz Video Guy" Primack.

Barcelona, 1980. Richard Groove Holmes, organ; Willis Gatortail Jackson, tenor saxophone; Steve Giordano, guitar and Roger Humphries on drums. #richardgrooveholmes #willisgatortailjackson #organtrio #walkingthebar

Chet Atkins, Leo Kottke, & Doc Watson "Last Steam Engine Train"

 

Some good old fashioned acoustic country flatpicking to satisfy your soul.  Chet Atkins, Doc Watson, and Leo Kottke, three of the best in the business, playing "Last Steam Engine Train".  Check it out.