The Ultimate Band

Having listened to a fair of music by this point in my life, I thought I'd make my ultimate band. So, in my band, there would be:

• Sonny Rollins - tenor saxophone
• Dizzy Gillespie - trumpet
• Thelonious Monk - piano
• Charles Mingus - bass
• Elvin Jones - drums

If only they were all alive, it would be a magnificent quintet. They'd play bebop, hard bop, post bop, all the bops. And swing, led by Benny Goodman or Artie Shaw, depending on who was available at the time. Obviously, I'd rather have Benny Goodman, were they both available.

Let me know your ultimate bands, jazz or not, by email (jazzphilosophybiscuits@gmail.com) or in the comments below. Tom'll be posting about his band soon, stay tuned. This, where we both do our opinions on a single topic, may become a regular feature.

~Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.~

Neil Cowley - Radio Silence

Having recently acquired a 32gb iPod Touch, I decided to make use of its iTunes Store feature, where I purchased Neil Cowley's new album, Radio Silence. I was introduced to Neil Cowley's music a year or so ago, and I haven't stopped listening to his trio. If I had to categorise his style, I'd call it something vague, like contemporary jazz, but he really does have a style all of his own. There are fast, complex piano lines and phrases, played by Cowley, all backed up by double bass and drums.

His other two albums that I own, Displaced and Loud Louder Stop, are both great, and those plus Radio Silence really sum up what is so special about Neil Cowley Trio. His fast, methodical and intelligent style are unique. The chord sequences, the phrasing, the piano lines, they are all unexpected. And yet they are still catchy. Perhaps it is a love or hate style, but I thoroughly recommend listening to at least some of his stuff.

Thanks for reading, please send any suggestions for future blog topics to jazzphilosophybiscuits@gmail.com, and any comments below.

~Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.~

King Edward VII, Jazz Workshop

For anyone in Sheffield who likes jazz, and would like to play it with others, this is worth taking note of. Saturday mornings, 10:00 until 12:30 at King Edward VII school, Sheffield. The jazz workshop's there are great for beginners and more advanced players alike. I've been going now for a couple of years, and I love it. You learn the theory of jazz, along with learning jazz standards, under the guidance of one of many workshop leaders. You get a huge confidence boost when you play your first solo, however bad it may sound! I remember my first time there, I was extremely nervous, but everyone there, leaders and participants alike, was very nice and encouraging. I recommend this to anyone who's thinking of taking up playing jazz. For me at least, it was/is a very fun and enriching experience.

Thanks for reading, email suggestions for future blogs to jazzphilosophybiscuits@googlemail.com, and comment below.

~Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.~

Kind Of Blue

Considered to be one of the best, if not the best, jazz albums of all time, Miles Davis' Kind Of Blue, 1959, marks a high point in the development of jazz. Though there are only 5 tracks on the original album, each one of them deserves recognition.

So What - The opening track of the album features Bill Evans on piano and Paul Chambers creating the iconic intro. Following each playing of the bass riff, the chords played by the front-line members are stacked up 4ths, with a major 3rd on the top. The chord is E A D G B, followed by D G C F A. That may not mean much written down, but it was such an important chord, it was named the 'So What chord' for its uniqueness.

Freddie Freeloader - In this, Davis replaced Bill Evans with Wynton Kelly, and the solos are played by Kelly, saxophonist John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley and Miles Davis. This one is almost a standard 12-bar blues, in contrast to So What's long 32-bar form. I say almost because instead of resolving on the 1st chord of the sequence, the tune is left 'hanging' on chord 7, leaving the form with an unresolved feel.

Blue In Green - The shortest track on the album, at only 5:36, there is debate as to whether it was composed by pianist Bill Evans or Miles Davis. This one is a slow tempo track, and quite laid back. I can't really think of anything particularly special about this track, but there isn't anything wrong with it by any account.

All Blues - Another iconic bass riff by Paul Chambers, this 12-bar blues in 6/8 is famous not only for the bass, but for the rising and falling chords on the instruments other than Davis' trumpet. Another classic, this track features some great solos, and reminds me why jazz songs are often so long. So that they have enough time to develop and express (and John Coltrane is the man for that, try listening to the album A Love Supreme).

Flamenco Sketches - The final track of the album (unless you get the reissue, containing an alternate take of this track, or the Legacy Edition, which is huge), Flamenco Sketches has no written melody. The musicians improvised over a set of chords, which were planned, using different modes (essentially 'jazz scales'). Composed by Davis and Bill Evans.

Thanks for reading, please comment below, or email me with suggestions for topics you would like me to cover.

Life

Yes, I know the title's a bit vague, bear with me. As I often do, I've recently been thinking about life, purpose, etc.. It seems odd to me that, although it appears we have freedom of choice in most matters, which religion we follow, our profession, our friends, we really have much less choice than we think, unless we are very brave.

Take religion. Yes we can choose, depending on what we ultimately believe in, but deny it as you might, indoctrination happens, and it seems to work. If you are brought up in a [insert religion A] community, you will probably believe [religion A]. Even if you are told of, or even research, other religions, you are more likely to stick with [religion A] over [religion B]. This does not, of course, mean that you are stuck with [religion A], we still can choose [religion B], we are just less likely to.

Example two. We would like to think we can choose what to do in life, and we can. But we can sometimes forget the factors that influence the choices we make, intelligence, strength, skill. We might subconsciously lean towards doing a job that we are good at, rather than one we would enjoy or feel happy doing.

While we ultimately do have choice in the majority of the matters in our life, are we discouraged by 'the system' to do the unexpected, to defy convention? From primary school, not meaning to boast, I've been quite intelligent. I've had a bit of a knack for maths and the sciences (probably countered by my appalling English). As such, I'm pretty much expected to follow a certain course. Do well in GCSEs, take A levels, go to university, get a well paying job that I enjoy. All well and good. But though I do enjoy maths and, to a lesser extent, science, I would say, if asked in the street, that my main passion is firstly Buddhism/Theology, secondly jazz, thirdly more intellectual pursuits such as maths. It would be unexpected and, I suspect, frowned upon to, even if it means leaving Britain, going to a Buddhist monastery and become a monk. To tour, playing jazz would seem stupid, a waste of talent even. But because of my upbringing in this environment, that won't happen. The reality is I will probably conform, stick to the norm, not take the risk.

I think it was René Descartes who said there are only two emotions: love and fear (please correct me if it was someone else). Am I going to be stuck to convention because of a fear of rejection, the unknown? Time will tell...

Thanks for reading, please feel free to comment and send suggestions to jazzphilosophybiscuits@googlemail.com.

The Moon Is Low - Art Tatum

If I had to pick one pianist to listen to exclusively, it would have to be Art Tatum. The phrasing, the rhythms, the fast lines down the piano, the amazing use of chord movements, all contribute to why I would call this track, The Moon Is Low, my favourite piano piece.

You can find the version I refer to on the album The Art Tatum Solo Masterpieces, Vol. 5. Unfortunately, I cannot think of an accurate way to describe this song, but I can tell you that it is of the sub-genre of jazz called stride. Stride is, basically, the right hand of the piano playing a melody, while the left plays 'striding' basslines and chords. Sounds simple, no? Correct, no. When listening to Art Tatum, stride is anything but simple. As I listen to him now, I hear the left hand moving in a fast, steady rhythm, while always changing the chord it's based on. Even on its own, the left hand of stride would be enough for me.

But, coupled with the ever more complex right hand, it produces an effect, well, twice as good. The melody is played once, embellished, played again, embellished, up to the point where the main tune is barely distinguishable. And all this while being practically blind for his whole life.

Thanks for reading, please send suggestions and other comments to jazzphilosophybiscuits@googlemail.com and feel free to comment below.

EST and Free-Jazz

Up until a few months ago, I couldn't stand free-jazz. The thought of noise rather than music put me off trying it properly. However, I recently attended the gig of a famous free-jazz musician, though I cannot remember his name, that's not particularly important anyway. I am using the term 'gig' loosely, as this was held in the back room of his rather nice house, maximum seating capacity 12. When the band, consisting of the musician mentioned above, a drummer and a pianist began to play, I was scared. Scared for the safety of my ears. The trombone, played by said musician, was played with such ferocity that saliva was flying everywhere, and I mean everywhere. What came out of the trombone, noise-wise, was just noise. Very, very loud noise. However, when my mind stopped thinking thoughts like "My ears hurt, my ears hurt, my ears hurt", or "Why is the drummer using his head to repeatedly knock cymbals off drums?", I found that I was caught up in the energy of the whole experience. The rising and falling tension, the new and unexplored territories of sound. Granted you won't get the full force and energy of the music on a recording, but believe me when I say it is worth a try.

Now, onto EST. Short for the Esbjorn Svensson Trio, this band is not only great in its own right, but it serves well as listening for anyone who is new to free-jazz. You can make up your own mind when you hear EST as to whether they are truly a free-jazz band, but a couple of tracks that I recommend are: From Gagarin's Point Of View, from the album with the same name, and Dodge The Dodo. The studio version of Dodge The Dodo is good, by all accounts, but I recommend the live version, from the album E.S.T. LIVE. Both tracks give a good feel as to what EST are like, and aren't too experimental for anyone new to the free-jazz genre.

Thanks for reading, and please direct any suggestions to jazzphilosophybiscuits@sky.com. Feel free to comment, and stay tuned for more updates.