THE EDITORIAL PAGE #2

My hang buddy in Salt Lake City when we lived there ---- Brent Leake and myself on Stansbury Island, Great Salt Lake, Utah -- camera on a timer --- June 21, 1991 ------ Brent was a great guy and poet and friend, he got away from us November 5, 2017 age 65 ---- He visited us down here after we moved to Albuquerque, you can hear him on ALBUZERXQUE records and we did a chapbook together on Zerx, as well ----- The last time we talked, a few months ago over the telephone I implored him to write the story of the day we visited Kell Robertson, but he never got around to it, I'll tell the story soon, what a crazy day that was . . . .

My hang buddy in Salt Lake City when we lived there —- Brent Leake and myself on Stansbury Island, Great Salt Lake, Utah — camera on a timer — June 21, 1991 —— Brent was a great guy and poet and friend, he got away from us November 5, 2017 age 65 —- He visited us down here after we moved to Albuquerque, you can hear him on ALBUZERXQUE records and we did a chapbook together on Zerx, as well —– The last time we talked, a few months ago over the telephone I implored him to write the story of the day we visited Kell Robertson, but he never got around to it, I’ll tell the story soon, what a crazy day that was . . .

The Thursday Jazz Radio Show

February 1, 2o17 Jazz @ Noon every Thursday (starts at 12:07 after the satellite news) Host MARK WEBER KUNM Albuquerque, USA 89.9 FM (Mountain Standard Time) also streaming on the web KUNM.org Current time zone offset: UTC*/GMT -6 hours (*Coordinated Universal Time)/Greenwich Mean Time)

THE EDITORIAL PAGE #2

Gee, reading through a stack of recent dOWNBEATs makes me feel like a dinosaur, or at least behind the times, there is so much happening out there, and much of it certainly looks to be interesting, but one’s curiosity is kept in check with one’s budget. Also, one only has so much time for listening. Sure, in my 20s I listen’d to music 24/7 and in my 30s – 50s more like 10/7, till now at age 64 it’s more scatter’d and maybe only an hour or two a day unless I’m researching for an interview, then it’s what I call complete immersion, so that I can do justice to an artist when we go Live on mike. But, I’ve come to a time where I like quiet, too.

Turning slightly, thinking of a conversation with composer Michael Vlatkovich, he relating that rehearsals for an upcoming concert we’re doing out in Los Angeles with a chamber jazz ensemble, that the music “is very weird” —- I couldn’t tell if that was good or bad —- Pouring tea a minutes ago I chuckled to my dinosaur self: My idea of weird is Edgar Varese and Stefan Wolpe, I like wide intervals and notes and rhythms floating in space.

So, my friend Gary (he’s a professor of nuclear engineering at UNM) annually gives me a stack of last year’s dOWNBEATs and wow am I behind the times. Me of all people. I’m so old-fashioned I’ve even come to question the practice of searching for something new, which seems to only produce novelty and nothing more. I should think originality would spawn organically from who you are and not some premise of doing something nobody else has done before. I still think spontaneous improvising is the greatest thing, even as it is so demanding, and expecting a lot from an artist, one has to be psychically/physically/spiritually ready to be able to do that. But, I also love songs, the old standards, they are our lingua franca of jazz, our common language, so that when you slip into a club some night amid the clinking glass soft lights murmuring conversation and the band is playing “Gone With the Wind” or a Cole Porter we are already primed and able to dig the solos and stories. Inasmuch as I should admit this (it is an editorial after all), but when push comes to shove, my favorite jazz is small group ensemble, using a line, it could be merely ten measures long, maybe with a B section, maybe not, and with that little line creating music for 5-10 minutes, it’s always a trip.

When we moved to Albuquerque (1991) twenty-seven years ago I thought we had stepped into a 1950s time warp. All the working musicians in the clubs and hotels were totally involved in the Songbook standards. At first I thought that somewhat anachronistic but in time I came around, not that I wasn’t already hip to the greatness of the music of that era, but I was mostly interested in Out music at that time. Again, before I’m misunderstood: I still think spontaneous improvisation is the purest expression of the human spirit.

So . . . . you get older, your bones more creaky, and worse is you get vibed that you’re an old guy by some knucklehead with a million foot pedals for his guitar who wouldn’t know a sus9 chord from a goose, but of course because I spin Stan Getz on my radio show I’m out of touch —– You get the picture. Then, I read a stack of dOWNBEATs and wonder if there’s some truth to that assertion? Hrummph.

George Shearing -- June 10, 1979 Los Angeles -- photo by Mark Weber

George Shearing — June 10, 1979 Los Angeles — photo by Mark Weber

Nels Cline & Eric Von Essen Duo -- August 25, 1979, Pasadena, California -- photo by Mark Weber

Nels Cline & Eric Von Essen Duo — August 25, 1979, Pasadena, California — photo by Mark Weber

Thurman Barker of the AACM out of Chicago, who made all those early records with so many of the AACM artists, first came up on our radar on Joseph Jarman's 1966 Delmark album SONG FOR -- he can also be found on records of Sam Rivers, Butch Morris, Cecil Taylor, and Billy Bang of whom he was in trio the night of this photo at Century City Playhouse, September 30, 1979, w/ John Lindberg(bass) ---- photo by Mark Weber ----- I just loved Thurman's rumbling sound he had this night ---- Sure would like to catch him again some day . . . .

Thurman Barker of the AACM out of Chicago, who made all those early records with so many of the AACM artists, first came up on our radar on Joseph Jarman’s 1966 Delmark album SONG FOR — he can also be found on records of Sam Rivers, Butch Morris, Cecil Taylor, and Billy Bang of whom he was in trio the night of this photo at Century City Playhouse, September 30, 1979, w/ John Lindberg (bass) —- photo by Mark Weber —– I just loved Thurman’s rumbling sound he had this night —- Sure would like to catch him again some day . . . .

Jon Kurnick & Tommy Tedesco at a little joint in Hollywood on Franklin Street called Two Dollar Bills (that's Emil Richards on vibes behind Tommy) -- May 17, 1980 -- photo by Mark Weber ---- Jon Kurnick made several records with Tommy Tedesco, Jim Self, Les Brown, Frank Morocco, and a couple with Buell Neidlinger's String Jazz

Jon Kurnick & Tommy Tedesco at a little joint in Hollywood on Franklin Street called Two Dollar Bills (that’s Emil Richards on vibes behind Tommy) — May 17, 1980 — photo by Mark Weber —- Jon Kurnick made several records with Tommy Tedesco, Jim Self, Les Brown, Frank Morocco, and a couple with Buell Neidlinger’s String Jazz

Stanley Cowell, Tony Purrone, Jimmy Heath backstage at The Barn, Univeristy of Redlands, California, on tour with the Heath Brothers -- May 24, 1980 -- photo by Mark Weber (those are Percy's hands at extreme left) -- Those stripe shirts must have been their uniforms

Stanley Cowell, Tony Purrone, Jimmy Heath backstage at The Barn, Univeristy of Redlands, California, on tour with the Heath Brothers — May 24, 1980 — photo by Mark Weber (those are Percy’s hands at extreme left) — Those stripe shirts must have been their uniforms

Don Menza Quintet -- Dick Berk(drums), Frank DeLaRosa(bass), Don Menza(tenor & flute), Chuck Findley(trumpet & flugel), Frank Strazzeri(piano) -- 40 miles east of L.A. at a little joint on Rt.66 in Cucamonga called Gilberto's that had Sunday afternoon jazz -- June 14, 1981 -- photo by Mark Weber

Don Menza Quintet — Dick Berk (drums), Frank DeLaRosa (bass), Don Menza (tenor & flute), Chuck Findley (trumpet & flugel), Frank Strazzeri (piano) — 40 miles east of L.A. at a little joint on Rt.66 in Cucamonga called Gilberto’s that had Sunday afternoon jazz — June 14, 1981 — photo by Mark Weber

Donald Byrd (center) visits with Clare Fischer after performance of Clare's Salsa Picante at the Bonaventure Hotel, downtown L.A. (I don't know who the guy in the hat is, or the lady) -- August 18, 1980 -- photo by Mark Weber ---- Donald Byrd and Clare Fischer's work together goes back to 1959 when they did that project with strings

Donald Byrd (center) visits with Clare Fischer after performance of Clare’s Salsa Picante at the Bonaventure Hotel, downtown L.A. (I don’t know who the guy in the hat is, or the lady) — August 18, 1980 — photo by Mark Weber —- Donald Byrd and Clare Fischer’s work together goes back to 1959 when they did that project with strings

King Smoker it says: That's bassist/composer Al Hines (in the very center) getting himself some ribs at Watts Towers Jazz Festival -- July 15, 1984 ---- AND that's the inimitable Dwain Kaiser standing behind Al waiting for some ribs, also (Dwain had the bookstore Magic Door in my hometown of Upland -- he is a scholar of Science Fiction and a union organizer and a poker player, he was part of my crew, Horace Tapscott always loved when I brought Dwain around, they both being very politically-oriented) ---- photo by Mark Weber

King Smoker it says: That’s bassist/composer Al Hines (in the very center) getting himself some ribs at Watts Towers Jazz Festival — July 15, 1984 —- AND that’s the inimitable Dwain Kaiser standing behind Al waiting for some ribs, also (Dwain had the bookstore Magic Door in my hometown of Upland — he is a scholar of Science Fiction and a union organizer and a poker player, he was part of my crew, Horace Tapscott always loved when I brought Dwain around, they both being very politically-oriented) —- photo by Mark Weber

Henry Franklin and John Carter -- at the Local 47 benefit for Dolo Coker -- March 20, 1983 -- photo by Mark Weber ---- Henry was the bass player on John & Bobby's albums SELF-DETERMINATION MUSIC (1969) and SECRETS (1971) among many other great records he was a part of all these years, as well as the late Hugh Masekela's band and the bass player on the 1968 hit "Grazing in the Grass" (I just played Jack Sheldon's wild version of that song on my radio show in remembrance of Hugh Masekela)

Henry Franklin and John Carter — at the Local 47 benefit for Dolo Coker — March 20, 1983 — photo by Mark Weber —- Henry was the bass player on John & Bobby’s albums SELF-DETERMINATION MUSIC (1969) and SECRETS (1971) among many other great records he was a part of all these years, as well as the late Hugh Masekela’s band and the bass player on the 1968 hit “Grazing in the Grass” (I just played Jack Sheldon’s wild version of that song on my radio show in remembrance of Hugh Masekela)

Horace Tapscott shot over the top of Billy Hinton's drums -- that's a grand piano so this photo was taken between February - June 1979 when Tom Albach rented the piano for the 6 Sundays he recorded at I.U.C.C. church in Los Angeles -- photo by Mark Weber (normally the church had a spinet)

Horace Tapscott shot over the top of Billy Hinton’s drums — that’s a grand piano so this photo was taken between February – June 1979 when Tom Albach rented the piano for the 6 Sundays he recorded at I.U.C.C. church in Los Angeles — photo by Mark Weber (normally the church had a spinet)

Nat Pierce at Donte's -- May 27, 1979 North Hollywood -- photo by Mark Weber

Nat Pierce at Donte’s — May 27, 1979 North Hollywood — photo by Mark Weber

The amazing drummer Kim Calkins with the Bobby Bradford Sunday jam session at the Little Big Horn, Pasadena -- December 19, 1976 -- James Newton(flute), Bobby(cornet), Kevin Brandon(bass), Glenn Ferris and Kim would drive up together from Venice Beach -- photo by Mark Weber -- (I think Kim drummed on some Beach Boys records around this time)

The amazing drummer Kim Calkins with the Bobby Bradford Sunday jam session at the Little Big Horn, Pasadena — December 19, 1976 — James Newton (flute), Bobby (cornet), Kevin Brandon (bass), Glenn Ferris and Kim would drive up together from Venice Beach — photo by Mark Weber — (I think Kim drummed on some Beach Boys records around this time)

Paul Bley visiting the Little Big Horn (Vinny was driving him around) -- December 19, 1976 -- photo by Mark Weber

Paul Bley visiting the Little Big Horn (Vinny was driving him around) — December 19, 1976 — photo by Mark Weber

Joshua Breakstone -- April 11, 2o17 Kansas City -- photo by Nathalie Breakstone ---- You, too, may ponder why there's a tenor saxophone on Bird's gravestone

Joshua Breakstone — April 11, 2o17 Kansas City — photo by Nathalie Breakstone —- You, too, may ponder why there’s a tenor saxophone on Bird’s gravestone

6 Comments

  1. Nels Cline

    Oh man…Mark… Really getting me with this batch, and not just because there’s a photo of Eric and me from ’79 (!!). That Paul Bley photo is amazing, and all the rest…. John and Henry, Bobby… Whoa. Many thanks. XO N

  2. Maryanne

    Mark, very sorry about your friend Brent . . RIP

  3. Mark Weber

    ———————————–playlist——————————–
    Thursday Jazz Show
    February 1, 2o18
    KUNM —————-Albuquerque USA
    Host MARK WEBER

    1. Harry Carney nonet “Blues for Blokes” —17sept60 w/ Paul Gonsalves(tenor), Ray Nance(trpt), Sam Woodyard(drums), Harry Carney(baritone sax) album HARRY CARNEY & THE DUKE’S MEN: ROCK ME GENTLY (Columbia/Vocalion)
    *Note: in these playlists I use the lower case “nonet” group size designation when the band was not strictly called a Quartet or Trio or Sextet, etc
    2. Rolf Kuhn Sextet “South of the Border” — 1960 — Rolf(clarinet), Jack Sheldon(trpt), Henry Grimes(bass), Chuck Wayne(guitar), John Bnch(piano), Ray Mosca(drums) *Rolf came from Germany to NYC in 1956, stayed a few years . . . . still active back in Germany . . .
    3. Anthony Ortega Quartet “We’ll be together again” alto sax w/ Hank Jones(p), Addison Farmer(b), Edmond Thigpen(d) — 1961
    4. Duke Ellington trio “Don Juan” –18july66 cd THE PIANIST (Fantasy)
    5. Ella “I Can’t Get Started” — May 1961 w/ Lou Levy(piano) cd TWELVE NIGHTS IN HOLLYWOOD (Verve)
    6. Lenny Popkin Trio “Call” w/ Carol Tristano(drums), Gilles Naturel(bass), Lenny(tenor) –5apr2006 cd TIME SET (Lifeline)
    7. Michael Vlatkovich quartet “On the corner of purple saturday” w/ David Mott(baritone), Jonathan Golove(elec-cello), Chris Garcia(drums), Michael(trombone) — 21may2014 cd MYRNOFANT’S KISS (pfMENTUM)
    8. Dave Brubeck Quartet “Waltz Limp” — 15dec61 cd COUNTDOWN: TIME IN OUTER SAPCE (Col.)
    9. Buell Neidlinger-Marty Krystall-Howard Alden trio, cello-bassclarinet-guitar “Valse Macabre” –June 2o13 cd THE HAPPENINGS : Music of Herbie Nichols
    10. Duke Ellington Orchestra “Bonga” –1963 album AFRO BOSSA (Reprise)
    FIVE BIRD SONGS in a row followed by a PREZ-associated tune:
    11. Lanny Morgan quintet “KoKo” (Charlie Parker) –Sept.1981 cd IT’S ABOUT TIME (Quicksilver Records) w/ Bruce Forman(guitar), Lou Levy(piano), Monty Budwig(bass), Nick Ceroli(drums), Lanny(alto & arrangement)
    12. Sue Raney “Indiana/Donna Lee” — 1992 cd w/Bob Cooper(tenor), Bill Watrous(trombone), Conte Candoli(trpt), Andy Simpkins(bass), Jake Hanna(drums), Alan Broadbent(piano & arrangement), Sue on song and bop scat supreme
    13. Charlie Parker Septet “Moose the Mooch” w/ Teddy Edwards(tenor), Dodo Marmarosa(piano), Miles(trpt) –28march1946 Hollywood
    14. Marty Paich septet “Yardbird Suite” — July 1957 — 2 valve trombones + 2 trumpets + rhythm section: Stu Williamson & Bob Enevoldsen(trombones), Jack Sheldon & Don Fagerquist(trpts), Buddy Clark(bass), Mel Lewis(drums), Marty Paich(piano & arrangement) cd A JAZZ BAND BALL (Mode)
    15. Nick Brignola quartet “Donna Lee” furious w/ Chuck D’Aloia(guitar), Eddie Gomez(bass), Bill Stewart(drums), Nick(baritone) cd TOUR DE FORCE –Dec. 2000
    16. Jack Montrose quintet “Polka Dots and Moonbeams” — 11sept57 Hollywood w/ Red Norvo(vibes), Barney Kessel(guitar), Red Wooten(bass), Mel Lewis(drums), Jack(tenor & arrangement)

  4. Kirk Silsbee

    I second that emotion, Nels; Mark is way up into my wheelhouse with this post: Century City Playhouse, Two Dollar Bill’s, the Bonaventure Hotel, the soon-to-be-abandoned Local 47 site, Watts Towers, and Donte’s. To say nothing of Nels & Eric, Billy Bang at CCPH, Tedesco and Kurnick, the four-on-the-floor rhythm section of Strazz, De La Rosa and Berk, Clare Fischer before his, um, car accident, John and Henry lookin’ great, Horace at work, Nat Pierce with Dave Pell’s Prez Conference (Earl Palmer sat in on drums that night for Frankie Capp), and Paul Bley sneakin’ back to SoCal–where he cooked with Scotty LaFaro, Ornette, Don Cherry, Dave Pike and others nearly 20 years before.
    One of my first liner note jobs was Tedesco’s “Carnival Time” LP (Discovery ’82); Jon Kurnick and Jimmy Bruno guested. Tommy gave me a fifteen-minute interview at the Guitar Institute, shooting out sentences the way other people squeeze off automatic gunfire. (In that fifteen minutes, he gave me more content than many other musicians take two hours to impart.) One of my better essays is the liner I wrote for “The Music of Eric von Essen Vol. II” (Cryptogramophone 2001). Eric was hard to get to know but not when you heard him play.
    One of the people in your photos gave me pause. I sit on the board of the California Jazz Foundation, which helps struggling musicians. We’ve paid that guy’s expenses for awhile now because, like many players, he’s fallen on hard times. But that’s why we’re here.

  5. Washington Rucker

    Beautiful collection of photos with some of my favorite friends included. washington rucker

  6. Mark Weber

    ————————————–playlist—————————-
    The Magical Rain Jazz Radio Show*
    February 15, 2o18
    KUNM Albuquerque
    Host MARK WEBER
    1. Sonny Rollins Trio “Blessing in Disguise” (SR) — 9may66 w/ Elvin Jones & Jimmy Garrison — Sonny’s immortal album EAST BROADWAY RUNDOWN (Impulse)
    2. Peter Kuhn Trio “Intention” –27march2017 — w/ Kyle Motl(bass), Nathan Hubbard(drums), Peter(clarinet) cd INTENTION (FMR) —— a group from San Diego I recently caught in concert in Los Angeles (Eagle Rock at
    Open Gate)
    3. Jack Wilson Trio “He that Murmureth” — March 1979 — w/ Allen Jackson(bas), Clarence Johnston(drums), Jack(dual pianos — left hand on an electric — right hand on a grand) cd AUTUMN SUNSET (Discovery)
    4. Art Pepper Quartet cd LIVING LEGEND (Contemporary) –9aug77 w/ Shelley Manne, Charlie Haden, Hampton Hawes
    5. Stephen Riley Trio “Bluesette”(Toots Thielemans) — March 2005 cd INSIDE OUT (Steeplechase) *Saxophonist Bill Plake pointed me toward this new name to me —- This is Riley’s first cd — he plays tenor saxophone)
    6. Sue Raney “Here’s That Rainy Day” — 1963 album ALL BY MYSELF (Capitol) w/ Joe Mondragon(bass)
    and the immortal lyric “Maybe I should have saved those left-over dreams” by Johnny Burke (music by Jimmy Van Heusen– 1953)
    7. Lenny Popkin Trio w/ Eddie Gomez(bass), Carol Tristano(drums), Lenny(tenor) — 2004 cd NEW YORK MOMENT
    8. Woody & Boomer “Scrapple from the Apple”(Bird) duet: Michael Anthony(guitar) & David Parlato(bass) –2dec99 Live on the Thursday jazz show way back when
    9. Ella “Don’t Rain on my Parade” — 26march65 in Germany (Verve) *I dedicated this to Trump and his
    dumb idea to have a military parade that nobody is going along with, not even the U.S. military
    10. Bud Shank “Here’s That Rainy Day” w/Bobby Shew(trumpet), Larry Bunker(drums), Mike Wofford(piano), Fred Atwood(bass), Bud(alto) –1976 cd SUNSHINE EXPRESS( Concord)
    11. Stephen Riley “Barbados”(Bird) ibid.
    12. Sonny Rollins Trio “East Broadway Rundown” — 1966 ibid.

    *after 4 or 5 months of drought it has finally rained in Albuquerque

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