Kathleen Loves Music

When I was a budding record producer my go-to guy for album covers was my great friend from childhood, Frank Olinsky, who went on to become one of the most respected and successful music designers of the last 30 years (starting, most famously, with his co-design of the MTV logo). He selflessly went to work on whatever I asked him for, including this unreleased album cover for the unreleased (really tasty) jazz album cut by R&B pianist/singer/songwriter Rusty Cloud (Bo Diddley, Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes, The Blues Brothers). (Maybe I can find and post the tapes someday.)

Frank’s a great designer, but, in my eyes, an even more incredible illustrator and painter. This cover always reminded me of Eberhard Weber’s “The Colours of Chloë”, but with Frank’s trademark wry humor.

Hank Jones
Groovin’ High

Produced by Fred Seibert

1. Algo Bueno
2. Anthropology
3. Sippin’ at Bells
4. Blue Monk
5. Groovin’ High
6. I Mean You
7. Jackie-Ing

Hank Jones: Piano
Sam Jones: Bass
Mickey Roker: Drums
Thad Jones: Cornet
Charlie Rouse: Tenor Saxophone

As soon as we saw the incredible reaction to our first release with Hank Jones, Bop Redux , in 1977 it was clear to Muse Records’ founder Joe Fields and me we needed to record a sequel. Hank’s absence from the scene for 25 years (in the CBS Orchestra) had only made him better, and the yearning for the emotion and craft of originators of bebop was burning a hole in the hearts of 70s jazz fans. We moved recording from my base at CI Recording in Manhattan (the former Mercury Records studios) to Rudy VanGelder’s in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, the most famous studio for jazz in the world.

The moment of discord with Hank came when I insisted he replace [Read more…]

Charles Walker & The New York City Blues Band
Blues From The Apple

Produced by Tom Pomposello with Fred Seibert
Engineering. Fred Seibert

Click the title to play.
1. Scratch My Back
2. Black Cat Bone
3. Gladly
4. Decoration Day
5. I’m A Good Man But A Poor Man
6. Juice Head Woman
7. Bluebird’s Blues
8. Fast, Fast, Women and A Slow Race Horse
9. It’s Changin’ Time
10. Meeting You

……
CHARLES WALKER & THE NEW YORK CITY BLUES BAND
Blues From The Apple
Oblivion Records
OD-4
1974

Click here for covers, photographs, lyrics, and other printed ephemera.

LINER NOTES:

New York City blues has been one of the Big Apple’s best kept secrets for the past decade and a half. While many local bluesmen have remained “active” at house parties with an occaisional gig at a small club, many others, veterans of a by-gone R&B era, have pawned their instruments and abandoned hopes of continuing a career that long ago abandoned them. In short the New York City blues scene [Read more…]

Jaki Byard
Family Man
Produced by Frederick Seibert

Click the titles to play.
1. Just Rollin’ Along
2. Mood Indigo/Chelsea Bridge
3. L.H. Gatewalk Rag
4. Ballad to Louise
Excerpts from Family Suite
5. Prelude No.16
6. Gaeta
7. Garr
8. Emil
9. John Arthur

Jaki Byard: piano, tenor saxophone, alto saxophone
Major Holley: bass, tuba, Fender bass
Warren Smith: drums, tympani, vibraphone
J.R. Mitchell: drums
…..
Jaki Byard was one of my great heroes and inspirations when I started listening to jazz in earnest in the early 70s. “Eclectic” was the word that best described him since he recorded in styles directly linked to stride, swing, bop and the avant-garde, all with authenticity and enthusiasm. When Muse Records’ owner Joe Fields asked me to suggest a suitable recording project Jaki immediately came to mind.
…..
Muse Records MR 5173
Jaki Byard
Family Man

Produced by Frederick Seibert
Engineered by Chuck Irwin & Elvin Campbell, CI Recording (110 W57th Street, NYC)
April 28 & May 1, 1978

Muse Records Discography

…..
Liner notes by Fred Bouchard:

Jaki Byard - pianist, composer, family man. Family man? Yes, indeed.

Whatever paradoxes [Read more…]

Hank Jones
‘Bop Redux
Produced by Fred Seibert, in association with Dick Ables
Grammy Nominee, 1977, Best Jazz Instrumental Performance - Soloist

Click the titles to play.
1. Yardbird Suite
2. Confirmation
3. Rudy, My Dear
4. Relaxin’ With Lee
5. Bloomdido
6. ‘Round Midnight
7. Moose the Mooche
8. Monk’s Mood

Hank Jones: Piano
George Duvivier: Bass
Ben Riley: Drums

Hank Jones had been a exemplar jazz journeyman until he took a full time day job in the CBS Orchestra in 1952. This record date, the first after his contract finally expired, was arranged by Muse Records’ owner Joe Fields, and he cordially to handle the production. My primary contribution –I was a wet behind the ears 26 year old with no particular skills– was suggesting the jazz standards repetoire as a respite from the relentlessness of the “energy” avant-garde of the previous 10 years. I also chose the engineer and studio, asked Hank to avoid bass solos, named the album after John Updike’s ‘Rabbit Redux,’ [Read more…]

Front cover, The Cecil Taylor Unit, Spring of Two Blue-J’s.
Click to enlarge to printable, full size.

I can’t imagine any regular readers of this blog liking this track, but Googling will turn up quite a few passionate listeners, since this outstanding record has been out of print for over thirty years. Since I engineered and produced the original recording, I thought it might be time fans had access to it. I’ll try and update this post as I get more materials and information, so you could consider it the definitive current release.

Cecil Taylor Unit > Spring of Two Blue-J’s
This music file is very large (35 MB), so be prepared for a long loading time.

Cecil Taylor is one of the three acknowledged leaders of the progressive, free jazz movement of mid-20th century America. To a lot of folks he just plays noise and they find it hard to believe this music is composed, no [Read more…]

I played a song from this album a couple of years ago, but it’s so great I had to put up another. And it’s logical proof of yesterday’s Hank post.

Charlie Haden made his reputation in the early 60s with Ornette Coleman’s avant garde jazz revolution (after a mid-western childhood playing with his family’s country & western band). After a period of drug addiction and resurrection through political action, he settled back on the West Coast, taught and CalArts, and resumed an early interest in duets (with among others Pat Metheny, Kenny Baron, and Ornette). This album with Hank is my favorite of a great bunch. A combination of gospel songs and church hymns, they’re interpretations by two of the sublime players of their generations. Easy going down and smart at the same time.

Charlie Haden: bass
Hank Jones: piano

Jason Plapp (co-creator of Bradwurst, “the only character who’s ass you can see from all directions”) asked me about some jazz he could check out. I assume because I started my career as a jazz record producer. So Jason’s giving me inspiration to search out and post some of my favorite jazz tracks. There won’t be any other rhyme or reason other than that I like them, but maybe they’ll be useful pointers. And I’ll link to Wikipedia biographies to help guide whatever sketches I put up.

Hank Jones is one of the great journeymen of his (and our) time. He comes from Detroit, made his name as a bebopper in the 40s, and settled in as one of the most versatile stylists of any era, equally comfortable in music popular before and after his coming of age. His brothers Elvin (from John Coltrane’s great quartet) and Thad (Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Big Band) also [Read more…]