Listening: New Miles

When I heard that Columbia was releasing yet another Miles Davis recording, my initial thought was “Do we really need to have yet another Miles album?” Don’t get me wrong; I’m a huge Miles Davis fan. I have more Miles albums than any other artist in my collection. Even more than Jimi Hendrix. And I have a LOT of Hendrix. But still. Another Miles album? Then I read that it was a 3 CD live set (plus a DVD) from late 1967. This changes things a bit. Any Miles album is good and worthwhile as far as I’m concerned, but there is something unique and special about his Second Quintet. And by late ’67 this band had been a BAND for three solid years. They had coalesced into something extraordinary – an amoeba that could mutate and move in any direction at any time. And the restless, searching energy of this group is especially evident on live recordings. The band was completely different in the studio. That’s not to say that the studio albums aren’t amazing – they are. But live in concert, the band really stretched. Staggeringly so, considering how narrow the live repertoire was for the 3 ½ - 4 years this band existed. They, for the most part, played the same tunes night after night. Often in the same order. In lesser hands this would become boring and tiresome. But Wayne, Herbie, Ron, Tony, and Miles – this band, was a once in a lifetime kind of ensemble. A living, breathing organism.

A lot of times when people talk about the live version of the second quintet they mention the Plugged Nickel sessions. Yes, those are great recordings, but they were recorded early on, not that long after the group formed. Sure, you hear the band stretching and pushing, but not like on later recordings and bootlegs. Plus, Miles is in pretty sad shape during those concerts. Shitty Miles is still great Miles as far as I’m concerned, but he’s struggling with the horn on the Plugged Nickel sessions (a lay-off from health-related issues, if I remember correctly). Whereas, a couple of years later, on this new Columbia set from 1967, Miles is pretty much at the peak of his powers as far as trumpet playing goes - from a technical standpoint. He’s all over the horn. High, low, fast, slow, loud, quiet. Power and control. And his tone is gorgeous (his sound hasn’t gotten to that amplified, coked-up, splatty sound that he would get in the early to mid 70’s – mind you, I love that sound too!). It hasn’t lost the romantic sentimentality that he was famous for. But he’s really, really pushing himself. His lines on fast tunes are just frightening. Anyone who ever says that Miles just wasn’t that great a trumpet player is completely full of crap as far as I’m concerned. Don’t believe me? Listen to this:

First Listen: Miles Davis, 'Live In Europe 1967: The Bootleg Series Vol. 1'

Thanks, NPR! You’ve done it again (based on this alone, how can we not fund NPR???!!! – tongue in cheek – but not really!). NPR “First Listen” has given us the opportunity to listen to the first CD of this new Columbia set before it’s even released! And guess what? It’s AWESOME! The Band is absolutely operating at its peak. The music is a strange mix of old (Green Dolphin Street, ‘Round Midnight) and new (Agitation, Masqualero) and a few tunes that the band had made in the studio (Gingerbread Boy, Footprints). This is truly a moment of transition for Miles, and really all of the guys in the band. Six months later the Quintet would record “Filles de Kilimanjaro” – the record I really consider the pivotal record as Miles moves toward a different sound. “Kilimanjaro” comes before “In a Silent Way” and “Bitches Brew.” Change was in the air before people knew that change was in the air. And on this 1967 recording you can feel that something is going change. There are going to be new developments and new directions (This suit that Miles is wearing above is about to get tossed in the trash. Leather pants, scarves, crazy sunglasses, and mesh tank tops are on the horizon!). It’s almost as if they’ve pushed the music as far as it could go. And this new live document really illustrates this quest for exploration. It’s a pretty sweet set. And I bet the DVD will be pretty cool too. My wife has put it on my Christmas list. Got more money than me? Pre-order your copy here.

Further reading: Nate Chinen’s NYTimes review.

The Innovators

This past weekend was a hot one in Philly which meant some time at the pool and some time at the grill. My two favorite grill companions are a good beer and some good music. Both were on hand last night. And dinner turned out great: grilled chicken topped with grilled fresh pineapple slices topped with some melted provolone; grilled potato slices drenched in paprika-and-nutmeg-infused butter and then topped with sour cream and fresh chives (this was the boys’ favorite – we’re gonna try a sweet potato version soon, I think); and grilled asparagus. Boy was it good!  But the thing that really knocked me out was listening to Bo Diddley play his original tune entitled (what else?!), “Bo Diddley.” Wow! I’ve had this tune on CD for a couple of year now, but it really hit me the other night. This track is crazy!! Check it out:

The sound of this tune is just insane. There is a raw-ness and a level of badass-ness to this song that I just haven’t heard almost anywhere else. I tried to imagine what it must have felt like to have been listening to the radio, or jukebox, back in 1955 when this song came out. It must have scared the crap out of people. That huge, reverbed-out guitar thumping that Bo Diddley beat. The maracas shaking like crazy in tandem with the bass-heavy drums. Then there’s the singing. It’s got a blues feeling. A country feeling (I’m not talking about Merle Haggard country – although that sure is nice, too – but country as in not urban). It’s got a swagger. But it’s deeper and more historic. It feels urgent and primal. It feels natural. It’s sexy and it’s badass. I bet the kids in the know back in ’55 must have shaken whatever they had dancing to “Bo Diddley.” And I bet their parents didn’t understand and didn’t like it one bit. The guy had a square guitar, for crying out loud. This is not music for stuffy grown-ups. And it must have sounded like nothing anyone had ever heard before. Because it was like nothing that had come before. This is some innovative music. And that got me thinking.

Some of my all-time favorite musicians are true originals. They don’t sound like what had come before. They are innovators. Some of my true favorites: Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, Stevie Wonder, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington, Gil Evans, and because this is more or less a trumpet blog: Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Clifford Brown, Roy Eldridge, Lester Bowie, Clark Terry, Dave Douglas, Woody Shaw, Don Cherry, etc. Really the list goes on and on in all genres of music. But the real thing is that these musicians created something on their instruments that had never been made quite that way before. And sometimes the music they created was extremely new, maybe shockingly new.

Sure, as I’ve written on here before, everyone has a daddy. There would be no Miles Davis had there not already been a Louis Armstrong. Jimi Hendrix wouldn’t have been Jimi Hendrix were it not for the blues and rhythm and blues bands and players that he played with and emulated. And I think it’s also important to note that these musicians didn’t just appear out of thin air, fully formed as innovators (the Beatles took a few years to really find their true creative path, but when they did, they became, on so many different levels, some of the greatest innovators of the 20^th Century). Instead they followed the model that Clark Terry always talks about: imitate, assimilate, innovate – most musicians never make it past assimilate. And if they are lucky enough to get past assimilate, then maybe they are lucky enough to become a stylist on their instrument – no small feat. True innovators are indeed a rare breed. They somehow go past what came before them and truly create something new.

How exciting it must have been to have been a young musician or music lover in the mid-forties and to have heard for the first time a Charlie Parker-Dizzy Gillespie side. That truly must have blown people’s minds. To have heard Armstrong’s “West End Blues” when it first came out. Wow! What was it like to have heard the early Beatles music only to then bring home the “Rain"/"Paperback Writer”single home and drop the needle? John starts singing backwards?!?! And those crazy Rickenbacker guitars!!

What about hearing “Purple Haze” for the first time?

 

Bitches Brew?

Ray Charles' “I Got A Woman.” This is powerful stuff! Original stuff. Like nothing that had come before. That’s pretty special. See what I'm saying here? Good food, good beer, and some Bo Diddley – the finer things in life.

Listening Contest Winner

My apologies for the slim blogging last week. Gigs, rehearsals, and family stuff kept me off of Outside Pants all week. I think I should be back to an almost normal schedule this week though. So…

The winner of the tenth installment of the Outside Pants Guess The Trumpet Player contest is…….amazing Philly trumpeter/EVI master John Swana. And the correct answer is…….Chet Baker. Nice work, John! Your prize is your choice of Outside Pants Vol. 1 – Old School Players or Outside Pants Vol. 2 – Ron Miles Mix or Outside Pants Vol. 3 – Brownie Mix or Outside Pants Vol.4 – Dave Douglas Mix.

This round of the contest was kinda tricky, I think. When I think of Chet Baker I think of his beautiful and relaxed trumpet sound, maybe his rather androgynous voice, and generally an overall romantic feel – nothing too complex but always tasteful and melodic. I love these things about Chet’s music. There’s a reason why his records have always sold well. Got a romantic dinner planned for your lady/man? Maybe put on some Chet Baker to put everyone in the mood. Chet’s often the illustration of the antithesis of the high/loud/fast school of jazz trumpet playing. I think there are only a few recordings of Chet eeking out a high D. Are there any recordings of him playing real loud? Not that I know of. But he certainly could play fast.

This week’s track is Chet burning on “Milestones” from 1958 (Incidentally, that's Kenny Clarke on drums. And remember, Miles Davis' album "Milestones" had just come out months before this recording was made - Chet was hip to the new modal way of playing). And he is burning on this. And his sound is way brighter than normal. Was he playing his own horn/mouthpiece on this recording? Or was his equipment in hock at the pawn store and this is borrowed equipment? Who knows, but Chettie does sound a bit different than usual here. It’s a good reminder that when Chet was in good shape (keeping up with his practicing and not totally strung out) he could really cook. Another example of Chet really playing well BTW is when he did those mid-60’s records (some with George Coleman) right after he got out of an Italian prison. When Chet was in jail those few years that’s when he claimed to have done the most regular practicing of his whole life – a few hours a day (not that much considering he didn’t have anything else to do!). The great trumpeter Jack Sheldon once complained that he had to practice 12 hours a day to do what came naturally and effortlessly to Chet. Sounded like Jack admired Chet for this but also probably resented him for it too. Let’s also not forget that Chet played with Bird for a hot minute. And supposedly Bird picked Chet. There’s some controversy about this, but it is certain that Bird kept Chet on the gig for the duration of the gig. He certainly could have gotten plenty of other LA trumpeters if he had wanted. Ever heard the live recordings from these gigs? I have. Chet sounds pretty good, but probably a little intimidated. Wouldn’t you be intimidated standing next to Bird??

Another interesting thing (at least to me) about this recording is that it is yet another example of Chet taking from the repertoire of Miles Davis. Though he obviously played a wide range of tunes over his career, Chet certainly performed and recorded a lot of tunes previously associated with Miles. All the way to the bitter end Chet would play All Blues or Solar or Walkin’ or any number of ballads that Miles had already made famous. And even Chet’s style – particularly the stuff from the 50’s is a direct imitation/assimilation of Miles’ style of playing from that period. Chet made a lot of money over his career (he lost it all too) playing Miles’ music. Of course, Miles made more. And invested more. But I would imagine that this really pissed Miles off. From what I can tell, Miles was pretty vain. I’m sure he must have been at least a little salty that Chet was winning critics and fan polls when Miles wasn’t. This must have been especially exacerbating when Miles was in one of his down periods.  I wonder what the two really thought of each other. Would Chet admit to copping some of his style from Miles? If he was in a situation where he didn’t need to prove his machismo, would Miles admit that Chet could play? Who knows. Who really cares. Regardless of speculation, it’s definitely time to spin some more Chet Baker.

Album Spotlight: Study In Brown

I first heard Clifford Brown’s trumpet playing when I was in high school.  My trumpet teacher, Frank Eisenreich was also my high school’s jazz band director and one day he played us the version of “Cherokee” that is on Clifford’s album “Study In Brown.”  At the time, a kid of 15 or 16, I naively thought that I was getting pretty good on the trumpet.  But when I heard Clifford’s break on the beginning of that solo, and then what came after it, I realized what was really possible on a trumpet and that I was in no way capable of playing anywhere near that level.  I remember listening to that album a little bit, but I think I was actually scared of it.  Maybe because it was a reminder that I didn’t know shit about shit and perhaps wasn’t the trumpet player I thought I was. 

Flash forward a few years.  1993.  I’m a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania.  My roommate Steve, lucky for me, turned out to be a great person and friend, and also a musician and music freak like me.  Steve was hip to this (not so) new technology called the compact disc.  I, on the other hand, for some backwards reason, thought that CDs were a passing fad and I was content to own all my music on cassette or LP.  Well Steve convinced me to go music shopping.  Down to Third Street Jazz and Rock (RIP).  That fall day in 1993 I bought my first CD, Clifford Brown’s “Study In Brown.”  To this day it is still one of my favorites.  And I would recommend it to anyone.

Ever heard someone recommend Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue” to people who don’t know jazz but want to buy an album but don’t know what to get?  Well that album is certainly one of the best albums ever recorded, regardless of genre.  And I would certainly recommend it to people.  But for some reason, I feel like it’s not really all that representative of “jazz” like some other albums might be, and maybe therefore is not a great “jazz primer.”  Trane is so deep and can confuse people.  Miles and Bill Evans are moody.  Really, the album as a whole is moody.  Whereas “Study In Brown” is just straight ahead, no nonsense jazz.  Yeah the arrangements are thought-out and deliberate and often deceptively intricate, but the music is what it is: swinging and badass.  The front line of Clifford Brown and Harold Land is classic.  Both play virtuosically but not at the expense of swing or phrasing.  Clifford’s solos are a work of sonic architectural mastery.  But even if you don’t recognize that (and most non-jazz-aficionados wouldn’t), they still feel good. Max Roach’s playing is a study in percussive spontaneous composition.  He’s as melodic as any horn player.  And for fast tempos, you can’t get much better.  Bud’s little brother Ritchie Powell sounds a little Horace Silver-ish at times which gives the band a nice funkiness.  And George Morrow (who else did he play with??) on bass has a beautiful tone and down-the-middle drive that glues everything together.  They are an amazing band.  Plus, all of the tunes, standards and originals, are all singable.  It really is a great primer into the world of jazz.

But that’s not what I like about this album.  I like “Study In Brown” so much because each time I listen I hear something new.  And I get inspired.  That’s Clifford’s lasting legacy.  Inspiration.  History tells us that he was a good, clean-living person who died way too young through no fault of his own.  His was one of the saddest and most senseless losses in all of jazz.  But his music, his trumpet playing, his sound, his compositions, his clarity of purpose – those things are inspirational.  You don’t want to put the horn back in the case and give up.  You want to try again.  Maybe in the hopes of being able to play like him.  Tough goal to shoot for.  Clifford set the bar ridiculously high.  He had everything – a beautiful, huge sound in all registers, the most amazingly concise articulation, power and endurance, frightening speed, lyricism, an ability to thread changes (king of the wrap-around) like no one else before him (and not many since), a unique compositional gift.  And he swung at all tempos.  He could burn you at 300 bps or melt you on a ballad or get you feeling good on a blues.  The complete package.  It’s all on display on “Study In Brown.”  You gotta get it!

Illinois trumpet Jeff Helgesen has a nice collection of Brownie articles on his site.  And Nick Catalano has written the only full-length biography on Clifford.  At times it’s a little like reading really long liner notes but it’s still a fun read.

Guess The Trumpet Player Winner

The winner of the second installment of the Outside Pants Guess The Trumpet Player contest is……..”Anonymous” of Philadelphia, PA (although James Primosch did identify Gil Evans as the arranger).  And the correct answer is…….Johnny Coles. 

The tune is called “Davenport Blues” and it was written by Bix Beiderbecke and arranged here by the great Gil Evans for an amazing 1959 album “Great Jazz Standards.”  “Davenport Blues” was a tune associated with Bix (Bix was born in Davenport, IL), but the great, and mostly forgotten trumpeter Red Nichols also had a hit with the tune in 1939.  Both Bix’s and Red’s
versions are in a fast swing style.  Gil Evans slows it down and arranges it masterfully for the warm sound of Johnny Coles.  Something about Johnny’s style here just really blows me away.  It’s not bravura virtuosity, but there is a virtuoso quality to his phrasing and the way he manipulates his notes.  So much feeling here it’s almost painful.  Listen to his cadenzas.  And listen to how Gil sets up the cadenzas or, even better, how the arrangements “finish” Johnny’s cadenzas.  And Gil’s piano comping when everything drops down is so crazy and pure Gil.  It’s a great study to compare and contrast this album of Gil’s with the ones he was doing (at about the same time) with Miles Davis.  All such amazing music.  And like Gil said, all he was doing was “writing arrangements for great singers of songs.”  And the singer on “Davenport Blues” is Johnny Coles.

If you aren’t familiar with Johnny Coles, or only slightly familiar, you might hear comparisons to Miles Davis.  I don’t really think this is fair.  Sure, both players often had sparser styles than players like Dizzy Gillespie or Clifford Brown.  And neither had that brassy trumpet sound.  And Coles and Davis both sure had the ability to say a whole lot with one note.  But I think the comparisons really end there.  Johnny Coles only sounds like Johnny Coles.  His lines and phrasing can be really strange, almost sneaky.  His articulation can be blunt and almost stuffed up which makes him sound like he’s playing way behind the beat sometimes.  He bends notes in the hippest ways.  His vibrato is absolutely singular.  And he just sings through the horn.  So while Johnny Coles, a guy who spent many years living in Philadelphia, is certainly under the radar for most people, musicians in the know are very aware of what Johnny Coles can do.  Just ask Charles Mingus, or Herbie Hancock, or Duke Ellington, or Art Blakey.  Or Gil Evans. 

So, nice work “Anonymous” – I do know who you are. There’s a copy of Outside Pants Vol. 1 – Old School Players coming your way!  Another Guess the Trumpet Player is coming this Thursday so stay tuned.

Thanks for Caring, Thanks for Sharing.

GP-8

A few weeks ago a friend of mine, guitarist Richard Somerville kindly let me borrow (on long-term loan) his old Roland GP-8, a multi-effects processor.  It took me a while – so hard to find time these days – but on Saturday I finally sat down with the thing, hooked it up through a microphone and my Roland keyboard amp and spent a few hours playing around with the 128 possible combinations of effects.  Here’s a quick description of the unit:

Roland GP-8 Guitar Effects Processor is one of the earliest multi-effectors with 8 effect blocks, serially chained. The effects are: Dynamic Filter, Compressor, Over Drive, Distortion, Phaser, Equalizer, Digital Delay and Digital Chorus. The digital delay and chorus are both 12-bit. MIDI SysEx editing and Foot Pedal modulation is supported.

I have waited years for this.  Since I was 13 I have been a total freak for Jimi Hendrix and I’ve always secretly wished that I could play guitar and could play with all of those effects that were integral to Hendrix’s sound.  And whenever I’ve heard trumpet players using effects I would get kind of excited.  Miles Davis and the wah wah.  Clark Terry with the Varitone.  Don Ellis with the Echoplex and the ring modulator.  Jon Hassell and the harmonizer.  Nils Petter Molvaer and the distortion and his take on the harmonizer.  Toshinori Kondo and his mix of reverb and distortion.  So cool.  Don’t get me wrong, I really love the sound of the trumpet and I’ve worked pretty diligently to get a good trumpet sound, but sometimes I just really love it when players can make the trumpet not sound like a trumpet.  Jazz trumpet players have been getting different sounds out of the trumpet since the beginning of the music and that tradition of exploration is of course still thriving today with players getting all kinds of sounds out of the horn besides just a beautiful brass sound – half-valve smears, rips, squeaks, pedal tones, multiphonics, growls, air sounds, tonguing effects, various mute techniques, etc.  These techniques and sounds are all things that I am really into.  And sometimes when playing around with these sounds I like to feel like I am not a trumpet player any more.  But I’ve still really wanted to explore electronic effects for years.  Three kids and a house and tons of other factors (I’m also pretty ignorant when it comes to certain technologies) have kept me from investing in some basic equipment and a few effects pedals.  But the time has come.  And I really had a blast fooling around with various effects on the GP-8.  Some obviously work better than others with the trumpet, but man, what a gas it was getting some crazy sounds.  The boys came upstairs and we had a pretty sweet jam session.  Julian on drums, Miles on guitar, and Gabriel on keyboard, percussion, and insane vocals.  It was awesome!  Even my neighbor, Mike dug it: “you guys sounded good up there!”  If you are a musician then you know that you never underestimate the good fortune of having a tolerant neighbor! 

So I’m already trying to figure what performance contexts I play in where I can bust out the GP-8.  There are a few groups I play in where an effected trumpet could work.  I think the first time I’ll use it in public will be the (see my Inaugural Post) Fathead reunion show at the Northstar Bar on Friday, January 28^th.  And I’m also thinking about what else I’ll want to acquire at some point for further experimentation – probably a ring modulator and definitely a looper.  Definitely gonna need an expression pedal too for some of the GP-8 effects.  I plan on making the work with these effects a regular part of my practicing.  I’m sure it won’t take the place of good old-fashioned slurs, scales, tonguing exercises, etudes, and learning jazz tunes.  But I’ll definitely be slowly working my way towards getting some of that Hendrix in my sound.  I can’t wait.

Hey Richard – Thanks for Caring, Thanks for Sharing.