The Big Picture | Friday Night Jazz

Friday Night Jazz: Thelonious Monk

Friday, May 02, 2008 | 07:30 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

One of my all time favorites Jazz musicians is Thelonius Monk.

I stumbled across this video via a random click, and it reminded me just how much I have always loved Monk's work, hence, another Friday Night Jazz featuring Monk.

Our man Monk was a three way genius: As a composer, as a jazz pianist, and as an improvisationist, he was without peer, and shaped the future of Jazz. Some notable discs:

• Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane -- what more can you add to these two geniuses riffing off of each other? Simply a monst rous most own.

• Monk's Dream is a great example of Thelonious Monk in a Quartet format, with Monk at the peak of his career peak.

• Monk's Music a classsic compositions & recordings; Bold and inspired, with Coltrane, Blakey and Hawkins. Just fabulous.

• Solo Monk a man, a piano, a studio tape recorder. Brilliant.

and

• Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall accidentally discovered in an unmarked box by a Library of Congress engineer early 2005 (previously mentioned in our year end review).

Videos after the jump . . .

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Friday Evening Jazz: Dexter Gordon

Friday, April 25, 2008 | 07:00 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

FNJ has a guest DJ tonite: BondDaddy is in the house!

Dexter Gordon is one of the greatest tenor sax players. He had a strong tone and incredible sense of melody. Some players like Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson had a slippery sense of time; their phrases speed up and slow down, moving within the rythm section's accompaniment. Not Dexter. Dex's time was rock solid, never wavering. The rythm section had to accompany his time.

His playing is incredibly melodic, easily followed by the listener. Ideas naturally morphed from one to the other, always following a logical pattern. However, he was also able to surprise listeners with a run into upper chordal extensions.

His playing provides a logical link between Parker and Coltrane. Dex used many ideas from Parker, but played them with a tone that was deep, bold and soulful. His tone provides the link to Coltrane, who also favored a deep and rich tenor tone.

Gordon swung -- and swung hard. If your feet are not tapping within 8 bars of his starting to play, you're just not listening.

Our Man in Paris: This be-bop session is a meeting between three of the most influential musicians of the forties. The rhythms crackle, the solos fly; Our Man In Paris is essential Dexter. A nice compilation of standards.

Homecoming: Live at the Village Vanguard. Dex lived in Amsterdam for about 10 years, and this was the album be made when he came back. Very cool set. Woody Shaw is on Trumpet, and the two work really well together. THis is Dexter at the very top of his game (and probably one of the top 25 live jazz albums of all time).

He also starred in the Round Midnight, probably the best jazz movie ever made

Go: Its been widely reported Gordon himself considered this his greatest achievement. Brimming with conviction and poise, Gordon's gentle-giant sax carries itself with a sort of graceful edge that is difficult to emulate. Never has anyone made the diminished scale sound so musical.

Ballads: This is a compilation of his ballads (duh), and he could play just beautifully on these. Gordon delivers his almost sleepy and smoke-filled solos with real grace. Some of the most romantic playing you will every hear.

~~~

Videos after the jump

Continue reading "Friday Evening Jazz: Dexter Gordon"

Friday Evening Jazz: Kind of Blue

Friday, April 11, 2008 | 06:29 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

A few months ago, Hale took an eclectic look at some of the lesser known works of Miles Davis. Tonite, I want to go in the opposite direction, and simply focus on one disc: Kind of Blue.

Why? Not only is Kind of Blue Davis' best-selling album, it may very well be the best-selling jazz record of any artist, of all time. Even though it was released almost 50 years ago, it still sells over 5,000 copies per week today. In addition to its commercial success, it has come to be described by many Jazz critics as the greatest jazz album of all time.

Writing in AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted: "Kind of Blue isn't merely an artistic highlight for Miles Davis, it's an album that towers above its peers, a record generally considered as the definitive jazz album, a universally acknowledged standard of excellence. Why does Kind of Blue posses such a mystique? Perhaps because this music never flaunts its genius. It lures listeners in with the slow, luxurious bassline and gentle piano chords of "So What." From that moment on, the record never really changes pace -- each tune has a similar relaxed feel, as the music flows easily. Yet Kind of Blue is more than easy listening. It's the pinnacle of modal jazz -- tonality and solos build from the overall key, not chord changes, giving the music a subtly shifting quality."

The one jazz record to own even if you don't listen to jazz -- the band is extraordinary: John Coltrane, Julian "Cannonball" Adderley on saxophones, Wynton Kelly and Bill Evans on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums. I recently received a remastered CD of kind the album, thus retiring my scratchy hiss and pop laden vinyl version. (And another intelligent CD pricing: $7.47 at Amazon)

For those of you looking for some , check out NPR: Kind of Blue (54 minutes)

videos after the jump . . .

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Friday Night Jazz: Andreas Vollenweider

Friday, March 14, 2008 | 06:38 PM

in Friday Night Jazz

What a day -- what a week!

I'm beat. FNJ is going to have be on hiatus this week -- instead, I offer up some relaxing world music by Andreas Vollenweider.

I haven't listened to him in years -- found 'em right after college -- My favorite disc of his is Behind the Gardens-Behind the Wall-Under the Tree.

~~~

Home page

Wiki entry

Disc: Behind the Gardens-Behind the Wall-Under the Tree

There are surprising number of YouTube videos of Vollenweider

~~~

My favorite song: Pyramid-In The Wood-In The Bright Light

Friday Night Jazz: Open Thread

Friday, February 22, 2008 | 06:54 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

When it comes to music, I normally try to do the heavy lifting around here -- writing about and recommending a new or beloved artist, or discussing whatever it is I happen to be listening to at the moment.

Tonite, something a little different.

I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU GUYS -- What's new and interesting? What old favorites have been replaying? What are you listening to right now? What concerts are you going to -- or hoping to see?

What say ye?

~~~

UPDATE: Februrary 22, 2008 9:42am

Wow, thats quite a list!

TBP readers are quite an eclectic bunch;
All of the various FNJ recs readers made can be found here;

Most of the discs mentioned are linked to via Amazon or MySpace or some other site (after the jump):

Continue reading "Friday Night Jazz: Open Thread "

Friday Night Jazz: Billie Holiday

Friday, February 15, 2008 | 07:00 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

By now, you should have some feel for my taste in music, and the wide ranging and eclectic flavors that live on my iPod. But unless you are a fool or a wizened old pro, any attempt at doing a Friday Night Jazz on Billie Holiday is likely to fall flat on its face.

Lucky for us, Nat Hentoff -- formerly the Music critic of the Village Voice, and now the Jazz columnist of the WSJ is just such an old pro. In this week's WSJ, he looked at a few new reissues of Lady Day's music:

"Billie must have come from another world," said Roy Eldridge, often heard accompanying her on trumpet, "because nobody had the effect on people she had. I've seen her make them cry and make them happy." Lady Day, as tenor saxophonist Lester Young named Billie Holiday, still has that effect through the many reissues of her recordings, including the recently released "Lady Day: The Master Takes and Singles" of the 1933-44 sessions (Columbia/Legacy, available on Amazon) that established her in the jazz pantheon.

I grew up listening to those sides, which infectiously demonstrated -- as pianist Bobby Tucker, her longtime pianist, noted -- that "she could swing the hardest in any tempo, even if it was like a dirge . . . wherever it was, she could float on top of it." But none of the previous reissues, as imperishable as they are, have as intense a presence of Lady as in the truly historic new five-disc set "Billie Holiday: Rare Live Recordings, 1934-1959" on Bernard Stollman's ESP-Disk label.

This is a model for future retrospectives of classic jazz artists of any era because researcher and compiler Michael Anderson, in his extensive liner notes, provides a timeline of her jazz life -- describing the circumstances of each performance in the context of her evolving career. One example: a live radio remote from Harlem's Savoy Ballroom in 1937 when the 22-year-old singer "began a special association with her comrade, 'The Prez,' Lester Young" -- grooving with the Count Basie band in "Swing Brother Swing."

How could I possibly hope to improve on that?

~~~

For those of you who may be unfamiliar with Lady Day, a great place is NPR Billie Holiday: 'Lady Sings the Blues' special. There's a 54 minute radio broadcast discussing her history and music.

As far as albums go, there are lots of choices, but they pretty much come down to a) Boxed Sets; 2) Early work; 3) Later years.

If you want to start with something basic, go for A Musical Romance - agreat duet with Holiday and her long time friend and msucial collaborator, Lester Young. You can also go to the 2 disc All or Nothing at All. The 2 CD Complete Decca Recordings is also quite good.

For the more ambitious, the boxed sets are the way to go:

• Lady Day: The Complete Billie Holiday on Columbia (1933-1944)

• The Complete Billie Holiday On Verve, 1945-1959

The set Hentoff refers to above is the 5 disc set Rare Live Recordings, 1934-1959

Students of her latter work will be interested in:

• Lady in Satin

• Lady in Autumn

~~~

Videos after the jump . . .

Continue reading "Friday Night Jazz: Billie Holiday"

Black Friday Night Jazz

Friday, January 25, 2008 | 07:30 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

BLACK FRIDAY

~~~

On days like this, where the market opens up over 100 and closes down 170, I always get that "Black Friday" feeling -- that no one really wants to carry much equity exposure over the weekend.

On rare occasions, these days set up ugly Mondays (Wait! Didn't we just have one of those?)

But its Friday night -- Enough market talk! Its time for some jazz to mellow out to.

I'm a big Steely Dan fan. Saw 'em live a few times, always loved this song.

Continue reading "Black Friday Night Jazz"

Friday Night Jazz: John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman

Friday, January 18, 2008 | 06:50 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

This was a rough week (even for the Bears). So for this evening's FNJ, I am going to focus on a specific album that you should pop into your musical device of choice and enjoy: John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman

I have mentioned each of these fine gentlemen over the past few years.

Hartman has a dark, rich voice. His sense of pitch is superb, his diction outstanding. If you want a mellifluous, honey-toned baritone, there is none better. He was a crooner on par with Sinatra (if not better); indeed, Hartman may very well have been the greatest jazz balladeer of all time.

In 1963, he released I Just Dropped by to Say Hello, with Illinois Jacquet as his sideman. And, I just ordered For Trane, a disc of tracks recorded in Japan.

But his best known work remains the superb John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman - a beautiful, must own jazz classic

There's a terrific NPR Jazz Profile of Johnny Hartman that is well worth exploring -- definitely check out Murray Horowitz and A.B. Spellman discussing the John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman album.

~~~

Enjoy Coltrane and Hartman's take on Billy Strayhorn's Play Lush Life ...

Friday Night Jazz: The NightFly

Friday, January 11, 2008 | 07:00 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

Here's an interesting name for Friday Night Jazz: Donald Fagen's The Nightfly.

The WSJ called The Nightfly "one of pop music's sneakiest masterpieces" and I think that moniker fits well. The key to this is the music's timeless quality. It was retro back in 1982, and over the years, has never grown to sound tired or even of a specific era. It remains fresh, even 25 years later.

Fagan is better known as the front half of Steely Dan -- the other half being Walter Becker. In 1982, with Steely Dan "retired," Fagen released this disc as his solo debut album.

Not only did the CD win critical acclaim amongst the jazz and pop reviewers, but the disc delighted audiophiles of all stripes. You see, The Nightfly was one of the first fully digital recordings of popular music. Add to that the usual crisp, sleek production The Dan were famous for, and you have a recipe for a phenomenal recording.

A colleague who studied acoustics and audio engineering (and presently works as a documentary film director) notes the album is a favorite of touring bands. In each new venue for a concert, the CD used to "tune" the room almost universally is The Nightfly. Not only is the production musically marvelous, but is brilliant technically as well -- "it's not overcompressed, and all frequencies are well-represented. This makes running the sound board way easier."

Despite the critical review, the disc barely sold a million copies. Now, 25 years later, we see that "The Nightfly" is getting a soup-to-nuts anniversary edition in November from Reprise Records.

Except for hard core collectors, however, I cannot see purchasing this box set. All the subsequent releases were victims of The Nightflys greatness. Morph the Cat was rather nondescript, and Kamakiriad was a better effort, but simply didn't have the same verve or pop as the first disc.

Stick with the single disc of The Nightfly. Its an essential recording . . .

Videos

New Frontier

Maxine

Sources:

The Nightfly (Wikipedia)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nightfly

The Nightfly' Still Lives at 25
ROBERT J. TOTH
WSJ, January 9, 2008; Page D8
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119983831897376337.html

Friday Evening Jazz: Oscar Peterson (II)

Friday, December 28, 2007 | 07:00 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

Oscar Peterson has been recording and performing for over half a century. He passed away Christmas Eve '07 at the age of 82.

He may be the single most recorded of all piano players.

Oscar bridged the swing and bop eras, rooting himself in a style that was at the same time stunningly complex yet soulfully elegant.

Nobody used more notes to swing! Oscar is sometimes dismissed because he wasn't groundbreaking in the way that many of his contemporaries were. But the range of expression he achieved on the piano along with his technical prowess is hardly rivaled in mainstream jazz.

Many consider his solo recordings of the late 60s and early 70s to be his most outstanding work, but do not overlook his trio recordings both with Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen and later with Joe Pass and Niels-Henning Orsted Pederson.

The live album "The Trio" from 1973 (not to be confused with a Verve release of the same title) is a great recording of Oscar with Pass and Pederson and shows Oscar at his most virtuosic. Check out the Brown Thigpen work live here.

For a compendium of his 1960s work in both trio and solo settings, the excellent box set "Exclusively for My Friends" will keep you entertained for years.

Of course, there are the standard "songbook" albums (George Gershwin, Cole Porter, etc.) and the duets with greats like Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, Clark Terry and Dizzy Gillespie.

I am also partial to A Jazz Portrait of Frank Sinatra.

The 1962 album "Night Train" with Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen is also a favorite. It showcases Oscar at his best on both ballads and uptempo numbers and he really shows his blues chops.

Oscar Peterson will be missed . . .

Sources:

80th Birthday Tribute to Oscar Peterson http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4829211
PLAYER
http://www.npr.org/templates/player/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=4829211&m=4830843

Oscar Peterson's 'Jazz Odyssey'
Hear an extended version of Bob Edwards' interview with Oscar Peterson.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1170182

Oscar Peterson, 82, Jazzâs Piano Virtuoso, Dies
RICHARD SEVERO
NYT, December 25, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/25/arts/25peterson.html

A Jazz 'Behemoth' Moves On
NAT HENTOFF
WSJ, December 28, 2007
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119878787299653457.html

Tributes paid to Oscar Peterson
BBC, Tuesday, 25 December 2007, 08:00 GMT http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7159772.stm>

Continue reading "Friday Evening Jazz: Oscar Peterson (II)"

Friday Night Jazz: Amy Winehouse

Friday, December 07, 2007 | 06:31 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

We mentioned how much we liked Amy Winehouse back in April of this year.

Back then, her new album was Back to Black, which we wrote "freshens up the classic soul albums with original songs done in the style of the 1950/60's girl groups . . . falling between Billie Holiday and Ronnie Spector."

Well, it turns out that we are not the only ones who are enamored with her: Winehouse was just nominated for six Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, Song and Album of the Year, and the prestigious Record of the Year (not that I can explain the difference between album and record of the year).

Since then, Back to Black has sold over one million copies in the US alone.

However, since it is Friday Night Jazz, I wanted to bring her prior UK album to your attention: Frank. On the strength of Back to Black, and a few recs from friends in the UK, I picked up the import version shortly after I got Back to Black in the Spring.

Frank is new-to-America -- but its not new at all. Frank was actually her UK debut album; The US release was on November 20, 2007, and was likely done to capitalize on the sales of Back to Black.

If you liked Back to Black, I would expect you will find Frank worthy of your attention. Where Back to Black was based on '60s girl groups and '70s soul, Frank is a much jazzier R&B album. And like her other album, its strong all the way through.

Winehouse brings her refreshingly sly sense of humor with a take no-prisoners, put up with no bullshit persona. She gets away with this all the while, because she has the vocal chops to back it up. This combination is epitomized in the boozy song "Fuck Me Pumps."

~~~

Both albums stand out for their simple but powerful approach: Very strong instrumentalists fronted by an extremely talented lyricist/songwriter/vocalist.

Source:
Amy Winehouse has reason to celebrate with six Grammy nominations
Adam Sherwin
The Times, December 7, 2007
http://tinyurl.com/2ewcur

Friday Night Jazz/Rock Guitar: Jeff Beck

Friday, November 23, 2007 | 06:00 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

Tonite's holiday weekend edition of Friday Night Jazz is on Jeff Beck, and comes to us via Hale Stewart, aka Bonddad:

The British Invasion gave us some great guitar players -- including Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck. While I personally like Clapton’s work when he played Gibson guitars -- and I think Page stopped practicing between Zeppelin 2 and 3 -- Beck has continued to amaze guitar players for the last 40 years. He is a restless spirit who is always embracing new challenges and musical forms. His career has been one of constant growth.

Like Page and Clapton, Beck was a member of the Yarbirds. While he only recorded one album with them -- and played with the Yardbirds for just 18 months, he was responsible for some important early guitar work. I’ve read various interviews with guitarists (Brian May of Queen, Pete Townsend of the Who) who saw Beck perform with the Yardbirds who commented that Beck’s live work was revolutionary for its time. Brian May recalled seeing Beck perform entire songs without touching the neck of the guitar, instead relying on feedback. After seeing Beck perform, Jimi Hendrix realized the potential of feedback and went on to develop his approach to this rather unique electric concoction.

Incidentally, the Yardbirds albums still stand-up -- to my ears, they indicate where a lot of the hotter mid-70s rock bands (like Aerosmith) got their sonic inspiration.

Beck’s first two solo albums were Truth and Beck-Ola. Both feature a then little know singer named Rod Stewart. Beck-Ola’s stand-out tracks are All Shook Up, Jailhouse Rock (which has some great bass work by none other than Ron Wood) and Rice Pudding, which has one of the heaviest guitar riffs of all time (Joe Bonamassa quotes this riff on his live album A New Day Yesterday). Truth starts with the Yardbird’s classic Shape of Things and ends with a truly raunchy version of I Ain’t Superstitious. All songs in between are wonderful. When listening to these albums it’s important to remember they predated Led Zeppelin by a few years. I’ve read in a few places that Beck thought Zeppelin ripped-off the Jeff Beck Group’s sound, but like most stories in music who knows if that is true or not. However, after listening to these albums you can hear the similarities. (it’s also possible that Beck and Page were simply taking the same influences in the same direction).

Sometime in the early 1970s Beck was in a car accident that laid him up for some time. When he started recording again he moved in a jazzier direction. The arrangements became a bit more complex and he shed the Les Paul for a Stratocaster (Fender now makes a Jeff Beck Strat which is a fabulous guitar with a baseball bat for a neck). He issued two albums that were a prelude to his mid-70’s jazz/rock work. These albums were the Jeff Beck Group and Rough and Ready. I love these albums but they are definitely hit and miss. The last 5 songs on Jeff Beck Group – I Can’t Give Back the Love I Feel For You, Going Down, I Got to Have A Song and Definitely Maybe – are a great set of tunes. Definitely Maybe stands as one of Beck’s best and most overlooked instrumentals and Going Down is one of the best covers of that blues classic with some truly manic guitar playing. Rough and Ready is a bit sketchier, but it does have the song Jody which showcases Beck’s great penchant for melody. Kudos have to go to Cozy Powell who played drums on these albums – his double bass work pumps hard throughout.

Beck’s interest in jazz was evident throughout the previously mentioned two albums (The Jeff Beck Group and Rough and Ready). But it wasn’t until Blow By Blow that Beck melded jazz and rock in a way that was accessible to listeners. This album came out at the height of the jazz rock movement. But most fusion was a bit cold. Blow By Blow was a lot warmer and far more accessible. The album is a tour de force of Beck’s prowess. Every track is a guitar classic. Beck covers the Beatle’s She’s a Woman with a talk box. He stretches out on more complex tunes like Scatterbrain and Diamond Dust. But Cause We’ve Ended as Lovers and Freeway Jam stand out as must listens for rock guitar fans. Cause We’ve Ended a Lovers is one of the most lyrical songs Beck plays; it’s a must learn solo for any guitarist serious about his instrument. And Freeway Jam is one of the best all out boogie-rockers of all time. Beck’s tone and phrasing are again picture perfect.

Guitar Shop is track for track another great guitar album. When it came out, Beck has once again left guitar players with their jaws on the ground. Every lick was played with classic Beck intensity. By this time he had given up guitar picks and was playing strictly with his fingers. Basically he was mangling the guitar, yet still playing with incredibly sensitivity. The album opens with Guitar Shop – which has some of the funniest voice overs of all time. There are some great stand-out rockers like Big Block (which has a great riff), Sling Shot and Stand On It. But once again, Beck’s lyrical side really shines on the balled Where Were You. This song has some of the most impossible to play guitar parts on record.

There is one last album that I would highly recommend: Crazy Legs. Beck was heavily influenced by Gene Vincent’s guitar player Cliff Gallup. Gallup was himself a great player with plenty of attitude. And Vincent has been criminally overlooked for his contribution to rock and roll. Crazy Legs is a tribute to Gene Vincent with a rockabilly/rock and roll band. It’s a wonderful tribute that hearkens back to the early days of rock and roll when the music was primal and full of attitude.

At this point, I have to add a personal story about Beck. I use to be a professional musician; I went to the Musician’s Institute in 1992-1993. Tim Bogert was on of the Bass instructors. The word was you should never ask Tim about his time with Beck. That of course meant that at some time I would have to ask him about it. Now Bogert is one of the most laid-back, nicest guys on the planet. There is simply no way not to enjoy a conversation you have with him. He’s also funny as hell. So one day we’re sitting out side having a cigarette. I asked him, “Can I ask you a question about Jeff Beck?” Tim says, “Sure”. Beck was and still is one of my favorite guitar players, so I’m dying to get some information about Beck the person. So I asked Tim, “What’s Beck like as a person?’ Tim responds, “There’s only so much shit you can take before you want to turn around and break it off in the other guy’s ass.”

Well, that’s it for my long-winded overview of Jeff Beck. (BR: I did some minor editing, and placed the cuts into comments) I hope you have found this useful and helpful. Hopefully Barry will let me write again (did I mention that I love his blog?).

~~~

Thanks Hale -- Nicely done! Videos below . . .

What Mama Said

Drown in My Own Tears

Cause We've Ended as Lovers

Friday Night Jazz Film Soundtracks

Friday, November 02, 2007 | 07:30 PM

in Digital Media | Film | Friday Night Jazz | Music

Oh, goody, yet another list. How f$%&ing original!

For some silly reason, there seems to be all this hoo-haa about the silly Vanity Fair article on the top Movie Soundtracks of all time.

These people are wankers for many reasons: 1) The VF weenies press released to death; b) the article is not even available on line; iii) the editors chose Purple Rain as the greatest film soundtrack of all time.

I remain convinced that the purveyors of these annoying lists select a controversial top pick to generate buzz (tho' you would think this would might encourage online posting).

Regardless, let's not play into their hand. Rather than waste too much time telling you how clueless VF's music editors are, or giving them any linklove, I would rather -- in the spirit of Friday Night Jazz -- compile a worthwhile list of films and soundtracks for your perusal.

A few ground rules:

• We are looking for outstanding soundtracks to outstanding films. (Merely o.k. doesn't cut it).

• Groundbreaking films, soundtracks and performances get bonus points. (Mediocre performances get cut).

• Better non-film versions take points away from the movie soundtrack -- where there are superior versions such as the Broadway soundtrack (i.e., Hair, Jesus Christ Superstar, etc.) than those flicks don 't make the cut.

• Pure adaptations of Broadway shows also get cut. In my mind, Cabaret, Chicago, Chorus Line are more filmed stage productions, rather than pure movies. (as forewarned, totally subjective).

Hence, several films that I love failed to make the cut: Apocalypse Now is fantastic in the way it uses music (especially The Doors' The End, and Wagner's The Ride Of The Valkyries), but its not great as a standalone soundtrack; the wonderful My Fair Lady, with Rex Harrison's mediocre voice, and the dubbing of Audrey Hepburn's voice, also doesn't make the cut.

These things are totally subjective, and are rarely based exclusively on mere merits. Pink Floyd The Wall was a great album so overplayed when I was in college, that I simply couldn't pull the trigger on it (the film is a bit ponderous to boot). Again, these things are very subjective.

Alternatively, the film can't suck. The greatest soundtrack in the world becomes irrelevant if its attached to a film like, say, Hedwig and the Angry Inch -- a play that sucked two hours out of my life that I will never get back, and will literally regret on my death bed.

We can certainly debate the order of any list, or the contents, and we probably will (thats what the comments are for).

Here's my subjective top ~20:

1. A Hard Day's Night: A brilliant film and album that both remain as energetic and fresh today as they were in 1964. The Beatles personalities were perfectly suited to the medium, so much so that its hard to imagine a better film/soundtrack combo.

A Hard Day's Night

If you want to consider another Beatles sound track, both Yellow Submarine and Help! are fun -- but neither rise to the sheer genius of A Hard Day's Night.

~~~

2. Stop Making Sense: Quite simply, the best concert film ever made. Yes, some of you will declare The Last Waltz, (with a few stragglers nominating Woodstock) but there is simply nothing else that ha the combination of showmanship, musical innovation -- and the big suit -- like this film does. Marvelous.

Stop Making Sense

~~~

3. Blade Runner: Forget the ponderous and boring Chariots of Fire, THIS is Vangelis Masterpiece. Not only is the music hauntingly beautiful, but it fits the filmscape so perfectly, making it even better than it originally was. We've already spilled so many words about BR, that the less said the better. "All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain."

Blade Runner

~~~

4. The Rocky Horror Picture Show: I could try to explain this, but I couldn't do it justice. Find a theater where this is playing at the midnight show, and go with someone who's gone before. Repeat.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975 Film)

~~~

5. The Graduate: Not only is this a seminal, groundbreaking film, but the soundtrack is phenomenal. The way the various songs are interwoven into the action, mood, psyches of the players is amazing (listen as Benjamin's Alpha Romeo Spider runs out of gas).

I don't know if Mike Nichols is a genius, or just got incredibly lucky. Either way, its a great soundtrack and a great movie.

The Graduate (1967 Film)

~~~

6. Harold and Maude: One of the most subversive, outrageously amusing black comedies ever made -- hysterically funny to boot. Cat Stevens (before he became Yusaf) created a wonderful collection of songs that enhance the story line's mood and emotions. This is, quite bluntly, one of the funniest films ever made.

Harold and Maude

~~~

7. Garden State: My "surprise" entry. A charming little film with a soundtrack that simply refuses to stop delighting you with its lovely tunes and ballads, nearly all of which are by bands that prior to this soundtrack were relatively unknown. This disc was played constantly in the car in 2004/05.

Garden State

~~~

8. (tie):Led Zeppelin, The Song Remains The Same
The Who, The Kids Are Alright:

Perhaps its my age showing, but I have always found each of these to be tremendous films and soundtracks. The Zep concert film was utterly ground breaking, and I must have seen it a zillion times after they broke up; The Who film was a fantastic documentary.

The Song Remains The Same

The Kids Are Alright

~~~

10. Fantasia: Music by Tchaikovsky, Moussorgsky, Stravinsky, Beethoven, Ponchielli, Bach, Dukas, and Schubert. 'nuff said.

The film was groundbreaking in many ways, including the innovative use of animation and stereophonic sound -- but its the overall approach that has been so enduring: Allow the Disney animators tointerpret Classical music. The results are both playful and surreal. Its amazing how well this has held up after 60 years . . .

Fantasia (Special 60th Anniversary Edition)

~~~

11. Pulp Fiction: The film does so many things so well -- but the way the music is integrated into the actual plot is simply terrific. Plus, Travolta and Uma can each dance.

Pulp Fiction: Music From The Motion Picture

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12. West Side Story: Leonard Bernstein's musical update of Romeo and Juliet. The combination of Stephen Sondheim brilliant lyrics, the kinetic choreography and the bravura camera work made for a fantastic wide screen film. The soundtrack created the perfect counterpoint to the dance and action.

Sure, its a bit dated (hence, #10), but it remains an all time great.

West Side Story

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13. Purple Rain: There is no doubt that the purple one can sign, dance, play guitar -- but Acting? Not so much.

Regardless, his sheer overwhelming talent is why this manages to get onto my top 15.

True Story: I saw this in the theaters in college, and my remark was "He's going to be bigger than Michael Jackson" -- who was huge at the time.

Its a toss up how right that call was, but the general concept was dead on . . .

Music from the Motion Picture "Purple Rain"

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14. Little Shop Of Horrors: A fantabulous musical/horror/comedy. It's all a whole lot of fun, and the musical styles range from honky-tonk to doo-wop to straightforward rock n' roll. The strength of the film carries what otherwise might have been a mere Broadway adaption into an entire different level.

Little Shop Of Horrors (1986 Film)

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15. Koyaanisqatsi: A quasi-documentary, this film has been described as "visual concert of images" or a "filmic landscape." The reason its here is the hauntingly beautiful music of Phillip Glass. A classic college flick . . .

Koyaanisqatsi - Life Out of Balance

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16. Saturday Night Fever: One of those seminal films that tremendously influenced the culture.

My choice in music was rock-n-roll, and I had little interest in blow-dried hair, white polyester suits, or cruising discos looking to pick Staten Island bimbos.

The music works as well on its own, but it also works as a classic piece of pop history. (And John Travolta makes the list twice!)

Saturday Night Fever: The Original Movie Sound Track

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17. The Tao of Steve: Another charming little film that surprises with its wonderful songs. A fun amusing, philosophically oriented film, with a soundtrack to match. For you Outdoor Types.

The Tao of Steve: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

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18. All That Jazz: The Oscar winning soundtrack by Ralph Burns includes jazz, classical, pop, and Broadway standards. Its a marvelous mix that works to great effect in the film.

Can you imagine anyone other Director making so self-critical autobiographical film other than Bob Fosse? While some have criticized the film as a rip-off of Fellini's 8 1/2, my favored descriptions of All That Jazz is "the musical version of Apocalypse Now." If you can imagine that, you have a better sense of what the film itself is like.

All that work. All that glitter. All that pain. All that love. All that crazy rhythm. All that jazz.

All That Jazz (1979 Film)

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19. The Big Chill: The Motown dominated score was one of the most artistically skillful -- and commercially successful -- uses of pop ever set to a film.

More than merely setting a time and place, the soundtrack has a wispy nostalgia for a prior period in the players' lives. Subsequent attempts by other movies have been less successful of creating a look back from a specific time to another one; e.g., I think of the Forrest Gump soundtrack as Big Chill 2.

The Big Chill - Deluxe Edition

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20. South Park - Bigger, Longer & Uncut: You will laugh until you piss yourself. This one squeaks in at #20 because the soundtrack is so very, very funny.

South Park - Bigger, Longer & Uncut

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Thats my top list; A few Honorable Mentions are after the jump . . .

Continue reading "Friday Night ~~Jazz~~ Film Soundtracks"

Friday Night Jazz: JVC Jazz Festival NY

Friday, June 15, 2007 | 11:06 PM

in Digital Media | Friday Night Jazz | Music

Our previously scheduled FNJ is now lost to the ether, but here's a short list from the upcoming Jazz Festival to tide you over (the full schedule is on line here):

Friday, June 15

CASSANDRA WILSON/OLU DARA In the early 1990s Cassandra Wilson made “Blue Light ’Til Dawn,” an album with light, slow-moving, Southern-signifying arrangements informed by ’60s folk and pop. The trumpeter, guitarist and songwriter Olu Dara, a Mississippian like Ms. Wilson, was one of her collaborators; his own subsequent solo albums, full of acoustic guitar grooves and rural-blues echoes, complemented hers. Central Park SummerStage, Rumsey Playfield, midpark at 70th Street, summerstage.org, 7 p.m., free.

Wednesday, June 20

BRANFORD MARSALIS/JOSHUA REDMAN TRIO Mr. Marsalis started making his own records in 1984, Mr. Redman nine years later. But as if responding to a common call, both these tenor saxophonists have crystallized what they do best and made possibly the best records of their careers over the last year: Mr. Marsalis’s “Braggtown” and Mr. Redman’s “Back East.” With Mr. Marsalis this comes down to the mechanics of his gloriously coordinated, hard-hitting quartet; with Mr. Redman, it’s the clarity and flow of his improvising within the simplicity of a trio setting. Town Hall, JVC, 8 p.m., $50 to $65.

Friday, June 22

STEFANO BOLLANI A fine and freewheeling Italian pianist in his mid-30s, Mr. Bollani has come to the crucial understanding that he can find an audience without having to choose among attitudes, influences and styles: deeply playful or serious, ragtime, pop, Prokofiev, Jobim, Keith Jarrett, whatever. He is a particularly good solo performer (as suggested by last year’s “Piano Solo,” on ECM), so this performance will be a special one. Fazioli Salon at Klavierhaus, 211 West 58th Street, Manhattan, pianoculture.com, 8 p.m., $25.

Sunday, June 24

LOUIS MOHOLO-MOHOLO A South African jazz drummer, Mr. Moholo-Moholo was part of the British jazz scene in the mid-’60s as a member of the Blue Notes and the Brotherhood of Breath, living in London and collaborating with South African and English musicians. (See Tern [LIVE]) He recently returned to South Africa, where he leads a big band.) He’s an exemplary modern drummer, in his flexibility between strong swing and a free-rhythm vocabulary, and he’s still mostly unknown here: aside from one Vision Festival show six years ago, he hasn’t played here since the 1960s. Vision, 9 p.m., $30.

Wednesday, June 27

‘RON CARTER: THE MASTER AT 70’ The bassist Ron Carter, first famous as a member of Miles Davis’s mid-1960s quintet and then loosed on the jazz world as a ubiquitous free agent, has played on so many records — including more than 30 of his own — that a concert like this seems almost necessary, never mind the fact that he turned 70 last month. He will perform with two other members of that great Davis group, the saxophonist Wayne Shorter and the pianist Herbie Hancock, alongside Billy Cobham on drums; in duet with the guitarist Jim Hall (a good thing, as their rich duet records are underrated); in a trio with the pianist Mulgrew Miller and the guitarist Russell Malone; and with his own quartet. Carnegie Hall, JVC, 8 p.m., $30 to $75.

Friday, June 29

NANCY WILSON Ms. Wilson remains an exciting jazz singer, despite the light, low-pressure subtleties of her voice, and even if her records have been treated as a kind of antidote to excitement. (Her hits started showing up on the Billboard easy-listening chart in the mid-’60s, but few can condescend to the casually brilliant album “Cannonball Adderley and Nancy Wilson” or the recently released “Live in Las Vegas.”) JVC, 8 p.m., $35 to $85.

That's all for this belated (and highly stolen) version of FRIDAY NIGHT JAZZ . . .

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