Gavin Walker
May 21, 2011, 04:47 PM
For tonight only...May 23, The Jazz Show will start at 7:30pm in a special extended edition. I am aware that many of you regular listeners have to miss The Jazz Feature which usually begins on or a bit after 11pm. Of course, one can always catch up with any Features or shows that you may have missed via CITR's podcast services. You can find all of the podcasts on the homepage of this site....just scroll down until you see it on the right-hand side of the page then click. Last week's Feature was one where we celebrated the birthday of the great bandleader, Woody Herman. You can read the posting on this site. I'll be repeating that Feature right at the beginning of tonight's extended show at 7:30pm. The music is by one of Woody Herman's best bands and was recorded live at Basin Street West in Hollywood in May 1963. It's inspired music that features solos by Sal Nistico, Bill Chase, Jake Hanna et al. For lovers of big-band Jazz....this can't be beat!
Tonight's regularly scheduled Jazz Feature will be at the usual time (11pm or a few minutes later) and it honours the birthday of one of the most colourful and interesting and talented people to grace the Jazz stage: Artie Shaw. The Feature is not about his big bands but all about his clarinet virtuosity. The recordings heard tonight will feature Artie with a small group of hand-picked players and represent his final recordings as a musician.....after these 1954 sessions, Shaw put the clarinet away and never again touched the horn. The others involved in these final recording sessions are, pianist Hank Jones, guitarists Tal Farlow and Joe Puma, vibist Joe Roland, bassist Tommy Potter and drummer Irv Kluger. The tunes are a mix of standards by Porter, Gershwin et. al. and Shaw originals. All of the arrangements are Shaw's and demonstrate his love for organization and neatness in music. There is nothing loose or sloppy in any of these performances. His playing on the clarinet is so modern that if Shaw had continued to perform as he does here, he would have been one of the major voices of contemporary clarinet playing. He had obviously kept up with the times and wasn't stuck in the past. Shaw is considered by many to be the very best clarinettist ever to grace the Jazz horizon. In the world of the clarinet, that is saying a lot. Shaw was an intellectual and always quotable and one of his great answers to a very obvious question was this: "Mr. Shaw....who do you consider the better clarinettist, youself or Benny Goodman?" Shaw's answer: "Benny plays the clarinet, I play music".
Shaw's biographical information is on the web and in many books and it makes for a very interesting read as Arthur Jacob Arshawsky led a fabled and enviable life. He was born on May 23, 1910 and died on December 30, 2004 at the ripe old age of 94. Happy Birthday: Artie Shaw!
The Artie Shaw Final Recording Sessions will be heard at the usual time of 11pm and don't forget the once only, early starting time at 7:30pm and the Woody Herman Feature to kick off tonight's extended show. There will be lots of great music in between................see you then...........
Tonight's regularly scheduled Jazz Feature will be at the usual time (11pm or a few minutes later) and it honours the birthday of one of the most colourful and interesting and talented people to grace the Jazz stage: Artie Shaw. The Feature is not about his big bands but all about his clarinet virtuosity. The recordings heard tonight will feature Artie with a small group of hand-picked players and represent his final recordings as a musician.....after these 1954 sessions, Shaw put the clarinet away and never again touched the horn. The others involved in these final recording sessions are, pianist Hank Jones, guitarists Tal Farlow and Joe Puma, vibist Joe Roland, bassist Tommy Potter and drummer Irv Kluger. The tunes are a mix of standards by Porter, Gershwin et. al. and Shaw originals. All of the arrangements are Shaw's and demonstrate his love for organization and neatness in music. There is nothing loose or sloppy in any of these performances. His playing on the clarinet is so modern that if Shaw had continued to perform as he does here, he would have been one of the major voices of contemporary clarinet playing. He had obviously kept up with the times and wasn't stuck in the past. Shaw is considered by many to be the very best clarinettist ever to grace the Jazz horizon. In the world of the clarinet, that is saying a lot. Shaw was an intellectual and always quotable and one of his great answers to a very obvious question was this: "Mr. Shaw....who do you consider the better clarinettist, youself or Benny Goodman?" Shaw's answer: "Benny plays the clarinet, I play music".
Shaw's biographical information is on the web and in many books and it makes for a very interesting read as Arthur Jacob Arshawsky led a fabled and enviable life. He was born on May 23, 1910 and died on December 30, 2004 at the ripe old age of 94. Happy Birthday: Artie Shaw!
The Artie Shaw Final Recording Sessions will be heard at the usual time of 11pm and don't forget the once only, early starting time at 7:30pm and the Woody Herman Feature to kick off tonight's extended show. There will be lots of great music in between................see you then...........