Cassandra Wilson has one of the most distinct sounds in vocal jazz, and yet her taste is as versatile as any vocalist in the music's history. Her most recent release on Blue Note Records, Closer To You: The Pop Side, shows how Ms. Wilson and her band can effortlessly transform songs and blend genres, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. Check out this live rendition of Neil Young's "Harvest Moon" - it's live, which is Ms. Wilson at her best - and she'll be singing live for just three nights at the Blue Note this week from March 9 - 11.
BLUE NOTE TWITTER FEED
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Cassadra Wilson - The Pop Side
Sunday, February 7, 2010
WYNTON MARSALIS writes a poem about the New Orleans Saints - Pre-Game
The Spirit of New Orleans - by Wynton Marsalis
Down on the Bayou where the mighty Mississippi kisses Lake Pontchartrain and spills into the Gulf of Mexico. There sits that jewel of the Southland. What the French lost to the British who gave it to the Spanish who lost it back to the French who sold it to America for..... Well, some folks say Jefferson conned Napoleon in a card game and won it for some jambalaya and a chicory coffee.
New Orleans, N'Awlins, the Crescent City, the Big Easy, the northern capitol of the Caribbean, Groove City. Man, they have things down there you wouldn't believe. A mythic place of Mardi-Gras and mumbo, voodoo and the moss-covered alligator-spiked pathways of back-country swamp drained and sprinkled with gris-gris dust to house a wild, unruly population. A city with they own cuisine, they own architecture, they own music..streets with names like Dorgenois and Tchoupitoulas.
People in crazy costumes parading talkin 'bout "throw me somethin' mistah", dressed like Indians chanting 'bout, "Madi, Madi-Cudifiyo", sittin in the young twilight on the 'poach' of they camelback shotgun house eatin po' boys bout to 'make' groceries for the crawfish 'burl' they gon' have on 'Sadday'. They sing through horns down there you know. Yeah Padnah! Something called Jazz, started by a cornet man named Bolden. They say Bolden could play so loud the sun was scared to set. Some folks say the air is so thick down here you, can eat it with a spoon.
Drummers drag rhythms in dirgey solemnity down neighborhood streets as horns moan, mock and moo. Man, hot notes echo against the sky with such weight as to be objects. Objects of sorrow so passionately played that the dead begin to cry. Then that trumpet calls and everyone falls in behind the band for a second line parade and those musicians get to hollerin and shoutin and folks get to struttin and steppin and the living let go of the dead and sorrow soon becomes laughter. In New Orleans, we bury our dead above ground.
They always walk amongst us.... but that music. It always ends happy. So when a strong rain brings angry winds howlin' down the Mississippi or up from the Gulf, those misty winds carry the dreams of ghosts, yes, but not just the goblins of Marie Laveau the voodoo queen, or the tortured spirits of the legendary lascivious lovelies of Storyville sporting houses, or even the undead demons of corrupt politicians who have steeled our idealism over three colorful centuries. They also brings the spirits of Saints, of those who have lived here in quiet dignity and sanctified religiosity, of those who have raised kids in the shadow of the St. Louis Cathedral and Sundayed in Jackson Square or of the River Walk lovers holding hands... of many who have fallen in love here, proposed here, honeymooned here. Not just the howling ghouls of the frat-boy drunks on Bourbon street, but they also bring the angels of all who have romanced in and with this beautiful land on the Delta.
Yes, the 'haints become more famous but the Saints endure. Where were you when 85,000 people gathered in the last open seated stadium in professional football to witness John Gilliam run our very first kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown? When Tom Dempsey kicked that 63 yard field goal with half-a-right foot? When Tom Fears, Hank Stram, and Jim Mora prowled the sidelines? Were you there when Howard Stevens, Danny Abromowicz, Rickey Jackson, and Archie Manning donned the black and gold? Ahhh..those New Orleans Saints! Confined to a purgatory of their own making looking for the fast track to hell. Maybe a brand new dome would appease the gods of football---a Superdome.
Fathers bounced kids on their knees while explaining how we would certainly blow our 30 point halftime lead by game's end.....and the Saints did not disappoint. Where you there when the Dome Patrol brought us to the upper chambers of purgatory in search of playoffs, playoffs..playoffs? Yes, 'haints become famous but Saints endure. Just ask Deuce. If 4 years is a long time: (your high school years, your college days, the length of the Civil War..WWII)...then 43 yrs is an eternity. You ever wait for something so long that waiting for it becomes the something? You ever see grown folks put bags over their heads in public, covering up to hide from themselves like an old alcoholic who won't admit? We can't help it. We're with our Saints even when we 'aint. New Orleans people are stubborn and hate to leave home.
Down here, people like to brag about how they handle tragedy. Epochal hurricanes like Betsy and Camille are discussed as if they're people. "Betsy was bad but Camille, 'Lawd Have Mercy', the water was up here to my neck." Nobody brags on Katrina. She swept through here like death on a high horse. Those flood waters seemed to run all the demons, goblins, AND saints away forever. There goes old Jean Lafitte the pirate relocated to Houston, there goes old Jelly Roll Morton off somewhere in Memphis with that diamond still sparklin in his front tooth.
But quick to return is the unbending will and irrepressible spirit, sin-dipped in Tabasco sauce and spiced with file' in possession of an unshakable, unbreakable soul that Louis Armstrong first announced to the entire world through a red hot trumpet, that Danny Barker broadcasted on a burnished banjo, and Sidney Bechet shouted and screamed through a scorching horn said to be a soprano saxophone. And here comes that chastened Noah's arc of a dome rising from ignominy to become again a beacon of community. And, oh yes, they are still down here marching in those funny-named streets blowing history AND the present moment through singing horns. And people still dance with abandon, exuberance, and unbridled human feeling because that music tells 'em "what has been may be what is, but what will be cannot possibly be known."
We live the moment. Laissez les bon temps rouler! --Let the Good Times Roll. I think I hear that trumpet calling the children of the Who Dat Nation home--not Gabriel's or the horns that blew down the walls of Jericho--that jazz trumpet conjuring up the spirit world with a Congo Square drum cadence. Ghosts, goblins, and 'haints aggravate. Saints congregate. I hear them now bringing that 43yr second line to a glorious crescendo. "Who Dat Say What Dat When Us Do Dat?" Its like waiting 43yrs to hear somebody saya 'I Love You' back. And they do. Let the tale be told bout how the black and gold won the Super Bowl.
And those jazzmen still play sad songs but they always end happy.....they always do.
Wynton Read More......
Monday, February 1, 2010
JAZZ AT THE GRAMMYS - 2010
Though the jazz category did not make the main telecast, fans were able to check out pre-show action on the web. This year's winners included a number of musicians who perform regularly at the Blue Note like Kurt Elling, Terence Blanchard and Chick Corea, who will be at the Blue Note as a special guest of Roy Haynes on his 85th Birthday (March 19 - 20) and for two weeks in May in a leading role with trio members Eddie Gomez and Paul Motian in Further Explorations of Bill Evans (May 4-9 and May 11 - 16). Congrats to all the 2010 winners! Field 10 -- Jazz Category 44 Best Contemporary Jazz Album Category 45 Best Jazz Vocal Album Category 46 Best Improvised Jazz Solo Category 47 Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group Category 48 Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album Category 49 Best Latin Jazz Album (Vocal or Instrumental.) Category 84 Best Instrumental Composition Category 85 Best Instrumental Arrangement Category 86 Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) Field 23 Album Notes Category 89 Best Album Notes Category 109 Best Long Form Music Video
Grammy Winners 2010: Jazz
= winner
(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of INSTRUMENTAL tracks.)
Stefon Harris & Blackout
[Concord Jazz]
Julian Lage
[Emarcy/Decca]
Philippe Saisse
[E1 Music]
Mike Stern
[Heads Up International]
Joe Zawinul & The Zawinul Syndicate
[Heads Up International]
(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of VOCAL tracks.)
Randy Crawford (& Joe Sample)
[PRA Records]
Kurt Elling
[Concord Jazz]
Roberta Gambarini
[Groovin' High/Emarcy]
Luciana Souza
[Verve]
Tierney Sutton (Band)
[Telarc Jazz]
(For an instrumental jazz solo performance. Two equal performers on one recording may be eligible as one entry. If the soloist listed appears on a recording billed to another artist, the latter's name is in parenthesis for identification. Singles or Tracks only.)
Terence Blanchard, soloist
Track from: Watts (Jeff “Tain" Watts)
[Dark Key Music]
Gerald Clayton, soloist
Track from: Two-Shade
[ArtistShare]
Roy Hargrove, soloist
Track from: Emergence
[Groovin' High/Emarcy]
Martial Solal, soloist
Track from: Live At The Village Vanguard
[CamJazz]
Miguel Zenon, soloist
Track from: Esta Plena
[Marsalis Music]
(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of INSTRUMENTAL tracks.)
Gary Burton, Pat Metheny, Steve Swallow & Antonio Sanchez
[Concord Jazz]
Clayton Brothers
[ArtistShare]
Chick Corea & John McLaughlin Five Peace Band
[Concord Records]
John Patitucci Trio
[Concord Jazz]
Allen Toussaint
[Nonesuch]
(For large jazz ensembles, including big band sounds. Albums must contain 51% or more INSTRUMENTAL tracks.)
Bob Florence Limited Edition
[MAMA Records]
John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble
[Sunnyside]
Sammy Nestico And The SWR Big Band
[Hnssler Classic]
New Orleans Jazz Orchestra
[World Village]
University Of North Texas One O'Clock Lab Band
[North Texas Jazz]
Chembo Corniel
[Chemboro Records]
Geoffrey Keezer
[ArtistShare]
Claudio Roditi
[Resonance Records]
Bebo Valdes And Chucho Valdes
[Sony Music/Calle 54]
Miguel Zenon
[Marsalis Music]
(A Composer's Award for an original composition (not an adaptation) first released during the Eligibility Year. Singles or Tracks only.)
Paquito D'Rivera, composer (Paquito D'Rivera Quintet)
Track from: Jazz-Clazz
[Timba Records]
Tim Davies, composer (Tim Davies Big Band)
Track from: Dialmentia
[Origin Records]
Bob Florence, composer (Bob Florence Limited Edition)
Track from: Legendary
[MAMA Records]
Steve Wiest, composer (University Of North Texas One O'Clock Lab Band)
Track from: Lab 2009
[North Texas Jazz]
Michael Giacchino, composer (Michael Giacchino)
Track from: Up Soundtrack
[Walt Disney Records]
(An Arranger's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.)
Jeremy Lubbock, arranger (Chris Botti & Lucia Micarelli)
Track from: In Boston
[Columbia]
Vince Mendoza, arranger (Jim Beard With Vince Mendoza & The Metropole Orchestra)
Track from: Revolutions
[Sunny Side Records]
Vince Mendoza, arranger (Chuck Owen & The Jazz Surge)
Track from: The Comet's Tail: Performing The Compositions Of Michael Brecker
[MAMA Records]
Michael Giacchino, arranger (Michael Giacchino)
Track from: Up Soundtrack
[Walt Disney Records]
Bill Cunliffe, arranger (Resonance Big Band)
Track from: Resonance Big Band Plays Tribute To Oscar Peterson
[Resonance Records]
(An Arranger's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.)
David Foster & Jerry Hey, arrangers (Seal)
Track from: Soul
[143/Warner Bros.]
Laurence Hobgood, arranger (Kurt Elling)
Track from: Dedicated To You: Kurt Elling Sings The Music Of Coltrane And Hartman
[Concord Jazz]
Thomas Zink, arranger (Anne Walsh)
Track from: Pretty World
[AtoZink Music]
Vince Mendoza, arranger (Melody Gardot)
Track from: My One And Only Thrill
[Verve]
Claus Ogerman, arranger (Diana Krall)
Track from: Quiet Nights
[Verve]
Dan Morgenstern, album notes writer (Louis Armstrong)
[Mosaic Records]
Mark Berresford, album notes writer (The Happy Six)
[Rivermont Records]
Douglas Brinkley & Johnny Depp, album notes writers (Various Artists)
[Legacy Recordings]
Ed Cray & Bill Nowlin, album notes writers (Woody Guthrie)
[Rounder]
Lloyd Ecker & Susan Ecker, album notes writers (Sophie Tucker)
[Archeophone Records]
(For video album packages consisting of more than one song or track. Award to the Artist and to the Video Director/Producer of at least 51% of the total playing time.)
Chris Botti
Jim Gable, video director; Bobby Colomby, video producer
[Columbia]
(Johnny Cash)
Robert Gordon & Morgan Neville, video directors; Robert Gordon & Morgan Neville, video producers
[Columbia/Legacy]
(Anita O'Day)
Robbie Cavolina & Ian McCrudden, video directors; Robbie Cavolina, Melissa Davis & Ian McCrudden, video producers
[AOD Productions]
Keith Urban
Chris Hicky, video director; Blake Morrison, video producer
[Capitol Nashville]
(Various Artists)
Adrian Wills, video director; Martin Bolduc & Jonathan Clyde, video producers
[Apple/Capitol]
Monday, January 25, 2010
Conrad Herwig's Latin Side All Star Band: Intensity On A Cold City Night
Conrad Herwig's Latin Side All Star Band: Intensity On A Cold City Night
Great review of Conrad Herwig's Latin Side band from their show on Jan. 11 - check it out!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
VILLAGE VOICE 2009 JAZZ CRITICS POLL RELEASED - HALF NOTE MAKES TOP 50!
The Village Voice's annual Jazz Critics Poll for 2009 was released. The Blue Note's in-house record label, Half Note Records, has two records in the top 50 for album of the year:
16. Charles Tolliver Big Band, Emperor March (Half Note) 55 (7)
49. James Carter–John Medeski–Christian McBride–Adam Rogers–Joey Baron, Heaven on Earth (Half Note) 22 (3)
Congrats Half Note - look for more top releases in 2010.
For the complete list of VV's Jazz Critics Poll winners, including album of the year, reissue of the year, best debut and more, CLICK HERE
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
ENTER TO WIN: 2 FREE TICKETS TO THE WINTER LATIN JAZZ FESTIVAL FEATURING DAVE VALENTIN WITH CANDIDO, ARTURO SANDOVAL, GATO BARBIERI & PONCHO SANCHEZ!
Cold weather got you down? Come warm up at the Blue Note's Winter Latin Jazz Festival featuring Dave Valentin with Candido (Jan. 19 - 20), Arturo Sandoval (Jan. 21 - 24), Gato Barbieri (Jan. 25 - 27) and Poncho Sanchez (Jan. 28 - 31). The Blue Note will be offering a limited number of free ticket pairs to see any one of these artists, excluding Friday and Saturday during both weeks.
Tickets will be awarded via email by noon on the day of the show, so make sure you check your email to see if you are a winner, and follow the instructions below:
TO ENTER:
1. Email your name and phone number to contests@bluenote.net
2. In the Subject Line, please title your email "BN BLOG CONTEST - " followed by the name of the artist you would like to see.
3. Indicate which night/date and set you would like tickets for.
Remember - this giveaway is only available for the following dates: January 19, 20, 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31!
Read More......
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