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Showing posts from June, 2009

MICHAEL BUBLE'S SENTIMENTAL RETURN TO THE BLUE NOTE

On June 16, Michael Buble released a brand new CD/DVD titled Michael Buble Meets Madison Square Garden. The bonus footage includes a trip down memory lane to a jazz club in New York that once gave the man his start - you guessed it - at The Blue Note. Buble even says himself that playing the Blue Note was harder than playing Madison Square Garden (which he would do just days after shooting the

Blue Note Monday Conversations: OMER KLEIN CD RELEASE FOR HEART BEATS, MARCH 2009

Jazz pianist Omer Klein was interviewed by the Blue Note Blogger for his Monday Night CD Release show for Heart Beats, a solo piano effort that shows the young pianist wise beyond his years. JazzTimes recently wrote that "Klein has the potential to achieve something much rarer for a jazz musician: popularity. What he plays is exotic yet accessible and makes you feel fully alive." Here, he talks

Blue Note Monday Conversatons: LONNIE PLAXICO Talks About The Jazz Life

Lonnie Plaxico is best known for his work as a sideman with the likes of Cassandra Wilson, Art Blakey, Jack DeJohnette and so many more, but he' a fantastic bandleader and a prolific composer in his own right. Here he talks about his upbringing in the jazz world and his new CD, Ancestral Devotion. For more information on the Blue Note Jazz Club and our projects, go to www.bluenotejazz.com/blog.

New Sounds: Brian Blade "Mama Rosa"

Probably the greatest influence on this generation of jazz drummers, Brian Blade's newest album features none of his drumming...and no jazz. Blade's most recent excursion is a testament to his folk and blues influences. Featuring his compositions, his singing, and his guitar playing, "Mama Rosa" is a phenomenal album of a very unique music. This video is a very special sneak peak into this great

Blast From The Past: Bill Evans & Lee Konitz

Searching through the vast collection of jazz videos on YouTube, I stumbled upon this gem. While certainly an enjoyable video and recording, this rare video is invaluable for quite a few reasons as well. For one, this video provides a rare glimpse into one of the most interesting partnerships in jazz; one that is documented (not nearly enough) on recordings, but one that is very rarely - if at

Blue Note June Vocal Festival Begins Tonight!

Some of music's greatest and most unique vocalists will be gracing our stage in the coming weeks. Beginning tonight (6/15) with Sophie Milman, and continuing on with Jane Monheit (6/16-21), Spencer Day (6/22), Bilal (6/23-24), and Rachelle Ferrell (June 25-28), this year's vocal festival should be quite a thrill. For more information on the artists please visit their websites:Sophie Milman - http

Jazz Survival 101

Eugene Marlow posted a very interesting and thought-provoking article on jazz.com yesterday. We have posted it below and are very interested to see what your thoughts are. Please feel free to comment and discuss!Jazz Survival 101by Eugene MarlowAs of early June 2009 there are plenty of indications that the American economy, let alone the global economy, is still mired in what many are calling the

Blue Note Interviews: Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band CD RELEASE WEEK @ THE BLUE NOTE

The Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band will release a brand new CD on Half Note Records titled "I'm BeBoppin' Too" on June 30, 2009. The Blue Note Bloggers posed a question to members of the big band: "Was there a single moment when you knew you wanted to be a jazz musician?" After watching Roy Hargrove conduct the band at sound-check, you'll hear answers from James Moody, Jimmy Heath, Gary

Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band Set List

The explosive Dizzy Big Band is releasing a brand new CD this week at the Blue Note on Half Note Records titled "I'm BeBoppin' Too." On Tuesday, Roy Hargrove conducted the band during Tuesday's first set that featured the following numbers:1. Hot House2. Manteca3. I'm BeBoppin' Too4. Birk's Works5. Una Moss6. Lover Come Back7. 'Round Midnight8. Blue 'n Boogie9. Cool Breeze10. I Can't Get

Blast From The Past: Sonny Rollins

Another viewing of last week's Ben Webster/Teddy Wilson video has put me in that ballad mood. These past few days I've been listening to some of the greatest of jazz balladeers: Lester Young, Keith Jarrett, and Sonny Rollins. Although Sonny Rollins is always mentioned in a listing of the greatest saxophonists of all time, the artistry of his ballads is not often -or not often enough- discussed.

WBGO Photoblog

Just wanted to tell everyone to check out the very cool WBGO photoblog. This current batch features some very hip pics of Ahmad Jamal here at the Blue Note taken by Fran Kaufman. http://www.wbgo.org/photoblogEnjoy!

David Grisman Quintet

Trumpet master Brian Lynch is quoted on his website (brianlynchjazz.com) saying, "I think that to be a straight-ahead jazz musician now means drawing on a wider variety of things than 30 or 40 years ago. Not to play a little bit of this or a little bit of that, but to blend everything together into something that sounds good." Being that this is so - that modern jazz now encompasses and fuses so

Don Friedman

"Why is one player enormously famous and another obscure, when to the naked ear they sound equally as compelling?" So begins the ITunes review of pianist Don Friedman's 1996 album, "The Days of Wine and Roses." Friedman, despite being an in-demand and well-respected fixture on the New York jazz scene since the early 1960s, has somehow remained relatively obscure. While he is known as a "

FOURPLAY reviewed by Nate Chinen in the New York Times

Music Review Fourplay Precision High Jinks From a Veteran Jazz Quartet Michelle V. Agins/The New York TimesFourplay: From left, Nathan East, bass; Larry Carlton, guitar; and Bob James, piano; at the Blue Note.By NATE CHINENPublished: June 2, 2009During the final moments of their early set at the Blue Note on Monday night, the members of Fourplay engaged in a bit of musical horseplay. First Bob

Blast From The Past: Ben Webster & Teddy Wilson

This video features two of the most lyrical jazz musicians of all time: Ben Webster and Teddy Wilson. Both musicians had beautiful and unique tones on their instruments as well as emotionally oriented styles; everything they did was very musical, and this is displayed greatly in this video. Ben Webster's ballad playing is seen by many as the epitome of ballad playing. His lush and robust tenor

Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band

Certainly one of the most revered jazz musicians of all time is Dizzy Gillespie. His virtuosity, compositions, and personality have all contributed to the legacy and institution that is (and has been since the mid 1940's) Dizzy Gillespie. Everything about Dizzy's music was truly Dizzy; everything he did musically was a direct testament to who he was personally. Gillespie's long-time collaborator