Microphones and Missiles: The Legendary Neumann U47 Microphone

Now, a change from records, and a post specially for the sound engineers out there, and the rest of us too.  A guest post, by Neville Roberts. If the name is familiar, you are reading the right sort of magazine: Neville … Continue reading →

Bobby Hutcherson: Cookin’ With Blue Note at Montreux (1973) Blue Note/UA

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Selection: Moontrane (Shaw) Artists: Woody Shaw (trumpet) Bobby Hutcherson (vibes) Cecil Bernard (piano) Ray Drummond (bass) Larry Hancock (drums) recorded at  “Montreux Jazz Festival”, “Casino De Montreux”, Switzerland, July 5, 1973 Bobby and Woody we know, but what to make of … Continue reading →

Bobby Hutcherson: Cirrus (1974) Blue Note/United Artists (updated)

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  Selection: Rosewood (Woody Shaw) . Artists Woody Shaw (trumpet) Emanuel Boyd, Harold Land (tenor sax, flute) Bobby Hutcherson (vibes, marimba) William Henderson (piano, electric piano) Ray Drummond (bass) Larry Hancock (drums) Kenneth Nash (percussion) recorded at Wally Heider Recording … Continue reading →

Bobby Hutcherson: Spiral (1965/8) Blue Note/UA

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 Selection: Jasper (1965) Artists On Jasper: Freddie Hubbard (trumpet) Sam Rivers (tenor, soprano sax, bass clarinet, flute) Bobby Hutcherson (vibes, marimba) Andrew Hill (piano) Richard Davis (bass) Joe Chambers (drums)recorded  Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, April 3, 1965 Other … Continue reading →

Bobby Hutcherson: Total Eclipse (1968) Blue Note/ Liberty

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Selection: Total Eclipse Artists Harold Land (tenor sax, flute) Bobby Hutcherson (vibes) Chick Corea (piano) Reggie Johnson (bass) Joe Chambers (drums) recorded Plaza Sound Studios, NYC, July 12, 1968, recording engineer George Sawtelle, Plaza Sound Studios, N.Y.C. While we are … Continue reading →

Bobby Hutcherson: Head On (1971) Blue Note/United Artists

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Selection: Mtume (Hutcherson)  Mtume  is a Swahili bantu word meaning  “the messenger”. You knew this of course. It is the only Hutcherson composition on the album, the rest of which is attributed to pianist Todd Cochran. Artists Oscar Brashear (trumpet, flugelhorn) George Bohanon, Louis … Continue reading →

Bobby Hutcherson: A Retrospective

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When Horace Silver left us, for posterity, LJC posted a series of his main Blue Note albums.   It is a couple of weeks overdue now to give Bobby Hutcherson the same respect, so over forthcoming posts, some of those titles not previously … Continue reading →

The recording studio in the sky…gains its finest engineer: RVG no longer with us, his heritage lives on.

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It’s been a good few weeks for the afterlife jam session – first Bobby Hutcherson, Toots Thielmans, Louis Smith, now Rudy has cut his last acetate. The giants are gathering on the other side. We have so much to be … Continue reading →

Dolo Coker: California Hard (1976) Xanadu

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More hidden treasures. You wait ages for a Dolo Coker post, then two come along at once. Marc Myers pipped me to the post with his JazzWax  post on Coker just a couple of weeks ago, here, describing Coker as … Continue reading →

Miles Davis: Miles in the Sky (1968) CBS Italiana

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Selection:1: Paraphernalia (Shorter) Selection 2: Country Son (Davis) Artists: Miles Davis (trumpet) Wayne Shorter (tenor sax) Herbie Hancock (piano) George Benson (guitar) Ron Carter (bass) Tony Williams (drums) recorded Columbia Studios, Studio B, NYC, January 16, May 15-17, 1968 A … Continue reading →

Richie Cole: Alto Madness (1975) Muse

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Undervalued Artists, an occasional LJC series: Richie Cole, alto saxophone. Titans of the alto: Parker, Pepper, Mclean, Woods, Donaldson, Dolphy, many more, no shortage of bop heros, but for a brief moment give some space to youngsters,  Richie Cole – boisterous, joyous, exuberant, passionate, … Continue reading →

American 50’s Record Clubs: Jazztone

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Hot on the heels of the American Recording Society post, the Jazztone record club needs to be given some attention. The Jazztone Society was the first independent jazz record club in the United States, an offspring of Concert Hall Society, … Continue reading →

American ’50s Record Clubs: The American Recording Society (1956-7)

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A record collector’s special bonus topic, prompted by LJC commenter Geoffrey Wheeler. I’m sure that name is familiar! You’ll note it again after a few minutes reading. An occasional look at the stuff you may well have overlooked, delving into … Continue reading →

Blue Note Records: the EMI era, 1979 to present day (updated)

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UPDATED July 20 – adding Classic Records.   I should have  anticipated this. In the ’80s and ’90s, reissues  were a whole generation’s first introduction to Blue Note. The purist perspective of “original pressings” from the ’50s and ’60s is a long way from … Continue reading →

Ronnie Mathews: doin’ the thang! (1963) Prestige

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Selection: The Orient Artists Freddie Hubbard (trumpet) Charles Davis (baritone sax) Ronnie Mathews (piano) Eddie Khan (bass) Albert Heath (drums) recorded Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, December 17, 1963, the week running up to Christmas. Obit:  PETER KEEPNEWS JULY 2, … Continue reading →

Newport News – a guest post

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Newport News A guest post by LJC reader Clive D, writing as Vinylla So, LJC has been soliciting yet again … for vinyl acquisition stories…. One afternoon, relaxing with my usual Ximenes (Ed: I think Ximenes refers to a cryptic crossword … Continue reading →

Seismic changes in Europe, jazz unaffected, mostly.

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Following the earth-shattering UK referendum result to leave membership of the European Union, I want to re-assure all jazz-loving readers around the world that LondonJazzCollector will REMAIN your premier UK jazz blog, and LEAVE you to comment on all posts as usual, in … Continue reading →

Ricky Ford: Shorter Ideas (1984) Muse

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Under-appreciated…everything (including his tailor!) Hidden Gems Volume 1 Selection 1: Miyako (Shorter)   Selection 2: DanceCadaverous Listen to Jimmy Knepper picking up the tune and dancing in the dark, beautiful. Artists Ricky Ford (tenor saxophone), James Spaulding (alto Saxophone, flute), Jimmy Knepper (trombone), … Continue reading →

Harold Land: Mapenzi (1977) Concord Jazz

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Under-appreciated labels: Concord Jazz; Under-appreciated artists: Harold Land and Blue Mitchell; Under-appreciated decade: the 70’s (though in many cases, rightly so) Selection: Habiba (Kirk Lightsey) . Artists: Harold Land Blue Mitchell Quintet Harold Land (tenor saxophone) Reggie Johnson (bass), Al … Continue reading →

Joe Chambers: The Almoravid (1971/3) Muse

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Under-appreciated Record Labels: Muse Selection 1: Catta (Andrew Hill) Artists Joe Chambers (drums), Cedar Walton (piano), Richard Davis (Fender bass), Omar Clay, David Freidman (percussion),  Ray Mantilla  (congas) Recorded October 8, 1973   Selection 2: Medina (Joe Chambers) Artists Joe … Continue reading →

Sun Ra Arkestra (May 2016) live in Dalston

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  On a Saturday evening in May 2016, Space came to Dalston, London E8. Marshall Allen, 92, on alto and a reed-based synthesiser that produced space noises straight out of Gort from The Day The Earth Stood Still, and Robbie The Robot, Forbidden Planet. Marshall  carries … Continue reading →

Hank Mobley: A Slice Of The Top (1966) Blue Note Connoisseur

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Underappreciated voices of the tenor: Hank Mobley Selection: Cute ‘n’ Pretty (Mobley) Artists Lee Morgan (trumpet) Kiane Zawadi (euphonium) Howard Johnson (tuba) James Spaulding (alto sax, flute) Hank Mobley (tenor sax, arranger) McCoy Tyner (piano) Bob Cranshaw (bass) Billy Higgins … Continue reading →

Booker Ervin: Exultation! (1963) Prestige

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Under-rated Tenors Series: Booker Ervin Selection: No Land’s Man (Perkins) – Artists Frank Strozier (alto sax) Booker Ervin (tenor sax) Horace Parlan (piano) Butch Warren (bass) Walter Perkins (drums) recorded Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, June 19, 1963 … Continue reading →

Harold Land: The Fox (1959) Hi Fi Jazz

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Selection: One Second, Please (Hope) . Whilst the standard pick on The Fox is… The Fox, a helter-skelter chase at breakneck speed,  it has a “showcase” feel, look how fast we can play this tricksy tune, plus I already chose … Continue reading →

Tubby Hayes: Jeff Kruger’s Jazz At The Flamingo (1956) Tempo

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Selection: Laker’s Day (Baseball and basketball fans may want to skip this section) . Tubby Hayes dedicates his second guest spot, Laker’s Day, to English cricketer Jim Laker  – who just that day had taken a record 19 wickets in one day against … Continue reading →