I’m a pretty big fan of Harry Connick Jr. I listen to his Christmas album year-round. And look at the picture above! He’s totally man-crush material. So it is with a heavy heart that I have to give his latest album, “Your Songs,” a bad review.

HC Jr. is best when he’s singing jazz standards, or songs that have been creatively arranged as jazz standards, like his Christmas songs and his really cool album, “Songs I Heard,” which consists of a bunch of songs from kid’s movies. I really like Songs I Heard because it takes familiar songs and transforms them into something unique that Connick can work with.

Your Songs pretty much seems like a cash-in album. Harry C basically loaded a bunch of popular songs into this album so that people would buy it. “Oh, it has ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ on it! It even has a Beatles song!” The problem with the album, and I’m not sure how the producers didn’t catch this very early in the process, is that the arrangements are so dull that Harry sounds like he’s in pain throughout the album. The arrangements don’t fit his singing style because they’re popular songs, and Harry Connick Jr. is not a pop singer. The thing that bothers me most is that this is a completely safe album. There were no risks taken in the vanilla arrangements. So what we get is a really sub-standard pop album from a really good jazz vocalist.

These may be my songs, but Harry: you can keep them!

(Yeah, so what if my only reason for writing this review was the cheesy last line? I’ve done worse on this blog!)

I saw Kurt Elling w/ Ernie Watts at the Michigan Theater last Thursday. The program was billed as “Dedicated to You,” in which Kurt re-envisions songs from Coltrane/Hartman’s ballad album. I really like this album, so I approached the concert with some enthusiasm and also some apprehension.

The instrumentation was kinda interesting. There was a combo as a base: Piano, Bass, Drums, Sax. Then there was a string quartet called ENRON or something (err, it was ETHEL) included in the instrumentation. This made the music seem a bit more fancy, but also more… orchestrated. I thought it took away from the jazziness of the performance. Like a real jazz performance will be a bit impromptu. The strings can’t really improvise along with the rest of the band (at least not in 4 part harmony) so everything is a little more rigid.

Anyway, I think the set included all the songs on the aforementioned cd, but in different arrangements. Some were converted into non-ballads and I think one was played at ballad speed but in a double-time feel. Can’t really remember everything because I wasn’t taking notes. I do recall that I didn’t really like the arrangement for “My One and Only Love.” I thought it should’ve been given a real ballad treatment instead of the uptempo version that wasn’t very long.

I mean, the concert wasn’t bad or anything. Not at all. Elling was a pretty good singer. Even though he kind of overdid the loungey moving away from the mic and then getting closer to it to change dynamics thing. You know what I mean? He also had some funny movements. He has a good voice, but he also seemed to mess around with the vocals a little too much. That’s okay for people who are familiar with the subject matter but for people hearing a standard ballad for the first time it makes it harder to listen to.

I wonder if listening to the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra (a definitely old-school group) is making me kind of snotty. LCJO gets criticized for not being more modern. But I like the old school sound! There were times when the Elling group really got in the groove (or as we jazz musicians like to call it, “in the pocket”), which was great. I really like the straightahead jazz sound. I guess I really shouldn’t complain though. I was happy with the concert for the most part.

Towards the end Elling brought out some old jazz singer dude. I didn’t know who he was at the time but I just looked it up and it was Jon Hendricks. He came on for the last two songs and scatted. The first was Bessie’s Blues, a Coltrane tune that wasn’t on the ballad cd. I think this was one of the times the group really jelled. Then they played Bye Bye Blackbird. Kurt sang the Miles Davis solo of it using some made up lyrics. It was kind of cool because I think a lot of people recognized that it was the Miles Davis solo and appreciated it. It’s also kind of cool because it requires secret jazz knowledge to pick up on it!!! Oh, and after I looked it up I learned that Jon Hendricks actually did this in 1986. So I guess Kurt was doing a tribute to Jon, while Jon was standing there.

During Bye Bye Blackbird, Jon was taking a solo. It looked like he was taking a longer solo than everyone had anticipated, so I think Kurt was trying to figure out how to signal to him that the song needed to end. I mean, they were probably cool having him take the solo. But he most likely didn’t do a rehearsal with the guys. So it was pretty entertaining watching the guys figuring out how to end the song while the guy was taking a long ass solo. That’s how jazz people roll.

The closers were definitely the right choice because they had high crowd-pleasing potential (blues and a well known standard). I think everyone left happy, including me. While I think the source material for the concert is timeless, and perhaps shouldn’t be messed with, they did an okay job and the concert as a standalone event was good. It’s kind of hard to please and live up to standards when you leave yourself open to comparison with Johnny Hartman and John Coltrane…

ALSO: After doing even more research (lookin’ on Youtube) it seems as though Kurt sang with Bob Mintzer, one of my favorite mustached modern composers. Though apparently he didn’t sing “My Foolish Heart” on the album which I really, really like, he did sing it live with Bob. Neat-o.

For the first half of the show, they played stuff from the Thelonious Monk book. Thelonious Monk is typically kind of hard to listen to, but the arrangements that they played were pretty listenable. The only one whose name I remember is Criss Cross.

The second half, they played songs out of the Blue Note label. When Wynton announced that they were gonna play “Blues Walk,” I expected a pretty uptempo major straightahead bebop blues. But apparently there is a difference between Blues Walk and The Blues Walk.

Wynton is pretty good at telling random stories. Like he talked about Lee Morgan and his funny-named albums: “Delightfulee,” “Cornbread,” “The Rumproller.” One of the band members mentioned “The Gigolo” and then Wynton Marsalis made a quip about how that’s why Lee Morgan isn’t here with us today (he was cheating on his girlfriend and she shot him).  Sometimes, though, I really think that Wynton is making shit up! Okay, not really. He just knows a lot about Jazz and Jazz history. And classical music. He’s pretty much a genius.

The musical aptitude of the whole group was pretty damn good. Seeing guys play this well makes me wish I played Piano, Drums, Saxophone, etc. And it makes me want to practice my trumpet some more. Maybe I can work on my chops after graduation…

I felt like trying out my new Yamaha Silent Brass and Sennheiser HD-280 Pro headphones from the Facebook contest, and since I haven’t recorded anything lately I figured I’d play some My Funny Valentine. The Aebersold track is fun and all, but playing with it makes me feel as though I’m playing as the accompaniment, rather than with the accompaniment. So here’s a sans-backing version of My Funny Valentine.

The sound quality came out okay, though the silent brass makes it sounds a bit stuffy and adds a lot of backpressure to the horn. But I guess it’s still better than playing without a mute and pissing off my neighbors. It works great for practicing; recording not so much. The headphones are also pretty sweet. I haven’t used them that much. I mainly use them for listening to This American Life while doing dishes. They block outside sound pretty well.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, yes, I stole stuff from Miles and Wynton. I hope they don’t mind.

Previously: Each Day is Valentine’s Day. (I’d like to think I’m more mature in my trumpet playing since 2 years ago)

A few weeks ago I made a trip with a bunch of colleagues/friends to go see some Jazz in Detroit. We went to a place called “Baker’s Keyboard Lounge,” which is apparently the oldest jazz club, ever. That night, a group played which I would describe as a “mixed bag.” The rhythm section was outstanding, but the sax player was okay and the trumpet player (who was, sadly, also the bandleader) was in serious need of some lessons in improvisation.

Most of the people I went with weren’t Jazz connoisseurs. I sort of think of myself as an intermediate one since I’ve been involved with Jazz (playing and listening) since middle school. Anyway, I promised I’d make a Jazz primer for those interested, and I kind of let it get onto the backburner for a while. I could’ve just grabbed some tracks but I wanted to comment on what to listen to or what I liked about each track so it would be more accessible (Jazz is hard to get into if you don’t know what to look for).

Basically I went through my music collection looking for tracks that I thought were representative of something. Either of a standard tune or an artist or a genre. I tried not to duplicate songs or artists. It was kinda hard. I found what tracks I could that were available on AmazonMP3. So if you wanted, you could download almost the whole mix legally! The MP3 widget and my liner notes follow:

1. Antonio Carlos Jobim – Wave
   One thing I always suggest to do when learning Jazz standards is to learn the words. The words for Wave are really cheesy. Example: “When I saw you first the time was half past three/When your eyes met mine it was eternity” Antonio’s famous for “Girl From Ipanema” but Wave is also pretty classic.
2. Art Blakey – My Romance
   Art Blakey is a weird sorta monolith in jazz. I think he’s famous for having a group (The Jazz Messengers) that’s always featuring new talent. When the musicians “graduate” from the group, new ones take their place. Former members include Lee Morgan, Freddie Hubbard, Wynton Marsalis and Terence Blanchard (so what if I mention just the trumpet players? They’re good)! I also like this song because of the lyrics and the group just sounds really great live! For more on the actual song, see this post that I wrote when I had the song stuck in my head!
3. Bill Evans – Autumn Leaves
   Autumn Leaves is like the quintessential Jazz standard. By “standard” I mean that if you’re a gigging musician, it’s a song you need to know. Since everyone knows the standards, you can just get a random group of guys together and instantly jam out. There’s a lot of versions of Autumn Leaves that I like (including one by Chet Baker) but I thought I’d include some Bill Evans love.
4. Bob Mintzer – Oye Como Va
   Bob Mintzer is a Jazz saxophonist who does contemporary sounding (but not too contemporary) arrangements for his big band. Oye Como Va was made famous by Santana, but it was originally composed by the Latin Jazz dude, Tito Puente. Bob Mintzer always changes something up when he puts his own spin on things. Here, he messes with the head itself. When the trumpets come into the melody, they play the it syncopated. He’s also kind of known for adding “noodly parts” (as my old Jazz Band director Glenn Kostur would say) in the background. You could listen to a Bob Mintzer tune a few times and still not catch everything going on in the background.
5. Bobby Shew – Cubana Chant
   Bobby Shew is from Albuquerque, just like me! Once I went to see him when he came back and I got him to autograph my shoe! Unfortunately it was the bottom of my shoe and when I walked around for a little the autograph faded away. TRUE STORY! Bobby was primarily a lead player (played high notes) and later on started doing improvisation as well. He’s not as good as many players, but at least he’s better at improvising than Maynard Ferguson… Cubana Chant is a tune that I played in my high school combo my senior year. I probably still have the video, actually. Maybe I should post it online some time… It’s sort of interesting because the changes (the chord progression) is basically rhythm changes (from I’ve Got Rhythm) but in a minor progression. Rad.
6. Charles Mingus – Haitian Fight Song
   Charles Mingus is a badass bassist. A lot of his compositions are outside of the “norm” of Jazz. I guess Haitian Fight Song is actually pretty “in” when you think about it. I played “Fables of Faubus” in high school, but I figured I’d include this because it’s a bit “easier” to listen to, being a minor blues and all.
7. Charlie Parker – Scrapple From the Apple
   Charlie Parker’s nickname was “bird,” mainly because he had an actual bird’s beak and feathers. Just kidding. Scrapple From the Apple is your typical early bebop tune. A sorta complicated head followed by some pretty complicated solos. Pretty much just dudes trying to one-up each other. This tune is pretty much synonymous with Charlie Parker, so I figured, why not?
8. Chet Baker – There Will Never Be Another You
   This is one of my favorite standards. It’s not really that well known, though, I guess. The lyrics are cool and so are the changes. It’s not too often that the lyrics to a song match the music perfectly. This is off the album “Chet Baker Sings,” so it’s nice to hear him play and then sing (like a girl).
9. Clifford Brown – Blues Walk
   Clifford Brown was a super awesome virtuoso trumpet player who could play bebop insanely well. He died young (at 25) but he left a huge impact on Jazz anyway. Clifford died in a car crash. My friend Mark says that’s why you don’t let women drive you around! Anyway, Benny Golson wrote “I Remember Clifford” in his memory. Ironically, it’s a ballad (and not super fast bebop as Clifford was famous for). Also, this is why you never hear recordings of Clifford Brown playing “I Remember Clifford,” unless you’re stuck in some kind of paradox alternate universe. But he does play Blues Walk pretty damn well. Check out near the end of the song where Clifford and the sax player (sorry, unnamed sax player) trade ever decreasing amounts of measure! Pretty sweet.
10. Dexter Gordon – Confirmation
    Dexter Gordon is a tenor sax bebop-ist who I got into because my friend Mark (also a tenor sax bebop-ist) was into him. Dexter Gordon has a helluva lot of recordings. One thing that’s apparent is that he’s pretty good. Another thing that’s apparent is that if you listen to more than one solo of his, you’ll hear him play the same riffs in each one. Nothing wrong with that, but Dexter Gordon makes it kinda more apparent than any other Jazz artist I’ve heard (besides myself, since I always use the same three patterns). Confirmation is another bebop tune that has an extremely complicated melody. It’s like they made it hard on purpose just to show off.
11. Dizzy Gillespie – Manteca
    Dizzy Gillespie is the trumpet player that’s famous for having the puffy cheeks and the funny trumpet with the bell at a 45 degree angle. If you’re a trumpet player, don’t do that (unless your name is Dizzy Gillespie)! Dizzy is also famous for being a pretty good bebop player and pioneering the Afro-Cuban style of Jazz. If you’re wondering what that is, just listen to the percussion.
12. Ella Fitzgerald + Louis Armstrong – A Fine Romance
    I like vocal Jazz. Ella and Louis did two recordings singing together. It’s funny because it makes me think they were a couple, with them singing so many love songs together. Their recordings are also funny because Louis’ raspy voice is continually juxtaposed by Ella’s super smooth voice. Also, Louie Armstrong says “bitches” in this song!
13. Freddie Hubbard – Up Jumped Spring
    Up Jumped Spring’s got a pretty interesting melody and changes. Freddie Hubbard has a really sweet tone. It’s like a perfect combination. Plus he composed this song himself, so I suppose it makes sense that this is a good recording… Current Events Alert! Freddie Hubbard died on December 29th, which comes after I made this list but before I published it!
14. Harry Connick Jr. – Basin Street Blues
    Basin Street Blues is sort of a standard, I guess. Maybe not. Oh wait, it is! Miles Davis even has a version! I remember playing it in middle school jazz band. Harry Connick Jr. is a Jazz pianist and vocalist from New Orleans who has a super sweet voice! So it’s cool that in this song you get to hear him play piano and sing, simultaneously!
15. Herbie Hancock – Chameleon
    I’d have included the Maynard Ferguson version of Chameleon but I figured I’d put the original here and any enterprising listeners can find the Maynard version themselves. Herbie Hancock is pretty far out. Let’s just get that out of the way. Chameleon is funky. I consider Funk to be an offshoot of Jazz, just like Blues. Whatever you use to classify this song, I think it’s pretty sweet. It’s also pretty long, but that’s what happens when you’re funkadelic.
16. Horace Silver – Nica’s Dream
    I really, really like the melody for this song. I played it in college Jazz Band. The director, Glenn Kostur, told us that Nica was some kind of modern day saint for Jazz musicians. Like she had some kind of crib where they could stay? And then she died? I don’t quite remember. Anyway, Nica is a cool chick. The song itself is sweet as well, with a Latin Jazz kinda mentality, switching to swing in the B section (kinda like A Night in Tunisia!).
17. John Coltrane – The Night Has a Thousand Eyes
    You might think I’d stick “Giant Steps” into this compilation, but that’d be too predictable of a move. John Coltrane is pretty much a badass. I’m pretty sure he learned every single scale known to mankind and made up some more in his quest to become the ultimate improvising machine. And he pretty much succeeded. The Night Has a Thousand Eyes is a good example of how Coltrane can play “around” the changes and still come up with something that makes sense because it’s based in theory.
18. Lee Morgan – Hocus-Pocus
    I wonder if there’s too many trumpet players in this compilation. Oh well. Lee Morgan is another great one. Apparently (I just read this on Wikipedia) Morgan was shot when he asked his girlfriend to bring him his gun. Just another thing not to ask women to do, along with driving you around, if you’re a Jazz musician and want to avoid an untimely death…
19. Bli Blip – Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra
    The LCJO is pretty much Wynton Marsalis’ group. This is a live recording from a Duke Ellington Tribute concert. Some people criticize the LCJO because it doesn’t really do anything original, that is, it plays very traditionally and is sort of anachronistic in a way. This recording is actually very close (same arrangement) as a version that Ella Fitzgerald sang with the Duke Ellington Orchestra. I guess it’s intentional though. The vocals (by Dianne Reeves) are just insanely good. And it’s just a fun track, so enjoy!
20. Miles Davis – My Funny Valentine
    Miles Davis is also a badass. I guess I tried sticking a lot of badasses in here, what can I say? Miles is so badass that he can just quit playing the melody after a few measures and go straight into his solo! And he doesn’t even empty out his spit valve when he seriously needs to! Plus he plays with the stem in his harmon mute, which is something only he’s allowed to do. Miles is cool because he uses silence effectively. The parts he doesn’t play are as important as the parts that he does. Also, he got into Juilliard and then dropped out! That’s how badass he is! Jazz Lesson: At around the 1:15 mark, the bass player goes into a pedalpoint. Which is a fancy word for saying he just plays the same note over and over again. Bass players just do this to be jerks.
21. Natalie Cole – Almost Like Being In Love
    When Natalie Cole’s not singing with her dead father, she sings by herself (and a big band). I remember my high school band director playing this track for us in class as an example of how the voice is just as legit an instrument as one that you can hold in your hand. I think this song was also in Groundhog Day, which is braggable.
22. Nicholas Payton (with Wynton Marsalis and Roy Hargrove) – The Three Trumpeteers
    I’m a trumpet player, so this song is like pure awesome for me. The three guys play through rhythm changes and sound like they’re having a hell of a time doing it. This has got to be one of my favorites, ever.
23. Roy Hargrove – I Remember Clifford
    Hey, it’s a ballad! About Clifford Brown. I remember Clifford Brown, and the Alamo, too. I like that even though the song is a ballad (about 60 bpm), the rhythm section switches to pseudo double-time in the solo part, so it sounds more upbeat.
24. Sarah Vaughn – Lullaby of Birdland
    Sarah Vaughn has a really sweet voice with a really sweet range. I’m pretty sure she can sing lower than me. She also scats pretty well (the singing, not the bodily function)! I have a pet peeve with the lyrics in this song, rhyming “Birdland” with “Wordland” but hey, it’s still a good one.
25. Sonny Stitt – The Shadow of Your Smile
    This track features some kind of “electric saxophone.” I’m not sure if it’s like a weird effect that Sonny Stitt is using, or if he’s actually wielding an instrument of pure energy. Either way, it has a funny sound. I also like the organ in this song.
26. Wynton Marsalis – Caravan
    Marsalis Standard Time has a bunch of standards, predictably played by Wynton Marsalis. He kind of plays them non-standard though, but it’s cool. The solo that he plays is especially out, only going back “in” every once in a while to relieve some tension. Caravan is a pretty old standard, made famous by Duke Ellington.

There’s a bunch of other songs that I really like, but this will probably suffice for now. Memorize these tunes and I’ll make a new Jazz Mix at some point.

If you ask almost anyone about Sonny Stitt, they’ll probably tell you he was really bad. Like, in a good way. But occasionally, some people will forget. In case of this rare occurrence, there’s a cd that’s appropriately named: “Sonny Stitt: Just In Case You Forgot How Bad He Really Was.”

I just got it from the AADL. Not because I forgot, but because I happen to like Sonny Stitt. The songs are all pretty good. I think it’s parts of a live set that he did a while back. Stitt is just really freakin’ good, and not as repetitive as some people (Dexter Gordon, I’m looking at you!).

My favorite part of this album is probably the cover art. Seriously, I think they looked through all pictures of Sonny Stitt and found the one where he looked baddest.

Falling in love with love is falling for make-believe
Falling in love with love is playing the fool
Caring too much is such a juvenile fancy
Learning to trust is just for children in school

I fell in love with love one night when the moon was full
I was unwise with eyes unable to see
I fell in love with love with love everlasting
But love fell out with me

What’s interesting is that there are two rhymes for each line. Like how ‘trust’ rhymes with ‘just’ and ‘fool’ rhymes with ‘school.’ It’s easier to do in this song since there’s only like, eight lines and most of the time they’re just rhyming ‘love’ with ‘love’ anyway.

I like the idea of a song about falling in love with love. It’s meta! The only way to get more meta would be to write a song about this blog post about a song about falling in love with love! Someone should totally do this.

At first, I thought the line was “caring too much is just a juvenile fantasy” because all the instrumental versions I’ve heard give that note extra “syllables.” I guess instrumentalists can take more liberties with the song than vocalists. Sometimes I think adding more “syllables” is a bad idea, but it works in this song (maybe because I heard it that way first).

I started listening to a bunch of different versions of the song on Last.fm. The Sarah Vaughn version is pretty damn sweet! Let’s see how this Amazon.com MP3 Widget thing works:

Well, it didn’t take long for Rick Astley to get out of my head. While on shuffle, my iTunes played the Bob Mintzer version of “My Foolish Heart” sung by Kurt Elling. It’s really a nice ballad. And the arrangement by Mintzer is nice and slightly weird as is his style.

The night is like a lovely tune, beware my foolish heart!
How white the ever constant moon, take care, my foolish heart!
There’s a line between love and fascination,
That’s hard to see on an evening such as this,
For they give the very same sensation.
When you are lost in the passion of a kiss.
Your lips are much too close to mine, beware my foolish heart!
But should our eager lips combine, then let the fire start.
For this time it isn’t fascination, or a dream that will fade and fall apart,
It’s love, this time it’s love, my foolish heart!

And, as usual when I get a standard stuck in my head, it’s really friggin’ stuck in my head!

They did some kind of tribute to Duke Ellington’s love songs. While it was a good set, I would’ve like to hear, y’know, songs from other people. Wynton and the gang are already criticized enough for playing “era” music, so it’s weird that they limited themselves even further.

The sounds were definitely authentic-sounding, but it’s funny because whenever someone takes a solo, you can hear them sort of drift into the future (or our present) and play licks that would have been unheard of (well, at least unheard) in Duke’s band. I mean, what’s the point of sounding so accurate and then playing a solo that’s got hard bop licks?

Overall though, it was pretty sweet. And they played C Jam Blues as an encore. Just for the record, if I was a girl, I’d totally have Wynton Marsalis’ babies. That’s all!

My friend David always likes to point out how bad the words for this song are. They really are probably the worst lyrics to a jazz standard ever:

The song a robin sings,
Through years of endless springs,
The murmur of a brook at evening tides.
That ripples through a nook where two lovers hide.

That great symphonic theme,
That’s Stella by starlight,
And not a dream,
My heart and I agree,
She’s everything on this earth to me.

Does anyone know what a song that a robin sings through years of endless springs sounds like? Or a murmur of a brook rippling though a nook? And Stella by starlight is a vision, not a sound, right? Couldn’t we say something about Stella herself, rather than babble endlessly about stupid rhymes (brook and nook make me stabby)?

If you can look past the shitty lyrics, the melody is really nice. Plus this song has the distinction of having some unique changes that I can’t really say sound like any other song. Off the top of my head, at least. The tune works well uptempo or as a ballad, too.

If only I had my Real Book with me and some kind of trumpet practice mute so I don’t bug (and by bug, I mean serenade) the neighbors…