Plastic Sax Has Moved

New Plastic Sax posts are here.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Eddie Moore, Hermon Mehari and Jackie Myers are among the musicians paying tribute to Charlie Parker in an episode of Eight One Sixty.

*Television news stations reported on area Charlie Parker celebrations here, here and here.

*The New York Times lists the best ways to observe the centennial of Charlie Parker’s birth.

*Marcus Lewis chatted with Joe Dimino.

*The Kansas City Star reports that Johnson County Community College is rescheduling its fall concerts.  The slate included an appearance by Larry Carlton.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Kansas City PBS- Just in case you haven't heard: On the centennial of Charlie "Bird" Parker's birth, we're taking a look back at the 21 years #Bird spent in #KansasCity and his lasting impression on present-day #KC jazz. Take our word for it, you don't want to miss this premiere! August 29!

(Original image of Gary Giddins’ Celebrating Bird: The Triumph of Charlie Parker by Plastic Sax.)

Call Me Karen

I was taken aback when I tuned in to a livestream of a jazz gig at a Kansas City nightclub last week.  None of the musicians wore masks.  Neither did any of the six or seven members of the audience in the sightline of the stationary camera.  Aside from a mask draped around the neck of a patron, no indication of these abnormal times was evident.  I take pride in nearing or exceeding my goal of catching 365 individual music performances every year.  The past five months have been devastating on a personal level- live music is my passion- and from a financial perspective- I’m not being paid to preview and review concerts as a professional critic.  Even though it’s excruciating, I do my part by staying home.  It’s a shame so many other people abandoned the communal effort.  Thanks for prolonging the agony, jerks.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Charlie Parker

One of the most telling indications of Charlie Parker’s status as a pariah during his lifetime is the scarcity of video footage documenting the legend.  Parker, Coleman Hawkins, Hank Jones, Ray Brown and Buddy Rich pantomime to recordings in this 1950 clip.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Chuck Haddix and Jon McGraw chatted with Steve Kraske about the Charlie Parker centennial for 17 minutes.  McGraw also reviewed his initiatives with Joe Dimino.

*The Kansas City Jazz Orchestra postponed its fall concerts.

*Marc Myers published an appreciation of Charlie Parker.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Riverfront Times - <i>Miles Davis' former home in East St. Louis has been repurposed into a nonprofit museum with educational programs for children and teens. (link)

*From the American Jazz Museum: Live music is back in the Gem Theater! Social distancing will be required, with only 100 tickets available for each concert and masks mandatory.  The American Jazz Museum presents a mini-series befitting of Bird himself on August 21st, 22nd, 28th, and 29th… Friday, August 21st, 4:30pm - 7:00pm ($15): Gerald Spaits Quintet featuring Charles Perkins and Jack Lightfoot;  Saturday, August 22nd, 4:30pm - 7:00pm ($15): SearchingforCharlieParker, An Ode to Bird Featuring Houston Smith and Morgan Faw; Friday, August 28th, 4:30pm - 7:00pm ($15): Will Matthews Organ Trio; Saturday, August 29th, 7:00am - 7:00pm 12-hour jam session-- Session 1 (free), 7:00am - 11:45am: Matt Otto Quartet, Bryan Alford Quartet featuring Amber Underwood, Andrew Ouellette Trio; Session 2 (free), 12:15pm - 3:15pm: James Ward Band, Peter Schlamb Quintet; Session 3 ($15), 3:45pm - 7:00pm: Eclipse featuring Lisa Henry, Bobby Watson.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Double Dealing

The politician representing the Jazz District on the Kansas City City Council mistakenly cited the Mississippi bluesman Big Joe Williams as a local jazz hero several weeks ago.  She obviously meant Big Joe Turner.  Melissa Robinson felt obliged to cite past masters in her introduction to a publicly-funded Jazzy Jamdemic performance that attracted less than 50 live viewers. Apparently unaware of the explosion of live-streaming, Congressman Emanuel Cleaver repeatedly insisted that his Jazzy Jamedemic initiative was the world’s sole outlet for jazz performances during his appearances in the series.  In themselves, the slips aren’t a big deal, but the faux pas are emblematic of Kansas City’s fraught relationship with jazz.  De rigueur lip service without historical understanding or a genuine passion for the music results in abuse, waste and further erosion in the public’s tenuous perception of jazz in Kansas City.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Ben Kynard

I’m fairly certain the longtime Kansas City resident Ben Kynard is part of the saxophone section of Lionel Hampton’s big band in this lively clip.  I documented Kynyrd’s 2010 appearance at the American Jazz Museum here. Kynard died two years later.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Bobby Watson tells J.D. Considine a certain politician is a “jive motherf*cker” in a Downbeat profile.

*Brian Scarborough was interviewed on the Chicago Music Revealed vlog.

*Miguel Atwood-Ferguson’s subversive rendering of the 1950 album Charlie Parker with Strings at the 2012 Charlie Parker Festival at Marcus Garvey Park in New York is now available for streaming on YouTube.

*Gary Giddins will lead Joe Lovano, Charles McPherson, Grace Kelly and Antonio Hart in a discussion about Charlie Parker on August 29.

*Tweet of the Week: Howard Reich- Honoring Charlie Parker at his centennial (link)

*From Johnson County Community College: Our Recital Series are online this Fall! Our musicians are on stage right now recording their shows for your entertainment!... Now in their 32nd year, the hour-long recitals feature some of the most respected professional classical and jazz musicians in the Kansas City area… All events for this fall of 2020 will be presented VIRTUALLY with links to the previously recorded broadcast  prior to the events… Sept. 22 Doug Talley Quartet; Sept. 29 Bram Wijnands Duo; Oct. 6 Brian Scarborough Quintet; Oct. 13 Michael McClintock and Jeff Freling, guitars; Oct. 20 Adam Larson Quartet; Oct. 27 Joe Cartwright, piano; Nov. 3 Eclipse

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Album Review: Brian Scarborough- Sunflower Song

I began tracking the steady ascent of Brian Scarborough even before I snapped the embedded photo of the young Kansas City trombonist at Homer’s Coffee Shop in 2017.  I’ve impatiently anticipated the release of his debut album since catching an astounding performance by Scarborough’s band at recordBar last year.  Released August 7, Sunflower Song is worth the wait.

Not only does the uncommonly elegant album showcase Scarborough’s talents as a trombonist and bandleader, Sunflower Song is an essential document of the artful component of Kansas City’s jazz scene.  In recruiting four of Kansas City’s most notable musicians- tenor saxophonist Matt Otto, guitarist Adam Schlozman, bassist Jeff Harshbarger and drummer Brian Steever- Scarborough is responsible for giving the rest of the world an opportunity to hear the magnificent sounds a small cadre of locally based fans of improvised music have enjoyed in recent years.  

Rather than dominating the nine tracks, Scarborough allows his bandmates equal footing.  The democratic collaboration pays homage to the cool West Coast jazz of the 1950s, an approach allowing Scarborough to honor the adventurous spirit of Bob Brookmeyer.  The late Kansas City native is Scarborough’s most obvious reference point.  The sound may be based on a venerable tradition, but there’s nothing stale about Sunflower Song.  

Serene on the surface, the album is deceptively subversive.  Otto invokes the underappreciated Jimmy Giuffre while Schlozman’s thorny solos reveal the influence of Thelonious Monk.  The stutter-step rhythms of “City Lights” highlight the synchronicity between Harshbarger and Steever.  Scarborough exhibits none of the youthful aggression you’d expect to hear on the debut album of a rising star.  

Immanuel Wilkins’ very fine Omega, the most prominent jazz album released August 7, is characterized by brash solos and innovative production tricks.  That’s clearly not Scarborough’s style.  Yet his reserved sensibility produced one of the most consequential acoustic jazz albums made entirely by Kansas City musicians in recent years.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Ahmaad Alaadeen

Goofy jazz enthusiasts exclaim “Bird lives” as they celebrate the centennial of Charlie Parker’s birth this month.  The spirit of Ahmad Alaadeen also continues to resound in Kansas City.  Logan Richardson is among the late saxophonist’s notable disciples.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*KCUR surveys the Charlie Parker centennial celebration events in Kansas City this month.

*Calvin Wilson considers Charlie Parker’s legacy for KC Studio.

*Harvey Mason apparently references the conference rooms at the downtown Marriott hotel when he insists Kansas City has “lots of hotels…  with rooms named after famous jazz musicians… even streets may be named after them…” on Regina Carter’s new album
Swing States: Harmony in the Battleground.

*Tweet of the Week: ECMRecords- Finally,@PatMetheny’s complete ECM catalog of 11 albums, which includes such titles as Bright Size Life, Offramp, 80/81, is available as high-resolution masters for download and streaming: (link)

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Exhibit Review: Saxophone Supreme at the American Jazz Museum

Chuck Haddix recently told me the Saxophone Supreme exhibit at the American Jazz Museum is like a CliffsNotes version of his 2013 book Bird: The Life and Music of Charlie Parker.  (Plastic Sax review.)  A recent examination of the new installation Haddix co-curated with the American Jazz Museum’s Geri Sanders confirms his assessment.

Anchored by twelve handsome panels designed by Sean McCue of UMKC Libraries, Saxophone Supreme is a three-dimensional rendering of Haddix’s text.  Ephemera including album covers, biographies, performance contracts, artistic renderings and a menu from the second version of Birdland are displayed.  Several interactive sound clips are useful for visitors who bring their own headphones.  Here’s a link to a rendition of “I’m Getting Sentimental Over You”.  Haddix tells me it's otherwise unavailable.

I wholeheartedly recommend Saxophone Supreme to anyone who knows little about Parker.  Admission is free.  Yet nothing in the exhibit is new to me, nor does the array of artifacts deepen my understanding of Bird.  An edition of CliffsNotes can be an indispensable tool for an apprehensive student.  But when it comes to Parker, I insist on complete and unabridged editions in the form of a biographies such as Bird: The Life and Music of Charlie Parker.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Carmell Jones

Carmell Jones was born in Kansas City, Kansas, in 1936.  He’s probably best known for his contribution to Horace Silver’s classic 1964 recording “Song for My Father”.  Locally based jazz enthusiasts regularly turn to Jones’ 1965 album Jay Hawk Talk.  Jones appears alongside Joe Henderson in Silver’s band in the embedded video.  The trumpeter died in 1996.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Mark Wiebe’s 5,000-word examination  of economic and racial disparities in the testing and treatment of the coronavirus centers on the late Brandon McRay.

*Mike Dillon was interviewed by Joe Dimino.

*We the People’s latest single is titled “Worst Nights”.

*Birdsong, Champion Fulton’s tribute album to Charlie Parker, will be released August 28.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Charlie Parker- Available for pre-order now, the rare 1955 12”, The Magnificent Charlie Parker. The collection contains the classics, “Au Privave,” “She Rote,” “Star Eyes,” “Lover Man” and “In The Still Of The Night.” Available everywhere August 7th! (link)

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Dolphin Dance

As more than 500,000 hip-hop fans watched Snoop Dogg perform “Doggy Dogg World” in a rap battle with DMX on Instagram on Wednesday, July 22, a dozen viewers enjoyed OJT’s rendition of “Take the Three” on a Facebook stream from the Kansas City jazz venue Black Dolphin.  The staggeringly divergent numbers don’t tell the whole story.  The simultaneous free live broadcasts offered wildly different experiences not limited to the immense chasm separating confrontational popular music and comforting old-school organ jazz.

As with all Verzuz broadcasts, the static shot of the rappers was plastered with advertisements and scrolling comments from celebrity wellwishers like Keyshia Cole, J Balvin and Method Man.  The comparatively clean Black Dolphin streams feature multiple camera angles managed by a producer attuned to the band’s grooves.  The club’s signature mood lighting enhances the music.

Snoop and DMX rapped over pre-recorded backing tracks.  Fans of the genre are accustomed to tinny sound fields.   The majority of quarantine-era free livestreams of jazz performances also sound terrible.  While I regularly tune in to catch big names like Cyrus Chestnut and Nicholas Payton, I’m rarely impressed by the technical components of the offerings.   The production values of Black Dolphin’s efforts are superior.  The crisp fidelity is matched by excellent visuals.  Don’t just take my word for it.  See and hear for yourself.  While I choose not to live that lifestyle, Black Dolphin welcomes patrons at its live presentations.  Feel free to give me a wave.

(Screenshot of Black Dolphin livestream by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Horace Washington

Horace Washington was a fixture on Kansas City’s jazz scene in the ‘80s and ‘90s.  The loyal following of the saxophonist and flautist ensured steady gigs at the town’s top jazz venues.  The embedded video captures a band led by Washington performing at the Blue Room a year before his death in 2014.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*The Kansas City Star reports on a spate of vandalism at the American Jazz Museum complex.

*The Johnson County Library interviewed Trevor Turla.

*Joe Dimino documented Bobby Watson’s drive-in concert.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Bix Jazz Society- Band Showcase #4: Roarin’ out of KC… Kansas City's VINE STREET RUMBLE Jazz Orchestra is a 14 piece big band, celebrating the legacy of Kansas City Jazz in the 30's & 40's. The only band of it's kind in the country, VSR re-creates the incredible music that made KC world famous!

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Album Review: Mike Dillon- Rosewood

Most members of the audience of about 300 didn’t know what to make of Mike Dillon when he opened for Rickie Lee Jones at Crossroads KC last summer.  ((My review.)  Even though he embodies the beatnik spirit of many of Jones’ most beloved songs, the manic percussionist’s punk-informed jazz mystified nostalgic baby boomers.  He finally won them over with a riveting arrangement of Johnny Cash’s version of Nine Inch Nails’ “Hurt.”

While still captivating, Dillon’s hushed interpretation of “Hurt” is one of the lesser of the 13 tracks on his uniformly excellent new album Rosewood.  An uncommonly intimate press release explains why Dillon returned to Kansas City.  Assisted only by recording engineer Chad Meise and drummer Earl Harvin, Dillon crafted the relatively serene Rosewood in the months following his homecoming.  The emphasis on nuance rather than propulsive beats makes it one of Dillon’s most rewarding albums.

The intentionally wobbly “Mulatu Goes to India” exemplifies Dillon’s characteristic wanderlust.  His hypothetical relocation of the Ethiopian jazz master Mulatu Astatke to another continent carries over to other tracks.  With its blend of exotica and second-line funk, the opening selection “Tiki Bird Whistle” could be subtitled “Martin Denny Goes to Tipitina’s.”   A cover of Elliott Smith’s “Can’t Make a Sound” transplants the late singer-songwriter to Tahiti.

The resigned “Vibes at the End of the World” is a Terry Riley-style meditation while the alarming “St. Cloud’s Drone” resembles a psychedelic distress signal.  Yet the album isn’t a downer.  The consistently somber but resolutely hopeful Rosewood may not be the unhinged party many Dillon fans expect, but it’s the profoundly inspirational pandemic soundtrack they need.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Luqman Hamza

The death of Freddy Cole rightfully generated a tremendous amount of press coverage and heartfelt tributes from grieving fans last month.  Cole’s passing caused me to reflect on Luqman Hamza.  Kansas City’s serene jazz-based balladeer died in obscurity in 2018.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Bobby Watson chatted with Steve Kraske during the last 18 minutes of an episode of KCUR’s Up To Date program.  Their conversation touched on Watson’s forthcoming concert in Kansas City.

*We the People created a music video for “Misunderstood.”

*Logan Richardson is featured on Gerald Clayton’s new album Happening: Live at the Village Vanguard.

*Miles Bonny was interviewed by Joe Dimino.

*Tweet o’ the Week: American Jazz Museum- On 7/19 we're hosting an opening reception to celebrate our new exhibition! It commemorates the centennial birthday of famous Kansas City saxophonist Charlie Parker. Co-curated by AJM and Chuck Haddix. Click here for more information.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)