The Five Most Heart-Felt American Ballads Named After A Women

                                                       "Tulips and Oranges"  2117
                                                Still Life Oil on Canvas- 16 X 20

While spending time in "Lockdown" for the last couple of weeks, I started to think about some of the great songs that have been written and named after women.  So I started to search out a list and I was surprised that I found a lot more candidates then I had imagined.  I wanted to select only five songs that I believe are the best examples performed in a Jazz-like format.   I think that the five songs below would find their way on anyone's list.  There are others that one may argue should be among the top five, and I have no argument with that thinking.  But these five songs are hard to ignore.  In order to add to your enjoyment, I have attached a vocal arrangement and an instrumental of each song.  The list of performers is sterling.  Some old, some young but all are best of class at what they do.

The first "YouTube"is for the classic song "Laura".   I have selected the instrumental version which includes a terrific Trombone solo performed by Bob McChesney with Pat Tuzzolino on Piano.  Pat also did the wonderful arrangement.  I felt that McChesney and Tuzzolino captured the emotion of the music and presented the story of Laura even without the lyrics.   The selection of the vocal version was difficult as many of our great vocalists have recorded this song.  I finally decided to go with The Four Freshman's recording.   The Music for "Laura" was composed for the 1944 movie of the same name by David Raksin  and the lyrics were written by Johnny Mercer.

                                                                      "Laura"

The second "YouTube" is "Emily" with music by the great Johnny Mandel and Lyrics by the incomparable Johnny Mercer.  The song was composed for the 1964 film "The Americanization of Emily" but strangely it was not sung in the movie, so it couldn't be nominated for an Academy Award.  The award for best song in 1964 was "Chim Chim Cher.ee" from Mary Poppins.  If the Directors of "The Americanization of Emily" had any musical brains, they would have taken home an Academy Award for this Mandel and Mercer gem.  But who knew!  I selected the Tony Bennett recording of "Emily" because Tony's approach to the lyric just brings it alive with emotion.  The fact that the pianist accompanied him was Bill Evans makes this recording as good as you can get.   For the instrumental version, I wanted to use Fred Hersch's solo piano recording but I could not find it posted on "YouTube".  I did find a recording with The Bill Evans Trio that I also love.  Bill is joined by Eddie Gomez on Bass and Marty Monell on Drums.

                                                                          "Emily"

The third selection is the song "Mona Lisa" , music and lyric by Ray Evans and Jay Livingston.The song was written for the 1950 film "Captain Carey" and won an Academy Award for best picture.  The title and lyrics refer to the Leonardo da Vinci painting "Mona Lisa" .  I'm sure it is no surprise that the vocal I choose was Nat King Cole's recording.  This recording was made 70 years ago and it still sounds like it could have been recorded yesterday.   I chose a recently released instrumental version performed by Pianist Larry Fuller.  It's on Larry's new CD, "Overjoyed" and it's a great piece of music!

                                                              

                                          " Mona Lisa"

The fourth selection is the song "I Loves You Porgy" written by George and Ira Gershwin with lyric help from DuBose Heyward.  This song was published in 1935 for the Opera, "Porgy and Bess" and is still being performed all over the world.  A great piece of music with a lyric that brings the emotion of the story to life .   I picked the Billie Holiday vocal because it still speaks to me.   The instrumental is a haunting recording by Trumpet superstar Arturo Sandoval.
                                 
                                    "I Loves You Porgy"

                                       
Our last selection is the song "Nancy With the Laughing Face" written by Jimmy Van Heusen and yes, comedian Phil Silvers.  This song written for Sinatra's daughter has been covered by tons of Jazz greats.  It just has a nice feel to it and having the Sinatra history attached  certainly helps its longevity.  The instrumental version I selected is from my life-long favorite Alto Sax player, Cannonball Adderley who is joined on Piano by Bill Evans.  The vocal version I picked is from the fabulous Jazz Vocalist, Kurt Ellin.


Well, there you have it!  Some of the finest Ballads composing and singing the American Jazz world has ever produced.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed creating it.

                                                                                   " Nancy With the Smiling Face"

Reflecting Back On Some Cherished Musical Friends Who Are Gone But Will Remain With Us Forever!

Summer Tulips Inspired by Master Painter, Max Horbund

Now that summer is over my thoughts wander to some of the wonderful performers that have left us in body but will never leave us in spirit because of the wonderful music they have gifted to us forever.  The majority of the music I review and discuss on this blog is performed by current performers,  and I love giving these talented musicians the much deserved public notice they deserve.  However,  there are some old friends whose music has had a profound effect on us, and we should revisit them every chance we can.  I would like to share a few of the performers who have played a part in shaping my musical life.

I would like to start with one of the best horn players in Jazz history,  John Coltrane.  John recorded with the very best American musicians in the history of Jazz,  playing hard-driving straight ahead Jazz.  For me, it was the soft, sensitive side of Coltrane's playing that never left me.  John's tone and feel for melody puts him in a special class of performers.  I found a "Youtube" of John playing one of the tunes on my "Top 10 Best Songs of All Time" list.  No vocals here,  but John's Tenor voice gives life to the lyric of "What New".      

The next performer Eva Cassidy died in her late 20's before she ever got to record and publish a single song.  After her death, her family put out a CD of some of her recorded but unpublished songs.  The CD sold over 1,000,00 copies.  We lost a musically brilliant singer before any of us ever got to know her.  She also recorded a song that is on my "Top 20 Best Songs of All Time" list, "You've Changed".  This song has been recorded by many great singers but Eva Cassidy's version is just outstanding! 

                                       

The last performer is one of the best and most influential Alto Sax players in American Jazz, the great Cannonball Adderley.  Like Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley could play straight ahead Jazz with anyone but in 1955 he recorded a CD entitled "Cannonball Adderley and Strings" in which Cannonball addressed some great American ballads with Jazz style and class.  As a former Alto Sax player,  the Album had a very deep affect on me that remains to this day.

So there you have it,  two of the best instrumentalists that ever played Sax and a young but super-talented singer.  And what do they all have in common?  All three had the ability and talent to project the emotion and beauty of great American ballads which touch listeners in ways that are always remained. 

                                    

Johnny Morris Playing Great Jazz Piano on Mondays at Backstreet Bistro

Johnny Morris is back playing everyone's favorite standards at Backstreet Bistro on Monday nights from 6:00pm until 9:00pm to the delight of all lovers of the "Great American Songbook".  My appreciation for Johnny's playing and singing skills increase every time I go to hear him.  Don't make the mistake of thinking that Johnny plays "Elevator Music".  Johnny is a superb Jazz pianist who has played with some of the greatest Jazz performers in the country.  He toured with The Buddy Rich Band for years including many sessions with  him at Birdland in NYC.  The great Alto Sax man, Cannonball Adderley, tried repeatedly to get Johnny to tour with him,  but Johnny like the venues he was playing in NYC at the time.

Tonight Johnny was in fine form, playing great standards beautifully, singing the lyrics we all love and to top it off, telling wonderful stories about his experiences with many favorite musical giants of the past who performed with him.

You just can't find venues like Backstreet Bistro where you can have an intimate dinner on the outside terrace and listen to some of the best sounds this side of heaven!  Please do your self a favor and go hear Johnny's wonderful performance every Monday at Backstreet Bistro in Palm Desert.

Continuing my effort to attach music to my postings, I recorded a video of Johnny playing the great standard "Stella By Starlight" live at Backstreet Bistro in Palm Desert.  I apologize for the poor visual in the "YouTube" as I am still in the learning stage of movie making. I thought the sound was ok.

The Top 10 CD's That Need To Be On Every Jazz Lovers' Bucket List

If you were limited to listening to only 10 CDs in the next 10 years, have you ever given any thought to what CDs you would put on the list?  I have, and I would like to share my picks with you.  I have listed below in no particular order the top 10 picks that would be on my bucket list.

1.  Dave Brubeck: "Time Out"1959. This CD is intriguing in that it introduces us to complex rhythms that never get old. This was the first instrumental Jazz album to sell over a million copies and was personally responsible for taking me over the bridge from popular music to real jazz. This album also introduced the world to the soft sax tones and phrasing of Paul Desmond.  Listening to this album today, 50 years after it was recorded, it still sound new, fresh and musically unique.

2.  Carol King: "Tapestry" 1971. How can anyone not like this CD with Carol singing all her great songs.   This CD while especially important to the women's movement in the 1970's also had a big impact on a lot of men. The test of time confirms that this CD belongs on this list. You still hear songs from this album being played on radio stations everyday.

3.  Diana Krall: "Live In Paris" 2002. Personally I think that this CD is sensational.  Diana plays jazz piano and sings as good as anyone I have ever heard.  This CD was recorded live in Paris, and you can feel the high emotions from the audience responding to the great singing and playing. I don't think I have ever heard a better CD. What more can I say?

4. Ella Fitzgerald, "Live In Berlin". If there is only one album from Ella you could have, this is the one you need to get.  This recording was released again on 01/05/2011 so you can find it on iTunes, and I believe it sells for $9.00.  Ella kills on this album with classic Ella recordings of "Mack The Knife", How High The Moon", Too Darn Hot and "Gone With The Wind". She also covers "Misty", "The Man I Love", "The Lady Is A Tramp", "Summertime" and "Lorelei".  Simply great singing from Ella at her best!

 5. Andre Previn With Joe Pass & Ray Brown: "After Hours" 1989.  The story of this CD is very interesting.  Andre Previn was asked if he wanted to do a CD with Joe Pass & Ray Brown, and he jumped at the chance. The only date that they are all in the same place is on a day when Previn is conducting a major orchestra so he arranges to meet Joe Pass and Ray Brown at a recording studio after his classical concert.  They all met around 11:00 pm at the studio with no music, no agenda, no charts, just ideas of certain songs that would work for the three of them. Previn picked a song and a key and off they go cutting all 11 tracks that first night finishing about 4:00 am that morning.  The result is the "After Hours" CD and it's a beauty! My favorites on this CD are "There Will Never Be Another You", "All The Things You Are", "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" and "Laura".

6. Paul Desmond & Gerry Mulligan: "Two Of A Mind"1962. This album was released in 1962 but is still as fresh today as it was back then.  The sound of Desmond's Alto Sax playing with Mulligan's Baritone sax is still fresh and alive to this day.  My favorites on this CD are "All The Things You Are", "Stardust" and "The Way You Look Tonight". 

7. Arturo Sandoval: "Americana"1999.  A classic CD containing wonderful trumpet playing and two of my all-time favorite songs, "Isn't She Lovely" the Stevie Wonder great song and "She's Out of My Life" the fabulous Michael Jackson gem. 

8. "Cannonball Adderley And Strings, Jump For Joy" 1995. While known mostly for terrific Be-Bop jazz classics, Adderley exhibits his deep understanding of ballads on this CD backed by a full string orchestra. It's just great, and my personal favorites are "I Cover The Waterfront", Polka Dots and Moonbeams", "A Foggy Day" and "Two Sleepy People". 

9. "Oscar Peterson Plays The Cole Porter Songbook" Re-released 2011. It's nearly impossible to pick just one Oscar Peterson album out of the hundreds he recorded but Oscar playing the great songs of Cole Porter is hard to beat.  This album spotlights Oscar Peterson at his very best playing "Night and Day",  It's All Right With Me", "Love For Sale"  and 9 other Cole Porter gems.  

10. Dave Koz: "At The Movies" 2007.  This is a lush and elegant CD where Dave Koz gets to express his feelings for some of the greatest movie themes ever written.  Every song on this CD is outstanding.  Dave also brings along some high-power guests for support including trumpeter Chris Botti, vocalists Johnny Mathis, Barry Manilow and Donna Summers.  My favorite cuts are "Over The Rainbow",  "As Time Goes By" and The Shadow Of Your Smile".

This is my personal top 10 list and I would love to hear from you about your personal list or maybe a CD or two that can't live without.