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Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show

Jeffrey Siegel

The Award-winning jazz podcast, hosted by Jeffrey Siegel.

music performing arts

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01:00:14

Podcast 646: Jazzin' on Joni @ 75

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/11/07

Today is the 75th birthday anniversary of Joni Mitchell, one of my musical idols. I’ve done several podcasts of jazz versions of Joni’s music in the past, most notably on her 70th birthday (see Podcasts 389, 390, 391). Well, here’s one more. What is it about her music that lends itself to jazz interpretation? Perhaps it’s her unusual (open) tunings and use of chords that attract jazz musicians. One author found that she has used at leasts 60 different tunings across her career, 80 if you count

59:36

Podcast 645: Roy Hargrove (1969-2018)

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/11/04

The passing of Roy Hargrove this past weekend at the age of 49 comes as an unwelcome shock. Hargrove, who died of cardiac arrest brought on by kidney disease, had carved out a spot for himself in the jazz world with music that was particularly important to me. His loss to the music world is virtually immeasurable. As one of the young lions that followed the arrival of Wynton Marsalis on the scene, Hargrove was a peer of Joshua Redman, Antonio Hart, Carl Allen, Stephen Scott and Christian McBride,

57:49

Podcast 644: Spooky Songs 2018

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/10/29

It’s that time of year – the leaves are falling, the wind is picking up, and sweaters are coming out of the closet. Hallowe’en is upon us, and trick or treat will come on Wednesday of this week. Nancy and I have been cutting down on candy for ourselves, which means more for the costumed creatures who come to the door her in Western Massachusetts. It’s also time for the semi-annual Spooky Song Titles podcast. You can find previous year collections on the podcast website by searching the word

43:06

Podcast 643: A Conversation with Rudy Royston

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/10/22

Although he was born in Texas, Rudy Royston was raised and educated in Denver, Colorado, and it was there that he was mentored by trumpeter Ron Miles, and made a name for himself in the area’s fertile jazz, gospel and alternative rock scenes. After supporting himself as a public school music teacher, Royston came east to study at the prestigious Rutgers University music programs, studying percussion with Victor Lewis (Woody Shaw, Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz). In just over a decade, Rudy has made

33:53

Podcast 642: A Conversation with Ben Allison

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/10/18

I don’t mind letting you know that Ben Allison is one of my favorite people in the jazz universe these days. He is a top notch composer, a first-call bassist, and an experienced producer with his own label, Sonic Camera. He maintains a busy schedule as an educator at the New School of Jazz and Contemporary Music, as he has for more than twenty years. A founder and former artistic director of the Jazz Composer’s Collective, he has been a vocal supporter of artist’s rights. He now serves as President

39:22

Podcast 641: A Conversation with Aaron Parks

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/10/16

Aaron Parks seems to be destined to be one of those pianists who chooses projects (or has projects choose him) that become great sessions or performances. Whether we listen to him with the bands led by Terence Blanchard or Kurt Rosenwinkel; as a member of James Farm with Joshua Redman, Matt Penman and Eric Harland; on his great quartet album Invisible Cinema; or playing classic trio or solo piano (Arborescence), Parks always seems in the middle of something particularly notable. Aaron Parks Little

35:38

Podcast 640: A Conversation with Luciana Souza

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/10/01

By her own admission, Luciana Souza records very slowly, with multiple years passing between her albums. We last spoke in 2012, when she had released two new CDs, The Book of Chet and a continuation of her collaborative series, Duos III. She is one of our finest singers, particularly in interpreting lyrics in both her native Portuguese and English. A lover of poetry, she has written lyrics from a number of poets’ work and put them to music, including Elizabeth Bishop in 2000, Pablo Neruda in 2004,

01:03:32

Podcast 639: Randy Weston (1926-2018)

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/09/12

It was almost ten years ago that I got the chance to spend some time talking with Randy Weston prior to an appearance at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. It was a delightful conversation, as Weston spoke candidly about his travels across Africa and the many great musicians with whom he had the pleasure to play piano. When Weston passed away last weekend at the ripe old age of 92, jazz lost one of its greatest musical ambassadors. Weston was one of many jazz musicians who came out of the

42:15

Podcast 638: A Conversation with Russell Ferrante of...

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/09/11

Few groups still working on the jazz scene can boast of the longevity of the Yellowjackets. Their first recording sessions were backing guitarist Robben Ford in 1977. Their first CD as a group was released in 1981, and 17 Grammy nominations (2 wins), 26 albums and almost 40 years later, they are still going strong. The cornerstone of the band remains its keyboard player Russell Ferrante, the sole member left form that 1981 release. However, for the past 25 years or so, his main man has been

37:57

Podcast 637: A Conversation with Steve Turre

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/09/10

The thought of Steve Turre inevitably conjures the image of a master of at least two instruments – the trombone, and sea shells (most notably the conch). It’s the former that takes center stage on his latest release, The Very Thought of You (Smoke Sessions Records). A collection primarily of ballads, the CD allows Turre to put together a great band to showcase his abilities on the gentler side of his expression. Turre is joined on The Very Thought of You by pianist Kenny Barron, bassist Buster

42:57

Podcast 636: A Conversation with Bob James

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/08/29

The amazingly versatile Bob James has taken on – and succeeded admirably with – most of the jazz genres of the past fifty years. During that time, James recorded has free jazz (Bold Conceptions), arranged for and accompanied Sarah Vaughn, and then was a key participant in the jazz-soul fusion that was CTI Records. As a writer, producer, arranger, and finally, recording artist, he made a major contribution to the label’s funky sound. His recordings of “Nautilus” and his version of “Take Me to the

16:59

Podcast 635: A Conversation with Davell Crawford

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/08/27

Before he was twelve years old, Davell Crawford had been crowned “the Piano Price of New Orleans,” for his ability to seamlessly incorporate the sounds of the church, the streets and the New Orleans songbook. The godson of the iconic Roberta Flack and the grandson of the great vocalist/pianist/composer James “Sugar Boy” Crawford (of “Jock-A-Mo” a.k.a “Iko Iko” fame), that heritage and his innate love of performing made him an heir apparent to New Orleans pianists Fats Domino, Professor Longhair,

01:03:52

Podcast 634: Leonard Bernstein Centennial

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/08/25

"Jazz is the ultimate common denominator of the American musical style." –Leonard Bernstein Today would have been the 100th birthday of Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990), a towering figure in American musical history. If he had only been the master of one area of music – the stage, the screen, the concert hall, television – his legend would have been assured. Instead, he mastered them all. Much of his fame derived from his long tenure as the music director of the New York Philharmonic, from his

50 Years Ago Today: McCoy Tyner records "Expansions"

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/08/23

McCoy Tyner left his long-time collaborator John Coltrane in 1965, as the band began moving deeper into atonal avant-garde music, the “Classic Quartet” often supplemented by extra percussion that seemed to negate the need for Tyner’s contributions. Already a known commodity as a session man for the top labels, for the next few years he continued his sideman work at Blue Note, recording a series of albums with Stanley Turrentine (including The Spoiler) and Hank Mobley (including A Caddy for Daddy)

31:22

Podcast 633: A Conversation with James Austin Jr.

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/08/22

Is Stevie Wonder the most covered popular artist in the jazz world? From the singers to the pianists, with a hefty number of Flutes, Saxes and Clarinets thrown in, it seems as if his tunes are the backbone of what we might call the New Standards. And why not? Not only are they well known, but almost always highly melodic, with insightful lyrics. Throw in that Stevie’s been known to use some interesting changes in his harmonies – he favors the black keys on the piano, so there are a lot of flats and

01:09:57

Podcast 632: Jazz for the Dog Days 2018

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/08/16

It's past the midpoint in summer in New England, so why not some summer themed music for what we can only hope will be lazy, hot days? Today is August 16th, the feast day of Saint Roch, the patron saint of Dogs, so why not celebrate the "Dog Days"? The Romans referred to the dog days as diēs caniculārēs and associated the hot weather with the star Sirius. They considered Sirius to be the "Dog Star" because it is the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major (Large Dog), as well as the

37:16

Podcast 631: Previewing the 2018 Newport Jazz Festival

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/08/01

If summer begins with the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival and the Montreal Jazz Festival, then it reaches its apex with the Newport Jazz Festival. Year after year, for three days at Fort Adams State Park in lovely Newport, Rhode Island, three stages (and more!) are constantly filled with the best performers the world of jazz has to offer. This year is no exception. Artistic Director Christian McBride has helped provide us with an exception lineup, topped each day with Charles Lloyd leading a

01:03:48

Podcast 630: Hank Jones Centennial

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/07/31

One of the most influential – and yet to my mind, underrated – jazz pianists of our time would have been 100 years old today. Hank Jones is constantly named by some of our finest jazz musicians as a key influence, and today in honor of the Centennial of his birth, you get an hour plus of his music. One of seven children, Jones was raised in a musical family. His mother Olivia Jones sang; his two older sisters studied piano; and his two younger brothers—Thad, a trumpeter, and Elvin, a drummer—have

25:29

Podcast 629: Previewing the Newport Jazz Festival...

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/07/24

One of the highlights of the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival was the performance of singer José James, who led his band in Lean On Me: José James Celebrates Bill Withers. I suspect he will also bring the house down at the Newport Jazz Festival on Saturday August 4, when he’ll be one of the headliners. Click here for more info on the Festival, brought to us by presenting sponsor Natixis Investment Managers. In addition to his set on Saturday afternoon, fans can catch him opening for Pat Metheny

32:22

Podcast 628: A Conversation with Kait Dunton

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show ·

2018/07/23

I’m a big fan of piano trios – the interplay between three rhythm instruments, the resulting melodies and dissonances, the way soloists weave within one another to create something greater than themselves. trioKAIT does all of that, and does it well - but this is a different kind of piano trio. The same has been said about the Bad Plus, E.S.T. and other groups that came before them, but the group made up of piano and keyboardist Kait Dunton, electric bassist Cooper Appelt, and drummer Jake Reed

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