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April 2010
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April 2010 Newsletter
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April 2010 Newsletter: An Evening With Larry Ridley and an Amazing Week of Jazz Birthdays
Hello again from ejazzlines!
ejazzlines' co-founders attended a very memorable lecture/discussion with Dr. Larry Ridley recently at the Institute for Jazz Studies on the Newark Campus of Rutgers University.
Dr. Ridley is an emeritus professor at the school, and is a hugely important and vital member of the jazz community. He has played with Thelonious Monk, Dexter Gordon, Lee Morgan,
Hank Mobley, Horace Silver, Freddie Hubbard, Ornette Coleman, Roy Haynes, and countless others. He led a group of students and jazz lovers through his decades of experiences,
from growing up playing with Freddie Hubbard in Indianapolis to his worldwide travels. He shared stories of John Coltrane and Eric Dolphy and kept everyone spellbound for 2+ hours.
Dr. Ridley's experience and knowledge of the history of the music are certainly matched by his passion for its future; he stressed music education, as he always does, and
implored everyone in the crowd to become familiar with masters from Eubie Blake to Joe Henderson and so many others. Being in the presence of Dr. Ridley not only recharges one's
ambition to keep jazz alive, but also gives one a sense of how much jazz can give to us all. We at ejazzlines are proud to know Dr. Ridley, and we thank him for his tremendous
courtesy and generosity, as well as for his tireless work on behalf of the music we love so very much.
This week provides us with an all-time great cluster of jazz birthdays; listening to the music of the following luminaries alone would give one a huge slice of the wonderful
pie which is 20th century American jazz. Yesterday's birthday was that of the great Stanley Turrentine, a tenor master famous for his thick and soulful sound.
Known for his work with his wife Shirley Scott and Jimmy Smith, as well as great sessions such as 'That's Where It's At,' 'Jubilee Shout,' and others,
Mister T was one of the giants of the classic Blue Note era. Today marks Gerry Mulligan's birthday. A legendary player, writer, and arranger, we have been fortunate enough to spend time
with Gerry's widow Franca in the process of publishing some of Gerry's charts, and we certainly are thinking of the gracious Mrs. Mulligan this week (PS: We have several Mulligan charts upcoming including
more from the Birth of the Cool sessions as well as ones he did for the Claude Thornhill and Elliot Lawrence bands). Charlie Rouse and Art Taylor were also born today,
and between them they played with an impressive array of jazz giants of the last half-century.
Tomrorow brings the birthday of two greats who are in every jazz fan's hall of fame: Lady Day and Freddie Hubbard. Billie Holiday needs no description from us - along with Frank Sinatra,
she was one of the best and most distinctive vocal interpreters of the Great American Songbook. Billie lived life to the fullest, and left a legacy of emotional beauty that is
perhaps unmatched in the annals of American music. Freddie Hubbard broke into the big-time jazz scene in the late 1950s, and the 1960s saw him emerge as one of the all-time greatest trumpeters
the music has ever known. Known for virtuosic playing which was marked by both true individuality and blazing speed, Freddie was a member of one of the greatest Art Blakey Messenger groups,
was on Oliver Nelson's landmark 'The Blues and the Abstract Truth' record, appeared on classic sessions by John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Herbie Hancock, and Wayne Shorter, and recorded a string
of 5-star albums of his own. To top the week off, this Thursday the 8th is the birthday of Carmen McRae, another of the greatest vocal stylists in the jazz history.
These birthdays - in just one four day period! - make us realize the depth and breadth of the greatness which is jazz.
We once again thank everyone for your support - it is sincerely appreciated every day of the year!
Rob and Doug at ejazzlines
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April's new DVDs feature three more releases in the Masters of American Music re-issue series.
The three below had all been out of print and in demand, especially The World According to John Coltrane,
and we are very glad to be able to present them again. The first four in the series,
Celebrating Bird,
The Many Faces of Lady Day,
Thelonious Monk: American Composer, and
The Story of Jazz,
all combine to provide a wonderful addition to the DVD library available to the jazz fan and collector.
We also have a brand new live DVD from the
Chad Wackerman Trio, a
Muddy Waters documentary, and several new educational DVDs as well.
We also heartily recommend the first three DVDs in the Solo: The Jazz Sessions series, featuring
Lee Konitz,
Andrew Hill, and
Gonzalo Rubalcaba.
ALL APRIL 2010 DVDs
ALL MARCH 2010 DVDs
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THE WORLD ACCORDING TO JOHN COLTRANE
The World According to John Coltrane is one of the few documentaries to feature the background of this famous player. Directed by Robert Palmer,
the hour-long release delves into Coltrane's beginnings starting with his childhood in North Carolina. It also showcases some live performances including the songs 'My Favorite Things,' 'So What,' 'Giant Steps,' and 'Naima.'
Narration is provided by close friends and peers like Roscoe Mitchell and La Monte Young.
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COUNT BASIE: SWINGIN' THE BLUES
Masters of American Music: Count Basie - Swingin' the Blues is a documentary which looks at Basie's long and fruitful career, featuring rare performance footage and interviews
with a number of musicians who worked with the Count; selections include 'One O'Clock Jump,' 'Air Mail Special,' 'Every Day I Have The Blues,' 'Jumpin' At The Woodside,' and many more.
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SARAH VAUGHAN: THE DIVINE ONE
Sarah Vaughan: The Divine One recounts the stellar singer's career, from her beginnings at the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, to her debut at the Apollo Theater and her pre-eminence in nightclubs,
concert halls and jazz festivals around the world. Packed with insightful interviews, many with Sarah herself, and live performances spanning her entire career, this is a very special portrait of a woman who was
professionally unparalleled.
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CARL FONTANA AND STEVE HUFFSTETER: LIVE AT THE ROYAL PALMS INN
Another edition in Woofy's DVD series featuring alumni of the Stan Kenton Band. Fontana and Huffsteter are featured with a quintet live at the Royal Palms Inn.
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GROOVE ALCHEMY
On this 3-hour DVD, Stanton Moore presents a historical overview of some of the most important drum grooves in history, showing the basic elements and conceptual development of each groove. He then shows you how to learn from the past and develop your own
complete vocabulary for creating new funk grooves and patterns on the drumset.
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LEARN TO PLAY JEFF BECK
Learn five Jeff Beck tracks note-for-note with Michael Casswell. This excellent 2-DVD set will teach you five instrumental pieces from one of the greatest guitarists of all time! Includes note-for-note lessons and performances for each track.
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The clear highlight of this month (as it would be for just about any other month!) is the long-awaited
Harmony of Bill Evans Volume 2.
The first volume (still available, catalog number 699405) has been among our best-sellers for years.
This new sequel should be thoroughly enjoyed by Mr. Evans' legions of fans, and contains a CD to hopefully present an even fuller picture than the first book.
We also have the first Beginner Edition of Andrew Gordon's popular 100 Ultimate Riffs series, 100 Ultimate Blues Riffs for Piano/Keyboards.
The latest in the Decade by Decade series covers the 1950s for piano, vocals, and guitar.
We also have five editions of the
Learning Together series, designed for solo strings or string ensemble, as well as many other new song and instructional books.
ALL APRIL 2010 BOOKS
ALL MARCH 2010 BOOKS
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HARMONY OF BILL EVANS, VOL. 2
In Jack Reilly's second volume, he provides a deeper appreciation and understanding of Evans' compositions. It includes two important theory chapters, plus ten of Bill's most passionate and melodically gorgeous works. The voicing charts for all ten songs are
more complex than volume one and pianistically more demanding, yet always worth the effort. The subjects of modulation and key relationships that are discussed in each chapter will help the player memorize faster and improvise with more facility; not an easy task when performing Evans' music.
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GUITAR WORLD PRESENTS STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN
Guitar World Presents Stevie Ray Vaughan is a newly updated and expanded collection of articles about the great guitarist from the pages of Guitar World magazine. This deluxe volume features probing interviews held over the years with Stevie Ray, instructional material, a complete discography of his recorded works, and loving reminiscences by his fellow musicians. Guitar World Presents Stevie Ray Vaughan is an essential tribute to the great fallen guitar hero of our generation.
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ARPEGGIO MADNESS
Arpeggio Madness breaks down the art of playing arpeggios and even analyzes the styles of guitarists who incorporate them into their playing. Learn techniques like hammer-ons, pull-offs, tapping, string skipping, and sweep picking,
and see how to visualize patterns on the fretboard so you can play arpeggios effortlessly. Designed for intermediate to advanced guitarists, this book increases your speed, fluidity, and fretboard knowledge to help you develop your own personalized arpeggio style.
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NEW WORLD MUSIC
This history guide will take you to the music of Cuba, The Bahamas, Antigua, Barbuda, Puerto Rico, The Lesser Antilles, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Costa Rica,
and it presents a very special music style from Belize, Honduras, Guatemala and from the coast of Nicaragua named: 'Garifuña,' and ends with the United States of America.
On the accompanying 3 CDs, author José Rosa narrates much of the text, and you'll hear many samples of this exciting music. You'll discover many similarities between all the genres in the New World,
not only the Cuban music genres but also the music styles from the rest of the new world and its European influences.
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PLAY: JAZZ GUITAR 1
The PLAY series has nailed down the needs of today's musician with lessons you can use anytime, anywhere: it's more convenient than private lessons, and just as extensive.
The accompanying high-quality DVD of expert instructors will help players of all skill levels, from beginners and 'weekend warriors' to advanced students and pros.
Whether you're into rock, jazz, blues, folk, country, or a little bit of everything, the PLAY series has all the resources you need at the click of a button.
Volume 2 also available, catalog number 0-34203.
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THE WORLD'S MOST BEAUTIFUL MUSIC
Brighten the world with music! For pianists and vocalists of all ages, this deluxe collection contains more than 300 pages of sheet music for 70 of the most beautiful songs ever written.
Popular ballads, timeless standards, classic show tunes and graceful movie themes assure a lifetime of musical pleasure.
Easy Piano edition also available, catalog number
0-34521.
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We're pleased to annouce below that Blues for Pablo has officially been published. We also previously announced
the upcoming release of the Harry James arrangement of the Debussy piano piece Arabesque. This has also been released and is ready
for shipping. We'll shortly be releasing another fine and interesting Jack Matthias adaptation of a Debussy piano piece: Clair de Lune, from Suite Bergamasque. This incredibly famous composition (perhaps one of the world's best known and loved pieces?) was written
for the Harry James orchestra at the same time Arabesque was written; however, it was not recorded. And, we would once again like to mention the previously released series of arrangements that
Oliver Nelson did for the Thelonious Monk Big Band for the 1968 release titled Monk's Blues.
We're getting tremendous feedback on these! Look for a few Gerry Mulligan arrangements to be released during the month of April.
APRIL 2010 BIG BAND CHARTS
MARCH 2010 BIG BAND CHARTS
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BLUES FOR PABLO: GIL EVANS
Blues for Pablo was originally written for Hal McKusick for inclusion on his Jazz Workshop LP recorded in 1956. Evans mixes an idea in minor with a blues in major, and the effect is pure Gil Evans. His treatment of this piece for Davis' album is identical in form to the McKusick version,
but is in a different key, and of course is set for a larger ensemble. Despite a large brass ensemble of five trumpets, four trombones (including a bass trombone) and tuba, he used four reeds,
of which only one was a saxophone. The other reeds are flutes and bass clarinet. Please note that there is no piano part for this arrangement, and none should be added. This edition hues closely to what Evans originally wrote as we have used the original score as the basis.
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CHELSEA BRIDGE: GREG YASINITSKY
Here's a nice arrangement of the Strayhorn standard that features the sax section stating the melody. The chart moves to a double time section that features a trumpet solo before it returns to the original ballad tempo.
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GROOVIN' HIGH: JOHN WASSON
Written for and recorded by the U.S. Air Force Airmen of Note, Joe Jackson director, John Wasson has created a stunning and unique setting of this long-standing
jazz classic. The chart is filled with twists and turns, blazing ensemble passages and also features solo space for two alto saxes (optional alto sax and trumpet). For the mature band, here is a real showstopper.
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HIGH AND FLIGHTY: MARK TAYLOR
Written in a medium bop style, here's a terrific arrangement of the Hank Mobley standard that features trumpet and tenor on the head (and solos), small group scoring on the bridge, a sax soli, and marvelous full ensemble figures throughout. A joyful, up-tempo romp!
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As of this newsletter we have added 16 new DVDs for April 2010
and 32 for March 2010;
37 new music books for April 2010
and 79 for March 2010;
14 new big band and combo arrangements for the month of April 2010
and 42 for the month of March 2010.
The most recent editions have helped our industry-pacing DVD selection grow to a massive 2231 titles! Please check it out today-we have jazz, blues, funk, and soul, live and documentary, method and master class, and much more - we are proud to offer a selection of jazz and jazz-related DVDs that is truly second to none.
As always, please keep in mind that many of our new releases are available in limited quantities. We do our best to predict demand and fill orders as quickly as possible, but we do run out of new releases. Even if we run out of stock, everything featured in this newsletter should be available to ship within 2-3 weeks.
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