Gerry Mulligan 1957

I first heard this LP at the local library when I was 14 years old and it changed my life in a big way. It was my first introduction to Gerry Mulligan, Sweets Edison, Herb Ellis, and most significantly, the Dizzy Gillespie composition "Woody'n You". It also features Stan Getz, Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, Art Farmer, and Louis Bellson. Long out of print, not reissued on CD that I’m aware of (although a couple cuts have sufaced on Verve compilations), this album is well worth seeking out on vinyl.

Rare Chano Pozo

I just found this rare photo of Chano Pozo, playing his conga backstage with Dizzy Gillespie. Chano’s legacy is one of mythical proportions, and I couldn’t believe it when I found this rare, unseen photo. For decades his music was difficult to find, until 2001, when a three CD box set was finally released (Chano Pozo-El Tambor De Cuba), containing thousands of dollars worth of rare records, along with a nice thick booklet of pics, bio, etc.

Joe Pesci Sings!

Joe Pesci is obviously well known for his movie career, most notably Goodfellas and My Cousin Vinny, but his vocal talents have been a well kept secret. Pesci’s 1968 Brunswick release under the name Little Joe Richie is a fun listen, but his more recent collaboration with organist Joey DeFrancesco (Falling In Love Again) is truly outta this world. If you listen carefully, you’ll find the obvious influence of his musical hero Little Jimmy Scott. Five Stars!

Rare Nat King Cole Photo

This rare photo of Nat Cole came from the scrapbook of my guitar teacher John Collins. John was Nat’s guitarist from 1951-1965 and also played with Art Tatum, Billie Holiday, Slam Stewart, Dizzy Gillespie, and many other pioneers of swing & bebop. This photo was taken while on tour in 1959 and is a rare glimpse of a very informal Nat Cole behind the scenes.

Christmas In Hollywood

Over the years, many jazz artists have ended up detouring into pop when they recorded Christmas albums. But listeners can rest assured that Christmas in Hollywood is both a Christmas album and a true jazz album. Plas Johnson, of course, could have easily made this a pop recording -- the versatile tenor saxman has certainly backed his share of non-jazz artists, and is probably most noted for his performance on Henry Mancini’s “Pink Panther Theme”. Christmas in Hollywood, however, is very much a hard bop/soul-jazz recording.
It was a great pleasure for me to work with Plas once again on the production of this CD, as well as legendary balladeer and blues shouter Ernie Andrews.
http://cdbaby.com/cd/plas3

Charles Mingus-Rare & Early Works

“Finding gold in the city dump” is how Charles Bukowski once described his elation when first discovering the writings of John Fante. I have had similar experiences in my hunting for rare and obscure music. Case and point- one day while sifting through boxes of old junk at the local swap meet, I found an extremely rare Charles Mingus 78 rpm record entitled “Inspiration” on the REX Of Hollywood label. It was an interesting find and I knew it must be of some significant value. Ten years later I received a phone call from Dr. Bob Sunnenblick, who was on a mission to locate and compile Mingus’ complete works from 1945-49 for the very first time, and he informed me that my copy of Inspiration was the only known copy. I was more than happy to contribute to this project, which took several more years to complete, including a comprehensive 96 page booklet with lots of great photos and interviews. The final product is worth it’s weight in gold, especially for the price, and I have just found a web page with the MP3’s for sale as downloads.
http://www.emusic.com/album/Charles-Mingus-Charles-Baron-Mingus-West-Coast-1945-49-MP3-Download/11142166.html

Tease!: The Beat Of Burlesque

The popularuty of burlesque, striptease, and pinup girls has gained a serious momentum in the past decade and doesn't seem to be slowing down any time soon. Several years ago I was hired to compile a CD of classic music from the golden era of bump & grind for the Verve record label, much of it hard to find and out of print.

"Hard-honking horns; slinky rhythms; heart-throbbing beats. . . . This soundtrack to the new burlesque is the sound of vintage rhythm & blues, bump-and-grind exotica, and hipster jazz working its magic to uncover hidden desires and soft, sultry curves."
Now available as MP3 downloads!

http://www.vervemusicgroup.com/artist/releases/default.aspx?pid=11265&aid=2656