Jumpin' Jivin' Johannesburg

Authentic Selection Of South African Township Swing Classics From The '50s & '60s. Shuffling drumbeats, serene horn lines, and sweet vocal melodies all come together in the vintage sounds of township jive and South African Jazz. From traditional Kwela flute music and improvisatory Marabi, to bass-heavy Mbaqanga and very influential American Jazz recordings, both township jive and South African Jazz were born.
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History Of African Jazz
Further 50s & 60's African Jazz Suggestions

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.

Touch Of Evil

Plas Johnson recently gave me an original copy of the Touch Of Evil Soundtrack to add to my vinyl collection. He was featured on the rock & roll tracks from this classic Orson Welles film, and shared some great memories of working closely with Henry Mancini on this, and several other projects including Peter Gunn, The Pink Panther, Charade, and The Party. If you haven’t seen Touch Of Evil, you’re in for a real treat. The opening credits are a piece of cinematic mastery and the music is outstanding , now available on CD.

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

Alton Ellis’ last Visit To Los Angeles

It was like a surrealistic dream when Alton Ellis stepped into my studio to rehearse for his last L.A. appearance. He had been one of my favorite Jamaican singers for over twenty years and I couldn’t believe how amazing he sounded up close and personal, singing some of his biggest hits-I’m Still In Love With You, Willow Tree, Cry Tough, etc. The biggest treat though was the Q & A session afterwards, when we all gathered around like children listening to Grandpa tell us stories of the Golden Age of Ska, Rocksteady, and Reggae.
That was July 2007, and we looked forward to many more visits from him in the future.
Little did we know that this would be the last time we would see him, as he was diagnosed with cancer shortly thereafter and sadly passed away on October 11, 2008 .
In his 50 year career Alton Ellis touched fans all over the world and will live in our hearts forever. We’re Still In Love With You Alton.

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

Royal Crown Revue Drummer Has New Book.

I recently interviewed Royal Crown Revue drummer Daniel Glass for an upcoming episode of Vinyl Meltdown (my podcast). It was a great hang as we played many sizzling sides, highlighting the evolution of Rhythm & Blues from the 1940s through the early 60’s.
Daniel has just released a great book, co-authored with fellow drummer/educator Zoro, entitled 'The Commandments of Early Rhythm & Blues Drumming'” (Alfred Music) . This long awaited publication has been eight years in the making, and delves into the rhythm and blues of the 1940s and '50s, a wonderful musical era when shuffles ruled the airwaves and modern groove playing was still in its infancy.
The duo's comprehensive book is loaded with in-depth historical information, photos, graphics, exercises, and transcriptions. I found the book to be highly engaging and a very cool read even for non-musician fans of retro cool music and history.
For ordering info please visit http://www.danielglass.com/