In A Mellow Tone
Wednesday August 7th, 2024 with Heavy Ben
Vinyl Sides 4 - Roland Kirk, Thelonious Monk, George Van Eps, Caetano Veloso, Art Blakey, Marcus Roberts
August 7 marks the birthdays of Roland Kirk, George Van Eps, Caetano Veloso, and Marcus Roberts, and landmark recordings by Thelonious Monk and Art Blakey.
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| Hour one |
| One of the most remarkable archival videos I've come across is Roland Kirk's 1971 appearance on the Ed Sullivan show. This is the same Ed "moral grandstand" Sullivan who previously objected to lyrics, music, and political leanings of show guests Bo Diddley, Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, David Crosby & The Byrds, and The Doors (in all cases demanding that they alter their lyrics, play different songs, or leave the stage). How did Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Roy Haynes, Archie Shepp, Charles Mingus et al. get on mainstream television? This would have changed my life for the better had I seen this as a child.
https://youtu.be/jRO1W5twBes To be fair, Sullivan once had a Ford (Motor Co.) executive thrown out of the theatre when he suggested that Sullivan stop booking so many Black acts. And a dealer in Cleveland told him 'We realize that you got to have n*&&^@s on your show. But do you have to put your arm around Bill 'Bojangles' Robinson at the end of his dance?' Sullivan had to be physically restrained from beating the man to a pulp." Sullivan later raised money to help pay for Robinson's funeral. At a CBS affiliates meeting in the late 1950s, several Southern station managers complained that Sullivan was booking too many "negroes". Furious, Sullivan referred to the comments in his presentation and said that any station manager that feels this way is under no obligation to carry the show. There were no cancellations. Sullivan said: "As a Catholic, it was inevitable that I would despise intolerance, because Catholics suffered more than their share of it. As I grew up, the causes of minorities were part and parcel of me. Negroes and Jews were the minority causes closest at hand. I need no urging to take a plunge in and help. |
| The Black And Crazy Blues Roland Kirk - The Inflated Tear - Atlantic - 1968 |
| A Laugh For Rory Roland Kirk - The Inflated Tear - Atlantic - 1968 |
| Many Blessings Roland Kirk - The Inflated Tear - Atlantic - 1968 |
| Fingers In The Wind Roland Kirk - The Inflated Tear - Atlantic - 1968 |
| Thelonious in Action is a 1958 live album by Thelonious Monk, recorded at the Five Spot Café in the Bowery neighborhood of Manhattan on August 7, 1958, at the same show that produced Misterioso. It features the debuts of Monk's compositions "Light Blue" and "Coming on the Hudson". The lineup is four hall of fame musicians.
Thelonious Monk – piano Johnny Griffin – tenor saxophone Ahmed Abdul-Malik – bass Roy Haynes – drums |
| Light Blue Thelonious Monk Quartet With Johnny Griffin - Thelonious in Action - Riverside - 1958 |
| Coming On The Hudson Thelonious Monk Quartet With Johnny Griffin - Thelonious in Action - Riverside - 1958 |
| Rhythm-A-Ning Thelonious Monk Quartet With Johnny Griffin - Thelonious in Action - Riverside - 1958 |
| Epistrophy (Theme) Thelonious Monk Quartet With Johnny Griffin - Thelonious in Action - Riverside - 1958 |
| In the 1930s, George Van Eps invented a model of guitar with another bass string added to the common six-string guitar. The seven-string guitar allowed him to play basslines below his chord voicings, unlike the single-string style of Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt. He called his technique "lap piano". It anticipated the fingerpicking style of country guitarists Chet Atkins and Merle Travis and inspired jazz guitarists Bucky Pizzarelli, John Pizzarelli, and Howard Alden to pick up the seven-string. |
| Satin Doll George Van Eps - George Van Eps' Seven-String Guitar - Capitol - 1967 |
| Prelude To A Kiss George Van Eps - George Van Eps' Seven-String Guitar - Capitol - 1967 |
| A Blues Serenade George Van Eps - George Van Eps' Seven-String Guitar - Capitol - 1967 |
| The Very Thought Of You George Van Eps - George Van Eps' Seven-String Guitar - Capitol - 1967 |
| Kisses George Van Eps - George Van Eps' Seven-String Guitar - Capitol - 1967 |
| Stop, Look And Listen George Van Eps - George Van Eps' Seven-String Guitar - Capitol - 1967 |
| Hour two |
| Happy 82nd birthday to Caetano Veloso! Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist Caetano Veloso was one of the key players in the Tropicalia movement. Alongside Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa, Tom Zé, and Os Mutantes, they protested Brazil's military dictatorship of the 1960s (some things never change). Recorded after two years in exile in England, Araçá Azul marks the end of Caetano Veloso's pop- and rock-oriented phase made up by his previous four studio albums. Araçá Azul is also the most experimental and "difficult" album that Veloso made, and it bears few similarities to his earlier recordings. Many people who bought the album when it was released expected it to be a natural and similar follow-up to 1972's Transa. After having listened to it, many of the people were so disappointed with Araçá Azul that they went back to the stores where they had bought it and demanded a refund. On the other hand, Araçá Azul was very much acclaimed by critics. |
| Sugar Cane Fields Forever Caetano Veloso - Araçá Azul - Philips - 1973 |
| Julia / Moreno Caetano Veloso - Araçá Azul - Philips - 1973 |
| Épico Caetano Veloso - Araçá Azul - Philips - 1973 |
| Araçá Azul Caetano Veloso - Araçá Azul - Philips - 1973 |
| Like Someone in Love was recorded in August 1960 at Van Gelder Studio (Englewood Cliffs, NJ) at the same sessions which produced A Night in Tunisia, but was released on Blue Note only in August 1967. Check out this All-Star lineup!
Art Blakey – drums Lee Morgan – trumpet, flugelhorn Wayne Shorter – tenor saxophone Bobby Timmons – piano Jymie Merritt – bass |
| Like Someone in Love Art Blakey And The Jazz Messengers - Like Someone in Love - Blue Note - 1967 (rec. 1960) |
| Johnny's Blue Art Blakey And The Jazz Messengers - Like Someone in Love - Blue Note - 1967 (rec. 1960) |
| Pianist Marcus Roberts turns 62 today. He has been playing with Wynton Marsalis since the 1980s and has also recorded with Béla Fleck and Chick Corea.
Check out Roberts' version of our theme song "In A Mellow Tone". |
| Country By Choice Marcus Roberts - The Truth Is Spoken Here - Novus - 1989 |
| The Truth Is Spoken Here Marcus Roberts - The Truth Is Spoken Here - Novus - 1989 |
| In A Mellow Tone Marcus Roberts [orig. Duke Ellington] - The Truth Is Spoken Here - Novus - 1989 |
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Monk & Blakey. 2 heros.
9:11 PM, August 7th, 2024