It’s Black History Month, so let’s highlight, honor and celebrate the contributions of African Americans to musical and cultural history.
Recently I watched Prince perform at the Montreux Jazz Festival on YouTube. He played a jazz-infused version of the popular Elvis tune, “All Shook Up.” For me, Prince and his high level of musicianship set the bar for performance quality and fan appreciation.
Jazz pianist and composer Jason Moran, who is also Kennedy Center artistic director for jazz, has an entrepreneurial spirit like Prince, and has continuously inspired music lovers with his creative projects distributed digitally on his own label, Yes Records.
Moran’s new album pays tribute to Black jazz pioneer James Reese Europe. “From the Dancehall to the Battlefield” is what WRTI 90.01 radio’s Nate Chinen called “a brilliant and often startling listen; it’s the latest act of radical reimagining from Moran, whose previous forays into Black music history include celebrated tributes to Fats Waller and Thelonious Monk.”
His mainstay trio The Bandwagon, with bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Waits, is at the heart of the album. Trumpeter David Adewumi, clarinetist Darryl Harper, and alto saxophonist Logan Richardson also perform on the album.
Moran also put together a multimedia tribute to Europe called “Harlem Hellfighters: James Reese Europe and the Absence of Ruin,” and presented it at the Kennedy Center and festivals.
The late, great pianist Randy Weston was the one who originally taught Moran about the importance of James Reese Europe, “a fearless pioneer in African American history, a bandleader, composer and organizer who laid the groundwork for jazz in the early 20th century,” Chinen added.
The passing of the baton from Weston to Moran is a perfect example of why linking generations is so important to Black music history.
Tenor saxophonist Houston Person is making a bit of music history of his own with his new recording “Reminiscing at Rudy’s” (High Note), recorded at the fabled Rudy Van Gelder’s Englewood Cliffs studio. He was Houston’s engineer of choice. I can think of several Rudy Van Gelder jazz recordings of historical importance. Add this one to the list.
Performing tunes “Moon River,” “Put Your Head on My Shoulder,” “Please Send Me Someone to Love,” including the original title track, “Reminiscing at Rudy’s,” among others, are the hand-picked colleague’s regular guitarist Russell Malone, pianist Larry Fuller, bassist Matthew Parrish, and drummer Lewis Nash.
Houston, who has an extensive discography, also collaborated with jazz vocalist Etta Jones. The two recorded one of my favorite Christmas albums titled “Together at Christmas.”
Live music offerings
With Valentine’s Day just ahead, it’s the perfect time to see some live music gigs, and there are many stellar jazz artists coming to town in February.
At the Dakota, bassist Dave Holland, guitarist Kevin Eubanks, and drummer Eric Harland bring their special blend of acoustic jazz magic to the stage on February 17. These musicians are no strangers to the group and will no doubt put on a memorable show.
Also at the Dakota, prepare to experience one of the best working trios in all of jazz—pianist Bill Charlap, bassist Peter Washington, and drummer Kenny Washington on Feb 21. Most likely the trio will perform music from their latest album, “Street of Dreams” (Blue Note) from 2021.
Grammy Award-winning jazz vocalist, composer, and visual artist Cécile McLorin Salvant will perform “Ogresse: Envisioned” at the McGuire Theater inside the Walker Art Center on February 24-25. According to the Wall Street Journal, “Ogresse: Envisioned” is “a story at once epic and intimate…virtually everything about it is staggeringly original.”
The Walker adds, “The new multimedia work is driven by an enthralling genre-defying score composed and performed by Salvant and a 13-piece chamber orchestra, arranged and conducted by Darcy James Argue.”
Her new album, “Mélusine”—a mix of originals and interpretations of songs dating as far back as the 12th century, mostly sung in French along with Occitan, English, and Haitian Kreyol, is set for release on March 24 on the Nonesuch Records label.
