by Scott Yanow
Despite his youthful appearance and enthusiasm, Emmet Cohen has been an important jazz pianist since his debut album came out back in 2010. In addition to his mastery of the piano and ability to play in several styles from bop to stride to freer explorations, he has been quite wise in running his career. Beginning in 2016, Cohen has recorded five CDs in his Masters Legacy Series that gave him opportunities to feature and play with such veterans as drummers Jimmy Cobb and Albert “Tootie” Heath, bassist Ron Carter, and tenor-saxophonists Benny Golson, George Coleman, and Houston Person. His other releases as a leader display his versatility on colorful pieces. And during the pandemic, his weekly podcast Emmet’s Place (which continues these days on a monthly basis) gave him exposure to jazz-starved fans in jam session settings in which his trio was joined by notable guests. Many of those performances can be found on Facebook.
At his recent concert at Santa Monica College’s Broad Stage, there were no guest artists, and none were needed. Cohen was joined by bassist Yasushi Nakamura and drummer Joe Farnsworth for a very enjoyable set that put the emphasis on the trio’s interaction with each other with particularly close and often-witty interplay between Cohen and Farnsworth. Starting with a version of “Time On My Hands” that recalled Ahmad Jamal’s style, the group explored such numbers as “Surrey With The Fringe On Top” (which concluded with an inventive drum solo), Jelly Roll Morton’s tango ”The Crave,” “ If This Isn’t Love” (from Finian’s Rainbow), Cohen’s pretty ballad “Everlasting,” “The Vibe Provider,” Harold Mabern’s “Rakin’ and Scrapin’,” Scott Joplin’s “Original Rags” (which became a boogie-woogie blues) and, as an encore,” and “Satin Doll.”
With Nakamura holding down the foundation and having occasional solos, Farnsworth being well featured taking melodic and surprising solos (while always smiling), and Cohen coming up with a nonstop flurry of creative ideas which were often echoed by the drummer, this was a memorable evening of swinging and often-surprising jazz.
Ron Carter has recorded more sessions in his career than any other bassist in history and has been a major force in music since the late 1950s. He had led a regularly working trio since the beginning of this century. The group originally included pianist Mulgrew Miller and guitarist Russell Malone. After Miller’s passing in 2013, Donald Vega took his place. After Malone passed away in 2024, rather than try to replace the classic guitarist, Carter reorganized the group as a quartet with Vega, tenor-saxophonist Jimmy Greene, and drummer Payton Crossley.
At Catalina Bar & Grill, the wisdom of Ron Carter’s decision to form this new group was apparent. Carter at 87 took fewer solos than in the past but his choice of notes and inventive accompaniment of his sidemen were clearly inspired by the fresh setting. Greene’s warm and passionate solos gave the group a new sound, Vega (who does not record as a leader often enough) played brilliantly, and Crossley was swinging throughout at the perfect volume for this group.
The quartet began with a 40-minute medley of songs including “Seven Steps To Heaven,” a ballad played as a duet by Carter and Greene, a piece with a Spanish tinge, and a medium-tempo swinger. It was followed by “Autumn Leaves” which was performed with the “Killer Joe” rhythmic riff, a piano-bass duet on “My Funny Valentine” (with Vega quoting “The Peacocks” and playing “Darn That Dream” unaccompanied for a stretch), Carter showcased on an unaccompanied and often abstract “You Are My Sunshine,” and a rendition of “You And The Night And The Music” that included stop-time choruses, changes in the rhythm patterns, and the bassist at one point purposely and drastically speeding up the tempo, as if to show that at his age he can still do it.
The 90-minute set was rightfully greeted with a big ovation from the packed crowd who knew that Ron Carter was one of the all-time greats and apparently quite ageless.
Pianist Peter Smith celebrated the release of his new CD Smitty Straightens Out at a private function held in a studio at the First Baptist Church of Pasadena. His album focuses on boogaloo, soul jazz and groove music of the 1960s, a type of jazz that often gets overlooked these days.
At his record release party, Smith used the same musicians as he had on the recording except that Nolan Shaheed played trumpet instead of Aaron Janik. The quintet also featured tenor-saxophonist Rickey Woodard, bassist Trevor Ware, and drummer Roy McCurdy so it was definitely an all-star group.
The set began with one of the few pieces played that day that was not composed by the pianist. Wes Montgomery’s “Road Song” started strong with a hot solo by Shaheed that was filled with doubletime lines. Woodard, who is often heard taking relatively short spots with big bands and singers, got to stretch out on most of these tunes and it was great getting to hear him build up his solos at length. Smith kept up with the horns and there were also some fine drum breaks by the ageless McCurdy.
Other selections performed that day included the boogaloo “Smitty Straightens Out” which had Shaheed utilizing a repeated three-note riff that recalled Eddie Harris, “Swagger Waggle,” the ballad “As They Grow” (dedicated to Peter Smith’s children), the funky blues “Tumbling Down” (during which the trumpeter quoted “The Sidewinder”), and a few songs not on the recording including Cannonball Adderley’s “Things Are Getting Better,” and “Don’t Stop Now,” an original taken slow and hinting at Horace Silver.
Throughout the performance, Nolan Shaheed and Rickey Woodard were heard in excellent and often exciting form, Trevor Ware (who only had one solo) and Roy McCurdy were typically superb and swinging in support of the lead voices, and the genial host Peter Smith played one inventive solo after another. Most of the music was danceable and accessible but with some unexpected twists and turns.
It made for a joyful afternoon. Peter Smith’s Smitty Straightens Out is available from www.petersmithmusic.com.
The original Mahavishnu Orchestra, which was comprised of guitarist John McLaughlin, violinist Jerry Goodman, keyboardist Jan Hammer, bassist Rick Laird, and drummer Billy Cobham, was only together for 2 ½ years (1971-73) but left behind quite a legacy. The group was famous for its virtuosity, the complexity of its compositions, and its very loud volume. Arguably the most significant of all fusion bands, the Mahavishnu Orchestra broke up at the end of 1973 due to personality conflicts.
Walter Kolosky had previously written Power, Passion and Beauty, a book with the full story of the group. Mahavishnu Memories is a rather remarkable follow-up. It goes into great detail about every gig that the band had. One learns not only where and often what they performed but how much the group was paid, background about the venue, memories of many of their fans (often college and even high school students) who happened to be at a particular performance, and excerpts from printed reviews, both pro and con. The amount of research and interviews that took place to form this book is a bit mind boggling.
Rather than being a dry recitation of facts, Mahavishnu Memories is quite readable, contains some humor, and never loses one’s interest. The differences between the reviews (often about the same performance) are intriguing with jazz critics sometimes criticizing the band for its volume and intensity while the rock journalists occasionally had trouble dealing with the fact that it was an instrumental group that played complicated music.
John McLaughlin always tried to have the audience observe a minute of silence before the band suddenly blasted out thunderous notes to begin the night. Sometimes the partying audience did a lot of shouting during that minute but they were always drowned out once the group began to play. While some listeners walked out, those who kept their minds open were often speechless at the end of the night and unable to really express themselves about the wondrous music that they had heard. Mahavishnu Memories (available from www.amazon.com), a 524-page paperback that includes some black and white photos, proclaims on its cover that the Mahavishnu Orchestra was “The greatest live band that ever was.” Walter Kolosky’s book certainly does the group justice and is recommended to anyone who experienced the power and brilliance of this classic band.
Bill Holman was one of jazz’s greatest arrangers and composers. A major force in Stan Kenton’s orchestra in the 1950s and one who wrote for many singers, instrumentalists and big bands through the years (the list is pretty endless), he led the Bill Holman Orchestra from 1975 until his passing in 2024. At Catalina Bar and Grill on Sunday May 25, the Bill Holman Orchestra will be performing their final concert (billed as Holman’s Coda) during a night that will also include film clips and storytelling. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. and promises to be historic and memorable.
I have a new book that is available from amazon.com. Life Through The Eyes Of A Jazz Journalist. It is subtitled My Jazz Memoirs and is my 12th book and first in a few years. I discuss in an often-humorous fashion my early days and discovery of jazz, my period as the jazz editor of Record Review, the story behind my involvement with the All Music Guide, and I reminisce about some of my adventures as an amateur musician. Included are vintage interviews with Freddie Hubbard, Chick Corea, and Maynard Ferguson, encounters with Clint Eastwood, summaries of the Monterey and Playboy Jazz Festivals (including a full-length review of the 1985 Playboy Festival), memories of other events (such as the IAJE Conventions), and brief snapshots of many memorable club and concert performances. There is also background information about my other books, evaluations of the jazz critics who inspired me early on, and my thoughts on jazz criticism which includes advice to up-and-coming jazz journalists. Rounding out the book is a chapter on how the jazz writing business has changed over the past 50 years, and appendixes that include the jazz greats of the past, 86 jazz giants of today, 21 young performers to look for in the future, jazz books and DVDs that everyone should own, and a dozen enjoyable Hollywood jazz films.
Life Through The Eyes Of A Jazz Journalist, a paperback book, sells for $26 through Amazon.com Signed copies (which will take 2-3 weeks) are also available for $30 (which includes free postage) by sending the money via Pay Pal to scottyanowjazz@yahoo.com and by sending your mailing address to that E-mail.