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The label gave him his first crack at making a record and, when it compiled his recordings on LP, didn't shy away from calling him a genius of modern music. 1 (1947): Well before he was hailed as an all-time jazz great and legendary innovator, Monk was an obscure pianist with an eccentric reputation and misunderstood talent. Thelonious Monk, "Well You Needn't" from Genius Of Modern Music, Vol. With only piano, trumpet and drums on the date, Hodes' left hand plays rock-solid bass notes, chords and countermelodies seemingly at once, while tapping out a jaunty, rich line with his right. His solo in this 1945 session is a reminder why. For a brief span in the mid-'40s, Chicago-raised pianist Hodes, a noted advocate of jazz's old school, was one of the company's most active recording artists.
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Hot! -TMĪrt Hodes, "Funny Feathers" from Out of the Back Room (1945): Though Blue Note is now chiefly remembered for its postwar catalog, the label started out by documenting traditional jazz and boogie-woogie.
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A big presence with big hands, Johnson could bang out boogie-woogie with the best, but his repertoire also included rags, blues classics and old-time hell-raising "stomps." This tune, from an early collection of singles, finds him whipping through bass octaves in his left hand while playing highly coordinated daredevil lines with his right. Johnson, "Mule Walk (Stomp)" from Rent Party Piano (1943): Of all the pianists on the rent party circuit in New York during the Great Depression, none was more revered than James P. Thus, in January 1939 was Blue Note Records born. This led to a slot as part of a special showcase at New York's Carnegie Hall within weeks, an entranced German immigrant and jazz fan named Alfred Lion recorded nine solos by Ammons, eight by Lewis and two duets between them. The boyhood friends from Chicago each developed serious stride piano chops, and eventually started gigging together as a duo act. Enjoy.Īlbert Ammons and Meade "Lux" Lewis, "Nagasaki" from The First Day (1939): We cheated a little on this one - it's not a solo as much as a six-minute fireworks display sparked by the duet of two boogie-woogie pianists. The idea was to showcase not the label's "greatest hits" - that would be impossible - but rather works that offer meaningful insights into the art of improvisation and the company's deep history. To honor the label, we've combed the vaults to select 75 singular solos, some sprawling over multiple heroic choruses, some lasting just a crisp few measures. Its artists, both the jazz legends and those journeymen who are little regarded today, have helped shape the ever-evolving notion of what a solo is and what it can be. Its records have showcased jazz soloing in every possible mood and temperament. One constant running throughout its history is improvisation. HIDE ME NOW!(function($,document)break case $.Blue Note At 75 Cause For Celebration: The Iconic Blue Note Records At 75īlue Note Records has been many things over the course of its 75 years: a label responsible for blinding jazz innovations, a home for the titans of hard bop and soul jazz, a place for smart, sly, jazz-inflected pop creations. X You are from Odessa - Ukraine and your IP is 78.26.147.81 - Hide your IP and Location with a the Best VPN Provider when torrenting and streaming, and unblock the entire web.
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