Ella in Amsterdam 1962

  

Ella in Amsterdam february 18th 1961 

Ella in Amsterdam 1961

 

 

Thanks to Daan Peters.

Ella sings Hard Hearted Hannah

New reissue. Ella Fitzgerald Live in Stockholm 1957

Live In Stockholm 1957
Ella Fitzgerald with the Roy Eldridge Sextet
Featuring: Oscar Peterson (p), Herb Ellis (g), Ray Brown (b), Jo Jones (d), Stuff Smith (vl), Donald Abney (p)




Billed as a Jazz at the Philharmonic performance, this concert consists of two intimate sets: the first showcases Roy Eldridge leading an All Star sextet, while the second part of the concert is the long Ella Fitzgerald set, with just a rhythm section.

Highlights include her powerful renditions of such classics as "Angel Eyes", "Lullaby of Birdland" and "Love for Sale".

The final number, a vigorous version of "It Don't Mean a Thing", brings Roy Eldridge and Stuff Smith back on stage. Stuff Smith, Don Abney, Herb Ellis and Roy Eldridge perform solos.

Tracklisting:

1. Announcement
2. Undecided
3. Embraceable You
4. School Days
5. Lester Leaps In
6. Moonlight In Vermont
7. Bugle Call Rag
8. Announcement
9. You Got Me Singing The Blues
10. Angel Eyes
11. Lullaby Of Birdland
12. Tenderly
13. Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me
14. April In Paris
15. I Can't Give You Anything
16. Love For Sale
17. It Don't Mean A Thing
18. Final Announcement

Recorded at the Konserthuset, Stockholm, Sweden, April 28, 1957.

Johnny Mathis

Johnny Mathis is this year's Ella Award recipient from Society of
Singers, Sept. 12 at the Beverly Hilton.

Corinne Bailey Rae's self-titled debut album entered the U.K. album chart at #1

Corinne Bailey Rae's self-titled debut album entered the U.K. album chart at #1 in March. She made chart history as the first female British artist to do so with a debut album of original songs. Corinne Bailey Rae is currently certified double Platinum there, and Gold in numerous other countries, with worldwide sales already well over one million. Now Bailey Rae is poised to take North America, launching the album with performances on "Good Morning America" (June 19th, the day before the album's release) and "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" (June 27th) as well as a series of sold-out shows in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. While in the States, Bailey Rae will also tape appearances on PBS' "The Tavis Smiley Show" and A&E's "Breakfast with the Arts." Dates are being finalized for a full North American summer tour.

Early reaction has been astounding with Starbucks signing on to carry Corinne Bailey Rae at its Company-operated locations in the U.S. and Canada, a cross-platform "You Oughta Know" campaign at VH1, VH1 Soul and VH1.com and a BET award nomination. And this week iTunes is featuring an acoustic version of lead single "Put Your Records On" as Single of the Week. "Rae's music sticks in your mind like a pleasant scent you wish would linger, " said Blender while Entertainment Weekly said, "Corinne Bailey Rae is so 5 minutes from now ... Think a warm, sultry blend of Norah Jones Cool and Macy Gray Soul, with songwriting that shows flashes of Fiona Apple."

"Put Your Records On" spent three weeks atop the U.K. Airplay chart and is now climbing the charts at Smooth Jazz and AAA radio in the States. The accompanying video has already been added by VH1 Soul, where it was recently the #1 most played video. Now it's going into rotation at VH1 and Bailey Rae will be the focus of a massive cross-platform (VH1, VH1 Soul, vh1.com) "You Oughta Know" campaign beginning June 5th, which will include coverage on VH1 News, live performances, a VH1 Soul Listening Party and an appearance on VH1's Top 20 Countdown. Bailey Rae will also play her favorite videos in a Top 10 Countdown on VH1 Soul. "Put Your Records On" has been bumped up to "Very Cool" rotation at BETJ and has already earned her a nomination for the "BETJ Cool Like That" award. The BET awards will take place on June 27th.

Bailey Rae is one of six new emerging artists hand-picked by AOL Music for its innovative "Breakers" program. The four-month series of promotions includes an "AOL Sessions" performance, prime placements throughout the network and heavy rotation on AOL Radio. Clear Channel has also singled out Bailey Rae as one of today's most notable new artists, tapping her for its Spring 2006 "NEW!" program, which features three rising artists from five formats on its stations' websites.

In addition to carrying the album in its Company-operated stores in the U.S. and Canada, Starbucks' customers will be introduced to Corinne Bailey Rae with overhead in-store play; web site promotion (http://www.hearmusic.com/); programming and promotional spots on Hear Music(TM) Channel 75 on XM Satellite Radio; and a special contest in which Starbucks Hear Music, XM Satellite Radio and Capitol Records are offering the chance to win a trip for two to see one of Corinne's performances on her European tour.

Songs In A Mellow Mood

Available for download at Verve Records for the series

Track List:

1. I'm Glad There Is You
2. What Is There To Say?
3. People Will Say We're In Love
4. Please Be Kind
5. Until The Real Thing Comes Along
6. Makin' Whoopee (1954 Album Version)
7. Imagination (1954 Album Version)
8. Stardust (1954 Album Version)
9. My Heart Belongs To Daddy (1954 Album Version)
10. You Leave Me Breathless
11. Baby, What Else Can I Do?
12. Nice Work If You Can Get It


For all of you who don't want to download mp3s and can get without the original artwork, the album is on CD, paired with Ella Sings Gershwin, on GRP's CD "Pure Ella"

Harry Connick Jr. to Perform in New Orleans Realtors Conference & Expo

Harry Connick Jr. to Perform in New Orleans Realtors Conference & Expo

Singer, composer and Broadway performer Harry Connick Jr., with his unique contemporary style, will perform on Nov. 12 during the Realtors Conference & Expo in the Crescent City.

Realtors will also sponsor the construction of seven Habitat for Humanity homes at the "Musicians Village" in the Big Easy. Connick and another New Orleans jazz great, Branford Marsalis, are honorary chairs of the Habitat's Operation Home Delivery effort, which includes 80 Habitat homes for displaced musicians and a community center, the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music. Connick and NAR were among the first responders to assist the city following Hurricane Katrina.

In addition, NAR, state and territorial associations of Realtors will sponsor 54 Habitat homes in the Gulf Coast area, including the seven in the Musician's Village, as part of the Realtor-Habitat Partnership for Gulf Coast Recovery program. For the past six years, NAR has sponsored Habitat builds in each of the cities hosting its annual conference.

NAR members have contributed $5.6 million from more than 13, 700 donors to Katrina victims through its Realtor Relief Foundation. Earlier, NAR also provided $1.7 million in housing relief to those left homeless in South Asia due to the December 2004 tsunami.

Last fall, NAR President Tom Stevens announced that the national organization would honor its commitment to storm-ravaged New Orleans and hold its annual convention there. "Realtors build communities, " said Stevens. "We are honored to hold our 2006 convention in this unique city and do what we can to restore New Orleans. Realtors love coming to this city. And we love to listen to Harry Connick Jr."

Connick's versatile creative energy has led to more than $20 million in album sales, three Grammy awards and nominations for Tony, Emmy, Oscar, Golden Globe and Cable Ace awards. This year, he made his Broadway debut as Sid Sorokin in "The Pajama Game" to rave reviews. He achieved widespread success as a musician when he scored the 1989 smash-hit movie "When Harry Met Sally."

His movie credits include starring roles in "Memphis Belle" in 1990, and "Little Man Tate, " "Copycat, " "Independence Day" and John Grisham's "Mickey." He has also contributed music to "Godfather III, " "Sleepless in Seattle" and "The Mask."

As a TV performer, he has starred in two holiday specials built around his best-selling albums, including "Harry for the Holidays." He also starred opposite Glenn Close in the ABC adaptation of the musical "South Pacific, " and has played Dr. Leo Markus on the NBC hit series "Will & Grace."

Roberta Donnay's New CD

Award-winning and Grammy-nominated Roberta Donnay has toured the past ten years promoting her previous CDs Back Before The Why, Bohemian, and Soul Reverse, which earned her television and film credits including Nash Bridges, The Young & the Restless, Days of Our Lives, One Life to Live, That's Life, along with films, Close Encounters and Reservoirs of Strength. Donnay's single, "Crack in the Sidewalk" was a hit on college and public radio, receiving rotation on 80 stations nationwide. Her song "One World" has been performed on five continents as a world peace anthem and was adopted for UN 50th anniversary celebration. Ms. Donnay's fiery style and engaging presence have landed her featured performances at the Monterey Jazz Festival, The Empire Plush Room, The Jacksonville Jazz Festival and other venues across the United States.

On Wednesday evening, June 7th, 2006 The Empire Plush Room and The Roberta Donnay Quartet featuring guest artist, Dave Ellis proudly present an evening of music and celebration featuring songs from Donnay's new album, What's Your Story. Donnay explains, "It has been a true delight working with legendary producer Orrin Keepnews. The caliber of performances brought to light in the sessions by Dave Ellis, Eric Reed, Gerald Cannon and Mark Taylor is what I absolutely love about singing jazz."

Verve Release Program

Verve Release Program



Verve has had much success in bringing back titles that either had been deleted from its catalog or were never-before-available and making these titles available as digital-only tracks and albums. Verve and Rhapsody are making this exclusive content available in response to consumer interest.

"Today's consumer lives an on-demand lifestyle and The Verve MusicGroup is thrilled to have Rhapsody embrace the delivery of out-of-print music to meet the consumer demand for it, " says Ron Goldstein, President and CEO of The Verve Music Group. "Verve can now achieve the full potential of its amazing catalog by re-releasing these classic recordings in the digital space."

The program will launch with 28 titles. These titles, which arecurrently unavailable for purchase anywhere in America, will be released to Rhapsody beginning on May 23rd and will be available exclusively through the service for three months. Consumers will be able to stream, download, or purchase these classic recordings via the Rhapsody service as well as transfer them to compatible portable devices. Rhapsody and Verve will support this exclusive relationship with a variety of album features and promotions as well as outreach to core music audiences. "We're very excited to be adding nearly 30 out-of-print titles from Verve Records to Rhapsody, " said Tim Quirk, GM of Music Content and Programming. "Rhapsody's infinite shelf space means there's always room for more great music from influential Verve artists such as Art Blakey, Ella Fitzgerald, and Oscar Peterson."

Verve titles coming to Rhapsody through the program include: Albert Mangelsdorff, Jaco Pastorius, and Alphonse Mouzon "Trilogue" (Live), Alphonse Mouzon "By All Means", Anita O'Day "Anita", Art Blakey "The Complete Art Blakey on EmArcy", Art Tatum "I Got Rhythm Vol. 3 (1935-44)", Baden Powell "Estudos", Ben Sidran "I Lead A Life", Ben Sidran "Puttin' In Time On Planet Earth", Ben Sidran "The Cat In The Hat", Ben Webster and Don Byas "Ben Webster Meets Don Byas", Bill Evans "Symbiosis", Clark Terry "Clark After Dark", Dexter Gordon and Slide Hampton "A Day in Copenhagen", Don "Sugar Cane" Harris "Fiddler On The Rock", Don Ellis "Soaring", Duke Ellington "Collages", Ella Fitzgerald "Songs In A Mellow Mood", Freddie Hubbard "The Hub Of Hubbard", George Duke "I Love The Blues, She Heard Me Cry", Helen Merrill and Ron Carter "Duets", Jean-Luc Ponty "Sunday Walk", Joe Henderson "Mirror Mirror", Marlena Shaw "Out Of Different Bags", Monty Alexander "The Duke Ellington Songbook", Oscar Peterson "Bursting Out With The All-Star Big Band", Stephane Grappelli and the Diz Disley Trio "Violinspiration", The Eddie Davis-Johnny Griffin Quintet "Tough Tenors - Again N Again", The Jan Hammer Trio "Maliny Maliny".

Nancy King with Fred Hersch - Live At Jazz Standard

Nancy King with Fred Hersch - Live At Jazz Standard
By C. Michael Bailey




Track list:
There's A Small Hotel
I Fall In Love Too Easily
Little Suede Shoes/Day By Day
Everything Happens To Me
Ain't Misbehavin'
Useless Landscape (Inutil Paisagem)
There Will Never Be Another You
Autumn In New York
Four

Nancy King is a jazz vocalist who swings for the fences. An all-out scat master, King possesses all of the elasticity of Betty Carter and all of the panache and control of Ella Fitzgerald. Fred Hersch is a pianist’s pianist, the finest ballad-oriented player to emerge from the long shadow of Bill Evans. It's a bit of a mystery why these bright lights had not collaborated before Live at Jazz Standard. The result is East Coast meets West Coast; left coast cool versus right coast sleek; dense talent colliding in creative critical mass.


King and Hersch showed up at New York’s Jazz Standard for a performance as part of Hersch’s “Duo Invitation Series.” The two artists had not performed together, even in practice. According to Hersch, they united before the performance and picked out songs they both knew and then went out and played. Now, that is jazz! It is no surprise that the lion’s share of the songs are ballads.


The duo starts with the angular, Monkish “There’s a Small Hotel,” which gives way to the pensive “I Fall in Love too Easily.” Both ballads are lengthy, allowing the artists to explore their terrain. King uncannily echoes Chet Baker on the latter piece, buoyed by Hersch’s impressionistic pianism. Other impressionistic versions of “Everything Happens to Me,” “Ain’t Misbehavin’” and “There will Never be Another You” follow later down the road. But all is not balladic—Charlie Parker’s “Little Suede Shoes” shows up with Sammy Cahn’s “Day by Day” in a medley. King scats the Parker piece deftly in bebop counterpoint with Hersch. The show is capped by lengthy performances of “Autumn in New York” and a jumping “Four,” with Miles Davis' melody and Jon Hendricks' lyrics.


Jazz is the free spirit of music—improvisation as instant creation with no second takes, just like life. This freedom of spirit makes this duo performance compelling and special. Music like this erases the distinction between singer and accompanist, placing both artists on level ground.

Visit Nancy King and Fred Hersch on the web.

New Harry Connick, Jr. Collection 'Harry On Broadway, Act I'

Harry On Broadway, Act I, a two CD collection of Broadway music performed by Harry Connick, Jr. The new collection, released by Columbia Records, includes separate discs devoted to The Pajama Game Cast Album and Thou Shalt Not and will be in stores on Tuesday, May 9.



The first disc included in Harry On Broadway, Act I is devoted to the new Broadway cast recording of the Roundabout Theatre Company's critically-acclaimed revival of "The Pajama Game, " starring Harry Connick, Jr. in his Broadway stage debut, Kelli O'Hara, and Michael McKean. Based on the novel, "7-1/2 Cents, " by Richard Bissell, "The Pajama Game" is set in the Sleep-Tite Pajama Factory during a strenuous labor negotiation and centers on the simmering romance between a handsome new manager and a lovely union representative that is threatened by the impending strike. With book by George Abbott and Richard Bissell and music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross, the original 1955 Broadway production of "The Pajama Game" won three Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The current production, part of the 40th anniversary season of the Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director), is in performance at the American Airlines Theatre through June 17, 2006 and is directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Kathleen Marshall. http://www.RoundaboutTheatre.org

In addition to stellar interpretations of the musical's classic songs including "Hey There, " "Steam Heat, " and "Hernando's Hideaway, " both the Roundabout Theatre production and The Pajama Game Cast Album feature three songs -- "If You Win, You Lose" and "The Three of Us, " written by Richard Adler, and "The World Around Us, " written by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross -- not included in the original production.

Thou Shalt Not, the second CD in the Harry On Broadway, Act I collection, showcases "The Pajama Game" stars Connick and O'Hara performing jazz interpretations of songs written by Connick for the Broadway musical "Thou Shalt Not." The program includes songs featured in the 2001 Broadway production, which received a Tony nomination for Best Score, as well as music written for but not included in the production. With the exception of "The Other Hours, " which Connick sang on his platinum-selling Sony/Columbia album Only You, none of the songs on Thou Shalt Not have been previously recorded in vocal versions or sung by Harry. The Harry Connick, Jr. Quartet, which features Charles "Ned" Goold (tenor saxophone), Neal Caine (bass), and Arthur Latin, II (drums), appear throughout the Thou Shalt Not album to provide Connick (who also plays piano) and O'Hara with swinging and sophisticated accompaniments.

Harry On Broadway, Act I

The Pajama Game Cast Album
1. Overture 2:25
2. Racing With The Clock 2:49
3. A New Town is a Blue Town 2:51
4. I'm Not At All In Love 4:06
5. I'll Never Be Jealous Again :24
6. Hey There 4:00
7. Sleep Tite :40
8. Her Is 2:42
9. Once-A-Year-Day 4:37
10. Once-A-Year-Day Playoff :50
11. Her Is (Reprise) 1:36
12. Small Talk 3:20
13. There Once Was A Man 3:31
14. Slowdown :54
15. Hey There (Reprise) 1:22
16. Steam Heat 4:47
17. The World Around Us 2:31
18. Hey There (Reprise)/If You Win,
You Lose 3:24
19. Think of the Time I Save 2:37
20. Hernando's Hideaway 8:02
21. The Three of Us 2:33
22. Seven and A Half Cents 4:34
23. There Once Was A Man (Reprise) :48
24. Hernando's Jive :52
25. The Pajama Game 2:59

Thou Shalt Not
1. Oh, My Dear (Something's Gone Wrong) 4:17
2. Can't We Tell 3:59
3. Such Love 5:48
4. I Like Love More 3:05
5. My Little World 4:30
6. All Things 2:22
7. I Need To Be In Love 4:29
8. Oh! Ain't That Sweet 4:00
9. Other Hours 3:48
(10) Take Advantage 4:45
(11) Take Her To The Mardi Gras 3:45
Executive Producer - Ann Marie Wilkins
Produced by Tracey Freeman & Harry Connick, Jr.

2006 MAC Awards

The 2006 MAC Awards were presented on Monday, APRIL 17 at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center at BMCC, 199 Chambers Street. The evening was highlighted by performances by MAC Lifetime Achievement honorees Betty Buckley, Sheila Jordan and Clark Terry, as well as MAC Board of Director Award honorees Phoebe Snow and Judy Gold.

HONOREES

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
BETTY BUCKLEY
SHEILA JORDAN
DONALD SMITH
CLARK TERRY

BOARD OF DIRECTORS AWARDS
PHOEBE SNOW
JUDY GOLD

TIME OUT NY AWARD
CREATION NATION

HANSON AWARD
MILES PHILLIPS

2006 MAC AWARD WINNERS

Female Vocalist
Diana Templeton

Male Vocalist
Colm Reilly

New York Debut - Female
Alisa Schiff

New York Debut - Male
Matt Sigl

Major Engagement
Karen Mason

Cabaret Comedy / Musical Comedy
Nancy Witter

Impersonation
Rick Skye (Liza Minnelli)

Variety Production/Recurring Series
Julie Gold (Fridays at the 'Plex)

Revue
"A Marvelous Party" for Noel Coward

Special Production / Vocal Duo or Group
Sue Matsuki and Gregory Toroian: 10 Years in the Making

Piano Bar/Restaurant Singing Entertainer
Colm Reilly

Piano Bar/Restaurant/Hotel Lounge Instrumentalist
Ricky Ritzel

Director
Phil Geoffrey Bond

Technical Director
Shane Mathews

Musical Director
Rick Jensen

Song
The Party Upstairs -- music by Ronny Whyte, lyrics by Francesca Blumenthal

Special Musical Material
I Think About Sex -- music and lyrics by Ray Jessel

Recording
Lee Lessack... In Good Company

Jazz Recording
Sonny Rollins... Without A Song: The 911 Concert

Jazz Pianist
Fred Hersch

Jazz Instrumentalist
Wycliff Gordon

Jazz Ensemble
The Frank & Joe Show

Female Jazz Vocalist
Karrin Allyson

Male Jazz Vocalist
Andy Bey

Male Stand-Up Comic
Bill Burr

Female Stand-Up Comic
Jessica Kirson

Patti Wicks Makes First SF Bay Area Concert Appearance

Saturday April 22, The Pacifica Performing Arts Center will present jazz pianist/vocalist Patti Wicks in her first concert appearance in the San Francisco Bay area with bassist Ruth Davies. On Sunday afternoon, April 23 she will also be performing in concert at Jazz Chez Hanny, 145 Filmore, San Francisco, with bassist Jeff Chambers.



Although she is new to the Bay Area, Ms. Wicks is a veteran performer, having begun her professional career in New York in the late 60's where her duos and trios included such jazz greats as bassists Sam Jones, Richard Davis, Brian Torff, and drummers Louis Hayes, Mickey Roker, Alan Dawson and Curtis Boyd. Throughout her career, she has worked with an extensive list of artists, including horn players Ira Sullivan, Flip Phillips, Clark Terry, Pete Minger, Greg Abate; guitarists Larry Coryell and Randy Johnston; and has accompanied renowned vocalists Sheila Jordan, Giacomo Gates, Rebecca Parris, Anita O'Day, Roseanna Vitro and Carol Sloane. Now living in South Florida, Patti performs locally and continues touring the US and Italy.

Her most recent CD, "Basic Feeling", recorded in Italy and featuring the excellent Italian musicians with whom she regularly tours, has received rave reviews from both International and US jazz critics.

Two new CDs for Tony Bennett

Tony Bennett is one of the rare recording artists to have new albums chart in five different decades. Over the course of his career, he has earned 13 GRAMMY Awards, including a GRAMMY Lifetime Achievement Award and honors for Record of the Year ("I Left My Heart in San Francisco, " 1962) and Album of the Year (MTV Unplugged, 1993). He is also the recipient of an EMMY Award and the Kennedy Center Honors.

To commemorate this lifetime of achievement--and in celebration of the artist's 80th birthday milestone--Starbucks Hear Music will introduce customers to two Tony Bennett CD projects this year. The first of these is a Starbucks Hear Music Opus collection, Through the Years, which will be available exclusively at Starbucks Company-operated locations in the U.S. and Canada beginning April 4.



For Through the Years, Starbucks Hear Music worked with Bennett to select landmark hits as well as some of the artist's handpicked personal favorites, to create a portrait of Bennett's musical career. On the 15-track CD are songs for which Bennett created definitive interpretations including "I Left My Heart in San Francisco, " Cy Coleman's "The Best Is Yet To Come, " Hammerstein's Sound of Music classic, "My Favorite Things, " Hank Williams' "Cold, Cold Heart, " Rodgers and Hart's "Blue Moon, " "The Way You Look Tonight, " "Smile, " and "It Had To Be You." Also among the tracks are the memorable "Just In Time, " "I Wanna Be Around, " "The Good Life, " "I Could Write a Book, " "Steppin' Out with My Baby" and a version of "My Foolish Heart" recorded with the great jazz pianist Bill Evans.

The Starbucks Hear Music Opus series showcases songs by artists essential for any music collection. The Starbucks Hear Music content team compiles a mix of classic tunes with songs people may not have ever heard to create a portrait of each artist. Previous Starbucks Hear Music(tm) Opus Collections include: Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell, Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, and Ray Charles.



This fall, Starbucks will offer a second CD, an RPM/Columbia release, which will feature newly recorded duets with Bennett and a wide range of musical artists, among them Bono, the Dixie Chicks and Billy Joel. The repertoire will include the songs most closely associated with Bennett's celebrated catalogue, which comprised countless hits over five decades of recorded output. The duets album, which is currently untitled, will be available simultaneously at Starbucks Company-operated locations and traditional retailers.

Joy Bellis - "Coming Alive" debut CD

Listen. Experience. Joy…

One of New York music scene’s best kept secrets – vocalist Joy Bellis – is thrilled to announce her long overdue CD debut, Coming Alive, released on March 7, 2006 on the White Butterfly record label. Coming Alive is an eclectic mix of selections from the American songbook, Brazilian tradition and even contemporary pop. You wouldn’t think you could hear songs popularized by Frank Sinatra and Britney Spears juxtaposed on the same recording, but with Joy’s unique take on these tunes, the transition happens seamlessly. Drawing you in with her warm tones, intelligent phrasing, lyrical empathy and soulful style, she creates the perfect ambiance with each rendition on Coming Alive – this is sophisticated chill music.

An excellent group of musicians (David Epstein - piano, Robert Sabin - bass, Jeff Davis - drums and Doug Hinrichs - percussion) back Joy in delivering fresh arrangements of less-often-heard gems by celebrated songwriters such as Jimmy Van Heusen, Jule Styne, Harold Arlen, Leslie Bricusse and Antonio Carlos Jobim.

Although Coming Alive marks Joy’s official debut recording, she’s no stranger to the stage: Joy Bellis is an experienced performer, having graced clubs all over town for the past 7 years. What fans might not know is that Joy originally hails from Wall Street, spending her initial New York years in investment banking. Lucky for us, she traded her late-night hours at the office, for later nights on stage, perfecting her style, and gaining fans and critical acclaim. And we’re even luckier, now that Joy has expanded into the world of recorded sound. So sit back, listen and experience Joy Coming Alive…

The Songs:

1. Is You Is or Is You Ain't (My Baby)
2. Baby One More Time
3. All the Way
4. Never Will I Marry
5. Bonita
6. Look at That Face
7. It's Over Now (Well, You Needn't)
8. Time after Time
9. Out of This World
10. The Meaning of the Blues
11. Sugar
12. For Me
13. To Say Goodbye (Pra Dizer Adeus)

Go to CDBaby

JULIE HARDY @ La Lanterna / Bar Next Door

On Monday, April 24th (8:00-11:30pm) at La Lanterna / Bar Next Door, vocalist and composer Julie Hardy will perform with guitarist Ben Monder and bassist Matt Clohesy.
Both Monder and Clohesy will be featured on her next CD release on Fresh Sound New Talent records. A vast array of material will be presented including standards, original compositions and modern pieces from Hardy’s latest CD release, “A Moment’s Glance”. La Lanterna / Bar Next Door is located at 129 Macdougal Street, between 3rd st & 4th Street. $8 Cover.



About the Vocalist:
As the only American vocalist currently signed to Fresh Sound New Talent records, Julie Hardy is well on her way to becoming one of the most important voices of the modern jazz scene. Hardy's debut CD, “A Moment’s Glance” was released in April 2005 to critical acclaim. This innovative record combines fresh interpretations of standards and pop classics with sophisticated original compositions, and showcases Hardy's diverse talents as an improviser and an interpreter of lyrics. She is joined by Rob Stillman, tenor saxophone and Randy Ingram, piano. Ben Street, bass, and Adam Cruz, drums (of the Danilo Perez trio) round out the ensemble.

Last year Hardy released “A Moment’s Glance” to a full house at the Jazz Standard in New York City. She was also selected to perform at the Women in Jazz Festival at Jazz at Lincoln Center. This year Hardy has been acknowledged for her talent as a composer by receiving the 2006 ASCAP Young Jazz Composers Award for her composition “No Turning Back” which is featured on her recent Fresh Sound release.

Hardy grew up in Fremont, New Hampshire and holds a Masters degree in Jazz Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music. In 2002 Hardy was one of two vocalists in the nation invited to participate in the Jazz Academy Snowmass in Aspen, CO directed by Christian McBride. The following year Hardy was chosen to attend the Betty carter Jazz ahead program where she performed her original composition at the Kennedy center in Washington, D.C.

PERFORMERS: Julie Hardy, voice and compositions; Ben Monder, guitar; Matt Clohesy, bass.
DATE: April 24th, 2006
TIME: 8:00 – 11:30 PM
VENUE: La Lanterna / Bar Next Door is located at 129 Macdougal Street, between 3rd st & 4th Street
COST: $8 cover, one drink minimum.

Mindi Abair - Life Less Ordinary

April 18, 2006 GRP Records releases Life Less Ordinary, Mindi Abair's New Album.



The personnel of this CD is: Mindi Abair - Alto Saxophone, Vocal, Keyboards; Matthew Hager -Programming, Guitar, Bass, Producer, Percussion, Keyboards; Mike Landau - Guitar; Ricky Petersen - Piano, Organ and others. Life Less Ordinary launches its seduction of the listener's senses with the cool, clubby/soulful chill of "Do You Miss Me, " a track that, for Abair, captures the mood of the whole project."The reason it's first is that if you like it, you'll like the rest of the album, " she says. "It's got a little of everything, it always makes me want to dance, and the title is a perfect sentiment about me being on the road all the time."

With its swirling mix of nouveau-old school percussion, trippy atmospheres and energetic horns, the next song chronicles her "Long Ride Home" perfectly. "It's a great driving song, a Euro-inspired tune we had a lot of fun with, " she says.

"The Joint" is a down and dirty, rock/soul jam that's both retro and raucous; Robinson keeps it swinging, while Abair's alto takes a sexy low road over Peterson's Wurlitzer and organ harmonies. "I've come up the ranks playing in so many little dives. There's an energy to being in a broken down vibey club and feeling like you're one with the audience. I wanted to capture that feeling of a smoky dark room filled with people shaking their bodies to the beat."

Abair takes a 180-degree turn emotionally for the next track, the darkly ambient and emotionally wrenching ballad "Rain, " which was inspired in part by the victims of Hurricane Katrina. "It starts out with a melancholy air, but as it emerges, it becomes more optimistic, " she says. "It captures the way we respond to a tragedy of that magnitude, with sadness that gives way to determination and strength to survive." Songs like the peppy and playful "True Blue" (which features some of Abair's most catchy and mouthwatering wordless harmony vocals ever) and the boldly produced, jangly pop-rocker "Bloom" have the joyful feel of Abair's most familiar pop hits, while the percussive, crunch-funk hip-hop grooves of "Slinky" propel her further into a new sound that will no doubt become the standard for the ever evolving fusion of instrumental jazz, chill and pop.

Perhaps more than any other track, the sweetly-rendered Brazilian-tinged vocal track "Ordinary Love" sums up Abair's attitude towards love. Where most love songs address the intense passion at the beginning or the heartbreak at the end, Mindi pens a playful and endearing song which celebrates the sustaining beauty and freedom of every day, or ordinary, love. In what is now a Mindi Abair signature, she ends the CD with a lonely heartfelt ballad "Far Away". "It started out with me singing the melody and playing it on piano to demo the song. I always envisioned it with soprano saxophone as the main instrument, but when we recorded the saxophone track, we forgot to mute the "guide" vocal that I had put down. The two were so haunting together. We kept it!"

Sherri Roberts at Yoshi's

Sherri Roberts will celebrate the release of her new CD The Sky Could Send You on Blue House Recordings, an associate label of Pacific Coast Jazz, Tuesday, April 18 at Yoshi's Jazz House,Jack London Square, Oakland, CA. The Sky Could Send You is the third collaboration between Roberts and Harvie S, following their critically acclaimed recordings on the Brownstone label, Twilight World (1996) and Dreamsville (1998), which charted for seven weeks on the prestigious Gavin Report. S brings his mastery of jazz and Latin vocabulary to the helm of this new project, which is truly a musical voyage.

"Via adventurous rhythms and vivid language, this record carries the listener through new places, cultures, and emotional landscapes, " says Roberts. Drawing from a broad palette of instrumental and rhythmic colors, The Sky Could Send You features re-imagined jazz and Brazilian standards, original compositions by contemporary artists and unexpected covers of pop tunes such as Harry Belafonte's Jamaica Farewell. The jazz and world grooves provide a rich foundation for Roberts' liquid vocals and intimate lyric delivery. And the incredible talent who accompany Sherri on this recording are the best in their fields - Phil Woods and Lew Soloff.

Deborah J. Carter - New CD "Daytripper"

Deborah J. Carter releases her new jazz tribute to the Beatles with Daytripper (Timeless Records). For this project, Deborah and pianist Coen Molenaar wrote completely new arrangements for eleven standards by the Beatles. They recorded these pieces with drummer Enrique Firpi, bassist/producer/engineer Mark Zandveld, and guest musicians Ed Verhoeff (guitar), Joris Roelofs (clarinet) and Daniel Patriasz (percussion). The enthusiasm for her concert performances in Europe already has proven that this repertoire is extremely well received by a wide audience of not just jazz fans, but music lovers in general.



Here is an excerpt from the liner notes by Frits Lagerwerff (VPRO Radio & TV): “By her interpretation of Lennon-McCartney compositions, Deborah demonstrates eminently the distinction between jazz and pop. Her feeling for phrasing, improvisation and variation brings excitement in these songs which she considers part of the soundtrack of her life. With a fascinating penchant for free-spiritedness she creates-- in personal versions--a sparkling cocktail of contrasts.”

Daytripper (Timeless Records CD JSP 473)
Just released! A CD with Deborah's original and surprising versions of Beatles-repertoire.


listen:
Can't Buy Me Love
Yesterday
Oh! Darling
Ticket To Ride


Read: CD buyer feedback press reviews

Jazzkaar Festival - Tallinn

Jazzkaar Festival - Tallinn

From April 15-30 the Tallinn International Jazzkaar Festival will open its doors for the 17th time featuring Dianne Reeves, Vinicius Cantuaria and The Bad Plus. This year's festival includes 50 concerts in thirteen Estonian cities - Tallinn, Tartu, Prnu, Jhvi, Viljandi, Narva, Tri, Haapsalu, Valga, Rakvere, Plva, Elva and Keila. The concerts in Tallinn will take place in 15 different halls altogether.

The festival will feature musicians from 24 different countries, including Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Britain, Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Italy, Greece, Lithuania, Georgia, Indonesia, India, Australia, Brazil, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Chilie, Israel and the USA.

The opening concert of the festival will be by a rising Estonian artist Liisi Koikson, who will be presenting her debut album. The young woman was awarded the title of the best jazz singer and best female singer at the last Estonian Music Awards ceremony.

The main performers of the festival will be jazz diva Dianne Reeves, a four time Grammy award winner, the power piano trio The Bad Plus from the USA, and Vinicius Cantuaria quintet from Brazil, continuing with the best traditions of Antonio Carlos Jobim's music.

The European jazz elite is also impressively represented at Jazzkaar - the best French saxophone and clarinet players Michel Portal and Louis Sclavis, Spanish saxophone and flute players Jorge Pardo and Jose Louis Gutierrez, etc.

Youth is one of the keywords for this year's festival. The youngest star will be a 16-year-old Italian saxophone player Francesco Cafiso, who has gained substantial international recognition, despite his young age.

23-year-old wonder-voice Eivor Palsdottir, who was voted the best female vocalist in Iceland, will be performing with Villu Veski's world music group. A special kind of energy will be brought to the festival by the saxophone player and rap artist Soweto Kinch, who has been awarded several prestigious British awards. Norway will be represented by Solveig Slettahjell with her Slow Motion Quintet. Young Estonian singers Uku Suviste and Kadri Voorand will have their Jazzkaar debut this year, while Sofia Rubina and Chalice are both already well-known artists for the festival audience.

World music and jazz will be wonderfully combined by groups Boi Akih (Indonesia - India-the Netherlands), The Shin (Georgia), PercaDu (Israel), Sanju Sahai and Fida Hussain Khan (India), Anna- Mari Khr orhcestra (Finland) etc.

Estonian musicians will be giving 20 concerts and the audience will have a chance to see the brand new shows of Meelis Vind, Bonzo Dream Orchestra, Tnu Naissoo, Hedvig Hanson, Riho Sibul, Raivo Tafenau, etc.

Ella Fitzgerald festival hits the big time

BY SAM MCDONALD

April 4, 2006
The Ella Fitzgerald Music Festival, now in its ninth year, is looking all grown up. How so?

First off, it's a third bigger.

This year's event at Christopher Newport University has swelled to include a fourth night of world-class music. A beefed-up Wednesday concert will feature the critically acclaimed singer Kurt Elling.

Secondly, there's the marquee strength of this year's headliner, Branford Marsalis. The saxophonist, who performs at the Saturday night finale, is part of the nation's first family of jazz music. His father Ellis and brother Wynton are among the most popular and respected jazz players in the country.

Big names are nothing new to the festival. It has featured Chick Corea, Joshua Redman, Sonny Rollins and Diana Krall in years past. But an appearance by Marsalis - who has recorded and performed with rock standouts including Sting and Bruce Hornsby - gives the festival more popular punch. At least it should.

Finally, the Ella Fitzgerald Music Festival moves into a grander physical space for 2006. Last year's edition took place at the 440-seat theater inside the Ferguson Center for the Arts. This year, the only show happening in that theater is Wednesday's kickoff. The other three performances are inside the Ferguson Center's much larger 1,700-seat concert hall.

It's a big step up from the festival's beginnings in the tiny and unpretentious Gaines Theatre at CNU.

Here's a closer look at the festival's four headlining concerts.

Kurt Elling with the CNU Jazz Ensembles, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Music & Theatre Hall, Ferguson Center for the Arts. Tickets are $20.

Chicago native Kurt Elling's brand of scat singing was surely influenced by Ella Fitzgerald, so he's a natural choice for the festival. Having developed his own style in the clubs of the Windy City - including the legendary Green Mill - Elling emerged as a creative and unpredictable presence in vocal jazz. For example, he began his 2001 album "Flirting with Twilight" by singing a Charlie Haden bass solo.

Eddie Palmieri and La Perfecta II with Tiempo Libre, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Concert Hall, Ferguson Center for the Arts. Tickets are $20, $30 and $40.

A seven-time Grammy Award winner, Palmieri is described as one of the greatest Latin piano players on the road today. He went professional in 1955 and formed his influential band La Perfecta in 1961. Palmieri's is noted for bringing the piano styles of McCoy Tyner, Thelonious Monk and others into a Latin music context. Tiempo Libre is a Miami-based group that plays high-energy blend of Latin jazz and Cuban timba music,

Patti Austin and the Count Basie Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Concert Hall, Ferguson Center for the Arts. Tickets are $20, $30 and $40.

Austin is best known as pop and R&B singer, but she's always loved jazz. As a child performer, she was a protégé of Dinah Washington and Sammy Davis Jr. As a studio pro, she's sung countless jingles as well as for sessions by Quincy Jones, George Benson and Paul Simon. Her duet with James Ingram "Baby, Come to Me," was a No. 1 pop hit in 1982. More recently, Austin's been indulging her jazz side. In 2002, she released "For Ella," a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald.

Branford Marsalis, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Concert Hall, Ferguson Center for the Arts. Tickets are $20, $30 and $40.

The oldest of Ellis Marsalis' jazz playing sons, Marsalis learned from Art Blakey, Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis before striking out on his own. Jazz purists howled when he joined Sting's post-Police band. But Marsalis continued to chart his own course. For a few years, he served as musical director for Jay Leno's "Tonight Show." In 1994, his Buckshot LeFonque project mixed jazz, hip-hop, blues and rock with contributions from Albert Collins, Victor Wooten, Nils Lofgren and poet Maya Angelou. Branford Marsalis' most recent disc, "Eternal," was released in 2004.

Ella and Dean!

9th Annual Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Festival

Ferguson Center for the Arts April 5-8; 7:30 p.m. This year’s festival includes Kurt Elling with the CNU Jazz Ensembles; Eddie Palmieri & Tiempo Libre; Patti Austin with the Count Basie Orchestra and An Evening with Branford Marsalis. The festival includes educational programs including performances, workshops and master classes. $20-$40. One University Place. (NN) 594‑8752, www.cnu.edu/fergusoncenter

Tribute Does Justice to Ella Fitzgerald

by Mike Joyce

Tuesday, April 4, 2006

You can't go wrong by kicking off Jazz Appreciation Month with a salute to Ella Fitzgerald -- unless, of course, you miscast the principal role. The Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra avoided that pitfall by recruiting vocalist Delores King Williams for its performance at the National Museum of American History's Carmichael Auditorium on Sunday night.



Williams may have a gift for mimicry, but she clearly had no intention of imitating Fitzgerald's nonpareil artistry. Not that there weren't occasional reminders of Fitzgerald's trademark effervescence and flawless scat, especially when Williams thoroughly refreshed "Swing It, Mr. Paganini." But, from the outset, Williams imbued her performances with her own personality and interpretative finesse. Most of the tunes were drawn from Fitzgerald's classic songbook collections, neatly arranged by Chris Madsen for a seven-piece ensemble. And thanks to some lesser-known ballads -- "A Ship Without a Sail," for example -- the concert offered listeners more than just usual hit parade of standards.

Under the direction of Loren Schoenberg, the ensemble compensated for the absence of a full horn section by showcasing the group in a variety of settings. At one point, the spontaneous pairing of bassist James King and drummer Ken Kimery produced an evocative 12-bar blues tribute to Keter Betts, Fitzgerald's late bassist and friend. Another delightful duet found Williams and trombonist-vocalist Eric Felten conjuring Fitzgerald's chummy collaborations with Louis Armstrong via "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off." Other performances were enlivened or soulfully shaded by Schoenberg, on alto sax, trumpeter Tom Williams, baritone saxophonist Scott Silbert and pianist Robert Redd.

2006 Jazz & Blues JUNO Winners

2006 Jazz & Blues JUNO Winners:

Single of the Year, Home, Michael Buble
Album of the Year, It's Time, Michael Buble
Artist of the Year, Michael Buble
Pop Album of the Year, It's Time, Michael Buble
Vocal Jazz Album, Christmas Songs, Diana Krall
Contemporary Jazz Album, Radio Guantanamo, Jane Bunnett
Traditional Jazz Album, Ask Me Later, Don Thompson Quartet
Blues Album, Let It Loose,, Kenny 'Blues Boss' Wayne

Kim Nalley - "Need My Sugar"

1. September In The Rain
2. At Last
3. Say It Isn't So
4. Nature Boy
5. Need My Sugar
6. I Was Telling Him About You
7. Too Close For Comfort
8. Goin' To New York
9. Our Day Will Come

To listen to samples go to THIS PAGE


In 2003 Kim Nalley took the musical reins firmly in hand by producing "Need My Sugar" (CE Jazz & Blues/City Hall Records) which is now available nationally at all major music stores. It features Etta James' pianist David K. Mathews, the world-class bassist Jeff Chambers and Nocturne Band drummer, Kent Bryson. Both Mathews and Chambers playing featured on several Grammy Award nominated albums including two from this past year. Since its release this year, Need My Sugar" has reached #17 on the American Jazz Countdown Main Stream Jazz Chart. Kim Nalley says, "I think that this CD will appeal to both the jazz and blues crowds. There is something on there for everyone.

Everyone loves the Latin groove on "Nature Boy," I have DJs asking to remix it, "At Last" is just so soulful with Dave Mathews' playing and the jazz numbers just plain swing." Here is what the critics say about the CD "Need My Sugar."

Kim Nalley - "She Put A Spell On Me" a tribute to Nina Simone

Known for her ability to turn a chattering cocktail sipping crowd into a rapt audience of lifelong fans in minutes, Kim Nalley combines a devastating stage presence with finely tuned powerful voice. A trip to San Francisco is often said not be complete without hearing Kim Nalley perform. Glamorous, garrulous and dramatic like a diva of the 1950’s, Kim evokes an era when women were classy and brash. And she is a real community leader to boot; she was the receipient of the “Most Influential African-American in the Bay Area” Cityflight Award 2005 Entertainment Category. This CD was recorded live over five sold out runs of Kim Nalley’s Tribute to Nina Simone since Dr. Simone’s death and all the reviews have been exuberant:


“Nina Simone was a singer, a social commentator, and a fighter. Often called the High Priestess of Soul, she was revered for her command of folk, blues, protest songs, and show tunes. So is it any wonder that Kim Nalley's show "She Put a Spell on Me: Kim Sings Nina" has been so popular? Nalley, whose hand in reopening the North Beach hot spot Jazz at Pearl's has made her into something of a hero in her own right, seems the perfect choice to interpret and pay tribute to the late, great Dr. Simone.”

Hiya Swanhuyser-SFWeekly

"Like Nina Simone, Nalley is able to vocally plow a mighty road of jazz and spiritual, classical, folk, blues, pop, African chant and freedom without losing a note, without relinquishing her spell. Blended, simmering, sustained elusiveness, Ms. Nalley’s vocal was inexhaustible melodic poetry. Too many stars to rate." Jean

Bartlett-Pacifica Tribune

"Jazz Diva Kim Nalley has arrived back in San Francisco, after living and touring in Europe. Nalley is fast becoming internationally known for her breathtaking charisma, an assured vocal style wholly her own, and every bit the chanteuse of the 1930's and 40's. She evokes the style and presence of artists like Billy Holliday, Dinah Washington, and Ella Fitzgerald, even the elemental flame of Nina Simone, who passed away less than a year ago. "SHE PUT A SPELL ON ME-- A TRIBUTE TO NINA SIMONE" had people standing on the sidewalk outside Pearl's February 17th, 2004."

Andrei Hedstrom-Driving Socrates

Andrea Wolper - Small Hours

Track Listings
1. Dancing on the Ceiling
2. You and the Night and the Music
3. Gray, Not Blue
4. Night Time Was My Mother
5. Crazy Love
6. Rendezvous in Providence
7. Today
8. Not Sleeping in Your Arms
9. Little Suzie's Humming
10. Moanin'
11. Small Day Tomorrow
12. I Like You, You're Nice


By Dan McClenaghan

The title of The Small Hours suggests an obvious comparison. Frank Sinatra's In the Wee Small Hours was one of those early Capitol Records “concept” albums—a mastepiece, one of the finest three or four vocal sets ever produced—that featured a downtempo, melancholy mood wrapped in some of Nelson Riddle's most subtle arrangements (with strings) on record.


Vocalist Andrea Wolper's second record has a similar mood as the similarly-titled classic, with excellent but spare arrangments on a set of moody, late night tunes—like a saloon singer playing for a spare crowd as closing time nears. And what a delivery! Wolper sounds as if she's singing just for you as the set opens with the classic Rogers/Hart gem ”Dancing on the Ceiling,” a song also included in the Sinatra disc, incidentally. Wolper's voice—weary, dripping heartache—embraces the guitar/bass accompaniment and the beautiful essense of the classic melody. Hushed at times, smoky, emotion-laden, singing just for you.


The songstress' take on “You and the Night and the Music” has an eerie feeling, with the addition of Lou Marini's flute over the exotic rhythm of drummer Victor Lewis. Wolper's voice is very much an ensemble instrument—as opposed to the singer standing out front—with a good deal of fluid scatting that slips sinuously around the flute.


“Grey, Not Blue,” a Wolper-penned tune and an extraordinarily soulful selection, wallows in the blues in front of Ken Filiano's fat bass lines and Ron Affif's delicate guitarlines; while Van Morrison's “Crazy Love” has the bass/guitar/voice meshing beautifully, making the song sound like it was written just for Andrea Wolper. Another original, “Not Sleeping in your Arms,” is a dark, hard-hearted (with reason, I suppose) highlight, sad and tinted with bitterness, like something Billie Holiday might have written and sung.


Andrea Wolper is a new name to me, but she's come up with one of the strongest and most interesting vocal efforts of the year.

Visit Andrea Wolper on the web.

Christine Rosholt - "Detour Ahead"

By Dan McClenaghan




Twin Cities-based vocalist Christine Rosholt comes from a theater background, but her debut CD, Detour Ahead, shows that she can take a side road and turn it into a very appealing main thoroughfare. The set's atmosphere is elegant and a bit sassy, with Rosholt—in front of a crack band that really knows how to swing—displaying sharp articulation and a clear, clean tone from the Ella Fitzgerald school of jazz vocals.


The set opens with style on the familiar standard “East of the Sun (and West of the Moon),” where Rosholt eases her cool vocal into a piano trio arrangement that features a jewel of a piano solo from Tanner Taylor. Johnny Mercer's “Early Autumn” shifts the tone into a higher gear that has the band bouncing and Rosholt's voice cutting through sweetly. It's hard to take your ear off her easy phrasing and subtle shifts in inflection, but again Taylor sparkles with a style that compliments Rosholt's vocals perfectly.


An interesting addition here is Antonio Carlos Jobim's “Chega de Saudade (No More Blues).” Rosholt's delivery, in English, is crisper than the normal bossa nova mode, before vocalist/guitarist Robert Everest takes a turn in Portugese, with the hushed and slightly fuzzy intonation usually associated with the bossa sound. The title tune, a melancholy ballad with an achingly beautiful, no-frills vocal by Rosholt, is another highlight.


The set also features “You and the Night and the Music”; a couple of Cole Porter tunes, ”It's De-lovely” and “From This Moment On”; “Daydeam,” from the Strayhorn/Ellington songbook; “I Cover the Waterfront,” “Bye Bye Blackbird,” and an unusual take on Fats Waller's ”Honeysuckle Rose” with a B3 organ in the mix, giving the tune less of the traditional rollick, more of a cool flow.


A fine debut by vocalist Christine Rosholt.

Visit Christine Rosholt on the web.

Tribute to Ella Fitzgerald

April 2,
The Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra at National Museum of American History's Carmichael Auditorium. Renowned reedman Loren Schoenberg will conduct SJMO's tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, part of its "From Harlem To Hollywood" series. Vocalist Delores Williams, who has the requisite talent and charm, will join the orchestra for an evening that will likely embrace everything from sunny swing novelties to Ella's classic pop songbook collections.

Details 7:30 p.m. Sunday, April 2
National Museum of American History - Smithsonian Institution

14th Street and Constitution Avenue
Washington, DC

• Information: 202-252-0012
• Price: $26

Marta Gomez Releases new album

Marta Gomez Releases new album

Chesky Records announced the release of Entre Cada Palabra (Between Each Word), the new album from acclaimed Colombian vocalist and songwriter Marta Gomez.

Gomez' successful Chesky debut Cantos de Agua Dulce (Songs of Sweet Water) charted on Billboard's Top 10 Jazz Albums and was described by the magazine's reviewer as "...the essence of Latin cool."

The album also charted at #12 on the CMJ New World Chart and at #10 on the World Music Europe Chart. Gomez was nominated for Best Latin Jazz Vocalist of 2005 by Billboard's Latin Music Awards and the LA Times heralded her as "...a remarkable new talent."

Recorded live, sans overdubs, at St. Peter's Church in New York by audiophile label Chesky, "Entre Cada Palabra" is grace personified. Born in Colombia and schooled at Berklee College of Music, Gomez sings with a quiet, passionate radiance in an austere, largely acoustic instrumental setting of wafting flute lines, clapped rhythms, percolating percussion and bright-stringed guitars. The story-like songs—13 of which are Gomez originals and all sung in Spanish—are melodic gems informed by a range of South American folkloric music. Highlights include the flamenco-infused, flute-buoyed "Mar Adentro, Despacito"; the Colombian cumbia "Esta Linda la Mar" featuring the gorgeous interplay between Gomez's voice and guest Anat Cohen's clarinet; and the reflective balladic rendering of the classic Mexican ranchera "Cielito Lindo." —Dan Ouellette

Peggy Lee & Dean Martin - Medley

Minidisc Place: Retail Music Industry Battles Extinction

Minidisc Place: Retail Music Industry Battles Extinction

Josephine Livoti - debut CD ’Bright Moments’

Josephine Livoti, a New York-based jazz vocalist, announces the release of her independently produced debut CD ’Bright Moments’ on her label Sefina Music Enterprises. She will play the CD release concert Sunday, April 23rd at Saint Peter's Church, NY, with James Weidman, piano; Paul West, bass and Greg Bandy, drums. They accompanied her on her recording. Josephine's well-rounded repertoire includes songs from the Great American Songbook and compositions by jazz and Brazilian masters. Her dynamic trio plays with precision and adds creativity and soulfulness to Josephine's warm and rich vocal tones.

Josephine's vocal influences include Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Billy Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan, Betty Carter and Brazilian vocalist Elis Regina. Today, Josephine's creative inspiration for her singing comes from jazz and world music instrumentalists whose musical expression blends the old with the new, and who look to the world for their audience.

Josephine has performed with jazz masters isuch as Howard McGhee, Richard Davis, and Roland Hanna at such notable New York venues as the Blue Note, the Jazz Center of New York, and Saint Peter's Church (the "Jazz Church"). She has also been featured at The Greenwich Village Jazz Festival and the JVC Jazz Festival in New York City.

She began her career in music as an alto member of the New York Choral Society. There she developed a love for the works of Bach, especially hearing his compositions improvised in jazz settings.

Her music education includes jazz studies with Harold Danko, Hal Schaefer and Herb Buchanan; and cabaret and popular music studies with Elly Stone. At Mannes College of Music she studied voice with Marian Thompson, and received her diploma in Classical and Contemporary Music Studies, majoring in vocal performance. She has studied drama with Bill Hickey and musical theatre with Rita Gardner at the Herbert Bergoff Studio. Her interest in comedy led her to Chicago City Limits in New York City, where she studied comedy and improvisational theatre.

``Jazz Vocalists -- Hear & Now''

Jazz Alliance International Celebrates Jazz Appreciation Month with ``Jazz Vocalists -- Hear & Now''; Two-Disc Set Features 36 Standards and Contemporary Classics by Today's Reigning Voices Available in Stores April 24

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 27, 2006--In honor of Jazz Appreciation Month, Jazz Alliance International (JAI) is releasing "Jazz Vocalists -- Hear & Now." This stellar two-disc set to be released on Concord Records contains 36 standards and contemporary classics by today's top vocalists and will be available in stores on April 24.



After the success of its single-disc volumes from 2003, "Jazz Hear and Now" and "Smooth Jazz Hear and Now," JAI has assembled an overview of the jazz vocal world that is twice as comprehensive. The three dozen tracks, programmed with a focus on contemporary material on Disc One and standards on Disc Two, feature leading voices from several generations of jazz and jazz-related singers, including new stars Michael Buble, Norah Jones and Madeleine Peyroux; stalwarts Kurt Elling, Diana Krall and Dianne Reeves; jazz-friendly pop stars Joni Mitchell and Linda Ronstadt; and living legends Al Jarreau, Abbey Lincoln and Jimmy Scott. In addition, the collection also includes three of the jazz world's late-great voices -- Ray Charles (with Poncho Sanchez's band), Shirley Horn and Etta Jones (in duet with Vanessa Rubin).

States project producer Michael Cuscuna, "In 36 tracks on two discs, we set out to make a representation of vocal jazz that would be listener-friendly to the novice just looking to get into this music with the intention for a balanced, wide-ranging slice of what is happening on the jazz scene today. We embraced the time-honored icons, veterans making a comeback, new artists (the emerging and successful) and singers from other fields who've chosen to do jazz projects. The bulk of the repertoire is standards, but we have included jazz originals and contemporary pop and R&B tunes that demonstrated that the art of jazz singing is by no means restricted to the Tin Pan Alley songbooks."

States JAI president Suzan Jenkins, "We know each track will help us in our continuing efforts to expand the audience for jazz by attracting all music lovers who simply appreciate great music. The collaborative efforts of the many parties involved in compiling Vocal Jazz Hear and Now -- artists, producers, publishers, recording companies, manufacturers, presenters, non-profits and media -- speak to the power of the Alliance and our continued diligence to preserve and promote the vital heritage of one of America's greatest national treasures."

Glen Barros, president, Concord Music Group, added "We are proud to distribute this superb benefit CD and contribute to the efforts of the Jazz Alliance in furthering the growth and development of jazz."

Proceeds from the sales of "Jazz Vocalists -- Hear & Now" will benefit JAI and JAI-supported programs.

JAI, a subsidiary of the International Association of Jazz Educators, is dedicated to expanding the audience and visibility of jazz by raising the profile of the art form and by fostering better working relationships within the global jazz community through advocacy, education and research. For more information, go to www.gotjazz.info.

The mission of the International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE) is to assure the continued worldwide growth and development of jazz and jazz education. Now in its 38th year, IAJE's annual conference is regarded as the largest annual gathering of the global jazz community. For more information, go to www.iaje.org

CASSANDRA WILSON - Thunderbird

Out on 4-4-2006

"Cassandra Wilson never fails to surprise and inspire. Sexy, honey-velvet vocals wrapped around her own jazzy blue compositions or inventive interpretations of others’ material led TIME magazine to name her “America’s Best Singer” in recent years. On her new CD thunderbird, which Blue Note Records will release on April 4, 2006, she has collaborated with red hot producer T Bone Burnett to surprise, yet again."


Track Listing

1 Go To Mexico
2 Closer To You
3 Easy Rider
4 It Would Be So Easy
5 Red River Valley
6 Poet
7 I Want To Be Loved
8 Lost
9 Strike A Match
10 Tarot

Sony takes MiniDisc to Mac

Sony plans to introduce Mac support for its new MiniDisc Walkman for the first time.


The company took the wraps off its all-new MiniDisc product, the MZ-RH1, this morning. This portable device is being marketed as a mobile recording studio.


Sony plans to make the device Mac compatible, “bringing greater choice in digital audio devices to Mac users”.


The company will release Mac software for the new product in “summer 2006”, it said.


The player can handle audio in the following formats: LinearPCM, ATRAC (ATRAC, ATRAC3, ATRAC3plus) or MP3 format.


It will also record audio, with several built-in features to enhance that use. Users can adjust the mode to reflect what they are recording, which could be a live event, their own ‘jam’ session, or a meeting.

The MZ-RH1 will be available from May 2006 across Europe.

Shirley Horn - Marian McPartland - PIANO JAZZ

Taped for McPartland's National Public Radio program in December 1984, three years before the release of I Thought About You, Horn's breakthrough album for Verve, the 55-minute session is a musical delight. The two women quickly establish a warm and mirthful rapport punctuated with more than a few contagious belly laughs.

Horn has three vocal features (”I Could Have Told You,” “Violets...,” “There's No You”), and finds common ground with McPartland as they duet on three “dirty old blues” (”Billie's Bounce,” “Cherry,” “Shirley's Blues”) and a slice of Ellingtonia (”Love You Madly”). The women's unabashed mutual admiration and sterling musicianship make this document all the more precious in light of Shirley Horn's passing just four months ago, at the age of 71.

New poll on Ella's Forum

Hi,
click here and go to the albums section to vote!

Miky

A temporary change in my mail address

Hi to everyone,
due to a long illness I'll be in the hospital for a month or two. Here they gave me a PC, but I cannott access my Gmail account, so I've created a new email account where you can reach me. This new address is only temporary, and it's: michelescasso@libero.it

Please feel free to write whenever you want!

Miky

Ella sings Summertime (Berlin, 1968)

Ella sings Misty

R.I.P. -- Sid Feller

Sid Feller, 89, Arranged Ray Charles Tunes

by Stephen Miller
New York Sun, February 17, 2006

Sid Feller, who died yesterday at 89, was a producer and
arranger whose 30-year partnership with Ray Charles produced
lushly arranged hits such as "Georgia on My Mind" and "I
Can't Stop Loving You."

As the head in-house arranger for Capitol Records and then
ABC Records, Feller also worked with Peggy Lee, Mel Torme,
Paul Anka, Steve Lawrence, and Eydie Gorme, and later in his
career was the musical arranger for "The Flip Wilson Show,"
and a host of other televised music specials.

But it was his special relationship with Charles that marked
the highest point in his career. The two men struck up a
close friendship around the time Charles left Atlantic
Records in a dispute over the ownership of record masters.
Feller helped woo Charles to the ABC label in 1959, and the
two turned out a series of albums starting with "Genius Hits
the Road." It was Feller who worked with Charles to produce
the two breakthrough albums "Modern Sounds In Country and
Western Music," which brought Nashville strings to Charles's
unique blend of country, rhythm, and blues. Among the tunes
on the two disks were "You Don't Know Me," "Careless Love,"
"You Are My Sunshine," and "Your Cheatin' Heart."

In the liner notes to the Rhino recording "Genius & Soul -
The 50th Anniversary Collection," Charles is quoted saying,
"Sid researched the hell out of it and came up with 250
tunes. I picked the ones I liked, and of the ones I picked,
they were all new to me except 'Bye Bye, Love.'"

Charles is reputed once to have said, "If they call me a
genius, Sid Feller is Albert Einstein."

Their relationship continued after Feller left ABC in the
mid-1960s to work in Hollywood, and Feller regularly toured
with Charles and conducted during his appearances with
orchestras.

Feller grew up in Brooklyn. His father, an Austrian Jew,
sold citrus fruit in the downtown Manhattan Washington
Market. Feller learned to play trumpet, his primary
instrument, while in the Boy Scouts. He also played the
piano, and credited his early interest in music and
arrangement to his mother consenting to have one hoisted
through the window of the family's Brooklyn walkup.

By the time Feller was in his mid-teens he was playing gigs
in the Poconos and small clubs in Manhattan. Feller was
completely self-taught as an arranger, and he told intimates
that he began figuring out the craft one day in the
Catskills on an hours-long sojourn in a rowboat, during
which he produced the arrangement for a song he had composed
himself.

In 1938, he was playing in the Hungarian orchestra at
Zimmerman's Budapest, a 48th Street restaurant, and also
taking lessons from a trumpeter playing in the orchestra at
nearby Minsky's Burlesque. It was there, while watching his
teacher play, that he first spotted Gertrude Hager, a
16-year-old chorine. Three years later, they were married at
Fort Knox, Tenn., where Feller was stationed as a warrant
officer leading a wartime entertainment unit.

Feller had played in Jack Teagarden's big band before the
war, and continued to provide Teagarden with arrangements
afterward. He toured with Carmen Cavallero ("The Poet of the
Piano"), and in 1951 signed on with Capitol as a producer,
arranger, and conductor. At Capitol, he worked with Jackie
Gleason, Nancy Wilson, and Dean Martin. He also led a band
on "USA Canteen," later renamed "The Jane Froman Show," a
short-format music show on CBS.

In 1955, Feller moved to ABC Records, where he provided
arrangements for Charlie Byrd and Woody Herman, among
others, before beginning his collaboration with Charles.

Although he had few writing credits, he did get one for the
song "You Can't Say No in Acapulco" for Elvis Presley's
movie "Fun in Acapulco" (1963).

Feller left ABC in 1965 and moved to Los Angeles and worked
as a freelance arranger and producer, working with Ms.
Wilson, Shirley Bassey, and Eddie Fisher. He added horn
arrangements on the Grass Roots' 1969 album "Leavin' It All
Behind," and horn and string arrangements to the "Osmond
Christmas Album" (1976). His list of credits from the 1970s
through this year as arranger, producer, or conductor
includes blues, Broadway show tunes, comedy, jazz, Latin,
and lounge.

Feller slowed down significantly after a heart attack in the
late 1990s, and moved to suburban Cleveland, where he was
coincidentally featured in a recent exhibition on Charles at
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was credited as producer
of eight of the 17 soundtrack songs on the recent biopic
"Ray."

"I cried through the whole move," Feller told the Cleveland
Plain Dealer. "Because as I watched Foxx's performance, I
really thought I was seeing Ray again."
_____

Sidney Harold Feller

Born December 24, 1916, in New York City; died February 16
in Beachwood, Ohio; survived by his wife, Gertrude, his
children Lois Feller, Bill Feller, Debbie Feller, and Jane
Toland, and five grandchildren.

Dianne Reeves wins GRAMMY for good night, and good luck.

February 09, 2006
Dianne Reeves wins GRAMMY for good night, and good luck.
Last night, Dianne Reeves (Download Music) took home the "Jazz Vocal Album" GRAMMY for her soundtrack to the George Clooney film good night, and good luck. The album was one of my Top Ten from 2005

Seasons of a Life - Lena Horne

1. Black Is
2. Maybe
3. I've Got To Have You
4. I'll Always Leave The Door A Little Open
5. You're The One
6. Something to Live For
7. Chelsea Bridge
8. Singin' In The Rain
9. Willow Weep For Me
10. Stormy Weather

Anita O'Day's new CD

"New releases and Info:

Anita's NEW CD will be out April 18, 2006. We have finished CD. It is entitled, "Indestructible Anita O'Day". With Eddie Locke, Chip Jackson, Roswell Rudd, Lafayette Harris, Tommy Morimoto and the great Joe Wider and a few others! It is in the classic style of the 60's Blue Note sound.

Anita's vocals are raw, honest and the have the wisdom of an 86 year-old women who has seen and been through more life than most of us ever will...Listening samples...coming very soon. If I must say so myself...this is the best record she has made in many many years. We recorded it three times, the third being the charm. The last sessions are with the great musicians listed above. They swing, she swings and so does the cd, It has 11 songs. 10 vocals and one instrumental. We did a version of Duke Ellington's, A Slip of the Lip Might Sink a Ship- John Colliani's amazing intense piano in a Louis Prima style will get all you swing dancers on your feet. John also plays on Is You Is and Gimme a Pigfoot and a Bottle of Scotch, we took liberties here, Anita and I re-wrote the lyrics to suit her tastes at the time. I can't wait for you to hear this record by this amazing 86 year-old master. The cover is a photo by Travis Anderson, a really great photographer from Minnesota. You can hear a audio bite from Blues Skies. Click on Blue Skies to the right."

(from her site)

Concord acquires Telarc!

Acquisition Strengthens Concord's Position as One Of The Industry's
Preeminent Independent Record Companies

Beverly Hills, CA - The Concord Music Group today announced the
acquisition of Telarc International Corporation. The Cleveland, Ohio-
based Telarc has been a leader in classical and jazz recordings for
over 25 years. Included in the transaction is Heads Up
International, which became part of Telarc in 2000. Heads Up is
known for its highly successful catalog of contemporary instrumental
and world music. Following the recent acquisition of Fantasy, Inc,
this transaction further bolsters the Concord Music Group as one of
the world's largest and most dynamic independent record companies.

Founded in 1977 by musicians and former teachers Bob Woods and Jack
Renner, Telarc has amassed 46 GRAMMY(tm) Awards and a catalog of
more than 1,000 master recordings ranging from classical and
classical-crossover to jazz and blues, from such legendary artists
as Dave Brubeck, George Shearing, Ray Brown, Andre Previn, and Oscar
Peterson. The current jazz roster includes celebrated
singer/guitarist John Pizzarelli and vocalist Tierney Sutton.
Telarc's extraordinary classical roster includes landmark recordings
from the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, the Cincinnati
Symphony and Cincinnati Pops Orchestras, and the Mormon Tabernacle
Choir. Artist-oriented and known throughout the industry for sonic
innovation and super-high quality audio, Telarc became the first
label to commercially use digital recording in 1978, and, in 1983,
was one of the first to launch compact discs in a joint effort with
Sony Corporation. In 2004, Telarc was named Label of the Year by
Gramophone Magazine in the UK.

Heads Up International's roster, headed by founder and label
president Dave Love, includes internationally respected artists such
as Spyro Gyra, Najee, Michael Brecker, The Yellowjackets, and highly
acclaimed world music artists Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Hugh
Masekela. Both Telarc and Heads Up have a significant number of
recordings in high definition and Super Audio Compact Disc (SACD)
format, based on the superior Direct Stream Digital recording
technology.

"The cultures of our companies are very similar and we see lots of
synergies through the merging of our talented staffs and our mutual
goals," says Telarc president Bob Woods. "Glen Barros and I have
known each other for some time and I respect the creative indie
mentality our companies share, which allows us to respond quickly to
the constant change and abundant opportunities in our industry.
We'll be a larger entity, but we won't move slowly. Besides," Woods
added, "Telarc and Heads Up are certain that they will kick
Concord's butt in the company softball game."

Glen Barros, president and CEO of the Concord Music Group, said, "We
are incredibly proud to welcome Telarc and Heads Up to the Concord
family, as we truly admire these great labels. Telarc's history of
impeccable audio and musical standards has made it one of the
world's most respected independent labels and we are honored to be
the ones chosen to safeguard this rich legacy. As with all great
record companies, Telarc and Heads Up are built on a solid
foundation of great artists and great people. We truly look forward
to working alongside Bob Woods, Dave Love, and their talented team
and know that they will make a great contribution toward the
achievement of our mutual goals." Added Barros, "The only thing I'm
worried about is how Bob is going to take the news when he finds out
that there is no company softball game."

The Concord Music Group is one of the world's largest independent
record and music publishing companies, committed to offering
innovative, high-quality popular music. Concord Music Group's family
of labels includes Peak, Playboy Jazz, Stretch, Concord Picante, and
Fantasy Records, which is home to such historic imprints as
Milestone, Pablo, Prestige/New Jazz, Riverside/Jazzland [one word],
Stax/Volt/Enterprise, Specialty, Takoma, and many more. The combined
catalog features over 3,000 albums from such legendary artists as
Charlie Byrd, Rosemary Clooney, Herb Ellis, Stan Getz, Mel Torme,
John Lee Hooker, Little Richard, Gerry Mulligan, Chet Baker, Miles
Davis, Bill Evans, Ella Fitzgerald, Isaac Hayes, Albert King,
Thelonious Monk, Joe Pass, Art Pepper, Otis Redding, Vince Guaraldi,
Sonny Rollins, Sarah Vaughan, Sam Cooke, Count Basie, and Creedence
Clearwater Revival, just to name a few. In 2004, Concord Records, in
association with Starbucks Hear Music, released Ray Charles' final
recording, Genius Loves Company, winner of 8 GRAMMY(tm) Awards
including Album of the Year. The label's current roster includes
GRAMMY(tm) Award-winning artists Gary Burton, Chick Corea, Sergio
Mendes, Ozomatli, Eddie Palmieri, and Poncho Sanchez, among many
others. Peak Records, a joint venture with Concord, is an industry
leader in smooth jazz and R&B and features a stellar artist roster
including The Rippingtons, Gerald Albright, David Benoit, LaToya
London, and Lee Ritenour.

Concord's acquisition of Fantasy late last year paved the way for
the re-signing of rock icon John Fogerty after years of estrangement
from Fantasy. As founder and songwriter of the legendary band
Creedence Clearwater Revival, and throughout a stellar solo career,
Fogerty has written some of rock music's most enduring classics such
as "Bad Moon Rising," "Proud Mary," and "Fortunate Son." The Long
Road Home - The Ultimate John Fogerty - Creedence Collection, was
released on November 1st, 2005.

Concord Music Group is owned by Act III Communications and Tailwind
Capital. HSBC Bank USA, N.A. and JPMorgan Chase provided debt
financing for this transaction.

Ella Fitzgerald's 1953-1954 Chronological CD on Classic Label is available! Hooray!!!!!!!!
1. Careless
2. Blue You
3. I Wonder What Kind Of A Guy You'D Be
4. When The Hands Of The Clock Pray At Midnight
5. Crying The Chapel
6. An Empty Ballroom
7. If You Don'T Know, I Know Who Will
8. Melancholy Me
9. Somebody Bad Stole De Wedding Bell
10. Moamin' Low
11. Taking A Chance On Love
12. I Whised Onn The Moon
13. Baby
14. I Need
15. Who'S Afraid
16. I'M Glad There Is You
17. Baby, What Else Can I ,Do
18. What Is There To Say ?
19. Makin' Whoopee !
20. Until The Real Thing Comes Along
21. People Wil Say We'Re In Love
22. Please Be Kind
23. Imagination
24. My Heart Belongs To Daddy
 

Tony Bennett among Kennedy Center Honorees
NEA Jazz Master Tony Bennett was one of several honorees at this Sunday's Kennedy Center Honors ceremony in Washington, D.C. The celebration lauded the lifetime achievements of outstanding American artists including singer Tina Turner and actor Robert Redford. Bennett was honored with performances by jazz vocalist Diana Krall and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis . You can read more about the evening in The Boston Globe . 

Interview -- Ruth Price, Director of The Jazz Bakery, Los Angeles

"Twelve years ago, jazz vocalist Ruth Price put her piano in a Los Angeles photographer's studio and presented a jazz concert. Today, she runs The Jazz Bakery, one of the most prestigious jazz clubs in the United States. The Bakery features a wide range of jazz, 'from Legends to Latin.' A concert-only venue (no noisy restaurant service), the club's natural wood stage and ceiling offer exceptional acoustics. In addition to the usual headliners, you might hear Uri Caine performing classical music, or a trio from Poland or Japan. And Ruth has succeeded by running the club as a non-profit organization. Recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing her.

The Jazz Bakery is a non-profit jazz club. Why did you choose to go with a non-profit business model rather than the more traditional for-profit club?
Because I had never been in business, and the idea horrified me.
So with a non-profit I had a board that could help me open, and I could turn to them with questions. It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time. It's been that way always, ever since we started almost 12 years ago.

And it's called the Jazz Bakery because you're "

vireggio 1980 

:-) 

Berlin 1976 

Ella in Toronto 1955 ca 

Skitch Henderson, dead at 87

Conductor Skitch Henderson Dies at Age 87

Associated Press, November 2, 2005, 7:13 AM EST

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- Skitch Henderson, the Grammy-winning conductor who lent his musical expertise to Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby before founding the New York Pops and becoming the first "Tonight Show" bandleader, died Tuesday. He was 87.

Henderson died at his home in New Milford of natural causes, said Barbara Burnside, spokeswoman for New Milford Hospital.

Born in England, Lyle Russell Cedric Henderson moved to the United States in the 1930s, eking out a living as a pianist, playing vaudeville and movie music in Minnesota and Montana roadhouses.

He got his big break in 1937, when he filled in for a sick pianist touring with Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney. When the tour wrapped up in Chicago, he used the original pianist's ticket and went to Hollywood.

There he joined the music department at MGM and played piano for Bob Hope's "The Pepsodent Show." His friendship with Hope put him in touch with other stars of the day, including Crosby, who became a mentor to Henderson.

He studied with the noted composer Arnold Schoenberg, and Henderson's talented ear brought him renown from some of the era's most successful musicians.

"I could sketch out a score in different keys, a new way each time," Henderson said earlier this year.

That quicksilver ability earned him the nickname "the sketch kid," which Crosby urged him to adapt to "Skitch." It stuck.

During World War II, Henderson flew for both the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Corps. At his estate in New Milford, which he shared with his wife, Ruth, Henderson kept a collection of aviation memorabilia. Even at 87, he had said he hoped to fly the Atlantic once more.

After the war, Henderson toured as Sinatra's musical director and lived what he called a "gypsy lifestyle," touring the country with various bands. It was Sinatra's phone call that lured Henderson to New York.

"Frank said, 'I'm moving the "Lucky Strike Show" to New York. Get rid of those gypsies and get back here where you belong,'" Henderson recalled in 1985.

He served as musical director for the "Lucky Strike" radio show and "The Philco Hour" with Crosby. And when NBC moved to television, the studio brought Henderson along as musical director.

In 1954, NBC pegged him as the bandleader for Steve Allen's "Tonight Show," which brought Henderson into the nation's living rooms every night. Even as the hosts changed from Allen to Jack Paar to Johnny Carson, Henderson was a constant.

He founded the New York Pops in 1983, using popular tunes to make orchestral music exciting.

"People come to hear music that's accessible to them -- old songs that are powerful and don't go away," he said.

In 1975, Henderson was sentenced to six months in prison and a $10,000 fine for filing false income tax statements. He was convicted of wrongly reporting that he donated musical scores and arrangements worth $350,000 to the University of Wisconsin in 1969. His defense lawyer blamed the tax violations on bad advice from an accountant.

Even in his late 80s, Henderson maintained a tireless work schedule as music director for the Pops, where he regularly served as conductor. He also was a frequent guest conductor at a number of orchestras around the world.

"I watch the public like a hawk. If I see boredom, I worry," Henderson said. "You can tell by the applause: There's perfunctory applause, there's light applause, and then there's real applause. When it's right, applause sounds like vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce."