Movie Notes - Straight, No Chaser (Monk Documentary)

One of the first full-fledged jazz documentaries I saw back in the day was 1988's Straight, No Chaser, a black-and-white film I had to drive an hour to the Railroad Square Cinema to see.  I didn't have many jazz records in my collection of LPs, but I had three albums of Monk's (Solo Monk, Criss Cross, Mysterioso), and I'd just about worn out the others I found in the university's music library. Back then, it was a revelation for me to see Monk even-larger-than-larger-than-life on the screen.  The performances are brilliant, and I could tell that Monk was more than just an "eccentric genius" that he'd been marketed as all those years.  He was mentally ill, sick and going without proper treatment -- all the more sad to think how he and those around him suffered because of his struggles.  Current day biographers know the full picture of what was going on, of course.  Doesn't take much away from Charlotte Zwerin's film, though.





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PN 229 - Eric Deggans - 'Race-Baiter'

Media and TV critic for the Tampa Bay Times explains how the media wields dangerous words to divide a nation in his new book, Race-Baiter.



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Eric Deggans

Deggans will appear at Books & Books in Coral Gables on Wednesday, January 23 at 8:00 pm.





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Video Jukebox - Jeff Babko

Keyboardist Jeff Babko is known for his versatility -- and for being a key member of the house band for Jimmy Kimmel Live!  He's also a graduate of the University of Miami music program.  His new album is called Crux, and he'll be my guest on Segment3 this weekend on the Sunday Time Warp.  For now, check out his playing in this week's Video Jukebox.




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Listener's Notes - 2013 NEA Jazz Masters Concert

This evening you can catch a fine concert from Jazz at Lincoln Center, the 2013 NEA Jazz Master's Awards Ceremony and Concert, honoring Mose Allison, Lou Donaldson, Lorraine Gordon, and Eddie Palmieri.  The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. EST and can be accessed by the public at arts.gov/jazzmasterswebcast as well as jalc.org/neajazzmasters. An archive of the webcast will be available the following day. Wynton Marsalis will emcee the evening, and the music will be provided by a trio of Ron Carter, Kenny Barron, and Jimmy Cobb, with additional music from  Paquito D'Rivera, Sheila Jordan, Dave Liebman, and Randy Weston.  And you never know who might also be sitting in.

Again, the concert begins streaming at 7:30 pm this evening.  When the time comes, click here!


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Sunday Time Warp - Playlist 1/13/13

Song, Artist, Album


Cross Culture, Joe Lovano Us Five, Cross Culture
Dive Bomber, Daniel Strange, Life As I Hear It
Ocho Rios, El Michaels Affair, Sounding Out The City
Ain't It Funky Now, Jimmy McGriff, Greatest Hits
The Burners Jam, Cookin' On 3 Burners, Baked Broiled and Fried
Johnny's Blues, Art Blakey & Jazz Messengers, Like Someone In Love
Muffaletta, Billy Martin's Wicked Knee, Heels Over Head
Button To Button, Billy Martin's Wicked Knee, Heels Over Head
Ghumba Zumba, Billy Martin's Wicked Knee, Heels Over Head
Sugarfoot Stomp, Billy Martin's Wicked Knee, Heels Over Head
Double Game, Illy B, Drop The Needle
Farther On Up The Road, Lonnie Mack, Memphis Wham!
San-Ho-Zay, Freddy King , The Very Best Of
Blue Greens and Beans, Gene Ammons, Blue Gene
I'm In An Awful Mood, Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson, Old Kidney Stew Is Fine
Superstitious, Beck Bogert & Appice, Beck Bogert & Appice
Home In Your Heart, The Derek Trucks Band, Joyful Noise
Shamading, Les McCann, Talk To The People
Cosmic Strut, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Visions of the Emerald Beyond
The Shadow, Garaj Mahal, Blueberry Cave
Freedom Jazz Dance, Nils Landgren Funk Unit, Fonk The World


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Segment3 - Billy Martin's Wicked Knee

Drummer Billy Martin keeps busy when he's not in Medeski Martin and Wood.  One of his many projects -- Wicked Knee, a drums-and-brass group, has a new album out, Heels Over Head.  Martin talks about playing with horns, the White Stripes, and the benefits of getting out of the groove from time to time.



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Billy Martin's Wicked Knee



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Movie Notes - Blue Note: A Story of Modern Jazz

As many of you wait for the remaining NFL playoff games today has to offer, spend a little time getting smarter about the history of jazz with this respectable 2007 documentary about the Blue Note label. Produced by EuroArts and directed by Julian Benedikt, it features interviews with Tommy Turrentine, Johnny Griffin, Lou Donaldson, Horace Silver, Herbie Hancock, and Freddie Hubbard.


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Listener's Notes - Kneebody Live from Kennedy Center

Late this afternoon (or early this evening), you can tune in to a live and free broadcast of Kneebody from the Kennedy Center's Milennium Stage.  Call the music high-volume post-bop, call it high-level indie-rock, call it what you will, Kneebody is worth checking out.  At 6:00 pm Eastern time, just steer your browser over to the Kennedy Center website, and stream away.  Link here.


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Video Jukebox - Billy Martin's Wicked Knee

Uber-drummer Billy Martin is joined by Steven Bernstein (trumpet), Curtis Fowlkes (trombone), and Marcus Rojas (tuba) in his neo-juke-joint band Wicked Knee, who are releasing their new album, Heels Over Head.  In this week's V-Juke, Wicked Knee struts its stuff on a number of tunes, including two versions of "Manic Depression" - one with John Medeski, one without.

Martin will be the guest on this week's Sunday Time Warp.



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PN Unscripted - Chris Ware

Chris Ware has an extended conversation about his latest comics-in-a-box masterpiece, Building Stories.  Ware talks about the sense of touch, the artist Joseph Cornell, and how we might need to stop spending so much of our time staring down into little digital holes.  We're looking at you, people.


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Sunday Time Warp - Playlist 1/6/13

Song, Artist, Album

Bite Than Bark, Takuya Kuroda Sextet, Six Acres
Matte Kudasai, Kurt Elling, The Gate
Heartbeat, Wave Mechanics Union, Further to Fly
The Luckiest, Sara Gararek, Blossom & Bee
Six - Balance, David Gilmore, Numerology: Live at Jazz Standard
Four - Formation, David Gilmore, Numerology: Live at Jazz Standard
Zero to Three - Expansion, David Gilmore, Numerology: Live at Jazz Standard
11th Hour Blues, David Gilmore, Unified Presence
Scotch Blues, Kenny Burrell, Blue Lights - Volumes 1 & 2
Sweet Home Chicago, Joe Carter, That Ain't Right
You Gave Me The Blues, Bernard Allison, Keepin' The Blues Alive
Don't Let The Sun See You Crying, Big Maybelle, The Same Old Story
Strange Things Happen, Magic Slim and the Teardrops, That Ain't Right
Where Have You Been?, Medeski Martin and Wood, Uninvisible
Palm Grease, Herbie Hancock, Thrust
Pucker Up, Speedometer, A Lover And A Friend
Freedom Jazz Dance, Beigels Daisy Toasts, Omnibus

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Segment3 - David Gilmore

Guitarist and composer David Gilmore talks about his 'Numerology Suite,' recorded live for his new album, Numerology: Live at Jazz Standard.




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David Gilmore



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Movie Notes - Jimmy Smith Documentary

I don't know how strong your German is -- mine's not exactly ausgezeichnet -- but there's enough English language dialogue and concert footage in this fine documentary about jazz organist Jimmy Smith to compensate for the occasional verbal obscurity.  This was produced in 1965 in West Germany, and runs a full hour and a half.  Enjoy. I make no claims to know anything about international copyright here, either.



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PN 228 - Marc Maron

This year, stand-up comic and podcaster Marc Maron is starting a big tour, publishing a new book, and launching a television series.  He makes a South Florida appearance this weekend.


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Improv Comedy Club - Fort Lauderdale
WTF with Marc Maron





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Listener's Notes - Mary Lou Williams Interview

Forwarded from Vancouver radio host Nou Dadoun -- his A-Trane has been on CFRO since 1986 -- comes an excellent interview with pianist, arranger, and composer Mary Lou Williams, who visited the city in 1977.  Dadoun wrote a companion piece for the Vancouver Jazz website, also.  The prolific Williams was a noted arranger and composer, active from the 1920s until her death in 1981, and was a friend and mentor of Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Tadd Dameron, and many others. Listen to the interview here.

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PN Unscripted - Marc Maron

Stand-up comic and podcasting legend Marc Maron just had a good year, and in 2013 he's looking forward to the "Out of the Garage Tour," to a new book, and to the debut of his television show on the Independent Film Channel.  Plus, we talk about podcasting, vinyl, and guitars.  Maron will be appearing at the Improv Comedy Club in Fort Lauderdale on January 4, 5, and 6.




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Improv Comedy Club - Fort Lauderdale
WTF with Marc Maron



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Video Jukebox - David Gilmore

Jazz guitarist and composer David Gilmore gets the nod for this week's V-Juke.  In a selection of eight videos, see Gilmore playing with his high-powered Numerology ensemble, and in a variety of configurations with Christian McBride, Wil Calhoun, Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Jaleel Shaw, and many more.

Gilmore will be my guest for the "Segment3" feature on this coming weekend's Sunday Time Warp on 88.9 FM WDNA.



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88 Jazz Place Afternoon - Playlist 1/1/13

Song, Artist, Album

Caravan, Medeski Martin and Wood, Notes From The Underground
A Change Is Gonna Come, Anat Cohen, Notes From The Village
The Times They Are A-Changin', Joshua Redman, Timeless Tales
Bemsha Swing, Ginger Baker Trio, Falling Roof
Theloniously Speaking, Woody Shaw, Bemsha Swing
Straight No Chaser, Memories of T, Ben Riley's Monk Legacy Septet
Blues for Queen D, Milt Jackson, Sa Va Bella
Can't Stand A Broke Man, Ruth Brown, A Good Day for the Blues
Dark Prince, Gerri Allen, The Gathering
Descent to Barbados, Tia Fuller, Angelic Warrior
You Do Something To Me, Sonny Rollins, The Bridge
Wagon Wheels, Joey DeFrancesco, Wonderful! Wonderful!
Selfless Cold and Composed, Wave Mechanics Union, Further to Fly
Unpack Your Adjectives, Sarah Gazarek, Blossom and Bee
Dapper Dan, Lonnie Smith, The Healer
Giant Steps, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, The Blessing
Interplay, Coltrane/Jaspar/Sulieman/Young, Interplay for 2 Trumpets and 2 Tenors
Fate, Branford Marsalis Quartet, Braggtown
Dance of the Niblets, Jeff "Tain" Watts, Megawatts
Brother With The Mint Green Vine, Cyrus Chestnut, Soul Food
Red Mask, Tony Williams, Angel Street
Mohawk, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, Bird and Diz
Sweet Georgia Brown, Django Reinhardt, Jazz Masters 38
Blue in Green, Dena DeRose, Travelin' Light
Walking My Baby Back Home, Oscar Peterson - Stephane Grappelli, Quartet - Volume 1
In A Sentimental Mood, Cedar Walton with Abbey Lincoln, The Maestro
Lush Life, Kurt Elling, Dedicated To You
The Hardbop Grandpop, Horace Silver, The Hardbop Grandpop
On My Way To Harlem, Gregory Porter, Be Good
Freedom Jazz Dance, Cynthia Felton, Freedom Jazz Dance

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Guest Host - 88 Jazz Place

Friends of Note! Stalwart Road Agents and Privateers of the Sunday Time Warp! Shake off the fog of last night's party and ease into the new year with South Florida's finest selection of jazz from the voluminous WDNA library. I'll be serving as guest host today for 88 Jazz Place -- afternoon watch starts at six bells. In other words, I'll be on the air from 3:00 to 7:00 pm. I'll be playing music from some of our January jazz birthdays -- Milt Jackson, John McLaughlin, Kenny Clarke, Max Roach, Joe Pass, Django Reinhardt, Cedar Walton, Cyrus Chestnut, Jeff "Tain" Watts, Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli, Ruth Brown, and Joshua Redman.  Tune it in on 88.9 FM WDNA or online at WDNA.org.

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WDNA Program Schedule - Fall 1987

Have fun looking through the scores of shows available on 88.9 FM WDNA in this vintage, hand-drawn program schedule from 1987 -- when the community really was a very numerous part of community public radio!  By the way, there's still time left in the calendar year to make a tax-deductible donation to WDNA, one of your favorite cultural institutions! You can still be a part of the station by becoming a member.  Who knows what your 2013 taxes may look like with the "fiscal cliff" looming?  (As to image below, I think I found two or three current day programmers on the 1987 schedule.)

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