JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society

Page created by Seth Parker
 
CONTINUE READING
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
THE MAGAZINE OF THE
NEW JERSEY JAZZ SOCIETY   JerseyJazz                      JUNE 2021
                                                  VOLUME 49 ISSUE 06

3
GENERATIONS
OF JAZZ
Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
IN THIS ISSUE
                                                                    ARTICLES/REVIEWS                   COLUMNS
                                                                    08   Jazz History: Erroll Garner   03             All That’s Jazz

                                                                    13   Three Generations of Jazz     05             Editor’s Choice

                                                                    18   Melissa Aldana                33             From the Crow’s Nest

                                                                    22   Talking Jazz: Ed Cherry       48             Jazzwords

                                                                    29   Rising Star: Lucy Wijnands    49             Not Without You

                                                                    36   Remembering Curtis
                                                                         Fuller, Norman Simmons        CORRECTIONS

                                                                                                       In “Carnegie Hall Youth Ensemble Will Have a New
                                                                         and Bob Koester               Jersey Cadence This Summer” (JJ May 2021),
                                                                                                       composer/arranger/bandleader Jihye Lee composed
                                                                                                       a piece for the 2020 NYO Jazz Orchestra, not this
ON THE COVER   _ Leonieke Scheuble & the Generations of Jazz Trio
                                                                    42
                                                                                                       year’s. Also, one of the NYO Jazz faculty members is
                 PHOTO BY CYDNEY HALPIN.
                                                                         Book Review: Sax Appeal       trumpeter Erica von Kleist; her name was misstated.

                                                                                                       In “Remembering Andy Fusco” by Walt Weiskopf, the last

                                                                    44
                                                                                                       sentence in column 3, should have read: “A real artist
                                                                         Other Views                   is never satisfied for long with an accomplishment.

NJJS.ORG                                                                                               JERSEY JAZZ                    JUNE 2021                 02
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
ALL THAT’S JAZZ
BY CY DNE Y HA LPIN

J
     ersey Jazz magazine is a won-     of communicating with our members       the Louis Armstrong Internation-           cades—establishing it as the world’s
     derful benefit of NJJS member-    is via email. Make certain you have     al Continuum 2021 Virtual Sym-             preeminent archive for jazz, taught
     ship and, after several months    New Jersey Jazz Society’s email ad-     posium and Concert program:                jazz history at the Peabody Institute
of transition with our new website,    dresses­—eblast@njjs.org and                Born October 24, 1929, in Ger-         at Johns Hopkins University, Brook-
it has been password protected         membership@njjs.org—in your Con-        many, Morgenstern was reared in            lyn College (where he was also a vis-
with FULL accesses available once      tacts File and that you mark corre-     Austria and Denmark, before his            iting professor at the Institute for
again to NJJS MEMBERS only.            spondence from NJJS as “not spam.”      move to the United States in 1947. His     Studies in American Music), New
    At the beginning of each month,                                            passion for jazz was born in Copenha-      York University, and the Schweitzer

                                       I
you’ll receive an eBlast containing      t’s with great pride and privilege    gen. Shortly after his arrival in New      Institute of Music in Idaho; served
the new password and the link to         that the Board of Directors and       York City, he gravitated to 52nd street,   on the faculties of the Institutes in
the current month’s issue. You’ll be     I announce that Dan Morgen-           known as “Swing Street,” where he          Jazz Criticism, jointly sponsored by
prompted to input the password af-     stern — longstanding Jersey Jazz        ensconced himself into the jazz world.     the Smithsonian Institution and the
ter you click on the “View Digital     contributor—has been bestowed           Few are more beloved in the jazz           Music Critics Association, faculty of
Issue” tab. Once you’ve accessed the   two Lifetime Achievement Awards,        community than Dan Morgenstern.            the Masters’ Program in Jazz History
magazine, you’ll be able to down-      one from the Association for Re-            His extensive career and               and Research at Rutgers University,
load it to your computer or other      corded Sound Collections in recog-      accolades are as follows:                  former Vice President and Trustee
personal device for ease of access     nition of his life’s work in recorded       Editor of DownBeat magazine, the       of the National Academy of Record-
throughout the month. If you pre-      sound research and publication,         last editor of Metronome, the first        ing Arts and Sciences, co-founder of
fer not to download the issue, keep    and the other from the Louis Arm-       editor of Jazz Magazine, stints as         the Jazz Institute of Chicago, served
the monthly password handy so you      strong Educational Foundation.          jazz reviewer for the New York Post        on the boards of the New York Jazz
can continue to access the issue           For those who may not know          and record-reviewer for the Chicago        Museum and the American Jazz Or-
online. If you have any questions,     Dan, he’s one of the jazz world’s       Sun Times. He was Director of the          chestra, former Director of the Louis
please contact me at pres@njjs.org.    greatest living treasures!              Institute for Jazz Studies (IJS) at        Armstrong Educational Foundation
    Please Note: NJJS’s primary way        The following is excerpted from     Rutgers University for over three de-      and the Mary Lou Williams Foun-

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                  JERSEY JAZZ        JUNE 2021       03
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
ALL THAT’S JAZZ

dation, and member of Denmark’s         Companion, The Duke Ellington              plans, alongside Managing Artis-         dition and would make a great addi-
International JAZZPAR Prize Com-        Reader, The Miles Davis Compan-            tic Director Wynton Marsalis.            tion to your music collection, with
mittee since its inception in 1989.     ion, and The Lester Young Reader.              As NJJS looks to bolster our ed-     proceeds helping NJJS continue to
    Morgenstern has received sev-          Jazz advocate, producer, writer         ucational programming and part-          promote and present jazz. For more
en Grammy Awards for Best Album         and scholar, he has mentored gen-          nerships, we’re very excited to have     information on the titles for sale
Notes, The National Endowment for       erations of writers, educators, and        Jason bring his nearly 30 years of       and prices, please visit our website
the Arts (NEA) the A.B. Spellman        musicians, been embraced by artists        jazz club and festival programming,      www.njjs,org/Donate/Merchan-
NEA Jazz Masters Award for Jazz         from Louis Armstrong to Ornette            record label and artist management       dise or contact via email Merchan-
Advocacy, DownBeat magazine Life-       Coleman, and has shaped the way            and GRAMMY® winning production           dise@njjs.org. DON’T MISS OUT
time Achievement Award, the Legacy      we hear and think about music.             skills and enthusiasm to future en-      on this incredible opportunity!!
Award by The Recording Academy,                                                    deavors. Please join me in welcom-

                                        A                                                                                   A
and three Deems Taylor Awards.                s I’ve said before, one of the       ing Jason to the NJJS community.              s the “Lights Go on Again” in
    He is also the prolific author of         greatest privileges of serving as                                                  our part of the world, I hope “I’ll

                                                                                   M
hundreds of articles, and co-au-              NJJS President is the opportu-              osaic™ Box Sets for Sale               Be Seeing You” at the outdoor
thor or contributor to numerous         nity to meet and collaborate with jazz                NJJS has received two in-     events being held at the Morris Mu-
jazz books: author of Jazz People       visionaries, be they musicians, teach-            credibly generous donations of    seum - Jazz on the Back Deck series,
(Abrams, 1976) and Living with Jazz     ers, scholars, cheerleaders, or patrons,   used Mosaic™ Limited Edition Box         Shanghai Jazz, and farther afield at
(Pantheon, 2004), contributor to        and often they are all of these things     Sets, one from Robin Sinkway, the        reopened clubs Maureen’s Jazz Cellar
reference works including the New       combined. Such is the case with Jason      niece of the late, devoted NJJS mem-     in Nyack and The Jazz Forum in Tar-
Grove Dictionary of Jazz, Dictionary    Olaine who I’m pleased to announce         ber Jack Sinkway, and the other from     rytown. Please check their websites
of American Music, African-Ameri-       has joined the NJJS Advisory Board.        Jean Field. We thank both families       for more details. We need to do all we
can Almanac, and Encyclopedia Bri-          Jason is the Director of Pro-          for their kindness and stewardship.      can safely and enthusiastically to sup-
tannica Book of the Year; and to such   gramming and Touring for Jazz at               Prized by collectors for their su-   port artists, venues and ongoing and
anthologies as Reading Jazz, Setting    Lincoln Center, developing JALC’s          perior audio quality, most of these      new streaming events, as we work to-
The Tempo, The Louis Armstrong          long-term strategic programming            CD sets are in mint to very good con-    gether to bolster the jazz community.

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                    JERSEY JAZZ         JUNE 2021          04
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
EDITOR’S CHOICE
BY SA NFO RD JOS EPHSON

Jazz Education Series                                                                 video recordings to explain why “the
                                                                                      man called Pops still remains tops.”
                                                                                                                                 ing with Napoleon in the 1950s at Herb
                                                                                                                                 McCarthy’s Bowden Square, an up-
Reborn: Louis Armstrong 101                                                                Coincidentally, one of Arm-           scale restaurant in Southampton, L.I.,
                                                                                      strong’s pianists, the late Marty Na-      that was frequented by such celebri-
                                                                                      poleon, would have turned 100 years        ties as the Duke and Duchess of Wind-

E
      arly last year, the Metuchen Arts   of Louis Armstrong”. It will be a live      of age on June 2. Napoleon, who            sor, Gary Cooper, and Ginger Rogers.
      Council announced an ambi-          streamed event at 3 p.m., available on      passed away on April 27, 2015, at the      Napoleon was known for his sly sense
      tious new educational series,       the NJ Jazz Society website, njjs.org,      age of 93, was not as well known, of       of humor. “Marty would sing ‘The End
“Metuchen Jazz -- Education Series        as well at the NJJS Facebook page and       course, as another pianist whose           of a Beautiful Friendship’,” Odrich
2020”, dedicated to enlightening the      YouTube channel. The presentation           100th birthday is being celebrated this    recalled, “but he would substitute
 public about jazz. It was originally     is free, but donations are encouraged.      month (See Erroll Garner’s Centenni-       pornographic lyrics. He was so good
 scheduled to launch in March 2020        To register, log onto www.eventbrite.       al, page 08), but in addition to playing   at it that Gary Cooper and the other
with a live, in-person presentation on    com/e/jazz-education-series-by-nj-          with Armstrong, Napoleon was also          stars and starlets wouldn’t notice.”
Louis Armstrong by Ricky Riccardi, Di-    jazz-society-and-metuchen-arts-             part of bands led by Benny Goodman,             Riccardi’s Armstrong presenta-
 rector of Research Collections for the   council-tickets-154416448755                Gene Krupa, and Charlie Barnett.           tion will be followed by my program
Louis Armstrong House Museum and              “Countless fans know Louis Arm-         His first gigs with Armstrong were in      on Gerry Mulligan on July 18; music
 author of two books about Armstrong.     strong as the beloved singer behind         1952 and 1953, rejoining him in the        writer Will Friedwald, presenting on
    The pandemic canceled the series,     iconic recordings such as ‘What a           late 1960s and playing on and off with     Nat King Cole, September 19; baritone
 but, beginning June 13, it will resume   Wonderful World’ and ‘Hello Dolly’,”        him until Armstrong’s death in 1971.       saxophonist Frank Basile looking at
virtually as a collaboration between      Riccardi recently told me. “But, he         The New York Times’ John S. Wilson         the “Great Baritone Saxophonists” on
Metuchen Jazz and the New Jersey          was also arguably the most influential      once described Napoleon’s piano            October 18; and author David Hajdu
Jazz Society. As originally planned,      musician of the 20th century.” Riccar-      style as “driving propulsive playing.”     discussing Duke Ellington and Billy
Riccardi will kick it off with “Louis     di will tell the story of Armstrong’s in-       Periodontist and part-time clari-      Strayhorn on November 21. One addi-
Armstrong 101: The Wonderful World        fluence by using many rare audio and        netist Dr. Ron Odrich remembers play-      tional program will be announced later.

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                         JERSEY JAZZ        JUNE 2021        05
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
ABOUT NJJS

F
     ounded in 1972, The New Jersey Jazz Society          MEMBER BENEFITS                            JOIN NJJS

     has diligently maintained its mission to promote     10 FREE Concerts Annually                 Family/Individual $45
     and preserve America’s great art form—jazz. To       at our “Sunday Socials”                   (Family includes to 2 Adults and
                                                                                                    2 children under 18 years of age)
     accomplish our mission, we produce a monthly         Monthly Award Winning Jersey
                                                                                                    Family/Individual 3-Year $115
                                                          Jazz Magazine - Featuring Articles,
magazine, Jersey Jazz; sponsor live jazz events; and      Interviews, Reviews, Events and More.
                                                                                                    Musician Member $45 / 3-Year $90
                                                                                                    (one time only, renewal at standard
provide scholarships to New Jersey college students       Discounts at NJJS Sponsored               basic membership level.)
studying jazz. Through our outreach program               Concerts & Events.                        Youth $15 - For people under
                                                                                                    21 years of age. Date of Birth Required.
Generations of Jazz, we provide interactive programs      Discounts at Participating
                                                                                                    Give-A-Gift $25 - Members in
                                                          Venues & Restaurants
focused on the history of jazz. The Society is run by a                                             good standing may purchase
                                                          Support for Our Scholarship and
                                                                                                    unlimited gift memberships.
board of directors who meet monthly to conduct Society    Generations of Jazz Programs
                                                                                                    Applies to New Memberships only.
business. NJJS membership is comprised of jazz devotees                                             Fan $75 - $99
                                                          MUSICIAN MEMBERS
                                                                                                    Jazzer $100 - $249
from all parts of the state, the country and the world.                                             Sideman $250 - $499
                                                          FREE Listing on NJJS.org “Musicians
                                                                                                    Bandleader $500+
                                                          List” with Individual Website Link
                                                                                                    Corporate Membership $1000
                                                          FREE Gig Advertising in
                                                          our Monthly eBlast
                                                                                                  Members at Jazzer level and above and Corporate
                                                                                                  Membership receive special benefits. Please
                                                          THE RECORD BIN                          contact Membership@njjs.org for details. The
                                                                                                  New Jersey Jazz Society is qualified as a tax
                                                          A collection of CDs & LPs available     exempt cultural organization under section
                                                                                                  501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, Federal
                                                          at reduced prices at most NJJS
                                                                                                  ID 23-7229339. Your contribution is tax-
      Visit www.njjs.org or email info@njjs.org           concerts and events and through         deductible to the full extent allowed by law. For
      for more information on our programs and services   mail order www.njjs.org/Store           more Information or to join, visit www.njjs.org

NJJS.ORG                                                                                          JERSEY JAZZ              JUNE 2021            06
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
Editorial Staff                                     New Jersey Jazz Society, Officers 2021
                                                      EDITOR                                              PRESIDENT
                                                      Sanford Josephson, editor@njjs.org                  Cydney Halpin, pres@njjs.org
                                                      ART DIRECTOR                                        EXECUTIVE VP
Magazine of the New Jersey Jazz Society
                                                      Michael Bessire, art@njjs.org                       Jane Fuller, vicepresident@njjs.org
VO LU M E 49 • I SSUE 06
                                                      INTERNATIONAL EDITOR                                TREASURER
                                                      Fradley Garner                                      Dave Dilzell, treasurer@njjs.org
                                                      fradleygarner@gmail.com
NJJS org                                              CONTRIBUTING PHOTO EDITOR
                                                                                                          VP, MEMBERSHIP
                                                                                                          membership@njjs.org
                                                      Mitchell Seidel, photo@njjs.org
                                                                                                          VP, PUBLICITY
                                                      CONTRIBUTING EDITORS                                Sanford Josephson, sanford.josephson@gmail.com
                                                      Bill Crow, Schaen Fox, Lin Josephson Joe
                                                                                                          VP, MUSIC PROGRAMMING
                                                      Lang, Alex Levin, Dan Morgenstern, Jay Sweet
                                                                                                          Mitchell Seidel, music@njjs.org
                                                      CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
                                                                                                          RECORDING SECRETARY
                                                      John Abbott, Lucas Asensi,
                                                                                                          Irene Miller
                                                      Fanny Delsol, Christopher Drukker,
                                                      Pablo Valle, Harrison Weinstein                     CO -FOUNDER

                                                      WEBMASTER
                                                                                                          Jack Stine
Jersey Jazz (ISSN 07405928)                           Christine Vaindirlis                                IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT
is published monthly for members
                                                                                                          Mike Katz
of The New Jersey Jazz Society                        Advertising
                                                                                                          DIRECTORS
P.O. Box 223, Garwood, NJ 07027
908-380-2847 • info@njjs.org                          DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING                             Jay Dougherty, Cynthia Feketie, Pete Grice,
Membership fee is $45/year.                           Jane Fuller, advertising@njjs.org                   Carrie Jackson, Mike Katz, Caryl Anne McBride,
Periodical postage paid at West Caldwell, NJ          ADVERTISING RATES                                   Robert McGee, James Pansulla, Stew Schiffer,
Postmaster please send address changes                Full Page: $135, Half Page: $90,                    Elliott Tyson, Jackie Wetcher
to P.O. Box 223, Garwood, NJ 07027
                                                      1/3 Page: $60, 1/4 Page: $30                        ADVISORS
All material in Jersey Jazz, except where another     For reservations, technical information and         Don Braden, Ted Chubb, Al Kuehn
copyright holder is explicitly acknowledged,          deadlines contact advertising@njjs.org or visit
is copyright ©New Jersey Jazz Society 2020. All       njjs.org/Magazine/Advertise. Make payment at
rights reserved. Use of this material is strictly     PayPal.com: payment@njjs.org, or via check made
prohibited without the written consent of the NJJS.   payable to NJJS, P.O. Box 223, Garwood, NJ 07027.

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                       JERSEY JAZZ           JUNE 2021       07
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
JAZZ HISTORY

                      Erroll Garner’s Centennial
                              Appreciating His Unpredictability and
                                 Innate Improvisational Spirit
                                               BY AL E X L E V I N

                     “Under his fingers, the most obvious tunes are
                        deconstructed, reimagined, restructured,
                     reharmonized, reconstructed, and reanimated.”

               S
                     ome jazz pianists are so stylis-      meant when he said of Garner, “The
                     tically coherent that the mere        man was complete. He could do it
                     mention of their names evokes         all.” The smile on my face as I sit here
               their sound in our imagination. It’s a      writing this and listening to Garner’s
               rare achievement to play so individ-        catalog of recordings attests to the
               ualistically that your name evokes          ways in which he did, in fact, “do it all,”
               your sound, your touch, the joy and         and what a joy and an honor it is to
               sparkle of your playing. Erroll Garner      listen and learn from this giant of jazz.
               is the rarest of birds: a true, innate,          Born on June 15, 1921, in Pitts-
               ceaselessly ‘deelightful’ genius of mu-     burgh’s Hill District, Garner was gifted
               sic. Perhaps this is what Clark Terry       with innate talent. He took piano les-

NJJS.ORG                                                   JERSEY JAZZ          JUNE 2021         08
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
JAZZ HISTORY

sons from the age of six, although he      really know what world you’ve wan-        ner—like his rollicking take on George
had demonstrated proficiency on the        dered into at the very beginning of a     Gershwin’s “S’Wonderful” from his
instrument by the age of three. By age     song. Garner builds suspense in his       masterpiece of a record, Concert by
11, he was playing on Allegheny river      introductions—you know the swing          the Sea (Columbia Records: 1955).
boats. This bit of biographical informa-   is coming, but you don’t know if he’s     Those introductions, by turns, set the
tion is perhaps most interesting when      coming in with a luxurious ballad         scene for his listeners and mislead
you imagine the chugging, rhythmic         tempo (a left hook, metaphorically        us: they are a Wonka-esque world of
heart of a river boat engine and com-      speaking), a hopping medium tempo         imagination, limitless and infinite.
pare it to the rhythmic pulse of Gar-      (Garner’s right hook—his dominant         As his bassist, Ernest McCarty, once
ner’s music, whether as a solo pianist     mode and, arguably, his most swing-       explained, “Erroll never said what
or with his unbeatably burning trio.       ing place), or one of those faster tem-   he was going to play or what key, just
     As a pianist, I am most excited       pos that nobody plays like Erroll Gar-    started playing the intro. He was un-
to talk about Garner’s concept—by                                                    predictable.” Listening again to Gar-

                                                       “
which I mean the unique approach to                                                  ner’s records, it’s that unpredictability
his instrument as well as the stylistic                                              and innate improvisational spirit that
traits of his playing. For jazz musi-
cians, their concept is the summation                  ERROLL NEVER SAID             makes everything feel so fresh and
                                                                                     free. There’s also something quite fun-
of their art—their unique, idiosyn-
cratic language. Famously, many of
Garner’s recordings begin with rhap-
                                                    WHAT HE WAS GOING TO PLAY        ny about the contrast between some of
                                                                                     the enormous, classically-influenced
                                                                                     rhapsodies that Garner improvises as
sodic and sometimes wittily arch solo
introductions. Like the opening pages        OR WHAT KEY, JUST STARTED               introductions to familiar standards.
                                                                                         From a conceptual perspective,
of novels by Toni Morrison, James
Joyce, or William Faulkner, you don’t                     PLAYING THE INTRO.”        Garner is also a master of humor.
                                                                                     Lionel Hampton’s “Red Top,” one of

NJJS.ORG                                                                             JERSEY JAZZ          JUNE 2021        09
JerseyJazz - GENERATIONS OF JAZZ Bill Crow, Leonieke Scheuble, and Nick Scheuble - New Jersey Jazz Society
JAZZ HISTORY

the tunes he plays on Concert by the          Mercury album, Solitaire, and see
 Sea, is full on pastiche: Garner’s solo      if you can hold still when he moves
is loaded with quotes from Charlie            into the swing sections. His trade-
Parker’s solos and melody lines, along        mark playful interactions between
with a few measures of “All Around            his left and right hands, sometimes
the Mulberry Bush,” both of which             referred to by critics and fellow mu-
 he plays to audible laughter from            sicians as “Russian Dragon” or “Gas
the audience. As much fun as those            Pedal” time, accentuate the tempos
 quotes are, it’s Garner’s incredible         while revealing the supreme inde-
 dynamic control on this recording            pendence of his hands. As we like

                                                                                                                                                                          PHOTO COU RT ESY O F LOUIS A R MST RO N G H OUSE MUSE UM
that really tickles the ear and the           to say in my own jazz piano trio, we
 heart. We know how loudly Garner is          play dance music, and whether he’s
 capable of playing, but his dynamic          playing solo or with his trio, Garner’s
 restraint is, to me, just as exciting. His   music is always danceable, under-
 playing ranges from the fortissimo           scored by a consistent, propulsive
to the pianissimo, sometimes in a             pulse—the riverboat? The heart?
 matter of seconds. Every one of Gar-             My last thought about Gar-
 ner’s recording features exceptional         ner’s concept is about the way he
use of dynamics in his storytelling.          approaches standards. Under his
     Notably, Garner’s solo recordings        fingers, the most obvious tunes are
 are as grooving, swinging, and oc-           deconstructed, reimagined, restruc-
 casionally funky as his trio’s. Check        tured, reharmonized, reconstructed,
 out his version of Sammy Fain’s              and reanimated His playing tran-
“That Old Feeling” from his 1955              scends songwriting, in a sense. He        Erroll Garner with Louis Armstrong in 1957 in Washington, D.C.

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                        JERSEY JAZZ              JUNE 2021   10
JAZZ HISTORY

                                                          As for his “Misty”—What can I         most frequent guests on talk shows,
                                                      say that hasn’t been said? A com-         especially those hosted by fellow jazz
                                                      poser myself, I am always seeking to      pianists like Steve Allen and Dud-
                                                      discover a memorable and haunting         ley Moore, who were eager to bring
                                                      melody line. Garner’s tune, now in-       Garner’s music to a wider audience.
                                                      separable from his fame and legacy,           I met up recently with some
                                                     is the gold standard of standards. To      friends, and we traded stories about
                                                     think, you can ask any gigging pianist     Garner and his records. Everyone
                                                     to play “Misty,” and, unless they have     has deep associations with his mu-
                                                      played the song so, so many times         sic. For those of us of a certain age,
                                                      as to feel that they have exhausted       his sound is so familiar, he feels like
                                                     their creative resources, they will        a member of our families. He passed
                                                     inevitably smile and shake their           away in 1977, but I turn back to his
                                                      head as they recall the melody and        recordings to remember that he is,
                                                      harmonies in the song, and mutter,        in fact, very much with us today.
                                                     with co-mingled awe and jealou-
               could transform the Liberty Mutual     sy, “Great tune …” He wrote and re-           Alex Levin is Head of the En-
               jingle into a masterpiece of compo-    corded about 200 such great original      glish Department at Philadelphia’s
               sitional sophistication. Unfettered   tunes over the course of his career.       Germantown Friends School and a
               from the world of sheet music and          We are lucky to live in the age of    working jazz pianist. His most re-
               reading, Garner’s ears, his imagi-    YouTube, where you can easily find en-     cent self-produced album is A Sun-
               nation, and his heart lead the way    tire concert performances by Garner,       day Kind of Love, released last year.
               through infinite variations and        as well as clips from television in the   (See “English Teacher and Jazz Pia-
               landscapes of swing and sound.        ‘50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s. He was one of the    nist”, Jersey Jazz, January 2021).

NJJS.ORG                                                                                        JERSEY JAZZ         JUNE 2021           11
Featuring
 Are you a jazz fan and love to cruise?
If you are a fan of Swing, Dixieland, Classic                                                                        Allan Vaché – clarinet                         John Sheridan – piano
Jazz, Chicago Jazz, Traditional Jazz, in fact just                                                                   Houston Person – tenor sax                       Eddie Metz – drums
about any style which emerged during the                                                                             Warren Vaché – cornet                           Brian Holland – piano
first half of the 20th century, plan to attend                                                                       Danny Tobias – trumpet                            Charlie Silva – bass
JazzFest at Sea - presented in a private jazz                                                                        Paul Keller – bass                                Jim Lawlor – drums
club atmosphere limited to 200 guests! Our
                                                                                                                     John Allred – trombone                           Bob Draga – clarinet
cruise will be departing roundtrip Port
Canaveral (Orlando) to the Bahamas and                                                                               Scott Robinson – tenor sax                     Ted Rosenthal – piano
Mexico on the MSC Divina for 7-nights of jazz                                                                                                           Vocalists
and fun.                                                                                                                                  Banu Gibson            Yve Evans
         Take a look at what you get!                                                                                In addition to our internationally acclaimed artists, we will
                                                                                                                     once again be offering more than twenty hours of opportunity
    Private Performances Every Evening                                                                               for our guests who are amateur musicians to jam in your own
      Private Afternoon Performances                                                                                 JazzFest Jammer sessions led by John Skillman and Mike
      on Sea Days and some Port Days                                                                                 Evans. Plus, if you would appreciate some instruction and
                                                                                                                     critique during the jam sessions, feel free to ask.
   Mix & Mingle Open Bar Cocktail Party
      Join our JazzFest Jammer sessions                                                                              Amazing Caribbean itinerary from Port Canaveral with ports
      if you play an instrument or sing!                                                                              that include an overnight at Ocean Cay Marine Reserve,
                                                                                                                                     Cozumel and Costa Maya!
Don’t wait – our space is limited due                          October 3 -10, 2021                                                      Inside Stateroom only $999*
      to capacity restrictions!
                                                     Join us for one of the few live jazz events in 2021.                            Oceanview Stateroom only $1099*
                                                     We are sure you need something to look forward                                    Balcony Stateroom only $1299*
                                                        to so call us today or check out our website!                               Aurea Balcony Stateroom only $1649*
                                                                                                                                          Aurea Suites from $1999*
                                                         www.jazzfestatsea.com                                                         Yacht Club Suites from $2499*

                                                                   (800) 654-8090                                    *Pricing is per person, cruise-only based on double occupancy and includes all
                                                                                                                     taxes and fees. Must book with Cruise & Vacation Depot or approved agency to
                                                                                                                     attend private performances. Deposit is $400 per person and is due at the time of
                                                     We will be following all CDC and cruise line COVID guidelines   cabin selection. Fares and performers subject to change. Please be advised the
                                                                that may be in place during our sailing!             performance venue is non-smoking for all guests.
THREE GENERATIONS OF JAZZ

           A Special Musical and Personal Relationship
                                                                                                N
                                                                                                      inety-three-year-old Bill Crow
                                                                                                      remembers when he first start-
                That Bridges a Seven-Decade Age Gap                                                   ed playing professionally and
                                                                                                would attend a jam session. “I didn’t
 “I’m 19, and He’s in His 90s. That’s What I Love About Jazz; There’s No Age Discrimination.”   own a bass,” he recalled, “so, I would
                                                                      BY SANFORD JOS E P HSON   wait until the bass player was tired.
                                                                                                Then, I would borrow his. The bass
                                                                                                player would get tired because there
                                                                                                was one bassist and 10 saxophonists.”
                                                                                                    “What I love most about play-
                                                                                                ing with Bill Crow,” said 19-year-old
                                                                                                keyboardist Leonieke Scheuble, “is
                                                                                                that it’s 50 per cent playing and 50
                                                                                                per cent stories. He told me about
                                                                                                playing with Stan Getz when the
                                                                                                string on his bass broke, so he took
                                                                                                one from under the piano. He also
                                                                                                told me he knew Cy Coleman before
                                                                                                he was a composer. He’s introduced

                                                                                                                                         PHOTO BY CY D NEY HAL PIN
                                                                                                me to tunes from the ‘20s. These are
                                                                                                experiences you can’t get anywhere.”
                                                                                                    Leonieke’s father, 58-year-old
                                                                                                drummer Nick Scheuble recollects
                                                                                                playing with Crow when Scheuble

NJJS.ORG                                                                                        JERSEY JAZZ        JUNE 2021        13
THREE GENERATIONS OF JAZZ

and his family lived in the Nether-       yard in Rockaway, NJ, to play music
lands in the early 2000s. In 2006,        and, of course, to listen to Crow’s
they played together with baritone        stories. “We get together to play,” said
saxophonist Carl Maraghi for a Ger-       Crow, “to try to keep our chops.”
ry Mulligan tribute at the Two River          Nick Scheuble elaborated: “Most
Theater in Red Bank, NJ. Two years        of the arrangements from Bill are
later, when Leonieke was six years        trio arrangements. We’re also devel-
old, she saw her father and Crow play     oping quintet arrangements. Bill’s
at the Cornerstone in Metuchen. In        bass playing is really unique. I can’t
November 2015, all three of them          put my finger on it exactly. There’s
performed together professionally         a certain kind of drive he has to his
for the first time at the Hyatt Re-       bass playing. It’s a certain kind of
gency Hotel in New Brunswick, NJ.         conviction to the beat, a strong pulse.
Billed as “A Night of Soul Jazz”, by      Each note seems to have a forward
the New Brunswick Jazz Project, it        motion. There’s an almost percus-
was Leonieke Scheuble & the Gen-          sive attack to each note. Even slow
erations of Jazz Trio with Nick on        pieces have a life to them, they feel
drums, Crow on bass, and special          alive.” Added Leonieke: “When you
guest Bill Easley on tenor saxophone.     hear him, you know it’s Bill Crow. We

                                                                                                                    PHOTO BY CY D NEY HAL PIN
    That was the beginning of a spe-      treasure every minute with him.”
cial relationship that bridges a gener-       The role of the bass, in Crow’s
ation gap of seven decades. During the    opinion, “hasn’t really changed that
pandemic, the three have been meet-       much. But, starting with Scott La-
ing in the Scheubles’ garage or back-     Faro, the bass had the option of not

NJJS.ORG                                                                             JERSEY JAZZ   JUNE 2021   14
THREE GENERATIONS OF JAZZ

playing 4/4 all the time. Bass players,                                                                                     proceeded to guide the group of sea-
though, have gotten so much bet-                                                                                            soned veterans through a selection
                                                      Leonieke Scheuble & the Generations of Jazz Trio
ter. They’re finding a way to set the                                                                                       of hard bop standards from the 1950s
bass up so they can play faster. The                  will be performing from 7-8 p.m. at the NJ Jazz Society’s             including Bobby Timmons’ “Dat
strings are closer to the finger board.               June 26 Virtual Social, streaming on the njjs.org website as          Dere”, Horace Silver’s “Senor Blues”,
And, amplification has helped out.”                   well as the NJJS Facebook page and YouTube Channel.                   and Nat Adderley’s “Work Song”.
     The pulse of Crow’s bass play-                                                                                             “I grew up hearing Lee Morgan,
ing, Leonieke pointed out, is partic-                                                                                       Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers,
ularly apparent on the 1960 Verve                                                                                           and Clifford Brown,” she told me.
album, Gerry Mulligan And The              hard. Some of them were really fin-    that job,” Crow said. “I said, ‘’If you   “Hard bop has a blues aspect, and
Concert Jazz Band At The Village           ger busters. All the musicians would   go with Dave Brubeck, you’re going        I’ve always gravitated toward tunes
Vanguard. Nat Hentoff’s liner notes,       come and hang out with us. Duke El-    to become famous, and your price is       that are bluesy.” Crow feels it’s “nice
describing the performance of Art          lington’s publicity man, Joe Morgen,   going up, and no one’s going to be able   to play with Leonieke,” not only “be-
Farmer’s “Blueport”, wrote that, “Bill     told the Hickory House he would get    to afford you.’ That’s what happened,     cause she’s so young,” but also be-
Crow’s bass solo leads into a crack-       them mentions in Walter Winchell’s     but it worked out well for him.”          cause “we all love the same music.”
ling series of exchanges between           column if the Ellington band mem-          I first saw the Scheubles and         The veteran musicians she plays
Gerry Mulligan and Clark Terry.”           bers could eat there (for free). So,   Crow play together in August 2019         with, Leonieke said, “are legends.
     Another of Crow’s stories evokes      we saw a lot of Duke, and sometimes    at the Jazz Arts Project’s Jazz in the    But one thing I’ve noticed is we’ve all
his days in the 1950s, playing with pi-    Marian would get him to sit in.”       Park series in Red Bank. Leonieke         had similar influences. It’s amazing
anist Marian McPartland and drum-              One night, Dave Brubeck and        led a quintet that also included ten-     to play with someone like Bill Crow.
mer Joe Morello at the Hickory House       Paul Desmond came into the Hick-       or saxophonist Adam Brenner and           He knew people like Billie Holiday
on New York’s 52nd Street. McPart-         ory House with the intent to recruit   trumpeter Joe Maganarelli. “This is       and Sarah Vaughan. I’m 19, and he’s
land, he said, “liked to play in all the   Morello for Brubeck’s quartet, which   the first time playing with my own        in his 90s. That’s what I love about
keys, and some of them were really         they did. “I advised Joe not to take   quintet,” she announced, and then she     jazz; there’s no age discrimination.”

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                    JERSEY JAZZ         JUNE 2021        15
THREE GENERATIONS OF JAZZ

    On July 1, the trio of Leonieke,                                               bles, two of which are led by Charlap,    William Paterson in 1991, having
Nick, and Bill will be playing from 6-8                                            Director of Jazz Studies. “Six hours of   studied under drummer/educator
p.m. at 5 Eastman St. in downtown                                                  instruction with him!” she exclaims,      Dr. John Riley. Throughout his ca-
Cranford, NJ, and from 6-7 p.m. on                                                 “an unbelievable experience.” Add-        reer, he has played with a long list of
July 26, Leonieke will bring her hard                                              ed Nick, “He’ll say stuff like, ‘Dick     jazz luminaries including saxophon-
bop/soul jazz quintet to the Jazz Fo-                                              Hyman sent me this.’ He’ll tell her       ists Don Braden and Eric Alexan-
rum Summer Festival at Gourdine                                                    stories about composers. She loves        der and keyboardist Mike LeDonne,
Park in Ossining, NY. Adam Bren-                                                   it, and he knows she loves it.” Point-    who is Leonieke’s private teacher.
ner will be on tenor saxophone, and                                                ing out Leonieke’s “love of the blues         The sessions at the Scheuble
Rick Savage will be on trumpet.                                                    and passion for swing,” Charlap add-      home, according to Nick, have “turned
    Leonieke, said Savage, is “a very                                              ed that she “always zeroes in on the      into an event, a jazz hang. Everybody
talented young pianist who has a                                                   rhythm section. She is a humble and       wants to play with Bill.” Among those
hunger to learn all about jazz music.                                              dedicated student of the music, and       who have dropped by: pianists David
All musicians benefit greatly from                                                 it is exciting to witness the expan-      Braham and Tomoko Ohno; guitarists
acquiring mentors. Louis Armstrong                                                 sion of her artistic development.”        Ilya Lushtak, Flip Peters, and Charlie
had King Oliver; Freddie Hubbard          other mentors, such as Bill Crow,             As a teenager, Nick was drawn        Sigler; percussionist Chuggy Carter;
had Art Blakey. Leonieke has a            Dr. Lonnie Smith, and Bill Charlap.”     to the drumming of several musical        and trumpeter Savage. Added Leo-
whole stable of them, starting with       Sometimes, Leonieke also plays with      heroes including Gene Krupa, Buddy        nieke: “Bill always comes an hour early.
a highly talented jazz musician fa-       bassist Tim Givens, a member of the      Rich, Sam Woodyard, and Morello.          We get pizza with meatballs. We play

                                                                                                                                                                        PHOTO BY CY D NEY HAL PIN
ther in drummer Nick Scheuble and         New York Electric Piano jazz band        Later influences were Max Roach,          tunes and talk. And, we have coffee. He
an entire family that loves music.        and the Cecilia Coleman Quintet.         Roy Haynes, Elvin Jones, and Tony         likes a dash of Kahlua in his coffee.”
Add that to the sublime musician-             Finishing up her first year in the   Williams, as well as the “groove
ship, friendship, and jazz history        Jazz Studies program at William          drummers” such as Gus Johnson                See Bill Crow’s “From the
played in every note of Leonieke’s        Paterson, Leonieke is in four ensem-     and Grady Tate. He graduated from         Crow’s Nest” on page 33

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                     JERSEY JAZZ         JUNE 2021        16
METUCHEN ARTS COUNCIL partners
                                                      with NEW JERSEY JAZZ SOCIETY presenting

                                                      Jazz Education
                                                      RICKY RICCARDI
                                                      Louis Armstrong 101:
                                                      The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong
PH OTO BY YO N I B RO O K

                                                      Trumpeter, vocalist, actor Louis Armstrong (1901-1971), whose
                                                      career spanned 50 years, was one of the most prominent, influential
                                                      and commercially successful jazz musicians of the 20th Century.
                                                      Presenter Ricky Riccardi is the Director of Research
                                                      Collections for the Louis Armstrong House Museum in Queens
                                                      and is the “World’s Expert” on Louis Armstrong. His new book is
                                                      Heart Full of Rhythm: The Big Band Years of Louis Armstrong.

                            MetuchenArtsCouncil.com
                                                      F R EE L I V E S T R EA M EV EN T

                            New Jersey Jazz Society   Sunday, June 13 - 3pm
                            NJJS.org                  Donations Appreciated
                                                                                                       Register Here
MELISSA ALDANA

                                 T
                                      enor saxophonist Melissa Aldana
                                      was on a roll when the pandemic
With Blue Note                         shut everything down in early

Album on Horizon,
                                 2020. She received a Grammy Award
                                 nomination for Best Improvised Solo

Saxophonist’s                    on her composition, “Elsewhere”,
                                 from her 2019 Motema Music album,

Career Continues                 Visions. AllAboutJazz’s Friedrich
                                 Kunzmann called Visions, “a highlight

to Escalate                      of the year,” adding that Aldana’s
                                 playing “is subtle and elegant and of a
“One of the Foremost Musician/   highly melodic nature ... ” And, Aldana
 Composers of Her Generation”    was a charter member of pianist
                                 Renee Rosnes’ Artemis, the all-
BY SA NFO RD JOS EPH SON
                                 female septet that caused a sensation
                                 at the 2018 Newport Jazz Festival,
                                 leading to a signing of the group by
                                 Blue Note Records for a 2020 album

                                                                           PHOTO BY HAR R ISON WE INSTEI N
                                 debut (Jersey Jazz cover story, March
                                 2021). Artemis recently received a
                                 2021 Jazz Journalists Association
                                 Award for Best Mid-Sized Ensemble.
                                     Now, as the jazz world eases out
                                 of the pandemic, Aldana is looking

NJJS.ORG                         JERSEY JAZZ         JUNE 2021       18
MELISSA ALDANA

 forward to her own first album with                                                                                               house, and they helped me get a full
Blue Note. She started recording it                                                                                                scholarship to come to the States.”
 last month for an early 2022 release                                                                                                  The scholarship was to the
 date. (Aldana has departed Artemis,                                                                                               Berklee College of Music in Boston;
 succeeded by tenor saxophonist Ni-                                                                                                she graduated in 2009. Aldana’s main
 cole Glover). When Don Was, Blue                                                                                                  teacher there was saxophonist George
Note President, announced Aldana’s                                                                                                 Garzone. “I learned so much from
 signing, he described her as “one of                                                                                              him,” she said, “seeing him waking up
the foremost musician/composers                                                                                                    at 6, teaching all day, and then going
 of her generation. Her vibrant artis-                                                                                             to play a gig.” Garzone, like Perez, saw
tic vision, mastery of her instrument,                              Melissa Aldana at the Jazz Standard                            Aldana play while on a trip to Chile. “I
 and her deep groove make Ms. Aldana                                                                                               could tell she had her act together,” he
 a perfect exponent of the Blue Note        pline and patience.” Aldana started out     level headed regarding her trajectory,     said. “She was playing straight ahead
 ethos.” In a news release, Aldana said,    on alto sax, and her early heroes were      meaning she can roll with life’s punch-    jazz. I showed her some extensions
“It feels unreal that I was signed to       Charlie Parker and Cannonball Adder-        es. She’s got what it takes to succeed.”   of what she was already doing. She
Blue Note . . . I feel extremely honored    ley. There are four tenor players who           In 2005, Aldana met pianist Dani-      was a hard worker and really into it.
to be a part of the label and a part of    “are the people who mean the most to         lo Perez while he was on a tour in         She stayed with me for most of her
the legacy. It means so much to me.”        me: Don Byas, Benny Golson, Sonny           Chile, and he invited her to play at       time at Berklee. She’s one of the most
     Born in Santiago, Chile, the          Rollins, and Mark Turner.” Turner            the Panama Jazz Festival. He also          conscientious students I have met.”
32-year-old Aldana learned about jazz       described Aldana to Jersey Jazz as “an      helped her get auditions with music            Aldana’s first album, Free Fall, was

                                                                                                                                                                                PHOTO BY PABLO VAL LE
 and the saxophone from her father,         excellent saxophonist with a strong         schools in the United States. “Dani-       recorded on the Inner Circle label in
Marcos Aldana, a professional saxo-        work ethic and curiosity which can be        lo Perez and his wife—those are            2010, followed by Second Cycle two
 phonist. “The most important thing my      heard in her music. You can hear the        the people who opened their doors          years later. In 2013, she became the first
 dad taught me,” she said, “was disci-      fight and the mystery in her. She is        to me,” she said. “I stayed in their       female instrumentalist and first South

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                           JERSEY JAZZ          JUNE 2021         19
MELISSA ALDANA

American musician to win the Thelo-        demic, Aldana has tried to stay as busy
                                                                                              “
                                                                                              A DISTINCTIVE AND
nious Monk International Jazz Saxo-
phone Competition (Her father was a
                                           as possible. Last October, she was part
                                           of a virtual “Jazz For America” con-      APPEALING VOICE. WE ARE SURE
                                                                                                 TO HEAR MORE OF HER.”
semifinalist in 1991). A recording con-    cert, a benefit for the Biden campaign,
tract with Concord Jazz was part of the    held at City Winery Hudson Valley in
prize, resulting in her third album, Me-   Montgomery, NY. Organized by pia-
lissa Aldana & Crash Trio. Reviewing       nist Aaron Goldberg, other perform-
that album, London Jazz News called        ers included guitarist John Scofield;     Zenon; bassists Christian McBride and      On May 16, she was part of the two-
Aldana, “a distinctive and appealing       vocalist Jazzmeia Horn; saxophonists      John Patitucci; pianist Fred Hersch,       day Downtown Jamaica Jazz Festival
voice. We are sure to hear more of her.”   Joe Lovano (her ensemble teacher at       harpist Brandee Younger, and trum-         on the lawn of the Jamaica Perform-
    Given the restrictions of the pan-     Berklee), Ravi Coltrane, and Miguel       peter Sean Jones. Co-hosts were vo-        ing Arts Center in Jamaica, Queens.
                                                                                     calist Dee Dee Bridgewater and future          Coming full circle, Aldana is now
                                                                                     second gentleman Douglas Emhoff.           a jazz educator. She has joined the
                                                                                         On April 23 of this year, Aldana led   faculty of the New England Conserva-
                                                                                     a quintet playing music from Visions       tory Jazz Studies department for the
                                                                                     as part of the Jazz Standard’s “The        2021-22 academic year. Her teaching,
                                                                                     Flip Sessions” virtual concert series.     she said, will just be “part-time be-
                                                                                     That was followed by a performance         cause I feel I am at a point in my pro-
                                                                                     of McCoy Tyner’s “Passion Dance”           cess where the most important thing
                                                                                     as part of International Jazz Day on       for me is to play and get that kind of

                                                                                                                                                                          PHOTO BY FANNY B ELSO
                                                                                     April 30. Playing with her were drum-      experience. And, also, I feel like the
                                                                                     mer Antonio Sanchez, alto saxophon-        experience of playing and growing
                                                                                     ist Rudresh Mahanthappa, bassist           as a musician is the most import-
                                                                                     Massimo Biolcati, and pianist A Bu.        ant thing I can give to a student.”

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                        JERSEY JAZZ         JUNE 2021       20
TALKING JAZZ

A Jersey Jazz Interview
    with Ed Cherry
                    BY SCHAEN FOX

T
      he Dizzy Gillespie ‘alumni association’ is a large
      group, and one of the most prominent and esteemed
      members is guitarist Ed Cherry, who played with
      Gillespie for 14 years. In a review of Cherry’s
2016 Posi-Tone album, Soul Tree, DownBeat’s Bill
Milkowski described him as “an irrepressibly swinging
guitarist ... in that lineage that includes ... Pat Martino,
George Benson, Grant Green, and Wes Montgomery.”

NJJS.ORG                                                       JERSEY JAZZ   JUNE 2021   22
TALKING JAZZ

JJ  How did you get the                                   ment, closed the door, pulled out       JJ  How much in a year
gig with Dizzy?                                           this wad of cash and gave me five       would be with Dizzy?
EC I moved to New York, when I was                        $100 bills. He said, “Go get yourself   EC Most of it. For the first four or five
21, and I got the gig with Dizzy the                      some clothes. We’re leaving next        years that I was in the band, we were
same year. It was just that I knew                        week.” I had been starving in New       working constantly. And when we
Rodney Jones. Rodney had been                             York. I hadn’t seen $500 ever up to     weren’t working, Dizzy would go off
in the band for about two or three                        that point. That was it. I was in the   and play with a college big band. doing
years, then he decided to leave. I was                    band. My first gig was on his birth-    a master class or whatever, wherever.
surprised because Dizzy could have                        day, October 21, 1978. I figured I’d    We’d go out for a month of one-night-
anybody he wanted, but I got the                          be in the band a couple of weeks,       ers, come home for maybe two or three
call. I made about a 15-20-minute                         and then I’d be kicked out, but many    days, and then go out for a week, come
rehearsal with Dizzy; Mike Longo                          years later, I was still in the band.   back for a couple of days, go out for
the long-time pianist with Dizzy;                                                                 another month, maybe come back for a

                                            “
and Ben Brown, Dizzy’s bass player.                                                               week, and go back out again. It was cra-
When I walked into audition, Diz-                                                                 zy. He was about 60 or so when I joined
zy recognized my face, “Oh, yeah, I
know, you.” He recognized me from           MY DAD STARTED                                        the band, and he never complained, so
                                                                                                  we didn’t either. He seemed to thrive
hanging out backstage at the Vil-
lage Gate or wherever they played.
We played a couple of songs and that
                                                    PLAYING GUITAR WHEN                           on the schedule and the traveling. He
                                                                                                  didn’t like to be home very long at all.

was it. I think we played “Night in
Tunisia,” and one other song, then       I STARTED PLAYING GUITAR,                                JJ  What was life like on the road?
                                                                                                  EC You get up at, like, seven in the
Dizzy just cut it short. He brought
me into the bathroom at the apart-             LIKE, AROUND SEVENTH GRADE.”                       morning, go to the airport—that could
                                                                                                  be a 20-minute drive, it could be a

NJJS.ORG                                                                                          JERSEY JAZZ          JUNE 2021        23
TALKING JAZZ

               two-hour drive. Then you’re traveling        had the whole top of a house. That
               all day, and you show up in time for a       was nice. That Dizzy lived in En-
               soundcheck and maybe something to            glewood, close by, was convenient.
               eat. Then you play the gig and you’re        (Cherry now lives in the Bronx)
               usually done by 10 or 11 at night, if it’s
               a concert. Then you go back to your          JJ  What are your best memories
               hotel room, and you do it all again          of your time with Dizzy?
               the next morning. That would last for        EC Oh, just the general camaraderie in
               a month or a week at a time. Every           the band. From 1978 until he passed,
               day. You ate what you could get. You         I was always in the band. He changed
               try to pick the best food that you can       drummers and bass players two or
               get while you’re traveling. But a lot of     three times and added this or that, but
               times you can’t get good food stopping       I was the one guy who was in the band
               at these roadside places. It’s usual-        through the whole thing. There was
               ly burgers, bad steak or fish. You try       a period from ‘83 until late ‘85 when
               to try to pick the best of the worst.        I wasn’t in the band. He started using
                                                            piano again and hired Walter Davis
               JJ Was it Dizzy’s influence that             Jr. Walter was in for a couple of years
               got you to move to New Jersey?               but then wanted to do more of his
               EC It was more about we got more             own concerts. When Walter left, Diz-
               space for the money. My wife had a           zy called me back in. So, it’s just like a
               daughter from a previous marriage,           general memory of how everybody was
               and space was limited in New York.           cool. All the guys in the band got along
               We moved to Fort Lee in 1983 and             and tried to make the music happen.

NJJS.ORG                                                    JERSEY JAZZ          JUNE 2021         24
TALKING JAZZ

     And we enjoyed Dizzy’s compa-
ny. Dizzy was a great band leader; he
wasn’t a tyrant or got funny with the
                                                             “
                                                             I HEARD THAT GEORGE BENSON PLAYED
money or left us stranded. I hear all
these horror stories about different       WITH MILES DAVIS, SO MILES SMILES WAS
                                                         THE FIRST MILES DAVIS RECORD I BOUGHT.”
band leaders doing that to the guys,
but Dizzy was not like that. He was
very professional, and took care of his
band. We didn’t have to worry about
any of that. We just had a good time
traveling. It was tough when you work      concerts to hang backstage, or they      for a little jam session, so that he could   James Moody and Jon Faddis were
that much, late nights, early mornings     played with him on a couple of songs.    play, and that was fun. Then after his       coming in. They called and told me
traveling all day, but it was fun. We                                               health deteriorated even more, he got        that after we left, Dizzy passed away.
tried to have as much fun as possible.     JJ  Do you recall how you                sent to the hospital. And that was it.
     Being a part of Dizzy’s band, you’d   learned that Dizzy had cancer?               The day that Dizzy died, my wife         JJ  Do you come from
be in close proximity to other cats        EC Just being on the road with him.      and I went to visit him. He was sleep-       a musical family?
of Dizzy’s stature. They would either      We saw the physical decline—losing       ing in the easy chair in his room            EC Well, let’s start with my parents.
guest with the band or hang out back-      weight, loss of balance. Then he was     breathing very shallow breaths. We           My dad started playing guitar when
stage. I would have never been able to     diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He     didn’t want to wake him up. We were          I started playing guitar, like, around
meet Milt Jackson unless I was play-       played for as long as he could, then     there for about 10 minutes organiz-          seventh grade. We both went to the
ing with Dizzy. Milt Jackson, James        the doctors kept him at home. On dif-    ing his room. My wife brought flow-          music store and had the half-hour
Moody, Dexter Gordon, Art Blakey—          ferent occasions, Mike Longo would       ers, and we called Dizzy’s wife to let       guitar lessons. He is still in that first
all these guys had high respect for        go play with him at home. A couple of    her know that we were there, and             grade book. Anyhow, he liked jazz. His
Dizzy. They would either come to the       times, I brought guys over to his home   he seemed okay. As we were leaving,          favorite guitar players were Grant

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                         JERSEY JAZZ          JUNE 2021        25
TALKING JAZZ

Green and Kenny Burrell. He would         fan of the music, and started collect-                        ter I saw those guys on TV, I started
play those records when I was a kid.      ing records when he was in college.                           slowly buying jazz records. I heard that
He also liked Charlie Parker, Dizzy       He went to Howard University. He                              George Benson played with Miles Da-
Gillespie, and all the usual suspects.    and his buddies would go see Char-                            vis, so Miles Smiles was the first Miles
     My mom played very little classi-    lie Parker and all of those guys at the                       Davis record I bought. Then I heard
cal piano. She could slowly sight-read    Howard Theater. The Howard The-                               that Larry Coryell played with Gary
her way through some stuff, but she       ater was one of the big places to play.                       Burton. So, I bought Duster, one of the
wasn’t really a strong player. She’d                                                                    first jazz-rock records. They were play-
liked music and took me to con-           JJ   Did you just get                                         ing original music, but it incorporated
certs—Broadway plays, operas and           interested on your own or                                    over-driven guitar and things like that.
things like that when I was a young        did someone prompt you?
kid. At the time, I wasn’t really into     EC I just started getting interest-                          JJ  I read that Bruce Johnson
it, but looking back, I’m glad that she    ed on my own. Maybe I saw George                             was very significant for you.
did because she made me aware of          Benson on TV. Now, this is 1971 or                            Why didn’t he record much?
these other kinds of music. No one        ‘72, PBS had jazz on TV from time                             EC He didn’t really care about that
else that I know played any music.        to time, and they would play live. I                          aspect of the music business. He
                                           remember seeing George Benson,                               rarely gigged. He had a lot of students
JJ  I read where you said you              and I think Earl Klugh was in his                            and made most of his money that

                                                                                     “
didn’t really start listening to           group. And, I remember seeing Lar-                           way. And, he did a lot of side hustle
your dad’s record collection               ry Coryell with his band and I was                           things to keep money coming in. He
until you were in high school.
EC Yeah, I started investigating his
                                           like, “Wow, that was interesting.”
                                               Up to that point I was playing R&B,   I WANTED           was a brilliant guy, very opinionated.
                                                                                                        He could talk about a lot of different
Thelonious Monk 78s, Charlie Park-
er LPs, stuff like that. My dad was a
                                           rock, blues, Jimi Hendrix and all that
                                           stuff. I wanted something more. Af-       SOMETHING MORE.”   subjects: music, photography, art;
                                                                                                        and he was a genius guitarist, He was

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                JERSEY JAZZ         JUNE 2021        26
TALKING JAZZ                                                                             The Grunin Center and Ocean County College Support the Arts

very inspiring to me. When I first met       pointed that I didn’t finish my school-
Bruce, I was 19 or 20 years old. He
was great to be around at that age.
     I studied with Bruce from about
                                             ing, but they saw that I was playing
                                             music, making decent money and
                                             traveling; so they were supportive.
                                                                                                           T H E
1976 until I joined Dizzy’s band in ‘78. A
lot of different guys took lessons from
him like Vernon Reid, the rock gui-
                                             JJ  I didn’t expect to hear the
                                             name The Five Satins.
                                                                                                           SHOW
tar player. Vernon Reid had this band
called Living Color. And they were
                                             EC It was a great band. They sound-
                                             ed good, and they put on a good show.                         WILL
                                                                                                           GO ON
popular in the ‘80s. Kevin Eubanks           And, they didn’t get all crazy with
took some lessons from him. So, we’re        alcohol and drugs. They made a good
all kind of coming from Bruce Johnson.       impression for us, as the young back-
                                             up band. Plus, from time to time, we
JJ  I read that you almost attended          would get to back up Bo Diddley or
Berklee. How close was almost?               Chuck Berry or The Drifters. These
EC: Well, I was about to do my first         guys oftentimes would just show up
year, but I got a call to go on the road     with no band, so we would back them
with a band, and I decided to do that        up for maybe three songs and then
instead. I went on the road with an          they’d go. I can’t say that I got to meet
oldies group called Fred Parris and          any of them for any length of time,                                                          grunincenter.org
the Five Satins. They gave me my             other than them telling us what key                                                  Grunin Center Box Office Hours
                                                                                                                                    Mon.-Fri. 10:00am-5:00pm
first experience on the road, and I’m        each song was in. That was it, but we                                                        732-255-0500
glad I did it. My parents were disap-        were all kind of starstruck. Bo Did-                                                 College Drive P Toms River, NJ

                                                                                                                            Contact the Box Office two weeks prior to any show
                                                                                                                             to arrange for disability and accessibility services.

NJJS.ORG                                     JERSEY JAZZ           MAY 2021         27
TALKING JAZZ

           “
           ALL THESE GUYS WERE FREE ON
SATURDAY MORNINGS, SO THEY
    WOULD TEACH THESE CLASSES.”
dley! Wow! It was a good experience.     Dunbar—great guitar player—or Wal-
I have nothing bad to say about it.       ly Richardson, another great guitar
                                          player. I remember Jimmy Heath and
JJ   It was about six or seven           Jimmy Owens were there. Bob Ne-
years between high school and             loms was the piano teacher. He played
joining Dizzy. What else were            with Mingus for a long time. All these
you doing for those years?                guys were free on Saturday mornings,
EC I was with The Five Satins un-         so they would teach these classes. I
til about ‘75. Then I started going in    know they put on concerts now. I
and out of New York to Jazzmobile.        don’t know if the school thing is still
They had a Saturday afternoon pro-        active, but it was a great situation. In
gram where you could go for next to      ‘76 I met Rodney Jones, so I started
no money and study with masters of        coming into New York even more to
jazz music. I would study with Ted        hang with Rodney or to see Dizzy.

NJJS.ORG                                 JERSEY JAZZ           MAY 2021        28
RISING STAR

              Lucy Wijnands, Ella Fitzgerald
              Jazz Vocal Competition Winner
              “I Knew She Was Special.
              There’s Depth in Every Note She Sings.”
              BY SANFORD JOS E P HSON

              C
                     ontestants in the fourth annual    Harry Schnipper, BAJS Executive
                     Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Com-    Director and Owner of Washington
                     petition, sponsored by the Blues   D.C.’s Blues Alley jazz club, allowed
              Alley Jazz Society, were asked to sing    some flexibility. Once Wijnands
               three selections from the 1964 Verve     began singing, the judges were cap-
               album, Ella Fitzgerald Sings the John-   tivated. Said Alison Crockett, Ad-
               ny Mercer SongBook. That request,        junct Professor of Music at George
               said Lucy Wijnands, the winner, was      Washington University: “I saw in
              “a gift from heaven. Johnny Mercer        her a mature, confident sound with
              is absolutely my favorite composer.”      a definitive musical outlook that

                                                                                                  PHOTO BY JO HN AB BOTT
                   Her three Mercer selections          had me singing with her. If I want to
              were: “Too Marvelous For Words”,          sing with someone, that hooks me
              “Laura”, and “Dearly Beloved”. The        every time.” Added Dr. Darden Pur-
               latter song was not on the album, but    cell, Director of Jazz Studies, Voice,

NJJS.ORG                                                JERSEY JAZZ         JUNE 2021        29
RISING STAR

at George Mason University: “Lucy       was the 2019 winner of the New Jer-
has an exquisite voice with impec-       sey Performing Arts Center’s Interna-
cable diction, and her interpretation    tional Sarah Vaughan Vocal Competi-
of the repertoire was highly musical.    tion, also known as the Sassy Awards.
She has a great career ahead of her.”   “We will be singing their classics as
    Originally from Kansas City, the     duets,” Wijnands said, “with Gadi Le-
23-year-old Wijnands graduated in        havi on piano, Mikey Migliore on bass,
2020 from the Conservatory of Mu-        and Itay Morchi on drums. Samara
sic at SUNY Purchase where she was       and I will also be doing an interview
the Ella Fitzgerald Scholar and re-      beforehand (about Ella and Sarah).”
cipient of the President’s Award of     They previously recorded a YouTube
Achievement. In 2016—her freshman        duet of Lerner and Loewe’s “Almost
                                                                                       “Juicy Fruit” by Lucy Wijnands
year—she appeared in concert at Jazz    Like Being in Love”, which was re-
at Lincoln Center’s Appel Room. She      corded by Fitzgerald on the 1963
also completed a five-month residency   Verve album, Ella Sings Broadway.            Bram Wijnands, and art historian,         vinyl/catalog.” Her goal is to release
with the Birdland Big Band, directed         Wijnands is also working on a new       Lisa Smith, Wijnands always painted       a single of “You’ll Never Walk Alone”
by David Dejesus, and has performed      self-produced album entitled You’ll         in addition to singing, and her visual    in July or August and the album by
with trumpeter Jon Faddis and tenor     Never Walk Alone, inspired by the            art “picked up during the pandemic.       the end of the year or in early 2022.
saxophonist Joe Lovano, among others.   Rodgers and Hammerstein song from            My mom said to me, ‘Why don’t you             “After a year of nothing going on,
    Now settled in Brooklyn, Wijands     the musical, Carousel. The album is         start throwing some paints?’ I became     I look forward to doing live perfor-
is collaborating with vocalist Samara   “still very early in the works,” she said,   obsessed. Now that I’ve been painting,    mances again,” she said. With the
Joy on a June 6th performance at New    “but my plan is to make it an interdis-      it has brought me closer to my music.     album, her goal “is to remind artists
York’s Cutting Room based on the         ciplinary album related to my paint-        The album will have a catalog with        that they have a place in this unsta-
music of Ella and Sarah Vaughan. Joy    ings.” The daughter of stride pianist,       sketches and lyrics. So, it will be CD/   ble world. It can be easy to feel lost or

NJJS.ORG                                                                                                                       JERSEY JAZZ          JUNE 2021         30
You can also read