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1,000 Jazz Albums You Should Hear Before You Die (951-960)

Here is another 10 to add to the list.

Remember that there is no ranking system here, and if you don’t see your favorite jazz album yet, it doesn’t mean it won’t show up.

Hopefully these lists will inspire you to seek some of these albums out that perhaps you haven’t heard before, or revisit an old favorite. And as always, we want your thoughts on any or all of these albums. Here, in no particular order, are albums 951 through 960.

951. Satch Plays Fats: The Music of Fats Waller – Louis Armstrong (Columbia, 1955) CLICK HERE TO BUY

952. Lee-Way – Lee Morgan (APO (Analogue Production Originals), 1960) CLICK HERE TO BUY

953. Piano in the Background – Duke Ellington (Sony Music Distribution, 1960) CLICK HERE TO BUY

954. The Complete Gramercy Five Sessions – Artie Shaw (Bluebird RCA, 1940-1945 recording dates, 1989 compilation date) CLICK HERE TO BUY

955. Walkin’ – Miles Davis (Original Jazz Classics, 1954) CLICK HERE TO BUY

956. The Inner Mounting Flame – John McLaughlin/Mahavishnu Orchestra (Columbia/Legacy, 1971) CLICK HERE TO BUY

957. Bird and Diz – Charlie Parker/Dizzy Gillespie (Verve/Polygram, 1950 recording dates, 1956 release date) CLICK HERE TO BUY

958. Trombone by Three – Bennie Green/J.J. Johnson/Kai Winding (Original Jazz Classics, 1956) CLICK HERE TO BUY

959. Cattin’ With Coltrane and Quinichette – John Coltrane/Paul Quinichette (Original Jazz Classics, 1957) CLICK HERE TO BUY

960. Boss Guitar – Wes Montgomery (Concord/Concord Music Group/Fantasy/Universal Music, 1963) CLICK HERE TO BUY

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50 Greatest Jazz Vocals of All Time

50 Great Jazz Vocals is a crowdsourced list of the 50 most popular jazz vocal recordings of all time, as determined by the listeners of NPR Music, Jazz24.org and KPLU in Seattle. We asked jazz lovers all over the world to vote for their favorites. When the results were in, the thousands of votes were tabulated, and this list is the result. You can take a look at the list below or, better yet, dive into the webstream, kick back and listen to all 50 Great Jazz Vocals. According to our listeners, it doesn’t get any better than this.

I had the opportunity to speak with KPLU’s Kirsten Kendrick about this list. You can listen to our discussion here.

Here are the winners:

50 Great Jazz Vocals: The List

1. Billie Holiday, “Strange Fruit”
2. Johnny Hartman & John Coltrane, “Lush Life”
3. Billie Holiday, “God Bless the Child”
4. Ella Fitzgerald, “How High the Moon”
5. Ella Fitzgerald, “Mack the Knife”
6. Etta James, “At Last”
7. Louis Armstrong, “What a Wonderful World”
8. Chet Baker, “My Funny Valentine”
9. Stan Getz & Astrud Gilberto, “Girl From Ipanema”
10. Peggy Lee, “Fever”
11. Sarah Vaughan, “Lullaby of Birdland”
12. Ella Fitzgerald, “Summertime”
13. The Manhattan Transfer, “Birdland”
14. Johnny Hartman & John Coltrane, “My One and Only Love”
15. Nina Simone, “I Loves You, Porgy”
16. Ella Fitzgerald, “A-Tisket, A-Tasket”
17. Joe Williams with Count Basie & His Orchestra, “Everyday I Have the Blues”
18. Billie Holiday, “Autumn in New York”
19. Sarah Vaughan, “Misty”
20. Ella Fitzgerald, “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered”
21. Nina Simone, “Feeling Good”
22. Billie Holiday, “Fine and Mellow”
23. Nina Simone, “My Baby Just Cares for Me”
24. Nat King Cole, “Route 66”
25. Frank Sinatra, “One for My Baby (And One More for the Road)”
26. Ella Fitzgerald, “Blue Skies”
27. June Christy, “Something Cool”
28. Ray Charles, “Georgia on My Mind”
29. Frank Sinatra, “I’ve Got You Under My Skin”
30. Anita O’Day, “Sweet Georgia Brown”
31. Billie Holiday, “All of Me”
32. Louis Armstrong, “Black and Blue”
33. Susannah McCorkle, “The Waters of March”
34. Frank Sinatra, “Fly Me to the Moon”
35. Billie Holiday, “Good Morning Heartache”
36. Louis Armstrong & Oscar Peterson, “You Go to My Head”
37. Clark Terry, “Mumbles”
38. Billie Holiday, “My Man”
39. Diana Krall, “Peel Me a Grape”
40. Nat King Cole, “Unforgettable”
41. Nat King Cole, “Stardust”
42. Chet Baker, “Let’s Get Lost”
43. Billie Holiday, “Lover Man”
44. Ella Fitzgerald, “Someone to Watch Over Me”
45. Eva Cassidy, “Autumn Leaves”
46. Johnny Hartman & John Coltrane, “They Say It’s Wonderful”
47. Les McCann & Eddie Harris, “Compared To What”
48. Julie London, “Cry Me a River”
49. Cab Calloway, “Minnie the Moocher”
50. Nat King Cole, “Nature Boy”

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1,000 Jazz Albums You Should Hear Before You Die (891-900)

Here is another 10 to add to the list.

Remember that there is no ranking system here, and if you don’t see your favorite jazz album yet, it doesn’t mean it won’t show up.

Hopefully these lists will inspire you to seek some of these albums out that perhaps you haven’t heard before, or revisit an old favorite. And as always, we want your thoughts on any or all of these albums. Let’s get started with this week, and in no particular order, albums 891 through 900.

891. The Mastery of Passion – Harris Simon (Resonance Records, 2010) CLICK HERE TO BUY

892. Pete Fountain at Piper’s Opera House – Pete Fountain (Jazzology, 1994) CLICK HERE TO BUY

893. Satchmo at Pasadena – Louis Armstrong (Verve, 1951) CLICK HERE TO BUY

894. Hank Mobley Quintet – Hank Mobley (Blue Note Records, 1957) CLICK HERE TO BUY

895. Zawinul – Joe Zawinul (Mosaic, 1971) CLICK HERE TO BUY

896. Jazz Funeral in New Orleans – George Lewis (Tradition, 1953) CLICK HERE TO BUY

897. Cal Tjader’s Latin Concert – Cal Tjader (Original Jazz Classics, 1958) CLICK HERE TO BUY

898. Used to Be Duke – Johnny Hodges (Polygram Records, 1954) CLICK HERE TO BUY

899. Tuxedo Junction (compilation) – Erskine Hawkins (RCA, 1992 compilation date) CLICK HERE TO BUY

900. Earthy – Prestige All Stars (Original Jazz Classics, 1957) CLICK HERE TO BUY

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One of Louis Armstrong’s final performances (and favorite recipes) to be released this month

Rarely-Heard Recording Includes Original Cookbook of Louis’ Most-Loved Recipes

This release comes from Smithsonian Folkway Recordings.

Jazz icon Louis Armstrong, always the consummate entertainer, turned a 1971 award ceremony at the National Press Club in Washington DC into an impromptu performance ­despite recent poor health.  It was one of his last concerts before he passed away 5 months later. Joined by longtime band-mates Tyree Glenn and Tommy Gwaltney, Armstrong shows no signs of frailty while singing, and to everyone’s surprise, playing trumpet on classics including “Mack the Knife” and “Rocking Chair.”  The recording, originally a limited vinyl release by the National Press Club in 1972, will be available widely for the first time via Smithsonian Folkways Recordings on April 24th as part of the Smithsonian’s celebration of the 11th annual Jazz Appreciation Month.  Armstrong often signed letters “Red Beans and Rice-ly Yours,” which makes for an apt title for the recording especially since his favorite recipes ― everything from Louisiana Caviar to the Sazerac ― are included in the liner notes, as they were in the original pressing.

Listen to “Hello Dolly”

The second half of the album finds Tyree Glenn and his band back at the National Press Club paying tribute to Louis shortly after his passing.

Smithsonian Folkways will make the album available digitally (stream and download) for the first time while offering physical versions in print as on-demand CDs (with digital liner notes) available from folkways.si.edu.

The release will be commemorated with a ceremony and concert on Friday, April 27th, at the National Press Club. The event will begin at 2:30 p.m. and will consist of a press conference featuring officials from Smithsonian Folkways, the National Press Club, and the Louis Armstrong Foundation and a discussion with Q&A with musical experts. A reception will follow with the album played in its entirety.

‘Satchmo at the National Press Club: Red Beans and Rice-ly Yours’

11 tracks, 58 minutes:

1971 Press Club Concert featuring Louis Armstrong

1.         Introductions (When It’s Sleepy Time Down South)

2.         Hello Dolly

3.         Rockin’ Chair

4.         Boy from New Orleans

5.         Mack the Knife

Tribute concert to Louis Armstrong featuring Tyree Glenn and Tommy Gwaltney

6.         Royal Garden Blues

7.         Mood Indigo

8.         A Kiss to Build a Dream On

9.         Love For Sale

10.       It’s Alright with Me

11.       Crazy Rhythm

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Five servings of Thanksgiving jazz

As we all know, no matter what genre of music you prefer, there is no shortage of Christmas music to listen to each year. In some extreme cases, these songs start getting radio spins as early as October. Jazz is no exception, with the new Michael Buble Christmas CD hitting the shelves this year October 24th.

But what about Thanksgiving jazz? Perhaps some of these aren’t necessarily “Thanksgiving specific,” but are a few tracks to rotate while having that second (or third or fourth) helping.

1. The Thanksgiving Theme by The Vince Guaraldi Trio

CLICK HERE TO BUY

To many, Vince Guaraldi is best known as the man behind the music of the Charlie Brown television specials, with A Charlie Brown Christmas being the most popular. But Charlie did Thanksgiving too, and Guaraldi was there with his trio to provide the soundtrack for that special too.
2. Thanksgiving by Charles Earland

CLICK HERE TO BUY

From the album Stomp!, which was recorded only six months before organist Charles Earland passed away, the tune Thanksgiving offers you some energy after the Tryptophan from the turkey has started to put you to sleep.

3. The Gravy Waltz by Bill Henderson

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What would a Thanksgiving dinner be without gravy? Vocalist Bill Henderson teams up with the Oscar Peterson Trio, eagerly anticipating the big meal via the smell from the kitchen.

4. Hey Pete, Let’s Eat More Meat by Dizzy Gillespie

CLICK HERE TO BUY

Dizzy gets the band all wound up in this one and makes it clear that he doesn’t discriminate which meat he and “Pete” will eat, as long as there is more of it. A nice trumpet solo, a little bit of scatting … the full meal in this song.

5. All That Meat and No Potatoes by Louis Armstrong

CLICK HERE TO BUY

You have to have potatoes for Thanksgiving, and Pops explains all of this in his version of the Fats Waller composition.