Back out from t'hospital after a good bedbath from Nurse Ratchet and gremlinfc got a pop at the popstar business ("30 years man and boy...")- memorable choons and sell-out gigs brought a lavish life-style and a new bike...unfortunately the young gremlinfc...couldn't maintain the hit-factory and that problematic 2nd album led to the demise of the boy wonder : what's the session? Album? Backing singers?
9 comments:
Man oh man, I meant to catch up with the Spill this evening, but then I found that 1959 jazz night was on all evening on BBC4! Fab stuff!
Manyana,,,,
El Blimpo: I'd be interested to know what BBC played for 1959.
Hi GF -
The best programme was "1959: The Year That Changed Jazz"
it can be watched on the iplayer here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00jf64y
1959 was the seismic year jazz broke away from complex bebop music to new forms, allowing soloists unprecedented freedom to explore and express. It was also a pivotal year for America; the nation was finding its groove, enjoying undreamt of freedom and wealth, social, racial and upheavals were just around the corner, and jazz was ahead of the curve.
Four major jazz albums were made, each a high water mark for the artists and a powerful reflection of the times. Each opened up dramatic new possibilities for jazz which continue to be felt: Miles Davis, Kind Of Blue; Dave Brubeck, Time Out; Charles Mingus, Mingus Ah Um; and Ornette Coleman, The Shape of Jazz to Come.
Rarely seen archive performances help vibrantly bring the era to life and explore what made these albums vital both in 1959 and the 50 years since. The programme contains interviews with Lou Reed, Dave Brubeck, Ornette Coleman, Charlie Haden, Herbie Hancock, Joe Morello (Brubeck's drummer) and Jimmy Cobb (the only surviving member of Miles' band), along with a host of jazz movers and shakers from the 50s and beyond.
It's repeated again tonight, I think.
BBC4 also showed episodes of Jazz625, restored and re-edited - but thye weren't necessarily from 1959.
The documentary on the year 1959 was awesome, by the way. I would have loved to have been 17 in 1959 - gearing up for the modern age!
Apologies to gremlin for tying up all his space and not having a clue who the banjo player is but, muchos gracious to el blimp for that info, as usual BBC won't cooperate, they give me a 'this site doesn't seem to be working just now, try again later' message. I will though not with any high expectations, they don't like people outside that tight little island watching their stuff and not paying.
I was 24 in '59 and had just fled UK for LA, jazz was my obsession so all those names were very relevant. The albums quoted, I had 'em all, in most cases still do.
We were in the tailend of the folk/skiffle era and were shortly to get the Beatles/Dylan/Stones era, jazz went into obscurity in the mid '60's and the revolution was on, for me music changed dramatically at that point, it wasn't until years later that I re-established contact with jazz.
I'm envious of those of you who can enjoy BBC, I've long felt that they're the best when it comes to that type of programming.
I bought a 'universal' DVD player so that my recently deceased friend could send me BBC video he thought worthwhile, I have lots of test match cricket coverage.
I don't mind what you gas about - I saw the documentary too and found it fascinating (though I was but a far-off twinkle in my folks' eye then)- was life really that simple?
Hopefully the documentary will turn up on youtube. I'd tape the repeat and send it to you, if I had the technology to do it. Perhaps there is a way of downloading iplayer content. I will look into it!
i tried to find some jazz LPs in the charity shops today, but there were none. Luckily all the LPs mentioned are on Spotify, so I can listen to them til I find the vinyl.
Hmmm, it seems nigh on impossible to get round the bbc's protection of their content, without being a genius hacker type.
I've tried, and failed, several times using a proxy server to disguise which country I'm in, and I think me and Steen tried once too - and failed.
I'm sure the doc will turn up on youtube quite soon!
We tried, we failed
We tried, and we failed
We tried and we failed
We tried and we failed
We tried
Oh ...
Cash on the nail
It's just a fairytale
Oh ...
And I don't believe in magic anymore
OK peeps i'll put you out of your misery..."Young Americans" sessions 1974 ...backing singers "Astronettes"(featuring Luther Vandross)...
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