Remembering flautist/saxophonist Bud Shank on his birthday

Raising a glass to bossa-jazz innovator Bud Shank with some performances and recordings with longtime pal Joao Donato. 

That time Webb Pierce went rockabilly as "Shady Wall"

In 1958, country star Webb Pierce used the alias "Shady Wall" for a rockabilly rip through a version of the Bill Justis hit "Raunchy"

R.I.P. saxophone colossus Sonny Rollins, 1930-2026

Sadly, jazz great Sonny Rollins has passed away at 95. He'll be greatly missed. We're remembering Sonny with a few interviews and recordings. 

From Sonny Rollins HQ...

It is with deep sorrow and profound love that we announce the passing of Sonny Rollins. The Saxophone Colossus died this afternoon at his home in Woodstock, NY at the age of 95. 

“I think when the creative person ends, he continues in the next existence. I’m a person who believes this life isn’t the be-all and end-all of everything. A spiritual person doesn’t feel like that.” – S.R. (2009) 

Sonny Rollins 48-Hour Memorial Broadcast 

on NYC's WKCR 89.9 FM 

May 29-30

This Friday and Saturday, May 29th and 30th, WKCR will air 48 hours of Sonny Rollins to honor the life and work of the renowned saxophonist, who passed away this Monday, May 15th, at the age of 95.

Hailing from Sugar Hill, Harlem, Rollins was immersed in the budding scene of hard bop right out of high school, collaborating with J.J. Johnson, Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk, Max Roach, Clifford Brown, and Miles Davis. In his autobiography, Davis writes, “People loved Sonny Rollins up in Harlem and everywhere else. He was a legend, almost a god, to a lot of the younger musicians. Some thought he was playing the saxophone on the level of Bird. I know one thing–he was close. He was an aggressive, innovative player who always had fresh musical ideas. I loved him back then as a player, and he could also write his ass off…”

Over his many years and broad influence, Rollins became a defining voice in his craft through landmark recordings such as Saxophone Colossus (1956), Way Out West (1957), and The Bridge (1962). Past his legendary improvisation, or lasting compositions such as “Oleo,” “St. Thomas”, and “Tenor Madness”, his dedication to this music manifested in pauses from the scene. Most famously, his two-year hiatus, where he took to practicing on the Williamsburg Bridge so as not to disturb his neighbors.

We invite you all to join us at WKCR 89.9 FM in celebrating the enduring legacy of Sonny Rollins through 48 hours of programming from one of the most transformative voices in the tradition of jazz.

Listeners in NYC can tune in at 89.9 FM or at wkcr.org.

 

Jimmy Scott's "Doesn't Love Mean More?" LP getting reissued by Modern Harmonic

Legendary singer Jimmy Scott's overlooked 1990 album Doesn't Love Mean More? is getting a welcome re-release from Modern Harmonic in July. 

Here's the scoop from Modern Harmonic...

Step into the Red Room with us... you may remember Jimmy Scott as the angelic voice in Twin Peaks. We're thrilled to announce the reissue of Doesn't Love Mean More? is coming to stores July 17th! 

Jimmy Scott's distinct high register, contralto voice has been heard in David Lynch's Twin Peaks, and on the turntables of his fans Billie Holiday, Ray Charles, Marvin Gaye, Madonna and more. Recorded in 1990, and previously only available directly from Jimmy at his shows, this album finally gets its due! Newly remastered and featuring a booklet chock full of photos and liner notes!

For a while, Jimmy was everywhere: performing on the final episode of Twin Peaks’ initial run, and at the wedding of super fans Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin; attending the GRAMMYs when another one of his albums, All the Way, was nominated for Best Jazz Vocal Performance; singing at Bill Clinton’s 1993 inaugural ball and on the soundtrack of huge 1994 film Philadelphia; appearing in the Ethan Hawke-directed Chelsea Walls alongside the likes of Uma Thurman and Kris Kristofferson, and in a video for Madonna, who described him as “the only singer who makes me cry.”

In Doesn’t Love Mean More? You can hear why Jimmy evokes such strong emotion from listeners.  Like a doting parent with a newborn infant, Scott cradles and caresses each note with emotional intention. Having learned bebop from the best as a young man, he was a master at subverting the tyranny of beats and bar lines, elongating or shortening his notes as his muse demanded. His phrasing was so advanced and exploratory that it could make others fearful, but every melody was under expert control. 

You can pre-order the reissue of Doesn't Love Mean More? right here: https://sundazed.com/scott-jimmy.aspx

Doesn't Love Mean More? – Jimmy Scott

You Were Right Next Door • Doesn’t Love Mean More • Itchy • How Can I Tell You • I’ll Love You Just The Same • Portrait of Family • To Say I Love You • Blues For Little ‘J’ • Another Side of Me

Nichol Robertson's Country Flash @ The Bell & Beacon, Monday

Guitarist Nichol Robertson is joined by Kelly Sloan, Vivienne Wilder & Mike Belitsky in Country Flash. Starts at 9:30 pm. 

Beck joins forces with the Meridian Bros & Mexican Institute of Sound

Colombia's Meridian Brothers & the Mexican Institute of Sound got Beck to voice their single "Ritmo Babilonia" – check the clip.

Here's the scoop...

Mexican Institute of Sound (MIS) and Meridian Brothers join forces on Ruido Tovar, a cross-border collaboration that reimagines the tropical traditions linking Mexico and Colombia. Drawing inspiration from icons like Rigo Tovar and the psychedelic Mexican cumbia era, the project blends danzón, son, cha-cha-cha, and experimental electronics into a vibrant new language. MIS’s genre-bending electronic tropicalism meets Meridian Brothers’ avant-garde eccentricity, resulting in a sound that is both reverent and playfully distorted. Together, Camilo Lara and Eblis Álvarez pay tribute to decades of musical exchange while pushing tropical music into unexpected territory. 

Get a copy of Ruido Tovar via Bandcamp right here here. Check out Mateo Rivano's animated clip for "Ritmo Babilonia" featuring Beck following the album tracklisting below. 

Ruido Tovar by Mexican Institute of Sound & Meridian Brothers

1. Cumbia del lobo 03:56

2. Ritmo Babilonia feat. Beck 03:57

3. Ira (IA) 03:24

4. El campeon (Bienes funerarios) 03:34

5. Cumbia fantasia 03:58

6. Concorde 04:02

7. Cumbia Beckiana feat. Beck 04:32

8. Danzón 8bits 02:50

9. Cumbia de los estudiantes 03:50

10. Perdi mis ojos 03:14

Collector Dick Spottswood turns back the clock with "1925 Songs" archival comp

The Dick Spottswood-curated 2CD archival comp 1925 Songs documents a the beginning of commercial electronic recording.

Dick Spottswood & Tompkins Square present '1925 Songs'

A New Archival Set. Out June 19th

PRE-ORDER via Bandcamp right here or ask your local indie store for it.

1925 marked the advent of electrical recording, the dawn of the "Jazz Age", a pre-"big bang" country recording session in Asheville, and a few landmark blues recordings. Tompkins Square's new compilation brings it into focus. 

Dick Spottswood is a legendary musicologist with deep knowledge of early jazz, blues, international, and vernacular American music from the first half of the 20th Century. He has contributed notes and transfers of records from his collection to hundreds of influential reissue albums on many labels over the decades. Spottswood teams up with Tompkins Square to offer a selective view of our favorite 78 rpm sides from 1925, a pivotal year in the development of jazz, blues and early country music. Extensive notes by Grand Ole Opry photo archivist, guitarist and writer of books, Cameron Knowler. Digital restoration by Grammy-nominated mastering engineer Jessica Thompson. Design by Clay Conder.

Various Artists – 1925 Songs: Blues, Country, Jazz & More

1. Dora Carr - Cow Cow Blues

2. Rosa Lee Carson - The Drinker's Child

3. Wheat Street Female Quartet - Go Down, Moses

4. Wm. B Houchens & J. M. Houchin - Fisher's Hornpipe and Opera Reel

5. Old Southern Jug Band - Hatchet Head Blues

6. Bascom Lamar Lunsford - Sherman Valley

7. Tweedy Brothers - Cripple Creek

8. Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra - Kater Street Rag

9. Brownlee's Orchestra of New Orleans - Peculiar

10. Charlie Jackson - Drop That Sack

11. Jimmy O'Bryant's Washboard Band - Hot Hot Hottentot

12. Hersal Thomas - Suitcase Blues

13. Deacon L.J. Bates - All I Want is That Pure Religion

14. Seminole Syncopators - Sailing on Lake Pontchartrain

15. Osey Helton - Cacklin' Hen

16. Ernest Helton - Royal Clog

17. Dr. James Roach - Gue Gue Solingaie

18. R.B. Smith & S.J. Allgood - American and Spanish Fandango 

19. Hitch's Happy Harmonists - Washboard Blues

20. Lonnie Johnson - Mr. Johnson's Blues

21. Charles Creath's Jazz-O-Maniacs - Grandpa's Spells

22. Ida Cox - How Can I Miss You When I've Got Dead Aim

23. Bix & His Rhythm Jugglers - Davenport Blues

24. Clifford's Louisville Jug Band - Struttin' The Blues

25. Homer Davenport & Young Brothers - The Fox Chase (Reel)

26. Lem Fowler's Washboard Wonders - Salty Dog

27. Sonny Clay's Plantation Orchestra - Jambled Blues

28. Land Norris - Dogwood Mountain

29. New Orleans Owls - Stomp Off - Let's Go

30. Sylvester Weaver - Mixing Them Up in "C"

31. Mound City Blue Blowers - Gettin' Told

32. Chauncey C. Lee - Banjo Rag