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Academy of Rock gets BMF gift

Rock Academy continued on page 2

January 2009Vol. 14, Number 1

“If someone had given Charlie aguitar instead of a gun, he mighthave been a great musicianinstead of a killer.”

— Butch Berman, on the 50th

anniversary of CharlieStarkweather’s murderous

rampage, which beganon Dec. 1, 1957

LINCOLN, Neb.—ButchBerman understood the importance ofmusic as a stabilizing forcein his own life. As hiswords quoted above indi-cate, he also saw music’spotential for good in thelives of others, especiallytroubled youth.

Butch would bepleased to know that hisBerman Music Founda-tion has donated $1,000and many of his own in-struments and musical equipment toLincoln‘s Academy of Rock program.About 140 students from kindergar-ten through high school currently areenrolled in the program, which is head-quartered at the Northeast Family

By Tom Ineck ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Center, with citywide outreach.Donated instruments include a

Fender electric bass, an upright bass,a Yamaha electric piano, an Epiphoneacoustic guitar, a conga drum, mara-cas and a tambourine. Among theequipment donated are various amps,speakers, foot pedals, music stands,microphones and guitar cords. It allcame from Butch’s basement musicroom, where visiting musicians oftenwould jam after a BMF-sponsoredperformance elsewhere in town.

The $1,000 BMFgrant paid for additionalacoustic guitars and smallguitar amps for theacademy’s practicerooms.

“Now we can servemore kids per class, andthere are never any kidswho have to sit around atpractice,” said JasonSchmit, director of the

academy. “They’re always workingon something, and that’s directly be-cause of the donation. We don’t getdonations like this very often. It’s been

Photo by Tom

Ineck

Student at Academy of Rock playsBMF-donated bass. The conga andtambourine also were donated.

Jason Schmit

In this issue of Jazz....

Experience Hendrix.................................4Bill Watrous/NJO review........................6Bob Dylan review..................................7“Sutton’s Pianorama”..........................8George Whitesell & All Stars...............10David Lindley/Bruce Katz at Zoo........11Cronin Brother (Don Holmquist)..........12NJO continues concert season............13Norman Hedman memorial.................14Jazz on Disc reviews...............................15From the Photo Archives....................20

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Page 2 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

huge for us.”Gifts of a single guitar or a set

of drums are not uncommon, but thesize and diversity of the Berman col-lection is unprecedented, Schmit said.The Northeast Family Center oper-ates on a budget of $655,835 for thecurrent fiscal year, of which the Acad-emy of Rock receives $144,600.

Schmit began the Academy ofRock several years ago, while work-ing with after-school programs formiddle-school students at the YMCA.The kids would gather in a room and“hang out,” he said, but there wereno activities to inspire them.

“We felt like it wasn’t really tar-geting the kids who needed it most.We started to set up very specific,special-interest clubs that the kidscould be a part of, where the kidswould do everything from cooking andcreating their own little ‘café’ to film-making and comic book writing andflag football and fashion design.”

When some of the students indi-cated an interest in rock music, Schmitapproached Doug Fenton at DietzeMusic House, who helped launch therock academy. The rest was up toSchmit, program coordinator BobOkamoto, other staff and, of course,the kids.

“They’re looking for somethingto do,” Schmit explained. “They wantto start bands. They want to play rock‘n’ roll. Let’s give them a positiveplace to do it, with good mentorshipand get them playing music.”

Beginning with just eight kids, theAcademy of Rock grew to 45 by theend of the first year. Schmit left Lin-coln for Portland, Ore., where he setup similar after-school clubs, but heliked the idea of a program solely de-voted to music. The Northeast Fam-ily Center gave him the opportunityto return to Lincoln as director of theAcademy of Rock.

The academy now has programs

citywide, meeting at Mickle, Irvingand Dawes middle schools, BrownellElementary School, Willard Commu-nity Center, and Campus Life North(The Edge). After-school sessions runfrom 3-5 p.m. and evening sessionsfrom 5-7 p.m. The young musiciansalso meet for Saturday practice ses-sions.

“Each month there is a differentgenre of music that we study,” Schmitsaid. “The staff selects one song thatthey have to play. If they can getthrough it, the kids get to pick a songthat they want to do. Then they get toperform them live around town.”These public performances include

gigs at Ribfest, the Nebraska StateFair and popular Lincoln music clubs.

Understandably, most of theyoung rock wannabes want to playpunk, metal or classic rock, but theyare also introduced to the blues, coun-try, pop and hip-hop styles. Weeklongsummer camps are even more diver-sified.

The more advanced musicianswrite and perform their own songs.

“We work with them, goingthrough the trials and tribulations ofbeing in a band, and try to get them tothe point where they can have a greatmusical product but they’re alsosmart in business and promoting them-selves,” Schmit said. “We get them

Rock Academy continued from page 1

Academy of Rock practices at Campus Life North with Yamaha electric piano,acoustic bass, conga and tambourine donated by the Berman Music Foundation.

Photos by Tom

Ineck

Students use donated bass guitar,conga and tambourine.

Program coordinator Bob Okamotouses his own Gibson guitar todemonstrate vintage Ampeg amp andguitar pedals donated by BMF.

Page 3January 2009○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

JazzJazzJazzJazzJazz is published online at:www.bermanmusicfoundation.orgThe office of The Berman Mu-The Berman Mu-The Berman Mu-The Berman Mu-The Berman Mu-sic Foundation sic Foundation sic Foundation sic Foundation sic Foundation is at 719 P St.,,Suite C-1, Lincoln, NE 68508.

Editor and Designer:Editor and Designer:Editor and Designer:Editor and Designer:Editor and Designer:Tom Ineck

Contributing writersContributing writersContributing writersContributing writersContributing writers: TomIneck, Dan DeMuth, TannerGruba and Don Holmquist

Photographers:Photographers:Photographers:Photographers:Photographers: Tom Ineck,Dan DeMuth, Mike Wilson andothers (File Photos)

For inclusion of any jazz orblues related events, letters tothe editor or suggestedarticles, mail them to theoffice, phone (402) 476-3112,fax (402) 475-3136 or e-mailbmusicfoundtn@neb.rr.com.

To be added to our mailinglist, call (402) 476-3112, fax(402) 475-3136 or e-mailbmusicfoundtn@neb.rr.com.

The Butch BermanThe Butch BermanThe Butch BermanThe Butch BermanThe Butch BermanCharitable MusicCharitable MusicCharitable MusicCharitable MusicCharitable MusicFoundationFoundationFoundationFoundationFoundation is a non-profit, taxexempt, 501(c)(3) private foun-dation recognized by the Inter-nal Revenue Service and theNebraska Department of Rev-enue. It was established in thespring of 1995 to protect andpromote unique forms of jazzmusic.

Trustee:Trustee:Trustee:Trustee:Trustee: Tony Rager

Consultants:Consultants:Consultants:Consultants:Consultants: Grace Sankey-Berman, Russ Dantzler, KayDavis, Dan Demuth, TomIneck, Gerald Spaits, LeslieSpaits and Wade Wright

to the point where they’re ready togo out and do their own thing.” Amongthe many original bands that haveemerged from the Academy of Rockare Silent Havok, The Story Killers,Learning to Fall and Dodging Bullets.Successful “graduates” of the acad-emy include the bands Valley of theImpaled and Exit 48.

A special projects class producesnewsletters and T-shirts for the showsand learns how to run the sound sys-tem and lighting that is essential forthe total rock experience.

Many of the students are onneed-based scholarships, but enroll-ment is open to all. Those who areeligible for free or reduced-pricelunches through Lincoln PublicSchools automatically qualify for areduced rate at the academy.

“Most of our kids are disadvan-taged in the fact that they feel kind oflike they’re outcasts in their ownschools,” Schmit said. “It’s not basedon money.”

On hearing Butch’s commentabout Charlie Starkweather, Schmitagreed.

“Exactly,” he said. “I’ve heardpeople say, ‘If that kid hadn’t gotteninvolved, I don’t know what wouldhave happened.’ They’re able to fo-cus. We have some kids that havewritten some pretty creepy things, butthey’re writing about it, getting it outof their systems.”

That’s a concept that ButchBerman would understand perfectly.

For more information on theAcademy of Rock program, go towww.academyofrock.org.

The following is a list of upcom-ing Academy of Rock performances:

Friday, Jan. 9–Duggan’s, 440S. 11TH St., original bands concert,5:45-9 p.m., admission $5

Thursday, Jan. 15–Hot Topic,26 Gateway Mall, acoustic show fortwo original bands TBA, 6-8 p.m.,admission free

Saturday, Jan 24–CampusLife North, 6400 Cornhusker High-way, Invisible Children Snow BallFormal, original bands TBA, 8-11p.m., admission TBA

Saturday, Jan. 31–Box Awe-some, 815 O St., opening forHarptallica, JediRadio, Dodging Bul-lets, Silent Havok, 6–9 p.m., admis-sion TBA

Friday, Feb. 13–Knickerbockers, 901 O St., origi-nal bands concert, 5:45-9 p.m., admis-sion $5

Friday, Feb. 27–Campus LifeNorth, 6400 Cornhusker Highway,core program concert, 7-10 p.m., ad-mission $3

Friday, March 13–Box Awe-some, 815 O St., original bands con-cert, 5:45-9 p.m., admission $5

Friday, March 27–CampusLife North, 6400 Cornhusker High-way, core program concert, 7-10 p.m.,admission $3

Friday, April 17–Sidewinders,17th & O streets, original bands con-cert, 5:45-9 p.m., admission $5

Friday, April 24–Campus LifeNorth, 6400 Cornhusker Highway,core program concert, 7-10 p.m., ad-mission $3

Saturday, May 30–CampusLife North, 6400 Cornhusker High-way, core and original final concert,6-10 p.m., admission $3

At a recent performance atMeadowlark Coffee House, EvanPotter plays an Epiphone guitaridentical to the one donated by theBMF. Butch’s conga is in background.

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Page 4 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

Concert Review

Fans experience Hendrix vicariously in tributeBy Tom Ineck ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

OMAHA, Neb.—ExperienceHendrix is not just a clever name forthe family-owned corporation thatcontrols the rights to the transcen-dent music and iconic image of leg-endary guitarist Jimi Hendrix. It is atraveling tribute to the evolution ofthe blues and the immense role thatHendrix played in furthering that evo-lution.

The 2008 Experience Hendrixtour stopped at the venerableOrpheum Theater in Omaha for anOct. 29 performance featuring suchwell-known Hendrixian guitarslingers as Kenny Wayne Shepherd,Jonny Lang, and Eric Johnson, alongwith more obscure players EricGales and Mato Nanji. Blues legendsBuddy Guy and Hubert Sumlin re-minded listeners that Hendrix alsohad his influences—up to a point.

Headlining the event were thetwo surviving members of The JimiHendrix Experience, bassist BillyCox—best known for his importantcontribution to the live Band ofGypsys recording of New Year’s Eve1969—and drummer Mitch Mitchell,who was just 19 when he joinedHendrix and bassist Noel Redding tobecome perhaps the most influentialband in rock history.

Mitchell was a shadow of hisformer self during the Omaha show,playing lackluster licks and occasion-ally mumbling incoherently into themicrophone. Sadly, it may have beenan omen of things to come. Mitchell,61, died Nov. 12 in Portland, Ore.,shortly after completing the 19-citytour.

In retrospect, the ExperienceHendrix tour was also a fitting trib-ute to Mitchell, whose top billing was

a testament to his significance asHendrix’s timekeeper of choice. Injust four years, the Experience turnedthe rock music world on its ear, andits influence continues to this day.Mitchell was little more than a fig-urehead during the Omaha appear-ance, but his legacy was apparentthroughout the performance.

The lion’s share of the percus-sion duties was ably handled by Chris“Whipper” Layton, Stevie RayVaughan’s drummer of choice from1978 until Vaughan’s death in 1990.Layton proved an excellent substi-tute for Mitchell, moving easily be-

tween the blues and blues rock stylesthat formed the foundation ofHendrix’s sound. His crackling snaretechnique and effortless fills nevergot in the way, but were always es-sential ingredients, tastefully ex-ecuted.

It was Gales who unexpectedlyset the mood for the night, openingwith an aptly outrageous rendition of“Purple Haze,” accompanied by Coxand Layton. A left-handed guitarist,Gales also proved an excellent singerin the soulful tradition of Hendrix.Guitarist Mato Nanji of the group In-digenous joined the trio for “FoxeyLady,” then Cox belted out “StoneFree.” Nanji sang and played leadon the bluesy “Hear My Train aComin’.”

Eric Johnson was undoubtedlythe technical master of the evening,tearing it up on “Love or Confusion.”With Cox on bass and Mitchell addedon drums, he did a jazzy take on “UpFrom the Skies.” Johnson and Gales

“Are You Experienced?” was the1967 debut recording by The Jimi

Hendrix Experience

Courtesy P

hotos

The left-handed Eric Gales

The Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1967

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traded solos on an astound-ing version of “May ThisBe Love.” Johnson alsoperformed memorable ver-sions of “Bold as Love”and—the best of all—“AreYou Experienced?” Threedrummers kept the ominousmarch time going asJohnson convincingly mim-icked the backward-loopedguitar sounds that made theoriginal 1967 recording soground-breaking.

Despite his technicalproficiency, Johnsontended to push the tempo,contrary to the laid-back,hesitation beat of the blues or the re-laxed pulse of soul that influencedHendrix. Johnson’s thin, high-pitchedvoice is also a far cry from theHendrix model of sexy cool.

Johnny Lang, now 27, releasedhis first recording while still in his mid-teens, but there’s little in his playingto set him apart from dozens of otherHendrix-influenced pickers, and hisvoice is even more limited thatJohnson’s. He did a credible job on“Fire,” with help from Aerosmith’sBrad Whitford, a fine guitarist whousually plays second fiddle to Joe Perry. Lang and Whitford also de-

livered “The Wind Cries Mary,” withMitchell joining Layton on drums, and“Spanish Castle Magic,” with Laytononly. By the way, Scott Nelson did agreat job on bass whenever Coxwasn’t on stage.

Kenny Wayne Shepherd playedthe role of rock “guitar god,” strik-ing flamboyant stage poses for dra-matic effect on “Come On,” “I Don’tLive Today,” “Voodoo Chile” and“Voodoo Child (Slight Return).” Out-standing singer Noah Hunt added aprofessional sheen to the Shepherdset, despite an occasional lapse intohyper-blues pretentiousness.

Guitarists David Hidalgo andCesar Rosas of Los Lobos fameseemed out of place amid the blues-

Eric Johnson coaxes feedback from aMarshal speaker.

rock pyrotechnics of theother string virtuosi, butthey delivered soulful ver-sions of “Can You See Me,”“Little Wing,” with Mitchelland Cox added, and “ThemChanges,” which was dedi-cated to the late BuddyMiles, the tune’s composerand Omaha’s native son.Mato Nanji joined thegroup for a solo on the lasttune.

Oddly, the show endedwith the evening’s weakestset. Rather than beginchronologically with theblues and track the evolu-

tion to Hendrix’s jazzy, audacious re-thinking of the blues, the program’sorder was reversed.

It came to a close with 76-year-old Hubert Sumlin hobbling on stageto perform “You Should Have QuitMe,” followed by Buddy Guy and“The Best Damn Fool You EverSaw.” Guy’s a fine guitar player, buthe also possesses a huge ego, mak-ing it difficult for him to share thestage with others. That was appar-ent on “Red House,” where he wasjoined by Brad Whitford, Billy Coxand Mitch Mitchell, and on “HeyJoe,” with Hidalgo and Rosas.Among the under-recognizedstandout players were guitarist RicHall, keyboardist Marty Sammon,and drummer Tim Austin.

Everyone played with obviousrespect, even adoration, for the mu-sic and legacy of Jimi Hendrix. Buteven after three hours of familiarriffs delivered with mind-bogglingtechnique, the listener was left witha feeling of inadequacy. None ofthese skilled performers could matchthe musical audacity, the revolution-ary guitar style, the lyrical experi-mentation, the soulful intensity or thecosmic humor of the original. That’swhat makes Hendrix so great, andso greatly missed.

Guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd and singer Noah Huntcombine in a dramatic performance.

Courtesy P

hotos

Guitarists (from left) Brad Whitford,Buddy Guy and Ric Hall trade Hendrixlicks with bassist Billy Cox.

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Page 6 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○By Tom Ineck

LINCOLN, Neb.—The Ne-braska Jazz Orchestra opened its2008-2009 season with a zinger Nov.7 at The Cornhusker, putting legend-ary trombonist Bill Watrous squarelyin the spotlight in a program of tunesthat continually challenged the bigband throughout the evening.

Justifiably billed as an “L.A. Leg-end,” Watrous claimed his fame morethan 30 years ago with a pair of clas-sic jazz recordings on Columbia,1974’s “Manhattan Wildlife Refuge”and 1975’s “The Tiger of San Pedro.”

As a West Coast studio musicianand guest artist on dozens of record-ings, he has maintained his standingamong the greats on his instrument, astanding he confirmed with his latestNJO appearance. His association withthe NJO actually goes back 30 years,to a 1978 concert with the band, thenknown as the Neoclassic Jazz Orches-tra.

The band kicked things off withthe provocatively titled “I’ve Got the#@4++$?% Blues,” by RexCadwallader, a longtime contributor tothe NJO songbook.

Watrous joined them for a cleverup-tempo reworking of “After You’veGone” called “Before You Left,”composed by Tom Kubis, an obviousfavorite of the trombonist’s. The saxsection got its first of many workouts,with Ed Love on soprano and PaulHaar taking a brawny solo on tenor.Watrous displayed his gorgeoushoney tone and faultless facility dur-ing his solo statement.

Perfectly at ease in the role ofmaster of ceremonies, Watrous toldthe story of his minor league baseballcareer being cut short by a draft no-tice from the Selective Service Sys-

tem. He then surprised the audienceof 300 by displaying a versatile voiceon a Kubis arrangement of “WhenYou’re Smiling.” After singing therefrain, he dove into a horn solo ofleaping octaves and intricately articu-lated lines.

An easy-swinging Kubis ar-rangement of “Who Can I Turn To?”had the sax section playing a beauti-ful group solo before turning it overto Haar and Darren Pettit for indi-vidual tenor sax solos and a series offour-bar trades. Watrous settled intothe familiar changes with lilting trom-bone phrases and a lush tone.

Humorously giving fair warningto musicians and audience alike,Watrous introduced the tricky GordonGoodwin tune “I Got the ZZZ’s” bysaying “Gordon’s charts are the greatsobriety tests of all time.” The devil-ishly difficult changes again had thesaxes playing in unison, followed by apairing-off of Haar on tenor and Loveon soprano.

After the break, the band re-

turned with Duke Ellington’s “Bluesfor New Orleans,” arranged by NJOalumnus Dave Sharp.

Tom Kubis’ “Space Available”was a snappy, up-tempo swinger, butHaar stayed on top of it with a scintil-lating tenor solo. Watrous againshowed his prowess with a brilliantlyarticulated solo.

Guitarist Peter Bouffard deliv-ered an imaginative solo on the Basie-style bluesy swinger “It’ll Count If itGoes,” also by Goodwin. The entirebrass section got a workout on thisone. “Exactly Like This,” a Tom Kubistake on “Exactly Like You,” featuredBrad Obbink on a Harmon-mutedtrumpet solo and Love on a fluid flutestatement.

But the crowning glory of theevening was the driving, funky“Mama Llama Samba,” with snakingmodulations and infectious rhythmsboiling underneath as soloists Pettit,Bouffard and Watrous negotiated in-tricate solos.

Photo by Tom

Ineck

Trombonist Bill Watrous performs a set of challenging tunes with the NebraskaJazz Orchestra Nov. 7 at The Cornhusker hotel in Lincoln.

Concert Review

Bill Watrous brings challenges to NJO

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MINNEAPOLIS—On the eveof a historic presidential election, thebe-all and end-all, Bob Dylan, returnedto his native Minnesota to put on noth-ing short of an epic show. Dylan andhis band played at the University ofMinnesota’s Northrop Auditorium toa near-packed house of roughly 4,000long-time fans, students, and every-one in between.

The Nov. 4 show consisted of adiverse collection of his songs, fromalbums old and new. The majoritywere drastically altered from theiroriginal sound, with altered styles, timesignatures, and tempos. As manywould have expected, the concert hada politically centered theme.

Dylan kicked off the show withhis now-common, steel guitar-drivenopener “Cat’s in the Well,” somethingof a lesser-known song from his 1990album “Under the Red Sky.” Hemoved into a not instantly-recogniz-able “The Times They Are a-Changin’.” The crowd’s roar reacheda peak during each refrain of the Dylanclassic.

He brought the crowd back tovarious earlier albums with songs like“Tangled Up in Blue,” “Stuck Insideof Mobile with the Memphis BluesAgain,” and “Highway 61 Revisited.”“Masters of War” was played as abrooding, dark ballad, a contrast withthe original acoustic recording. “It’sAlright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)” onthe other hand, was turned completelyupside down, recognizable only by itsmasterful lyrics.

Dylan played primarily keyboardfor the entire evening, a consistentpractice of his in recent shows. Hisband was tight, with Tony Garnierproviding sonorous and driving bass

lines. Stu Kimball provided solidrhythm guitar, and Denny Freemanplayed the lead guitar parts. GeorgeRecile held down the tempo with pre-cision on drums, and Donnie Herondisplayed multiple talents in violin,viola, banjo, and steel guitar.

As the 17-song set list continuedinto the night, Bob played more songsfrom his new album, “ModernTimes.” He also included the touch-ing “Shooting Star” from “Oh Mercy,”in which halfway through, he strappedon an electric guitar for the only timeduring the show. For the rest, Dylanstuck to keyboard, which was quiteprominent in the mix. He even soloeda couple times on the organ-voicedkeys.

Dylan played the somber “Ain’tTalkin’” before leaving the stage.While the crowd was cheering for anencore, many people were eagerlychecking their phones for electiondata. Bob finally returned to the stagefor the inevitable “Like a RollingStone.” Before his final song, he hada few words to say regarding the spe-

cial circumstances of the evening.“I was born in 1941, the year

they bombed Pearl Harbor,” he said.“I’ve been living in a world of dark-ness ever since, but it looks like thingsare going to change now.” The song“Blowin’ in the Wind” then filled theauditorium, a perfectly appropriate endto an incredible show.

As the audience proceeded outof the auditorium into the entrancehall, a titanic TV was projecting theresults of the presidential election.The hall erupted into a euphoric cav-alcade. There were people crying,couples embracing, and a wave ofincessant noise. A massive congrega-tion soon followed outside the hall inthe middle of the campus square toconclude the concert aftermath.

Dylan played a fantastic andcharged set that evening, making it aconcert like no other. The fact thathe had returned to his old college onsuch an important occasion made theshow memorable beyond mortaldream.

Concert Review

Dylan returns home for historic concertBy Tanner Gruba ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Bob Dylan

Courtesy P

hoto

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Page 8 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

DENVER—The weekend ofOct. 18-19 in Denver provided beau-tiful weather and music as SunnieSutton hosted the 9th annual RockyMountain Jazz Party at the downtownDenver Marriott Center.

This series actually dates to 1989at the Jerome Hotel in Aspen, withSunnie and her now deceased hus-band Ralph taking over the baton in2000. This year’s party, dubbed“Sutton’s Pianorama,” lived up to itsbilling with Dick Hyman and DerekSmith, sharing the stage with two pia-nists perhaps not so well known in thestates as in Europe, Rossano Sportielloand Louis Mazetier.

Chuck Berghofer, Jay Leonhart,Frank Capp, Jake Hanna, BuckyPizzarelli, John Allred, Ken Peplowski,Houston Person, Warren Vache—allnames that individually and certainlycollectively wouldn’t ordinarily beconsidered supporting players occa-sionally filled that role as the pianistsput on a memorable performance.With seating limited to 250, these par-ties lend an intimacy to the musician’srelationship with the approving audi-ence, much as a club setting allows.Alternating from solo performancesthrough duets, trios and on up to thefull-blown monte, we jazz aficionadoswere treated to one of those eventspermanently encoded in our greymatter.

Hyman is a master of virtuallyall keyboard styles and able to playimperturbably while doing so. He sim-ply makes everything look too easy.Smith counters with a display of greatenthusiasm which doesn’t detractfrom his equally great versatility. And,even after coming to the states over

50 years ago he still speaks with thatbeautiful British accent. Sportiello andMazetier, generally recognized as be-ing the best in their craft in perhapsall of Europe, are now spreading theword here in the U.S. Simply as amatter of comparison, their techniquesfall somewhere between Hyman andSmith.

The multitude of piano perfor-

mances ranged from ballads to boogie,with such tunes as “Exactly LikeYou,” “Can’t We Be Friends,” “JustYou, Just Me,” “After You’ve Gone,”“St. Louis Blues,” “Drop Me Off InHarlem,” and “Diga Diga Doo” as asampling. For me, the high points in-volved the four pianists playing simul-taneously on two facing concert grandpianos (I’ll do the math, that’s eighthands or forty fingers) while rotatingone at a time to the next bench with-out missing a beat. I must add theywere able to do this on everythingfrom a Gershwin ballad to a raucous10-minute improvised version ofsomething they called “Eight-HandBoogie Woogie.”

I asked Dick Hyman his opinionof these two young lions and he re-sponded saying they were more thanready to take over and assume anymantle he and Smith might eventuallyleave behind. The respect these fourpianists had for each other would have

Colorado Correspondent

“Sutton’s Pianorama” lives up to its billingBy Dan DeMuth ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Photo by M

ike Wilson

Dick Hyman at the piano

Rossano Sporteillo and Louis Mazetier

Page 9January 2009○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

been obvious to anyonewho could hear, sight notbeing a requirement.

There were the usualmixed pairings in virtuallyevery possible configura-tion throughout, and whilesome of these artists seemto have been on the sceneforever their talent has notwaned. Bucky ripped offsome amazing guitar runsboth as a soloist and pro-viding rhythm. And he stillhas that great smile. Whilecornetist Warren Vachedoesn’t dote on makinghappy faces, the occa-sional impish grin sneaks out, belyingthe fact he enjoys playing the cur-mudgeon role. With a career that nowspans about 35 years, listening to himplay in the high altitude of Denver andrequiring the assistance of a canebecause of hip issues that force himto play sitting down, he still has thebeautiful, clear forceful tones. He toldme he is able to do this simply be-cause one doesn’t play his horn withhis face; it’s all in controlling thebreathing.

Jay Leonhart—great bassist, fer-tile mind. Over the years a virtualwho’s who of more than 80 artists hasappeared at these parties without anyvocalists, unless one includes the in-

imitable Jay. He had just penned andperformed a new composition aboutthe failure of Dutch tulips in the se-curities markets, a takeoff on our fi-nancial fiascos. You’d have to hear itto understand and then walk awayshaking your head.

Ken Peplowski continues to bethe clarinetist with the mostest on thejazz circuits and also blows a prettysax, as well as displaying the “let’shave a good time up here” mindset.Tenor man Houston Person per-formed mainly with rhythm backing,which is obvious given his style, ex-cept for the finale, which we’ll get toshortly. He told me that despite thebreathy tones he is so well noted for,he was influenced as a youth by someof the honkers such as Big JayMcNeely, Joe Houston and EarlBostic.

Trombonist John Allred playscomfortably in any style and left a fewwet eyes with a solo rendition ofDorsey’s “I’m Getting SentimentalOver You,” dedicated to the attend-ing family of the recently deceasedTom Dorsey (Tommy’s son), a long-time Denver resident and faithful at-tendee at these jazz parties. This wasmy first exposure and good fortuneto hear bassist Chuck Berghofer, whostarted with bandleader Skinnay EnnisDick Hyman and Derek Smith

and has among his manycredits touring and record-ing with Sinatra.

Drummers FrankieCapp and Jake Hanna areageless. Neither is prone tobombastic solos, content inthe rhythm backup role oroccasionally driving the as-semblage when required. Ina lighter moment, whenasked to solo, Capp did avery short interlude withtom toms in no particularmeter and said “that’s whatI think about drum solos.”Artie Shaw would haveloved it.

The final set of the last nightstarted with a tongue-in-cheek per-formance by the four pianists, witheveryone else on stage except, unac-countably, Bucky. It was allegedly “OSole Mio,” which quickly segued intosome stride and boogie woogie andthen was transmuted into a no-holds-barred version of “The Saints.” Thisagain had the four pianists doing theirrotation, Berghofer and Leonhartsharing the bass and Capp and Hannasharing drums. And yes, here was thecool Houston Person blowing on oneof the oldest tunes in the book in afront line that also featured Peplowskion clarinet along with Allred andVache.

As Butch Berman used to say,“Life is a gas. You just have to inhaleonce in awhile.”

Louis Mazetier takes a turn at the keyboard during “Sutton’sPianorama.”

Bassist Jay Leonhart, drummer AlCapp and bassist Chuck Berghofer

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Page 10 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

BOULDER, Colo.—Oct. 25found us in Boulder, catching up withthe hottest jump blues band this sideof the North Pole. Yes, jump blues,as epitomized by such artists as LouisJordan, Big Joe Turner, Johnny Otis,Joe Liggins, Roy Brown andOmaha’s own Wynonie Harris.

George Whitesell’s All Stars isa Colorado Springs-based group thathas been playing selected gigs up anddown the Front Range for about twoyears. Members are comprised ofmusicians who often front their owngroups, both blues and jazz, a trueall-star group with George providingthe guitar licks, male vocals and oc-casionally blowing some alto sax.

This type of music requires asax section supremo, and they don’tdisappoint. Brad Eastin, whose re-sume’ includes such diverse namesas Frankie Laine, Cab Calloway,Rosie Clooney and the USAFFalconaires arranges for the band andholds court on tenor, much as he doesin several local jazz groups.

Relative newcomer MartySarlette, another graduate of theUSAF bands, also blows a meantenor and has added some, shall wesay, “choreography” to the reed sec-tion circa the Louis Jordan era,which adds to the authenticity andgeneral good feeling this band ex-udes.

Providing a contrast to the ten-ors, while proving a baritone can alsohonk, is Chris Wojtecki. His folio alsoincludes working with such luminar-ies as Lesley Gore and Sam TheSham and the Pharaohs and playingwith many excellent local groups.

Drummer Dave Deason givesa 3D performance without too much

panache–a noble trait. The same canbe said of bassist Santi Guarnera andkeyboardist Tim Zahn–drivin’ the busand makin’ no fuss.

Ah, but they haven’t forgottenthe great female artists during thislate ‘40s and early ’50s era. TalentedJill Watkins, who has fronted her owngroup, as well as performing with oth-ers, handles this end with all of theembodiment and embellishment onewould expect with this group.

Jill has a voice that can nail theshingles to the roof or coax the fuzzoff a peach. Whether providingcountenance to the likes of Ruth

Brown, Etta James, Camille Howardor LaVern Baker in the “mean ma-mas” mode, or enticing the afore-mentioned peach fuzz in the mannerof Sylvia Robinson of the Mickey andSylvia duo on the classic “Love IsStrange” (Reviewer’s note: George,you need to get this in your reper-toire!), Jill brings talent along with per-sonality.

Space doesn’t allow me to listthe roster of songs they put into thetoo-short two hours on stage, but Iwant to list just a few. Georgehandled the vocals on Berry’s “YouNever Can Tell,” Little Richard’s“Baby,” Joe Turner’s “Oke SheMoke She Pop,” and CleanheadVinson’s “Kidney Stew.”

Jill ably took care of Etta’s “AtLast” and “Tell Mama,” and her ren-ditions of “I need A Young Man”and “Dr. Feelgood” had all of theladies feeling good about whateverit is the good doctor does.

Intersperse all of this with somegreat instrumentals by a band reallydigging what they’re doing, and it’sa great revue. A short clip of theband is at http://www.myspace.com/georgewhitesel.

Colorado Correspondent

Whitesell and the All Stars make the joint jumpBy Dan DeMuth ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Photos by D

an DeM

uth

George Whitesell and the All Stars with vocalist Jill Watkins at Classics

George Whitesell

Page 11January 2009○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

LINCOLN, Neb.—I am fre-quently reminded how precious a home-grown, hometown live-music club canbe, especially one with an eclectic book-ing policy and a loyal clientele. Such isthe Zoo Bar, Lincoln’s most intimateand—for the adventurous music fan—most consistently satisfying venue sinceit opened its doors in 1973.

Two recent visits perfectly illus-trate the reasons for the Zoo’s excel-lent reputation and my continued pa-tronage. Multi-instrumentalist and sto-ryteller par excellence David Lindleyreturned for a Sept. 21 solo perfor-mance, and on Oct. 24 jazz and bluesorganist and piano player Bruce Katzbrought his band back to the Zoo for aspectacular show.

Lindley, perhaps best known forhis many years playing guitar and re-cording with Warren Zevon and Jack-son Browne, has hammered out a solocareer over many arduous years of one-night stands at smallclubs just like the Zoo.Already on the road forsix weeks before hisLincoln appearance,the 64-year-old roadveteran seemed a littleweary, but neither hismusicianship nor hissense of humorseemed to suffer.

Utilizing at leastseven acoustic,stringed instrumentsover the course of the evening, Lindleyperformed Zevon’s “Seminole Bingo,”Bruce Springsteen’s “Brothers Underthe Bridge” and Steve Earle’s “Cop-perhead Road,” in addition to the tradi-tional gospel tune “What is the Soul ofa Man?” and the Eastern exotica

“Tasin,” on which he demonstratedimprovised scales on the oud. In de-scribing the challenges of the fretlessinstrument, he said, “You gotta play itlike an ant.”

Reprising his popular novelty“Backstage Food,” Lindley added a

new chapter to the con-tinuing saga about theoften-unappetizingmeals served to travel-ing musicians who areat the mercy of theiremployers. Whilestrumming a slide gui-tar on his lap, he told of“driving 600 miles for a45-minute show,” thenrelated a story frombassist Leland Sklarabout a cooking trip to

China, where he was offered a burlapbag full of human feet, “gray with yel-low toenails.”

“Disgusting!” you may say, but theway Lindley tells a story, it was alsodelightful fun, like a roomful of kids hav-ing a “gross out” contest.

The Bruce Katz Band, on the otherhand, was all business. Katz earned hisstripes playing with Ronnie Earl and theBroadcasters, as well as early stintswith Barrence Whitfield and the Sav-ages, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, andJimmy Witherspoon. At 56, he has halfa dozen recordings under his own nameand a touring band that always tears itup.

Katz was cooking that night at theZoo, switching easily from funky jazzorgan to boogie-woogie piano to bluesyaccompaniment for an equally versa-tile guitarist. Among the many favor-ites performed were blistering renditionsof “Hep-ology,” “Norton’s Boogie,”Mississippi Moan,” “Jackalope Bar-B-Q,” “Elmore’s Glue,” and the classiccover version of “Compared to What.”

It’s a testament to the Zoo Bar’sstaying power that both of these showswere very well attended. Here’s hop-ing that the Zoo continues to stake itsreputation on musical diversity and therelatively small, but very hip fan basethat has nurtured it for so many years.

By Tom Ineck ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Concert Review

Lindley and Katz continue grand Zoo tradition

The Bruce Katz Band swings the blues at the Zoo Bar.

Photo by Tom

Ineck

David Lindley at the Zoo

Photo by R

eynold Peterson

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Page 12 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

A brother in music pays tribute to Butch BermanMemorial

Editor’s Note: Don Holmquist wasthe drummer in Butch Berman’s fi-nal band, The Cronin Brothers.Formed in 2004, the Cronins werealso the longest-running band thatButch was ever in, a considerableaccomplishment in a professionalmusic career that spanned 44 yearsand more than 20 bands. Don livesin Lincoln, Neb.

LINCOLN, Neb.—It has beenalmost a year now since I lost a brotherto the hereafter. I did not lose him inlife because Butch lived it to the full-est and his love, creativity and enthu-siasm live on.

Butch Berman and I were broth-ers in music and in a band. Butch al-ways referred to his band mates asbrothers. We could talk for hours aboutmusic, spirituality, psychology, recov-ery, health, sojourns, love, life and loss.We were not always in agreement, butthat was perfectly fine with Butch. Heappeared to welcome conflicting per-

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○By Don Holmquist

spectives and, in fact, almost thrivedon conflict. There were times when Iwondered if we would ever be able tomend the fence after he would reel offone of his infamous acerbic “insight”-oriented e-mails, but we always did.We tossed around barbs much like

many siblings toss around the football.But in the end, we knew it was just agame. We agreed that our conflict wasjust a function of two alpha males jock-eying for a position that wasn’t there.

This publication’s esteemed edi-tor gave me some perspective on myconflicts with Butch. He tells a storyabout a time Butch was hanging withan old friend. He looked over at theguy and said something like, “Youknow, I think that you are one of theonly people that I have never been madat... and that bothers me.”

Butch had such a zeal for his ownideas that very few people ever hadthe gumption (or alpha audacity) tocontradict what sometimes seemed tobe distorted thinking. He had an in-credible ability to think in another di-mension. And he didn’t understandwhy people seemed to follow andagree with his thinking, but then dis-agreed behind his back. He would askme, “Why wouldn’t people tell me thatthey don’t agree with me?” I would

File Photo

The Cronin Brothers (from left) were bassist Craig Kingery, guitarist andkeyboardist Butch Berman, drummer Don Holmquist and guitarist Bill Lohrberg.

The Cronins rock the house in live performance, with Butch Berman doubling onguitar and keyboards, Don Holmquist on drums, Craig Kingery on bass and BillLohrberg on guitar.

File Photo

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reply, “Butch, you’re a difficult personto have an argument with.” He toldme on more than one occasion that itwas the confrontational honesty thathe admired in our relationship. Thathonesty strengthened our bond. And Ilearned that despite our differentviews, there was magic imbedded inhis thinking.

Butch had an insatiable thirst foreverything decadent and wonderful. Inthis too, we were brothers. In fact,each of our unbridled searches for al-tered states led to the name of ourband. In 1993, in need of some help, Icalled him about a “therapeutic healthspa” that he had been to. I wonderedwhether he thought that it was worthit and asked about his experience. Hereplied, naturally thinking I was won-dering about the amenities, “Oh man,they have great food—and did youknow that Eric Clapton was justthere?!” Well, of course, that was all Ineeded to hear. I lived in the sameplace Butch (and Eric Clapton) had,the Cronin unit.

That shared experience gave usa bond and a band name. When ourband formed, it became the CroninBrothers. In the Cronin spirit, Butchstrove to be “au natural” during many

periods of his life and he did an excep-tional job in his attempts. His band man-tra reflected this perspective. He wouldsay, “The Cronin Brothers, it’s a stateof mind.”

In those last weeks, he didn’t wa-ver from that. I found out about Butch’slast health battle over the phone. Herang me up and said, “Hey, guess whatI did over the weekend?” I asked,“What’d you do this weekend?”, towhich he replied, “I had brain surgery.”I thought to myself, “Oh man, Butch,you have had a multitude of creativeways of looking at things in the past,but this is a new one!” He literally hadundergone a cranial exploration with abiopsy. “Wow,” I wondered, “What’dthey see in there?” I told him that Ihad always wanted to look inside hishead to see from whence his funkyideas emanated.

His magical, positive state of mindcarried him through his illness, alongwith the support of his wonderful wifeand friends. I vividly remember himsaying, “I’ll beat this thing, I’ll showthose bastards!” He had an uncannyknack for surrounding himself withpeople that made him feel good, whichI always admired. And he made oth-ers feel good, too—thousands, even,

NJO continues 2008-2009 concert season

with his music and support of music.I feel very blessed to have been

initiated into Butch’s music fraternity.In his world, anyone who had anythingto do with music was part of the fra-ternity, and he realized that you don’thave to like everyone in your frater-nity, but you are brothers nonetheless.

The Cronin Brothers was Butch’slast band. We played our last gig abouta month before his last breath. With allof the ups and downs we had through-out the years, I’m grateful that the verylast words I said to him were, “I loveyou, buddy.” He was just as I love toremember him, sitting at the piano withhis guitar around his neck. As I de-parted our sacred practice room thatnight, I didn’t know that would be thelast verbal communication I would havewith him.

Although those were my lastwords, they were not the last of ourcommunication. Butch still speaks tous often. I often find people saying,“Butch would...”, as if he were in theroom reminding us. Just the other day,my mother and I were driving past theturnoff to his house and, in near per-fect unison, we uttered “Hi, Butch.”Thanks for the memories, brother, past,present, and future.

LINCOLN, Neb.—The Ne-braska Jazz Orchestra continues its2008-2009 concert season, featuringnationally-known guest instrumental-ists, popular big-band favorites andnew arrangements.

General admission tickets for in-dividual concerts may be purchasedin advance or at the door for eachconcert. Ticket prices are $20 foradults $20 and $10 for students. Con-cert times and locations follow.

“Learning From the Master,”Thursday, Jan. 22, 7:30 p.m.,Cornhusker Marriott, 333 S. 13th St.Young talent will be featured along

with Mike Tomaro, multi-talentedwoodwind performer, composer, ar-ranger, and director of jazz studies atDuquesne University. Tomaro willperform with the NJO and the 2009Young Lions All-Star Band.

“It’s Not Rocket Science,”Tuesday, March 24, 7:30 p.m.,Cornhusker Marriott, 333 S. 13th St.With a degree in aerospace engineer-ing, Dana Hall now leads a numberof his own groups and performs withthe Chicago Jazz Ensemble. Includedin this concert will be a local jazz en-semble as part of the “Jazz 101” pro-gram.

“Plays Well with Others,”Tuesday, May 19, 7:30 p.m.,Cornhusker Marriott, 333 S. 13th St.This concert will feature one ofL.A.’s most highly sought and award-winning trumpet players, WayneBergeron, and the winner of the 2009NJO Young Jazz Artist Competition.

The NJO season also includes apopular annual event, a ValentinesDay dinner and dance on Saturday,Feb. 14, at 6 p.m. at the CornhuskerMarriott. The concert features BigBand classics and is not included withseason membership.

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Page 14 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

BMF friend, consultant Hedman dies at 63Memorial

Master conguero, composer andbandleader Norman Hedman, a long-time friend and consultant of theBerman Music Foundation, diedSept. 29 in New York City after astruggle of many months with acutemyeloid leukemia and pneumonia. Hewas 63.

BMF founder the late ButchBerman was a tireless advocate forHedman and his band, Tropique. Thefoundation was the executive producerof several CDs by Hedman’s rhyth-mically-charged tropical jazz group,including “One Step Closer” in 1999,“Taken By Surprise” in 2000 and“Garden of Forbidden Fruit” in 2006.The BMF also helped to fund flutist-singer Andrienne Wilson’s “She’sDangerous,” a 1998 release on whichHedman played a prominent role asco-producer and percussionist.

Over the years, the BMF broughtNorman Hedman’s Tropique to Lin-coln, Neb., for several performances,including Jazz in June appearances in1997 and 2003, and a concert in March2001 opening for Jerry Gonzalez andthe Fort Apache Band at the Lied Cen-ter for Performing Arts.

The foundation also brought theband to the Kansas City InternationalJazz Festival in June 1999 and the To-peka Jazz Festival in 2005, whenButch Berman was the event’s mu-sic director.

Born July 17, 1945, in Jamaica,the West Indies, Hedman began play-ing the congas as a young teenagergrowing up in Brooklyn, after he re-trieved a drum from a neighborhoodgarbage can. Blending the irresistiblebeats of the Caribbean with theAmerican sounds of jazz, funk, soul,and rhythm ‘n’ blues, his diversity later

would land him gigs with The Spin-ners, Daryl Hall, The Main Ingredi-ent, New Kids on the Block, ChicoFreeman and Alicia Keys, amongmany others.

Before pursuing a career in mu-sic, Hedman graduated from Brook-lyn College with a business major inmarketing. But after leaving the Armyhe worked as a studio musician forseveral decades, primarily in pop mu-sic, before forming Tropique in 1995.He performed on five number onehits and three movie soundtracks. Hewas preparing to accompany Keys onher 2008 world tour when he was di-agnosed with cancer.

In April, representatives of theBerman Music Foundation traveled toNew York to attend a benefit forHedman at the Jazz Standard.Hedman was too ill to attend the event,which raised more than $7,500 to-ward his medical expenses.

Hedman is survived by his wife

of 36 years, Michelline, his motherRuby, son Norjon, and daughterMisha; brother Tony; sister BarbaraCodrington and two grandchildren,Norjon Hedman and Taija Law.

A funeral Mass was celebratedOct. 3 at Holy Cross Church in Man-hattan, followed by burial at CalvertonCemetery in Long Island. In lieu offlowers, tax deductible donations maybe sent to Memorial Sloan-KetteringCancer Center, P.O. Box 27106, NewYork, NY 10087. Please include yourfull name and address, and specifythat the gift is in memory of NormanHedman in support of leukemia re-search. Ask them to notify theHedman family at 484 W. 43rd St.,Apt 3-S, New York, NY 10036.Checks should be payable to Memo-rial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Editor’s Note: Thanks to DawnDeBlaze for providing some of theinformation for this story.

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By Tom Ineck ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Norman Hedman, 1945-2008

File Photo

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Jazz on DiscMoody, Jones collaboration “Our Delight,” indeed

It is, indeed, “Our Delight” to lis-ten to this historic recording pairingthe still-vibrant jazz masters JamesMoody and Hank Jones.

At the time of the date in June2006, Moody was 81 and Jones was87, but they play with the vitality andimagination of young lions. With agenerous program largely comprisedof tunes by Dizzy Gillespie and TaddDameron, IPO Recordings has againproduced a well-polished gem of last-ing value.

The quartet is completed withbassist Todd Coolman and drummerAdam Nussbaum, excellent choicesfor a swinging, tasteful session thatstays mainly in the mid-tempo range.

On the title track, by Dameron,Moody leaps in with his trademarktenor sound as Jones comps and fillswith grace and assurance. Jones’ ownsolo echoes Moody’s mood. “Birk’sWorks” gets a laid-back, bluesy treat-ment and features a bass solo onwhich Coolman pays his respects toRay Brown.

Jones delves deeply into thechanges on “Con Alma.” Moody’stenor caresses the melody onDameron’s “Lady Bird,” then ex-plores all the harmonic possibilities in

After a decade in which bass-ist Dave Holland’s format of choicewas a quintet also consisting ofsaxophone, trombone, vibraphone,and drums, he has changed the for-mula to a six-piece band that addstrumpet and piano to the mix, whiledropping the vibes.

It may seem like a subtle shiftin emphasis, but the results aremagical on “Pass It On.” The three-horn front line creates fuller harmo-nies and the piano is a more har-monically rich and rhythmicallymuscular instrument than the vibes.Once again, Holland has found away to keep the music fresh andexciting.

As always, Holland leads asonically democratic outfit, allow-ing his bandmates plenty of roomfor improvisation and group inter-play, even though he wrote all butone of the nine tunes. With a lineupthat includes Antonio Hart on altosax, Robin Eubanks on trombone,Alex Sipiagin on trumpet, MulgrewMiller on piano and Eric Harland ondrums, Holland can rest assured thatthey will deliver.

an extended solo. Jones takes his cueand ups the ante with deft turns ofphrase.

Taken at breakneck tempo,Sonny Stitt’s “Eternal Triangle” is themost challenging tune here, pressingMoody through the changes and keep-ing Jones on his toes. They meet thechallenge with surprising gusto andquick reflexes, and Nussbaum’s four-bar breaks stoke the fire. Moody andJones pair off for a lovely, romanticreading of “Body and Soul.”

“Good Bait,” written byDameron and a familiar favorite ofGillespie’s, swings breezily, thanks toNussbaum’s constant support. Moodyswitches to flute on his sly and wittycomposition “Darben the Red Foxx.”

Back on tenor, he evokes a sul-try, breathy noir ambiance on a nine-minute version of Dameron’s “SoulTrane.” The tempo accelerates onemore time for Gillespie’s “Woody ‘N’You,” a showcase for Jones and forNussbaum’s effortless percussion.

“Old Folks” is another duo, thistime with Moody stating the classicmelody on flute and Jones sensitivelyproviding the accompaniment.

As an added bonus, JimmyHeath’s “Moody’s Groove” is sungby Italian native Roberta Gambarini,who draws convincingly from the vo-cal tradition of Ella Fitzgerald, SarahVaughan and Carmen McRae, rightdown to the graceful scatting.

An instant classic, “Our Delight”is nearly 80 minutes of delightful mu-sical repartee between two legendsof jazz history. It comes in an attrac-tive gatefold package with color por-traits of Moody and Jones and infor-mative notes by bassist Coolman.

By Tom Ineck ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

JAMES MOODY/HANK JONESOur DelightIPO Recordings

Jazz on Disc continued on page 16

DAVE HOLLAND SEXTETPass It OnDare2 Records

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Page 16 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

With her sophomore release,Denise Donatelli beyond a doubt es-tablishes herself as one of thebrightest vocal stars on the horizon.“What Lies Within” is a recordingof astounding depth, with excitingarrangements by pianist-producerGeoffrey Keezer and imaginativeperformances by all involved.

Donatelli’s voice is exhilarat-ing as it takes flight in the compat-ible company of Keezer, reed mas-ter Bob Sheppard, guitarist PeterSprague, bassist Hamilton Price andomnipresent drummer Marvin“Smitty” Smith. Other noteworthycontributions come from trumpeterCarl Saunders and percussionistAlex Acuna.

The listener leaps to attentionwith the comparatively brief opener,an exuberant three-minute readingof “My Shining Hour.” Donatelli de-livers the lyric and a scat interludewith confidence and aplomb, asKeezer on piano, Sheppard on tenorand Sprague on guitar set the solo

Eubanks’ aptly titled opener,“The Sum of All Parts,” immediatelyestablishes the value of the sextetby “building” the group from its vari-ous “parts,” beginning with trom-bone and percussion, then graduallyadding alto sax, trumpet, bass andpiano in funky syncopation. Even-tually, the band comes together tostate the melody en masse, followedby a brilliant bass solo and moregroup dynamics. It’s an ingenioustechnique for introducing the newband and the new sound.

“Fast Track” has the hornsbursting out of the gate uptempo, butthe tune also is a showcase forMiller’s wonderful keyboard work.Holland introduces “Lazy Snake”with a slithering bass solo, beforeturning the melody over to the horns.A longtime Holland employee,Eubanks takes the first solo, fol-lowed by Sipiagin and Hart. Thetempo accelerates again for“Double Vision,” a rhythmicallycomplex piece that features anotherinspired Eubanks solo and some in-credible drum pyrotechnics.

Miller begins “Equality” with asensitive piano statement, laterjoined by Hart on the melody, withtasteful accompaniment by Hollandand Harland. The other horns enternear the end, but only as accompa-niment to Hart’s soulful, extendedimprovisation. “Modern Times” is abouncy, mid-tempo tune that beau-tifully harmonizes the horns over apulsing rhythm. Eubanks and Millerget brief solos, but the ensemble isthe star here.

At nearly 14 minutes, “RiversRun” begins with Hart blowing likeColtrane over an intense modal riff.A true melodic theme doesn’temerge until after Holland solos,about halfway through the tune.Eubanks, Harland, and Sipiagin takesolos between accelerating en-

semble passages that seem to mimicthe dangerous rapids implied by thetitle. The stately “Processional”showcases Sipiagin’s deft trumpetwork, and the title track closes theproceedings with a funky urgencyand a reiteration of Holland’s highstandard of group interplay, asbandmates alternately weave har-monies and take solos.

performance standard at a very highlevel. The Ivan Lins tune “Sails(Velas Icadas)” is given a funky,syncopated backbeat that drawsinspired solos by Keezer andSheppard on alto sax. ThenDonatelli and Sheppard lock melodylines in tandem.

Perhaps the highlight of the en-tire recording is Donatelli’s exquis-ite rendering of Chick Corea’s“Crystal Silence,” with lyrics byNeville Potter. This time, Sheppardsoars on soprano sax, flute and altoflute, and Donatelli goes on a word-less vocal excursion in perfect har-mony. On the samba “I Love itWhen You Dance That Way,” shechimes in unison with Saunders’flugelhorn as though truly dancing.Sprague on nylon-string guitar andSmith on brushes create the idealrhythm.

Donatelli proves just as ca-pable with the phrasing and breath-ing demands of a ballad on the stan-dard “We’ll Be Together Again,”which also features a wonderfulbass solo by Price. Again her phras-ing stands out in the long, snakinglines of the modal “Like an OldSong,” where her voice deftlyweaves with the difficult piano andtenor sax improvisations. CliffordBrown’s “Daahoud” gets a newlease on life with “Beloved,” animaginative reworking that hasDonatelli exhibiting some very so-phisticated lyrical gymnastics.

Keezer’s own “Four Walls” isthe setting for another sensitiveDonatelli performance, which is en-hanced by the cello work ofGiovanni Clayton, Sprague’s nylon-string guitar and the organ voicingsof Carlos Del Rosario. Saunderscontributes some very cool mutedtrumpet on a bluesy rendition ofJoni Mitchell’s “Be Cool.” Thewhole band delivers on the magicalsong “Make This City Ours To-night.” J.J. Johnson’s classic “La-

Jazz on CD continued from page 15

DENISE DONATELLIWhat Lies WithinSavant Records

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Some critics reject any attemptto marry the jazz esthetic with theclassical tradition, ignoring the factthat many jazz artists have createdsome of their most memorable workwith orchestral accompaniment, in-cluding Charlie Parker, Stan Getz,George Shearing, Bill Evans andOscar Peterson. Properly arrangedand conducted, the lush backdropcan actually enhance the artist’scontributions.

So it is with Danilo Perez’s“Across the Crystal Sea,” a collec-tion of tunes bearing the trademarkromantic treatment of arranger andconductor Claus Ogerman, bestknown for similar projects with An-tonio Carlos Jobim, Wes Montgom-ery, Diana Krall and the above-men-tioned Getz, Evans and Peterson.Granted, Ogerman’s arrangementsare neither ground-breaking norcomplex, but they are legendary increating an evocative mood overwhich the soloist can soar.

Ogerman himself wrote six ofthe eight pieces, some of which arebased on themes by the likes ofSibelius, De Falla, Rachmaninoffand Massenet. Not to be totallycompromised by the classics, Perezis joined by bassist ChristianMcBride, drummer Lewis Nash andpercussionist Luis Quintero.

Quintero’s bongos introducethe beautiful title track, based on amelody by Hugo Distler. Perez soonputs his unmistakable stamp on theperformance with alternating blockchords and single-note runs.McBride sets up “Rays and Shad-ows” with a repeated bass line, latershifting to a walking rhythm forPerez to play against. “The PurpleCondor” allows the jazz group toflourish with Nash and Quinteromixing up the Latin rhythms,McBride ruminating with agile,funky bass excursions and Perezracing up and down the keys withbreath-taking skill.

Perez carefully spells out themelody of the romantic ballad “If IForget You,” based on aRachmaninoff theme and taken ata very slow tempo. The strings andwoodwinds slowly enter, but Perezremains the center of attention inthis gorgeously realized piece. It isthe strings that soar on “The Sagaof Rita Joe,” as they build the moodfor nearly three minutes beforePerez takes over the theme and fur-ther expands on it in harmonicvariations. Ogerman’s gorgeous“Another Autumn” closes the setwith Perez front and center in amasterful, emotive display, withMcBride contributing some lovelycounterpoint.

Cassandra Wilson lends herhaunting, wispy voice to two tracks.“Lazy Afternoon” is a wonderfulshowcase for her soulful, throatyvocal, even though Perez and com-pany don’t have much to offer here.She also performs “(All of a Sud-

A long-laboring, under-appre-ciated great of the tenor saxophone,Ralph Lalama may finally get hisdue as a leader with “EnergyFields.”

At 57, Lalama has an exten-sive resume going back to the early1980s—usually in the big band con-text of drummer Mel Lewis, theCarnegie Hall Jazz Band and theVanguard Jazz Orchestra—but hehas only a handful of recordingsunder his own name, and this is hisfirst U.S. release.

It’s a dandy. Lalama’s tightquartet also features guitarist JohnHart, bassist Rick Petrone anddrummer Joe Corsello, allowing thetenor plenty of space and plenty ofstrong support in a program largelycomprised of familiar standardsdone in unfamiliar ways.

For example, take “Old Folks,”a funky Hart arrangement that ismiles from the predictably sentimen-tal approach usually taken. Like-wise, Lalama’s arrangement of“Like Someone in Love,” whichtakes its cue from the searching, ad-

ment,” here entitled “This Lament,”closes the recording with a mourn-ful, yet hopeful piano-voice duet.

In a market flooded by aspir-ing—and largely mediocre—vocal-ists, Donatelli easily rises to the top.With two excellent releases (her de-but, “In the Company of Friends,was released in 2005), she is wellon her way to the recognition sheso richly deserves.

den) My Heart Sings,” by HaroldRome. Her voice seems to ride thechord changes as they slowly rise,like a hopeful love. Again, Perezenters late in the tune, but withmagical effect.

DANILO PEREZAcross the Crystal SeaEmArcy Records

Jazz on Disc continued on page 18

RALPH LALAMAEnergy FieldsMight Quinn Productions

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Page 18 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

Trumpeter Kelly Rossum hasfirmly established his reputation sinceleaving his Lincoln, Neb., home forthe Twin Cities, where he has foundcompatible bandmates—pianist BryanNichols, bassist Chris Bates anddrummer J.T. Bates—and a creativeclimate conducive to his sometimesquirky musical proclivities.

The Berman Music Founda-tion brought Rossum to Lincoln for aclub gig in November 2005 and re-viewed his 2004 release, “Renova-tion.”

Rossum draws from the moderntrumpet traditions of Don Cherry andthe great Lester Bowie, especially onthe opening title track. Like Bowie,he uses the muted horn to evoke thevery roots of jazz, while sounding thor-oughly modern. He uses the tech-nique again on the delightful “Mr.Blueberry.”

On “This is Where My Head IsAt,” Rossum begin with a fairly con-ventional melody line on the open horn,before turning it over to Nichols foran extended foray. Rossum returnswith a noticeable increase in intensity,aided and abetted by J.T. Bates, whocomes on like Tony Williams backingMiles.

The standard “Pure Imagination”is turned every which way but loose,with Rossum first stating the themethen leading the band through a wittydeconstruction that, indeed, displaysan abundance of imagination. Nichols’“A Word from Our Sponsors” gallops

Guitarist Dave Stryker and saxo-phonist Steve Slagle continue their runof inspired collaborations on the ZohoMusic label with “The Scene,” whichcontains the usual demanding originalcompositions—four by each of thetwo leaders—and flawless execution.

On their fourth CD as co-lead-

along with abandon before conclud-ing suddenly with a perfectly logicalresolution.

There is an appropriate, childlikelilt to “Somebody Come and Play.”Rossum soars on the open horn, withNichols providing lovely accompani-ment and a breezy, relaxed solo. “In-terlude” is a hauntingly beautiful,Nichols-penned ballad that providesa perfect vehicle for a more conven-tional, vibratoless playing style.

Frank Loesser’s “If I Were aBell” gets the full Rossum treatment,eight minutes of fascinating twists andturns on a familiar theme. The trum-peter employs the whole range of hisinstrument, ringing the changes withconfidence. Nichols cleverly impliesthe melody while reaching for unex-pected variations. As always, theBates brothers provide a solid rhyth-mic foundation.

Returning to the muted horn,Rossum evokes Miles Davis on theballad “After the Snow.” A brief re-prise of the titular “Family” themerounds out this very satisfying record-ing by one of the most original trum-peters on the scene today.

venturous style and fat tone ofSonny Rollins, even as it retains itsconventional ballad tempo.

The highly accelerated “Just inTime” segues from a brief tenorintro to a bass interlude and back totenor, then to an inspired Hart soloand a powerful flurry of percussionby Corsello.

Perhaps Victor Herbert’s “In-dian Summer” and Alec Wilder’s“Blackberry Winter” get the mostconventional readings simply be-cause they are great melodies thatrequire no embellishment. Nonethe-less, Lalama delivers imaginativetenor statements on the mid-tempo“Indian Summer” and the balladreading of “Blackberry Winter.”Hart also contributes sensitive, well-thought-out solos on both tunes.

Among the lesser-known tunesis the opener, a wonderful renditionof Woody Shaw’s “TheMoontrane,” a dynamically chargedcomposition that puts everyonethrough the paces in rapid succes-sion. Charlie Parker’s sly “Buzzy”wends its way through bluesy bopchanges at a blistering tempo thatpushes soloists Hart and Lalama tothe outer limits and provides somenice drum breaks for Corsello.“United” is one of Wayne Shorter’smost interesting tunes. Its dramatic,lilting lines and fast shuffle tempoencourage equally dramatic soloflights by Hart, Lalama andPetrone.

Lalama’s own “Nonchalant” isan irresistible samba that has thesaxophonist front and center, asCorsello contributes some evocativemallet and cymbal work andPetrone keeps the pulse with a re-sounding bass tone.

Here’s hoping that Lalama con-tinues to nurture his solo career hereat home and that domestic labelscontinue to sit up and take notice.

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KELLY ROSSUMFamily612 Sides

THE STRYKER/SLAGLE BANDThe SceneZoho Music

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ers, Stryker and Slagle are joined byold friends and bandmates Jay Ander-son on bass and Victor Lewis ondrums, and tenor saxophonist JoeLovano returns as a special guest onfour of the nine tracks.

Typically, Slagle’s funky opener,“Skee,” has everyone playing at thetop of their game. Lovano seems es-pecially intrigued by the changes, ashe merrily improvises on them.Stryker’s skittering guitar solo ispunctuated with breathtaking runs andimaginative chords. Anderson andLewis are the epitome of cool rhyth-mic intensity.

The title track is a Stryker origi-nal with a swinging theme on whichthe guitarist weaves his magic. Slagledelivers a spiraling alto solo, followedby an elegant Anderson bass solo.“Six Four Teo” teams Lovano andSlagle in unison as Stryker builds themomentum with interesting rhythmchords. The tune’s 6/4 time signatureis an excellent vehicle for Lewis’crackling trap work.

Lewis again excels on the whim-sical, but difficult “Two Sense.” Itsstop-and-start nature keeps everyoneon his toes. “Kindred Spirits” is an-other lovely Stryker compositionsomewhat in the breezy style of PatMetheny, with Slagle on alto againstthe composer’s ringing rhythm guitar.Stryker’s solo soars in joyous aban-don.

Slagle’s sad ballad “Hopewell’sLast” is an intricate composition bril-liantly pairing Lovano’s tenor with thecomposer’s mournful soprano sax. Itis dedicated to Slagle’s late brother,Stuart. After this heart-wrenching trib-ute, Stryker’s uplifting “BrighterDays” is made to order, and it deliv-ers with swinging gusto as Lovanomakes his final appearance on thesession.

Rahsaan Roland Kirk’s haunt-ingly beautiful “Fingers in the Wind”is a most interesting choice, and itworks beautifully as a duet with

Slagle on flute and Stryker on acous-tic guitar. Slagle’s breathy, percussiveperformance is in keeping with Kirk’sinnovative technique and seekingspirit. The genesis of “Strikology” isevident in its closer’s title. It’s anuptempo affair that puts the guitaristfirmly in the driver’s seat.

We heartily recommend that youmake “The Scene.” To make it is todig it.

At 34, saxophonist Melvin Smithis deserving of more recognition. TheJacksonville, Fla., native is an excel-lent composer and interpreter with abroad range of stylistic influences andenough technique on alto, soprano andtenor horns to make “I Surrender All,”his second release as a leader, a veryenjoyable listening experience.

Smith brings a warmth and asense of spirituality to everything hedoes, from the gospel roots of the titletrack to the playful funkiness of“Burgoyne Dr.,” named for the streeton which he grew up, to the heart-felt tribute “Mom and Pop,” a litheand lilting waltz performed to perfec-tion by Smith on tenor sax.

The uptempo, uplifting “We ShallNot Be Moved / Firm Roots (For Dr.King)” has its obvious inspiration inthe ongoing struggle to realize Dr.Martin Luther King’s dream of racialequality. The civil rights anthemmeshes well with “Firm Roots,” amodern standard by pianist CedarWalton. “Speak to My Heart” is a

lovely melody, with trumpeter ReggiePittman and trombonist AndreMurcheson adding harmonic depth.

Smith returns to the subject offamily with his composition “BabySister,” a surging Latin tune with somevery nice piano work by Steve Leeand a trumpet solo by Pittman. Thebluesy piano of Gregory Royals is amarvelous foil for Smith’s saxophoneon a unique duo arrangement of“Amazing Grace.”

Bobby Watson’s great tune “InCase You Missed It” is wisely cho-sen as a vehicle for Smith’s rapid-firealso sax improvisations, with accom-paniment by Lee, bassist Lino C.Gomez and drummer Sam Knight. On“The Joy of the Lord,” Smith and com-pany express the joy inherent in thetitle, with a

But it is the closer, HoraceSilver’s classic “Peace,” that standsout in Smith’s thorough exploration ofthe beautiful changes and all the emo-tional and spiritual ramifications of thepiece. On alto sax, he again pairs offwith a pianist—this time HubertEaves III—to create a profound mu-sical dialogue.

After a slight pause, it is followedby an extended tenor sax workoutwith references to “Softly, as in AMorning Sunrise” and backed only bybass and drums. Herein, Smith payshomage to Coltrane, Rollins, JoeHenderson and other masters of thetenor sax who are among his appar-ent influences.

Smith explains his very personalmusical intentions in the liner notes:

“As one grows, a certain levelof self-introspection must take place.It is my pleasure to present to you,the listener, the fruit of my journey.”

With “I Surrender All,” he hasfulfilled those intentions admirably,and the artistic fruits are sweet, in-deed.

For more details on “I Surren-der All” and his first CD, 2007’s “Por-trait,” visit www.melvinsmithsax.com.

MELVIN SMITHI Surrender AllMGS Music

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Page 20 Berman Music Foundation Jazz

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How can you help the foundation?

The Berman Music Foundation is a non-profit, tax-exempt,501(c)(3) private foundation, and your tax-deductible donationwill help offset the costs of this newsletter and its programs.

____$ 10 ____$ 25 ____$ 50____$100 ____$250 ____OtherName____________________________________Address__________________________________City_____________________________________State_______________Zip___________________Phone___________________________________Fax _____________________________________E-mail____________________________________

Make check payable to Berman Music Foundation at:Berman Music Foundation719 P St., Studio C-1Lincoln, NE 68508

Thanks for supporting jazz!

Berman Music FoundationButch Berman Charitable Music Foundation719 P St., Suite C-1Lincoln, NE 68508

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Being an extremely generous man, Butch Berman lovedChristmas, both the giving and the receiving. This photo ofButch in a Santa hat was taken sometime in 2007. He ismissed by all his friends and family during this holidayseason. In his absence, we wish you all a very MerryChristmas and a happy and peaceful New Year.

From the Archives

Berman Music Foundationwishes you joy and peace

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