[Dixielandjazz] Philly Jazz at Lincoln Center.

[Steve barbone]

This is a brag post about Philly Jazz. Some OKOM mention via Joe Venuti and
Eddie Lang, but mostly just about Philly Jazz at Lincoln Center. There is a
lot of jazz here. But, please delete now if not interested in that.

Cheers,
Steve

Jazz Review | City of Brotherly Jazz

New York Welcomes Some Loose and Limber All-Stars From Philly

NEW YOPRK TIMES - By NATE CHINEN - March 14, 2006

There are a few things that every jazz fan should know about Philadelphia.
First, it's "Philly" to all parties involved. Second, as a modern jazz town
it takes a backseat only to New York. Third, it cedes that dominance with a
certain degree of angst, like an accomplished but overshadowed younger
brother. 

Brotherhood was, in fact, a major theme in Jazz at Lincoln Center's tribute
to Philadelphia on Friday and Saturday night at the Rose Theater. The
concert's title was "City of Brotherly Jazz," a slogan that functioned on
multiple levels. In addition to the obvious play on words, it underscored
the presence of the saxophonist Jimmy Heath and the drummer Albert (Tootie)
Heath, members of one of jazz's best-known fraternal orders. (Their older
brother, the bassist Percy Heath, died last year.) More subtly, it
acknowledged the pedigree of the trumpeter Duane Eubanks, whose two older
brothers are prominent jazz musicians, and of the Hammond B-3 organist Joey
DeFrancesco, who also has a brother in the trade.

That background was hardly necessary to appreciate what amounted to a loose
and limber all-star session, with Philly as the unifying thread. In addition
to the Heaths, Mr. DeFrancesco and Mr. Eubanks, it featured the guitarist
Pat Martino and the bassist Buster Williams. The program consisted of songs
either written by Philadelphians or associated with the city, including four
by Jimmy Heath. 

Philly's jazz legacy encompasses early swing, via the violinist Joe Venuti
and the guitarist Eddie Lang; the avant-garde, by way of Sun Ra and Archie
Shepp; and electric jazz-rock, thanks to trailblazers like Mr. Martino. But
the city made its biggest impact with soulful hard bop, and that was the
concert's prevailing sound.

On Friday there were two songs by Lee Morgan and one apiece by Bobby Timmons
and Benny Golson. (Together with the bassist Jymie Merritt, they were
members of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers in the late 1950's, comprising an
influential iteration of the band that was all Philadelphian, besides
Pittsburgh-reared Blakey.) There were also two compositions by John
Coltrane, the saxophonist Philly claims as a favorite son.

Jimmy Heath, a Coltrane contemporary, prefaced one of those by declaring
that "it ranks with any other piece of music ever written." The tune was
"Naima," a ballad, and the ensemble handled it with care: Mr. Heath and Mr.
Eubanks played the melody in a pristine unison before separately soloing
with restraint. Mr. Martino, taking his turn, raised the stakes: with a
trail of shimmering arpeggios, he sought a delicate but riveting
pointillism. Mr. DeFrancesco, picking up his lead, went for a brilliantly
cascading lyricism that was true to Coltrane in all regards.

Mr. Martino and Mr. DeFrancesco were the evening's standout soloists; each
struck a balance between dazzling technique and bluesy discretion. One of
the concert's best performances featured them in trio with Tootie Heath, on
an ambling minor-key theme by Cal Massey called "These Are Soulful Days."

But that was only the second most Philadelphian moment in the concert. The
first was an appearance by the singer known as T. C. III, son of the
organist Trudy Pitts and the drummer Bill Carney. T. C.'s warbling baritone
fell short of the standards of the occasion, but the band seemed not to
mind; sometimes, that's just how brothers are.