Marvin Gaye - What's going on

A familiar figure standing in the rain, with a face touched by some kind of faint gladness and hope. Who is that? First, they didn't want to release the album, someone also considered it as "the worst record I ever heard". Now it's history.

Marvin Gaye's What's going on became a real hit, and this is the starting melody of this album. With the background conversations and dense vocals it's very vivid, full of emotions, and louder than the concert version. In that video, this song and the next, What's happening brother are played together in one track, connecting them very well with a contemplative part, by a monotonic drum pattern and an interesting piano solo. On the album, many songs are connected, there aren't any pauses between them, so it's a longer, painful lament about the actual world (1971) and the possible future. Fully emotional and well arranged. Save the children is a good example for the hopeless future: the declarative short words, and after that the longly singing powerless repeats can fascinate the listener easily. The genre "soul" is a good word for it, because it can really reach our soul while listening to it... listening to feelings about love, hope, passing by - a flow of music, which gets to the peak with the last song, Inner city blues (make me wanna holler) by a more serious atmosphere, and a little bit monotonic mood. For the end, there's a great reprise of What's going on, in a more silent, celebrational way to create a frame for the album.

There are some milestones in music. Nobody would have expected it, or wonder about it, they had just come, and continued writing the music history. What's going on also wrote a paragraph in that big, "never-wants-to-be-finished" book.

(from Save the children):

There'll come a time, when the world won't be singin'.
Flowers won't grow, bells won't be ringin'.

Inner city blues:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeWF0LC3R2o

Save the children (from ~3:00):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLSBB8EpyVg

What's going on / What's happening brother

Genesis - Wind & wuthering

For a long time I have believed that Genesis was only good when Peter Gabriel was the band leader and singer. They were so unique and full of energy, and listening to records which were made later, I didn't find them interesting at all. But it seems to be that there are expectations, for example Wind & wuthering from 1977.

It's less forceful but more melancholic than the earlier albums, maybe (amongst several reasons) because Phil Collins' softer voice. Peter Gabriel's was very energic, he sometimes shouted, creating a strong atmosphere. I miss it.
Fortunately they have again those very cool kind of melodies. The best example for this is the second track, my favourite, the tipical progressive-structured One for the vine. Starting with the nice melody and soft singing, we can foretell that something very good's coming. And yes, the feelings get stronger, and everything gets silent, until 4:44 where the fast part of the song starts. One of the best melodies I've ever heard is the very energic part at 5:31. Later, in Wot gorilla, we meet another version of this melody again. Beside this harder feeling, there are also soft things on the album. For example the nice light song, Your own special way, or the ambient-feeling 'Unquiet slumbers for the sleepers... It's good to hear again the advantages of progressive rock, the always-changing moods and many types of musical parts, flowing into each other.

So the album is varicoloured. Like its cover, there's an uncertain but somehow beautiful mood in it.

One for the vine (part):


One for the vine live:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2M3fpA0Fjw

Your own special way live:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdLigj_XJTE

Anniversary of John Coltrane's birth with Naima

Today, it's an important day because of two things: usually it's the day of the autumnal equinox (but now in 2009 it's the 22th), and it's 83 years ago the same day when the jazz-giant saxophonist, John Coltrane was born. He was stepping ahead on one way, but he got very far on it. I often wonder what would be if he didn't die at age 40 - did he get more far? And can somebody get more far?

Let's remember him with a beautiful ballad written for his wife, Naima, by the classic Coltrane quartet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ywkpVJ624

Few days at the weekend house... Kuupuu - Unilintu

"Where's the frontier between music and noise?" is an always coming-back question in my mind, and this album, Unilintu from 2007 by the Finnish Kuupuu is a good topic about it. It's something very new, very brave, and very experimental, which result is a meandering noise-mass with some sometimes-appearing music. And we can talk about rhythm, too, a special kind of rhythm, a rhythm made of sounds and vocal elements. From using natural sounds to distorted instruments, the whole atmosphere is unique. Kuupuu's strange and often dissonant vocals / childish singings are beautiful, and scary - at the same time.

I was in the weekend house the last two days, and in the night yesterday it was a perfect choice to upload myself spiritually. Because this album needs solitude and silence - and silence is an important word on the album, too, because the songs sometimes just crawl out from the silence. Listening to it the following thoughts came to my mind: Is this what we achieved in music? How can somebody make such extreme music? And, as the best song on the album, Myrskylaulu got to its end, I walked out to the terrace, then down in the garden, to look up and watch the early-autumn night sky, with the uncertain chill of it. Later, when Lohtulaulu started, with its mentioned scary dissonant voices, I need to go back inside the house, because the atmosphere was getting to be unpleasant. These voices seem to be coming from eternity, or beyond death, or maybe from the long, long past. Maybe it's a Finnish folk song or nursery rhyme, I don't know, but that's the best, when I don't know much about it, it's more exciting and unique. There's many more notable moments on the album, for example the song Mustaruhtinaan laulu which sound is very similar to some nose-trumpeters' sound, maybe it's that.

Chilly autumn nights in solitude? Try it.

Visit her on Myspace: www.myspace.com/kuupuu

Visit her official website: http://www.lurtta.com/

Lohtulaulu:

Al Di Meola - Elegant gypsy

The first meeting with Al Di Meola was very pleasant, because I've heard his name a lot of times before (Return to forever...) but I haven't known anything about the music. So if you see some unknown cds at home, let's take a try, you wouldn't know, perhaps that will be your favourite music.

Maybe his most famous album, Elegant gypsy from 1977 is a cool place where Di Meola can prove his virtuose talent. His instrument, the electric guitar has a very easy abilitiy to create harder, wilder things. Fortunately, he don't exaggerate this, only does when it's needed, at emphasized parts - and if we reached this topic, the whole arrangement is very good and logic. So Meola can be soft and also wild with his guitar. Starting with Flight over Rio in a mood which matches to the title, the album gets a harder intro, but in the second track, which is my favourite, Midnight tango, he gets more silent and the guitar and electric piano make a special beautiful atmosphere. But it seems to be that he's the kind of musician who likes progressivity in music, a good example for this is in Midnight tango at 2:31. I like those wild virtouse circles with the guitar very much. Later at a point he shifts to acoustic guitar and play a beautiful song, Mediterranean Sundance, which has got very famous. With its mediterranean mood and energic guitar sounding can take a real effect on us.

Watch its live performance by him, Paco de Lucia and John McLaughlin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cadbYIzhqQ

(there are many more versions of it)

Midnight tango:

And an interesting thing: when I first heard the bass melody in Flight over Rio from ... I immediately remembered one of my old favourites, a Hungarian electronic band, called The Carbonfools, and the song Ushanka. You can listen to it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lgcthUTWX4

Inland empire & Sinnerman

This is the first post with the label: film and music (where good films and good music meet).

It's the movie Inland empire, directed by David Lynch in 2006. Now, I would keep the analysis of it for film experts and real fans, but to sum up, it's an extremity. Extremity by maybe every part of it. At a point I don't care about the storyline yet (if we can talk about it), I was just fascinated by the pictures. Let's get fascinated you too, if you dare, or if you are in a very special mood, with its almost 3 hours length. And in the ending scene, and behind the cast information, with well-known song of Nina Simone, Sinnerman, full of energy. Its original version can be found on the album Pastel blues, a little bit more than 10 minutes of pure enjoyment. We can also hear a remix version of it in the film.

Watch the final scene:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I--LvUEWADo

Sinnerman by Nina Simone:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6_BWNzThJY

Listen to Four women, which is also by Nina Simone.

Sophie Zelmani - Love affair

The softest and most fragile singing voice I've ever heard is Sophie Zelmani's. She's a Swedish singer-songwriter, and kept to be one of the world's shiest stars. After releasing her first album, she claimed that she won't give any interviews or concerts. Of course, things happened differently.

Love affair from 2003, with an autumn-feeling cool photograph cover, is a sensitive, beautiful and melancholic world. And sometimes it isn't happy and isn't sad, just something between these. September tears, the first song, like an intro introduces us this kind of music where the feelings are the most important. The pleasant acoustic arrangement is perfectly matched to Sophie's thin voice in the whole album, and because of that it isn't a loud music, we can hear clearly the little parts of her voice. Sometimes these little parts make the whole music unique. It's interesting that her voice can be serious and strict in Truth, but the softest in Fade, which is the most silent song on the album. My favourite is To know you, listen to it below.

When you happen to be emotional in September, choose this one.

Visit her website:
http://www.sophie-zelmani.com/

To know you:

Cannonball Adderley - Somethin' else

Let me introduce you one of the 25 best Blue Note albums, and also the album on which we can hear the best performance of the standard, Autumn leaves. It's always exciting when the biggest names work together: a historic event, and probably the result will be unrepeatable. Now the big names are: Miles Davis (trumpet), Cannonball Adderley (alto saxophone), Art Blakey (drums), Hank Jones (piano) and Sam Jones (bass).

I often think about the word perfection, especially in music. Can we talk about it? Does a perfect performance exist of a standard? I don't know, but listening to Autumn leaves on this album, I feel the perfection. Everything is on its right place, in a right mood, in a right rhythm, and so on. They don't just play at the same time, they play together, and feel each other. And there's enough place for the parts, they don't make it too fast, which is very positive. Starting with Miles' clear, dry trumpet voice, the contrast will be Cannonball's warmer and lighter saxophone melody. In the whole track, Art Blakey stays in the background, just to create an even more softer atmosphere for this standard. And in the end, we can hear Hank Jones' beautiful piano solo. After the main theme, everything get silent, and the piano cries its monologue, to start the introducing theme again, which leads us out of the song.

But don't think that it's an outstanding album just because of this track: listen to Love for sale, for example, with its nice delight and cool rhythm. I always say in myself that cool music = cool melody in cool rhythm - to make it simple, and it seems that they feel it, too. The last track, Allison's uncle is also a story: that day, when they recorded it, Cannonball's brother, Nat Adderley's daughter was born. Its other title is Bangoon. I would praise this record for a longer time, but the main meaning appears by listening to it.

This is a must-hear album for fall. Perfect choice for example in the morning on an autumn day, when you cook in the kitchen, and you hear it from the living room. The early morning autumn sunlight is floating into the room. Personal experience.

Autumn leaves:

Gabor Szabo - Spellbinder

Gabor Szabo (1936 Budapest - 1982 ~), the jazz guitarist comes from Hungary. It's good to feel that his name is as big in jazz as many more American musicians' name.
Now I chose Spellbinder, this attractive album by him for these early-autumn days. Shortly, to sum up this album, I would say: well-known songs translated to a new, light musical language sealed by Szabo's personal style. It seems that he's fond of the Sinatra family and standards, because of the familiar tracklist:

01. Spellbinder
02. Witchcraft
03. It was a very good year
04. Gypsy queen
05. Bang bang (My baby shot me down)
06. Cheetah
07. My foolish heart
08. Yearning
09. Autumn leaves / Speak to me of love

From the original liner notes:
In a conversation concerning this album, Gabor added: "I never intend to sit down and play music that's bad or commercial; but on the other hand, I do not intend to stop playing tunes I like - wherever they come from - just to fit in with whatever is 'avant-garde' and 'in' that moment. These are all songs to which I'm attracted, and so long as the results are aesthetically satisfying to me, I don't care whether some rule maker thinks they're not 'proper' to jazz. After all, music is - or should be - self expression."

His guitar voice is unique and friendly, and compatible with a wide range of moods. I use the word friendly, because there are some kinds of music which you hear and think it's nice, it comes from the heart, and totally honest. You feel it friendly. And, to see the compatibility, just listen to the nice sounds of Witchcraft, and after that, the more serious and deeper It was a very good year. If you listen carefully (for ex. at 1:54), you'll hear cool and technical slides in the guitar melody. Unfortunately it's very short, but also very expressive, with its new rhythm by Chico Hamilton's drums and Ron Carter's bass. I also recommend to you Frank Sinatra's version of it, where you can hear the effective lyrics, and strings which almost cry. Later, in Bang bang there's an additive acoustic guitar solo in the melody. They emphasized the "bang-bang" part with the cool rhythm and volume differences, which made an attractive result. Here, we hear Szabo singing, too. His singing voice is clear and simple, perfectly matching to the melody, and there's a little accent in it, or something else, which makes it unique. We can also hear his easy-flowing vocals in that kind later song, Yearning. And in the end, he plays Autumn leaves and Speak to me of love together, as he used to do. This version of Autumn leaves is a good example about how to express something only with one instrument.

It was a very good year:

Autumn leaves

The time has came for this post at last - a post which I've waited for months. It's autumn, and the song, Autumn leaves, the evergreen melody and jazz standard. Written by Joseph Kosma in 1945, lyrics by Jacques Prévert, and American lyrics by Johnny Mercer in 1947. Originally it's a French chanson, titled Les feuilles mortes (The dead leaves).

A song, where beauty meets melancholy, performed it almost a million times, in a million ways.

Some examples:

Autumn leaves on albums:

• Ahmad Jamal - The legendary Okeh & Epic recordings
• Barney Kessel - Autumn leaves
• Ben Webster - There is no greater love
• Bill Evans - Portrait in jazz
• Bobby McFerrin - Play
• Bobby Timmons - In person
• Cannonball Adderley - Somethin' else
• Chet Baker - She was too good to me
• Chick Corea's Akoustic Band - ~
• Clark Terry - Portraits
• Duke Ellington - Indigos
• Erroll Garner - Concert by the sea
• Eva Cassidy - Songbird
• Frank Sinatra - Where are you?
• Gabor Szabo - Spellbinder
• Jacky Terrasson - Smile
• Jim Hall & Ron Carter - Alone together
• Joe Henderson - Four!
• Joe Pass - Unforgettable
• Keith Jarrett Trio - Still live
• McCoy Tyner - Today and tomorrow
• Nat King Cole - The unforgettable Nat King Cole
• Paul Desmond - Summertime
• Sarah Vaughan - Crazy and mixed up
• Stan Getz - The complete Roost recordings
• Steve Kuhn - Pianists on the Sunnyside
• The bird and the bee - Live from Las Vegas at the Palms
• Tierney Sutton - Blue in green
• Wynton Marsalis - Marsalis Standard Time, Vol. 1.
  

Autumn leaves on the Internet, performance by:

• Bill Evans Trio:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRhVI7cpcS4
• Eva Cassidy:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSXYu-3r1S8
• Keith Jarrett Trio:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=io1o1Hwpo8Y
• Les Baxter:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr_Kip2xphM
• Nat King Cole:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gnp58oepHUQ
• Wynton Marsalis and Sarah Vaughan:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZbI2VZF9K8

The chanson, Les feuilles mortes in the performance of

• Yves Montand:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOsVVeojMZs
  

Learn more about it on

http://www.jazzstandards.com/compositions-0/autumnleaves.htm

The falling leaves
Drift by my window
The falling leaves
Of red and gold

I see your lips
The summer kisses
The sunburned hands
I used to hold

Since you went away
The days grow long
And soon I'll hear
Old winter's song

But I miss you most of all
My darling
When autumn leaves
Start to fall

Since you went away
The days grow long
And soon I'll hear
Old winter's song

But I miss you most of all
My darling
When autumn leaves
Start to fall