Jazz 2000

Jazz bagpipes? The one master is Rufus Harley, who does about all that can be done with that unpromising instrument. After all, once one blows a note, the sound is sustained until the air empties out. This well-conceived sampler draws its music from Harley's Atlantic albums (Scotch & Soul, Bagpipe Blues, and Deuces Wild), plus his guest spot on a Herbie Mann album. Harley, who also is heard playing a bit of soprano, tenor, and flute, performs such numbers as "Feeling Good" and "Pipin' the Blues," the latter teaming him with altoist Sonny Stitt. This sampler is worth exploring.

In conjunction with the release of Ken Burns' ten-part, 19-hour epic PBS documentary Jazz, Columbia issued 22 single-disc compilations devoted to jazz's most significant artists, as well as a five-disc historical summary. Since the individual compilations attempt to present balanced overviews of each artist's career, tracks from multiple labels have thankfully been licensed where appropriate. That's especially nice in the case of Billie Holiday, who recorded excellent and essential work for Columbia, Commodore, Decca, and Verve. Since her signature numbers were also spread out over those labels, and since Ken Burns Jazz includes pretty much all of her best-known songs, this makes an excellent introduction and an even better single-disc retrospective.

The newly formed Vertical Jazz Records debuts with an attractive, six-CD series of straightahead trio, quartet and quintet recordings showcasing top West Coast jazz artists, many of whom had never recorded together before. Because these musicians have leaned toward pop-jazz or pursued unidentified studio work, they may surprise you with their stunning straightahead remakes of standards. These sessions, recorded under direction of executive producer/president Suzanne Severini last spring at Ocean Way Recording Studios in Hollywood, prove the label is off to a strong start.

The first disk surveys film music from the thirties and forties; jazz was no longer "jungle music" (i.e., ludicrously termed as "non-white" music), but still "youth-oriented," as the liner notes assert. Off the bat, the best track is most certainly the eighth, Artie Shaw's all-too-brief Nightmare (from MGM's Dancing Co-Ed).

With cooperation from the Verve and Columbia Legacy catalogs, the Ken Burns Jazz series on CD individually spotlights the musical excellence of 22 jazz originators whose careers and influence are explored in Burns' PBS documentary Jazz. Bandleader Fletcher Henderson's ability as a composer and talent scout greatly outweighed his skills as either a pianist or showman. Henderson allowed his musicians to show off their own talents, while he preferred to stay in the background. A number of soon-to-be legends moved through his ranks over the years, including Don Redman, Benny Carter, Ben Webster, Roy Eldridge, Art Blakey, Louis Armstrong, Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Rex Stewart, and even Sun Ra…

The British trio Johnny Hates Jazz had Spandau Ballet's striking attire, clean-cut looks, and knack for smooth, glossy pop songs that were more soulful than the critics gave them credit for. Unfortunately, like Spandau Ballet Johnny Hates Jazz were stigmatized in the U.S. by an omnipresent hit that burned out interest in the group before the rest of their discography had the chance to be heard. Johnny Hates Jazz was formed in 1986 by Clark Datchler (vocals, piano), Calvin Hayes (keyboards), and Mike Nocito (bass). Named after a friend who despised jazz, Johnny Hates Jazz released their first single, "Me and My Foolish Heart," on RAK Records that year. The band searched for a major-label deal, and they were signed by Virgin Records after a gig at, ironically enough, a jazz club near the end of 1986.