Bud Freeman - Eeling his way into the 70s

I would say Bud Freeman is a case where the inverse of the “you can’t see the wood for the trees” saying would be applicable. His incredibly lengthy and extraordinarily consistent recording career, covering sixty years from his first session with McKenzie and Condon’s Chicagoans in 1927 to his final recording as a guest in Mat Matthews And Friends (Audiophile AP-219, from 1986) overshadows the raw quality of each of his discs, his performances and his solos.

The above mentioned consistency stayed up until he was in his 80s, and what follows is a very personal selection of six discs from his last twenty years, with the only common links of being easily available on CD and having relatively unknown or, at least, not star-like rhythm sections and colleague hornmen (one exception to both characteristics is the Bucky Pizzarelli disc). Oh, yes, I know Alex Welsh was an outstanding trumpetist and a well respected institution in the British trad jazz scene, and Howard Alden is a must everywhere there’s a mainstream jazz session, but you know what I mean.

By listening to these discs you’ll discover that his commitment to his own style is present even in his 70s. He developed it in the early-to-mid 30s, as an alternative approach on the tenor to the harder-toned style of Coleman Hawkins and we cannot forget he was a strong influence in Lester Young, though Freeman’s tone has more of an edge than Young’s and though rhythmically there are similarities with the earlier style of Coleman Hawkins. His instantly recognizable convoluted phrasing, his old frantic drive and his trademark licks in the uptempo numbers are still present on these discs, as is his highly personal way of treating ballads, tender but with no sentimentality, and his moderate and intelligent use of vibrato.

Detractors say he had been playing the very same solo since he recorded “The Eel” with Eddie Condon and his Orchestra in 1933. So much the worse for them!

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Podría decirse que a Bud Freeman le sería aplicable el inverso del refrán “los árboles no dejan ver el bosque”. La increíble duración y la extraordinaria consistencia de su carrera en los estudios de grabación durante sesenta años, desde su primera sesión con los Chicagoans de Red McKenzie y Eddie Condon en 1927 hasta su última grabación como invitado en el disco Mat Matthews And Friends (Audiophile AP-219, de 1986) eclipsa la calidad en estado puro de sus discos y sus solos.

Esta consistencia se mantuvo hasta incluso después de cumplidos los ochenta. Aquí se presenta una selección muy personal de seis discos grabados en los veinte últimos años de su carrera, con los únicos vínculos comunes de estar disponibles en CD y de contar con el acompañamiento de músicos no demasiado conocidos (con la excepción, en ambos casos, del disco con Bucky Pizzarelli). Todo ello con el máximo respeto a Alex Welsh, destacado trompetista y toda una institución altamente respetada en la escena del jazz tradicional británico y a Howard Alden, un fichaje obligado en cualquier sesión de jazz mainstream.

Al escuchar estos discos se hace patente que el compromiso de Bud Freeman con su propia forma de tocar el saxo tenor persiste en su vejez. Freeman desarrolló su estilo definitivo en los primeros años 30, como una alternativa al de Coleman Hawkins (de tono más poderoso) y fue una clara influencia en el de Lester Young, aunque el tono de Freeman tiene más aristas y rítmicamente existen ciertas similitudes con el estilo temprano de Hawkins. Su fraseo enrevesado y reconocible al instante, su frenético empuje y sus licks marca de la casa en los tiempos rápidos siguen presentes en estas grabaciones, al igual que su manera muy personal de afrontar las baladas, delicada pero sin caer en sentimentalismos, y su uso moderado e inteligente del vibrato.

Sus detractores le achacan que estuvo tocando el mismo solo desde que grabó “The Eel” con la orquesta de Eddie Condon en 1933. ¡Peor para ellos!

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Bud Freeman With Alex Welsh & His Band (Lake Records, LACD 183)
Recorded at Manchester Sports Guild, June 19, 1966
Bud Freeman (ts); Alex Welsh (t, voc); Roy Williams (tb); John Barnes (cl, bs); Jim Douglas (g); Fred Hunt (p); Ron Matthewson (b); Lennie Hastings (d)

Bud Freeman And The Keith Ingham Trio – Superbud (originally on 77 Records, catalog number S55, reissued on CD on Jazzology JCD-185)
Recorded in London, August 13, 1974
Bud Freeman (ts); Keith Ingham (p); Pete Chapman (b); Johnny Armitage (d)

Bucky Pizzarelli With Bud Freeman – Bucky And Bud (Flying Dutchman BDL1-1378)
Recorded in New York, 1976
Bud Freeman (ts); Bucky Pizzarelli (g); Hank Jones (p); Bob Haggart (b); Ron Traxler (d)

Bud Freeman – The Man. Live In Dublin 1976 (Nagel Heyer 105)
Recorded in Dublin, 1976.
Bud Freeman (ts); Noel Kelehan (p); Jimmy McKay (b); Jack Daly or John Wadham (d)

Bud Freeman – The Dolphin Has A Message (JSP CD882)
Recorded in London, May 1980
Bud Freeman (ts); Brian Lemon (p); Len Skeat (b); John Richardson (d)

Bud Freeman – California Session (Jazzology JCD-277)
Recorded at the Skytrails Restaurant, Van Nuys, California, January 9, 1982
Bud Freeman (ts); Dick Cathcart (t); Betty O’Hara (tb); Bob Reitmeier (cl); Ray Sherman (p); Howard Alden (g); Phil Stephens (b); Nick Fatool (d)

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A bit of Jazz Trivia and a taste of Bud Freeman’s sense of humour:
After trombonist Betty O’Hara soaring solo on “Struttin’ With Some Barbecue” (from California Session), Bud Freeman kissed her on the cheek. Then you can hear him say, “Oh, that’s the first time I’ve ever kissed a trombone player.”

Randy Sandke - Unconventional Wisdom (Arbors, 2008)

A recent email from my friend Fernando Ortiz de Urbina (check his bilingual blog “Easy Does It”) prompted me to revisit Randy Sandke’s latest disc on Arbors, Unconventional Wisdom (Arbors ARCD 19365, from 2008), which was on heavy rotation when I first received it, several months ago.

Randy Sandke is one of those versatile musicians who can play in a wide range of styles. He has deeply studied and mastered the styles of two of his heroes, Bix Beiderbecke and Louis Armstrong, but his approach has always been fresh and very personal. He does not limit himself to traditional jazz or swing trumpet, but goes further than most musicians, having created his own musical theory, “metatonal” music.

Unconventional Wisdom shows Sandke in a small piano-less ensemble: trumpet (or flugelhorn), guitar, bass and drums. This allows him to stretch his playing and to create very close dialogues with the other musicians, all of them very distinguished sidemen. Both drummer John Riley and guitarist Howard Alden, especially the later, have been a permanent presence in the best mainstream recordings for the last twenty years or so. On the other hand, Australian bassist and vocalist Nicki Parrott is the youngest of the pack, though she has made a name for herself in the last years.

The disc has a good balance between Sandke’s originals, including pristine examples of his metatonal theory, such as “Meta Blue”, several standards (two Cole Porters, one Carmichael) and other choices, such as “Chega de Saudade” or Bill Evans’ “Funkallero”.

Forgetting about musical schemes or historical recreations, Randy Sandke is a hell of a trumpet player, and his articulation and phrasing, always fluent and full of swing, are paired with a brilliant tone.

The disc has the additional bonus of having Nicki Parrott on vocals on four tracks. Her mid-range whispering voice is very nice and reminds us of Helen Merrill, though Parrott’s style has a more emphasized nasal accent.

If you want to forget about vanguards and latest fashions and enjoy a really good disc, this may be a must-have for you, as it is for me!

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Gracias a un email de Fernando Ortiz de Urbina [no te pierdas su blog bilingüe “Easy Does It”] he vuelto a pinchar recientemente el último disco del trompetista Randy Sandke para el sello Arbors, Unconventional Wisdom (Arbors ARCD 19365, editado en 2008), que disfruté enormemente al escucharlo la primera vez, hace ya unos meses.

Randy Sandke es un músico todoterreno y un investigador incansable. Su estudio profundo de Bix Beiderbecke y Louis Armstrong le permite recrear a la perfección sus estilos, siempre con un toque personal y un enfoque propio. Sandke no se limita a tocar jazz tradicional y mainstream, sino que va más allá, mucho más lejos que la mayor parte de los músicos, pues ha creado su propio lenguaje, la música “metatonal”.

En Unconventional Wisdom, Sandke emplea un grupo reducido, sin piano: trompeta o fiscorno, guitarra, contrabajo y batería, lo que le permite desarrollar largos solos o dialogar estrechamente con los demás músicos. El elenco que le rodea es magnífico: el batería John Riley y el guitarrista Howard Alden son dos valores seguros, presentes en un gran porcentaje de las mejores sesiones mainstream en los últimos veinte o veinticinco años. Por su parte, la contrabajista y vocalista australiana Nicki Parrott se ha hecho un nombre en la escena del jazz tradicional en los últimos años.

El disco presenta un buen balance entre composiciones propias, incluyendo algún ejemplo de música metatonal, como “Meta Blue”, standards (por ejemplo, dos de Cole Porter y uno de Hoagy Carmichael) y otros temas (“Chega de Saudade”, de Vinicius de Moraes y Antonio Carlos Jobim, o “Funkallero” de Bill Evans).

Aparte de otras consideraciones musicales o historicistas, Randy Sandke es un extraordinario trompetista, con un fraseo fluido y pleno de swing, que acompaña con un tono brillante.

Por otra parte, y como bonus añadido, Nicki Parrott canta en cuatro temas. Su voz susurrante, que se mueve en el registro medio, nos recuerda en cierto modo a la de la gran Helen Merrill, si bien con un mayor acento nasal.

Como conclusión, una recomendación de la casa: si no te preocupa estar a la última y no te obsesiona pertenecer a la última vanguardia, sino sólo disfrutar de un buen disco, yo en tu lugar no me perdería Unconventional Wisdom.