If you’ve checked out the Brands and Horns page here you know there are a lot of options our there to pick from when looking for a horn. Three of the most sought after vintage horns are the Conn 12M, Selmer Mark VI, and Selmer Balanced Action (SBA). Brian Landrus has put together a nice video comparing them – he also includes a Low A in the mix that really demonstrates how the Low A somewhat alters the sound of the whole horn.
The musicians featured in the roundtable discussion were: David Amram, Kenny Berger, Bob Blumenthal, Roger Rosenberg, Dale Fielder, Danny Harrington, Steve Wood, James Hughes, Ken Kellett, Jim Hartog, Rik van den Bergh, Claire Daly, Kevin Goss, Brian Landrus, Cameron Wallis, and Aaron Lington.
Do you want to watch 14 respected baritonists talk about and tell stories about Pepper Adams? Of course you do! Fortunately for all of us Gary Carner has put together such a thing. Gary is the author of the recent Pepper Adams biography Reflectory. Have a watch of the video below, and enjoy!
The musicians featured in the roundtable discussion were: Kenny Berger, Larry Dickson, Gary Smulyan, Glenn Wilson, Frank Griffith, Peter Leitch, John Vana, Andre White, Frank Basile, Shirantha Beddage, Aaron Lington, Jason Marshall, Adam Schroeder, Anders Svanoe.
The biography is currently available in eBook form, with a physical copy perhaps due out in the future. The amazing thing about the eBook format is that it includes inline links to hundreds of recordings relevant to exactly what is being said in the book at that time. Many of these recordings are previously unreleased – thousands of hours of music included here.
Find out even more and buy a copy here:
https://www.pepperadams.com/Reflectory/index.html
I recently was able to have a nice discussion with Gary Carner about the book and also about Pepper Adams. His love and enthusiasm for the great baritonist and this project is clearly evident. I have included the interview below.
Continuing with the recent theme of Pepper Adams (appropriate since his birthday was recently) there are two new transcriptions in the repository thanks to Noah Pettibon! More Pepper Adams news coming soon too.
The first is on the classic Monk blues “Straight, No Chaser” from a live TV broadcast in Sweden, and the second is from the great album “Jazzmen Detroit”. Enjoy them both below!
UPDATE 10/18/2021: Frank’s presentation has been archived and is available on YouTube. See below to watch!
On Sunday, October 17th at 3pm EST Frank Basile will be giving an online presentation on 6 of the most important jazz baritone saxophonists:
Harry Carney, Leo Parker, Cecil Payne, Pepper Adams, Ronnie Cuber, and Gary Smulyan!
In addition to being one of the best baritonists alive, Frank is a great historian and is incredibly well versed in the history and lineage of the baritone saxophone. So this is a great opportunity to see him delve into a topic that he knows more about than almost anyone.
The presentation will be available on the njjs.org website as well as on the NJJS Facebook page and YouTube channel. Attendance is free, but donations are suggested. If you can’t watch it live, it will be archived on njjs.org and the NJJS YouTube channel.
I’ve recently come across several interviews with baritone great, Gary Smulyan, on YouTube. They are not professionally produced, but they are interesting to watch and give a great feel of what Gary is like and how he approaches music. Check them out below!
There has been a page dedicated to Haywood Henry on this site for years, but I finally got around to looking him up and listening a bit. What an under appreciated player! Sound, feel, blowing – all top notch. Do yourself a favor and check out the video below with a short but excellent solo of his:
