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Chicago's Jazz Age Melting Pot: Hot Jazz, Boogie Woogie & the Blues
November 19, 2009
In the Twenties, Chicago’s South Side "bright-light" district "The Stroll" was the heart of the jazz scene. Peppered with nightclubs, pool halls, tattoo parlors, and vaudeville houses, it was home to the city’s 100,000 African Americans. During the day, the city was segregated, but at night differences between black and white became somewhat blurred. Chicago nightlife knew no boundaries, and the sound of jazz seemed to seep up out of the sidewalks.
Riverwalk Jazz
November's New & Recommended Jazz CDs by Bob Bernotas, Host of WNTI's Just Jazz
November 3, 2009
November's new CD recommendations: Snow Road, Pieces of Old Sky, Psychedelic Blues, Detroit
National
Fats, Hoagy & W.C.: 20 Years of Riverwalk Jazz
October 29, 2009
Celebrating 20 years on public radio from San Antonio's Pearl Stable, Vernel Bagneris, Topsy Chapman and Shelly Berg join The Jim Cullum Jazz Band and delve into the legacy of three jazz ‘superheroes’ whose work has inspired us—Fats Waller, Hoagy Carmichael—and the blues-driven melodies of W.C. Handy.
Riverwalk Jazz
'Diga Diga Do': Jazz Standards of Jimmy McHugh
October 15, 2009
A cocky go-getter from Irish Boston, Jimmy McHugh had the gift of gab and the charm to go with it. A top 'song-plugger' in the 1920s’ sheet music industry, McHugh would go on to compose some of the most enduring hits of the 20th century—"I Can't Give You Anything but Love," "Don't Blame Me," and more.
Riverwalk Jazz
Stephanie Nilles: Classical Pianist Brings Training to Jazz/Folk Career
October 7, 2009
This year marks From the Top's tenth anniversary in public broadcasting; in celebration, the show is catching up with interesting alumni from past seasons. Emerging jazz/folk artist Stephanie Nilles is this week's alumni profile.
From The Top
I Wish I Were Twins: The Fats Waller Bluebird Sessions
October 1, 2009
Introduced in the middle of the Depression, records on RCA Victor's ‘Bluebird’ label were priced at an affordable 35 cents apiece. Fats Waller's blend of hot, rhythmic piano playing and hi-jinx tomfoolery on hundreds of 78 rpm 'Bluebirds' clicked with the public, and sold in the millions. Fats Waller and his Rhythm was the studio band for his Bluebird Sessions. Waller's genius and wit helped carry the band, enabling them to record as many as ten sides in a single day. Rarely did band members know in advance which tunes they'd be recording. The chaos was all part of the fun-loving spontaneity characterizing the Rhythm's Bluebird recordings.
Riverwalk Jazz
The Rise and Fall of Joe 'King' Oliver
September 24, 2009
King Oliver's contribution to jazz is his leadership of the greatest band to ever play in the New Orleans tradition of the improvised jazz ensemble. "The music itself is really simple folk music," says Jim Cullum. "It was what King Oliver did with it that was remarkable. Louis Armstrong described it as 'fire.' He said, 'no one else had the fire of Joe Oliver.'"
Riverwalk Jazz
Jazz in the spotlight
September 22, 2009
Bill Frisell's creativity on full display, African jazz, Andy Sheppard's long-awaited solo project, and a stunning Art Pepper compilation.
The Christian Science Monitor
'Melancholy Blues': Clarinetist Johnny Dodds
September 10, 2009
A first generation jazzman, clarinet pioneer Johnny Dodds settled in Chicago but never strayed from his New Orleans roots. Dodds' clarinet sound, with its moving low register vibrato and piercing upper register, was a cornerstone of landmark recordings by King Oliver, Jelly Roll Morton and Louis Armstrong.
Riverwalk Jazz
Bill Frisell Scores With Buster Keaton
September 14, 2009
Silent film scores by jazz guitarist Bill Frisell and his trio - Kermit Driscoll and Joey Baron - for three of Buster Keaton’s movies
Paste
A Night at Nick's: Hot Jazz in the Big Apple
September 3, 2009
Nick¹s Steakhouse was revered as ‘the place’ in Greenwich Village to hear hot jazz. Crammed into the smoky room, novelist John Steinbeck and baseball legend Joe DiMaggio sat next to celebrity bank-robber Willie Sutton and 'The Honeymooners' Jackie Gleason listening to Muggsy Spanier, Eddie Condon, Jack Teagarden, and more.
Step Inside Nick's in Greenwich Village - Music, stories and photos at www.riverwalkjazz.org
Riverwalk Jazz
Hank Jones On Piano Jazz With Bill Charlap
August 6, 2009
In celebration of Piano Jazz's 30th anniversary, Marian McPartland asked a few of her favorite musicians to sit in as guest hosts.
NPR
Lil' Ed And The Blues Imperials On Mountain Stage
August 13, 2009
The nephew of slide-guitar legend J.B. Hutto, Lil' Ed Williams's booming voice and signature slide-guitar sound have become staples on the Chicago-area blues scene
NPR
Turk & Lu: West Coast Classic Jazz in Concert
July 23, 2009
They called their music 'The Truth'—real, righteous Traditional Jazz. Its champions were the powerful brassmen, Turk Murphy and Lu Watters. In the 40s, West Coast 'true believers' in Traditional Jazz preached their gospel at the Dawn Club on San Francisco’s Annie Street, a little alleyway near the old Palace Hotel. They held forth at Hambone Kelly’s across the Bay and later at the Hangover Club and Earthquake McGoon’s.
More Photos and Music at www.riverwalkjazz.org
Riverwalk Jazz
'At the Jazz Band Ball:' Jazz Classics Live from Stanford Jazz Workshop
July 16, 2009
Early jazz was dance music. Crowded, noisy, and smoky dance halls, large and small in New Orleans, Chicago and San Francisco's Barbary Coast served as venues where jazz first found its voice in the years after World War I. ‘Jazz’ was coined to describe the insistent, relentlessly peppy quality of this seemingly ragtime-based music out of New Orleans.
Riverwalk Jazz
Rhapsody In Blue: Gershwin At His Greatest
July 3, 2009
Leonard Bernstein does full justice to the still racy and spontaneous score of Rhapsody In Blue in this 1959 recording. As both conductor and pianist, he brings a smoky, sultry jazziness to the piece.
NPR
'Come Rain or Come Shine': Johnny Mercer 100 Years - 1000 Songs
June 25, 2009
Johnny Mercer sometimes seemed to compose his lyrics to the sound of crickets humming on a summer evening or to the rhythm of a distant train. At other moments he'd pick just the right slangy phrase that made his songs popular with jazz artists from Billie Holiday to Duke Ellington. It's a 100th birthday bash for Johnny Mercer.
Riverwalk Jazz
Branford Marsalis: On Jazz Fathers And Sons
June 19, 2009
Saxophonist Branford Marsalis has jazz in his genes. His father is pianist Ellis Marsalis, and all three of his brothers — trumpeter Wynton among them — are jazz musicians. On Fresh Air, he recalls growing up surrounded by music.
NPR
Jazz Daddies: A Father's Day Celebration
June 18, 2009
Like father, like son—or daughter for that matter. With a nod to Father's Day, Riverwalk Jazz lifts a toast to 'Jazz Daddies,' as jazz artists tell us what it means to follow in the footsteps of their music-playing fathers. And The Jim Cullum Jazz Band performs tunes written by jazz-musician fathers for their kids.
Riverwalk Jazz
Lonnie Brooks Sings The Blues
June 8, 2009
Legendary Chicago blues man Lonnie Brooks, along with his son Wayne Brooks, performs a few numbers and talks about the evolution of blues music and what it's like to still perform at age 75. Hear the Brooks play hit tunes, including "Feeling Good Doing Bad," "Sweet Home Chicago," and "Inflation."
NPR
New & Recommended Jazz CDs by Bob Bernotas, Host of WNTI's Just Jazz
June 1, 2009
June's four new CD recommendations: It's Clear, Kenya Revisited Live!!!, AirBass, Mosaic
National
Blues Queen Koko Taylor Dies At 80
June 4, 2009
Her name is synonymous with Chicago blues, and her voice was growling, thunderous and full of soul. Grammy Award-winning blues singer Koko Taylor died in a Chicago hospital Wednesday.
NPR
It Ain't Over Til the Fat Man Swings: The Music of Fats Waller
June 4, 2009
Memorial Day Weekend 1989, Riverwalk Jazz made its national debut. Celebrating twenty years on-the-air, we revisit our first broadcast with thrilling 4-handed, 2-piano arrangements of Fats Waller's great works "The Minor Drag," "A Handful of Keys" and "This Joint is Jumping," with piano legend Dick Hyman.
Riverwalk Jazz
Benny Goodman: Forever The King Of Swing
May 30, 2009
Born 100 years ago Saturday, clarinetist Benny Goodman made jazz a listening concern for folks who thought it was only for the clubs. He was not only an innovative musician, but a forward-thinking bandleader, the first to integrate black musicians on stage with a white band.
NPR
How Benny Goodman Won Over America
May 27, 2009
By 1926, at age 16, Goodman was already a jazz virtuoso. But when he finally hit the big time, ushering in the swing era in the mid-1930s, his arrival converged with a burst of modernity throughout the U.S.
NPR
Swinging the Band: The Pops Foster Story
May 28, 2009
Pops Foster often said, "I'm just another bass player trying to make a living." Yet over a seven-decade career, New Orleans jazzman George ‘Pops’ Foster witnessed a vast panorama of jazz history as his solid bass fiddle playing provided the beat for legends from 'King' Oliver to Charlie Parker.
Riverwalk Jazz
Bach With A Twist Of Afro-Cuban Jazz
May 25, 2009
The new CD Bach in Havana, from the Miami-based Cuban group Tiempo Libre, blends Bach melodies, from pieces such as the Mass in B minor and the Well-Tempered Clavier, with infectious Cuban rhythms including the cha-cha-cha, the son and the danzon.
NPR
Wrap Your Cares in Rhythm: A Concert of Recession-Proof Tunes
May 21, 2009
Hoping the economy perks up? Well, aren't we all. This week, The Jim Cullum Jazz Band "chases the blues away" with a concert of 'recession-proof' tunes tailor-made to lift spirits. Take a break from the Dow, at least for an hour, and "wrap your cares in rhythm and dance your troubles away."
Riverwalk Jazz
New & Recommended Jazz CDs by Bob Bernotas, Host of WNTI's Just Jazz
April 27, 2009
May's new CD recommendations: Class of '68, Relentless, Edge of the Mind, Once Is Not Enough
National
Sheila Jordan: A Unique Voice At 80
May 3, 2009
This year marks the 70th anniversary of Blue Note Records, whose historic roster once included jazz heavyweights Thelonious Monk, Art Blakey and Horace Silver. Singers were a rarity, but Sheila Jordan has outlasted them all. At 80, she still loves nothing better than singing for her fans.
NPR
Remembering Ralph Sutton: Long Way from St. Louis
April 30, 2009
With his knack for improvisation and a left hand that packed a wallop, stride piano genius Ralph Sutton built a career spanning half a century. He was a great ‘two-handed’ piano player, following in the footsteps of Harlem stride giants James P. Johnson, Fats Waller, and Willie ‘the Lion’ Smith.
Riverwalk Jazz
Benny Goodman Swinging at 100: A Centenary Celabration
April 23, 2009
He would have turned 100 this year—the clarinet virtuoso from Chicago who became a central figure of the Swing Era, and popularized the jazz form with a worldwide audience. Honoring the Smithsonian Institution's Jazz Appreciation Month, a gathering of Riverwalk guests celebrate Benny Goodman.
Riverwalk Jazz
Duke Ellington Special - on Just Jazz with Bob Bernotas - Sun., Apr. 19 & 26, 2009
April 14, 2009
Just Jazz Celebrates the 110th Birthday of Duke Ellington
National
Deanna Witkowski: Liturgical Jazz
April 12, 2009
The pianist for the BMI/New York Jazz Composers Orchestra is also a singer and a former musical director at an Episcopal church. Her latest studio album elaborates on familiar jazz forms while embracing sacred texts, including a piece for Easter vespers.
NPR
Marcus Roberts: 'Playing The History Of Jazz'
April 7, 2009
The pianist is a jazz instructor now, but he remains a lifelong student of the music. He visits NPR's performance studio to demonstrate his own approach to the classic tunes of jazz greats, as heard on his new album, New Orleans Meets Harlem, Vol. 1.
NPR
Musician, Educator Joe Baine: Jazz On Public Radio 'Priceless'
March 31, 2009
As a jazz performer and educator for the past 15 years, the impact jazz on public radio has had in my life is priceless.
National
A Night at Brickjtop's: Jazz in 1930s' Montmartre
March 26, 2009
Ada 'Bricktop' Smith played barkeep to the 'Lost Generation' of artists and celebrities in 1930s’ Paris. The red-haired, cigar-smoking American singer made her nightclub all the rage. F. Scott Fitzgerald quipped, "My greatest claim to fame is that I met Bricktop before Cole Porter."
Riverwalk Jazz
Empress of the Blues: The Life & Music of Bessie Smith
March 12, 2009
"Bessie was a queen. I mean, the people looked up to her and worshipped her like she was a queen. ...She was that kind of woman, a strong, beautiful woman with a personality as big as a house." Ruby Walker, niece to Bessie Smith
Riverwalk Jazz
New & Recommended Jazz CDs by Bob Bernotas, Host of WNTI's Just Jazz
March 3, 2009
March's new CD recommendations: Smile, Mosaic, Bossa Nova Stories, Live at the Village Vanguard
National
Monk At Town Hall: Five Decades Of Jazz Lore
March 9, 2009
Fifty years ago, Thelonious Monk stepped onto the stage of New York's Town Hall theater with nine other musicians to perform new arrangements of some of his best-known tunes. The concert has become the stuff of legend. This week, two groups of younger players took the same stage for tribute concerts.
NPR
Shemekia Copeland: The Joy Of Singing Blue
March 1, 2009
Copeland knows the blues, but maintains that singing it doesn't have to be sad. Some of the songs on her new album, Never Going Back, touch on hardship and loss. But she focuses on empowerment instead of wallowing in defeat.
NPR
Terence Blanchard Quintet: Live At The Village Vanguard
February 23, 2009
The New Orleans trumpeter is known as a film composer for Spike Lee, and as a standard-bearer of modern jazz innovation. Fresh off a nationally televised performance at the Grammy Awards, he brings his quintet into lower Manhattan.
NPR
For Nels And Alex Cline, An Avant-Jazz Fraternity
February 19, 2009
The twins, both veterans of rock, improvisation and new music in Southern California, have released new albums simultaneously. And though they don't play on each others' discs, their shared aesthetics date back to the womb.
NPR
Ebony Love Songs: A Valentine’s Celebration of Black Songwriters
February 12, 2009
The 1920s saw an avalanche of songs about romantic love by black composers and lyricists. We celebrate Valentine’s Day and Black History Month with a concert honoring the first black composers to turn out love songs for mainstream America via Broadway, Vaudeville and Tin Pan Alley.
Riverwalk Jazz
Bobby Sanabria: Latin Jazz's West African Roots
February 12, 2009
Latin music would not exist without bongos, congas or timbales — all percussion instruments, all with roots in Africa. Likewise, there wouldn't be Latin music without other African influences, such as syncopation. Latin percussionist, composer and bandleader Bobby Sanabria gives a primer on the close roots that Latin and jazz music share with the sound and soul of West Africa.
NPR
Brother Ray Must Need a Great Sax Section
February 4, 2009
Bob Bernotas, Host of WNTI's Just Jazz, Remembers Three Saxophone Masters
National
Harvey Pekar Makes His Opera Debut
February 5, 2009
Leave Me Alone is a new jazz opera by writer and social commentator Harvey Pekar and saxophonist and composer Dan Plonsey about the future of cutting-edge music and marital discord.
NPR
Skylark: The Music of Hoagy Carmichael
January 29, 2009
Hoagy Carmichael was a law student at Indiana U when his cornet-playing friend, Bix, asked him, “Why don¹t you try writing some music?” By 1930 Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington had hit records with Carmichael tunes like “Georgia on my Mind” and Hoagy would compose dozens of American songbook favorites, including “Star Dust.”
Riverwalk Jazz
Benny Golson Recreates His Great 'Jazztet'
January 30, 2009
He grew up with John Coltrane, gigged with Art Blakey and shared the silver screen with Tom Hanks. Now, on the eve of 80, illustrious saxophonist and jazz composer Benny Golson is re-creating his greatest ensemble: the six-person Jazztet.
NPR
Howard Levy: Reinventing The Harmonica
February 8, 2009
Levy's house in Evanston, Ill., is filled with musical instruments: ocarinas, keyboards, percussion and especially harmonicas. When he was just a teenager, Levy took a regular dime-store harmonica and figured out how to play a full chromatic scale. Today, Levy is still using his instrument of choice to break musical boundaries.
NPR
Swinging on V-Disc: Jazz in WWII
January 23, 2009
Toscanini to Teagarden: V-Discs had something for everyone. And with stars like Basie, Goodman and Armstrong at the mic, GI jazz fans were never disappointed. In World War II, the Army’s V-Disc project provided a monthly ‘care’ package of music specially recorded for troops overseas.
Riverwalk Jazz
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