Winter-2010 Newsletter

Hello friends;

Winter has fully arrived and with it some great losses. First, my good friend James Moody passed away on December 9, 2010 of pancreatic cancer. He had been diagnosed earlier this year and underwent surgery which resulted in a gall bladder infection which kept him in the hospital for eight weeks. He was about to embark on a tour of gigs celebrating his 85th birthday this year. Only his closest friends and family knew of the disease until recently when it was publicly disclosed that he would not undergo chemotherapy or radiation and was happy and comfortable living out his days at home with his loving wife Linda. It's always sad when one of the truly great musician/humanitarians pass but it's especially difficult for me as we had become good friends and hung out often, sometimes working on flute or performing at the Holly wood Bowl for the Benny Carter Centennial. One time I caught him was at Yoshi's with Kenny Burrell. My wife Catey and I went there on my birthday (39th of course :) and I happened to mention this to Moody. Lo and behold he came out on the next set and sang Happy Birthday to me accapella. Needless to say, I was floored. Celebration of the Life of James Moody will be held at Faith Chapel, 9400 Campo Road, Spring Valley, CA, 91977-1202, 619-461 7451 at 2 pm. The services are open to the public.

In lieu of flowers the family asks that donations be made to:
CFNJ/ James Moody Jazz Scholarship Fund for Newark Youth
Post Office Box 338
Morristown, New Jersey  07963-0338

Another bebop icon, Bishop Norman Williams passed away on December 8, 2010 in Kansas City after a bout with pneumonia. He was an icon of the San Francisco jazz scene and mentored countless musicians during his life. The Bishop was around San Francisco in the early '60's and presided over sessions at Bop City and elsewhere. Always ready to challenge the musicians, he was known for calling for everyone to play a chorus of Cherokee in all 12 keys. Bassists, drummers and piano players would drop in and out as all of the horn soloists struggled through this ritual by fire. That was the real jazz school. We will miss you Bishop.

It's been a very interesting second half of the year with a number of wonderful and unexpected surprises. In June, I was contacted by a former student from my Novato Jazz Program, Jeff Yen. Jeff was one of the best young musicians I had ever encountered. He played excellent trombone and piano. I worked with him for six years from Sinaloa Middle School through his graduation at San Marin High. He participated in many of my Jazz Workshops and I eventually instructed him in harmony, composition and arranging. He became so proficient, I used to take him on professional engagements. After he graduated high school, he temporarily relocated to Los Angeles but was not happy with the programs there. He sent a demo of his compositions to a Taiwanese record company where his parents were from. He struck a deal and put out a pop album that scored highly on the Asian pop charts. His best friend Tim Carr, a fine drummer from my program, called and said Jeff wanted me to come to Taiwan for his first major concert. He requested a three piece horn section and twelve arrangements of the music he wanted to perform. I chose Joel Behrman and Louis Fasman from my big band (the Fugahwee Horns as in "where the Fugahwee?"), negotiated the deal with his record company and, lo and behold, we went to Kuala Lampur, Malaysia to rehearse for two days and then on to Taipei to perform for 4,000 very happy fans. The big surprise for me was that Jeff had turned out to be a fine pop vocalist and composer, not to mention being swarmed by 16 year old girls coming out of the venue.

For more photos, click here.

In August, I played during the San Jose Jazz Festival with my quartet at the San Jose Fairmont. I was hired by the musical director of the hotel not the festival. Me, Art Khu on piano, John Schifflet on bass and Akira Tana on drums were burning away in the lobby of the Fairmont while festival goers were wandering around. I called it our anti-festival gig. Maybe they will have the sense to ask us us to perform for the festival next year.

Later in August, Pete Douglas brought me back to the Douglas Beach House, A.K.A. The Bach Dynamite and Dancing Society for my zillionth gig there. I had never brought my big band there before but may have performed in the old house with the Don Piestrup Band back in the '60s. (or maybe that was my father :). Anyway, we added our favorite big band vocalist the great Jamie Davis and brought the full house down. The roots of the band began in the early ‘nineties when I was contacted by such jazz greats as Benny Carter, Dizzy Gillespie, McCoy Tyner, Charles Mingus’ Epitaph and Joe Henderson to help them put together high-level big bands for Bay Area performances at venues such as Davies Symphony Hall, Kimball’s, Filoli Gardens, Yoshi’s and the San Francisco Jazz Festival. These experiences were the seeds of what has become a truly all-star ensemble. The new band features Bay Area multi-generational jazz stars Dayna Stephens and Charlie McCarthy on tenors, Andrew Speight and Pete Yellin on altos and Howard Cespedes on baritone saxophones & flute, Mike Olmos, John Worley, Lou Fasman and Erik Jekabson trumpets, Rick Walsh, Al Bent, Joel Behrman and Chuck Bennett on trombones and pianist Art Khu, bassist Robb Fisher, and drummer Jeff Marrs. The band has performed sold-out engagements at The Russian River Jazz Festival, The Filoli Summer Series, Jazz at Pearl’s and Yoshi’s.  

Click here for more photos by some of my favorite photogs: Peter Buranzon, Chuck Gee and Carin Ward.

In September, I performed with the THE MEL MARTIN BAND at The Oakland City Center presented by my good friend Natasha Miller and Entire Productions. featuring Art Khu - piano, Brad Buethe - guitar, Robb Fisher - bass and Jeff Marrs - drums. It was great playing for the Oakland residents gathered together for the free concert where we played a lot of the music from our CD "Where The Warm Winds Blow".

Click here for more pics

I was invited to Hot Springs, Arkansas by my old friend pianist Clyde Pound to perform with Scott Whitfield, Rufus Reid, Steve Masakowski, Shirley Chauvin and others for The Hot Springs Jazz Festival on September 18. It was really a fun trip to an area that I had never visited before with a long and varied history. It was said that Al Capone and many luminaries used to visit the springs there for revitalization. I tried it and it was nice! Here's a YouTube link for some video of the jams.

After the festival, I rented a car and drove from Hot Springs to Kansas city for a Masterclass at The University of Missouri @ Kansas City Conservatory which is run by my good friend the great Bobby Watson. Having arrived a day early, Bobby gave me the VIP tour of the Vine Street area where we saw the statue of Charlie Parker, the Jazz Museum, The Musician's Union and The Blue Room Jazz club. Of course, no trip to KC is complete with out a trip to Gates BBQ where we downed a pitcher of beer and a bunch of BBQ' d chicken. The next day, I worked with the great band that Bobby had recently used in his newest recording project, titled "The Gates BBQ Suite." It was a fun and rewarding experience.

Click here for more pics

In October, THE MEL MARTIN ALL-STAR BIG BAND appeared at YOSHI'S - Oakland. This time, we were a bit better rehearsed (read...a whole lot) and we performed a straight up instrumental set at the West Coast's premiere Jazz club. It was recorded live by Dr. Lee Brenkman for later broadcast on Jim Bennett's "In the Moment" on KCSM which will take place on Sunday, December 19 at 8PM Please tune in on the web or your radio as it was a smokin' set featuring many Bay Area greats.

Here's hoping everyone has a great Holiday next week and an even better New Year coming up.

Here's a YouTube Vid from the concert:

 

Upcoming events

Sunday Evening, December 19, 2010 - Broadcast of THE MEL MARTIN ALL-STAR BIG BAND at Yoshi's-Oakland Oct. 5 on "In The Moment"

Jim Bennett's show In the Moment" will be presenting the broadcast of our outstanding show at Yoshi's - Oakland on Oct. 5. It was a great gig with the multi-generational group of Bay Area stars. Please check it out. KCSM.ORG or 91.4 on the FM Dial

January 6-8, MEL MARTIN Masterclass on The Art of Tone (Developing a Personal Sound) @The 2nd Annual JEN Conference: New Orleans, LA at the Historic Roosevelt Hotel Time 2:30PM

I hope to see many of you educators and festival presenters at the conference. I will be either at The D'Addario (Rico Reeds) booth , The Conn-SelmerBooth or the late night night jam sessions. Please say hi and let's talk about doing a concert, clinic, residency or whatever. See you there!

Examiner"Full of marvelous moments that guarantee the pleasure of any jazz fans. A must-have item."
Jazz Station- ARNALDO DESOUTEIRO'S Blog Jazz, Bossa and Beyond

| "This new release by multi-reed player Mel Martin is a sonic delight."
Bob Bernotas - Just Jazz Newsletter

"This is gritty, driving music from a high-octane performer who has been delivering the goods for many years."
Ted Goia - Jazz.com

"Never content to rest on his laurels, Mel brings a wide variety of jazz stylings to this release."
Jeff Krow - Audiophile Audition

"While this CD resists easy classification, it is among the most compelling recordings that Mel Martin has made during his entire career." - Ken Dryden, Billboard

"Martin’s a master of phrasing and a meticulous melody maker."
George Fendel - Jazz Society of Oregon

Reviews: Jazz.com, Audiophile Audition, Billboard, Jazz Society of Oregon

It is quite different from anything I've recorded since the early '90s and is reminiscent in ways to my early Listen recordings but with much more of a jazz slant. It was recorded in July when the great jazz pianist Don Friedman came out from New York to do a California tour with my group including guitarist Brad Buethe, bassist Robb Fisher and drummer extrordinaire Jeff Marrs. Besides Don, special guests include John Santos on percussion and Barry Finnerty on guitar. The repertoire is broad and varied from the Latin-tinged Rhythm Man (Do Not Disturb) to the contemporary classical piece with a jazz breakout In The Stars by Stephen Melillo, I Have A Dream by the great Herbie Hancock including my adaptation for woodwinds of his original horn arrangement, the funky, Bitches Brew style of Silly Hawk Walk, a beautiful live version of Blue In Green, George Russell's inventive take on Love For Sale: Ezz-Thetic, The great Benny Carter composition Where The Warm Winds Blow, my personal tribute in 6/8 to my lovely wife Catey: To Catey With Love, and the chestnut Victor Young composition Weaver of Dreams. On many of the pieces, I overdubbed special woodwind arrangements appropriate to the particular composition or just featured the sextet and quartet. I'm very excited about getting it out there and hope that you will enjoy it.