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Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting - A History of Jazz
Episodes
Wednesday Aug 05, 2020
Wednesday Aug 05, 2020
Next week's episode will be about the bassist Charlie Haden, who rose to fame in Ornette Coleman's group. In preparation, this week features a selection from his album Liberation Music Orchestra. Enjoy, and check in next week for a full episode about Haden.
Questions? Comments? Requests? E-mail me: WNPMPod@gmail.com
Wednesday Jul 22, 2020
Wednesday Jul 22, 2020
This week's episode is about the music of trumpeter Don Cherry. Cherry is best known for his work alongside Ornette Coleman, pushing the boundaries of freedom in the jazz context. The episode features music from his time in Ornette's band, some of his own work as a leader of some great free music, and a bit of his more world-music tinged offerings.
Questions? Comments? Requests? E-mail me at wnpmpod@gmail.com
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
Next week's episode is going to be about trumpeter Don Cherry. In anticipation of that, and to tie it to last week's episode about Henry Grimes, this episode showcases Cherry's Symphony for Improvisers, which also features Grimes (*and Pharoah Sanders on piccolo, which I left out in the VO... Oops!) . Enjoy and check back next week for the full Don Cherry episode
Wednesday Jul 01, 2020
Wednesday Jul 01, 2020
This week's episode is about the bassist Henry Grimes. Grimes was a Juliard-trained musician, who took an interest in free jazz in the 1960's, who disappeared from the music world for three and a half decades. It features music from his early, conventional playing, from the peak of the free jazz movement, and music he made during his triumphant return in the 2000's.
Questions? Comments? Requests? email me at WNPMPod@gmail.com
Wednesday Jun 24, 2020
Wednesday Jun 24, 2020
On April 15, bassist Henry Grimes passed away. I will have a full episode about his life and music ready for next week. In the meantime, enjoy some of his poetry and a track from Spirits Aloft, his live album with drummer Rashied Ali.
Questions? Comments? Requests? E-mail me: WNPMPod@gmail.com
Wednesday Jun 17, 2020
Wednesday Jun 17, 2020
This week's episode of WNPM is about drummer Jimmy Cobb, who passed away on May 24. It features music from his early days in Earl Bostic's and Dinah Washington's groups to his work with the legendary sextet that recorded Miles Davis' Kind of Blue
Questions? Comments? Requests? E-mail me at WNPMPod@gmail.com
Wednesday Jun 03, 2020
Wednesday Jun 03, 2020
I had heard that John Coltrane's masterful composition Alabama was inspired by Martin Luther King Jr's eulogy for four young girls who were killed by explosives planted under the steps of their church by members of the KKK. The nation's collective outrage at the murder of George Floyd by police got me thinking about Coltrane's work, and so I sought out Dr King's speech. This episode presents both back to back, in an effort to make some small contribution towards filling the void left by the shocking -though sadly not surprising- murder, lest it be filled with bitterness, anger, and rage. Enjoy.
wnpmpod@gmail.com
Wednesday May 20, 2020
Wednesday May 20, 2020
This week's episode is about the music of George Russell, a pianist and composer who was the first jazz musician to publish a book of the theory of jazz: The Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization Russell's theories, though presented somewhat esoterically, were incredibly influential in the development of modal jazz, and the music that he created in the late 50's and early 60s- the primary focus of this episode- is brilliant and beautiful.
Playlist here: wednesdaynightprayermeeting.wordpress.com/2020/05/21/george-russell-playlist/
Youtuber Bebop Review is currently putting together an incredibly thorough and engaging multi-part series on Russell's Lydian Chromatic Concept... Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7dkmyVz-20
Questions? Comments? Requests? email me at wnpmpod@gmail.com
Wednesday May 13, 2020
Wednesday May 13, 2020
This week's episode is about bassist Reggie Workman, who in the last year was named an NEA Jazz Master, and received a Guggenheim fellowship for music composition. Workman has played with John Coltrane, Art Blakey, Archie Shepp, and many more, and this episode features music from throughout his career.
Questions? Comments? Requests? Email me at wnpmpod@gmail.com
Wednesday May 06, 2020
Wednesday May 06, 2020
This week's episode is about the pianist and composer Herbie Nichols. I first learned of Nichols' music in a book called Four Lives in the Bebop Business by A.B. Spellman, an incredible book that has sections on Nichols, Cecil Taylor, Jackie McLean, and Ornette Coleman.
Get a copy here:
https://www.powells.com/book/-9780879100421
Playlist for the episode here:
Questions? Comments? Requests?
E-mail wnpmpod@gmail.com