Ben Osborne“Holy flowers floating in the air, were all these tired faces in the dawn of Jazz America.” Jack Kerouac
April is International Jazz Month and to celebrate this we’ve picked our some of our favourite jazz for the weekend. Jack Kerouac and the Beats knew the truth, that the early jazz musicians were the original rock stars with their thirst for life, philandering, bohemian lives, and determined commitment to their music.
Starting with the wonderful Chet Baker, we move through some of the all time greats with Thelonious Monk, Stephane Grappelli, Julian “Cannonball” Adderley (featuring a drum solo that the word ‘indulgent’ doesn’t come close to describing, from the wonderful Louis Hayes), before coming back to the future with a modern jazz sound from the excellent Led Bib.
Then it’s unashamedly back to the old classics with Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Sarah Vaughan, Charles Mingus, and the the sublime Billie Holiday. So sit back, have a great weekend and enjoy. Nice…
“Reply when asked, “What is jazz.” Man, if you gotta ask you’ll never know.” Louis Armstrong
