If the name Don Grolnick means nothing to you, don't feel badly.
Don was an in-the-background kind of guy, a composer, producer and keyboard player for some of the top names in pop. But jazz was where his soul was...
Continue reading "Katie's Jazz Picks: The Quiet Genius of Don Grolnick" »
He was completely uncompromising. He was fierce, often selfish, needy, a truculent genius. He craved honesty, and if he didn't get it, he might deck someone. There's no doubt that music today would not be the same if there'd never been a Charlie Mingus.
Continue reading "Katie Malloch's Jazz Greats: there's a Mingus among us" »
From "girl singer" with a big band to the savviest, straightest-shooting jazz singer ever, Betty Carter was an original.
She was born Lillie Mae Jones in Flint, Michigan in 1930. As a youngster, she played piano, and took her talents from the classroom at the Detroit Conservatory to the stages of the city's jazz clubs, where she also sang with visiting stars like Charlie Parker. A talent-show win at 16 brought her to the attention of bandleader Lionel Hampton, and from 1948-1951, she toured as Hampton's "girl singer," re-dubbed by him as "Betty Bebop".
Continue reading "Katie Malloch's jazz favourites: Hold Tight! It's Ms. Betty Carter..." »
Over the next ten weeks or so until I bid you all farewell, (and thank you for the lovely thoughts you've been sharing on my last blog post about my impending retirement: Katie Malloch...says goodbye to CBC Radio), I'll be sharing some of my favourite albums.
I must hasten to add that this is NOT a Top Ten List, just some overlooked and underplayed albums. Today I'll start with the great Benny Golson, who builds you a crackerjack jazz band, one musician at a time.
Continue reading "Katie Malloch shares jazz favourites: Benny Golson" »
Katie Malloch is getting ready to say good-bye to CBC Radio in March, and to almost forty years worth of devoted listeners.
Before I turn over the blog post to Ms. Malloch, I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge what a truly great broadcaster she is. Her warmth, intelligence, spirit - not to mention love and knowledge of jazz - have made her a unique figure in the history of both broadcasting and jazz in this country.
Her contribution through hosting programmes such as the weekday edition of Tonic since 2007, and the long running show Jazz Beat (which she also co-created, with Alain de Grosbois) has been second to none.
A series of special concerts in Katie's honour will be held in the coming weeks, for broadcast on Tonic. We'll have more details about the concerts soon. But for now, I'd like to express a feeling I know many will share:
Katie, it is an understatement to say you will be missed!! Thank you for giving us so many hours of great listening.
And now, over to Katie for her thoughts:
Continue reading "Katie Malloch, jazz host extraordinaire, says goodbye to CBC radio" »
I'm counting my blessings as this old year winds down. What are you grateful for?
This time of year, it's easy to forget why we're here.
The Christmas rush sometimes makes me think of lemmings, and the way they rush to the cliff's edge; all contagious excitement and headlong energy. It's almost impossible, it seems, to just stop; simply stop, and be still.
But that's what I'd like you to do now, just for a minute. This is the last Tonic blog post for 2011, and I'd like to know what you're grateful for as this year comes to an end.
Continue reading "Putting gratitude in your attitude: as 2011 winds down, what are you thankful for?" »
Wanted: comforting jazz to ease the lost of a furry friend...
A couple of years ago, I blogged about the twinges I felt, watching our dog Meeko grow older and slower. (The Last Few Miles With Meeko.)
The watching is over now: we lost Meeko last Tuesday, at age 13, to liver cancer.
What was even more astonishing to me than the depth of the pain I felt, was the warmth of the response from everyone I ran into; people who'd been there, done that, and were similarly devastated.
Continue reading "Seeking: jazz to heal an animal-lover's grieving soul..." »
If there is a jazz heaven, it's going to have some killer "live" jazz...
Last week, when the news broke about the death of the great drummer Paul Motian, I thought well, at least the trio's together again!
That would be the classic threesome of Bill Evans on piano, Scott LaFaro on bass, and Paul Motian on drums. And as childish as it may sound, I've always liked the idea that wonderful music can be made again by artists we've lost here on Planet Earth, and that just maybe, we might get to hear them again someday.
Continue reading "Ringside in jazz heaven: which jazz giant do you wish you could hear? " »
Here's a thought: Jazz musicians live life to the fullest.
Generalization? Yes, but it's safe to say that as well as loving the ladies, jazzers love FOOD, and they write music that proves it...
Continue reading "Jazz For Foodies: from Herbie Hancock's Watermelon Man to Mongo Santamaria's Corn Bread Guajira" »
Jazz is brimming with music written in honour of women...what's your favourite?
I guess it's not surprising: most jazz musicians are men, and over the years, they've written LOTS of pieces of music for one lady or another.
Benny Golson wrote "Along Came Betty." Frank Foster wrote "Simone." Pianist Duke Pearson gave us "Jeannine", John Coltrane commemorated "Naima", and Lee Morgan wrote "Ceora." Then there's "Delilah," "Sister Sadie," "Mona's Mood"; all muses for the art of jazz!
Continue reading "From Naima to Nica, the women who inspired great jazz" »
An evening blend of jazz, R&B, Latin and soul. From Monday to Thursday, award-winning jazz broadcaster Katie Malloch is your host; and on Friday and Saturday it's singer and entertainer Tim Tamashiro.
Kellylee Evans live at the 2011 Saskatchewan Jazz Festival