Tonight s Jazz Feature is a tribute to our great nation by one of the greatest musicians that this country has produced. July 1 was Canada s 156th Birthday and as we celebrate that milestone on tThe Jazz Show as The Jazz Feature, the music and the compositions by Mr. Peterson will reflect his love and pride for the country of his birth which took place in Montreal on August 15, 1925 and died at his home in Mississauga on December 23,2002. Peterson wrote the "Canadiana Suite" in 1964 while he was touring with his famous, long standing Trio with Ray Brown on bass and Edmund Thigpen on drums. The 8 part suite begins in the East and goes across our vast nation with musical portraits It stands as an important work and a tribute to what Canada stands for in the world. We will add one more piece to the Suite and that is Peterson s famous anthem to freedom and liberty entitled "Hymn To Freedom". That sentiment applies to all nations throughout the world. The Canadiana Suite
Tonight s Jazz Feature is by a fine pianist/composer who literally played with everyone of importance from Charles Mingus, Max Roach, John Coltrane to Billie Holiday and many more. Mal was the "house pianist" for Prestige Records in the mid and late 50 s and recorded prolifically as a sideman and leader. Tonight s album is arguably his finest as a leader up to the time yet it is unfairly overlooked. It was done on March 20, 1958 at RVG Studios. His trio has Addison Farmer on bass and Albert "Tootie" Heath on drums and it s a very cohesive date. The album was called "Impressions" but that s just a title and nothing to do with the famous Coltrane tune. Mal s Overseas Suite in 3 movements kicks of the album then some solid standards like "You Stepped Out of a Dream" and a ballad "All The Way" Mal s wife of the time wrote a fine waltz called All About Us" and the wrap up tune is Rogers and Hart s "With a Song in My Heart". A
Tonight s Jazz Feature honors one of the most productive and influential musicians in Canadian Jazz and that is Phillip Rista Nimmons, who was born in Kamloops B.C. June 3,1923 and he just celebrated his 100th Birthday. He is alive and well and healthy. Tonight s Jazz Feature spotlights Phil Nimmons JUNO Award winning "Atlantic Suite". A suite in 5 movements featuring his great band "Nimmons n Nine Plus Six" . It was recorded in Toronto in June of 1975 and won one of the first JUNO Awards for Jazz in 1976. Following the Atlantic Suite will be the work called "Suite P.E.I" which features a live performance of Phil Nimmons leading The Canadian Jazz All-Stars. This is a composition by Nimmons and it features his innovative and very modern clarinet playing. He deserves much wider recognition for his clarinet playing. The Canadian Jazz All-Stars is full of prominent Canadian musicians like Moe Koffman, Guido Basso, Don Thompson and Terry Clarke and others. T
Sonny Rollins needs no introduction here but this incredible album that is tonight s Jazz Feature is often overlooked in favor of some others yet it represents an early milestone in Sonny s life and career. He had recovered from his drug addiction and a healthy Sonny joined the famous Max Roach/Clifford Brown Quintet which was one of the finest Jazz groups at that time in the mid 50 s. This was his first album after his rehab and it presents a new and stronger Sonny and is considered his first "great record. It was Sonny s first 12 LP and issued on Prestige Records as "Work Time". Sonny s hand picked quartet consists of the great Max Roach on drums and strong bassist George Morrow and on Miles Davis recommendation a fine then young pianist from Philadelphia named Ray Bryant. There is only one Rollins original on this date called "Paradox". The set opens with Irving Berlin s "There s No Business Like Show Business" then Paradox then Billy Strayhorn
Tonight s Jazz Feature is an unearthed recording, one of the many by pianist composer Andrew Hill. In an interview with Mr. Hill with Blue Note Records archivist, Michael Cuscuna, Andrew mentioned the many unreleased sessions he recorded for Blue Note naming all the personnel. Hill said some were good and some were just okay. All were eventually released except for one which he said he was very happy with. Cuscuna as soon as he left Hill went into the Blue Note archives looking for this session that Hill mentioned but alas the tape was out of phase and unuseable. Cuscuna persisted and in a few weeks he was rewarded with finding a faultless multi-track tape of the session that had been misfiled. He brought it to Hill and Andrew was elated. The session was released in 2003 and drew accolades from critics and fans alike and was hailed as the discovery of the year". The album features 7 Hill compositions played by two great trumpeters: Woody Shaw and Dizzy Reece, trombonist Julian Pr