Tuesday, March 10, 2020

Peter Buffett The Waiting


It's Peter Buffett, Mary.  Not Jimmy Buffett of Margaritaville fame. Glad I finally have that figured out. The abstract, down tempo tunes from the American musician, composer, author and philanthropist are enjoyable and relaxing. I don't remember Jim playing these tunes, but they are the kind that easily fit into the background .  So maybe he did play  The Waiting.  I just don't remember it.

The 1987 album, released on the Narada Mystique label, includes nine titles - each as smooth and enchanting as the next. Titles include:

  • Empire Builder
  • The Waiting
  • Why
  • Aberdeen
  • Generation Prelude
  • Generation
  • New West
  • One More Time
  • Big Sky
The Waiting is my favorite.  The electronic music played ever-so-softly in the beginning reminds me of the sunrise eventually breaking forth in all its glory. Listen and see what you think. Or, you can listen to the whole CD album on Youtube  here.

Buffett, 61, is the youngest son of billionaire Warren Buffett. The keyboard artist adds emmy-award-winner, co-chairof the NoVo Foundation - established to help end violence toward girls and women- performer and composer to his description. His 30-year-plus career is capped with his Concert and Conversation with Peter Buffett. Attend one of the presentations to listen to his music, find out what it is like to grow up as the son of a billionaire, and various experiences.

Read more about Buffett at his Web site here. I hope you get a chance to listen to some of his music.  It is enjoyable.


Wednesday, February 19, 2020

Alphonse Mouzon Band: Back to Jazz


LAUGH OUT LOUD! I  could not believe what I was listening to and the memories it dragged  up. The bleeping blooping sound of the Alphonse Mouzon Band: Back to Jazz track Space Commander reminded me of a pre-personal-computer-day video arcade - which Jim loved!  He would spend evenings feeding quarters into the machines at the Electronic Zoo in Kent, Ohio playing some ridiculous game, until he realized quarters were running out and he better get a job.

Fortunately, there is only one piece on the CD, released in 1986 by L & R Records, which  sounded video arcade-ish.  The rest is very pleasant soul-jazz-funk.  I can even remember the tunes and  carry them around in my head all day. Sound tracks include:

1 St. Thomas,Written-By – Sonny Rollins
2 The Next Time We Love
3      Poobli
4 Space Commander
5 Peace On Earth
6 The Baker's Daughter
7 Just Because Of You
   Step Into The Funk
   When We Were Young
10  Hello, I must Be Going

Space Commander is of course, my favorite.  Listen here  on Youtube to the CD album. (Try not to dance....)

Alphonse is known as an American jazz fusion drummer and the owner of Tenacious Records - primarily used to release his recordings. He was born in 1948 in South Carolina, and began his music studies in high school. The next step was moving on to New York for college where he began studying medicine.  But drumming eventually won out.

His career included acting, producing, voice-over work, composition and arrangement.  He performed in all four corners of  the world, and is listed in all major jazz publications.  Performances included acting alongside Tom Hanks in That Thing You Do! and other acting and musical performances on the movie screen.

He served as the original drummer for Weather Report in 1970-72, and gained even more notoriety with the fusion band Eleventh House, 1973-75. Mouzon's career also included stints with Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, Jeff Beck, Tommy Bolin, Chubby Checker, Eric Clapton, Betty Davis, Patrick Moraz, Carlos Santana, Stevie Wonder, Jaco Pastorius, Herbie Hancock, Lee Ritenour, Seawind Horns and Freddie Hubbard.  A very  busy, creative guy. 

Mouzon passed December 25, 2016 at his home in Granada, California. You may read more about hiim  at Wikipedia. I can see why Jim enjoyed him so much.










Thursday, January 30, 2020

Kit Walker: Fire In The Lake






Oh!  I remember this CD. Jim often played it as we were driving along. And Kit Walker Fire In The Lake is perfect background music. Although I liked the music, it just doesn't stay in my thought. 'Kinda wish I had a tune I could carry along all day.  No such luck. But I do enjoy  the music on the CD.

Play list includes:

  • Thunderworld
  • Touch the Earth
  • Fire in the Lake
  • White Crane Spreads Its Wings
  • Lightning In His Blood
  • Orion
  • The Nagual
  • First Snow
I like the titles. One can imagine the titles going along with the music.  My favorite is The Nagual and its soft flute music. Nagual is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as "a personal guardian spirit or protective alter ego assumed by various Middle American Indians to reside in an animal or less frequently in some other embodiment."   Oooh Eee Oooh.  I think I will just enjoy the music and not think about the meaning.

The jazz fusion album was released in 1989 on the Windham Hill label. Composer Kit Walker defines himself on his Web site as a musician, philosopher, and oracle.  That's quite a mouthful for Walker, who is known as a composer, keyboardist, and producer in the music world. You might like to spend some time on his Web site. There is a lot of heavy thinking going on. 

Listen to Fire in the Lake here. Check out his Youtube site and listen to his latest with his cohort Mariana Ingold. Spend some time there.  You will enjoy the music.







Saturday, January 11, 2020

Island by David Arkenstone with Andrew White









Sometimes life just isn't fair! I'm driving down the road listening to the island sounds of David Arkenstone's Island. The musical flute and rythmic drums  make me think of warm sandy beaches, bright blue skies, and soft tropical breezes. But outside the car windows, there is six inches of snow and the flakes keep falling. No fair!
Well at least I have the somewhat new age sounds of Arkenstone's CD to cheer me up. Island, by Arkenstone with Andrew White, was released in 1989 on the Narada Eqinox label. The electronic jazz album includes:

  • Nantucket
  • Ballet
  • The Island Road
  • Desert Ride
  • Along the Shoreline
  • Caravan
  • Hindu Holiday
  • Passage
  • Nullarbor
  • The Palace
  • Carnation Lily Lily Rose
The names have me thinking of at island retreat. Darn snow! Take a moment to listen to Nantucket and other pieces on Youtube

An American composer and performer, Arkenstone has filled his career with over 45 albums. Add soundtracks, commercials, and game scores to the list, and you realize  he must be creating all the time! His Web site describes him as a musical story teller.  I can't wait to hear the results of his recent trip to iceland.

Learn all (well at least some) of what there is to learn about Arkenstone here.  He's and interesting guy. And listen to more of  his music. Hmm.  Maybe if I play music of his from Iceland, I will see sun and sandy beaches out my car window. Anything is possible.

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Dave Brubeck - We're All Together Again for the First Time


Perfect and orderly. That was the way Jim kept his music collections. He knew exactly where each album, CD, cassette tape and digital recording was on the shelves.

Things have kinda fallen apart since he left, which is how I ended up with another jazz CD to study. I reached in the box of CDs and pulled out Dave Brubeck's We're All Together Again for the First Time.The Jazz album, recorded before a live audience, was first released in 1973, and the first CD version in 1990. It is nice to hear some of Jim's favorites, even if I never knew they were from Dave Brubeck. 

I have a love-hate relationship with the jazz-great's music. I hear great tunes which I can carry in thought all day, and bam! The tune slips into a cacophony of discordant sounds - those were the parts that Jim liked best.

The group consisted of Dave Brubeck on the piano, Paul Desmond on alto sax,Gerry Mulligan on baritone sax, Jack Six on bass, and Alan Dawson on Drums.My favorite piece on the album is Take 5. The classic jazz tune had my feet tapping instantly. And, I remember dancing around with the kids -babies at the time - as Jim played the music.

The CD was created from the original analog recording. Beside  Take Five by Paul Desmond, the CD includes Truth by Dave Brubeck, Unfinished Woman by Gerry Mulligan, Koto Song, by Dave Brubeck, Rotterdam Blues by Dave Brubeck, and Sweet Georgia Brown by Ben Bernie, Kenneth Casey and Maceo Pinkard ( solo piano performance by Dave Brubeck). I connected each to a Youtube recording for your enjoyment.

Brubeck, 1920 to 2012, was born  into a musical family in Concord, California.  When he was four, he began studying piano with his mother.  88-years-later his career ended being designated a "Living Legend" by the Library of Congress for his jazz and classical work. His biography on his Web page states "he was one of the most active and popular musicians in both the jazz and classical worlds. With a career that spanned over six decades,  his experiments in odd time signatures, improvised counterpoint, polyrythm and polytonality remain hallmarks of innovation."  That's a mouth full!

Listen to a classical recording of Brubeck Meets Bach. Now that I can listen to all the time. If you want to learn more about Dave Brubeck, or find out where you can hear his music, visit his Web site. You can also listen to more of his tunes there.  His music lives on!