FELA ANIKULAPO KUTI

www.felaproject.net
www.africanmusic.org


(October 15, 1938 - August 2, 1997)

Okay, where have I been and why haven't I heard of Fela Kuti before today?

First let me say that the image above is from http://www.afrobeatmusic.net/html/fela_bio.html on which, in addition to the links above the picture, has an excellent biography on Fela Kuti. This will be a tad longer than my other posts because it will include more than just his involvement in jazz.

Fela Kuti was a singer, composer, keyboard, sax and trumpet player, bandleader and politician - that's quite a list. The following is quoted from www.afrobeat.net:

His bands traditionally included the typical huge line-up consisting of many singers and dancers, numerous saxophonists, trumpeteers, drummers, percussionists, and of course, many guitarists blending African rhythms and jazz horn lines with politicized song lyrics. His music was intricate, rather than calling it Afro-beat you might more arguably consider it Afro-jazz. Entire recordings often consisted of just a few songs and this propensity for jamming set up a roadblock for Fela to attain commercial acceptance in the United States.

Kuti continued his outspoken attacks on the Nigerian government. When the people returned to power in 1979, Kuti began his own political party - MOP (Movement of the People). The military returned to power in 1983 and within the year Kuti was sentenced to five years in prison on a spurious currency smuggling charge. He was released in 1986 after yet another change of government.

Fela Anikulapo Kuti died on Saturday, August 2, 1997, at 4pm (local time) in Lagos, Nigeria. It had been rumoured for some time that Fela had a serious illness he was refusing treatment for, many said he was suffering from prostate cancer. But as it turns out, Fela died from complications due to AIDS. As Fela's brother, Olikoye Ransome Kuti, said at a news conference.

The clip below is an excellent short documentary on Fela Kuli.

PAT METHENY

http://www.patmetheny.com
http://www.myspace.com/patmethenygroup


Image from http://www.celebrityrockstarguitars.com

Pat Metheny though he is a fabulous guitarist and plays beautifully, is not one of my personal favorites but he and his group The Pat Metheny Group are very well known and very well liked in the jazz world so I've got to give him a mention because he may turn out to be one of your favorites or already is. The great thing about jazz is like with other music genres, there is something for everybody.

My apologies to the rest of the Pat Metheny group but I couldn't find a picture to post, probably because the members have varied over the years.


Video from Patrick88881234 on YouTube

MARC ANTOINE

http://www.marcantoine.com/marc.html
http://www.myspace.com/mantoine


Image from http://www.davekozcruise.com

Marc Antoine, guitarist is another smooth jazz guitarist I like. It's smooth jazz with a Latin undertone.

The story is, Marc Antoine suffered an injury to one of his hands and was told he could never play the guitar again. His perseverance proved the doctors wrong. He's played for name such as Celine Dion, Rod Steward and Take 6 and has also composed and performed for soundtracks to movies including and not limited to Get Shorty and Demolition Man.

The first video is a performance. The second video is an interview, the type I like to throw in occasionally because they give you an insight in the musician not just his music.

JAY SOTO

http://www.jaysoto.com
http://www.myspace.com/jsotomusic


Image from http://www.mr88k.net

Jay Soto, jazz guitarist, composer and producer self-produced his first CD which caught the attention of producers Jeff Lorber and Paul Brown which led to his 2nd CD Stay Awhile that was released in 2007. Other producers on the album include and are not limited to Wayman Tisdale and Jonathan Butler.

I did find on video of Jay Soto. Take a look/listen. This one is definitely smooth and definitely smooth jazzy with just a little funk thrown in. I'm fairly sure you'll be clicking on his links to listen to more.

MONK AND COLTRANE RECORDINGS UNEARTHED

Image from http://www.npr.org - Ron Schlitten

I'm relaying this story I got from MKWillis who has a blog at http://neverendingrainbow.blogspot.com. I'm glad he found this story.

Larry Appelbaum, a jazz specialist at the Libary of Congress discovered some recordings of Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane performing at Carnegie Hall in 1957 that were never broadcast. Blue Note Records is supposed to be releasing them.

Read the full story here and don't miss the samples of the recordings on the left.

JOHN LESLIE "WES" MONTGOMERY

WIKIPEDIA
(March 6, 1925 - June 15, 1968)


Image from http://www.svpproductions.com

Wes Montgomery, jazz guitarist, is considered to be one of the jazz's best. I know that he was a favorite of both by brother and father which is why I know of him and still enjoy his music to this day.

Though many musicians are regarded as great, Wes Montgomery is a jazz icon who seems to have had a wide influence on jazz musicians who followed him. He played with Lionel Hampton, Cannonbal Adderly helped him get a recording contract and he turned down an offer to play with Cannonball Adderly to continue playing with his own band.

Take a look/listen to this clip from Ilbutunes on YouTube and maybe you'll understand all the bruhaha over this man who left us far too soon, Wes Montgomery.



Another great clip (I had to do two clips for this one) from Jazzytaka on YouTube.

FERDINAND "JELLY ROLL" MORTON

WIKIPEDIA
(September 20, 1885 - July 10, 1941)



Passing along something I learned today - I'd never heard of Jelly Roll Morton until I ran across a link to him from Syncopate's blog over on Stumbleupon. Thank you Symcopate for the intro.

Jelly Roll Morton, pianist, composer and bandleader, is claimed by some to be the first composer of jazz. How can I not do a post on someone that may very well be the first jazz composer? There is an excellent bio of him on Wikepedia and it's amazing to me that they have so much information him considering he was born over a Century ago. Please click over and read a little of it. You may not have to remember it but if anyone ever mentions the name Jelly Roll Morton, you'll know who they're talking about. And who knows? One day you may find yourself in a conversation about jazz. Name drop this one and show 'um you know a little somethin' too (smile).

LONNIE LISTON SMITH

http://www.lonnielistonsmith.net


Image from http://www.thelivemusicreport.com

Lonnie Liston Smith is another name I've heard in association with jazz for a while. I believe he began recording in the 70's. Some may recognize his hit Expansion if they play the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Driver: Parallel Lines.

If you've checked out my blog before you'll no I don't do the biographies, just give you the links so you can read from someone who knows more than I do. I'll just tell you who I think you give a listen to. Take a listen:



This second video is not a peformance of Lonnie Liston Smith but it features "Expansions" which I mentioned above. It's kind of a cool video.