So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* A story by St. Louis Public Radio's Eric Schmid reports that Miles Davis' childhood home (pictured), now restored and operated as a museum by the not-for-profit organization House of Miles East St. Louis, is the centerpiece of a new weekly tour focused on ESL history and culture.

* In related news, PBS has announced that the American Masters episode featuring the documentary Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool will premiere on Tuesday, February 25. (Check local affiliate listings for the broadcast time in your area.)

* The new vinyl reissue box set of Davis' The Legendary Prestige Quintet Sessions released last week is the subject of a brief feature in DownBeat and a longer story from UDiscoverMusic.com.

* Guitarist Vincent Varvel and Gaslight Theater owner William Roth were interviewed on Monday's episode of the KTRS program "St. Louis In the Know with Ray Hartmann and Jay Kanzler."

* The holiday cabaret shows of singers Debby Lennon and Dean Christopher last week at Blue Strawberry were reviewed by KDHX's Chuck Lavazzi.

* And speaking of Debby Lennon, she'll star next month in Max and Louie Productions' staging of "Songs for Nobodies," a one-woman play by Joanna Murray-Smith that features the music of Judy Garland, Patsy Cline, Billie Holiday, Edith Piaf, and Maria Callas in "a mosaic of stories told by the everyday women who had unexpected life-changing encounters with these musical icons." The production will run from Thursday, January 23 through Saturday, February 1 at the Kranzberg Arts Center.

* Singer, actor, and Belleville native Lea DeLaria was interviewed about her new streaming TV show Reprisal and plans for her next album by the Post-Dispatch's Kevin Johnson.

*  Oikos Ensemble has produced a video looking back on past editions of their annual "Jazz Noel" program and promoting this year's performances, which will take place tomorrow at Parkway United Church of Christ and Sunday at First Congregational Church of Webster Groves.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* Saxophonist Harvey Lockhart (pictured) has been chosen as one of 25 semi-finalists this year for the national Music Educator Award given annually by the Recording Academy and Grammy Awards.

As reported by the Post-Dispatch's Sarah Bryan Miller, Lockhart was recognized for his work as band director for Riverview Gardens High School - he subsequently joined the faculty at Cardinal Ritter this summer - and for his not-for-profit organization HEAL Center for the Arts. Ten finalists for the award will be named in December, with one winner selected to attend the Grammy Awards ceremony next year.

* Open Studio has posted to YouTube a video of last Saturday's concert by pianist Geoffrey Keezer.

* Musical instrument retailer and service center Saxquest will present their 2019 Woodwind Instrument Expo on Saturday, November 16 at St. Charles Community College. The event will offer musicians the opportunity to try instruments and accessories from a variety of manufacturers. Admission is free, but attendees who would like access to private rooms are encouraged to register in advance.

* An article by Charles Waring at UDiscoverMusic.com offers a reappraisal of guitarist Grant Green's Blue Note album Born to Be Blue, which recently was re-released as part of the label's "Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl" reissue series.

* The Sheldon has posted to Facebook an album of photos from saxophonist David Sanborn's concert last Friday night.

* And speaking of The Sheldon, HEC-TV has produced a feature story about the hall's new outdoor plaza.

* The impending opening next week of the new Central West End cabaret venue Blue Strawberry was the subject of a short feature story from Riverfront Times writer Ella Faust.

* Also in the RFT, the building that currently houses Vintage Vinyl is the subject of a "Then and Now" feature by Jaime Lees.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* Citing his ongoing treatment for prostate cancer, trumpeter Hugh Masekela has cancelled all of his upcoming appearances, including his scheduled performance in St. Louis on Saturday, April 14 at The Sheldon as part of the Jazz Epistles reunion with pianist Abdullah Ibrahim and Ekaya.

A statement released by The Sheldon said the concert still will go on as scheduled, with a replacement trumpeter to be announced at a later date.

* In advance of their show with Douglas Ewart this Saturday, STL Free Jazz Collective members Jim Hegarty and "Baba" Mike Nelson talked with writer Thomas Crone for a feature story in the Riverfront Times.

* Trumpeter Keyon Harrold's new album The Mugician (pictured) was reviewed favorably by Jazz Times and PopMatters.com.

* Drummer Mark Colenburg has released a new instructional book and video, The Beat Matrix Unlocked, which is described as creating "a new template for the art of hip-hop drumming."

* The subscription service Vinyl Me Please has made an LP reissue of Miles Davis' 1967 album Sorcerer their "record of the month" for December 2017.

The reissue was remastered from the original tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl colored "orchid purple," and includes an eight-page booklet with liner notes by former New York Times scribe Ben Ratliff plus a 12" x 12" original art print by Santiago Carrasquilla.

Miles on Monday: Big Fun getting vinyl reissue, plus reviews and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* In an essay about the re-release of Louis Malle’s 1959 film Elevator to the Gallows, the New Yorker's film critic Richard Brody calls Davis' score for the film "worth hearing entirely on its own" and "better than the film itself, by far, and there are better ways to hear it than in the movie—namely, by listening to a CD that features the entire studio sessions from which the score was edited." The movie's revival continues at the Film Forum in NYC through Thursday.

* Davis' 1974 double album Big Fun, which collected previously unreleased material from the bands that recorded Bitches Brew, On The Corner, and Jack Johnson, will be reissued on vinyl in September.

* Saxophonist Jim Snidero's upcoming album MD66 will pay tribute to Davis' "second great quintet," the group that from 1966 to 1968 included pianist Herbie Hancock, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, bassist Ron Carter and drummer Tony Williams.

* Keyboardist Robert Glasper talked about his work on Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead and his Davis-remix album Everything's Beautiful in an interview with the website Nerdtorious.com, and the film was reviewed by Heed magazine.

* The recently released album, The Columbia Sessions, produced by Davis in 1969 for his wife at the time, singer Betty Davis, was reviewed by the website Headstuff.org.

* The website Jazz Music Archives offers brief reviews looking back at the 1956 album Cookin' with the Miles Davis Quintet and the 1959 landmark Kind of Blue.

Miles on Monday: Betty Davis' lost sessions released, reissue news, and more

With no post here last Monday due to the Independence Day holiday, here's an extra-large serving of Miles Davis news from the last two weeks:

* Perhaps the biggest story of the fortnight involving the trumpeter was the news that a set of previously unreleased recording sessions he produced for his ex-wife, singer Betty Davis, has been issued as Betty Davis: The Columbia Years 1968-1969 by the label Light In The Attic Records.

Co-produced by Davis and his longtime collaborator Teo Macero, the album (pictured) features much of the band that would appear a couple of years later on Davis' album Bitches Brew, including guitarist John McLaughlin, keyboardist Herbie Hancock, bassist Harvey Brooks, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and organist Larry Young, plus two of Jimi Hendrix' musical associates, drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Billy Cox.

Press coverage of the release has been extensive, with stories and reviews appearing everywhere from NPR to the alt-rock magazine Pitchfork to AllAboutJazz.com.

* Meanwhile, a box set of Davis' own music, Miles Davis At Newport 1955–1975: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4, was named the winner in the Historical Album category of the 2016 DownBeat Critics Poll.

* The recent reissue of Davis' album Agharta on LP by the label Music on Vinyl was reviewed by London Jazz News.

* Also in London, theater artist Robert Lepage's performance piece Needles and Opium, a surreal meditation from 1991 about Miles Davis, Jean Cocteau and various types of addiction, was revived for a production at the Barbican that featured actor Wellesley Robertson III as Davis.

* Also revived is Elevator to the Gallows, the 1958 Louis Malle film that features a soundtrack by Davis, as a newly restored version will be shown next month at Film Forum in New York City in advance of a potential wider release.

* In other Davis-on-film news, Elmore magazine reviewed Everything's Beautiful, keyboardist Robert Glasper's tribute to Davis that serves as a companion piece to his work on the score for Don Cheadle's movie Miles Ahead; and the Massillon, OH Independent ran a feature story about the experiences of an local Davis fan who worked as an extra on the film, which was shot in Cincinnati. Miles Ahead comes out on DVD and Blu-Ray on Tuesday, July 19.

* Last but not least, "Miles in May," an episode of All Music Television's program The Jazz Creative recorded earlier this year in Los Angeles and featuring Glasper and multi-instrumentalist Terrace Martin, has been posted online, and can been seen in the embedded video window below.

Miles on Monday: Prestige 10" LPs reissued, the latest Miles Ahead news, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* Concord Records' Prestige imprint will release a box set reissuing 11 of Davis' albums released originally from 1951 to 1954 in the 10" LP format on Prestige Records.

* Jazz Times magazine has posted to YouTube a video of guitarist Mike Stern talking about two of his musical mentors, Miles Davis and guitarist Jim Hall.

* Keyboardist Adam Holzman, who played with Davis from 1985 to 1989, discussed his time with the trumpeter as one of many topics in a new interview published on Innerviews.com.

* Photographer Glen Craig, whose exhibit "A Day in the Life of Miles Davis" has been shown at galleries in Los Angeles and Miami and be seen this spring in Washington DC and NYC, was the subject of an interview published on the Leica camera website.

* The dates and locations that Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead will play here in St. Louis have been revealed: The film movie opens Friday, April 22 at the AMC Creve Coeur 12 and the Tivoli. A complete list of the film's opening dates and theaters by city can be found on the Sony Classics Miles Ahead website.

* With the release of Miles Ahead in NYC and Los Angeles set for this coming weekend, over the past week there's been a flurry of press attention for the film, its director and stars, and the premiere screening in Cincinnati, where the movie was made. Here, grouped roughly by topic, are some of the highlights of the most recent coverage:

Review: Three Not-Really-Biopics Reimagine the Lives of Chet Baker, Miles Davis and Hank Williams (Time)
Movie review: Don Cheadle Is Electrifying in Miles Ahead (Vulture.com)

Don Cheadle Attends Miles Ahead Premiere In Cincinnati (Inquisitr.com)
Don Cheadle expresses gratitude to Cincinnati at 'Miles Ahead' premiere (WCPO)
Don Cheadle: ‘Cincinnati opened its arms to us’ (WLWT)
'Miles Ahead' movie premiere picture gallery (Cincinnati.com)
Friends and Family Remember Legendary Jazz Musician Miles Davis at the Debut of Don Cheadle's Miles Ahead (People)

6 Miles Davis Albums That Changed Music (NPR)
Don Cheadle and Jazz Trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire Talk Bringing Miles Davis' Sound and Story to the Big Screen (Billboard)

What Does Genius Look Like? Don Cheadle On Miles Davis And Race In Hollywood (NPR)
Cheadle Discusses Bold Cinematic Depiction of Miles (DownBeat)
Don Cheadle On Becoming Miles Davis (New York Times)
How Don Cheadle Became Miles Davis (The Daily Beast)
First-time director Don Cheadle jazzed to have completed biopic 'Miles Ahead' (New York Daily News)
Ewan McGregor on Miles Davis biopic, taking direction from a costar (The Today Show)

In addition to the feature stories and interviews linked above, Cheadle (pictured, as Davis in one of the film's flashback sequences) sat down last Thursday for an extended interview that was webcast live on AOL.com, which you can see in the embedded video window below:



Last but not least, Sony Classics last week released another trailer for the film, featuring Cheadle as Davis talking about classical music, improvisation & "playing like you used to":

Miles on Monday: Win a free copy of Miles Davis: The Last Word, and more

This week in Miles Davis-related news:

* Just announced: Actor/director Don Cheadle's film about Davis, Miles Ahead, will receive its international premiere in a screening at the 2016 Berlin International Film Festival, which takes place from February 11 to February 25.

The film is scheduled to be released in the US on April 2, and in the UK on April 22.

* MusicNews.com is holding a drawing to give away to readers a total of three free copies of the just-reissued box set Miles Davis - The Last Word: The Warner Bros. Years. To find out more about the box set (pictured) and enter to win, go here.

* Speaking of those years at Warner Brothers, the website Dangerous Minds last week had an article looking at Davis' interest in the mid-80s synth-pop band Scritti Politti, whose song "Perfect Way" was covered by the trumpeter on Tutu, his first album for Warner Brothers.

The story includes bandleader Green Gartside's account of how Davis reached out to him, and subsequently agreed to record a guest performance with Scritti Politti on their 1988 single "Oh Patti (Don't Feel Sorry For Loverboy)".

* This week in Miles Davis history:  Today, January 18 is the birthday of two of Davis' former sidemen: drummer Al Foster (born 1943) and saxophonist Steve Grossman (1951). Back in 1965, Davis recorded his album E.S.P. in three days of sessions on January 20, 21, and 22. On January 19, 1987, the trumpeter began laying down tracks with producer Marcus Miller for the score for the film Siesta, eventually released as the album Music from Siesta. And on that same date in 1991, Davis began recording sessions for Doo-Bop, his final studio album.

Miles on Monday: Cicely Tyson on being married to Miles Davis, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* In an interview last week with CBS This Morning, Davis' ex-wife Cicely Tyson talked about her seven-year marriage to the trumpeter. Tyson (pictured with Davis), who just celebrated her 91st birthday over the weekend, was married to Davis from 1981 to 1988.

* Rhino Records finally has made available in the US the box set Miles Davis, The Last Word: The Warner Bros. Years, which previously could be had only as an import from Europe.

The eight-disc set includes the studio albums Tutu, Amandla, Aura, and Doo-Bop; Davis' contributions to the film soundtracks Music from Siesta and Dingo: Original Soundtrack; the concert albums Live Around the World and Miles and Quincy Live at Montreux; a DVD of a previously unreleased performance at the 1986 Nice Jazz Festival; and a 60-page bound booklet with photos and liner notes from jazz writer Ashley Kahn.

* A brief encounter between Davis and a street musician is the subject of an excerpt (shared last week by blogger Scott K Fish) from Miles to Go: The Lost Years. An Intimate Memoir of Life on the Road with Miles Davis 1973-1983, a book by Davis' former road manager Chris Murphy.

Miles on Monday: Reissue news, Don Cheadle on directing Miles Ahead, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* Actor/director Don Cheadle tells Hollywood Reporter why he stayed in character as Davis throughout the process of directing Miles Ahead.

* To promote the upcoming release of Bitches Brew, a volume in the 33-1/3 Books series about the album of the same name, the book's author George Grella last week took over the publisher's blog for a series of posts about Davis:
Day 1: Music To Read Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew By?
Day 2: The Lost Quintet
Day 3: Do As I Say, Not As I Do
Day 4: Miles to Go
Miles Davis Week – Miles Ahead

* The rather prosaically named 1956 LP Miles Davis, Volume 2 is among the latest batch of vinyl reissues from Blue Note records released last Friday, October 23. The 12" album (pictured) added more tracks and new cover art to an earlier version originally issued as a 10" LP in 1953.

* As noted on Universal Music's blog, today marks 60 years since Davis did his first recording session for Columbia Records on October 26, 1955. However, those recordings - which included a version of Thelonious Monk's "'Round Midnight," but using the variant name "'Round About Midnight"  - weren't issued until 1957. That's because Davis still was under contract to Prestige Records, for whom he cut another version of "Round Midnight" on this date exactly one year later in 1956 that was released as a single and later included on the 1959 album Miles Davis And The Modern Jazz Giants.

* Muhammad Abdullah, previously known as Miles Davis IV and son of Miles Davis and Irene Cawthon Davis-Oliver, has died at age 65 of complications from a heart ailment. Abdullah, a veteran of the US Navy, was buried in a Muslim ceremony on Thursday, October 22 at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis.

Miles on Monday: Memorial Project gets $5,000 gift, Prestige vinyl box set reviewed, and more

For this week's "Miles on Monday," a roundup of recent news items about the legendary trumpeter:

* Miles Davis' use of electric instruments in his band during the late 1960s and early 70s helped spur their adoption by a lot of jazz musicians, and now one might say that electricity is returning the favor.

That's because the Miles Davis Memorial Project announced last week that they've received a $5,000 grant from Ameren Illinois to support their  construction of a plaza and sculpture honoring Miles Davis in downtown Alton. The statue of Davis by sculptor Preston Jackson will be unveiled on September 12.

*  Davis' visit to Scotland in 1990 was recalled by Jim Smith, former director of the Glasgow Jazz Festival.

* The vinyl reissue box set (pictured) of Davis' Prestige 10” LP Collection Volume Two was reviewed at SoundStage! Hi-Fi.

* New England Public Radio spotlighted an infrequently seen video of Davis performing a blues in 1963 on The Tonight Show with Steve Allen.

* A blogger takes another look at bassist/producer Bill Laswell's re-imagining of Davis' music on the remix album Panthalassa.

Miles on Monday: An update from the Miles Davis Memorial Project, vinyl reissue news, and more

This week for "Miles on Monday," another progress report from the Miles Davis Memorial Project, plus some other recent Davis-related news: 

* A new version of the official Miles Davis website, revamped in both appearance and content, debuted last week with "stunning photos, special sections curated by the Miles Davis estate, and many other new features."

* In honor of Davis' birthday last Tuesday and the upcoming release of a box set of his performances from the Newport Jazz Festival, NPR featured a free audio stream of a live version of Davis' quintet playing "Gingerbread Boy," recorded at the 1967 Newport fest.

* Davis' 1986 album Tutu is being reissued on 180 gram vinyl by Rhino Records. The two-LP set (pictured) includes the original album, plus a second disc recorded live in 1986 in Nice, France.

* Victor Svorinich's recent book Listen To This: Miles Davis And Bitches Brew, which takes a highly detailed look at one of Davis' most famous and influential albums, was reviewed by AllAboutJazz.com's Ian Patterson.

* A post on the website of the Royal Albert Hall in London highlights some of Davis' paintings and drawings that will be included in the show of his visual art this month at the RAH. The exhibit also was previewed by the British magazine Jazz Journal.

* Meanwhile, Davis' status as an icon of fashion and style was celebrated with a photo essay on the website of Bevel, a maker of men's shaving products.

* The latest from the Miles Davis Memorial Project is that they're on schedule for the unveiling of the statue of Davis in downtown Alton on Saturday, September 12.  Workers have finished pouring the concrete walkways and footings; the pedestal where the statue of Davis will stand has been placed; and the site is ready for the laying of the personalized commemorative bricks and blocks purchased by the project's supporters.

After the jump, you can see a couple of recent pictures from the site...

Miles on Monday: Inside the Bitches Brew sessions, box set reissue news, and more

Today for "Miles on Monday," a compilation of the latest news items involving the legendary trumpeter: 

* AllAboutJazz.com has a lengthy excerpt from the recently published book Listen to This: Miles Davis and Bitches Brew, in which author Victor Svorinich details the day-to-day progress of the tracking sessions for one of the most influential albums of Davis' electric period.

* For the vinyl enthusiasts out there, MilesDavis.com has more details on the Record Store Day exclusive Miles Davis: The Prestige 10-Inch LP Collection, Vol. 2, a facsimile reissue (pictured) box set that includes newly minted copies of Miles Davis All Star Sextet, Miles Davis Quintet, Miles Davis with Sonny Rollins, Miles Davis All Stars Vol. 1, and Miles Davis All Stars Vol. 2. The set goes on sale for Record Store Day on Saturday, April 15.

* Proving that Miles Davis' influence still extends from coast to coast and beyond, Los Angeles NPR affiliate KCRW's program "Tom Schnabel's Rhythm Planet" recently did a special episode about "The DNA of Miles Davis' Sketches of Spain," while New York magazine inevitably included a Davis-related anecdote in their look last week at "New York After Midnight"