The Music's Over

but the songs live on forever

  • Archives

  • Categories

  • Subscribe

Archive for the ‘Jazz’ Category

Died On This Date (April 16, 2017) Allan Holdsworth / Acclaimed Fusion Guitarist

Posted by themusicsover on April 16, 2017

Allan Holdsworth
August 6, 1946 – April 16, 2017

Photo by David Plastik – Click To Order Quality Prints – Discount code: 10OFF

Allan Holdsworth was a highly influential jazz fusion guitarist who, over the course of 40+ years released 12 well-regarded albums and played on records by the likes of Jean-Luc Ponty, Soft Machine, Bill Bruford, and Stanley Clarke. Born in Bradford, England, Holdsworth was taught music by his pianist father from an early age.  Although he didn’t pick up the guitar, until he was 17, he was a quick-learn and more or less made that his instrument of choice from then on.  Holdsworth eventually relocated to London and joined the prog rock band, Igginbottom who released one album in 1969.  He spent most of the ’70s playing in prog and fusion bands while collaborating with many to the genre’s best known and respected artists.  He released his first solo album, Feels Good To Me, in 1978, and continued to record and perform live to adoring fans for the better part of the next four decades.  His chord progressions were complex and his solos very intricate, so it is no surprise that later guitar greats like Eddie Van Halen, Tom Morello, Yngwie Malmsteen, and Joe Satriani have all sited him as a major influence.  Allan Holdsworth was 70 when he passed away on April 16, 2017.  Cause of death was not immediately released.

What You Should Own

Click to find at amazon.com

Posted in Jazz, Musician, Rock, Songwriter | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Died On This Date (April 16, 2017) Allan Holdsworth / Acclaimed Fusion Guitarist

Died On This Date (February 19, 2017) Larry Coryell / The Godfather of Fusion

Posted by themusicsover on February 19, 2017

Larry Coryell
April 2, 1943 – February 19, 2017

Larry Coryell was a ground-breaking guitarist who has been credited as being a pioneer, if not THE pioneer of jazz rock fusion.  Born in Galveston, TX, Coryell was living in Washington state by the time he was in high school, and it was in and around the Yakima area where he began playing in bands after graduating.  During the  fall of 1965, Coryell moved to New York City where he played  and recorded with Chico Hamilton, and not long later, recorded and performed with Gary Burton.  As the ’70s dawned, Coryell was combining the sounds of jazz, rock, and eastern music to make a style of music most had never heard before.  He released his first album, Lady Coryell,  in 1968, and what followed was nearly 50 years of recordings that have influenced several generations of guitarists – both rock and jazz. His recordings have also been very popular with hip-hop producers and can be heard through samples on recordings by J Dilla, Jurassic 5, and DJ Shadow, to name a few. Over the course of his career, he played on over 100 albums and continued to make his own music and tour up until  the time of his death.  Larry Coryell was 73 when he passed away in his sleep on February 20, 2017, reportedly of natural causes.

Thanks to Harold Lepidus for the assist.

What You Should Own

Click to find at amazon.com

Posted in Jazz, Musician | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Died On This Date (February 19, 2017) Larry Coryell / The Godfather of Fusion

Died On This Date (February 12, 2017) Al Jarreau / American Jazz Singer

Posted by themusicsover on February 12, 2017

Al Jarreau
March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017

Al Jarreau was an internationally renowned jazz vocalist who, over the course of his career, earned seven Grammy’s while garnering over a dozen more nominations.  To this day, he’s the only vocalist to win a Grammy in three different categories – in his case, jazz, pop and R&B.  Born in Milwaukee, Jarreau spent much of youth singing at local church and school events.  He continued singing through high school and college where he performed with jazz trio which included George Duke.  By  the early ’70s, Jarreau was performing at top clubs in Los Angeles as well as  on TV shows like The Dinah Shore Show, The Mike Douglas Show, The Merv Griffin Show and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.  He signed with Warner Bros. Records in 1975 and went on to release 16 studio albums and several more live and compilation albums.  His debut, 1975’s We Got By was released to critical acclaim, and introduced him to new fans the world over.  1981 found Jarreau releasing what would become his best-selling album, Breakin’ Away.  Jarreau continued to record and tour through much of the rest of his life.  On February 8th, 2017, he cancelled his current tour and was hospitalized for exhaustion.  Four days later, February 12th, Al Jarreau, passed away at the hospital surrounded by this family and friends. He was 76. Cause of death was not immediately released.

What Y0u Should Own

Click to find at amazon.com

Posted in Jazz, Pop, R&B, Singer | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Died On This Date (February 12, 2017) Al Jarreau / American Jazz Singer

Died On This Date (January 10, 2017) Buddy Greco / American Jazz Singer & Pianist

Posted by themusicsover on January 10, 2017

Armando “Buddy” Greco
August 14, 1926 – January 10, 2017

Buddy Greco was a popular jazz and traditional pop singer and pianist who first found fame during the 1960s.  Born in Philadelphia, Greco began learning to play the piano at the age of four.  Within just a few years, he was singing on local radio, and began performing on stage during his teen years. At just 16, Greco was hired by Benny Goodman who took him on the road.  He spent the next four years singing, playing the piano, and arranging music in Goodman’s Orchestra.  Greco signed to Columbia Records during the early ‘6os and went on to release numerous hit singles including “The Lady Is A Tramp,” which alone, sold over 1 million copies.  Throughout his career – which spanned more than 80 years, and up until his death – he recorded over 60 albums, appeared on television countless times, and toured the world over.  Closer to home, Greco was one of Las Vegas’ most popular draws for many years and eventually opened his own club in Palm Springs where you could likely see a celebrity or two before he closed it in 2009 to move to England.  Buddy Greco was 90 years old when he passed away on January 10, 2017.

What You Should Own

Click to find at amazon.com

 

Posted in Arranger, Jazz, Musician, Pop, Singer | Tagged: , | Comments Off on Died On This Date (January 10, 2017) Buddy Greco / American Jazz Singer & Pianist

Died On This Date (December 26, 2016) Alphonse Mouzon / Jazz Fusion Pioneer

Posted by themusicsover on December 26, 2016

Alphonse Mouzon
November 21, 1948 – December 26, 2016

Alphonse Mouzon was a jazz drummer who came to be one of the architects of American jazz fusion during the late ’60s and early ’70s.  Born in Charleston, SC, Mouzon realized in high school that he had what it took to make a living as a musician.  Upon graduation, he moved to New York City where he studied music and drama.  Mouzon’s first gig of note was playing percussion in the Broadway show, Promises, Promises.   He then went to work with jazz great, McCoy Tyner, and spent about a year in Weather Report before being signed to Blue Note Records as a solo artist in 1972.  In 1973, he joined up with Larry Coryell‘s Eleventh House, one of the premiere fusion bands of its time.  He played with Coryell for about two years and can be heard on such albums as Introducing The Eleventh House and Level One.  Throughout his career, which spanned over 45 years, Mouzon also recorded or performed with the likes of Donald Byrd, Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis, Roberta Flack, Robert Plant, Stevie Wonder, and Eric Clapton – to name a few.  Alphonse Mouzon died from neuroendocrine carcinoma on December 26, 2016.  He was 68.

What You Should Own

Click to find at amazon.com

 

Posted in Jazz, Musician, Songwriter | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Died On This Date (December 26, 2016) Alphonse Mouzon / Jazz Fusion Pioneer