SONG OF THE DAY
“Willow Weep For Me” by The Red Garland Trio (Groovy, Prestige/ Fantasy Records, 1956). Trio is Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. LP recorded at the Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ, December 14, 1956. Also featured on the 2008 Rudy Van Gelder remaster through Concord Records.
WHERE I HEARD IT
At work, we listen to pandora 24/7 and just type in “Stan Getz” for the inspiration. This song came on last week and just hit me.
FROM ALLMUSIC.COM
Red Garland mixed together the usual influences of his generation (Nat Cole, Bud Powell, and Ahmad Jamal) into his own distinctive approach; Garland’s block chords themselves became influential on the players of the 1960s. He started out playing clarinet and alto, switching to piano when he was 18. During 1946-1955, he worked steadily in New York and Philadelphia, backing such major players as Charlie Parker, Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, and Roy Eldridge, but still remaining fairly obscure. That changed when he became a member of the classic Miles Davis Quintet (1955-1958), heading a rhythm section that also included Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones. After leaving Miles, Garland had his own popular trio and recorded very frequently for Prestige, Jazzland, and Moodsville during 1956-1962 (the majority of which are available in the Original Jazz Classics series). The pianist eventually returned to Texas and was in semi-retirement, but came back gradually in the 1970s, recording for MPS (1971) and Galaxy (1977-1979) before retiring again.
INTERESTING FACTS (a la wikipedia)
– “Willow Weep for Me” is a popular song composed in 1932 by Ann Ronell.
– Notable versions have been recorded by the likes of:
- Billie Holiday (on Lady Sings the Blues
- Art Tatum (live at the Just Jazz concert at Shrine Auditorium, LA, 1949)
- Stan Kenton with June Christie (Artistry in Rhythm , 1950) Thelonious Monk and Milt Jackson (on Monk’s Genius of Modern Music: Volume 2 , 1952) and Jackson’s Wizard of the Vibes , 1952)
- Cannonball Adderley (Bohemia After Dark, 1955)
- Dinah Washington (Dinah!, 1956)
- Frank Sinatra (Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely, 1958)
- Nina Simone (The Amazing Nina Simone, 1959)
- Ella Fitzgerald (Hello, Love, 1960)
- Chad & Jeremy (Yesterday’s Gone, 1964) US #15 Pop, #1 AC
- Booker T. & the M.G.’s (Soul Limbo , 1968)
- Diana Krall (From This Moment On, 2006)
- Lou Rawls (1962, compilation album Midnight Jazz released in 2004)
– William “Red” Garland (May 13, 1923–April 23, 1984) was an American hard bop jazz pianist whose block chord style, in part originated by Milt Buckner, influenced many forthcoming pianists in the jazz idiom.
– A short early career as a welterweight boxer did not seem to hurt his playing hands. He fought a young Sugar Ray Robinson before making the switch to a full-time musician.
– Garland’s trademark block chord technique, a commonly borrowed maneuver in jazz piano today, was unique and differed from the methods of earlier block chord pioneers such as George Shearing and Milt Buckner. Garland’s block chords were constructed of three notes in the right hand and four notes in the left hand, with the right hand one octave above the left. The right hand played the melody in octaves with a perfect 5th placed in the middle of the octave (a 5th above the lowest note of the octave) even when it seemed to not suit the harmony. The 5th played in the middle of the octave becomes virtually inaudible when the chord in the left hand is played simultaneously, but the added 5th gives the voicings a particularly rich, distinctive and slightly out-of-tune character. Garland’s left hand played four note chords that simultaneously beat out the same exact rhythm as the right hand melody played. But, unlike George Shearing’s block chord method, Garland’s left hand chords did not change positions or inversions until the next chord change occurred. It’s also worth noting that Garland’s four note left hand chord voicings occasionally left out the roots of the chords, which later became a chord style associated with pianist Bill Evans. Garland’s block chord method had a brighter quality, slightly more dissonance, and a fullness in the upper register compared to the mellower Shearing block chord sound. Garland’s solo lines also had a glassy, shimmering tone that matched the quality of his chords.
– After the Second World War, Garland performed with Roy Eldridge, Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Parker, and Lester Young. He found steady work in the cities of Boston, New York and Philadelphia.
– In the late 1940s he toured with Eddie Vinson at the same time that John Coltrane was in Vinson’s band. His creativity and playing ability continued to improve, though he was still somewhat obscure.
– By the time he became a pianist for Miles Davis he was influenced by Ahmad Jamal and Charlie Parker’s pianist Walter Bishop.
– Garland became famous in 1955 when he joined the Miles Davis Quintet featuring John Coltrane, Philly Joe Jones and Paul Chambers. Davis was a big fan of boxing and was impressed that Garland had boxed earlier in his life. Together the group recorded their famous Prestige albums, Workin, Steamin‘, Cookin‘, and Relaxin‘.
– Garland’s style is prominent in these seminal recordings—evident in his distinctive chord voicings, his sophisticated accompaniment and his musical references to Ahmad Jamal’s style.
– The quintet’s recordings would influence the Free jazz movement.
– In 1958 Garland formed his own trio. Among the musicians the trio recorded with are Pepper Adams, Nat Adderley (Cannonball Adderley’s brother), Ray Barretto, Kenny Burrell, Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis, Jimmy Heath, Harold Land, Philly Joe Jones, Blue Mitchell, Ira Sullivan, and Leroy Vinnegar. The trio also recorded as a quintet with John Coltrane and Donald Byrd.
– Altogether Garland led 19 recording sessions while at Prestige Records and was involved in 25 sessions for Fantasy Records. He stopped playing professionally for a number of years in the 1960s when the popularity of rock and roll music coincided with a substantial drop in the popularity of jazz.
– He continued recording until his death from a heart attack in 1984, aged 60.
– As a sideman, Garland worked with John Coltrane on the following albums:
- Traneing In (1957)
- Lush Life (1957)
- Soultrane (1958)
– As a sideman, Garland worked with Miles Davis on the following albums:
- Cookin’ with The Miles Davis Quintet (1956)
- Relaxin’ with The Miles Davis Quintet (1956)
- Workin’ with The Miles Davis Quintet (1956)
- Steamin’ with The Miles Davis Quintet (1956)
- ‘Round About Midnight (1957)
- Porgy and Bess (1958)
- Milestones (1958)
Love the selection – and the artist’s style. Note: Grandpa Kelly battled a willow tree at the end of his driveway, but on the neighbor’s property for years. I hear the song, I think of him.
That’s a good story, I will think of him now too. Thanks for the memory of him!