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Ahmad Jamal Trio--(video)


ProfD

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Paron my excursion into youtube. ;)

 

Ahmad Jamal Trio

 

I had to post this link for the cats who dig jazz piano. A younger Jamal was nice with the left hand chord voicings in 1959.

 

The swing and dynamics the trio put on this standard ("Darn that Dream") was hot. Enjoy. :cool:

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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Wow, ProfD, thanks for sharing! Nice to hear some great music on a Saturday night off. Jamal is the master of chord voicings. My personal favorite is his classic "Ponciana." Absolutely beautiful. I've tried to cop the voicings he uses in that song but quickly become incredibly frustrated. Thanks again!

 

P.S. I wonder what that bearded guy was smoking in that pipe.....

"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing."

- George Bernard Shaw

 

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The trio was Jamal (Piano), Israel Crosby (Bass) and Vernell Fournier (Drums).

 

Their classic record is "Ahmad Jamal Live at Pershing: But Not For Me".

 

There is also a live, 2-CD compilation "Cross Country Tour: 1958-1961".

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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  • 2 weeks later...

Prof D,

 

Man, what a swinging, elegant touch! Much more joyful than Bill Evans; less introspective and brooding. He really floats above the time, as do some other players like Brad Mehldau. Thanks for this video; I was only familiar with Jamal's later playing and this is a breath of fresh air!

 

:thu:

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Yep, I've searched high and low for a recorded version of "Darn that Dream" and have yet to find one that sounds remotely similar.

 

Glad you all enjoyed the video. When I hear and see one man, one ax at work, it temporarily puts the whole GAS thing in persective. ;):cool:

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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One of the two bass players today with Ahmad is James Cammack.

 

I worked with James for about eight years. James (Jimmy back then) was in the same military band I was.

 

He had the best time and best ears of any bass player I have ever worked with.

 

No guitarists were harmed during the making of this message.

 

In general, harmonic complexity is inversely proportional to the ratio between chording and non-chording instruments.

 

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ProfD,

 

Funny, I was reorganizing my CD's yesterday and I found the jewel case for a 1990's Ahmad Jamal cd that I lost years ago. I said I gotta get me some more of his work. I kept the jewel case to remind myself how much I liked his playing. I'll try and post the CD title tommorow!

 

lb

 CP-50, YC 73,  FP-80, PX5-S, NE-5d61, Kurzweil SP6, XK-3, CX-3, Hammond XK-3, Yamaha YUX Upright, '66 B3/Leslie 145/122

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BTW, unless there's more than one, that's definitely not "Darn That Dream".

 

Yes, it is. At the very beginning it's a straight rendition of DTD, and as it progresses, it ventures into new territory, away from DTD

 

Ahmad tends to do that to tunes with his arrangements. I love his playing

 

 

 

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Richard,

 

Quick aside: I just checked out your site, and your playing sounds great! I'm a fellow Berklee alum as well. I'd like to go ahead and order "The Voice of Youth", but don't see a link to purchase. Please advise.

 

Question: Do you have a leadsheet for "Out Of This World"? I've been unable to get my hands on it. Is it from a Broadway show?

 

Regards,

-Mark

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Thanks, Mark

 

I'm honoured that you want to buy my cd. The on-line seller that I'm currently with, JazzPromo.com, got out of the business of selling cd's, and I've been too busy/lazy to make other arrangements. Would it be ok if you just mailed me some $ and I mail you the cd? I'll PM you.

 

I'll also get you a copy of OOTW.

 

Re DTD, I don't have iTunes. Which version are you referring to (what artist, what record, etc? maybe I can listen to it some other way). But what AJ is playing in that YouTube video is definitely DTD.

 

Cheers,

Richard

 

 

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He never seemed to state the melody, but the changes sounded like Darn That Dream to me.

 

My take on that was just the opposite, I never would have guessed the tune from the changes I heard. I only knew it was DTD because of melody fragments he would throw in from time to time. I get the feeling Ahmad was just trying to be ultra hip.

 

 

No guitarists were harmed during the making of this message.

 

In general, harmonic complexity is inversely proportional to the ratio between chording and non-chording instruments.

 

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Richard,

 

Would it be ok if you just mailed me some $ and I mail you the cd? I'll PM you.

By all means. Send me the details via PM and we'll handle it that way.

 

I'll also get you a copy of OOTW.

Great; many thanks!

 

Re DTD, I don't have iTunes.Which version are you referring to (what artist, what record, etc? maybe I can listen to it some other way).

I just grabbed the first version I found on iTunes; I think it was a Miles Davis version with a vocalist singing; perhaps Johnny Hartman. Don't sweat it; if you guys say that it's DTD, I'll take your word for it. But for the life of me, (regardless of what key it's in), I'm not hearing the signature first three changes of the tune (Gmaj7 Bbmin7 Eb7...) at all. I must somehow be missing it. Unless of course there is more than one tune with that title...

 

I'll keep a lookout for your PM!

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Paron my excursion into youtube. ;)

 

Ahmad Jamal Trio

 

I had to post this link for the cats who dig jazz piano. A younger Jamal was nice with the left hand chord voicings in 1959.

 

The swing and dynamics the trio put on this standard ("Darn that Dream") was hot. Enjoy. :cool:

 

That was great!! :thu:

 

If I put down my guitar long enough to learn a real instrument, I wanna play like that! ;):)

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Well, if the tune is indeed "Darn That Dream", as DH says, Jamal & co. played an ultra-hip arrangement of it.

 

Also, check out Jamal's interpretation of "Autumn in New York" recorded live in 1980. :cool:

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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Not as much smokin' keys on this one, but I loved the way AJ was REALLY leading the band, with simple hand gestures and a like. I think its an art which seems to get ignored nowdays... or in a lot of cases not even used.

 

 

Thanks for enlightening me to this guy PD!

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There's a DVD called "Live in Baalbeck" with Jamal, James Cammack on bass and Idris Muhammad on drums. Very fine playing and very well shot. The audio on "Poinciana" is curiously slightly out of sync with the video, which makes it a bit disturbing to watch, but the rest is fine. Recorded 2004 I think. You can see Jamal's use of hand cues very clearly.

Gig keys: Hammond SKpro, Korg Vox Continental, Crumar Mojo 61, Crumar Mojo Pedals

 

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