Most people might say in jest that it’s the water in Detroit, the Motor City that has consistently been able to bring forth innovators and trendsetters in all genres of music. More likely, it could be because the Midwest-styled, hard work ethic and mixing of different races and cultural influences that has made musicians from Motown stand apart from others in the United States and the world.
One was black, the other white. Both were born in Detroit in the early 1930s. Both were masters on their respective instruments. Jazz trumpeter Donald Byrd and baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams met in the 1950s and formed a hard-driving quintet from 1958 to 1961, which featured jazz music in the hard bop style. Some saw hard bop, with its rollicking blues-based lead melodies over which musicians soloed, as a response to cool and West Coast jazz styles, which had an overall fluid and more restrained feel. Along with Byrd and Adams, purveyors such as Horace Silver, Art Blakey and tenor sax man Hank Mobley were leaders in this style.
Adams was an innovator on the unwieldy baritone saxophone, the sheer weight and low range of which, usually put it in the category of a supportive instrument in big band arrangements. However, Adams managed to bring the cumbersome baritone sax into the blisteringly fast speed of hard bop like no others had before. Combined with Byrd’s melodic soloing ability and strong writing gift, this short-lived quintet was one of the most dynamic in jazz history.
Once again, we should give thanks for living in a rich cultural community like Culver City in that only a short distance away, we can find world-class performers. Culver’s Club for Jazz at the Doubletree Los Angeles Westside has booked for May 26 the Dale Fielder Tribute Quintet, which will play the music of Byrd and Adams.
Fielder’s resume is impressive, with numerous CDs as a leader under his name, including his July 2007 release, DFQ Plays the Music of Pepper Adams. His 2005 disc, Baritone Sunrise also received international attention, bringing Fielder recognition as one of the top new baritone saxophonists in jazz. Playing alongside this rising star in jazz will be Nolan Shaheed on trumpet, Trevor Ware on bass, and Don Littleton playing drums. The Doubletree is at 6161 Centinela Ave. There is no cover; however, there is a $15 food and beverage minimum, with three sets starting at 7 p.m.
On Friday, May 27, Grammy Award-winning pianist Bill Cunliffe brings his Imaginacion band to the Culver Club for his innovative and swinging compositions in a Latin jazz style. Named after Cunliffe’s 2005 release under the same name, the Imaginacion band will feature an all-star cast of local Latin jazz greats. The cover is $10 and more info can be found at in-housemusic.com.
Jazz Fridays at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art has started again, with vocalist Dwight Trible taking the outdoor stage in the courtyard, on May 27. Trible is a singer who combines the best of vocal virtuosity with musicianship and improvisational skills, consistently producing some of the finest musical moments in Los Angeles. The concerts are free and the music runs from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
If jazz is not your cup of tea but you still want to stay local, head to the cozy confines of the Cinema Bar on Wednesday, June 8 for The Quick & Easy Boys. This fun-loving group plays music with styles ranging from funk and psychedelic rock to garage rock, all in their own original style. The Portland, Ore.-based group is touring in support of its sophomore full-length disc, Red Light Rabbit, available now on the Nashville-based label PerCapita Records.
Composed of Jimmy Russell on guitar, Sean Badders on Bass and Michael Goetz on drums, the energetic trio’s influences are wide-ranging, encompassing the Minutemen, Funkadelic and Willie Nelson. These guys are road dogs and can really play their instruments, as well as being strong songwriters and performers. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear this well-traveled rock band as it passes through Culver City before moving onto the rest of the country. The Cinema Bar is at 3967 Sepulveda Blvd. There’s no cover and the beer is cold. More info on the show can be found at the cinemabar.com/.
The Culver City High School’s Spring Music concert will take place tonight at the Robert Frost Auditorium. Put on by the acclaimed Culver City High School Academy of Visual and Performing Arts, the concert will feature the Culver City High School Concert Band, as well as the AVPA chamber singers, string ensemble percussion ensemble and jazz combos. The concert will begin at 6:30 p.m. and is free for parents, students and the entire Culver City community.
Jonathan Weiss is a Los Angeles-based music supervisor for film, TV and advertising. Email him at jonjaz@aol.com.
