Playlist: 20080815

Glory or Crazy
Emily Bezar
Exchange
DemiVox

Climb
Emily Bezar
Exchange
DemiVox

It Should've Happened a Long Time Ago
Frank Kimbrough
Eclipse at Dawn
Palmetto

Jackie-ing
Frank Kimbrough
Air
Palmetto

Restless
Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath
Eclipse at Dawn
Cuneiform

Drum Sketch #1 and #2
Susie Ibarra
Drum Sketches
Innova

Etheric Redemption
William Hooker and Billy Bang
Joy (Within!)
Silkheart

Joy (Within!)
William Hooker and Billy Bang
Joy (Within!)
Silkheart

Interview with William Hooker

Electro / Magnetic
William Hooker and Billy Bang
Joy (Within!)
Silkheart

Playlist: 20080708

Heavy Air
Emily Bezar
Exchange
DemiVox

Lament
Emily Bezar
Exchange
DemiVox

Cell Sequence
Matthew Shipp Duo
Eclipse at Dawn
Thirsty Ear

Patchwork I
RAM3
Patchwork I
Rich McGhee

Interview with Rich McGhee and Margauxmargo

Playlist: 20080701

Scratch and Sniff The Jive
David Bixler
Call it a Good Deal
zoho

Minor Vee
Revolutionary Snake Ensemble
Forked Tongue
Cuneiform

The Bride
Chris MacGregor's Brotherhood of Breath
Eclipse at Dawn
Cuneiform

Rhythm-a-ning
Sam Newsome
Monk Abstractions
Sam Newsome

Compassion Lost and Found Again
Paul Flaherty
Whirl of Nothingness
Family Vineyard

Marauding Toxic Fungus
Paul Flaherty & Randall Colbourne
Bridge Out!
Family Vineyard

Song for My Mother
Joe Fonda, Carlo Morena, George Schuller
A Drop of Water
Konnex

Moglichkeiten
Joe Fonda, Carlo Morena, George Schuller
A Drop of Water
Konnex

Countdown
Brad Mehldau Trio
Live
Nonesuch

Common Mama
George Schuller's Circle Wide
Like Before, Somewhat After
Playscape Recordings

Playlist: 20080624

The Wish
Joe Fonda, Carlo Morena, George Schuller,
A Drop of Water
Konnex

Ruby's Rub
Brad Meldhau Trio
Live at the Village Vanguard
Nonesuch

Ugly Beauty
Sam Newsome
Family Vineyard
Sam Newsome

River
Chanda Rule
I Too Speak of a River
Like Water Music

Moses
Chanda Rule
I Too Speak of a River
Like Water Music

Gently Disturbed
Avishai Cohen
Gently Disturbed
RazDaz

Spacey
Joe Fonda, Carlo Morena, George Schuller
A Drop of Water
Konnex

Voila, La Tendresse
Joe Fonda, Carlo Morena, George Schuller
A Drop of Water
Konnex

In The Midst of Chaos
Orange
In The Midst of Chaos
De Stijl

Sunset Beyond the Safety
Orange
In The Midst of Chaos
De Stijl

Ice Spike
Paul Flaherty and Randall Colbourne
Bridge Out!

Playlist: 20080617

Back To School

George Schuller's Circle Wide

Like Before, Somewhat After

Playscape Recordings

Just A Closer Walk

Revolutionary Snake Ensemble

Forked Tongue

Cuneiform

Down By The Riverside

Revolutionary Snake Ensemble

Forked Tongue

Cuneiform

When I Die (You Better Second Line)

Kermit Ruffins

Big Easy

Basin Street Records

Dodge the Dodo

E.S.T.

Somewhere Else Before

Columbia

From Gagarin's Point of View

E.S.T.

Somewhere Else Before

Columbia

Moving 4-Ward

Larry Corban

Moving 4-Ward

Self-Released

One For Wayne

Larry Corban

Moving 4-Ward

Self-Released

Calvin's Keys

Pat Metheny

Day Trip

Nonesuch

Is This America? (Katrina 2005)

Pat Metheny

Day Trip

Nonesuch

Dancing On The Ceiling

Andrea Wolper

The Small Hours

Varis One Jazz

You And The Night And The Music

Andrea Wolper

The Small Hours

Varis One Jazz

13

Roberta Piket

Seven Pieces About An Hour

Self-Released

Monk Abstraction #1

Sam Newsome

Monk Abstractions

Sam Newsome

Ask Me Now

Sam Newsome

Monk Abstractions

Sam Newsome

Playlist: 20080610

Untitled Original 90320

John Coltrane

The Classic Quartet

Impulse

Back To School

George Schuller's Circle Wide

Like Before, Somewhat After

Playscape Recordings

'Round Midnight

Miles Davis

Muted Miles

Prestige

Autumn Leaves

Kahil El'Zabar's Ritual Trio

Ooh Live!

Bright Moments/Katalyst

The Thirteenth Floor

Saxophone Summit (Joe Lovano, Dave Liebman, Ravi Coltrane)

Seraphic Light

Telarc

Seraphic Light

Saxophone Summit (Joe Lovano, Dave Liebman, Ravi Coltrane)

Seraphic Light

Telarc

Renunciation Suite

David S. Ware Quartet

Renunciation

AUM Fidelity

Blue Crescent

Dr. Michael White

Blue Crescent

Basin Street Records

St. Louis Blues

Dr. Michael White

Blue Crescent

Basin Street Records

Katrina

Dr. Michael White

Blue Crescent

Basin Street Records

Playlist: 20080603

Countdown

John Coltrane

Giant Steps

Atlantic

A Beautiful Day

Andrew Hill

A Beautiful Day

Palmetto

When You Wish Upon A Star

The Sun Ra Arkestra

Music For The 21st Century

El Ra Records

Thrill Me

Catherine Russell

Sentimental Streak

World Village

I Don't Care Who Knows

Catherine Russell

Sentimental Streak

World Village

Beijing

Michael Musillami

Beijing

Playscape Recordings

Survivor's Suite (Parts  1 and 2)

George Schuller's Circle Wide

Like Before, Somewhat After

Playscape Recordings

Ganesh Sound (Reprise)

David S. Ware Quartet

Renunciation

AUM Fidelity

Playlist: 20080527 (Amir ElSaffar Interview)

Flood
Amir ElSaffar
Two Rivers
Pi Recordings

After the Rain

John Coltrane

The Classic Quartet

Impulse!

A Love Supreme
John Coltrane
The Classic Quartet
Impulse!

Interview: Amir ElSaffar

Menba' (Maqam Bayat)
Amir ElSaffar
Two Rivers
Pi Recordings

Balancing Act
Rudresh Mahanthappa
Black Water
Red Giant

I Like it When You Play the Blues
Rudresh Mahanthappa
Black Water
Red Giant

The Ballad of Johnny Allen: a Bad Muthaf#*(r

It's a legend of stage and screen, by now, but bears repeating lest we ever forget.

Pat and Ben and I had occasion to visit NYC this past weekend. Pathetic, I know, but it has its advantages; the most obvious of which is access to the culture that they just don't get up Storrs way.

Steve Guyger had originally been slated for the 7PM show at Terra Blues. On the way down, Pat announced that Ray Shinnery would appear, instead; which was cool... I'd had the honor of bringing him onto the stage in Bushnell Park for Black Eyed and Blues.

We hatched a stragety (sic) which required Ben and me to enter the club first; while Pat was on the pavement thinkin' about the government (and waiting for Old Man Jackson).

We walked in for the last strums of sound check, and I realized that this was not Ray Shinnery (I'm that astute). Rather than ask, "Who are you?", I opted for the diplomatic introduction; "I'm Chris and this is Ben. We do college radio."

"I'm gonna sit and talk with you guys. I'm Johnny Allen, and I'm a bad muthf#*(r!"

Ben picked up the thread with pretty much the sort of conversation you'd expect to follow such a colorful introduction. I texted Pat. "Come up... now... you're missing this". I was wrong... there was no missing out on this unique individual, as we would spend the next 5 hours either in the audience or just kickin' it with him and with Larry Corban.

Prior to the first set, we learned all sorts of things: about marriage, about music, about what Wynton Marsalis doesn't eat (but Branford does... metaphorically speaking... with his music). I didn't know most of it, before that.

For all intents and purposes, Johnny played that first set for us. There were about 6 other patrons; including an older, distinguished couple from the Midwest (a hunch), who seemed to remember another, more pressing engagement, after their first drink. Things were getting rather "vivid", I guess.

The radio guy in me noticed that he did (very slightly) edit his charmingly outrageous patter while on stage; though I won't dissect it beyond that.

And here's the thing; the normal order of... the one where the "real" set comes later, got turned on its head. The more colorful stories... like the one about "...this Napoleonic, rookie muth- [officer of the law]" who nabbed him for accidentally using his son's Metro card

"I'm not saying he's racist. I'm saying that, had I been wearing a suit and carrying a briefcase, instead of wearing jeans and carrying a guitar... he'd've let me go!"

The more real songs. The more raw performance.
All this came before the "hipsters" filed in for the 10PM show.

At some point I noticed that things were becoming more tame. Maybe it was the simultaneously campy and soulful version of a Marvin Gaye classic. Maybe I noticed the rousing response to the first few bars of "Mr. Jones" (this was Bleecker Street, after all). Johnny, for his part, noticed something else:

"I hear a lot of conversation out there. A lot of sexual tension!"

[Cue: "Let's Get It On".]

Between sets we learned even more about life: that women are best from age 23 (or 24) to 26 (after that y'all apparently get all twisted and crazy), for instance.

Afterwards, we stopped at Arthur's, but it wasn't right for the evening.

Thinking back, we were probably the only ones who responded to his call during "Mojo Workin'" and "I Ain't Drunk (I'm Just Drinkin')". We'd climbed aboard the Johnny Allen express and wouldn't disembark until after midnight, outside The Waverly Restaurant (where that may have actually been Quincy Troupe, three tables over).

If you run into us, now, you may notice that we talk differently. We pepper our everyday utterances with "muthf#*(r" (not that we didn't in the past, mind you). And we laugh when we do it; recalling our newest friend.

We have to get him on the air.

Playlist: 20080205 (Mardi Gras) (Preemption)

Jocimo
Los Hombres Calientes
Vol. 4: Voudou Dance
Basin Street

Down By The Riverside
Creole Jazz Serenaders
Swing Out
Vappielle Records

Cell Block Nine
New Birth Brass Band
New Birth Family
Fat Black Records

Every Night About This Time
Dirty Dozen Brass Band
Goin' Home (A Tribute to Fats Domino)
Tipitina's Foundation

Beale Street Blues
Doreen Ketchens
The Blues
DJNO Records

Mardi Gras in New Orleans
Harry Connick Jr.
Chanson du Vieux Carre
Marsalis Music

We Gona Fonk It Up On Mardi Gras Day
Doreen Ketchens
The Blues
DJNO Records