Celebrate International Jazz Day April 30th This Wednesday with Giacomo Gates & Trio at the Stamford Palace Theatre

Giacomo Gates and Ed Howard photo by Ralph A. Miriello 2013

In Novemeber 2011, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

officially designated April 30th as International Jazz Day in order to highlight jazz and its diplomatic role in uniting people in all corners of the globe.

Jazz has a long history of successfully bridging the gap between various cultural and ideological differences. The United States, through its State Department, has sponsored jazz artists to tour foreign countries as good will ambassadors. The music has been an invaluable vehicle for sending positive images of our national intentions to other countries.  Jazz artist like Dave Brubeck, Dizzy Gillespie and most famously Louis Armstrong have all been instrumental in improving relations  with other countries through the positive vibes offered through the performances of their music abroad. The artists sent strong  messages of peace, friendship and goodwill through the all the powerful medium of their music. Jazz has proven to be an international language that accepts no political or geographic boundaries. This year in Osaka, Japan a stellar line-up of top jazz musicians will celebrate this special day with an All Star Global Concert from the Osaka Castle Park in Japan.

In keeping with this celebratory and spiritual undertaking of uniting people around the globe through jazz, I have been working with the creative and receptive people at the Stamford Center of the Arts  to introduce a regular jazz series to the Palace Theatre in Stamford.  The people at SCA have graciously received this notion as one that is keeping with their mission to provide artistic performances to the community. To that end and in celebration of International Jazz Day, the SCA will present  an evening of jazz this Wednesday April 30, 2014 at 8pm at the Palace.  The evening will feature the great jazz vocalist Giacomo Gates and his trio. Mr. Gates is a Connecticut native and longtime resident of Bridgeport. He is a frequent nominee in both the Jazz Journalist Association and Downbeat  magazine annual awards for best male jazz vocalist.

Gates has a smoky baritone that resonates in the ears like a fine glass of single malt smoothly tantalizes the mouth.  He is a master of the art of vocalese and scat and is a direct descendant of the great Eddie Jefferson, whom he credits as one of his influences. More than anything else Gates is a master storyteller who engages his audience with a nonchalant appeal. His delivery has a cool, hip cadence that somehow draws you into the story he is telling, and oh what stories! Gates repertoire is filled with nuggets that lay just outside the great American songbook. His most recent albums, both critically acclaimed, include the Revolution Will Be Jazz the Music of Gil Scott Heron and Milestones the Music of Miles Davis. Giacomo Gates, a cat who lies just outside the boundaries of what you might expect, and that, along with his wonderfully resonant voice, is what makes his performances unpredictable and so appealing. And the cat can swing, no lie.

I will be holding an impromptu Q & A session with Gates at intermission, so be sure to come and see a true jazz master and maybe ask him a question or two. Get into his head. It will be a trip for sure.Join us in celebration of great music on International Jazz Day, Jazz Appreciation Month and the return of real jazz to Stamford, CT at the Palace Theatre this Wednesday at 8pm. You can get your tickets by linking here. 

Here is a sample of Gates recent music and if you want to read more about Giacomo Gates see my recent interview with him by linking here, See you at the Palace.

Gil Scott Heron: Poet, Musician, Troubadour of Truth Dies in NYC at age 62

Gil Scott Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011)

In a world bereft of really meaningful socially and politically charged music, we learn of the passing of a great poet, a troubadour of truth, Gil Scott Heron. Mr. Scott Heron was reported to have been in St. Luke's hospital in NYC when he succumbed to some as yet unannounced health issues,sometime of Friday May 27, 2011 at the age of 62. 
Who will take his place?

Mr. Scott Heron was a visionary poet who used his raspy, gravel-like voice in combination with soulful, jazzy musical elements to bring his social and political commentary to light. His voice could seethe with anger and sarcasm or could be used to elicit great pathos depending on what he was trying to communicate. In an interview from 2008, when asked to define a poet he said a poet is "...someone who uses words to communicate more than just ordinary conversation. We (poets)  use it (poetry) to communicate ideas that we think people need to know."  For his part Mr. Scott Heron certainly did just that.







Though his success was never mainstream, for those who did happen to listen, he provided some valuable insights, often holding up a  less than flattering mirror to our collective conscience. His music came to light in the late sixties and early seventies starting with his debut album "Small Talk at 125th Street and Lenox". He was also a published author with the release of his " The Vulture and The Nigger Factory" in 1970 and cited the poet Langston Hughes as an early influence.

 

 

His music and poetry concentrated on social commentary and political injustice as seen from a Black man's perspective. He was loud, controversial, with an acerbic wit that used sarcasm to great effect.  He became a poster child for black militancy during this era, as his approach was bold, unafraid and "in your face." "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised"  was a call to action that leveled criticism across the board  with shots at overt consumerism, social injustice, political chicanery and the complacency that he found in his own people. 

His brilliant  "Winter in America" , from his album of the same name, is a soul searching look at some of the less admirable aspects of American history and a decidedly pessimistic lament about the loss of real leadership.  Perhaps his most frequently played song on  radio was  
"The Bottle",  a single from this 1974  album. It  was an indictment of the devastating effects of alcohol abuse set to soulful jazz based music played with his long time collaborator the flautist/pianist  Brian Jackson. Scott Heron's vocals were delivered in a combined singing/talk-like style that predates rap and consequently he is often credited with being one of rap's major influences. 
 
  
No matter what subject he tackled he did so with a style and wit that was hard to ignore. His "Whitey on The Moon" was his acerbic look at the juxtaposition of a nation that could put a man on the moon but was still struggling  with the realities of poverty. He was a passionate anti-nuclear advocate and he made his point on his chilling "We Almost Lost Detroit", a clarion call to reconsider the use of nuclear energy and it's inherent dangers. He played this at the  
No Nukes concert in Madison Square Garden in 1979.

His political commentary was stinging with his "H20Gate Blues" roasting President Nixon's Watergate debacle and his"B Movie" ,a clever reference to the then President Reagan's former movie career,  a powerful metaphor for what he saw as an "acting" president. Whether you agreed or disagreed with his sentiments he was a skillful wordsmith and a powerful advocate for his cause. He often said what others wish they had and he did so with a cool style and an unmistakeably distinctive voice that had an inherent musicality. 
Despite some well documented drug and medical problems, Scott Heron had made a recent comeback of sorts with his 2010 release  " I'm New Here" and the single" Me and The Devil"  

which introduced the erascible poet to a whole new generation. Reportedly he was taken ill during a recent European trip and was eventually brought to St. Luke's hospital in New York City where he passed on Friday.With his passing the world of music and poetry has certainly suffered a terrible loss.

A memorial service has been scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Thursday June 2 at Riverside Church; there will also be a public viewing from 6-9 p.m. at Frank E. Campbell Funeral Home at 81st Street and Madison Avenue.
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