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From '50s NYC clubland, a Yma Sumac-inspired version of "Babalu" by jazz/calypso singer Phyllis Branch.
Category Archives: Jazz Obscura
Mod jazz
From the avant-garde to the mainstream, it’s easy to brood on the status of jazz in this lifetime, at least insofar as its public visibility and cultural vitality go. Jazz seems to hit low after historical low, and, likewise, it’s … Continue reading
Organ safari
Rarely did exotic masquerade as authentic. That’s part of what made exotica exotica: an odd minor key or flourish of African percussion here, some warmed-over Arabic melody there. Exotica, in all of its post-War musical splendor, created an aura of … Continue reading
Bagpipes
The mechanism of the instrument – a bag, fundamentally, directing air across the pipe’s reed within the instrument, the holes on the pipe allowing precise notes to be played – can be traced to different regions of Europe, Africa, and … Continue reading
The Naked City
The late 1950s through the mid-1970s were golden years for television, Hollywood and the crime jazz soundtrack, years when staccato piano chords lurked around every dark corner, and every chase scene was heralded with a steady gallop of bongos. This … Continue reading
Organ moods
Three measured doses of organ jazz ambience this week. These selections may only bore you, or you may find something more subtle and exciting about these, something with the quality of a cinematic archetype. Think “after hours nightclub scene.” See … Continue reading
Vocal Noir
Some obscure, atmospheric jazz vocals this week. 1. Mark Murphy, Come and Get Me (Riverside) “Come and Get Me” is just so macabre – and on so many levels. From those first creeping bass notes to the strings’ final eerie … Continue reading
Sleeping pills
It all depends on the week. Sometimes you’re chugging along and it seems that every time you turn your perfectly-shaped head there’s another library being named for you, another director who wants you for their picture or just another good-looking … Continue reading
Roscoe Weathers, pt. 1
Part of it is the mystery. As far as I can tell, West Coast jazz musician Roscoe Weathers’s entire output consisted of ten 45 rpm records. Born in Memphis, several online references place Weathers later in the post-War nightclubs of … Continue reading
