Marc Myers

New York

Blogger, JazzWax at All About Jazz

Articles

Backgrounder: Music To Listen To Barney Kessel By

5 days ago | allaboutjazz.com | Marc Myers

By 1957, Los Angeles was Shangri-La for many jazz studio musicians. They had settled in the San Fernando Valley north of the city, married, had kids, no longer had to tour, the weather was great, the highways weren't impossible yet and the Pacific Ocean's beaches were waiting. Provided their car started, they were in business for themselves and doing well. One of the most prolific jazz guitarists in L.A. was Barney Kessel. In the late 1950s, he was recording for Contemporary.
Six YouTube Clips: Terry Gibbs

6 days ago | allaboutjazz.com | Marc Myers

I love Terry Gibbs. Like Shorty Rogers, Chubby Jackson, Teddy Charles and so many other jazz players, Terry had and still has wild, enthusiastic energy. And given that it rained in New York for two days and expected to return again tomorrow and Friday, what better way to perk up than with music by Terry. I'm betting that many of you have never heard or seen the following clips of Terry before:Here's one of several albums made by Terry and Alice Coltrane—El Nutto: Terry Gibbs Quartet.
Perfection: Sonny Stitt - Goin' Down Slow

6 days ago | allaboutjazz.com | Marc Myers

Today, I'm serving up two tracks for this week's Perfection entry, because as anyone who bought Sonny Stitt's LP Goin' Down Slow in 1972 knows, it's impossible to listen to the first without the second. The two featured tracks are Stitt's Miss Ann, Lisa, Sue and Sadie and Where Is Love by Lionel Bart from Oliver! The songs were recorded by Stitt in February 1972.
Steve Allee on The Baron

1 week ago | allaboutjazz.com | Marc Myers

Back in March, I posted on The Baron, a terrific Fender Rhodes album led by drummer John “The Baron" Von Ohlen. It was recorded for Stan Kenton's Creative World label in January 1973. The Baron featured Claude Sifferlen (Fender Rhodes), Steve Allee (keyboard bass, piano, organ), Von Ohlen (drums) and Mary Ann Moss (vocals). Prior, I posted on the Steve Allee Big Band's terrific new album, Naptown Sound.
‘Sopranos’ and ‘Goodfellas’ Star Lorraine Bracco on the Insult She Never Forgot

1 week ago | wsj.com | Marc Myers

Lorraine Bracco, 70, is an actress best known for her roles in the film “Goodfellas” and in HBO’s “The Sopranos.” She co-stars in “Nonnas,” a Netflix comedy film due May 9. She spoke with Marc Myers. One day, kids on the school bus told me something that stuck with me for life. They said they had voted me the ugliest girl in sixth grade. Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
Backgrounder: Sonny Rollins - Alfie (1966)

1 week ago | allaboutjazz.com | Marc Myers

No album better reflects Sonny Rollins's personality than his Alfie: Original Music From the Score, arranged by Oliver Nelson. Recorded in New York in January 1966, the original music has his energy, passion, tenderness and his melancholy in one fell swoop. It's all very mid-1960s. To learn more about the recording, consult my two-part post on The Making of Alfie, from 2010.
Perfection: Erroll Garner - It's the Talk of the Town

1 week ago | allaboutjazz.com | Marc Myers

Mason Razavi03:07Anthony Branker, Imagine, Alison Crockett, Pete McCann, Walter Smith III08:52Tomer Cohen, Matt Penman, Obed Calvaire04:53Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra05:41Dave Stryker, Jared Gold, McClenty Hunter Jr.06:36Christoph Irniger, Swiss Jazz Orchestra10:15Kingsley Durant05:35Matt Greenwood06:38Medeljazz Quartet, Laurent Medelgi07:36Manzanita Quintet, Josh D.
10 Favorite Fender Rhodes Albums

2 weeks ago | allaboutjazz.com | Marc Myers

Back in March, I posted about John Von Ohlen's The Baron (1973), a superb Fender Rhodes album. As mentioned back then, I'm a bit of a Rhodes nut, having fallen in love with the electric piano in the early 1970s in high school. I also hinted in my post that I planned on sharing my top 10 Fender Rhodes albums, which resulted in a hailstorm of emails asking me when that post would go up. So today I'm making good on my promise.
Christie Brinkley on Moving to Paris, Sports Illustrated Covers and House Hunting With Billy Joel

2 weeks ago | wsj.com | Marc Myers

Christie Brinkley, 71, is an actress, entrepreneur and model who appeared on three consecutive covers of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue. She owns the TWRHLL clothing line and is the author of the memoir “Uptown Girl” (Harper Influence), out today. She spoke with Marc Myers. Corporal punishment was fairly common when I was growing up, but my birth father, Herb, went beyond what was accepted. Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
Backgrounder: O'Donel Levy - Black Velvet (1971)

2 weeks ago | allaboutjazz.com | Marc Myers

The early 1970s was an explosive time for pop music. Trade quotas were lifted on Japanese electronic products, and America was flooded with affordable component stereo systems. Stores helped you match a turntable to an integrated receiver and speakers based on your budget. If you didn't have the money, you could always go with a Japanese-made 8-track player with built-in speakers and an integrated receiver.