Big Band Jazz - Post 1950

I've been a big fan of trumpeter Wayne Bergeron ever since he played the lead book in Maynard Ferguson's band back in the 80s. At that time, Ferguson was getting on in years and was not the player he once was and to his credit, Ferguson knew that and hired guys like Bergeron to support him.

This big band chart was recorded in 2023 and I would call it "New Swing". Composed by the lead trombonist, it features a tight ensemble sound (love the bass and tuba combo) and a decent solo from the composer as well as a bluesy solo from Bergeron. Worth a listen!

 

PeppermintPatty said:
What a great baritone sax solo.
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Bruce Johnstone - New Zealander who played with the Ferguson band in the 70s. I have a transcript of his solo to "Got the Spirit" as played on the MF Horn 4&5 - Live at "Jimmy's" album, recorded in 1973 in New York City. His cadenza opens the chart and it burns from there. I'll attach it here, along with the YT of that chart, if anybody's interested in following along.

If there's still interest, I also have the tenor sax solo transcription to the same chart, same gig - Ferdinand Povel, a Belgian, played it.

 

Attachments

  • Got the Spirit - Bari Sax - Bruce Johnstone (Altissimo).pdf
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Eupher said:
Bruce Johnstone - New Zealander who played with the Ferguson band in the 70s. I have a transcript of his solo to "Got the Spirit" as played on the MF Horn 4&5 - Live at "Jimmy's" album, recorded in 1973 in New York City. His cadenza opens the chart and it burns from there. I'll attach it here, along with the YT of that chart, if anybody's interested in following along.

If there's still interest, I also have the tenor sax solo transcription to the same chart, same gig - Ferdinand Povel, a Belgian, played it.

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Thanks. I actually got that. Very cool. A 5 page solo. lol 😆 I haven’t read music in a long time. I play everything from ear. This I couldn’t play by ear. It’s far too long.
 
Very expressive music. It sounded like the standard 12 bar blues, with a little different turn around. Then off to the races....

That is some great music! Thanks for sharing. :)
 
PeppermintPatty said:
Thanks. I actually got that. Very cool. A 5 page solo. lol 😆 I haven’t read music in a long time. I play everything from ear. This I couldn’t play by ear. It’s far too long.
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You're not alone. Please keep in mind that Bruce and the Ferguson band played this chart almost on a daily basis for some years. He knew it cold, though his improvisations and cadenzas went to places that his significant chops could take him. It's just fun to see what he played improvisationally, dontcha think? I do!
 
Eupher said:
No, I don't play saxophone at all. I play euphonium (kinda associated with my screen name), trombone, bass trombone, and tuba.
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Oh. There was a great trombone solo in there as well. At least it sounded like trombone. My deceased brother used to play trombone. He was really good. Thanks for the other score of music.
 
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JustBonee said:
Had Sax players in my family, both hubby and my son. They played tenor and alto saxophones for years in bands.
There was always the friendly competition going on between them.
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That’s cool. I play alto Eb and soprano Bb saxophone. I’ve played alto since 1973 and soprano since 2018
 
Eupher said:
I've been a big fan of trumpeter Wayne Bergeron ever since he played the lead book in Maynard Ferguson's band back in the 80s. At that time, Ferguson was getting on in years and was not the player he once was and to his credit, Ferguson knew that and hired guys like Bergeron to support him.

This big band chart was recorded in 2023 and I would call it "New Swing". Composed by the lead trombonist, it features a tight ensemble sound (love the bass and tuba combo) and a decent solo from the composer as well as a bluesy solo from Bergeron. Worth a listen!
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Technically perfect chart rendition, but lacking in heart. First rate trombone and trumpet solos. The drummer almost looked and sounded like he wanted to be somewhere else. There again, flawless recording but IMO only moderate feel. That's not atypical of recorded charts, in comparison to live performances when they can stretch out, and making a clam is not as critical.
 
ChiroDoc said:
Technically perfect chart rendition, but lacking in heart. First rate trombone and trumpet solos. The drummer almost looked and sounded like he wanted to be somewhere else. There again, flawless recording but IMO only moderate feel. That's not atypical of recorded charts, in comparison to live performances when they can stretch out, and making a clam is not as critical.
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Interesting comment. My impression was the trombone solo wasn't nearly up to Bergeron's, but given the difference in their ages (Bergeron was 66 years old at this recording), that's to be expected, I guess. As to the accompaniment, yes, I agree about the drummer and it's true that the drummer drives the band. If he ain't driving, the band doesn't go very far.
 
Eupher said:
Interesting comment. My impression was the trombone solo wasn't nearly up to Bergeron's, but given the difference in their ages (Bergeron was 66 years old at this recording), that's to be expected, I guess. As to the accompaniment, yes, I agree about the drummer and it's true that the drummer drives the band. If he ain't driving, the band doesn't go very far.
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Yeah, the drummer is simply playing along with the band rather than driving it. It's a very slick recording, but if I were producing I'd be riding some of the guys to "get into it"!
 
And now for something a little different.

Don Ellis, a trumpeter, composer, and big band leader, led a short life -- but he kept things interesting.

This Ellis chart is the theme to that great film "The French Connection" starring Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider. Ellis was noted for using some really wild time signatures and he employed quarter-tones on his trumpet which challenges traditional western harmony.

In the same vein as "The French Connection", Ellis also composed the film music for the later film, starring Roy Scheider, "The Seven-Ups".

Ellis died in 1978 at the age of 44 of a heart attack.

 
Eupher said:
And now for something a little different.

Don Ellis, a trumpeter, composer, and big band leader, led a short life -- but he kept things interesting.

This Ellis chart is the theme to that great film "The French Connection" starring Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider. Ellis was noted for using some really wild time signatures and he employed quarter-tones on his trumpet which challenges traditional western harmony.

In the same vein as "The French Connection", Ellis also composed the film music for the later film, starring Roy Scheider, "The Seven-Ups".

Ellis died in 1978 at the age of 44 of a heart attack.
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Ellis was a great trumpet player, and an inventive composer. He liked third stream as well as more traditional jazz.

Funny story: in 1969 I was living in a house near the top of the Hollywood side of Laurel Canyon Blvd. when I was with the Mothers. One afternoon there's a knock at the door. I opened it up, and there stood Don Ellis. I recognized him right away (we'd done a concert with him in Hollywood at the old Aquarius theater), and told him I played with Zappa. He had just had a flat tire a few yards from my house, and wanted to use the phone to call for road service.

So he came in and we chatted for about 45 minutes until AAA got there. He told me that in NYC he hired drummer Steve Bohannon in the late '60s because he was the only guy in New York who could play in 5 (5/4, 5/8)! I said, you gotta be sh*tin' me! Although that was one of the reasons Zappa hired me in NYC-- because I could play in any time signature.

He said he and his big band rehearsed out in the Valley on Tuesday evenings, and he invited me to come out and sit in. So that Tues. night I went out there. When I walked in the door they were playing a standard arrangement of "Sunshine of Your Love", a recent hit by The Cream! I couldn't believe it. I expected some time study or quarter tone piece. He asked if I wanted to sit in, but I declined..

He'd had a congenitally bad heart, but it was a shame when such a unique talent died so young.
 
ChiroDoc said:
Ellis was a great trumpet player, and an inventive composer. He liked third stream as well as more traditional jazz.

Funny story: in 1969 I was living in a house near the top of the Hollywood side of Laurel Canyon Blvd. when I was with the Mothers. One afternoon there's a knock at the door. I opened it up, and there stood Don Ellis. I recognized him right away (we'd done a concert with him in Hollywood at the old Aquarius theater), and told him I played with Zappa. He had just had a flat tire a few yards from my house, and wanted to use the phone to call for road service.

So he came in and we chatted for about 45 minutes until AAA got there. He told me that in NYC he hired drummer Steve Bohannon in the late '60s because he was the only guy in New York who could play in 5 (5/4, 5/8)! I said, you gotta be sh*tin' me! Although that was one of the reasons Zappa hired me in NYC-- because I could play in any time signature.

He said he and his big band rehearsed out in the Valley on Tuesday evenings, and he invited me to come out and sit in. So that Tues. night I went out there. When I walked in the door they were playing a standard arrangement of "Sunshine of Your Love", a recent hit by The Cream! I couldn't believe it. I expected some time study or quarter tone piece. He asked if I wanted to sit in, but I declined..

He'd had a congenitally bad heart, but it was a shame when such a unique talent died so young.
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Great story! It truly is a small world.

Back in the day, it was odd to play in some odd meters. The traditional 4/4, 3/4, 2/4, even 5/4 weren't enough. Compound meters of 7/8, 11/8, 25/16 and even wilder (Hank Levy was another composer who got into this in a big way, writing a lot for the Stan Kenton band) started becoming more and more de rigueur and I'm amazed at the ability of some of the younger kids to latch onto these compound rhythms to make them spark.
 
Another modern recording with video of Wayne Bergeron and a local big band.

Trombone solo -- well, he tries hard, but I think that's the problem. He's trying too hard.

A nice, slow blues, well-played and good video. Wayne stands out, as you would expect.

 
Bob McChesney's trombone solo on Cherokee, with the Rebel Alliance Big Band. Transcription shown below, though I don't know how anybody could actually read it at that tempo.

Bob's trombone slide was smoking at the end of his burnin' solo. A master of the "doodle-tonguing" technique, he is clearly influenced by Carl Fontana and Bill Watrous.

 
Holy crap! I've never heard slide trombone played like that. If I'd have heard it, rather than seeing it, I would have assumed it was a valve trombone. What technique!
 
Count Basie in Copenhagen, Denmark. 18 April 1972. It's a looooong clip of about 2 hours 17 minutes, presumably the length of the entire concert.

So much good here. Take it in chunks if you must. The Count himself with his relaxed, sparse playing which actually drives the rhythm section. Freddie Green on guitar, who eschewed solos. I always appreciated his sound -- gut strings, nothing flashy, just solid as a rock. Bass and drums, always there. Horns including Al Grey on trombone and his inventive plunger. Eric Dixon and his (sometimes) out of tune flute. Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson - vocals (Cleanhead's Blues; Cherry Red, Person to Person, Hold it Right There) and alto sax.

Joe Williams (vocals, of course). "Everyday I Have the Blues", "In the Evening", "All Right, OK, You Win", "Come Back".

And all that within the first hour!

 

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