Dec/Jan Memphis Musician
© 1996 all rights reserved
Blytheville, Arkansas isn't a jazz town. Nearly every car radio in town has the pre-sets set to both kinds of music: country AND western. Across the tracks, there are a few dives where the jukebox features a mix of classic r&b and soul, but you'd look hard to find many residents who don't immediately think of the St. Louis Cardinals when they hear the name Dizzy.
That may be precisely the reason that the National Endowment for the Arts and several local arts organizations brought the Unified Jazz Ensemble (UJE) to town for a year-long residency and invited them back for a second year. That also makes the near virtuosity the UJE displays all the more impressive.
Indeed, their monthly free concerts (7:30 PM on the last Monday of each month at the Ritz Civic Center in Blytheville) are a study in contrasts. In addition to the small cadre of local jazzbeaux, their audiences typically include local high school students sporting the latest rap star fashions, farmers in tractor caps, and the occasional punk rocker.
Likewise, their repertoire covers a wide range. Although the band's original compositions are well within the mainstream genre, they show a strong affinity for New Orleans trad jazz and jump blues and post-bop classics. The band's quirky sense of humor is a decided asset to their stage show, with the odd instrumental quote and on-stage banter about haircuts and large poultry a marked contrast to their intense improvisations. Swap horns for strings, and the Victims of Circumstance come to mind.
The UJE has independently released 2 CDs, with a third scheduled for January release. Their third release, entitled "Small Town Stories," was originally to debut in live form during WEVL FM90's http://www.vdospk.com/wevl/index.html
fall pledge drive, but a badly-timed lightning strike knocked the station off the air.
Primarily original material (the pre-release copy I received had no writers credits), "Small Town Stories" is easily the best of the band's three recordings. While the UJE's soloists are presented well, and there are several exceptional displays of instrumental virtuosity, the CD primarily showcases the group's effectiveness as a seamless unit. Although some jazz and blues columnists occasionally veer into hyperbole (gasp!), a comparison to the Modern Jazz Quartet would not be unfounded. Without a doubt one of the finest jazz ensembles and recordings I've had the pleasure of hearing - period.
Like all independent releases, distribution is spotty, and the group has yet to secure a Memphis outlet for their material, but their CDs are available at That Bookstore in Blytheville (1-800-844-8306), and "Small Town Stories" will be officially debuted at the bookstore January 16th at a release party and performance. The UJE is well worth the hour's drive from Memphis and can also be seen at the Ritz Civic Center December 11 at 7:30 and January 29 at 7:30. No cover.
The Blues Foundation's annual International Blues Talent Competition (IBTC) is rapidly earning a reputation as a bona fide showcase of the best unsigned blues talent in the country. Within hours of its completion October 8th Geoff Achison, a solo guitarist from Melbourne Australia, was offered an endorsement deal with Gibson Records, and rumors circled that the contest's winners, a jump blues horn band from Boston (The Movers) would be signed to a subsidiary of the country's largest independent record distributor. The contest's 1993 winner, Evil Gal, has apparently just come from the studio recording their second release for Bullseye Blues, and each year, festival gigs and spec studio time is booked on the site as bands, promoters, and producers shmooze.
Given the growing success of the event, and the ever-increasing caliber of the entrants the Blues Foundation has a tremendous opportunity to reschedule it away from the tall shadows of the King Biscuit Blues Festival and produce the IBTC as a stand alone event. With the Handy Awards viewed in many corners (and certainly by Memphis' largest daily paper) as a warm up act for Memphis in May, a standalone IBTC could be the Blues Foundation's opportunity to host a two or three day bona fide blues event, and draw more attention to an event that is a gem in the rough.
Robert Gordon has established himself as the pre-eminent commentator on Memphis' unique underground music scene. His films, presentations, radio shows, and readings have become as much an integral part of the scene as the musicians and artists he comments on. His recent book, "It Came From Memphis" drew favorable reviews for its illustration of the different currents in Mid-South culture - black, white, poor, well-to-do, rural, and urban - and their influences on Memphis music.
Upstart records' "It Came From Memphis" is Gordon's attempt to illustrate the music he wrote about in the book by the same title, and within that context, it succeeds. With a strong emphasis on the underground and alternative (no Elvis or Stax or Al Green here), the CD is a tremendous sampler of some of Memphis's more notable musical eccentrics.
Its difficult to adequately sum up my initial reactions to a CD that includes (in no particular musical or chronological order) Mud Boy and the Neutrons at their Dickinsonian finest, Ross Johnson's depressed ramblings, Drive Inn Danny's maniacal ranting, and Othar Turner's Rising Star fife and drum band. Eclectic seems an inadequate description.
The CD is a must have for counterculture completists, and has several outstanding performances. But be forewarned that this is a CD for the converted, and probably not the recommended gift for your great aunt Gertrude who asked you to send her a tape of some Memphis music this year.
Speaking of Christmas, which apparently began shortly after the fourth of July this year, several labels have released compilations, best of, and Christmas CDs JUST IN TIME TO GIVE FOR PRESENTS (those sly dogs)! Several stand out from the pack. Bullseye Blues' Christmas Album (clever title) might merit playing after December 25 for the Champion Jack Dupree and Charles Brown cuts alone. For straight samplers, take a listen to "Black Top Blues Vocal Dynamite" featuring a herd of crooners ranging from Robert Ward to Dr. John to Maria Muldaur. Earwig and Blind Pig also both have excellent samplers out, with the Earwig sampler focusing on traditional blues, and the Blind Pig sampler predictably featuring a wide range of contemporary blues artists.
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