70 Years of Swing
Blue Note 7 present a night of jazz classics at Farthing Auditorium February 17

By Jeff Eason

As any record collector worth his turntable knows, certain labels practically define certain genres of music. Deutsche Grammophon with its ubiquitous yellow label set the bar for

recordings of classical music for decades. The Rounder and Sugar Hill labels were safe havens for bluegrass and Americana fans wanting to escape electronica. And Windham Hill practically invented a progressive yet peaceful instrumental style of music in the 1980s.

Jazz fans know that the Blue Note label is the bible when it comes to producing the highest quality jazz records for the past 70 years. In celebrating this anniversary, the label has put together an all-star band to present the best that the label has had to offer for the past seven decades.

The Blue Note Records 70th Anniversary on Tour comes to Farthing Auditorium on Tuesday, February 17th. The concert starts at 8 p.m. and is part of the Appalachian State University 2009 Performing Arts Series. Tickets are on sale now.

The band performing on the Blue Note 70th Anniversary Tour is traveling under the name The Blue Note 7. This month the band released the powerful album Mosaic, containing cover tunes by Blue Note artists such as Joe Hnederson, McCoy Tyner, Thelonious Monk and others.

The Blue Note 7 features Bill Charlap on piano, Nicholas Payton on trumpet, Steve Wilson on alto saxophone and flute, Peter Bernstein on guitar, Peter Washington on bass and Lewis Nash on drums.

“For this tour we are playing the tunes from Mosaic and about ten more Blue Note tunes,” said Steve Wilson in a phone interview last week from Tucson where the band is beginning its nationwide tour. “We have new arrangements of Lee Morgan’s ‘Party Time,’ Jackie McLean’s ‘Ballad for a Doll,’ Buddy Powell’s ‘Dance with the Infidels’ and others that we are working on.”

Wilson stated that everyone in the band participates in choosing which Blue Note songs to cover on the tour.
“We just consult each other on who’s bringing what,” said Wilson. “It’s pretty open. We’re probably going to have more stuff that we’re playing by the time we get to Boone. Everybody is bringing re-imaginations of these tunes from the original arrangements, but staying true to the spirit of the composer.”

Although the concert will feature classic Blue Note tunes, the band decided to stay away from certain jazz standards that become ingrained in the minds of most jazz fans.

“One of the stipulations of this project is that there were certain tunes we just were going to do, like ‘Song for My Father’ (by Horace Silver),” said Wilson, “tunes that are just so indelible and have been played so much that it would end up sound like a repertory band. We wanted to bring in music that fits the personality of this band.”

According to pianist Bill Charlap, the Blue Note 7 came together as the brainchild of Jack Randall, a booking agent, and tour producer Danny Melnick, along with Blue Note Records CEO Bruce Lundvall.

“The members of this band are among the finest improvisers in jazz today,” said Charlap. “Each one has a distinctive musical voice encompassing the past, present and future of the art form. Individually, the members have performed and recorded with many of the legendary Blue Note recording artists, including Art Blakey, Johnny Griffin, Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Hutcherson, Herbie Hancock, Lou Donaldson, Horace Silver, McCoy Tyner, Joe Henderson and J.J. Johnson. This wealth of experience brings depth to the bandstand. From the first time this group played together, I felt a natural chemistry between the players.”

With so many great tunes to choose from, the eight tracks on Mosaic make a great starting place for any music fan wanting to explore the uniquely American art form called jazz.

“Because the Blue Note catalog is so vast and historically important, there is no way that we could be comprehensive on just one celebratory album,” said Charlap. “That said, what we tried to do was to choose compositions which would honor the contributions of many important instrumentalists and composers associated with Blue Note’s classic recordings. The members of the band, as well as pianist Renee Rosnes, contributed arrangements, each one in tribute to a different artist and composer.

Whittling it down to the eight tracks which ultimately ended up on the recording, was a process of covering the most important and diverse artists, varying types of compositions and moods, and various arranging approaches.”

The group’s current 51-city tour will conclude with a 6-night run at the historic jazz club Birdland in New York City in mid-April.

“Many of the most important recorded documents of jazz history are found within the Blue Note catalog and it is a great honor to record for the label,” said Charlap. “The musicians, the compositions, the recorded sound and design, are all part of our permanent cultural landscape.”

Tickets

Advance tickets for ASU Performing Arts Series events range from $10 to $18, with ticket prices increasing at the door on show nights. For tickets or further information, call the Farthing Auditorium Box Office at (828) 262-4046, or visit www.pas.appstate.edu.