Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz

This week’s Piano Jazz presents an episode from the early years of the program with guest Jess Stacy (1904 – 1995), who came out of retirement to appear on the show in 1982. One of the leading pianists of the swing era, Stacy was best known for his work with the Benny Goodman Orchestra and had a prolific career before stepping back from the music world in the 1950s. In this classic session from the archives, Stacy needs no introduction as he starts the show with a solo performance of “Dancing Fool.” McPartland joins to end the hour with “St. Louis Blues.”

Pianist and composer Rachel Z grew up in Manhattan in a musical family. Her mother taught her classical voice and opera from a young age, but she found her own sound in the jazz and rock worlds. On the keys, she is lightning-quick and her percussive yet lyrical approach enhances her technique. In 2010, she formed a group called The Trio of Oz with her husband, Omar Hakim. On this 1999 Piano Jazz, Rachel Z performs her original “Gently Sleeps the Pear Tree.” She and McPartland switch gears with “All the Things You Are.”

Ever-popular song stylist Tony Bennett was McPartland’s guest for the first time in 1990. Bennett vocalizes American popular songs like nobody else can. When he was starting out, a voice teacher, Miriam Spier, famously told him: “Don’t imitate singers, imitate musicians.” So, Bennett decided to emulate Art Tatum. He also credits his relaxed delivery to the inspiration of Mildred Bailey. On this edition of Piano Jazz, Bennett sings “Stay as Sweet as You Are” and “Imagination.” There’s no need to guess who’s playing the accompaniment.

Upon moving to New York from Vancouver, Canada, pianist and composer Renee Rosnes established a reputation as one of the premier jazz musicians on the scene. Over her 30-year career, Rosnes has collaborated with a diverse range of artists, from established masters such as Jack DeJohnette to younger giants such as Christian McBride and Melissa Aldana. On this 1990 episode of Piano Jazz, she plays Monk’s “Four in One” then improvises with McPartland on her own tune “Fleur De Lis.”

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Pulitzer Prize finalist and 2007 Guggenheim Fellow Don Byron is a prodigious multi-instrumentalist and  composer. One of the most inventive and compelling musicians of his generation, he is credited for reviving interest in the jazz clarinet, his primary instrument. He has presented projects at major music festivals around the world and is known for playing in a wide variety of genres. In this 1999 Piano Jazz session, Byron demonstrates his flexibility and duets with McPartland on “Perdido,” “Moon Indigo,” and a creative free piece.

Pianist and vocalist Barbara Carroll (1925 – 2017) was described as a joyous and swinging jazz stylist. A dear friend of McPartland’s, Carroll had a monumental career. When she was a guest on the program in 1979, she had just started her engagement at Bemelmans Bar in Manhattan, where she would perform for a remarkable 25 years. On this episode from the first season of Piano Jazz, she plays an original, “Barbara’s Carol,” and duets with McPartland on a timely rendition of Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely.”

Pianist Andrew Hill (1931 – 2007) began playing jazz as a teenager in Chicago, where he was encouraged by Earl Hines. As he came of age, Hill played with jazz legends Miles Davis and Charlie Parker. He may be known best for his classic Blue Note recordings in the 1960s, which extended the possibilities of bop and hard bop through complex tunes. On this 2005 Piano Jazz, Hill demonstrates his mastery of melody, rhythm and technique on his own “Nicodemus” before joining host McPartland for “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square.”

Pianist, vocalist, and songwriter Marcia Ball brings together Texas blues with Louisiana flavors, melding boogie-woogie, zydeco, and Swamp Rock. Influenced by artists of the region, such as Janis Joplin, Ball first came to the blues as a child by listening to Etta James and learned the piano through a mix of formal and informal lessons. On this 1997 Piano Jazz, Ball demonstrates her unique sound with “Crawfishin’” and her original “That’s Enough of That.” McPartland joins for a dual-piano rendition of “Woke Up Screaming.”

One year ago this month, the music world lost Geri Allen, a highly regarded and influential pianist, composer, and educator. Allen (June 12, 1957 – June 27, 2017) died of cancer at age 60. A vital contributor to contemporary jazz, she was known for uniting disparate styles of jazz, and her style found its roots everywhere from Motown and James Brown to the music of Fats Waller and Thelonious Monk. In 2008, on her third appearance on Piano Jazz, Allen and McPartland perform a spontaneous composition. Allen solos on originals, including “Brilliant Veracity.”

Roy Haynes is one of the greatest living jazz drummers of a generation, with a career spanning seven decades. In 2016 he joined Jon Batiste and Stay Human on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, performing at age 91. He was McPartland’s guest for this 1996 Piano Jazz session. He reminisces with McPartland about the 1940s Chicago jazz scene and the 1950s Boston scene. Bassist Christian McBride joins them for Miles Davis’ “So What,” and Haynes solos on “Shades of Senegal.”

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Ben Sidran is not only a nationally respected jazz composer, pianist, and song stylist, he is also a scholar, radio/TV producer, and jazz writer. When he was a guest on Piano Jazz in 1989, NPR listeners often heard his insightful commentary on All Things Considered as well as his own program Sidran on Record, which began in 1981. In this session Sidran duets with McPartland on “What Is This Thing Called Love?” and sings originals, including “Get to the Point” and “Mitsubishi Boy.”

This week Piano Jazz remembers Barbara Cook (1927 – August 8, 2017), the Tony and Grammy Award-winning lyric soprano who was a favorite of audiences around the world. She was a star on Broadway as an ingénue and became a staple of the New York cabaret scene in the later years of her prolific career. She was McPartland’s guest in 1998. Joined by her longtime musical collaborator and accompanist Wally Harper, Cook delights host McPartland with her rendition of “It Might as Well Be Spring.” McPartland returns the favor with her solo of “Plain and Fancy.”

Harry "Sweets" Edison (1915 – 1999) was a legendary stylist of jazz trumpet. From his days as a soloist in the Count Basie Band to his time as a studio musician for the likes of Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, and Ella Fitzgerald, he was known for the sweet, muted tones that were his namesake. On this Piano Jazz, originally broadcast just months before he passed away in 1999, Edison joins McPartland and bassist Andy Simpkins for “Dejection Blues” and “No Greater Love,” along with one of his originals, “Centerpiece.”

Saxophonist, composer, and bandleader Virginia Mayhew has appeared in major New York jazz venues, from the Blue Note to Carnegie Hall, toured internationally, and twice represented the US as a Jazz Ambassador. She is also an active jazz educator and founded the Greenwich House Music School Jazz Workshop. On this 1998 Piano Jazz, Mayhew and McPartland join forces to perform “All the Things You Are” and “Body and Soul.” They close the hour with a free piece, improvised live in the studio.

In honor of the birthday of Don Friedman (May 4, 1935 – June 30, 2016), Piano Jazz presents this broadcast from 1996. Although Friedman first studied classical piano, he fell in love with the voice of jazz and performed with jazz greats such as Chet Baker and Buddy DeFranco. In this session, Friedman demonstrates his unique sound on a solo of his “Waltz for Marilyn.” He and McPartland duet in “Stella by Starlight,” and bassist Gary Mazzaroppi joins for “How Deep is the Ocean.”

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Brazilian pianist, composer, and vocalist Elaine Elias grew up with an affinity for both the music of her home country as well as American jazz. She got her start performing with two renowned Brazilian artists, singer-songwriter Toquinho and poet Vinicius de Moraes, before moving to New York in the 1980s, where she took the American jazz scene by storm. She was McPartland’s guest for the first time in this 1988 Piano Jazz session. Elias plays a beautiful arrangement of “Darn that Dream” and teams up with McPartland for “Falling in Love with Love.”

Pianist and vocalist Cleo Brown (1909 – 1995) was one of the early innovators of the boogie-woogie style and the first female instrumentalist to be named an NEA Jazz Master. She retired from performing in the 1950s and focused her attention on religious music, bringing her gifted voice and strong left hand to gospel tunes. On this 1985 Piano Jazz, Brown makes a rare appearance to perform her greatest hit, “Pinetop’s Boogie-Woogie,” and to recall the style’s heyday in the 1930s. She delights McPartland with a duet version of “A Closer Walk with Thee.”

Trumpeter Nicholas Payton has been hailed as one of the greatest musicians of his generation. A native of New Orleans, Payton learned the art of improvisation from Wynton Marsalis and as a teen performed with the late trumpet master Clark Terry. A young virtuoso, he was in his twenties when he sat down with McPartland for this 1998 Piano Jazz session. Bassist Ray Drummond joins Payton and McPartland for a trio set, including the standard “Four” and an original improvised tune, “Payton’s Other Place Blues.”

Composer and arranger Gil Goldstein came to the piano by way of the accordion, which he has rediscovered and added to the jazz lexicon. Collaborations with Jaco Pistorius and Bill Evans fostered his career and led to work with David Sanborn, Michael Franks, and Al Jarreau, among others, and to writing original scores for films. In this 2001 Piano Jazz session, Goldstein solos on his own “City Lights.” McPartland accompanies him as he plays accordion for a few tunes, including “Waltz for Debbie.”

For more than 50 years, Earma Thompson (1923 – 2009) was a constant on the Chicago jazz scene. She was recognized as the reigning queen of Windy City jazz but spent most of her career as a dependable and accomplished side person. In her 80s Thompson released her first albums as a leader, including 2004’s Just in Time, which debuted shortly before her 2005 appearance on Piano Jazz. In this session, Thompson showcases her elegant, bluesy style on “Back at the Chicken Shack” before joining McPartland for “Lullaby of the Leaves.”

This year marks the centennial of Marian McPartland (1918 – 2013). In honor of the occasion, Piano Jazz revisits a session with Marian and Jimmy McPartland. In addition to playing with the early greats, such as Bix Beiderbecke and Fats Waller, trumpet legend Jimmy McPartland (1907 – 1991) was also responsible for introducing a young English pianist named Margaret Marian Turner to the American Jazz scene. In this classic program from 1990, the McPartlands perform one of Jimmy’s favorite tunes, “St. James Infirmary.”

Pianist Jeremy Monteiro grew up in Singapore, where he launched a remarkable career, landing his first gig at 17. He gained international attention in 1988 at the Montreaux Jazz Festival and has continued to gain acclaim worldwide throughout his career. To his credit he has more than 20 albums as a leader, is a voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, and has received Singapore’s highest honor in the arts, the Cultural Medallion.

Carol Sloane is a sublime singer of great songs. She is natural and unaffected, with a voice that embraces the melody and the listener with equal parts maturity and conviction. Combining spirit with character, elegance with style, Sloane has enchanted audiences all over the world. Her command of the Great American Songbook is unmatched. On this 2002 Piano Jazz, Sloane brings her effortless charms to Irving Berlin’s “Cheek to Cheek.” She and McPartland end the hour with Ellington’s “I Love You Madly.”

When pianist Frank Kimbrough was McPartland’s guest in 1997, he was performing regularly with the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra at Visiones Jazz Club in New York, where he has been active on the jazz scene for nearly four decades. An educator and recording artist, Kimbrough was a founding member and composer-in-residence of the Jazz Composers Collective. In this Piano Jazz session, Kimbrough’s graceful, romantic style is evident on a Herbie Nichols tune, “Wildflower.” He and McPartland duet on Sonny Rollins’ “Doxy.”

Harmonically modern and rooted in the 1960s hard-bop school, Albert Dailey (1939 – 1984) had a superb command of his instrument. A leader and sideman, Dailey played piano with Art Blakey, Sarah Vaughan, Stan Getz, Charles Mingus, and Lee Konitz, to name only a few. He was one of McPartland’s guests in the early years of Piano Jazz. On this 1983 episode, Dailey demonstrates his brilliant sense of invention on “If You Could See Me Now” and joins McPartland on “Night in Tunisia.”

Forceful double bassist and spirited vocalist Carline Ray (1925 – 2013) was known as one of the pioneering woman of jazz. A member of The International Sweethearts of Rhythm, she worked with prodigious female talents such as Mary Lou Williams and Marian McPartland. On this 1997 Piano Jazz, Ray shares her many abilities with McPartland as she performs on multiple instruments. Ray plays bass on “In a Sentimental Mood,” sings “Come Sunday,” and switches to piano for “After Hours.”

Drummer Charlie Watts has been the heartbeat of the Rolling Stones for more than 50 years, though he has always had a passion for jazz and the blues. Saxophonist Tim Ries plays with the Stones, but as a true jazz journeyman, he’s also worked with greats such as Maria Schneider, Maynard Ferguson, and Tim Woods. When Watts and Ries were on a break from the Rolling Stones’ World Tour in 2007, they sat down with McPartland for an hour of jazz and rock, with Ries’ arrangement of the Stones classic “Honkey Tonk Woman.”

In 2001 McPartland introduced Piano Jazz audiences to Liz Magnes, one of Israel’s most dynamic and creative solo jazz pianists. Her signature style blends Eastern and Western influences, creating a World Music flavor. Magnes moved to New York in 2000, going on to perform coast to coast and dedicating much of her time to arts education. In this session, Magnes presents her percussive form on “Someone to Watch Over Me.” She and McPartland team up for “Ain’t Misbehavin’.”

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Virtuoso pianist, bandleader, and composer Eddie Palmieri has been called “the madman of Latin Jazz.” His playing fuses the rhythm of his Puerto Rican heritage with the complexity of his jazz influences: Thelonious Monk, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner as well as his older brother, Charlie Palmieri. On this 2000 Piano Jazz, McPartland joins the band for an hour of Palmieri’s powerful rhythmic compositions. Palmieri and his group perform a set including “La Comparsa” and “Beloro Dos.” McPartland improvises a “Portrait of Eddie Palmieri.”