KIND OF BLUE celebrates 50 years at the Tower Festival

contents

jazz

2009 marks the 50th Anniversary of the original release date of Miles Davis' Kind Of Blue. To celebrate the anniversary the festival has called on the services of Jimmy Cobb's So What Band (the only surviving member from the original recording). Kind Of Blue was released in August 1959, stunning the jazz world by practically creating a new language of music. Its influence goes far beyond jazz. The album is universally considered to be one of the best albums of all time, of any genre. Fifty years later, Kind of Blue—the epitome of spontaneous invention—is still the best selling jazz album ever and remains a constant at the top of worldwide Jazz charts.

Legendary jazz drummer, Jimmy Cobb (the only surviving member from the original recording) leads a contemporary all-star band featuring Wallace Roney (trumpet), Javon Jackson (tenor saxophone), Vincent Herring (alto saxophone), Larry Willis (piano), and Buster Williams (bass.) The group will perform their interpretations of Kind of Blue's five masterpieces: "So What", "Freddie Freeloader", "Blue In Green", "All Blues", and "Flamenco Sketches" plus other classics by Davis, John Coltrane, Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, and original compositions inspired by this era.

Drummer Jimmy Cobb got a call from Miles Davis 50 years ago to take part in what would prove to be a jazz milestone. In two afternoon sessions in 1959, Davis, Cobb and an all- star team of saxophonists John Coltrane and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, bassist Paul Chambers and pianists Bill Evans and Wynton Kelly produced a masterpiece, Kind of Blue.
The group's second session, also on 30th Street, took place seven weeks later, and on August 17 of that year the album emerged. More than five million copies later, Kind of Blue stands not only as a landmark of accomplishment, but also of accessibility.
A half century after its release in August 1959, it is regarded by critics as perhaps the finest jazz record of the modern era and was certified quadruple platinum in 2008 Cobb said "When people say this record is that popular for that long, I start thinking about Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong and all the great recordings they made I would have never thought that record would outsell theirs. Man, I don't think Miles even thought that it would have that longevity."

Cobb, the only surviving member of the storied recording sessions, will pay tribute to the 50th anniversary of "Kind Of Blue". Cobb said "I'm proud to be here, man. I'm proud to be 80 years old and still here. I'm sorry that all my friends are gone, you know, but I've got them in my heart and this event will be a true homage to the original line up. They are still here in spirit and the album lives on."

Jimmy Cobb, who turns has just turned 80 was the recipient of the 2009 NEA Jazz Masters Award in a ceremony at Jazz @ Lincoln Center's Rose Hall in October 2008. He is the elder statesman of all of the incredible Miles Davis bands, performing with the master from 1957 until 1963 on the seminal recordings Sketches of Spain, Someday My Prince Will Come, Live at Carnegie Hall, Live at the Blackhawk, Porgy and Bess, and many other watershed Miles Davis recordings in addition to Kind of Blue. Cobb has also performed with Dinah Washington, Billie Holiday, Pearl Bailey, Dizzy Gillespie, Wes Montgomery, Sarah Vaughn, Sonny Stitt, and Nancy Wilson among countless others

LINE UP:
Jimmy Cobb - Drums
Wallace Roney - Trumpet
Javon Jackson - Tenor Saxophone
Vincent Herring - Alto Saxophone
Larry Willis - Piano
Buster Williams – Bass

The TOWER FESTIVAL was masterminded by impresario Harvey Goldsmith CBE, one of the most respected classical music promoters in the world and the man who invented stadium opera. Goldsmith first delighted the British public in the eighties by promoting and staging such classical music concerts with Luciano Pavarotti at Hyde Park and Wembley Stadium along with the groundbreaking Three Tenor concerts with Pavarotti, Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo.
He was also responsible for bringing opera to the masses with Aida at Earls Court and then touring productions of Carmen and Tosca. A larger than life character, Harvey is also a tireless champion and promoter of charitable events and causes, in 1982 he promoted LIVE AID along with Bob Geldof raising £140 million and has since raised hundreds of millions for the Princes Trust, Teenage Cancer Trust, Net Aid and various other charities.
Commenting on the forthcoming TOWER FESTIVAL Harvey Goldsmith added; "I am absolutely thrilled and delighted to be working with Historic Royal Palaces and the Tower of London to bring what is arguably the finest classical music and arts festival to be staged in one of London's most historic and iconic buildings."

write your comments about the article :: © 2009 Jazz News :: home page