DJ Hairy Larry presents Jubilation Jazz playing “How Great Thou Art”

Posted on October 2, 2022 by Hairy Larry

From The Archives Of Something Blue September 25, 2022

01. DJ Hairy Larry presents Jubilation Jazz playing “How Great Thou Art”

02. Something Blue – Bourbon Street – 29 second spot

Thanks Marty. Today we’re going to hear a big band play a favorite hymn.

You’ve heard of praise music and Christian rock. Jubilation Jazz plays Christian Big Band. They’ve got a big sound and a great message and people love their music wherever they go.

There is no doubt that they are evangelizing for Christ. But I think they are evangelizing for Big Band Music. Joseph Curtis, who plays in the band, took it a step further and said they are evangelizing for jazz. He said, “Most of the audience never goes to a jazz concert.” So, yay for jazz and yay for Jesus and thanks to Jubilation Jazz for bringing it all together.

“How Great Thou Art” was my father’s favorite hymn and I played it for him at my mother’s funeral. At his funeral I played a song, “I Will Follow You” that he and I cowrote during the last week of his life. I’ll include a link to the song at sbblues.com as a kind of bonus track for From The Archives Of Something Blue.

Ok now, here’s Jubilation Jazz recorded in September of 2018 at KASU Bluesday Tuesday in Newport, playing my father’s favorite hymn, “How Great Thou Art”.

www.jubilationjazz.com/

archive.org/details/i_will_follow_you_video/i_will_follow_you-handheld.divx
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Art

Posted on October 1, 2022 by Hairy Larry

Something Blue – Art – October 1

This is Hairy Larry inviting you to enjoy Something Blue every Saturday night at ten. This week we’re featuring Jazz Writers Big Band, Makaya McCraven, and Matthew Halsall. For more about the show visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.

Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM CST, at kasu.org.

Makaya McCraven – In These Times
intlanthem.bandcamp.com/album/in-these-times

Jazz Writers Big Band – Jazz Writers Big Band
archive.org/details/hll-1054-Jazz_Writers_Big_Band

Matthew Halsall – When The World Was One
matthewhalsall.bandcamp.com/album/when-the-world-was-one
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DJ Hairy Larry presents Jazz Writers Big Band playing Downpour

Posted on September 25, 2022 by Hairy Larry

From The Archives Of Something Blue September 25, 2022

DJ Hairy Larry presents Jazz Writers Big Band playing “Downpour”

01. DJ Hairy Larry presents Jazz Writers Big Band playing “Downpour”

02. Something Blue – Art – 29 second spot

Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear an original jazz composition performed at the Delta Jazz Workshop.

The Jazz Writers Big Band either writes or arranges every song they play. That means someone in the band is working hard writing all those notes and articulations for every song. And then the band has to learn new arrangements all the time. It’s hard to explain just how much work goes into a project like this.

I don’t know if it’s because they play them more, just the energy, or because I love hearing songs written by my friends, but I always loved all the original compositions they played. I thought the band was at it’s best on these songs. I got in touch with the composers about doing an album and they were onboard.

Tom O’Conner was the jazz band director when I first attended ASU. I took many classes from Dr. O’Connor including composition lessons.

Don Bowyer was the Dean Of Fine Arts and I got to take composition lessons with him too. I was privileged to have him play trombone in my band, NJHB, during our 2013 season.

I met Joseph Curtis when I returned to ASU to complete my music education. He also played in NJHB and more recently in my band, Bebop Beatniks. When Ron Horton was Director of Jazz Studies I made a documentary film, “Jazztette”, featuring Joseph and one of his original songs. He played at the KASU jazz festival, Bebopalooza. And he’s the band director at Trumann High School.

All three of these composers write fantastic songs and arrangements. I will post a link to the Jazz Writers Big Band album on the Something Blue website, sbblues.com.

Ok now, here’s the Jazz Writers Big Band recorded at the Delta Jazz Workshop on July 11, 2016, playing the Joseph Curtis song, “Downpour”.

archive.org/details/hll-1054-Jazz_Writers_Big_Band
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Streak

Posted on September 24, 2022 by Hairy Larry

Something Blue – Streak – September 24

This is Hairy Larry inviting you to enjoy Something Blue every Saturday night at ten. This week we’re featuring Charlie Hunter, Steve Lawson, and NJHB. For more about the show visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.

Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM CST, at kasu.org.

Charlie Hunter Leon Parker – Duo
www.charliehunter.com/
www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Leon_Parker.html

Phi Yaan-Zek, Steve Lawson, Andy Edwards – Ley Lines
stevelawson.bandcamp.com/album/ley-lines

NJHB – Live At The Bandshell
njhb.org
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DJ Hairy Larry presents NJHB playing “Catamaran”

Posted on September 18, 2022 by Hairy Larry

From The Archives Of Something Blue September 18, 2022

DJ Hairy Larry presents NJHB playing “Catamaran”

01. DJ Hairy Larry presents NJHB playing “Catamaran”

02. Something Blue – Streak – 29 second spot

Thanks Marty, today we’re hearing one of my jazz pieces recorded live at the Craighead Forest Bandshell.

NJHB is a different kind of jazz band without established personnel or repertoire. As usual when we played at the Craighead Forest Bandshell on June 2, 2013, it was the first and only time we played with this group of musicians.

So for this show we had Matt Jackson – bass, Mike “Zif” Lovell – guitar, Suzanne Michell – vocals, drums, and percussion, Carl Holden – guitar, Jay Shepherd – guitar, “Shugga” Shane Chastain – Roland Fantom, Addison Boling – drums, and Hairy Larry – Fender Rhodes, vocals, percussion, and dancing.

We are all from the Jonesboro Area except Suzanne is from Little Rock and Matt Jackson is from Kennett, Missouri.

We had an hour set so we got to play three songs. We tend to play long arrangements. The recording of “Catamaran” was close to 20 minutes long. On the album it’s 12 minutes. So I made a radio edit that’s 7 minutes long to play for you today. There’s a link to the whole concert at sbblues.com.

In the process of doing the radio edit I did a lot of active listening. So I’m going to share some of the things I noticed about this recording.

Suzanne Michell is one of the best scat singers I have ever heard. There are places in the song where Suzanne and I are both scatting and Jay Shepherd joins the conversation on his guitar. Both Matt Jackson on bass and Addison Boling on drums play excellent solos.

There’s no horns but we have three guitars and two keyboards. This can be a recipe for disaster but everyone listened while they played making space for the other musicians.

So now, recorded at the Craighead Forest Bandshell on June 2, 2013, here’s NJHB playing my song, “Catamaran”.

archive.org/details/hl2013-06-02
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Baker

Posted on September 17, 2022 by Hairy Larry

Something Blue – Baker – September 17, 2022

This is Hairy Larry inviting you to enjoy Something Blue every Saturday night at ten. This week we’re featuring Moe and the Seth Yacavone Band. For more about the show visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.

Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM CST, at kasu.org.

moe. Live at Adirondak Independence Music Festival on 2022-09-04
archive.org/details/moe2022-09-04.AKG414

Seth Yacovone Band Live at Moogs Joint on 2022-09-04
archive.org/details/syb2022-09-04.tcca.flac16
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DJ Hairy Larry presents Steve Wages and Bad Habit playing “La Grange”

Posted on September 12, 2022 by Hairy Larry

From The Archives Of Something Blue September 11, 2022

01. DJ Hairy Larry presents Steve Wages and Bad Habit playing “La Grange”

02. Something Blue – Baker – 29 second spot

Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear a ZZ Tops song performed by some Northeast Arkansas musicians.

Wherever you live, if you’re a hot guitarist, you’ve got plenty of competition. But if you live in Northeast Arkansas and you’re a hot blues guitarist you’re competing in a whole different class. Steve Wages was one of the finest blues guitarists I’ve ever heard. And he could play rock and country music too.

Steve Wages and Bad Habit featured Steve on guitar, Braden Byrd – bass, and Billy Spence – drums. A genuine power trio with Arkansas Roots. They always put on a great show whenever they performed at the Craighead Forest Bandshell.

Billy Spence played with everyone. Dennis Mathes, Houston Steele, he was even in Bobby Lee Trammell’s touring band in the sixties. You could catch him backstage at Blues Fest jamming away on an acoustic guitar.

Steve Wages could make his guitar walk and talk. Just listen to his fantastic lead work. I think to get some of those tones he had to turn his guitar inside out.

So now, recorded at the Craighead Forest Bandshell on May 27, 2007, here’s Steve Wages and Bad Habit playing “La Grange”.

archive.org/details/bh2007-05-27
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Ranger

Posted on September 10, 2022 by Hairy Larry

Something Blue – Ranger – September 10, 2022

This is Hairy Larry inviting you to enjoy Something Blue every Saturday night at ten. This week we’re featuring Andrew North, Sonny Burgess, and Little Feat. For more about the show visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.

Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM CST, at kasu.org.

Andrew North & The Rangers Live at Keene Music Festival on 2022-09-03
archive.org/details/antr2022-09-03

Little Feat Live at Tennessee Theatre on 2022-03-19
archive.org/details/lf2022-03-19.at943.flac1648

Sonny Burgess and The Legenday Pacers at KASU Bluesday Tuesday 12-11-2012
www.legendarypacers.com
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DJ Hairy Larry presents Sonny Burgess and The Legenday Pacers playing “Today I Started Loving You Again”

Posted on September 5, 2022 by Hairy Larry

From The Archives Of Something Blue September 4, 2022

01. DJ Hairy Larry presents Sonny Burgess and The Legenday Pacers playing “Today I Started Loving You Again”

02. Something Blue – Ranger – 29 second spot

Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear a country song performed by a rock and roll band at KASU Bluesday Tuesday.

We would get a lot of top acts at Bluesday Tuesday but the toppest of all was the international touring act, Sonny Burgess and The Legendary Pacers. They would play their Sun hits from the fifties as well as a lot of blues and rock and roll standards. And then, every so often, Sonny would sing a country song.

They wore matching red jackets when they played. Visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com to see Kern Kennedy and Jim Aldridge dressed for success.

Everyone in the band called Arkansas their home. Sonny lived in Newport and even when he wasn’t playing he would come and enjoy the show. He knew all the musicians from around here and they loved getting their pictures taken with Sonny Burgess.

“Blue Suede Shoes” is a part of Rock and Roll history. One night, Sonny and I were sitting in the back of the room enjoying the music when I commented on his red suede shoes. He told me where he bought them and how much they cost. I don’t remember the price but they were expensive.

I told him I was glad I was from the sixties instead of the fifties. All I had to do was put on jeans and a tie dye t-shirt and hit the stage barefoot.

Sonny’s gone and Kern’s gone and now Jim Aldridge is gone too. But we still have their music and that’s forever.

Now, here’s Sonny Burgess and The Legendary Pacers recorded at KASU Bluesday Tuesday, on December 11, 2012, singing the country standard, “Today I Started Loving You Again”.

www.legendarypacers.com
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Valley

Posted on September 3, 2022 by Hairy Larry

Something Blue – Valley – September 3, 2022

This is Hairy Larry inviting you to enjoy Something Blue every Saturday night at ten. This week we’re featuring recordings made at Jazz A Vienne. For more about the show visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.

Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM CST, at kasu.org.

PAST & FUTURE, recorded at JAZZ A VIENNE
jazzaviennecompilation.bandcamp.com/album/past-future
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