Piano Jazz Shorts

Pianist/composer Liz Story is a fascinating, ever-changing musician. She was inspired to pursue music after hearing Bill Evans perform, and her music has been compared to Copeland, Chopin, Debussy, Keith Jarrett, and Chick Corea. In this 1993 Piano Jazz session, Story plays “My Foolish Heart,” then she and McPartland get together for “All the Things You Are.”

When Harry Connick Jr. sat down with Marian McPartland in 1991, he was in his twenties and coming off the heels of his successful “Big Band Tour.” He has gone on to become a Grammy-winning recording artist with multiple best-selling albums and a successful acting career. On this Piano Jazz, Connick sings and plays “They Didn’t Believe Me” and joins McPartland for “Stompin at the Savoy.”

A vital force on the West Coast Jazz scene, Pete Jolly (June 5, 1932 – November 6, 2004) was a pianist and accordionist known for his movie soundtracks and television themes, including Get Smart, Dallas, and M*A*S*H. On this Piano Jazz from 1986, Jolly demonstrates his swinging piano style with a solo on “You, the Night and the Music,” then McPartland joins in on “Barbados.” McPartland solos on “Close Enough for Love,” and the two performers create a rousing finale with a two-person version of “Oleo.”

This broadcast of Piano Jazz is in memory of pianist Kenny Drew Jr. (June 14, 1958 - August 3, 2014). The son of pianist Kenny Drew, who rose to fame in the fifties and sixties, Kenny Drew Jr. made his own way with a virtuosic career in both jazz and classical. He favored distinct, single-note lines but could also play in a full orchestral style. In this 1992 session, Drew interprets Monk’s “In Walked Bud,” then he and McPartland collaborate on “Falling in Love with You.”

Grammy Award-winning trumpeter Roy Hargrove has played with such jazz greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Mulgrew Miller, and Bobby Watson. His blazing sound, depth of feeling, and joy in playing was evident even from a young age, when he was discovered by Wynton Marsalis at a high school jazz clinic. On this 1998 Piano Jazz, Hargrove joins McPartland for “I Wish I Knew,” and McPartland performs “Threnody.”

In this 1999 edition of Piano Jazz, recorded live at the Museum of Television and Radio in New York City, host McPartland welcomes vocalist Cassandra Wilson for an hour of jazz standards. Wilson is known for the enormous range of emotion in her performances. She delights with an array of tunes, joining McPartland and bassist Peter Washington for “Surrey with the Fringe on Top” and “Old Devil Moon.”

This broadcast of Piano Jazz is in memory of trumpeter Joe Wilder (February 22, 1922 – May 9, 2014). Wilder had his first professional gig at age nineteen and went on to play with some of the most popular big band orchestras of the day. He continued recording and touring throughout his life and was awarded the Jazz Master Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. In this 2001 session, Wilder joins McPartland and bassist Rufus Reid for the Gershwins’ “Lady be Good.”

Pianist, composer, and vocalist Freddy Cole can take any song and bring out colors and nuances never heard before. As Nat King Cole’s younger brother, he has developed his own style to showcase his familial vocal talents. He brings this special ability to “Sometimes I’m Happy.” Cole and McPartland wrap up this program from 1998 with a performance of “My Hat’s on the Side of My Head.”

Husband and wife pianists Bill Charlap and Renee Rosnes join McPartland in this 2008 session, pushing the bounds of the Piano Jazz format to include three pianos in one room. Charlap is one of the finest interpreters of American popular song and Rosnes is a modern jazz wizard. They join McPartland for a trio of “You and the Night and the Music” as well as “I’ll Remember April.”

Saxophonist Chris Potter is an expressive, inventive, and quick-thinking improviser. In this 2001 session, he talks with McPartland about his experience working in trumpeter Red Rodney’s band and performs “I Should Care” with bassist Scott Colley. With his tune “Hieroglyph,” Potter displays his skill as a composer. McPartland joins for a trio on “Take the Coltrane,” during which the ever versatile Potter switches from saxophone to piano.

Helen Merrill’s voice is an instrument that sometimes carries the melody and sometimes complements the improvisational skills of her co-musicians. In this session from 1995, McPartland performs a “Portrait of Helen Merrill.” Merrill joins McPartland to perform songs popularized by Billie Holiday, including Bob Haggart’s “What’s New” and Holiday’s “Don’t Explain.”

Pianist Helen Sung is a dazzling and passionate player originally from Houston, TX. A graduate of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance, she has played with such luminaries as Clark Terry and Wynton Marsalis.  Sung shows off her compositional skills on her tune "Hope Springs Eternally" and joinsMcPartland on "Someday My Prince Will Come."

Saxophonist Jerry Dodgion has played with just about everyone in the jazz world throughout his long career, including Benny Carter, Red Norvo, Frank Sinatra, and Benny Goodman. A gifted improviser influenced by Charlie Parker, Dodgion always has something to say in his solos. Dodgion sits in with McPartland on "Isfahan" and pulls out his flute for McPartland's "Ambiance."

Pianist Joe Bushkin got his start in Bunny Berigan's band in 1935 and went on to work with Eddie Condon, Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, and Bing Crosby. Bushkin sings and plays on his original "Oh Look At Me Now" and duets with McPartland on George Gershwin"s "They Can't Take That Away from Me."

Jon Faddis is one of today’s premier trumpet players and an accomplished teachercomposer- conductor-recording artist. Faddis consistently exemplifies an unparalleled range and dazzling technique. His style evokes Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, and Roy Eldridge, as well as his close friend and mentor Dizzy Gillespie. He demonstrates his love for Dizzy on "Fiesta Mojo" and plays flugelhorn on a Faddis original, "Bass Squeezin'."