It’s late on May13th, 2023. I didn’t want today to pass without remembering Creed Taylor on the anniversary of his birth in 1929. The feedback, comments and subscriptions to this website from social media have far exceeded the original number I thought might be interested in Creed Taylor’s work. More than 2,000 receive notifications and emails for each post. I’m […]
The Reissue List
2021/2022 I get occasional emails from readers asking if I know if this album is on CD, or if there is a vinyl pressing available new? While I do buy occasional new vinyl and CD’s, it’s usually only to get a remastered version of something I already have, especially from the early 1960’s, or when I have the mono version. […]
Creed Taylor Has Left The Studio
News reached me earlier today that Creed Taylor has passed away. My sincere condolences and sympathy to Creed’s family. A a life well lived is a life worth living. Creed’s life was more than well lived, and his legacy will be with us forever. Creed Bane Taylor, Creed Taylor V, Creed Taylor, Jr.Born 13th May, 1929 – Died 22nd August, […]
Spanish Grease
For my second post for Creed Taylor Month, 2021, I wanted to take a brief look at an amazing 1965 album by Willie Bobo, “Spanish Grease“. The album was recorded 56-years ago, almost to the day on August 30th and September 8th, 1965 at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. Bobo, died 38-years ago this month, aged just 49, […]
Verve and all that Jazz
For Vinyl album crate diggers and junkies looking to get into the 1960’s jazz vibe, some of the best value albums are from the short lived “Verve Return Engagement” series. I was reminded of this series yesterday when I restarted digitizing my vinyl collection. While there are lots of good Wes Montgomery compilations, still my favorite by far is his […]
Grammy time – The Travels of the Girl from Ipanema
Today marks the 56th Anniversary of the 7th Grammy Awards, they announced the arrival of Brazilian music in the mainstream, as well as Creed Taylor, (Antonio Carlos) Jobim, and importantly Astrud Gilberto. I wrote extensively last year about the awards show itself[1]http://ctproduced.com/on-this-day-the-getz-gilberto-grammys/. It almost didn’t go well. As always with the Grammys there is also the confusion, “wins 1965 Grammy […]
The Creed Taylor Christmas Album
Press play via mixcloud or youtube, and read on. The Missing Specialty Recordings album? I’ve always respected the fact that there was never a CTI Christmas album… or “holiday special”. Given the 1978 bankruptcy, it would have been easy money to have send a few talented musicians over to Rudy Van Gelder’s studio in New Jersey and get them to […]
Gary Peacock – Gone, But Plenty To Remember
My only exposure to Gary Peacock was mid-1985, New York City. Sometime one hot Saturday, after wandering through a bunch of art galleries around the East Village, I came across a small cinema, probably on 2nd Ave. It was showing Michael Snow’s “New York Eye and Ear Control” film on repeat. I’d never heard of the film, but at just […]
Happy Born Day – Bill Evans
A guest post by @Jazzman1108 on Instagram. Downbeat Hall of Fame pianist, composer and leader, jazz icon William “Bill” John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was born on this date in 1929. With the passage of time, Evans has become an entire school unto himself for pianists and a singular mood unto himself for listeners. There is […]
On This Day: RIP Ennio Morricone
When I turned on the BBC radio early this morning, already past lunchtime in the UK, it was announced that Ennio Morricone had passed. A legend for film and music, Ennio was age 91. You might wonder why I’d mark his passing here? Apart from being an absolute legend especially of the same era as many of Creed Taylor’s best […]
On This Day: The GETZ / GILBERTO Grammys
On April 13th, 1965, 55-years ago today, Jazz had it’s most successful night at the Grammys ever. On a night that originally declared “the British Invasion was complete” , what actually happened was that Jazz arrived on the top step at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills in Los Angeles. Despite the presence of the Fab Four, who’d arrived in […]
Stan Getz Ringtone
Well we are all stuck at home, and things have all of a sudden become less urgent. It’s time for a less demanding ring-tone. I’ve done this a few times before on one of my other websites, used edits from music tracks as ringtones. When my wife calls, it’s Donna Summer, I’ll leave the track to your imagination, don’t be […]
Little Eva – The engine that Creed couldn’t restart
Perhaps one of the artists that Creed Taylor is least known for producing was Little Eva. Yes, The Loco-motion Eva. It’s so little known that her singles Creed produced for Verve are not even included on Little Eva’s wikipedia page. I’ll fix that(fixed). Little Eva, born Eva Narcissus Boyd, on June 29, 1943 in Belhaven, North Carolina, moved to New […]
On This Day – A Conversation With Myself
[Thanks to Doug Payne for the edits and corrections] On this day, February 6th, 1963, 57-years ago, Bill Evans entered the studio for a series of dates with himself as a leader and sideman at Webster Hall in New York City. He’d be in the studio again on the 9th, and finally on February 20th. The album notes, by Gene […]