Climate scientists say extreme weather is happening more often in the Midwest and Great Plains.
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Culture Crawl 942 “Shepherds”
Mentorship is an extremely important part of learning to play music. Young musicians learn not just notes and rhythms from their elders, but how to treat themselves and other musicians. Slayton Thompson has been a mentor to two generations of musicians. He encouraged a young Steve Shanley nearly 30 years ago, and more recently, pianist and composer Jon Snell, a Cedar Rapids native who now lives in New York City.
Steve commissioned Jon to write a piece featuring Slayton on harmonica. The world premiere of “Kingdom Making” is the featured piece this week with the Cedar Rapids Municipal Band, performing in a new venue, Hughes Park on Wednesday, and Bever Park on Sunday. Also on the program will be a piece saluting the Olympics and a medley from “How To Train Your Dragon.”
Plus, free ice cream for the all kids attending the Wednesday concert!
All shows at 7:30pm. Livestream at facebook.com/crmuniband. More information at crmuniband.org.
Subscribe to The Culture Crawl at kcck.org/culture or search “Culture Crawl” in your favorite podcast player. Listen Live at 10:30am most weekdays on Iowa’s Jazz station. 88.3 FM or kcck.org/listen.
New Music Monday for July 15, 2024
Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify
Nearly 50 years into his fruitful career, the renowned saxophonist and clarinetist Ken Peplowski has released over 70 recordings as a soloist and close to 400 releases as a sideman. He is celebrated for his work with a diverse array of artists including Charlie Byrd, Benny Goodman, Hank Jones and Peggy Lee among many others. Facing financial, emotional and physical challenges during the COVID pandemic, he found solace in his music. He started a successful weekly streaming show and recorded dozens of episodes, many of them featuring the ensemble presented on his new album, “Live at Mezzrow.” Recorded at the famed New York City jazz club last year, the band includes pianist Ted Rosenthal, bassist Martin Wind and drummer Willie Jones III.
“Reflections in Two Shades” is a major step forward in Lee McKinney’s career for it not only has him playing drums in a world-class quartet but it features his compositions. For the notable project, the Dayton, Ohio-based McKinney was particularly happy to have the great altoist Greg Abate on board. “Greg and I have been friends for over 20 years and he is a masterful player…A piano friend of mine from Oregon, Matt Cooper, was my first choice and was fortunately available…I was also lucky enough to get one of the best bass players in this area, Chris Berg.”
Also this week, “Windows Through Time” is pianist Mariah Parker’s latest exploration into the depths of Latin jazz with her Indo Latin Jazz Ensemble; pianist Sergio Pamies fuses the traditional jazz language with the flamenco music of his childhood in Granada, Spain on his fourth disc as a leader, “Time to Say”; and “You’ll Hear It” captures the rich life and legacy pianist George Colligan has built over thirty-plus years in jazz.
This Week’s Shows July 15 thru July 21
Jazz Corner of the World (Encore)
Mondays at 6:00pm
The Piano Artistry of Kenny Barron
Craig surveys the lengthy career of piano great Kenny Barron. We’ll hear gems with groups led by Kenny, as well as a variety of recordings that feature Kenny as a sideman with Cindy Blackman, Freddie Hubbard, Dave Holland, Arthur Blythe, Stan Getz, Sonny Fortune, and many others.
The Wednesday Night Special
Wednesdays at 6:00pm
Road Scholars at Jazz Under the Stars
We continue to set the groove for Jazz Under the Stars 2024 with a listen back to all the great acts from our 2023 party in the park. This week, it’s Road Scholars. Saxophonist Damani Phillips leads an all-star band in a loving tribute to the music of Spyro Gyra.
Jazz Night in America
Thursdays at 11:00pm
Kurt Elling’s “Big Blind”
Step into the world of 1950s Chicago for a tale of love, suspense, and show business in Kurt Elling’s jazz radio drama The Big Blind. Hear music and performances from the production’s world premiere at Jazz at Lincoln Center as Elling guest hosts this special edition of Jazz Night in America.
Jazz Corner of the World
Saturdays from 12:00 noon to 4:00pm
Steeplechase Records
Craig spins a delightful sampling of the prestigious Danish label Steeplechase. The label was founded by Nils Winther, while a student at the University of Copenhagen, back in 1972, and over the years has produced well over 1,000 choice releases by top-notch recording artists like Jackie McLean, Dexter Gordon, Teddy Edwards, Sheila Jordan, Horace Parlan, and many others.
KCCK’s Midnight CD
Every Night at Midnight Each night, KCCK lets you hear a new CD played start-to-finish.
Brian Landrus Plays Ellington & Strayhorn by Brian Landrus on Monday; Measured Response by Josh Lawrence on Tuesday; On Their Shoulders: An Organ Tribute by Matthew Whitaker on Wednesday; Relentless by Rob Parton’s Ensemble +9 on Thursday; Barnyard Smile by Damon Fowler on Friday; Good Intentions Gone Bad by Chris Cain on Saturday; Rainmaker by Ben Sidran on Sunday.
This Week In Jazz July 14 thru July 20
Hey, Jazz fans, be sure to tune in this week as we celebrate the birthdays of lyricist Dorothy Fields, drummers Philly Joe Jones and Joe Morello, vibist Cal Tjader, trumpeters Teddy Buckner, Carmell Jones and Theo Croker, singers Little Jimmy Scott and Carmen Bradford, pianist/composer Vince Guaraldi and more. We’ll also mark the recording anniversaries of The Leroy Vinnegar Sextet’s “Leroy Walks!” (1957), Miles Davis’ “Nefertiti” (1967), Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis 4’s “Montreux ’77” (1977), Al Grey/Jimmy Forrest Quintet’s “Truly Wonderful” (1978), Kenny Burrell and the Jazz Heritage All-Stars “Live at the Blue Note” (1996), Robin McKelle’s “Mess Around” (2010) and many others Monday thru Friday, and at noon on Jazz Masters on Jazz 88.3 KCCK.
Big Mo Pod Show 017 – “Goodness is a Practice”
In this week’s double feature episode John and Noah play a little catch up by covering John’s show for June 28th, dissecting the songs and artists that featured in that Friday’s show. Amongst the discussions of blues and the artists that play it our hosts discuss how practicing a little human decency can go a long way, a conversation spurred on by one track in particular. Tune in to find out which song that was! Songs featured in the episode:
- Bryce Janey – “Future Blues”
- J.D. Simo – “Missy’s Strut”
- Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band – “Shut the Screen”
- Sugaray Rayford – “Human Decency”
- Damon Fowler – “Outskirts Of Town”
Listen to ‘da Friday Blues with Big Mo each week at 6pm, and catch the podcast for a behind the scenes look at the show!
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Big Mo Pod Show 016 – “Let it Grow on You”
After their hiatus John and Noah are back with a brand new episode! This week’s show, as always, dives into several songs from John’s Friday night broadcast, all with their own unique flavor of blues goodness. While discussing some of the artists featuring in this episode our duo reflects on how music can take time to grow on a person, and how giving an artist or song a second listen can be well worth the time. Song featured in the episode:
- Matt Guitar Murphy – “Gimme Somma Dat”
- Jontavious Willis – ” The Blues is Dead?”
- Eden Brent – “Gas Pumping Man”
- Selwyn Birchwood – “My Whiskey Loves My Ex”
- Blackburn Brothers – “Let The Devil Play”
Listen to ‘da Friday Blues with Big Mo each week at 6pm, and catch the podcast for a behind the scenes look at the show!
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Culture Crawl 941 “Trading Cigarettes for Marriage”
Culture Crawl 941 “Trading Cigarettes for Marriage”
Film producer and Cedar Rapids native Kristian Day’s documentary, “The Last American Gay Bar.” Despite it’s title, the documentary series is not so much the story of a Des Moines gay bar as it is the stories of the men for whom that bar was the center of their community during a tumultuous time that began in the Vietnam War era and continued through the AIDS crisis, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, the legalization of gay marriage.
Streaming on most services and at outtv.com. Learn more about this and Kristian’s other projects at kristianday.com.
Subscribe to The Culture Crawl at kcck.org/culture or search “Culture Crawl” in your favorite podcast player. Listen Live at 10:30am most weekdays on Iowa’s Jazz station. 88.3 FM or kcck.org/listen.
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