Sherlock Holmes Conference: Gillette to Brett and some old movies with Hollis Monroe, Denny Lynch and Monica Schmidt.
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Clean Up Your Act 10-11-18
A new farm bill could mean the end of a popular conservation program.
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Culture Crawl 391 “If We Ran The Zoo”
Stories about animals have always been a staple of children’s literature. Cedar Rapids Museum of Art Assistant
Stories about animals have always been a staple of children’s literature. Cedar Rapids Museum of Art Asst. Curator Kate Kunau has drawn this new exhibit from the Zerzanek Collection of Original Art from Children’s Literature on loan to the CRMA from the Cedar Rapids Public Library. Evelyn Zersanek was the longtime Cedar Rapids librarian who wrote to children’s writers and asked them for samples of their work, creating one of the best collections of illustrations anywhere.
If We Ran the Zoo looks at the various ways animals have shaped children’s literature, from simple science books to loyal pets to fantastical, talking companions.
The exhibit runs through January. More info at www.crma.org.
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Culture Crawl 390 “Years of Pent-Up Programs”
The last of the residences atop what was once known as Mansion Hill, The Douglas Mansion, which also operated for decades as the Turner Mortuary, is now the home of The History Center in Cedar Rapids.
Executive Director Jason Wright throws open the doors to the community at a Grand Opening on Oct. 13 that will showcase the new space, along with music, magic from Jackson Green, antique cars and even Linn County ghost stories.
Free admission. Details at www.historycenter.org.
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“The Jazz Gene Pool” Dick Oatts in Iowa
Jefferson, Iowa native Dick Oatts is one of the world’s movs celebrated jazz saxophonists. Soon after arriving in New York in the late 70s, he landed a gig in the prestigious Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, and has gone on to release or appear on dozens of CDs, plus touring and performing all over the world. He is the artistic director of the legendary Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, as well as a professor at Temple University and artist in residence at the Amsterdam Conservatory.
He returned to Iowa recently as the guest artists for KCCK’s “Homecoming” series, and talked to our Hollis Monroe about his life and career.
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Special Programs – October 8 thru October 13
Short List with host Bob Naujoks
Monday – Friday at 8:35 AM and Saturday at 7 AM
Cats on the Keys: Shelly Berg
Pianist Shelly Berg’s greatest accomplishments lie in jazz education, not necessarily on stage. Berg was a top-ranked educator for over thirty years, teaching at the University of California’s Thornton School of Music and the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music. His recordings over the past ten or fifteen years for Concord, Summit, and Decca comprise a small but tasty output. His arrangements and sideman work is a long and varied list.
Jazz Corner of the World with host Craig Kessler
Thelonious Monk – The Early Years
For this year’s annual celebration of Thelonious Monk, we’ll survey his earliest recordings … from 1941 to 1955. We’ll hear Monk in the company of Charlie Christian, Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Guy, Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, as well as his famous Blue Note sessions, his Prestige recordings, and other tasty offerings. This is very important music regarding the development of modern jazz, and it provides insight into the development of Monk’s art!
Jazz Profiles with host Nancy Wilson
Monday at 11:00 PM
Wes Montgomery – The Unmistakable Jazz Guitar
Wes Montgomery created the first new sound on jazz guitar since Charlie Christian revolutionized the instrument in the late ’30s. His innovations such as his celebrated octaves and his style of playing with his thumb rather than a pick continue to have an influence today. Wes also became a popular musician, whose later recordings sold hundreds of thousands of copies.
Wednesday Night Special
6:00 PM
Kevin BF Burt at Jazz Under The Stars 2018
Kevin “BF” Burt has been an Iowa blues legend for decades. He and his band, the Instigators, constantly toured and won over legions of fans with their soul-tinged blues and roots. Kevin recently conquered the International Blues Challenge, proving that Iowa does have some deep blues roots. For 2018’s Jazz Under the Stars, Kevin put together an all-star “Blues Summit” to electrify the Noelridge Park crowd on a perfect August evening.
Jazz Night in America with host Christian McBride
Thursday at 11:00 PM
Billy Strayhorn’s Lush Life
Billy Strayhorn led a complex and often vice-driven life. While composing some of the most harmonically rich jazz of its time, often in the shadow of Duke Ellington, Strayhorn was an outlier in that he led an openly gay life as a black man in the homophobic 1940s. This episode of Jazz Night in America features interviews with family Strayhorn family members, Strayhorn’s biographer, and rare archival tape of Strayhorn himself. Pianist and vocalist Johnny O’Neal joins the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra to present the music of Billy Strayhorn.
Jazz Corner of the World with host Craig Kessler
Saturday, Noon – 4:00 PM and Monday, 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Great Bands of the 70’s – Weather Report, Part One
Craig takes a loving look at one of the more prominent bands of the fusion era. Weather Report, was formed in 1971 by Austrian keyboard master, Josef Zawinul, top-ranked saxophonist and extraordinary composer, Wayne Shorter, and the cutting edge Czech bassist and composer, Miroslav Vitous. Craig will talk some history of the band, as well as spin some choice selections from 16 of their US recordings.
KCCK’s Midnight CD
The Monday – Sunday Midnight CD for this week can be found at:
New Music Monday for October 8, 2018
Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify.
Guitarist John Scofield has been on serious roll since 2015, when his release, “Past Present,” earned a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Jazz Album. He followed that release with the 2016 album, “Country for Old Men,” which earned him two more Grammys. Last year, he joined forces with old pals Jack DeJohnette, Larry Grenadier and John Medeski for the rural New York jazz band of the ages, Hudson, the quartet romping the world from Boise to Berlin and back again. Now, Scofield keeps his talent and his trusty Ibanez AS200 guitar burning brightly on “Combo 66,” which finds the New York native with a new quartet and fresh compositions in celebration of his 66th birthday.
Madeleine Peyroux’s extraordinary journey is one of the music industry’s most compelling. Eight albums and 22 years since her debut, the singer-songwriter continues to challenge the confines of jazz, venturing into fertile fields of contemporary music with unfading curiosity. Peyroux’s new album, “Anthem,” came to life during the pivotal 2016 U.S. elections, with her and her co-writers Patrick Warren, Brian MacLeod and David Baerwald absorbing a “constant stream of news” over many months. The “consciously not to preachy” songs fuse Madeleine’s at times political outlook with glimpses into her personal world, striking that perfect equilibrium of dark humor and compassion.
Also this week, the young pianist Justin Kauflin ventures into new sonic territory, bringing in more modern influences of synths, electric guitar and bass on his third release, “Coming Home”;
Miami-based guitarist Lindsey Blair and his quartet pay tribute to the legendary Wes Montgomery with “All Wes All Day”;
…and conguero and composer Alberto Nacif leads his sizzling Detroit based Latin jazz septet Aguanko on their fourth release, “Pattern Recognition.”
Culture Crawl 389 “Yeah, We Did The Snap-Snap”
The Addams Family has been a part of American pop culture for 80 years. Beginning as a New Yorker cartoon in the Thirties, then as a 60s TV show, movies in the 90s, and now onstage as a musical.
Marqueta Senters plays GrandMama in the Old Creamery Theatre production that opens October 11. She tells Dennis that all the characters you remember will be there: Gomez, Morticia, Uncle Fester, and Lurch the butler. Sparks fly when daughter Wednesday brings her straight-laced boyfriend and his parents home to meet her decidedly eccentric family. Spooky fun for the whole family!
Tickets and information at www.oldcreamery.com.
The video is cut off because of a software issue. Hear the full audio version below.
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