AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Lee Konitz Paul Bley

Artist:Lee Konitz Paul Bley

Song:Lover Man

Album:Out of Nowhere

Here's a 1997 album by two prominent jazz musicians who were recording for the same label at the time. They had recorded together once previously. Of course most jazz fans should be familiar with alto saxophonist Lee Konitz, a bebop pioneer who played on Miles Davis' Birth of the Cool. Canadian pianist Paul Bley was a prominent figure in the 60s free jazz movement. He was born Hyman Bley Nov. 10, 1932 in Montreal. His parents were Romanian immigrants. He studied violin at age five. But after his parents divorce a couple of years later, he switched to piano. After studying at the McGill Conservatory, Bley formed a band that played summer resorts in Quebec. He also changed his name to Paul, thinking girls would find it more attractive. When Oscar Peterson signed with Verve and moved to New York, he asked Bley to finish his contract at Montreal's Alberta Lounge. Then Bley moved to New York and studied at Juilliard. Bley returned to Montreal to organize the Montreal Jazz Workshop. He invited Charlie Parker to come in 1953 and they recorded an album together. When Bley returned to New York, Bley led a series of trios in local clubs. He went to Los Angeles to work with Chet Baker and then tour with singer Dakota Staton. While playing a 1956 New Year's Eve show at Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz's house in Palm Springs, Bley collapsed with a bleeding ulcer. Lucy paid his medical expenses. Bley's girlfriend Karen came to Los Angeles. They married and she became Carla Bley. It was in 1958 that Bley started working with free jazz musicians like Ornette Coleman. In the early 60s, Bley was in the Jimmy Giuffre 3 with clarinetist Giuffre and bassist Steve Swallow. They released two albums on Verve. By now Carla was his ex-wife. She helped write free jazz for the band. When audiences expecting bebop from the Jimmy Giuffre 3 heard free jazz, they were shocked. But it was the start of what Bley would do for his entire career and that's expand the boundaries of jazz. He also recorded and toured on Sonny Rollins' early 60s RCA albums. Bley helped start the Jazz Composers Guild in 1964 to advance the free jazz movement. Part of the problem was getting record companies to release their records. For example, Bley recorded four albums for Savoy from 1962-64. But only one was released at the time and the others sat in the vault until the 80s. Jazz labels were notorious for doing this. So that's when labels like ESP-Disk were started. Bley started his own label Improvising Artists or IAI in 1974. He also started experimenting with electronic keyboards usually with Annette Peacock. Bley first recorded with Lee Konitz on the 1977 IAI album Pyramid with guitarist Bill Connors of Return to Forever. It was an album of original compositions by all three guys. In the 70s, Bley recorded for ECM and in the 80s and 90s, he recorded for the Danish label SteepleChase, the Canadian label Justin Time and the Italian label Soul Note. Lover Man is from the 1997 album Out of Nowhere. I assume that SteepleChase owner Nils Winther suggested that Bley and Konitz record together. All the songs on this album are jazz standards. The other musicians are Jay Anderson on bass and Billy Drummond on drums. Both had played with Bley and Konitz previously. Bley continued to tour and record until his death on Jan. 3, 2016 at age 83. Here's Paul Bley and Lee Konitz performing Lover Man on Spanish TV 1990.