Still battling the insomnia, wondering if I have a brain tumor, and stopping by in spite of it all because centennials don't come often.
See, one hundred years ago today, a true musical ambassador was born in St. Louis.
The path he traveled in his extensively excellent 94 years on Earth helped mentor and shape the growth of American music and Jazz for the entire subsequent century since he showed up.
Along the way, he taught and inspired other players who went on to tremendous achievements that will last centuries if not more.
Quincy Jones, Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis, Pat Metheny, Dianne Reeves, and Terri Lynne Carrington are but a few of those names.
He began in the band of Charlie Barnet in the 1940s, and soon went with Count Basie. Then he jumped to Duke Ellington's band, then Quincy's big band in 1960, and then a ten-year stint in the Tonight Show band led by Doc Severinsen on NBC-TV.
In addition, he played on and off with Oscar Peterson over the course of a 30+ year association.
In the mid-1970s he began leading his own orchestra, dubbed the Big B-A-D Band, as well as performing in smaller groups both as leader and as sideman.
In 1982 he toured the former Yugoslavia, making a live record in Belgrade only ever issued in that country, which is one of the rarest LPs in his canon.
It's never been reissued in the digital age, and I'd surely never stoop so low as to put a pristine vinyl rip of it into the cloud alongside today's concert, for anyone who is on a quest.
So you've likely sussed by now that Clark Terry was born on this day in 1920.
I hope he's recording another seminal heavenly celestial session, wherever he is.
Speaking of heavenly sessions, let's fire up a full show from Paris -- rebroadcast on France Musique just this past weekend -- and let Mister C.T. take you there.
Clark Terry Quartet
La Villa
Paris, France
12.11.1992
01 Robbin's Nest
02 Satin Doll
03 Straight, No Chaser
04 Blue Monk
05 Days of Wine and Roses
06 Shaw 'Nuff
07 Walkin'
08 I Want a Little Girl
09 Mood Indigo
10 The Snapper
11 Jingle Bells
12 My Romance
13 Canadian Sunset
Total time: 1:41:16
disc break goes after Track 07
Clark Terry - trumpet, flugelhorn & voice
Alain Jean-Marie - piano
Wayne Dockery - bass
George Brown - drums
digital capture of a 2020 France Musique analog FM rebroadcast
682 MB FLAC/December 2020 archive link
There was tons of DJ chatter cut out from between the tracks of this, making the transitions between them a little abrupt, so in the most egregious instances of that I used applause from throughout the set to stretch those transitions out a bit more.
I am gonna try to rest and recover, and find out wtf is wrong with me and my sleep issues, but please do enjoy this nearly two hours of what made Clark Terry the centenary event he is today!--J.
12.14.1920 - 2.21.2015