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The "Desert Island" Revisited

By Jack Bowers
May 7, 2012
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Back in the last millennium, shortly after this column first saw the light of day, I posted a list of twenty "desert island" albums, those that would be snugly ensconced in a crash-proof, water-tight carrying case should yours truly ever be marooned on a miniature atoll with nothing to relieve the boredom save palm trees, coconuts, sandy beaches and ample electrical outlets. Here is the list as it appeared then:

1.

Buddy Rich

drums
1917 - 1987

" data-original-title="" title="">Buddy Rich, Big Swing Face (Pacific Jazz). 2.

Louie Bellson

drums
1924 - 2009

" data-original-title="" title="">Louie Bellson, Dynamite! (Concord Jazz). 3.

Frank Capp

drums
b.1931

" data-original-title="" title="">Frank Capp Juggernaut, Play It Again, Sam (Concord Jazz). 4.

Stan Kenton

piano
1911 - 1979

" data-original-title="" title="">Stan Kenton, Live at Keesler Air Force Base, 1958 (Astral Jazz). 5.

Tom Kubis

arranger

" data-original-title="" title="">Tom Kubis, Slightly Off the Ground (Sea Breeze). 6.

Rob McConnell

trombone
1935 - 2010

" data-original-title="" title="">Rob McConnell and the Boss Brass, Boss Brass and Woods (MCA / Impulse!). 7.

Rob Parton

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">Rob Parton, JazzTech Big Band. (Sea Breeze). 8.

Maynard Ferguson

trumpet
1928 - 2006

" data-original-title="" title="">Maynard Ferguson, It Might as Well Be Spring: The Roulette Years (EMI Canada). 9.

Bill Potts

b.1928

" data-original-title="" title="">Bill Potts, 555 Feet High (Jazz Mark). 10.

Pete Petersen

saxophone, baritone
b.1969

" data-original-title="" title="">Pete Petersen, Jazz Journey (Chase Music Group). 11. The Hawk-Richard Orchestra, The Hawk's Out (Sea Breeze). 12.

Erwin Lehn

b.1919

" data-original-title="" title="">Erwin Lehn, 40 Jahre Jazz: 1951-91 (Intercord). 13. Chicago Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra, Live and Screamin' (Chicago Lakeside Jazz). 14.

Woody Herman

band / ensemble / orchestra
1913 - 1987

" data-original-title="" title="">Woody Herman Orchestra, A Tribute to the Legacy of Woody Herman NY Jam). 15. McGill University Jazz Ensemble, Something Personal NU Jazz). 16. Kansas City Boulevard Big Band, Stellar (Sea Breeze). 17.

John Fedchock

trombone
b.1957

" data-original-title="" title="">John Fedchock, New York Big Band (Reservoir). 18.

Dave McMurdo

" data-original-title="" title="">Dave McMurdo, Fire & Song Sackville). 19. University of Nevada-Las Vegas, Caliente, Muy Caliente (Walrus). 20. New England Jazz Ensemble, Version 3.0 (Brownstone).

Remarkably, almost fifteen years after the fact, roughly half of the albums named above remain firmly lodged in my psyche as "desert island" choices. This in spite of the fact that the big-band library has more than doubled since then and now stands at 2,572 CDs and counting. Needless to say, that's a lot of splendid music from which to choose. If I were to be cast away on that island today, I would surely need a larger carrying case! Here, in alphabetical order, are a number of albums not on the earlier list from which almost any big-band enthusiast on a desert island (or anywhere else) would derive endless recompense and pleasure.

Jerry Ascione

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Jerry Ascione, Beautiful Love (Sea Breeze Jazz).

Mike Barone

composer / conductor
b.1936

" data-original-title="" title="">Mike Barone, Live at Donte's, 1968 (VSOP).

Wayne Bergeron

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">Wayne Bergeron, Plays Well with Others (Concord Jazz). Boulevard Big Band, Live at Harling's Upstairs (Boulevard Records). Alf Clausen, Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most (Sunny NoDak).

Jack Cortner

composer / conductor

" data-original-title="" title="">Jack Cortner, Sound Check (Jazzed Media). Jack Cortner, Fast Track (Jazzed Media). DIVA, TNT: The Music of
Tommy Newsom
saxophone
1929 - 2007
" data-original-title="" title="">Tommy Newsom (DIVA Jazz). DIVA, Johnny Mandel
arranger
b.1925
" data-original-title="" title="">Johnny Mandel: A Man and His Music (Arbors). Dutch Jazz Orchestra, Plays the Music of Rob Madna (Challenge Records; 5 CDs).

Dizzy Gillespie

trumpet
1917 - 1993

" data-original-title="" title="">Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band, Dizzy's Business (MCG Jazz). H2 Big Band, You're It! (Jazzed Media). Jazzmania Big Band, New Impressions (BMCD). Don Junker, Junk Mail Special (Sea Breeze). John MacLeod Orchestra, Our First Set (Johns Jazz).

Dick Meldonian

b.1930

" data-original-title="" title="">Dick Meldonian /

Sonny Igoe

drums
b.1923

" data-original-title="" title="">Sonny Igoe Swing Band, The Jersey Concerts (Circle).

James Morrison

multi-instrumentalist
b.1962

" data-original-title="" title="">James Morrison, Snappy Too (KI Entertainment). New Vintage Big Band, Now and Forever (New Vintage Records). No Name Horses, Vol 1 (no label). Rob Parton, Just One of Those Things (Sea Breeze). Rob Parton, Two Different Days (Sea Breeze). Rob Parton, Eleventh Hour Live! (Sea Breeze).

Brian Pastor

trombone

" data-original-title="" title="">Brian Pastor, Common Men (BPO Music). Pete Petersen, Night and Day (Chase Music Group).

George Stone

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">George Stone, The Real Deal (no label). Kenichi Tsunoda, Big Swing (Sea Breeze).

Gary Urwin

band / ensemble / orchestra

" data-original-title="" title="">Gary Urwin, Kindred Spirits (Summit). Vezinho / Ward Big Band, Smile (DAB Music). Vezinho / Ward Big Band, With Friends Like These . . . (DAB Music).

There are many others but these should get you started packing. And your stay on the island would be even more agreeable should you bring along the CDs by Buddy Rich, Tom Kubis, Frank Capp, Stan Kenton, Rob McConnell, Maynard Ferguson, Bill Potts, Erwin Lehn and the Chicago Metropolitan Jazz Ensemble. After that, you're on your own . . .

Bert Sugar: Boxing Writer, Childhood Friend

When I entered first grade in Washington, DC, shortly after the most recent Ice Age, one of my classmates was Bert Randolph Sugar, who would later become widely known as one of the country's foremost boxing writers. Bert died from a heart attack March 25 at age seventy-five after a long battle with lung cancer. Also noted for his fedora, his ever-present cigar and his, shall we say, unusual yet always colorful choice of clothing, Bert was inducted in 2005 into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Besides serving as owner / editor of Ring Magazine, he wrote more than eighty books on various topics (one of the best was The 100 Greatest Boxers of All Time) and appeared as himself in a handful of films including The Great White Hope, in which Samuel L. Jackson portrayed the first black heavyweight champion, Jack Johnson. I remember Bert as a kid with a plan. He would drag me over to the Shoreham Hotel in DC, where many of the baseball teams from other cities stayed, to collect autographs. Although I had little interest in doing that, I went because Bert was persuasive. I managed to get a number ballplayers to sign their names (Joe DiMaggio is one I remember) but I either lost the autographs or threw them away. Not Bert. He saved them all, and years later wrote books about baseball cards and autographs. As I said, even as a kid in elementary school Bert was always looking down the road. Later, I would see him from time to time on TV, offering his "expert analysis" of boxing and boxers. As a fan of the sport myself, I cringed in horror when he picked Buster Douglas, the recent conqueror of previously unbeaten Mike Tyson, to vanquish Evander Holyfield. "Size always wins," he said, or words to that effect, as I shouted at the inanimate screen, "No, Bert! No! It's the size of the heart that matters! Douglas doesn't stand a chance!" Buster, as we now know, leaned into a perfectly timed Holyfield right-hand counter in Round 3 and went into a deep and peaceful sleep. Oh well, no one is perfect, Bert, and you were right far more often than you were wrong. As Jack Hirsch, president of the Boxing Writers Association of America, said on learning of his passing, "Around ringside, it's not going to be the same with Bert not there." Let's have a moment of silence as the bell tolls ten . . .

Coming Events

On June 3, the Montclair Women's Big Band will present an afternoon outdoor concert at Coventry Grove in Kensington, CA, to benefit the Jazzschool Girls' Jazz Camp Scholarship Fund. The Coventry Grove concert follows sold-out performances at Yoshi's in Oakland and the Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz. For information, e-mail Lisa Mitchell, [email protected]

The twelfth annual Jazz Summit will be held August 24-26 in Prescott, AZ, showcasing world-class musicians from in-state and beyond. The three-day event opens with a free-of-charge Friday noon concert on the courthouse square and closes with a dinner and jam session Sunday evening at Murphy's Restaurant. As usual, Summit director

Mike Vax

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">Mike Vax, one-time lead trumpeter with the Stan Kenton Orchestra, has assembled a stellar lineup of musicians including trumpeter

Carl Saunders

trumpet
1942 - 2023

" data-original-title="" title="">Carl Saunders, trombonists

Scott Whitfield

trombone
b.1963

" data-original-title="" title="">Scott Whitfield and

Bill Tole

trombone
b.1937

" data-original-title="" title="">Bill Tole, saxophonists

Rusty Higgins

saxophone, alto

" data-original-title="" title="">Rusty Higgins and

Tony Vacca

percussion

" data-original-title="" title="">Tony Vacca, pianist

Jeff Colella

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Jeff Colella, guitarist Jack Petersen, drummer Gary Hobbs and singers

Dennis Rowland

vocals
b.1948

" data-original-title="" title="">Dennis Rowland and Ginger Berglund. For more information, go online to www.prescottjazz.com or www.bigbandjazz.net

And that's it for now. Until next time, keep swingin' . . . !

New and Noteworthy

1. Bob Curnow, The Music of Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays, Vol 2 (Sierra Music)

2. Christian McBride Big Band, The Good Feeling (Mack Avenue)

3. Kirk MacDonald Jazz Orchestra, Deep Shadows (Addo)

4. Westchester Jazz Orchestra, Maiden Voyage Suite (WJO)

5. Ron Carter's Great Big Band, Untitled (Summit)

6. Bob Lark Alumni Band, Reunion (Jazzed Media)

7. Baker's Dozen, Goes to Eleven (BJam Music)

8. UNT One O'Clock Lab Band, Lab 2011 (UNT Jazz)

9. The Frank Griffith Big Band, Holland Park Non-Stop (Hep) 10. Tommy Vig Orchestra, Welcome to Hungary! (Artisjus)

11. Danny D'Imperio and the Bloviators, Alcohol! (V.S.O.P.)

12. Ed Partyka Jazz Orchestra, Songs of Love Lost (Mons)

13. SAP Big Band, You're Up! (Personality Records)

14. West Point Band's Jazz Knights, Turning Points / At First Light, (USMA)

15. University of Akron Jazz Ensemble, Reactions (UAkronJazz)

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