As summer winds down, I have six terrific new albums for you by musicians pushing the envelope and exploring fresh ways to present their music. Jazz is definitely evolving:

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As many readers know, I have a soft spot for swinging, hard-charging big bands. And I prefer them arranged with plenty of punch. Bill Kirchner has long known this and recently sent along an album by a band that checks off all the boxes: Introducing Roger Neumann’s Rather Large Band.

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Yesterday, I posted about an exemplary quintet fronted by Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonious Monk that recorded bebop at its peak in 1950. Ten years later, another superlative quintet, this time led by trumpeter Lee Morgan, recorded a hard-bop masterpiece: Lee-Way (Blue Note). It’s one of my favorite records by Morgan and recently was remastered on 180-gram vinyl as part of Blue Note’s Classic Vinyl series.

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Underestimated initially as a country singer, TV personality and actress, Dolly Parton, who died Tuesday at age 80, defied expectations throughout her seven-decade career. From the late 1960s onward, she took special delight in winning over audiences with a playful personality, folksy naturalism and eager singing voice. On stage, she gracefully offset t…

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In June 1950, producer Norman Granz brought together an astonishing quintet to record for his Clef label. The band’s members were Dizzy Gillespie (tp), Charlie Parker (as), Thelonious Monk (p), Curley Russell (b) and Buddy Rich (d). The session remains fascinating, thanks largely to Monk.

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One of jazz’s most perplexing mysteries is how so many brothers wound up as exceptional jazz musicians. The list includes Wes, Monk and Buddy Montgomery; Cannonball and Nat Adderley; Ronnie and Hubert Laws; Conte and Pete Candoli; Jimmy, Percy and Tootie Heath; Wayne and Alan Shorter; Nat and Freddie Cole; Art and Addison Farmer; Stanley and Tommy Turrentine; Michael and Randy Brecker; and Wynton, Branford, Delfeayo and Jason Marsalis. I’m sure there are others I missed.

Perhaps the most celebrated fraternal jazz artists are Thad, Hank and Elvin Jones. Hank Jones was a prolific bebop pianist who recorded as a leader and sideman; Elvin Jones was an influential, revolutionary post-bop drummer who was most famously a member of the John Coltrane Quartet.

And Thad Jones may have been the most accomplished of the three. The cornetist and trumpeter was a composer, arranger and leader, a long-time member of the Count Basie Band and co-founder of the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Big Band.

Now Nils Winther’s Steeplechase label in Denmark has remastered and re-issued one of Jones’s most interesting LPs from the 1980s—Three and One. Recorded in Copenhagen in October 1984, it features the cornetist two years before his passing, and he sounds superb.

The ensemble included Thad Jones (cornet), Ole Kock Hansen (piano), Jesper Lundgaard (bass) and Ed Thigpen (drums). What made Jones’s playing special was the personality of his horn. He could express notes in a forthright style, with a sense of humor when bending them and with an intimate swing. Whichever approach he chose, he added plenty of heat.

The album’s two sides feature six songs in all—Instant Blues Disinstant (Thad Jones), My One and Only Love (Wood-Mellin), But Not for Me (George Gershwin), Night Mist Blues (Ahmad Jamal), My Romance (Richard Rodgers) and Three and One (Thad Jones).

Born in Pontiac, Mich., in 1923, Jones was a middle child, with Hank being the oldest and Elvin the youngest. A self-taught musician, he began his professional career at age 16. During World War II, from 1943 to 1946, he served in U.S. Army bands. Jones joined Count Basie’s New Testament Band in 1954 and was featured on April in Paris, Corner Pocket and Shiny Stockings. He also wrote nearly two dozen arrangements for the band.

During this period, he recorded as a leader for Prestige. In 1963, he left Basie and eventually formed the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Big Band in 1966, an orchestra that remained intact for 12 years. He taught at William Paterson College in New Jersey starting in 1972, becoming one of the earliest prominent jazz musicians to hold a full-time professorship. A year later he began serving as the founding director of the school’s jazz studies program.

In 1979, Jones left his position to move to Copenhagen where he married. He returned to the U.S. in 1985 to take over the Basie band following the Count’s death. Ill with cancer, he returned to Copenhagen in 1986 and died in August of that year. He was 63.

Among his small-group leadership albums in the 1950s are The Fabulous Thad Jones (Debut, 1954), Detroit–New York Junction (Blue Note, 1956), The Magnificent Thad Jones (Blue Note, 1956), Mad Thad (Period, 1957), The Jones Boys (Period, 1957), Olio (Prestige, 1957), After Hours (Prestige, 1957), Keepin’ Up with the Joneses (MetroJazz, 1958) and Motor City Scene (United Artists, 1959).

You’ll find Thad Jones’s Three and One (Steeplechase) in the U.S. at Dusty Groove here. The remastered album is also available on CD.

Here’s Instant Blues Disinstant…

And here’s But Not for Me…

Looking back this past week, I counted eight events that had the biggest impact on me growing up in the 1960s. Don’t get me wrong, plenty of mindblowing events took place since the ‘60s that left a mark on younger generations. These include the arrival of the CD and VHS formats and players in the 1980s; the personal computer and AOL Mail in the 1990s; the iPod, iTunes and the high-speed modem in the early 2000s; the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in New York on Sept. 11, 2001; and the launch of the iPhone in 2007. [Photos above and below by Marc Myers]

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The Brink of War co-star on his famous father, Irish actor Richard Harris, on coping with a double rejection and his house in Ireland. The British actor is known for TV’s Mad Men, The Crown and Chernobyl series, and the movie Reawakening. [Photo above of Jared Harris in London by Rory Lewis/NEWS LICENSING/REDUX

If you have a WSJ.com subscription, you ca…

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The second time was the charm. In 1973, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Tom Scholz, founder of the Boston-area band Mother’s Milk, sent out a demo tape of songs to two-dozen or so record companies. All passed, so the following year Mr. Scholz shuttered the band. Then he and and lead vocalist Brad Delp refined six songs, playing all the instruments …

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The Don’t Say Good Luck co-star on studying Lenny Bruce and Woody Allen albums, his Liar character and his love for old movies. The actor and comedian is known for Saturday Night Live, Seinfeld and the film A League of Their Own. He co-stars in the upcoming films Redemption and Don’t Say Good Luck, due Aug. 14 on Netflix. [Photo above of Jon Lovitz in L…

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The actor recalls his battle with perfectionism, his mom’s encouragement and his ‘Spellbound’ revelation. He is known for his roles in TV’s “10 Things I Hate About You” and the films “Adopt a Sailor” and “The Unholy Trinity.” He has co-starred in four “Star Trek” series, including Season 4 of Paramount+’s “Strange New Worlds.” [Photo above of Ethan Peck…

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Tim Robbins, 67, is an Oscar-winning actor known for “Bull Durham,” “The Shawshank Redemption” and “Mystic River.” He co-stars in the Apple TV series “Silo.” His father was a member of The Highwaymen, the popular early -1960s folk group. [Photo above of Tim Robbins in Los Angeles in 2024 by Michael Buckner/DEADLINE/GETTY IMAGES]

If you have a WSJ.com su…

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Between his recordings for Prestige and New Jazz, a Prestige subsidiary (nine albums in all, from 1956 to 1957), and Blue Note (21 LPs between 1959 and 1967), alto saxophonist Jackie McLean recorded one album for Jubilee, a label that in the 1950s typically specialized in R&B.

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Tower of Power, the Bay Area bump-and-grind horn band that emerged in the early 1970s, was best known for their greasy, driving funk hits such as What Is Hip, Get Yo’ Feet Back on the Ground and Knock Yourself Out. But many of these started to sound formulaic by mid-decade. Fifty years later, the real Tower of Power gems are their ballads. [Photo above of Tower of Power in the early 1970s]

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On May 7, 1971, the Count Basie Orchestra performed live in Tilburg, the Netherlands, at the city’s concert venue Pellikaanhal,. Ella Fitzgerald was the featured guest vocalist. [Photo above of Ella Fitzgerald in 1971]

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Paula Castle’s Lost Love was originally recorded for Bethlehem in 1955 for a 10-inch LP. Castle’s voice was leather-glove warm and elegantly sensuous—with hip phrasing reminiscent of Sarah Vaughan. The album was and is a superb recording. Songs dwell, thematically, on fleeting love.

But there’s a story behind the music. This was Castle’s first LP—and her last, according to Lord’s Jazz Discography. Little is known about why Castle abandoned the studio or what became of her after this record was released—though we may have a clue.

The band here is equally mysterious. Beyond flutist Sam Most, the rest of the quartet’s members aren’t household jazz names. Bassist Chet Amsterdam would have a lengthy career as a sideman, but Lost Love was the last known recording for pianist Ronnie Selbey and drummer Herbie Wasserman, who became journeymen players.

Returning to Castle, she began her recording career in February 1949 with bassist Chubby Jackson. The New Yorker called her rendition of All Wrong (recorded that month with Jackson) “a slow ballad with a foolish lyric” but “interestingly worked out by the musicians and well-sung by Paula Castle.” [Photo above of Paula Castle in the 1970s courtesy of YouTube]

In early August 1949, Billboard reported that Castle had signed a personal management contract with Larry Newton. The magazine also mentioned that she had signed a four-year record deal with Newton’s Derby label. But in 1953, Newton ran out of cash and formed Central Records with Lee Magid. The new venture didn’t work out again either for Newton, who had to file for bankruptcy in 1954.

His Derby masters were sold to RCA, where Newton became an executive. But whatever Newton lacked on the entrepreneurial side he more than made up for in the corporate setting. In 1956 he joined ABC-Paramount as a sales manager and three years later he was vice president of sales. In 1965, he became the label’s president.

But back to Castle. By mid-August 1949, Newton arranged for Castle to travel down South for a 10-day tour to plug her first Derby release. That single had been recorded in July. She had gone into the studio to record four sides but only two—Henri VIII and Free of Charge—were issued. The songs were recorded with the Joe Roland Quintet, featuring Ray Turner (ts), Joe Roland (vib), Red Mitchell (p), Joe Puma (g), Paul Sziglay (b) and Harold Granowsky, only on Henri VIII. [Photo above of Paula Castle c. 1960s or ‘70s]

In January 1950, Roland wound up at Savoy Records, and Castle recorded one track with him—Love Is Just a Plaything. By then Roland was billed as “Joltin’ Joe” Roland and his Symphonette/Bopping Strings. The band featured Joe Roland (vib), Joe Puma (g), Gus Oberstein, Jules Modlin and Sidney Kasmit (strings), Ismael Ugarte (b) and Harold Granowsky (d), with Paula Castle (vcl).

Under contract to Derby, Castle wouldn’t appear in a recording studio again until 1955, when she recorded Lost Love. By then, she was managed by Mort Hillman, who also handled Herbie Mann, another Bethlehem artist. Creed Taylor was the label’s producer then, so I gave him a call. “The name is familiar but I can’t recall the session,” he said. “She was one of several vocalists I had at Bethlehem—including Chris Connor and Carmen McRae.”

Except for a cryptic remark by an Amazon reviewer in 2011 who claimed that Castle was alive and well in Queens, N.Y., the trail goes cold in 1955. Which somehow makes this album all the more intriguing.

You’ll find Paula Castle’s Lost Love (Bethlehem) newly remastered on Spotify.

Let’s listen to clips:

You can hear Castle sing Tenderly at 9:09 on the time bar with the Chubby Jackson Orchestra and Darling, You Wear Love So Well at 36:45—or listen to the full live recording and hear one of the greatest bop bands of the late 1940s…

Here’s Paula Castle singing Love Is Just a Plaything with Joe Roland in 1950...

The following clip features Paula Castle singing Why Can’t I? from Lost Love. The Bethlehem album was recorded in early 1955 and released that June. The song was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart for Spring Is Here, a 1929 Broadway musical…

The album was recorded in early 1955 and released in June. One wonders if Castle’s recording was passed along to EmArcy producer Bob Shad or to Vaughan herself as a song to consider for In the Land of Hi-Fi. Here’s her masterful rendition on In Land of Hi-Fi, which was recorded in October 1955...

In 2010, the following clip was uploaded to YouTube by a friend of Paula Castle. The YouTube comments indicate she died in 2013. A shame they didn’t ask her about her sole album...

My guess is her voice was too close to Vaughan’s and, as a result, was passed over by producers mid-decade. Or she suffered from stage fright and didn’t want to do TV to promote albums. Or she might have decided that being in a relationship was more important, so she simply performed locally on New York’s Long Island. Whatever the reasons, she made one superb album, and thanks to Creed Taylor, her 1950s voice was captured for posterity.

After two years recording as a sideman for Prestige, tenor saxophonist John Coltrane finally convinced label-founder Bob Weinstock to let him record as a leader. Part of the delay was Coltrane’s integral participation in the Miles Davis Quintet, starting in 1955. The other two factors were waiting until Coltrane had kicked his heroin habit and holding off until his reputation had grown.

Much of the credit for raising Coltrane’s visibility with jazz fans belongs to liner-notes writer Ira Gitler, who regularly extolled the saxophonist’s soulful prowess and commanding technique on the back of Prestige albums. Now, Craft Recordings has re-issued Coltrane remastered and reissued on 180-gram vinyl.

Coltrane was recorded in May 1957, with John Coltrane (ts), Johnnie Splawn (tp on Bakai, Straight Street, While My Lady Sleeps and Chronic Blues), Sahib Shihab (bs on Bakai, Straight Street and Chronic Blues); Red Garland (p on Bakai, Violets for Your Furs and Time Was) and Mal Waldron (p on Straight Street, While My Lady Sleeps and Chronic Blues); Paul Chambers (b) and Albert “Tootie” Heath (d).

Cal Massey’s Bakai is meaty, with other horns added; the standards Violets for Your Furs, a walking ballad, and Time Was, a medium-tempo walking ballad, date back to the 1940s.

Coltrane’s Straight Street is a gorgeous piece with horns and the album’s high point; Chronic Blues is a minor-key work by Coltrane that features strong playing by Shihab and Coltrane. While My Lady Steeps by Gus Kahn and Bronislaw Kaper, was written for the film The Chocolate Soldier and sung by Nelson Eddy. It’s perhaps the piece that most foreshadows Coltrane’s sound and sensitivity.

As Ira wrote in the notes:

“John Coltrane is, in a sense, a new star but has not arrived through high-pressure press agentry. He has been building on more solid ground…. Trane has steadily increased his accomplishments on his instrument and has gained new admirers for his playing among fellow musicians and the serious listening public.”

Also reissued on vinyl by Craft Recordings is Cookin’ With the Miles Davis Quintet. The CDs and downloads have undergone a 24-bit/192kHz HD process.

You’ll find these albums on vinyl here and here.

Here’s Straight Street…

This coming week is traditionally the most quiet time of year in Manhattan, rivaled only by the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. A sizable number of residents are out of town here and young kids are in camp. Parents who remained are enjoying their last pre-children dates until next year. Soon, they’ll resume arguing with their pre-teens and teens about curfew, homework and phone use. [Photos of Times Square above and below by Marc Myers]

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Steve Allen is an interesting figure. Back when the entertainment industry was known as “show business” and Broadway was still the Runyonesque realm of serious actors, Allen seemed omnipresent, uniting jazz and all manner of live performance. In return, many of his songs were arranged and recorded by others who devoted albums to his melodies and lyrics.

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Jazz Goes Mod is one of my favorite British jazz series. Produced by Rhythm & Blues Records in the U.K., there are more than 12 installments of the double-CD sets covering 1957 through 1967. Now, fresh from London last week is the latest—Jazz Goes Mod: Soho Scene ‘68. Like the others, this one is impossibly hip.

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