The Jazz Messengers

The Jazz Messengers were an influential jazz combo that existed for over thirty-five years beginning in the early 1950s as a collective, and ending when long-time leader and founding drummer Art Blakey died in 1990. Blakey led or co-led the group from the outset. "Art Blakey" and "Jazz Messengers" became synonymous over the years, though Blakey did lead non-Messenger recording sessions and played as a sideman for other groups throughout his career.

The group evolved into a proving ground for young jazz talent. While veterans occasionally re-appeared in the group, by and large, each iteration of the Messengers included a lineup of new young players. Having the Messengers on one's resume was a rite of passage in the jazz world, and conveyed immediate bona fides.

Many Messenger alumni went on to become jazz stars in their own right, such as: Lee Morgan, Benny Golson, Wayne Shorter, Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Timmons, Curtis Fuller, Cedar Walton, Chuck Mangione, Keith Jarrett, Joanne Brackeen, Woody Shaw, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Terence Blanchard, Donald Harrison and Mulgrew Miller. A more complete list of alumni can be found on the right column. Some members such as bassist Clarence Seay and then 16-year-old trombonist Gregory Charles Royal are documented to have played in the Jazz Messengers but did not record with the group.

The Jazz Messengers (1956 album)

The Jazz Messengers is a 1956 album by the Jazz Messengers, released by Columbia Records. It was the last recording by the Jazz Messengers lineup featuring pianist Horace Silver.

In 1968 Columbia reissued the LP in their Jazz Odyssey Series with a new cover under the title Art Blakey with the Original Jazz Messengers. In 1997 the album was digitally remastered and released on CD, again with its original title and cover, featuring all the tracks from the original LP along with five additional tracks drawn from the same recording sessions but previously released only on foreign imports.

Track listing

This is the track listing for the current Columbia CD release. Tracks 1−7 are from the original LP and in the same order. The adjacent tracks 8−10 and 12 were first released on Originally (Columbia CL 897, 1956). Track 11 was previously unreleased.

Jazz Messengers '70

Jazz Messengers '70 is a live album by drummer Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers recorded in Tokyo in 1970 and originally released on the Catalyst label.

Reception

Scott Yanow of Allmusic stated, "the quintet casts new light on these tunes, making them sound fresh and flexible. This unusual set is recommended to longtime followers of Art Blakey".

Track listing

Personnel

References

The Theme

The Theme (Russian: Тема) is a 1979 Soviet film directed by Gleb Panfilov. It tells the story of an egotistical playwright who thinks of himself as an artist, but who allows the system to make him write conformist plays.

The film was heavily censored on its release in 1979. The full version was not released until 1986; this version was awarded the Golden Bear at the 37th Berlin International Film Festival.

Cast

References

External links

The Theme (It's Party Time)

"The Theme (It's Party Time)" was the lead single released from Tracey Lee's debut album, Many Facez. The song was produced by D-Dot and was a mild success, making it to 4 different Billboard charts, including 55 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The official remix, entitled "The After Party (The Theme II)" featured rappers, Busta Rhymes and Pirate and was also featured on the Many Facez album and was given both a single release and a music video. An additional remix was also released featuring Rampage.

Single track listing

Charts

James Bond music

The James Bond film series from Eon Productions has had numerous signature tracks over the years, many of which are now considered classic pieces of film music. The best known of these pieces of music is the ubiquitous "James Bond Theme." Other instrumental pieces, such as the "007 Theme" or "On Her Majesty's Secret Service", and various songs, such as Shirley Bassey's "Goldfinger", Paul McCartney's "Live and Let Die" or Carly Simon's "Nobody Does It Better", Sheena Easton's "For Your Eyes Only" and Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill" have also become identified with the series. "Skyfall" from Skyfall won the Academy Award for Best Song making it the first Bond song to do so.

"James Bond Theme"

"James Bond Is Back"

The briefest of "James Bond themes", this composition started off the "Opening Titles" music of From Russia with Love. It was heard in the On Her Majesty's Secret Service film trailer. WLS (AM) used the theme in the mid-1960s for their secret agent radio serial "The Wild Adventures of Peter Fugitive" that appeared on "The Art Roberts Show".