West Coast jazz

West Coast jazz refers to various styles of jazz music that developed around Los Angeles and San Francisco during the 1950s. West Coast jazz is often seen as a subgenre of cool jazz, which featured a less frenetic, calmer style than bebop or hard bop. The music tended to be more heavily arranged, and more often composition-based. While this style was prominent for a while, it was by no means the only style of jazz played on the West Coast, which exhibited more variety than could be conveyed by a simple name.

History

Background

Prior to World War II, the West Coast of the United States had hosted a bustling music scene, though its activity remained largely localized.

In 1917, Jelly Roll Morton moved to California, and remained in Los Angeles until 1922, when he left for Chicago.Kid Ory formed a band in Los Angeles after moving to California in 1919.

In 1944, Norman Granz began staging Jazz at the Philharmonic shows at Philharmonic Auditorium in Los Angeles. In 1946, Ross Russell established Dial Records in Hollywood, with the purpose of recording Charlie Parker during his sojourn in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, a thriving jazz scene had appeared along Los Angeles's Central Avenue, featuring musicians such as Dexter Gordon, Wardell Gray, Teddy Edwards, Charles Mingus, and Buddy Collette. Central Avenue's activity rivaled that of the earlier Kansas City jazz scene, but at the time it was little-known outside of Los Angeles.

West Coast Jazz (Stan Getz album)

West Coast Jazz is a 1955 album by Stan Getz accompanied by a quartet including trumpeter Conte Candoli. Getz recorded the album in California, where he was filming parts for The Benny Goodman Story, and appearing for a week at the nightclub Zardi's Jazzland. The musicians that accompanied him at Zardi's were chosen by Getz to make this album with him.

The title of the album is an in-joke as none of the musicians on the album were associated with the West Coast jazz style. The artwork for the album was created by David Stone Martin. The album was reissued in 1999 by Verve Records with bonus tracks.

Reception

Al Campbell reviewed the album for Allmusic and wrote of the musicians that they "...connected with Getz immediately, having crossed paths previously. ...Generally unlike West Coast jazz of the time, the rapid group interplay with energized bop solos, still stand out particularly on "S-H-I-N-E" and Dizzy Gillespie's "A Night in Tunisia."" Ted Gioia, in his book West Coast Jazz, writes of the album that, "In terms of playing style, Getz meshed well with Manne and the other musicians on the date...and his playing throughout the album exemplifies the tasteful, inventive creativity that has long been a hallmark of Getz's recordings".

West Coast

West Coast may refer to:

Geography

Australia

Canada

Germany

India

Malaysia

New Zealand

Singapore

South Africa

Sweden

United States

Transport

West Coast, New Zealand

The West Coast (Māori: Te Tai Poutini) is a region of New Zealand on the west coast of the South Island, one of the more remote and most sparsely populated areas of the country. It is administered by the West Coast Regional Council. At the territorial authority level, the region comprises Buller District, Grey District and Westland District. The principal towns are Westport, Greymouth and Hokitika.

Naming

The name Westland is used by some New Zealanders to refer to the whole of the West Coast, including Grey District, Buller District and Fiordland, and can also refer to the short-lived Westland Province of 1873–76.

Fiordland is on the west coast, but is in the Southland Region rather than the West Coast Region.

Inhabitants of the West Coast are colloquially known as "Coasters".

Geography

The region reaches from Kahurangi Point in the north to Awarua Point in the south, a distance of 600 km. To the west is the Tasman Sea (which like the Southern Ocean can be very rough, with four-metre swells common), and to the east are the Southern Alps. Much of the land is rugged, with a coastal plain where much of the population resides.

West Coast (TV series)

West Coast is a Canadian variety show television series which debuted on the CTV television network in 1961.

The show was produced at the studios of CHAN-TV in Vancouver and mixed studio segments with filmed location footage from around British Columbia. Airing at 7:30-8:00 PM on Friday nights, it was cancelled after one season due to high costs and poor viewership. Rai Purdy was producer.

External links