Baaad Jazz - Melvin Sparks R.I.P.

Back at the beginning of March, Melvin Sparks jumped to the front of the line, in the crowded queue of thoughts in my head. One of my fave blogs, Record Fiend, did a post about his first record, Sparks! (1970). For the next week or so I listened to the 4 records I have for Melvin, a 2003 live jam, and some of the numerous sessions he played on during the height of the jazz-funk, soul-jazz era. A go to guitarist for organ players, in 1970 alone he cut records with Charles Earland, Leon Spencer,Sonny Phillips,and Charles Kynard. Not to mention his work with other leaders like, Idris Muhammad, Rusty Bryant, and Lou Donaldson. That list was only one year, and , of course, doesn't include his debut as a leader.

Thank You (Sly Stone cover)

 
Personnel for Sparks! (1970)
Drums - Idris Muhammad  
Organ - Leon Spencer, Jr.

Saxophone [Tenor] - Houston Person , John Manning
Trumpet - Virgil Jones

Just after I was coming down off the Sparks groove cloud, some bad news came across the wire. I read in the New York Times that Mr. Sparks had died March 15th, at his home in Mount Vernon, NY. He was only 64 years old.  Mr. Sparks was not a long lost musician of a bygone era, he was very active throughout a career that spanned over 4 decades.

Melvin Sparks first came to my attention in the early 90's as a re-discovered hero for the Acid Jazz scene. Always soulful and funky on record, his catalog doesn't see him straying too far from his R&B roots.

Before he got in on the ground floor of the soul jazz scene he backed Hank Ballard, Marvin Gaye, Jackie Wilson, and Little Richard, as a teenager. Coupled with the aforementioned jazz cats, this makes Mr. Sparks bonafides prety much untouchable, in any bag.

Two of his first three records, Sparks! and Akilah (named after one of his daughters) were reissued as a pair in the early 90's. One of the first glimpses young crate diggers (like myself) got of the classic soul jazz records that were a part of  groove movement in the 70's, but rare in the 90's.  Jazz critics pretty much dismiss this era, but it was a goldmine to me...and evidently to more than a few of the bands that got the hard to shake Acid Jazz tag (more on that later).

Go get Sparks! and Akilah

All Wrapped Up

Personnel for Akilah (1972)
Drums-Idris Muhammad
Flute-Dave Hubbard,Hubert Laws
Organ,Piano-Leon Spenser
Percussion-Buddy Caldwell
Alto- George Coleman, Sonny Fortune
Tenor-Dave Hubbard,Frank Wess
Trumpet-Ernie Royal, Virgil Jones

After his first 3 albums for the venerable Prestige label, Mr. Sparks moved on to upstart Detroit (Ohio Players, Funkadelic, The Counts) label, Westbound, and their jazz-centric Eastbound imprint. I don't know the circumstances of the departure from Prestige, but the fact is, soul-jazz was waning in popularity, and funk was on the rise. His Westbound sides are more produced (horns/strings) and also include vocals. Soul Jazz might have been on the wane, but Melvin's brand of gritty,single note funk never goes out of style.
Texas Twister

Personnel for Texas Twister (1973)
Baritone Saxophone – Edward Xiques
Congas – Buddy Caldwell
Drums – Idris Muhammad
Electric Bass – Wilbur Bascomb
Electric Piano – Sonny Phillips
Guitar – Ron Miller
Guitar, Arranged By, Conductor – Melvin Sparks
Organ – Ceasar Frazier
Tenor Saxophone – Ron Bridgewater
Trumpet – Cecil Bridgewater , Jon Faddis

By 1975, the music that passed as popular jazz, was rapidly infusing funk and disco sounds in order to gain spots on radio outlets that were drifting closer and closer to what would become to be known as smooth jazz.  That's probably the reason that 75 is my least favorite of the early Melvin Sparks records. That said, the LP is not devoid of highlights (or funk). It is a bit too polished for me though.

Go Get Texas Twister and 75




Get Ya Some

The late 70's and early 80's were tough times for jazz as a popular music. As record companies became more corporate, more driven by marketing, and beholden to new trends like MTV and the CD, new jazz suffered. Melvin Sparks kept working though, recording as a leader and sideman for indie labels like Milestone and Muse. Jazz, except those great artists enshrined in the (major label) canon, went almost completely underground.

Over in England, the late 80's and early 90's saw the jazz that had gone underground (and almost forgotten) inspiring a new underground: a DJ based, hip hop related, record collector driven movement; that would be tagged as acid jazz.

DJ's led parties that were dancing to jazz, particularly the Hammond B-3-centric jazz from the soul and funk era. Bands also started to get in on the act, and one of the first was the James Taylor Quartet. Led by B3 cat James Taylor and releasing a string of Spy/Mod instrumental records starting in 1987, the JTQ went back to their roots in 1992 under the guise of the New Jersey Kings. This faux-lost classic of Hammond grooves, contained a cover of Melvin Sparks' All Wrapped Up, and was one of the earliest entries in the Soul Jazz revival.
 Go get Party To The Bus Stop

All Wrapped Up (JTQ Version)

Get Organized

The hip hop, crate digger part of acid jazz was more pronounced (and came a little later) in the US. Right out front was DJ Greyboy, who mixed DJ styles with live instruments on his 1994 debut for Ubiquity, Freestylin'. Greyboy (a.k.a Andreas Stevens) would later form the Greyboy All Stars with some like minded young jazz players and tour under the banner of the Greyboy All Stars, who made quite a name for themselves on the jam band club circuit, introducing new sax lion Karl Denson, along with calling on Melvin Sparks to open for the All Stars on tour.

Go get Freestylin'

In a lot of ways Freestylin' was the re-introduction of soul jazz (under the guise of Acid Jazz) to American audiences. Groups like The Solsonics (LA), Groove Collective (NYC), and Liquid Soul (Chicago) would follow closely behind. It's no surprise then, that Greyboy's first record would feature a Melvin Sparks cover amongst it's grooves (Texas Twister).
Texas Twister

Lite Bake


So, a lot of things came together (DJ culture, crate digging, acid jazz, hip hop) and opened the door for Melvin Sparks to return. He was more than ready...gigging and recording with old friends (like Houston Person and Jimmy McGriff) and new jacks (Soulive, Karl Denson, Galactic) alike, as folks started to come around to an old idea that seemed new...jazz was a music you could dance to. Mr. Sparks mentored young musicians while continuing to hit festivals and clubs up through the time that high blood pressure and diabetes caught up with him. He will be missed by generations of players and listeners..R.I.P., Mr. Sparks, a true Godfather of the Good Groove.


Check out these 3 long jams from 2003 at the North Beach Jazz Festival

Baaad Jazz - Gary Bartz

I hang around a lot of new music folks on the net, many of whom just can't take the plunge into jazz....especially anything after 1965 or so. Why is that?

If there were ipods back in the 60's and 70's, a majority of pro basketball players would've been listening to jazz. Why has that changed to hip hop?

Up until the 70's, you could find a large network of jazz clubs in cities large and small...Indianapolis, Newark, Baltimore, Houston, St. Louis, and more, all had bustling scenes that just aren't there today. Why is that?

Some might say Rock and Roll is to blame, others might fault the academy for creating a certain narrative about the music that was not inclusive (ie. "America's Classical Music"), others might point to the splintering of post bop into a myriad of styles that we're incomprehensible to the average fan, still others would point to record labels and excessive commercialization. Then there's the huge decreases in funding for music programs in public schools creating fewer musicians.The list of woes and explanations is long and there's no doubt that the factors above all contributed to a lower profile for jazz as a popular music.

I'm sure you're asking what all this has to do with alto (mainly) saxman, Gary Bartz?

Well, Mr. Bartz was right in the thick of this era of change, arriving in New York from Baltimore to attend Julliard in 1958. He followed the path of many young,talented jazz musicians, jamming with young lions and apprenticing with old masters.

"It was a very good time for the music in New York, at the end of what had been the be-bop era," says Bartz. "Charlie Parker had passed away three years previously but Miles' group was in its heyday, Monk was down at the Five Spot, and Ornette Coleman was just coming to town. Things were fresh."-Gary Bartz

Bartz was part of Mingus' Workshop, Blakey's Jazz Messengers, the Max Roach/ Abbey Lincoln Group, as well as appearing on McCoy Tyner records (a relationship that continues to this day). In a short few years he had connected to the legacy of Charlie Parker and John Coltrane, two of his most important influences.

His first records as a leader, Another Earth and Home were acoustic efforts, leaning in a Coltrane-esque, spiritual/space direction. Around this time he was also gigging in Miles Davis' electric outfreakages, appearing on Live-Evil and touring the world with the trumpeter.

Right after the Miles' tour, Bartz began putting all his influences together and stamping his own mark with his own ensemble, NTU Troop. (NTU is Bantu for "unity in all things, time and space, living and dead, seen and unseen".

Harlem Bush Music (Taifa/Uhuru) Lineup (70-71)
Bass - Juni Booth
Bass- Ron Carter
Drums - Harold White
Percussion - Nat Bettis
Saxophone [Soprano, Alto],Vocals,Piano - Gary Bartz
Vocals - Andy Bey
Go get Harlem Bush Music

These first two NTU Troop records are political (in spots), steeped in afro-centric themes, calling for revolution, exhorting movement.  They are definitely of their time, but also harken back to Congo Square (music and dance are part of the same cultural package).  Somewhat dismissed or misunderstood in the critical canon (perhaps because of the vocals), these records remain vital in my canon.

Mr.Bartz continued working on other folks records during the making of the first two NTU Troop offerings and reconvened his ensemble in California (Harlem Bush Music was recorded in New York) with only Andy Bey remaining from the initial sessions, for an October '72 date that yielded tracks for Juju Street Songs and Follow, The Medicine Man.





Alto Sax, Soprano Sax, Sopranino, Voice, Electric Piano, Percussion - Gary Bartz
Bass, Electric Bass, Voice, Percussion - Stafford James

Drums, Voice, Percussion - Howard King
Vocals, Electric Piano, Percussion - Andy Bey

Additional musicians (New York) were added to finish Follow...

Guitar - Hector Centeno and Electric Piano - Hubert Eaves

The new cats were needed because Andy Bey left the band (Bey would release Experience and Judgment within a year). Mr. Bartz would go on to release one more NTU Troop Record, Singerella:A Ghetto Fairytale, that hinted at the smoother rhythms that would emerge in his later work with Larry and Fonce Mizell. The Mizell records were probably the most popular of Bartz career, but for my money (and I'll always lay down for Larry and Fonce), The NTU Troop records are grittier and funkier, full of experimentation and joy. Talkin' loud and sayin' something .

Go get Ju Ju Street Songs (includes follow and juju)

From the 80's til now Gary Bartz has continued to release quality records, mostly mining a more traditional (post bop) jazz vein, he's continued to tour, and he's also a jazz educator-currently the Visiting Professor of Jazz Saxophone at Oberlin.  You can't really go wrong in any part of Gary Bartz's 30 albums as a leader, but from the funk side this fertile period in the 70's should not be missed.