For two weeks in late winter of this year at the
Blue Note Jazz Club, pianist and bandleader
Monty Alexander celebrated 50 years as an entertainer. He invited dear friends from his native
Jamaica to the jazz world to help bring in this monumental occasion.
Monty isn't just a well accomplished jazz pianist but he's also one of the most respected and well sought reggae musicians in his native Jamaica. Recording and performing with many reggae artists like
Ernest Ranglin,
Sly and Robbie, and
Beres Hammond.
He's just come off his first Grammy-nominated
Motema Records release "Harlem-Kingston
Express Live!" for best
Reggae Album. The Harlem-Kingston Express is the pianist's foray into his musical youth while growing up in
Kingston, Jamaica. While in
Kingston, he witnessed and experienced the birth of Ska and
Reggae music.
The music was developed during the late
1950's as an offshoot of ska, rhythm and blues, and mento. Monty heard
American roots music like soul, blues, and gospel while listening to the early pioneers of reggae like
Theophilus Beckford,
The Wailers(featuring a young
Bob Marley and
Peter Tosh),and
Millie Small. Monty's disc is a mixture of all those influences while playing tributes to our jazz masters that hailed from
Harlem like
Duke Ellington,
Louis Armstrong, and
Billie Holiday.
To really understand Monty's rich history of reggae and jazz, these two weeks at the Blue Note Jazz Club really showcased his rich history.
Born on June 6th,
1944 in Kingston, Jamaica, began studying piano when he was six years old. As a child into his teens, Monty recorded with some reggaes' up and coming artists. It was in his childhood that he and his family would listen to
American radio stations and heard jazz music along with popular
R & B. Monty also saw many of the jazz legends like Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and
Nat "King" Cole while performing on the island. During his late teens his family moved to
Miami and he followed them shortly after. He began playing in the local bars and clubs when one night club owner
Jilly Rizzo and his best friend
Frank Sinatra where they flew in to
New York City where he was the club pianist at Jilly's. It was there that he accompanied Mr.
Sinatra and the many other legendary musical icons like
Miles Davis to
Milt Jackson. It was while he was in
New York were he also got his chops as a session musician.
Monty's first live recording "
Uplift" on the
Jazz Legacy Productions imprint, took years of live recordings that he had unreleased and let label founder and dear friend
John Lee listen to the material. After an unprecedented first listen, Lee decided that this would be Monty's debut disc for the label. "Uplift" features a dynamic rhythm section that includes
Hassan Shakur on bass, and drummers
Frits Landesbergen and
Herlin Riley. The depth and range of material that was selected for the disc features classics like "
Come Fly With Me," "
Sweet Georgia Brown," and "
One Mint Julep."
Both of these recordings from Monty will give listeners and his fans a multi-faceted scope of his range as a well-rounded musician. "Uplift" is a project that showcases the intimate piano trio that he's been known for for the last 50 years.
His two weeks at the
Blue Note was both a humbling and exciting time for Monty in that he shared the bandstand as a soloist and paying respect to the musicians he's accompanied throughout his 50 years in the business. Every night was a different music theme that showcased the many talents of Mr.
Alexander. One night was the '76
Montreux Trio Reunion with
John Clayton and
Jeff Hamilton. Monty's tribute to Jilly's Jazz
Club with vocalist
Dee Dee Bridgewater and
Freddy Cole with guitarist
Russell Malone. Other special guests that played with Monty over the two weeks included
Christian McBride,
Robbie Shakespeare,
Shaggy,
Pat Martino,
Dr. Lonnie Smith,
Diana King,
Kevin Spacey, and
Diana Krall.
To find out Monty's upcoming club and festival dates, or to order both of his discs, visit him on the web at www.montyalexander.com. Monty's record label websites are www.jazzlegacyproductions.com and www.motema.com.
- published: 11 Mar 2012
- views: 2586