It's time! - rants & raves - craigslist (2024)

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Time now for another awesome/cool/groovy album for the Jazz-Cats ... and it's ... Great Instrumental Music ... Enjoy!

John Klemmer with Quartet and with Strings

"And We Were Lovers"

https://youtu.be/frD32QCax_0

When Mel Torme sang the Rodgers & Hart standard, I Like to Recognize the Tune,
several years ago, he had a throwaway line asking "Where's the melody?" Where is
the melody? A question nearly as old as music itself. I've nothing against today's sound
-jazz, pop, avant, classical (as long as it's honest and sincere), but how nice to hear
Milt Jackson, an avowed romanticist, play a melody, or a flowing line by Paul Desmond.
How nice to have a musician say "I believe there's an art to playing a melody."
The man I quote is not an old timer; he is 21-year old Chicago-born, John Klemmer.
He lives in the world of amplified amplifiers, avant garde and free reformers, but he
knows how to play a melody and a lot more. He has the fire of Sonny Rollins (an
early influence), the intensity of Ornette Coleman, the beauty of Getz, but he does not
copy. He is his own man. He plays tenor saxophone with honesty and conviction.
In this, his second album (his first, Involvement, Cadet LP/LPS-797, received
excellent critical acclaim including five stars in Downbeat), John really displays his
versatility with six originals (one a collaboration with Jodie Christian), three straight jazz
tunes, a top pop item, a movie theme and a string section.
To a jazz musician, strings can really hang you up the most. Not so in this case,
thanks to the inventive arrangements of 28-year old Les Hooper whom John considers
one of the most imaginative arrangers in Chicago. Les writes radio and TV spots, has
arranged for Irene Kral, among others, toured with Andy Williams and Henry Mancini,
and is starting to write movie scores.
Add to the string section George Marsh (drums), Ken Chaney (piano), Cleveland
Eaton (bass), plus Jodie Christian (piano), Melvin Jackson (bass), and James Slaughter
(drums) on the quartet side, and you have a perfect setting for versatile John Klemmer.
Listen to John's probing on Dreams, listen to good mainstream on Christopher's
Clock, the relaxed beauty of Touch of the Moment. As for strings, try And We Were
Lovers, Chi Cha for easy listening, and of course, John's own Look to the Sky
which has a little bit of everything.
That pretty much sums it up. John Klemmer, tenor saxophonist, with a little bit of
everything. A young man with a horn who respects the past, lives in the present, and
is reaching into the future, but who still believes "There's an art to playing a melody."
-Mike James The Modern Jazz Hour WFBR Radio, Baltimore

Also see:
https://www.psaudio.com/blogs/copper/john-klemmer-part-one-saxophone-gold

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John T. Klemmer (born July 3, 1946) is an American saxophonist, composer, songwriter, and arranger.

He was born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and began playing guitar at the age of five and alto saxophone at the age of 11. His other early interests included graphics and visual art, writing, dance, puppetry, painting, sculpting, and poetry. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and began touring with midwestern "ghost big bands" (Les Elgart, Woody Herman) as well as playing with small local jazz and rock groups. After switching to tenor saxophone in high school, Klemmer played with commercial small groups and big bands in Chicago while leading his own groups and touring.

Klemmer had extensive studies in music, taking private lessons as a youth and in college in piano, conducting, harmony, theory, composition, arranging, clarinet, flute and classical and jazz saxophone. He studied saxophone and jazz improvisation with noted Chicago saxophonist and teacher Joe Daley. He attended the Interlochen's National Music Camp. The year he graduated from high school, Klemmer was signed by producer Esmond Edwards at Chess Records, eventually recording five albums with their Cadet label, including his innovative hit 1969 album, Blowin Gold (co-produced by ex-Rolling Stones producer Marshall Chess). This album was considered by many as the first of the jazz/rock fusion genre; follow-up albums introduced innovative rock rhythms, sounds and production techniques and debuted electronic effects with the saxophone that became his now "trademark" delay sound. ... -- Wikipedia

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Earlier on ... Great Instrumental Music ...

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It's time! - rants & raves - craigslist (2024)

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