What's up with Ramsey Lewis?
slot
-------------------------------
Ramsey Lewis will host the Smooth Jazz Network's show
Broadcast Architecture, the world's leading smooth jazz research and
consulting firm announced today that Jazz legend and three-time Grammy
winner, Ramsey Lewis will host the Smooth Jazz Network's nationally
distributed morning show beginning in January of 2007.
BA's President Allen Kepler stated: "In more than 20 years of working
in smooth jazz radio, I have never been more excited about anything
we've created. Ramsey Lewis' list of achievements is far too lengthy to
include all of them here. Not only has the music world recognized
Ramsey with Doctorate degrees and achievement awards, but the radio
industry has recognized Ramsey with awards, including twice for
Personality of the Year."
Lewis shared; "Our team has worked hard to create what we feel is an
entertaining, informative yet unique morning show. Sharing these
moments with the rest of the country is the ultimate radio experience.
To say we are excited is putting it mildly!"
Ramsey's fans and listeners have adorned him with numerous awards,
including 5 Gold records and several Top 5 ratings finishes for his
morning show on WNUA in Chicago. WNUA will be his base of operation for
the new nationally syndicated "Ramsey Lewis Morning Show." Ramsey will
continue to be teamed with his Chicago co-host Karen Williams, along
with show producer Bob Kessler.
The syndicated morning show is part of Broadcast Architecture's
superstation concept and will be the cornerstone of their 24 hour
smooth jazz network launch this January.
Ramsey Lewis remains one of the busiest entertainers in the music
world, recording CD's on the Narada record label, touring as a solo
artist, as well as with his group "Urban Nights." Besides hosting
WNUA's daily morning show in Chicago, Lewis anchors a weekly syndicated
radio show "Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis", heard in 75 cities
throughout the US. Ramsey Lewis can now be seen on PBS television on
his recently created "Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis" for TV.
Early 2005 saw the formation of the Ramsey Lewis Foundation that will
help provide youth with the opportunity to play musical instruments and
develop skills to enhance self-confidence and a sense of personal
accomplishment. Lewis' illustrious career not only includes 3 Grammy
Awards, 5 Gold Records, 3 Radio Industry Achievement Awards, but also
the prestigious NARAS Recording Academy Governor's Award, 'Citizen of
the Year' award from Chicago's Gateway Foundation, "Laureate" award
from the prestigious Lincoln Academy of Illinois and the NAACP's image
award for outstanding Jazz artist. In 2002 Lewis carried the Olympic
Torch as it traveled to Salt Lake City.
Joey Goldstein
--
Joey Goldstein
http://www.joeygoldstein.com
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/joeygoldstein
joegold AT sympatico DOT ca
slot
Joey Goldstein wrote:
> Will you please stop cross-posting to all these groups!!!?
>
Are you kidding? This is major jazz news!
slot
Random Excess wrote:
> RickH wrote:
>
> >I met him at a hotel here where he would sometimes broadcast his show,
> >and he was very gracious and charismatic. Just listen to him play the
> >short closing segments on the PBS/WTTW series "Legends Of Jazz" and
> >there is no question he's a fine player. This news is nothing new
> >because he has been on WNUA (SJ station) here in Chicago for as long as
> >I can remember. A jazz guy having a SJ radio show has nothing to do
> >with the price of tea in China, it's probably a fun job. I think
> >you'll change your mind about featherweight if you heard him play :-)
> >
>
> I want to thank all of y'all for setting me straight. Any
> recordings of the *real* Ramsey?
>
> Tejas Pedro
Tejas, welcome on board the Ramsey Lewis train. I'm sure you'll enjoy
the ride. Two you might like to try are Appasionata and Urban Knights
(w/ Grover Washington Jr).
As for the rest of you, you ought to be ashamed. All the pissing and
moaning about how my posts are irrelevant or unwanted, and here you are
carrying on a conversation about a topic I introduced. Don't let me
ever again read any of you lying, hypocritical sad sacks-of-shit
complaining about my posts.
UCLAN
>recordings of the *real* Ramsey?
>
>Tejas Pedro
By - Scott Yanow at allmusic.com
Ramsey Lewis has long straddled the boundary between bop-oriented jazz
and pop music. Most of his recordings (particularly by the mid-'60s)
were very accessible and attracted a large non-jazz audience. In 1956,
he formed a trio with bassist Eldee Young and drummer Red Holt. From the
start (1958), their records for Argo/Cadet were popular, although in the
early days, they had a strong jazz content. In 1958, Lewis also recorded
with Max Roach and Lem Winchester. On the 1965 albums The In Crowd and
Hang On, Ramsey made the pianist into a major attraction and from that
point, on his records became much more predictable and pop-oriented. In
1966, his trio's personnel changed with bassist Cleveland Eaton and
drummer Maurice White (later the founder of Earth, Wind & Fire) joining
Lewis. In the 1970s, Lewis often played electric piano, although by
later in the decade he was sticking to acoustic and hiring an additional
keyboardist. He can still play melodic jazz when he wants to, but Ramsey
Lewis has mostly stuck to easy listening pop music during the past 30
years. In 2004 he released Time Flies, a look back at some of his most
popular songs through new recordings.
As for your question, try to find "Ramsey Lewis Trio in Chicago", with
Ramsey actually playing jazz in a live setting.
slot
Random Excess wrote:
> On 26 Sep 2006 06:33:39 -0700, "slot" <jazz...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> >
> >Random Excess wrote:
> >> RickH wrote:
> >>
> >> >I met him at a hotel here where he would sometimes broadcast his show,
> >> >and he was very gracious and charismatic. Just listen to him play the
> >> >short closing segments on the PBS/WTTW series "Legends Of Jazz" and
> >> >there is no question he's a fine player. This news is nothing new
> >> >because he has been on WNUA (SJ station) here in Chicago for as long as
> >> >I can remember. A jazz guy having a SJ radio show has nothing to do
> >> >with the price of tea in China, it's probably a fun job. I think
> >> >you'll change your mind about featherweight if you heard him play :-)
> >> >
> >>
> >> I want to thank all of y'all for setting me straight. Any
> >> recordings of the *real* Ramsey?
> >>
> >> Tejas Pedro
> >
> >
> >Tejas, welcome on board the Ramsey Lewis train. I'm sure you'll enjoy
> >the ride. Two you might like to try are Appasionata and Urban Knights
> >(w/ Grover Washington Jr).
> >
>
> No, *you* should be ashamed. For the record, my messages here were
> *not* crossposted, and I object to your re-crossposting it. This is a
> jazz *guitar* group and I can see where some participants might find
> your post off-topic, but my main objection is to your crossposting.
> If you must post to several groups maybe you should consider doing so
> individually rather than crossposting.
>
> Tejas Pedro
>
> ps - this will be my last response to any postings of "slot."
If it weren't for crossposting you would not be discovering Ramsey
Lewis. You should learn to be more gracious.
zoot
slot wrote:
> If it weren't for crossposting you would not be discovering Ramsey
> Lewis.
i came to a jazz group cause i like jazz and couldn't give a flying fig
about ramsey. or any other half assed pop star for that matter. for me
his music falls between the cracks. not jazz and not good pop. it's
just watered down something.
S&y
> Random Excess wrote:
>
>>On 26 Sep 2006 06:33:39 -0700, "slot" <jazz...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>>
>>
>>>Random Excess wrote:
>>>
>>>>RickH wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>>I met him at a hotel here where he would sometimes broadcast his show,
>>>>>and he was very gracious and charismatic. Just listen to him play the
>>>>>s
snip
>
>
> If it weren't for crossposting you would not be discovering Ramsey
> Lewis. You should learn to be more gracious.
>
You call this thread a conversation?
S&y
Marc Sabatella
> fig
> about ramsey. or any other half assed pop star for that matter. for me
> his music falls between the cracks. not jazz and not good pop. it's
> just watered down something.
The stuff that most people are familiar with. But I'm telling you,
based on what I heard in concert a couple of years ago, this guy is as
serious a jazz pianist as they come, with harmonic and rhythmic
sophistication that would make Herbie Hancock or Brad Mehldau or any of
those guys stand up and take notice. Why he's not putting that stuff
out is beyond me.
---------------
Marc Sabatella
ma...@outsideshore.com
Music, art, & educational materials
Featuring "A Jazz Improvisation Primer"
http://www.outsideshore.com/
David J. Littleboy
"Marc Sabatella" <ma...@outsideshore.com> wrote:
>> i came to a jazz group cause i like jazz and couldn't give a flying fig
>> about ramsey. or any other half assed pop star for that matter. for me
>> his music falls between the cracks. not jazz and not good pop. it's
>> just watered down something.
>
> The stuff that most people are familiar with. But I'm telling you, based
> on what I heard in concert a couple of years ago, this guy is as serious a
> jazz pianist as they come, with harmonic and rhythmic sophistication that
> would make Herbie Hancock or Brad Mehldau or any of those guys stand up
> and take notice. Why he's not putting that stuff out is beyond me.
Maybe he likes to sell records?
Jazz is hard and gets harder as time goes on. Any tone deaf twit (such as
myself) can enjoy Sonny Stitt, but that's already been done, so you have to
do something new/different. And when you come up with "harmonic and rhythmic
sophistication that would make Herbie Hancock or Brad Mehldau or any of
those guys stand up and take notice" you are in danger of making the peanut
gallery want to go home.
I agree that smooth jazz is pabulum, but music that only Herbie Hancock or
Brad Mehldau can appreciate is problematic too.
It's a really hard, nasty problem. If you tell those in your audience that
don't get your music that they aren't sophisticated enough to understand it,
they really will go home.
So how do you come up with music that Herbie Hancock or Brad Mehldau will
respect but also speaks to a less literate audience?
I certainly don't know.
David J. Littleboy
Tokyo, Japan
dhn...@sbcglobal.net
Say what you will. Ramsey Lewis is an accomplished, talented,
legendary pianist. The fact that he has had success in the popular
realm should not be a reason to doubt his virtuosity. If you cannot
hear his talent, what can I say? Unless you are Zoot Sims, I don't
think you have contributed more to music or jazz than Ramsey Lewis has.
That's not a slam...just an observation.
slot
dhn...@sbcglobal.net wrote:
>
> Unless you are Zoot Sims, I don't
> think you have contributed more to music or jazz than Ramsey Lewis has.
He is not and you are quite correct. This "zoot" is just a silly old
man that hasn't yet figured out how to use the shift button on his
keyboard.
slot
David J. Littleboy wrote:
> "Marc Sabatella" <ma...@outsideshore.com> wrote:
> >> i came to a jazz group cause i like jazz and couldn't give a flying fig
> >> about ramsey. or any other half assed pop star for that matter. for me
> >> his music falls between the cracks. not jazz and not good pop. it's
> >> just watered down something.
> >
> > The stuff that most people are familiar with. But I'm telling you, based
> > on what I heard in concert a couple of years ago, this guy is as serious a
> > jazz pianist as they come, with harmonic and rhythmic sophistication that
> > would make Herbie Hancock or Brad Mehldau or any of those guys stand up
> > and take notice. Why he's not putting that stuff out is beyond me.
>
> Maybe he likes to sell records?
Or maybe he enjoys playing that kind of music.
> Jazz is hard and gets harder as time goes on. Any tone deaf twit (such as
> myself) can enjoy Sonny Stitt, but that's already been done, so you have to
> do something new/different.
Says who? What's wrong with doing well what has already been done?
Gordin Goodwin makes great big band recordings, but there's nothing in
them that hasn't been done before. So what?
zoot
Marc Sabatella wrote:Why he's not putting that stuff
> out is beyond me.
$$$$$$$$$$
can't teach?
zoot
pop music is a way out of poverty but playing jazz is a huge pay off
[its own reward]. $ [especially the desire to obtain it] can trump
anything. do the math.
RickH
No, really, he can play straight up jazz. Just take a listen to the
fine PBS series "Legends Of Jazz" being aired on PBS for the past year
or so. Ramsey tags the end of each show by sitting in with the artists
he interviews and the guy can play "real" jazz. I'm dumbfounded by why
he doesn't record more of that, but he can play it.
zoot
silly old man? yup. CaN UsE tHe ShIfT bUt WhAt'S tHe PoinT? is this a
shift contest? i loose. i have figured out how to play jazz so there
is a chance that what i have to say about it could have some meaning.
and you? if there is something you can do why don't you go do it?.
as for you dhnoda. what do you know about my contribution to jazz? i
love to hear someone play good jazz. especially me. if someone plays
fantastic jazz that's even better. plus good old jazz will always be
good jazz. i love to hear tatum. i love to hear dan wall play tatum. i
love to hear dan wall play dan wall. also some of the kids are doing
things i haven't figured out yet and i love that. the beauty of jazz is
no matter what you know you can still learn something or figure
something new out
S&y
the audience isn't tired of Jazz but is tired of the same 'standards'.
Anyone have a lead sheet for 'Crazy'???
S&y
slot
zoot wrote:
>
> as for you dhnoda. what do you know about my contribution to jazz?
It doesn't take a genius to set up a computer and post to usenet. What
does _anyone_ know about your contribution to jazz? So far your claims
are nothing but that.
Marc Sabatella
>> Why he's not putting that stuff out is beyond me.
>
> Maybe he likes to sell records?
Oh, no doubt there. It's no mystery why he would put out stuff that
sells, and it's no stretch for me to believe that he enjoys doing that
music, too. I don't begrudge hi that for a second. I'm just wondering
why he's never *also* put out anything like what I heard.
zoot
i suppose to sum1 like you who knows squat about jazz. you are going on
romantic notions about jazz and can't see things that are obvious to
people that do jazz. that is why you piss people off. has any one
noticed? he pisses people off. mostly jazz people.
zoot
Marc Sabatella wrote: It's no mystery why he would put out stuff that
> sells, and it's no stretch for me to believe that he enjoys doing that
> music, too. I don't begrudge hi that for a second. I'm just wondering
> why he's never *also* put out anything like what I heard.
interesting how you can stay on track while a circus is all around you.
you are correct on all points. maybe he is just happy to play jazz when
he can and has the good sense to not mess with something that's working
for him. i never heard him play anything that interested me but i've
heard george benson play some of the best jazz ever. you would think
any one that good could do just fine doing that but they seem to think
otherwise. i'm sure they both make more money than teachers. to bad the
only way they get what they deserve is by being prostitutes. i'm about
to put out a comedy music c d. maybe i could call myself weird zoot.
dhn...@sbcglobal.net
> as for you dhnoda. what do you know about my contribution to jazz? i
> love to hear someone play good jazz. especially me. if someone plays
> fantastic jazz that's even better. plus good old jazz will always be
> good jazz. i love to hear tatum. i love to hear dan wall play tatum. i
> love to hear dan wall play dan wall. also some of the kids are doing
> things i haven't figured out yet and i love that. the beauty of jazz is
> no matter what you know you can still learn something or figure
> something new out
Zoot,
I was out of place for directing my comments at you. You are right...I
know nothing about you. Sorry for my inappropriate comments.
I'm just tired of reading posts where people so casually put down
accomplished musicians. No one says you have to like their style of
play, their commercial success or their personality or attitude. But
it is a bit extreme to refer to someone like Ramsey Lewis as a "half
assed pop star" or a someone who plays music that is "watered down".
Can you easily play his "watered down" style and if so, where can I
hear you demonstrate how easy this is?
I don't care if you are the great Zoot Sims or just a struggling
goofball like me...or someone in between. Whoever you are, it doesn't
mean you have to be a jerk by putting down a fellow musician...that's
all I'm saying.
But, it's a free world...so if you want to put down others, go for it.
I just think it's disrespectful.
slot
Still no bona fides. Just the usual hot air.
Put up or shut up.
zoot
slot wrote:
> zoot wrote:
> Still no bona fides. Just the usual hot air.
>
> Put up or shut up.
next time i put up will be at 5:30 at the mardi grass for happy hour
till about 8:30. bring your horn. or you shut up.
zoot
dhn...@sbcglobal.net wrote:
> it is a bit extreme to refer to someone like Ramsey Lewis as a "half
> assed pop star"
as a pop star he's no sting
>or someone who plays music that is "watered down".
we are being told he can play great jazz so i'm sticking with it
> Can you easily play his "watered down" style and if so, where can I
> hear you demonstrate how easy this is?
i don't play piano all that well. just enough for righting but believe
it or not in the late 60s early 70s i did a lot of session work and you
probably heard me play drums trumpet or valve bone on t v or radio.
also i am going to put a c d out if i can get up the gumption to deal
with the legal crap. i really just want to skip that and get started on
the second one. don't worry when its ready i'll give a holler
> I don't care if you are the great Zoot Sims or just a struggling
> goofball like me...or someone in between. Whoever you are, it doesn't
> mean you have to be a jerk by putting down a fellow musician...that's
> all I'm saying.
i don't see a put down
Sean
(snip)
> i loose.
Hmm, sounds like Tarzan has the trots.
--
Always be sincere, but never be serious.
Allan Watts
Henry Salvia
> "David J. Littleboy" <dav...@gol.com> wrote:
> >> Why he's not putting that stuff out is beyond me.
> >
> > Maybe he likes to sell records?
>
> Oh, no doubt there. It's no mystery why he would put out stuff that
> sells, and it's no stretch for me to believe that he enjoys doing that
> music, too. I don't begrudge hi that for a second. I'm just wondering
> why he's never *also* put out anything like what I heard.
In the book "Riding on a Blue Note" by Gary Giddins there is an
article/interview
with George Benson titled "Bensonality" that tap dances (IMO) around
this question.
There can be many factors: the record company having veto power in the
contract
over what the artist can release, the expense/effort of supporting a
record that
may not sell enough to cover expenses, let alone support the lifestyle
to which
we'd like to become accustomed if we ever had a platinum album.
Could even be a simple been there, done that feeling. Perhaps its more
attractive
to simply go out and play than try to force a style of music through the
music business sauage maker. Of course its a *lot* easire to just go out
and play
once you are a name known around the world (thanks to that sauage
maker...).
Me, I wonder why Joe Zawinul stopped writing melodies and just does
grooves now...
Henry Salvia.