MarimbaVibes recommendations

pcmr · January 2007

So ive been getting hevier into albums featuring this instrument as the forerunner (milt,khan jamal,cal tadjer,lionel)And its really spiked my interest, i am looking for recommendations and more albums/artistsand I havent gotten familiar enough with the roy ayers catalog and would like some recommendations on his more vibes heavy albums/cutsIve made the decision that I want to learn vibes and marimba (when i go back to senegal aka balafon)so marimba/balafon reccomendations would be ill as well

lambert · January 2007

I just finally picked up Gary Burton's "Good Vibes" and personally I thought it was amazing. Definitely one of those underpriced classic that blows most raers away.

There was a thread about this not too long ago, I think. Not sure if it's still searchable.

Man, it would be uber cool if Monty gave you a list of his fav. players.
Drop that knowledge Monty!

monty · January 2007

Teddy Charles is a true rarity: a jazz musician who largely retired from the business. A skillful if not overly distinctive vibraphonist and (early in his career) quite capable on piano and drums, Charles was as important for his open-minded approach in the 1950s towards more advanced sounds as he was for his playing. He moved to New York to study percussion at Juilliard in 1946, but instead became involved in the jazz world. He had short stints with the big bands of Randy Brooks, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Buddy DeFranco and Chubby Jackson from 1948-51 and then played with combos headed by Anita O'Day, Oscar Pettiford, Roy Eldridge and Slim Gaillard. He also became a member of the Jazz Composers' Workshop (1953-55) along with Charles Mingus and Teo Macero, opening his style up to the influences of classical music and freer improvising. Charles, who recorded with Mingus, Miles Davis and Wardell Gray, among many others, began leading his own stimulating record dates in 1951, and by 1953 he was also working as a record producer, a field that took much more of his time from 1956 on. He led his own sessions for Prestige, Atlantic, Savoy, Jubilee, Bethlehem (where he produced around 40 records, mostly for other artists), and Warwick from 1951-60, but was hardly heard from in the 1960s, other than a 1963 set for United Artists. Charles relocated to the Caribbean, where he opened a sailing business. After participating in a 1980 jam session, Teddy Charles eventually moved back to New York, making a "comeback" record for Soul Note in 1988, but still remaining semi-retired from music.
??? Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

i remember playing a gig at a fraternity somewhere, and on a break walked over to the house next door, and there was the great Teddy Charles playing in the entrance with a bass player... everybody talking, not listening, and i thought, "fuck this being a musician shit. nobody here knows or cares about the depth of this cat."

6fran50 · January 2007

pcmr · January 2007

thanks for the recomendations

and how could i forget stark and monty in my faves

Nice post monty thatnks for the insight i will check for teddy

what about terry gibbs (just big band or good big band like lionel) and red norvo?

monty · January 2007

http://rateyourmusic.com/list/jackpirat/a_groovy_instrument__the_vibes_aka_le_vibraphone/

pcmr · January 2007

http://rateyourmusic.com/list/jackpirat/a_groovy_instrument__the_vibes_aka_le_vibraphone/

thanks precisely what i needed

now onto the african side of things

m_dejean · January 2007

http://rateyourmusic.com/list/jackpirat/a_groovy_instrument__the_vibes_aka_le_vibraphone/

thanks precisely what i needed

now onto the african side of things

One guy who's not on that list whom I think deserves a mention on the soul-jazz tip is Johnny Lytle.

Sorry, can't help with the balaphone recommendations. I'd like to hear about that too.

fejmelba · January 2007

and red norvo?

summer night(s) is a

captainplanet · January 2007

now onto the african side of things

african vibes=

mulatu.

african balafon=

neba solo & konono no.1

also, if you dig balafon, you'll prolly like mbira too=

LaserWolf · January 2007

Teddy Charles is a true rarity: a jazz musician who largely retired from the business. A skillful if not overly distinctive vibraphonist and (early in his career) quite capable on piano and drums, Charles was as important for his open-minded approach in the 1950s towards more advanced sounds as he was for his playing. He moved to New York to study percussion at Juilliard in 1946, but instead became involved in the jazz world. He had short stints with the big bands of Randy Brooks, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Buddy DeFranco and Chubby Jackson from 1948-51 and then played with combos headed by Anita O'Day, Oscar Pettiford, Roy Eldridge and Slim Gaillard. He also became a member of the Jazz Composers' Workshop (1953-55) along with Charles Mingus and Teo Macero, opening his style up to the influences of classical music and freer improvising. Charles, who recorded with Mingus, Miles Davis and Wardell Gray, among many others, began leading his own stimulating record dates in 1951, and by 1953 he was also working as a record producer, a field that took much more of his time from 1956 on. He led his own sessions for Prestige, Atlantic, Savoy, Jubilee, Bethlehem (where he produced around 40 records, mostly for other artists), and Warwick from 1951-60, but was hardly heard from in the 1960s, other than a 1963 set for United Artists. Charles relocated to the Caribbean, where he opened a sailing business. After participating in a 1980 jam session, Teddy Charles eventually moved back to New York, making a "comeback" record for Soul Note in 1988, but still remaining semi-retired from music.
??? Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

i remember playing a gig at a fraternity somewhere, and on a break walked over to the house next door, and there was the great Teddy Charles playing in the entrance with a bass player... everybody talking, not listening, and i thought, "fuck this being a musician shit. nobody here knows or cares about the depth of this cat."

LaserWolf · January 2007

Thanks for giving me a chance to talk about Dumisani Abraham Maraire or Dumi as he was known.

Dumi was a master of the music of the Shona people (Zimbabwe). Traditional played on mbiras (thumb piano) and hoshas (gourd rattles). Dumi moved to Seattle to teach at UW with his then wife Mai Chi. Mai Chi and Dumi came up with the idea to take Shona songs and play them on a chours of marimbas (balafone in French). What they created was an irresistable dance music. This was the 70s and hippies in the Pacific Northwest had a new soundtrack. Dumi taught Shona music and marimbas to 100s of people and today there are dozens Dumi inspired marimba bands.
Most of them suck.

I first heard Dumi in a bar in 1979. The band started playing and people started dancing, but when the bass marimba came in it was unreal how fast the tables emptied and the dance floor filled.

Dumi made several albums with Dumi And The Maraire Marimba Ensemble. The contain the cannon for all of todays marimbas bands. Dumi's marimbas all rattled a sound that worked live does not record well. (Shona mbiras have bottle caps attached which also rattle.) A group called Balafone has done some very high quality non rattling marimba cds for the Starbucks world music set that contain some Shona songs. Dumi also made recordings in Zimbabwe and the states of mbira music and folktales.

His daughter Chiwoniso Maraire has made some very good contemporary world music cds.

In the last years of her life Mai Chi lived in Portland and played music with friends of mine so I got to know her a little. She takes full credit for the idea of putting Shona music on marimbas.

Anywho, I recommend listening to Shona music in all it's forms.
http://www.dandemutande.org/Magazine/MaiChi1.html
http://www.wildmarimbas.com/dumi.html

monty · January 2007

Thanks for giving me a chance to talk about Dumisani Abraham Maraire or Dumi as he was known.

Dumi was a master of the music of the Shona people (Zimbabwe). Traditional played on mbiras (thumb piano) and hoshas (gourd rattles). Dumi moved to Seattle to teach at UW with his then wife Mai Chi. Mai Chi and Dumi came up with the idea to take Shona songs and play them on a chours of marimbas (balafone in French). What they created was an irresistable dance music. This was the 70s and hippies in the Pacific Northwest had a new soundtrack. Dumi taught Shona music and marimbas to 100s of people and today there are dozens Dumi inspired marimba bands.
Most of them suck.

I first heard Dumi in a bar in 1979. The band started playing and people started dancing, but when the bass marimba came in it was unreal how fast the tables emptied and the dance floor filled.

Dumi made several albums with Dumi And The Maraire Marimba Ensemble. The contain the cannon for all of todays marimbas bands. Dumi's marimbas all rattled a sound that worked live does not record well. (Shona mbiras have bottle caps attached which also rattle.) A group called Balafone has done some very high quality non rattling marimba cds for the Starbucks world music set that contain some Shona songs. Dumi also made recordings in Zimbabwe and the states of mbira music and folktales.

His daughter Chiwoniso Maraire has made some very good contemporary world music cds.

In the last years of her life Mai Chi lived in Portland and played music with friends of mine so I got to know her a little. She takes full credit for the idea of putting Shona music on marimbas.

Anywho, I recommend listening to Shona music in all it's forms.
http://www.dandemutande.org/Magazine/MaiChi1.html
http://www.wildmarimbas.com/dumi.html

now there's some real

One guy who's not on that list whom I think deserves a mention on the soul-jazz tip is Johnny Lytle.

i've bragged about this here before, but when i was touring the chittlin' circuit with Red Prysock, Johnny Lytle was doing the same with his organ trio. he and i became friends, and he would always ask me to sit in on his gigs. he was a really nice guy and a very soulful player.

captainplanet · January 2007

Thanks for giving me a chance to talk about Dumisani Abraham Maraire or Dumi as he was know...

...Anywho, I recommend listening to Shona music in all it's forms.
http://www.dandemutande.org/Magazine/MaiChi1.html
http://www.wildmarimbas.com/dumi.html

Shona music has brought me closer to trancendental states than any other form I've heard.

I had Stella Chiweshe on my radio show a few years back. She was absolutely one of the most spiritually connected folks I've ever met. I'm sure I'm coming accross as a serious hippie right now, but yo, this is real!

here's a live recording she did in the studio (after snorting something brown that she said brings her closer with the spirits):
Take a listen here

LaserWolf · January 2007

Monty, your avatar is freaking me out.

fishmongerfunk · January 2007

embryo w/karnataka college of percussion and feat charlie mariano

pcmr · January 2007

i am really appreciating these posts from captain planet and laser wolf and happy this thread has evolved this way

I am a really spiritual/music person myself (in another life i would be a kora player)

and the dance aspect you guys bring in is even more interesting and motivating

i will go ahead and seek this out

LaserWolf · January 2007

Thanks for giving me a chance to talk about Dumisani Abraham Maraire or Dumi as he was know...

...Anywho, I recommend listening to Shona music in all it's forms.
http://www.dandemutande.org/Magazine/MaiChi1.html
http://www.wildmarimbas.com/dumi.html

Shona music has brought me closer to trancendental states than any other form I've heard.

I had Stella Chiweshe on my radio show a few years back. She was absolutely one of the most spiritually connected folks I've ever met. I'm sure I'm coming accross as a serious hippie right now, but yo, this is real!

here's a live recording she did in the studio (after snorting something brown that she said brings her closer with the spirits):
Take a listen here

[/quote">
Hijack alert! contemporary Shona Sculpture is completely off the hook.

Lots more:
a href="http://images.google.com/images?svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&rls=DELA,DELA:2005-52,DELA:en&q=shona+sculpture]http://images.google.com/images?svnum=10...shona+sculpture

LordNO · January 2007

On the Mbira tip, There's an early 70's Nonesuch record of songs from Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) where there's a lot of ill dual finger piano playing, dudes playing variations on the same mbira loops while a village medium is howling in the affirmative. I digs this..

LaserWolf · January 2007

On the Mbira tip, There's an early 70's Nonesuch record of songs from Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) where there's a lot of ill dual finger piano playing, dudes playing variations on the same mbira loops while a village medium is howling in the affirmative. I digs this..

That's the afforementioned Dumi.

cpeetz · January 2007

C'mon what about the rare vibes guy dijour, Billy Wooten?

Billy Wooten

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MarimbaVibes recommendations

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