Event:
Jan. 17th-18th, 2009
(Sat: 8:00 pm, 10:00 pm)
(Sun: 2:00 pm, 7:00 pm)
Yoshi’s Jazz Club
Oakland, CA

Improvising on the chord progressions of “I’m in the Mood for Love,” saxman James Moody created his signature tune back in the early 50s, putting a six-decade (so far) career into orbit as one of bop’s favorite living artists. An alum of the great bands of Dizzy Gillespie as well as a current member of the Gillespie Alumni All Stars, 83-year-old Moody will be on stage at Yoshi’s in Oakland, January 17th-18th. He’ll be backed by a West Coast rhythm section including John Campbell (piano), Tony Dumas (bass) and Paul Kreibich (drums).

Artist Background:

James Moody was raised in Newark, NJ. He recalls being fascinated by the saxophone long before he got one of his own. Having had access to a trumpet as he kid, he turned it down. He truly wanted to play the saxophone, and when his uncles combined their efforts to get him a second-hand alto, that’s when it all started. The gift and the opportunity to hear the great horns of the Count Basie band launched Moody’s interest in jazz as a teenager. Soon he heard Charlie Barnet and particularly Lester Young.

Moody’s affinity for music is all the more remarkable given his congenital, partial hearing loss—he has trouble hearing high frequency sounds. “I can hear low pitches but I can’t hear high pitches. That’s why I don’t play high on the flute and I don’t play piccolo. I can’t hear them. I have to really listen for the high notes.”

In a segregated company of the U.S. Air Force in the mid 40s, Moody played tenor sax in an all-Black band, ultimately meeting Dizzy Gillespie, although he did not begin working for the legendary trumpeter until after his discharge in 1946. With Dizzy Gillespie’s big band, Moody found himself playing with such soon-to-be stars as Kenny Clark, Ray Brown, Milt Jackson and Thelonious Monk. Moody proved himself ready for such fast company with a famed solo on Gillespie’s “Emanon.” The young saxophonist made his recording debut as leader in 1948 with James Moody and His Bop Men (Blue Note). For the next three years, Moody lived in Europe, recording his legendary Moody’s Mood for Love in Sweden twice, once tenor and once on alto.

Returning to the U.S. where the song became a big hit for King Pleasure, Moody worked with Eddie Jefferson, Dinah Washington and Brook Benton. In the early 1960s, he rejoined Dizzy Gillespie (now playing alto more regularly), continuing this association throughout the trumpeter’s life; Moody today maintains this connection through his work with the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni All Stars.

In the 1970s, Moody became a regular with the Las Vegas Hilton Orchestra, backing the biggest Vegas acts of the day, but he missed the jazz scene. Back on the East Coast in the 1980s, he reconnected with jazz and again led his own ensembles. With a Grammy nomination in 1985 for his instrumental performance on the Manhattan Transfer’s Vocalese, was once again in the limelight as a recording artist.

Another Grammy nomination followed in 1990 for his performance with Dizzy Gillespie (“Get the Booty”). In 1997, James Moody was named an NEA Jazz Master; in 2007, he received the Kennedy Center’s Living Jazz Legend Award. Moody’s discography has been somewhat sporadic as leader; his most recent releases include Homage (Savoy Jazz, 2004) and the delightful James Moody/Hank Jones collaboration, Our Delight (IPO Recordings, 2008).

Encouraged to take up the flute by Yusef Lateef, Moody has frequently topped or been among the very top of Downbeat’s critics and readers’ polls as a master flautist. Yet, he has not regarded the flute as a primary instrument. “I don’t consider myself a flute player. Man, I’m a flute holder. I am a saxophone player who also plays the flute.” His public considers James Moody far more than a flute holder, or just a saxophone player. An evening in his company not only guarantees boppin’ fireworks but a lot of fun as well.

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For more information on jazz saxophonist James Moody, please visit his site.
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Location:
Yoshi’s Jazz Club (Oakland)
510 Embarcadero West
Oakland, CA
(510) 238-9200
http://www.yoshis.com/jazzclub

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5. James Moody and Hank Jones Collaboration Is Big Success: Their album, “Our Delight,” was released in October