The Night Beat — Music from Don Ellis and more

Tune in to the Wednesday Night Beat at 8 p.m. with your host Doug Crane for music from Don Ellis and more.

Trumpet player and big band leader Don Ellis is largely forgotten today. But beginning in the mid-1960s until his passing in late 1978, his big bands were something unique. Incorporating rock rhythms, odd time signatures {7/8, 9/8, 13/8 for example}, microtonality with Don’s quarter-tone trumpet, elements of Indian music, and frequent bookings alongside popular rock musicians and bands of the day {Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Leon Russell, etc.} made the band a good concert draw.

After a short stint in military bands, where he met musicians such as Cedar Walton, Ellis joined the Maynard Ferguson orchestra in 1959. By the early 1960s, he was featured in bands led by George Russell and Paul Bley.

1966 was a pivotal year for Don and his new big band. Shortly after a well-received performance at the Monterey Jazz Festival, producer John Hammond signed the Ellis band to a contract with Columbia Records. During this time Don composed the Oscar-winning score for The French Connection making extensive use of microtonality and dissonance which was revolutionary for the time and would still be so today.

Heart problems sidelined Ellis for much of the 1970s. One of his last public appearances with his big band was one of his best at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1977. A little more than a year later Ellis was dead at the age of 44.

A number of prominent musicians passed through the Don Ellis big band including Tom Scott, John Klemmer, Joe Roccisano, Jay Graydon, Ralph Humphrey, Milcho Leviev, Ann Patterson, Alan Kaplan, and Ted Nash.

We’ll also feature music from some artists taking the stage at Dazzle in the next week or so. Pianist Benny Green will perform a couple of solo sets on July 30, bassist Derrick Hodge will be presenting what he’s calling “The Dazzle Sessions” on July 31 and August 1 and pianist Bill Charlap with his trio featuring drummer Kenny Washington and bassist Peter Washington makes its first return to Dazzle post-pandemic. The trio’s new album  “And Then Again” will be released by Blue Note Records in mid-August.

Tune in to The Night Beat on Wednesday, July 24 at 8 p.m. for a remembrance of Don Ellis {the 90th anniversary of his birthday is July 25} and more. Only on KUVO JAZZ.

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