As I write this, Vince Guaraldi's classic album 'Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus' is spinning on the turntable. "Moon River", to be specific. Guaraldi always did dig a good Mancini tune. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Some context is in order. For years now, I've gravitated towards playing that special brand (some would say [...]
Well, jello again. It's ME, Jack Benny. No, but seriously, after a lengthy pause, I'm back, and boy do I have a lot of albums that I'm excited to share with you all. Lots. But before taking that plunge into the sea of the new and exciting, here's an old and familiar album that I've [...]
Yesterday, the Raggy Waltz staff brought to my attention that it was Cal Tjader's birthday. Today, the Raggy Waltz staff have alerted me to the fact that it's the birthday of another famous Northern Californian jazz musician. Born 90 years ago on July 17, 1928, pianist Vince Guaraldi was not only a contemporary of Cal [...]
Continuing the exploration of jazz clubs via records in my collection, and after checking clubs out on the eastern side of the United States, this post marks our foray into the West Coast scene. Naturally, we start in California, and if we're in California, naturally we begin in San Francisco. And if we're in San [...]
After much traveling, both planned and unplanned, I am back! While I did obtain quite a lot of 'new' records during my travels, here's a favorite of mine that I got by traveling to the local record store in my own neck of the woods. The Music Tune: Samba de Orpheus Tune: Manha de Carnival [...]
Most people probably wouldn't recognize the name Vince Guaraldi, but most people would immediately recognize his music that ran as the soundtrack to numerous Charlie Brown 'Peanuts' television specials. From the classic Charlie Brown theme 'Linus and Lucy' to the Christmas standard 'Christmastime Is Here', Vince's music is loved by many, even if they don't [...]
It's A Raggy Waltz 