Jazz hands

July 15, 2009 12:48 PM

Audio archive from Small's Jazz Club, searchable by instrument, then performer, then date, starting with September 27, 2007. Hours and hours and hours and hours of the some of the best jazz from New York's downtown scene. Stream and snap your fingers, man.
posted by klangklangston (19 comments total)

Currently listening to the Gerald Cleaver first set.
posted by klangklangston at 1:10 PM on July 15, 2009

This is absolutely delightful! Thanks, klang.
posted by ocherdraco at 1:10 PM on July 15, 2009

Great link. Listening now to the Spike Wilner Quartet.
posted by Rashomon at 1:19 PM on July 15, 2009 [1 favorite]

My younger brother used to play jazz drums when he was eleven years old at a jam session every Sunday night until he lost interest. I miss watching him play but I still love jazz. Especially this album. And all the other classics.

I'm not as familiar with more modern stuff, unfortunately.
posted by glaucon at 1:21 PM on July 15, 2009

This is fantastic. Much appreciated.
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 1:36 PM on July 15, 2009

Holy hell. This is freaking amazing. Thank you!
posted by lazaruslong at 2:05 PM on July 15, 2009

And wow that's weird. I immediately go to the guitar artist section, because it's my instrument as well. I idly scroll down a little to see what kind of players they have on there, and there's my old housemate. We didn't really get along. But it's cool to listen to some of his music.
posted by lazaruslong at 2:07 PM on July 15, 2009

Awesome - thanks!
posted by twsf at 2:08 PM on July 15, 2009

Thanks, klang!

(Here's 2/3 of the Bad Plus, with Nasheet Waits playing drums. I haven't listened yet, but the Bad Plus seems popular around here, and I like Waits a lot.)
posted by box at 2:41 PM on July 15, 2009 [1 favorite]

I've only been to Small's twice, and both times it was pretty amazing folks dicking around (I saw William Parker there with a handful of folks who I didn't recognize, including some people who seemed to just come out of the crowd), and I'm kind of disappointed that they didn't have those specific nights, but they're pre-archive. Still, I'm just kinda trawlin' around, bein' like, y'know, I'd like to hear a couple hours of organ jazz now. Sure, yeah, why not? It's a beautiful thing to have that here in my house.
posted by klangklangston at 3:00 PM on July 15, 2009

OMFG. I had amazing nights at smalls between 01-05. $10, bring your own booze/food, and stay from 10pm-6am. Best deal in NYC.

There was one night where a musician played a cornet/trumpet with what looked like a mute which was hooked up to electronics. The mute had buttons on it to control some aspect of the sound. He made ethereal sounds like a rams horn and otherworldly instruments (with krypto-middle-eastern-shofar and/or alien jaz melodies to boot), but ones that were played with all the panache of a real brass player through a real brass instrument.

Does anyone know the artist or device? RIP oldskool smalls.....
posted by lalochezia at 3:02 PM on July 15, 2009

Sweet! Thanks klang.
posted by snsranch at 3:34 PM on July 15, 2009

I've only been to Small's twice, and both times it was pretty amazing folks dicking around...

Haha! I dunno if "dicking around" would be the descriptor most appreciated by the musicians you heard on those nights, klang!
posted by flapjax at midnite at 4:30 PM on July 15, 2009

It was on at least one of the nights, where they'd play for about five minutes, then explode into gales of laughter, stop, and try to pick up again where they left off (granted, that was about three in the morning by then). Occasionally, they'd find these amazing grooves, but a lot of it was just really talented folks screwing around.
posted by klangklangston at 4:43 PM on July 15, 2009

Fanstastic—thanks for the post!
posted by languagehat at 6:07 PM on July 15, 2009

Aha! Well, from your description there, klang, I'd say that perhaps a little 3-in-the-morning dicking around might've been an appropriate summarization, then!
posted by flapjax at midnite at 6:12 PM on July 15, 2009

Loving this.
posted by munchbunch at 8:52 AM on July 16, 2009

Dan Pratt Organ Quartet of January 18, 2008 is pretty nice. Tenor sax, organ, drums, trombone.
posted by klangklangston at 9:27 AM on July 16, 2009

Wow. Frickin' awesome! Thanks, and many of 'em.

...too bad about the lame flash interface. do I really need that cartoon reel to reel animation to get an audiophile quality sound?
posted by lothar at 9:41 AM on July 16, 2009