The days of going to local haunts and hearing a set of free jazz are sort of few and far between. Sofia’s restaurant is a place in midtown that maintains that NY jazz piano bar tradition. On any night of the week you can listen to some of the top flight pianists in NY looking to keep their fingers warm. Aaron Goldberg, Danela Schacter, Mike Kanan and Cecilia Coleman just to name a few of the recent ones. In addition to pianists,saxophonists often gig or sit in there as well. A local favorite is 86 year old Red Horndstrom whom I’ve mentioned in the past. Red’s pedigree is from the…

For those of you who like to compare Doug to Jimmy, here’s your chance to compare them directly on the same tune with these two videos posted on YouTube. Interestingly, for those who say that Doug plays like Jimmy you would have to admit their approaches – although very similar- have some very noticeable differences in terms of tone and attack, time feel, melodic content and general phrasing style as evidenced by these videos. You’ll note along with his signature complex bebop groupings, a Charlie Christian lick creeping into Jimmy’s playing, while with Doug you have Parker’s original counter line on the head as well as some modern chord comps…

Happy Birthday Dad! Below interview segment is from a Louisville jazz radio retrospective on Jimmy Raney with host Phil Bailey. I believe the date of the interview is 1988 if my recollection serves. The subject is Jimmy’s first recording in 1948 with pianist, Al Haig and saxophonist Stan Getz. Some very interesting background on the recording along with the tracks. Most of this music should be commercially available on re-release under Stan’s or Al’s name. Interview on Jimmy Raney’s first recording Pardon My Bop As I Live In Bop Interlude In Bebop Diaper Pin More from the retrospective to come https://www.jonraney.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Interlude_In_Bebop.mp3

Doug has a new page that I maintain for him.Some nice tracks, videos and links Check it out!

Back in the end of February, my cervical herniated disc (orig diagnosed in 2005) came raging back with a vengeance, affecting my right arm and shoulder so severely that it forced me to stop playing, reduce my computer work and cut out any type of strenuous physical activity. I am going to be documenting the specifics of this condition in my other blog Other Raney Day Thoughts. With the preoccupation and frustration of finding relief from this vexing medical issue, I find myself having difficulty staying focused on anything or follow-thru with projects and goals. Recently a co-worker hipped me to one of the new types of products that fall…

For anyone who missed it a while back in my first blogs, I am resurfacing this memorial tribute to Jimmy done on NPR. Jim Hall (who was interviewed on it) was kind enough to alert me to it and give me a cassette of it. Jimmy Raney Memorial Broadcast on NPR 1995

In an effort to keep more of a consistent blog message and align that with the audience I have created here, I have created another blog for non-music posts and offloaded the existing non-music posts. My interests extend beyond music ofcourse, but almost all of my recent posts have been more non music related. Some of this is due to my recent medical issues forcing me to stop playing; regardless, these type of posts are probably of less interest to the Jimmy & Doug Raney followers both old and new. The blog page is Other Raney Day Thoughts.

Young guitarist Joel Svensson did an admirable job on the transcription of Doug Raney’s solo to Four but don’t you think it’s about time we got a glimpse of the real deal!?? This clip was from a concert in Louisville, 1995. Also on the gig were pianist Phil DeGregg, bassist Tyrone Wheeler and drummer Norman Simmons. Note Doug’s concentration and how he is singing each phrase silently (watch his cheeks). Doug is da bomb! Watch the new Doug Raney Video on You Tube! and view the commentary.

It’s a great pleasure to present pieces of Jimmy’s marvelous 1993 master class to the world, finally. Those who enjoyed the first video a little while back will enjoy this one as well. As per usual, it’s not just about music, but rather the thoughts and insights of deep human being with understandings of things that most of us have to catch up with. As always a breath a fresh air. Again there are analogies made between language and music as I alluded to in follow up comments on the previous blog. Using your ear and learning from people who do it well is the key. Pay attention to what…

Recently, I re-discovered this little solo excerpt from a live concert from 2000. Although at the time I was pretty annoyed, when I listen now, I can’t help but crack up at the gentleman in the audience apparently in need of a lung operation during the performance. When I think on it I realize now that coughing during a concert is an established nuisance universally tolerated but secretly despised by performers and other audience members alike probably since the dawn of time. Picture if you will, the archetypal moment with all performers throughout the ages: bear skinned caveman over mastadon bones, angelic youth in a toga with aulos, Franz Liszt…

Just a note. The other day I got a very nice email/note to my Jon Raney website email from a pianist fan from Boston, MA. I reviewed it and was about to answer it the following morning, but somehow the email just vanished. It was nowhere to be found. I asked the admin at 1&1 email to try to recover it but they could not. So, to the fan out there hailing from Boston, MA thanks for the note and sorry for misplacing your email and I hope you visit again to the blog or jonraney.com. Sincerely, Jon Raney

Do you have a love hate relationship with computers and technical gadgets? I know I do. At times it seems like the gadgets have their own spirit and intentions and in some cases (as in below story) openly defiant. And forget about the manuals. I want to constantly shoot the authors of them. And gadgets always screw up at the same time don’t they? Which is contributing to my personal persecution theories… Case in point. I bought a Motorola 2.4 ghz cordless phone w/ answering machine. I was happy with the purchase and got it for a good price. But for some reason it would not correctly update the day…

In the absence of any substantial thoughts/ideas on my part, click below MySpace link where pics were posted recently: Jon Raney MySpace page. Guess which ones are camera phone shots…uggh. Some great old photos of Dad as though. They are snapshots of the originals which were auctioned off by EBay. Read prior blog about EBay. Click the “pics” link below the sidebar photo when you get to MySpace page. (Sorry, you need to login or sign up for MySpace in order to see the photos)

The pre-e-mail and Internet world is difficult to imagine now after years of its entrenchment in our daily lives. I was musing about when the first rudimentary email was launched at my former employ, the now defunct Guggenheim Museum Soho. E-mail and Internet communication occupies this vast space between mailing written letters and yakking it up on the telephone, along with everything in between: chatting, both written and voice enabled, message boards and… oh yeah blogs with reader commentary. With the addition of graphics, audio and live hyperlinks to other sources of related interest, electronic correspondence is a whole new accelerated communication paradigm. It’s simply different when you “speak” to…