Sunday Serendipity

Thanksgiving is over, you survived it and black Friday. Today I have some cool vibes so you can maintain your sanity during the coming month.

There is something about midcentury jazz and autumn. They seem to go together. I had something else planned (some guy named Mozart) when You Tube tossed out this number. I added it to my jazz play list. I’m posting the playlist once again, you know, jazz and autumn.

It doesn’t get any better than John Coltrane and Stan Getz on tenor sax. Wynton Kelly their equal on piano, with his extended intro. Paul Chambers is on bass and Jimmy Cobb plays the drums.

Enjoy, Jack

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38 thoughts on “Sunday Serendipity”

  2. some words, but more on the bouncy side, from some other pros about the topic:

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    “Now You Has Jazz” is a song written by Cole Porter for the 1956 film High Society in which it was introduced by Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong. The song describes what instruments are needed to create jazz.
    Background
    Sol C. Siegel, the producer of High Society, paid Cole Porter $250,000 for his first film score in eight years. When Porter learned that Louis Armstrong was going to appear in the film, he decided he had to write a jazz song. To help with his research, he called Fred Astaire and suggested they attend a Jazz at the Philharmonic concert. Later, he spoke to jazz impresario Norman Granz on the telephone, and Granz gave him a short introductory course in jazz terms. The result was “Now You Has Jazz.”

  3. in this season when many religions converge, here’s an even older one according to BBC’s In pictures: Ancient Indian ritual where humans become gods and a tad different from the usual Druid trees of light, Chanukah menorahs and Santa.

    For nearly 300 years, a family’s ancestral house in India’s southern state of Kerala has been the stage for theyyam, an ancient folk ritual.
    Rooted in ancient tribal traditions, theyyam predates Hinduism while weaving in Hindu mythology. Each performance is both a theatrical spectacle and an act of devotion, transforming the performer into a living incarnation of the divine.
    The predominantly male performers in Kerala and parts of neighbouring Karnataka embody deities through elaborate costumes, face paint, and trance-like dances, mime and music.
    Each year, nearly a thousand theyyam performances take place in family estates and venues near temples across Kerala, traditionally performed by men from marginalised castes and tribal communities.
    It is often called ritual theatre for its electrifying drama, featuring daring acts like fire-walking, diving into burning embers, chanting occult verses, and prophesying.
    Historian KK Gopalakrishnan has celebrated his family’s legacy in hosting theyyam and the ritual’s vibrant traditions in a new book, Theyyam: An Insider’s Vision.
    The theyyams are performed in the courtyard of Mr Gopalakrishnan’s ancient joint family house (above) in Kasaragod district. Hundreds of people gather to witness the performances.
    The theyyam season in Kerala typically runs from October to April, aligning with the post-monsoon and winter months. During this time, numerous venues near temples and family estates, especially in northern Kerala districts like Kannur and Kasaragod, host performances.
    The themes of performances at Mr Gopalakrishnan’s house include honouring a deified ancestor, venerating a warrior-hunter deity, and worshipping tiger spirits symbolising strength and protection.
    Before the performance honouring a local goddess, a ritual is conducted in a nearby forest, revered as the deity’s earthly home.
    Following an elaborate ceremony (above), the “spirit of the goddess” is then transported to the house.
    Mr Gopalakrishnan is a member of the Nambiar community, a matrilineal branch of the Nair caste, where the senior-most maternal uncle oversees the arrangements. If he is unable to fulfil this role due to age or illness, the next senior male member steps in.
    Women in the family, especially the senior-most among them, play a crucial role in the rituals.
    They ensure traditions are upheld, prepare for the rituals, and oversee arrangements inside the house.
    “They enjoy high respect and are integral to maintaining the family’s legacy,” says Mr Gopalakrishnan.
    The spectacle is a blend of loud cries, fiery torches, and intense scenes from epics or dances.
    Performers sometimes bear the physical toll of these daring feats, with burn marks or even the loss of a limb.
    “Fire plays a significant role in certain forms of theyyam, symbolising purification, divine energy, and the transformative power of the ritual. In some performances, the theyyam dancer interacts directly with fire, walking through flames or carrying burning torches, signifying the deity’s invincibility and supernatural abilities,” says Mr Gopalakrishnan.
    “The use of fire adds a dramatic and intense visual element, further heightening the spiritual atmosphere of the performance and illustrating the deity’s power over natural forces.”
    The deities can be manifestations of gods and goddesses, ancestral spirits, animals, or even forces of nature.
    Here, the theyyam performer (above) embodies Raktheswari, a fierce manifestation of Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction.
    She is portrayed drenched in blood, a powerful symbol of her raw energy and destructive force.
    This intense ritual delves into themes of sorcery, voodoo, and divine wrath.
    Through dramatic costume and ritualistic dance, the performance channels Kali’s potent energy, invoking protection, justice, and spiritual cleansing.
    During the performance, the artist (or kolam) transforms into these deities, through elaborate costumes and body paint, their striking colours bringing the deities to life.
    Here, a performer meticulously adjusts his goddess attire, checking his look in the mirror before stepping into the ritual. The transformation is as much an act of devotion as it is a preparation for the electrifying performance ahead.
    Distinct facial markings, intricate designs, and vibrant hues – especially vermillion -define the unique makeup and costumes of theyyam.
    Each look is carefully crafted to symbolise the deity being portrayed, showcasing the rich diversity and detail that distinguishes this ritual art. Some theyyams do not require face painting but use only masks.

    KK Gopalakrishnan A performer lays stomach-down on the floor. They are wearing a red headdress and costume
    Theyyam’s animistic roots shine through in its reverence for nature and its creatures.
    This crawling crocodile theyyam deity symbolises the power of reptiles and is venerated as a protector against their dangers.
    With its detailed costume and lifelike movements, it highlights humanity’s deep-rooted connection to nature.

  4. Loves me my jazz. I dabbled in it until 1977 when I spent an afternoon grilling and drinking scotch listening to The Tenor Sax Album – Savoy Sessions w/Coleman Hawkins, Illinois Jacquet, Ben Webster, John Hardee & Ike Quebec.  I was hooked. Picked it and wore it out. Picked up Bob James and Earl Klugh a couple years later and was blown away again. Have loved jazz ever since. 

  6. pogo, I have a question for you now that you’re our go-to guy on all things smoked:   do smoked turkey left-overs last as long as the standard oven baked and, if reheated after refrigeration/freezing, does the taste change as it seems to with the other? 

  8. craig, I imagine Chris Christie also has some choice words & thoughts about the Kushner nomination.

  9. for those foregoing politics for now

     

    Attribution: Offering Good News Instead Of Bad by Gary McCoy, Shiloh, IL

  10. ‘He is one of us!’: US anti-vaxxers rejoice at nomination of David Weldon for CDC

    Trump is on his way to killing another million Americans, picks yet another Anti-Vaxxer for a big job, this time for CDC director.

    Meanwhile, the US faces increasing threats from bird flu, mpox, measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases.

    In addition to RFK Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services, other Anti-Vaxxers named by Trump to key public health roles include “a Fox News personality, a COVID mandate critic and an anti-vaccine doctor” — PBS

    The Guardian: David Weldon, a 71-year-old doctor from Florida who has long questioned the safety of vaccines, was nominated by Trump to lead the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

    “He is one of us!!” the co-director of the anti-vax group Mississippi Parents for Vaccine Rights wrote on Facebook. “Since before our movement had momentum. Dream Come True.”

    “Every day more good news!” wrote another prominent anti-vaxxer in West Virginia.

    The CDC makes evidence-based recommendations for immunizations. Insurance companies are only required to cover vaccines that are recommended through this process.

  12. Jack, Thank you.  That Wynton Kelly piano solo is gorgeous.

    Patd, The Cole Porter song is one of the highlights of one of my favorite musicals.  

  14. France should refuse Kushner’s credentials.  While the crimes have been pardoned, he is still a convicted criminal who received over a year in jail.

    Patel is a disaster.

  18. * The Sudanese King of Jazz (with a hearty splash of Rockabilly)  One of my fave tunes
     

  19. Jamie – I agree. It’s going to be up to other countries to shut the doors on these cosplaying menaces to the world at large.  

    Orange Adolf and his billionaire minions (binions?) need to feel consequences, even as we have to feel them because of racists and misogynists who voted for the fascism their grandparents fought against.

  21. Since anti-vaxxers are in charge of health starting next month, are Americans going to have show proof that we have been vaccinated against polio, measles, etc., to be allowed to travel abroad?   

  22. Craig,

    They might be allowed to get on the plane but not allowed to get off by many countries.  During latter stages of Covid, Australia required two-week hotel quarantine.  Tennis players weren’t allowed to play without a vaccine, and even celebrities such as Hugh Jackman, with a vaccine, had to quarantine before visiting his dying father.

     

  24. Many may know my parents did not name me Dexter. I was told you shouldn’t pick your own nickname, but mine were derogatory at best. Years ago I became known as Dexter.  If you love jazz, you know already;  I am a devotee of the tenor sax master , the late Dexter Gordon, aka “Long Tall”.  He’s gone 34 years now.  

  25. Let’s play “A-Hab, the A-Rab”.No?   That was played constantly for months way back when.   

  26. Pat, sorry for the delay. I haven’t noticed any difference in how long smoked anything lasts in the fridge versus roasted, baked, toasted, broiled, boiled or fricasseed. I think smoked theoretically should last longer than the others, but I treat meat I smoke just as if it was baked. All that said, my 28 year old lives with us now, so we don’t really get to test the theory. Two days, three tops, and anything worth eating is gone. 

  30. Good on POTUS Joe for pardoning Hunter.   Now, he needs to preemptively pardon journalists, talk show hosts, Fani Willis, Jack Smith, etc. 

  34. Yeah, just in case…but didn’t SCOTUS give him total immunity, too?
     
    Loving  this Bill v 49ers game in the snow. 

  35. Good for Hunter. Joe did the right thing.  This damn Kash Patel appointment is stressing me out. How ridiculous!  I am dreading another term of these loyalist trumpers \
    yeah, this snow globe football game in Buffalo is a real hoot.

  37. Ivy – Yep.  President Biden will probably give more pardons than any other POTUS in history.  I do wonder if it will do any good with mobsters in charge.   

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