KCOU JAZZ
Jan. 26, 2025
The first KCOU Jazz broadcast on FM radio, this show embraced themes of change and exploration. Host DJ Scribbles Jr., previously on the station’s Internet stream, used the move to 88.1 FM as inspiration for a show focused on jazz songs named after places.
The hour featured six tracks that explored the geography of jazz music. Some captured the feel of a city or country; others were more conceptual. The journey began with Lee Morgan’s “Search for the New Land,” setting the tone from themes of wanderlust.
Songs Included
At over 15 minutes in length, Search for the New Land by Lee Morgan is a tour-de-force. Bold and meditative in its approach, this piece battles between ethereal interludes and searing solos. This album followed up on the success of Morgan’s The Sidewinder but traded bluesy elements for expansive, modal landscapes.
Under the vision of trumpeter Lee Morgan, the sextet works like a machine: Herbie Hancock lays the ground work on piano as Wayne Shorter and the understated Grant Green trade solos with drummer Billy Higgins and bassist Reggie Workman. Together, they create a searching, spacious hard-bop sound that’s both introspective and commanding standout statement in Morgan’s catalog.
Continuing the theme of musical travel, Brasilian Skies by Japanese guitarist Masayoshi Takanaka takes the show south to Brazil. Recorded in Rio de Janeiro, this late 70s title track radiates the sunny, rhythmic energy of samba and bossa nova.
With vibrant vocals, playful percussion, and a breezy melodic feel, the song captures an outsider’s joyful interpretation of Brazilian soundscapes. Like much of the album, it’s full of bright textures: whistles, syncopation, and electric guitar tones that make it both transportive and fun.
Antigua by Antonio Carlos Jobim brings the show to the Caribbean, drawing inspiration from the island of the same name. Featured on Jobim’s Wave, the track blends twisting flute and harpsichord melodies with heavenly choirs, sweet trombone harmonies and Jobim’s own understated guitar work.
A Brazilian composer known for shaping the sound of bossa nova, Jobim captures a serene, sun-soaked atmosphere that reflects the island’s gentle beauty through soft textures and flowing arrangements.
The journey continues across the Atlantic to Ethiopia with “Ode to Ethiopia” by The John Betsch Society, from their album Earth Blossom. Though recorded in Nashville, the track channels a pan-African sensibility through rich percussive action and spiritual jazz motifs.
John Betsch leads on percussion, joined by Bob Holmes on piano, Billy Puett on flute, Ed “Lump” Williams on bass and others. With layered rhythms and atmospheric melodies, Ethiopia serves as both a tribute and an evocation.
After Ethiopia, the show moves north to Tunisia with Dizzy Gillespie’s iconic A Night in Tunisia. A cornerstone of Gillespie’s catalog, this rendition blends brassy big band power with Afro-Cuban rhythms, a trademark of Gillespie’s innovation in modern jazz.
Dizzy’s trumpet solo is fiery and precise, a masterclass in bebop virtuosity, backed by a dynamic rhythm section that reflects the Latin jazz foundations of the tune. Nelson Boyd also takes a commanding bass solo, only interrupted by the fury of pummeling saxophone and trumpet solis. With an emphatic ending solo, this bold and percussive track captures the cross-cultural energy at the heart of Gillespie’s musical vision as the show moves across the globe.
The show closes back in South America with Bolivia by Eastern Rebellion. This self-titled album is led by piano virtuoso Cedar Walton. Featuring an array of talented musicians, the track builds a lyrically complex and rhythmically driven picture of the landlocked country that inspired its title.
With mountains to the west and the Amazon basin to the east, Bolivia marks the final stop on a global jazz journey that included visits to Brazil, Antigua, Ethiopia, and Tunisia, spanning music from the 1950s to the 1970s.