This clip has over 40 million views so It would seem I am late to discover it.
Blown away by the talent and the humanity on display here.

Hi Ren.

Kawase Hasui (1883-1957).
Tenno-ji Temple in Osaka (Osaka Tenno-ji).
Showa period, 1927. Woodblock print.

With the colder months approaching, I look forward to the possibility of experiencing the sense of peace this beautiful print elicits.

It’s been forty-four years since Bill Evans passed. Would it be naive to think in all that time there has been no one to surpass him in the art of jazz piano improvisation? We have seen Keith Jarrett’s improvisational virtuosity and McCoy Tyner’s muscular strides through a set of chord changes. We’ve seen more structurally cerebral players manipulate and experiment with the limits of aural legitimacy, testing out what our ears and brains are willing process as music. Countless great players deserving of our attention.

But for sheer lyricism? As I listen to Evans this morning, I have the sensation that his exploration of melody will leave me deeply satisfied. As if he were saying, “This is a beautiful melody. Let me show you the possibilities it contains while still letting it remain itself. That will be my gift.”

Bill Evans - Solo Piano

What a gift to start the day this way. Listening to the solo performances from Bill Evans Complete Riverside Recordings.

The finest combination of beauty and genius.

Thank you Russell Malone. Go easy.

Loss of Russell Malone

I love everything about this, including the audacious/ambitious scope of it.

Louis Cole - Nothing

Samara Joy is a wonder. A fearless singer. Here she is owning Lush Life.

These vids are from a project called The Cut with support from YouTube.

The songs were written way back in pre-video times, so Elton John held a contest to create videos for them.

Tiny Dancer

Rocket Man

Bennie & The Jets

I thought the Tiny Dancer video was especially good.

Hope you enjoy them.

Today’s Bandcamp purchase. One of my favorite tenor players and since I did not know about this album (released this month) a big fat fantastic surprise for me.

Isfahan is beautiful but definitely not Johnny Hodges’s interpretation. You can listen to it here for free before you purchase it.

As the ice builds up on my windows this morning, I’m enjoying this beautiful recording. A gem you may have missed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FqKjk7ZLio

This site would be a whole lot bleaker/blander without the colorful paintings my friend Kyra Mills occasionally shares with me.

Here in the Midwest, our memory of Summery things can fade quickly, so dose yourself up with some butterflies!

You can see more of Kyra’s paintings if you scroll through the posts on this page.

To quote Patrick Rhone, “Maybe what we need most is to have our minds blown.”