Bottlehead Forum

General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: Jim R. on August 26, 2016, 01:39:10 PM

Title: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: Jim R. on August 26, 2016, 01:39:10 PM

Yesterday we jazz fans lost the man who difined the sound of Jazz on vinyl.

I don't have any more information, but he (and obviously the performers and performances) are what made Blue Note one of my favorite Jazz labels.

Thought all you jazz fans would want to know...

-- Jim

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: Jim R. on August 26, 2016, 02:14:48 PM

Josh,

Thanks for fixing my typo!

Time to get a new keyboard and a new hand or two. :-)

-- Jim

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: adeep42 on August 26, 2016, 02:23:43 PM

One of the most important people in Jazz. His legacy is amazing. I keep going back to those records he engineered and marveling.

Alan

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: johnsonad on August 26, 2016, 03:12:15 PM

What a loss but to be honest, I thought he past a long time ago.

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: adeep42 on August 27, 2016, 04:45:03 AM

From today's New York Times:

Alan

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: Jim R. on August 27, 2016, 02:52:24 PM

Hi Aaron,

Yes, I seem to be doing that more and more these days -- Linda will tell me about somebody passing and I'd thought that person had passed long ago. For example, Max Roach passed away very recently and I thought he had been gone for decades.

BTW, earlier I thanked Josh for correcting my typo. Actually, it wasn't a typo but a brain-o -- I havee a neighbor two doors down whose last name is Geller  and that's what I just reflexively typed.

-- Jim

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: fullheadofnothing on August 28, 2016, 06:20:01 AM

Max Roach died in 2007. There was some weird internet hoax thing going on last week that I never fully understood.

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: Jim R. on August 28, 2016, 09:42:58 AM

Hi Josh,

Thanks for that -- I could have sworn he had died before my wife told me he did.
Strange stuff..

-- Jim

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: Natural Sound on August 28, 2016, 01:49:42 PM

Let's hope Mr. Van Gelder passed along his talent prior to his leaving us. Many of the recording engineers of today have lost their way in favor of loudness over dynamic range. RIP Rudy. You will be missed.

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: maryc27182 on September 02, 2016, 12:09:22 PM

Anyone want to share their favorites? I've been listening to Cannonball Adderley "Somethin' Else" quite a bit the past week.

It was pretty impressive, going through my jazz albums and seeing how many were Van Gelder's.

Mary

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: adeep42 on September 03, 2016, 05:41:19 AM

Plus 1 Mary. The Van Gelder catalogue is amazing I also love "Something Else". I've been a huge Cannonball fan since spending much of my youth trying to pass for 18 and listening to the quintet at The Half Note in New York city. The most beautiful version of "Autumn Leaves" ever.

Another Van Gelder classic on CTI, Jim Hall's "Concierto". But there's just so many!!

Alan

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: maryc27182 on September 03, 2016, 05:20:48 PM

That's great you got to see the quintet! Who else did you get to see?

Thanks for the recommendation of Jim Hall's Concierto. I don't have that one. Like you said, there are so many.

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: adeep42 on September 04, 2016, 06:52:35 AM

Hi Mary, Thanks for your interest. I was very lucky. NY in the Fifties and into the Middle Sixties had a vibrant jazz scene and a legal drinking age of 18 making entry into clubs much easier than many other places. I was addicted To the Cannonball Quintet. Same group can be heard on the Album, "Live in San Francisco". Same songs, typical Cannonball patter, plus the great Bobby Timmons.

Some of the greats I was able to enjoy in person included Miles, Coltrane, Monk, Al Cohen and Zoot Simms, Dizzy, Chico Hamilton, Slide Hampton, Count Basie, the Mulligan Big Band, Art Farmer, Charlie Mariano, Toshiko, Jackie Mc Clean, Charlie Mariano, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. There are more, just hard to recall them all. Plus all the great band members and side men.

The clubs included The Half Note, The Five Spot, The Jazz Gallery, Birdland, and of course the still functioning Village Vanguard plus more. They were boozy, smokey and oh so atmospheric. I sure miss that really unhealthy ambiance.

Thanks for stirring up that walk down memory lane,

Alan

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: Gerry E. on September 04, 2016, 11:36:02 AM

My sister-in-law is married to Ray Fowler's son.  Ray was a contemporary of Rudy Van Gelder.  He worked as a recording engineer for Riverside Records for 40 years.

I got to meet Ray once.  I asked him if he had any old tapes, records, equipment etc.  He said he got rid or sold all of it a long time ago.  The only thing he had left was an old Karg tuner.  IIRC, that tuner is somewhat unique in that you needed plug-in crystals(?) for specific station frequencies.

Gerry               

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: maryc27182 on September 04, 2016, 04:10:16 PM

Alan, that's an awesome list of folks you got to see. I'm particularly jealous that you saw Art Blakey.

Another favorite of mine is Grant Green.

Title: Re: Rudy Van Gelder R.I.P.
Post by: adeep42 on September 06, 2016, 05:45:35 AM

Hi Mary, yes I was really lucky to be at the right place at the right time. One of many I forgot to mention was Charlie Mingus who had an extended residency at the Blue Note doing the "Ah Um" days.

Definitely feel that the Mid 50's to Mid 60's was, at least for me, the golden age of Jazz. Again to me, it's amazing how the music holds up in so many ways.

Best regards and keep listening,

A