E. Doctor Smith's Blog

One of my biggest musical influences was drummer Bill Bruford and the late '70s and early 1980 albums, "Feels Good To Me", "One of A Kind" and "Gradually Going Tornado", featuring his amazing-sounding Remo Rototom kit. Originally developed by Al Payson and Michael Colgrass, it was Bruford who really put them on the map when he first started using the rototoms during his stint with the prog-rock super-group, U.K. I was fortunate to see that band, featuring bassist John Wetton, keyboards/violinist Eddie Jobson and guitarist Allan Holdsworth in 1978, at the old Painter's Mill in Maryland when they opened for guitarist Al DiMeola. Bruford only used a 14" and an 18" rototom with that group, however their power and ability to cut through guitars and synthesizers were quite evident. They were amazing, however the band was short-lived, with Bruford and Holdsworth leaving after only one album. After Bruford left U.K. he began his own group, ...

Well gentle readers, another year has gone by, so it’s time to take a peek back at some of my favorite musical albums and shows of 2014. This list is by no means complete, but these shows were truly memorable, and these albums have been in my steady rotation and showing no signs of abating. So without further ado, here are twelve of my favorites from the world of jazz, world and rock… 1. Kai Eckhardt’s “Zeitgeist” One of the greatest bass players on the planet, the Liberian/German expatriate Kai Eckhardt, has made his home in Berkeley, after thrilling audiences around the world. His resume features a veritable who’s who of the fantastic jazz and world musicians; guitarist John McLaughlin, drummer Billy Cobham, percussionist Trilok Gurtu, Stanley Clarke, Wayne Shorter, Patrice Rushen, Dewey Redman, Donald Byrd, Bela Fleck, Victor Wooten and his band Garaj Mahal, to name but a few. Eckhardt’s latest album “Zeitgeist”, is jazzy blend of funk, Indian ragas and straight-up, butt-kickin...

Saxophonist Jeff Coffin and his “Mu’tet”, truly defy musical categories, and obliterate musical boundaries with their take-home-with-you compositions, their mind-bending solos and their swirling, danceable odd rhythms and exotic world music influences. Their previous effort, 2012’s “Into the Air” and 2011’s “Jeff Coffin & the Mu’tet Live!”; (a double CD described as “over the top funky and burning with energy and killer tunes). Coffin & the Mu’tet throw down and bring out the music lover in everyone. The album was released on the Ear Up Records label, and recorded live at SPACE (Chicago/Evanston, IL) and at MOMO’S (Austin, TX) in 2010/2011. Coffin and the Mu’tet, (last seen at Yoshi’s on Fillmore a few months ago with special guests George Brooks on saxophone and bassist Kai Eckhardt joining for the encore), returns with a new album, “Side Up”, featuring his fellow Flecktone bandmate Roy “Futureman” Wooten, (replacing drummer Jeff Sipe from the previous album), Felix Pastoriu...

San Francisco saxophonist Charles Unger, fresh from a recent tour of Sweden has re-emerged with a new album entitled, “Around the World”. Unger and jazz group, “The Experience”, featuring bassist Ben Luis, drummer Tony Coleman, and keybordist Sue Crossman, will debut the music from this latest effort at the Peacock Lounge tonight in the Lower Haight. Special guest performers will include a talented array of vocalists; Beverly Al-Kareem, Darlene Roberts and Unger’s longtime musical muse, Valencia Hawkins. A major force in the music scene of the San Francisco Bay area for the last 40 years, saxophonist Charles Unger is a musical institution. He is known for his exuberant style and talent, and for a stage show that is unforgettable. A regular performer at various San Francisco clubs, Unger is an innovator in the genres of Jazz, R&B and World Beat. Unger, who plays alto, tenor and soprano saxophones, was deeply influenced by the seminal works of artists such as Coleman Hawkins, ...

The new album by The Paul & John has been dubbed “an exciting new collaboration between two of the Bay area’s best musicians; guitarist/vocalist songwriters Paul Myers and John Moremen”, and they wouldn’t be far wrong. Inner Sunset proudly carries the Mystery Lawn Music imprint and is released on three formats, including 180-gram vinyl, last July. Myers & Moremen both sing and play all the guitars on the recording, while John plays the drums and Paul plays the bass and wrote all the lyrics. On Thursday night, October 29th, The Paul & John debut their new album at the Bottom of the Hill, alongside the Orange Peels and Felsen. The two wrote all the songs together over three years at John’s studio in the Inner Sunset district of San Francisco, and then recorded and mixed the best of their collaborations with co-producer Allen Clapp (leader of The Orange Peels) at his Mystery Lawn studio in Sunnyvale, California. Once in the studio, Clapp proved to be a vital third ear in the...

Bay Area saxophonist and composer Rent Romus will premiere The Otherworld Cycle, a culmination of over 14 years of research into intersection between modern composition, improvisation, The Kalevala, and Finno-Ugrian traditions in music. The Other World thematic abstractly reference the Uralic “Body of Memory” embedded in Romus’ musical psyche refracted through the multi-faceted lens of improvisation and postmodern jazz. The Otherworld Cycle will make its premiere at theCommunity Music Center located at 544 Capp Street in San Francisco, starting at 8pm on Saturday, October 25 with a matinee show on October 26 at 3pm. Supported by the Musical Grant Program of the San Francisco Friends of Chamber Music and community support from Outsound Presents, admission ranges from $8 to $15. The Community Music Center welcomes patrons of all ages and is ADA accessible. The first elements of the Other World Cycle took hold after Rent Romus returned home from touring in Northern Europe in the m...

Resonance Jazz Ensemble, the Bay Area’s one-of-a-kind jazz octet premieres new works pushing the jazz envelope in their “Fearless Force” concert at the SF Jazz Center’s Robert A. Miner Auditorium this Saturday night at 8:00 pm. The band will introduce new compositions by band members with arrangements of jazz and rock standards by Pianist and Bandleader, Steve McQuarry. Acknowledged by jazz reviewers for “offering a rich fusion of orchestral and big band sounds, with emotional character blending textures and colors of jazz that creates a harmonic canvas of pure delight,” Resonance Jazz Ensemble breaks ground adding strings to the traditional jazz sound. Unusual Instrumentation With an unusual blend of instrumentation that includes violin, viola, cello, sax, flute, piano, bass and drums, the band melds classical with jazz artists and styles into new compositions as well as works from their CD “Introductions”. Reviewers describe this unusual texture of sound explaining: “RESONANCE...