Clarke, the recipient of five Grammy Awards — three as a solo artist, one with the Stanley Clarke Band, and one with Return to Forever, performed an electrifying and inspired show at City Winery in the West Village on April 11. For most of the night, he played an upright double bass, occasionally switching to his classic Alembic electric bass, most notably for a masterful rendition of Charles Mingus’ Goodbye Pork Pie Hat.

Clarke is one of the few musicians in history to have equally and unequivocally mastered both the upright double bass and electric bass. Now at 73 years old, Clarke shows zero signs of slowing down and he is arguably playing better than ever.

On the bandstand that night with Clarke were three young great musicians, or as Clarke quoted Wayne Shorter, “these are the new people.” Playing the trumpet was Wallace Rooney, Jr. On piano and keyboards was Julius Rodriguez. On drums was the fantastic Miles Martin.

Building His Prominence on Bass Guitar

Giving the bass guitar a prominence it previously lacked in jazz music, Clarke was the first jazz-fusion bassist to headline tours, to sell out shows worldwide and to have recordings reach gold status.

This all started when Clarke was 12 years old, growing up in Philadelphia. His mother sang opera around the house, belonged to a church choir, and encouraged him to study music. By this age, he stood over six feet tall, and his hands were too long for violin and accordion, the first instruments he tried to play. However in the corner collecting dust, was an acoustic upright bass that he would try on for size — and history was on its way to being made.

He took double bass lessons at the Settlement School of Music in Philadelphia, studying classical bass under Eligio Rossi. As a teenager, he picked up the electric bass guitar so that he could perform at parties and impress the girls.

Clarke eventually attended the Philadelphia Musical Academy, and moved to New York City in 1971. He gained work with many well-known jazz bands early in his career. Before recording his first solo album in 1973, Clarke would work as a sideman with Joe Henderson and Pharoah Sanders, and with Tony Williams Lifetime Experience, Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, and Art Blakey, followed by Gil Evans, Mel Lewis, and Horace Silver.

His Defining 70s Band: Return to Forever

Clarke met keyboardist Chick Corea in 1972 during his stint in the Stan Getz band. Prior to his meeting with Corea, Clarke’s prime aspiration was to become the first Black musician in the Philadelphia Orchestra. However, by 1972 this backing band was so good, Corea and Clarke formed a partnership to create their own band—a band that would make history. They separated from Getz and Return to Forever was born.

The first edition of Return to Forever performed primarily Latin-influenced music. Their first album, titled Return to Forever, was recorded for ECM Records in 1972. The second album, Light as a Feather (1973), was released by Polydor and included Corea’s most recognized piece, the song  Spain.

Through 1976, the band made a radical change in musical direction from their albums Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy, Where Have I Known You Before, No Mystery, and Romantic Warrior. The band made history by becoming one of the first jazz fusion bands, playing a mixture of rock and jazz. This is where Clarke developed his legendary lead playing style and signature sound, now playing all electric bass on Alembic, experimenting with novel effects for the time, such as distorted tones and flange sounds.

Concurrently with the Romantic Warrior album (his last with RTF) in 1976, Clarke also recorded and released his most widely acclaimed solo album, School Days.

Stanley Clarke’s Legacy

Larry Graham is generally recognized as the first bassist to use this slapping technique on recordings with Sly and the Family Stone in 1967. This technique became the archetype of modern funk. However, Graham played one riff usually with an open E, which he would only slightly modify. 

By 1974, Stanley Clarke applied this funk technique to more complex musical forms such as jazz and fusion, with his band Return to Forever as the major catalyst. He then forged a new prominent lead-playing style on the bass, much like an electric guitarist would play, while still holding down the rhythm. Listen to Clarke’s masterful album School Days, and you will hear the dominance of the bass guitar in both roles.

This was almost unheard of in 1976, with the only other example being his contemporary Jaco Pastorius, the other historic jazz fusion bass player who would break new ground. However, unlike Pastorius whose light would shine ever so brightly until his brutal slaying by a club bouncer in 1987, Clarke has enjoyed a long eclectic six decade career to this present date. His skills as a composer for films, TV, as well as his indomitable bass playing in his many recordings and live tours, with a plethora of world renowned musicians make him an undisputable legend.

Check out Stanley Clarke tour dates with his band of great musicians coming to a city near you. https://stanleyclarke.com

Read this article on the legendary bassist Stanley Clarke where I originally wrote it in The Village View:

Legendary Bassist Stanley Clarke Performs at City Winery

Kaju Roberto is an accomplished musician, singer/ songwriter, journalist, and an award-winning producer. He is the artist Rad Jet on Spotify.

The post Legendary Bassist Stanley Clarke Performs at City Winery appeared first on Rad Jet's Historic Jazz Walking Tours.

It’s something one must experience at least once if they are ever in NYC. And if you are like me and have a pulse, there will be a very high likelihood you will want to relive this moving visceral experience many times over, again and again. 

This is where the incredible Axel Tosca Trio performs with the legendary OG “Voice of Cuba” Xiomara Laugart. There are two shows every Thursday at 9:30 pm and 11:00 pm. Tickets are $30 and it is well worth the price of admission.

While visiting Zinc Bar, you will be treated to some of the best specialty mixed drinks in NYC, with names like “Strangers in the Night” and “The Bird.”

Holy Cow! What an amazing band! The Axel Tosca Trio is one of the best trios I’ve seen or heard. I would not have believed it unless I’d seen it myself. I even asked Alex, the owner, “Are they always this good?” He said matter-of-factly, “Yeah, that’s why they’ve been here every Thursday for over 10 years.”

November 30 at Zinc Bar: An Incredible Performance

On November 30, the 3x Grammy nominated Cuban jazz pianist Axel Tosca, accompanied by his great upright bass player Yunior Terry and fabulous drummer David Frazier, Jr., put on an Oscar Peterson-like performance. 

He began with two of his original compositions from his upcoming 2024 album ironically slated to be titled “The New Sensation Axel Tosca.” After all, Axel has been widely known to be an international musician on the vanguard of Cuban jazz since 2005 when he emigrated from Cuba to the U.S. and landed a two-year residency in Las Vegas with the “Havana Nights Revue.” These instrumental improvisations were eloquent explorations in a heavenly jazz music that evoked truly emotional moments which touched my inner soul. 

For the entire duration of the first two compositions, spanning 26 minutes, I could not put my camera down. Each of the trio’s beautiful chord changes, sweeping arpeggios, and complex Cuban rhythms led me down a new musical journey. There were moments during Axel’s incredible performance both sonically and rhythmically where, in my mind, I kept comparing it to Peterson’s amazing 1974 virtuosic tour de force “Blues Etude” where the maestro adroitly moves between impossibly fast boogie woogie, jazz, bebop, blues, and stride piano.

Axel combined highly syncopated rhythms and polyrhythms with beautiful melodies within his astonishing improvised solos, leading his seasoned trio to lay down sophisticated sheets of sound while incorporating grooves that at various times walked, swung, and bopped. However, despite displaying such a formidable technical prowess, Axel’s technique first and foremost always served the composition, never at the expense of evoking emotion within the music. 

The great trio continued performing several additional original compositions off of Axel Tosca’s 2006 eponymous first album.

It’s a Family Affair 

Thursday nights at Zinc Bar are truly a “family affair” when Axel’s mother, Xiomara Laugart, the “Queen of Trova,” takes the stage. Coming from a prestigious musical family, Axel’s father is Cuban folk singer Alberto Tosca.

It was about three-quarters into the set when Axel stood up touting to the audience “Now we’re going to take you back to Cuba, but you won’t need a passport!” Proudly introducing his mom to the stage, he perfectly began playing his spirited lilting interpretation of “El Manisero,” the classic anthology song of a peanut vendor.

Laugart dipped and swayed about on the stage with her infectious smile and delivered a purely magical vocal rendition. She ended the set with a jubilant performance of “De Mis Recuerdos,” swaying to the rhythms while bringing the entire house up on their feet chanting calls and responses to the song’s signature hook “Ba, ba, dom, Ba dom, Ba, dom.” This song (written by Juan Formell) is off of Laugart’s 2006 album. Axel’s lively arrangement at Zinc Bar with a samba vibe was the best version I’ve heard, and such a fitting way to end the set, leaving an indelible mark to be remembered by all.

With patrons dancing in the aisles and smiles everywhere, while vamping those lilting piano chords throughout the closing outro music, Axel got on the mic and said, “Thanks. You folks, this is the Cuban Jam, we’ll take a short break. See you at the next show at 11:00 pm!”

A perfect “feel good” ending to a “Must See” Thursday night show in the Village that should be on anyone’s NYC bucket list!

Catch my full interview with Axel Tosca on YouTube.

 To learn more about this incredible pianist and composer and to see 2024 Tour dates, go to axeltosca.com

Link to the Village View article:

Axel Tosca Trio and the Legendary Xiomara Laugart Rock “The Cuban Jam” LIVE Every Thursday at Zinc Bar: A Must-See Event in NYC!

Kaju Roberto is an accomplished musician, singer/ songwriter, journalist, and an award-winning producer. He is the artist Rad Jet on Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/artist/32si7c4nk210HPuqbXvhJg

The post Axel Tosca Trio and the Legendary Xiomara Laugart Rock “The Cuban Jam” LIVE Every Thursday at Zinc Bar: A Must-See Event in NYC! appeared first on Rad Jet's Historic Jazz Walking Tours.