2/1/24 O&A NYC BLACK HISTORY MONTH THROWBACK THURSDAY : Cab Calloway- Minnie the Moocher

Minnie the Moocher is a jazz-scat song first recorded in 1931 by Cab Calloway and His Orchestra, selling over a million copies.”Minnie the Moocher” is most famous for its nonsensical ad libbed (“scat”) lyrics (for example, “Hi De Hi De Hi De Ho”). Continue reading

1/18/24 O&A NYC THROWBACK THURSDAY: Duke Ellington and His Orchestra – Take The A Train (1962)

Take the A Train is a Jazz standard by Billy Strayhorn that was the signature tune of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Continue reading

12/31/23 O&A NYC SUNDAY AFTERNOON JAZZ: Miles Davis- We Three Kings


A special Miles Davis moment when he performed We Three Kings. Continue reading

12/7/23 O&A NYC SONG OF THE DAY SPECIAL: The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire) (Duet with John Legend)

Capitol Records release A Sentimental Christmas With Nat “King” Cole and Friends: Cole Classics Reimagined on October 29. Inspired by the historic live virtual Unforgettable duet performance by John Legend, the new album weaves restored Nat King Cole vocal recordings with new arrangements and contemporary vocalists to create a beautiful collection of duets of holiday classics. Continue reading

11/24/23 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: Dear Quincy- Carmen De Lavallade and Wesley Fata

Carmen de Lavallade dancing to Quincy Jones’s “Soul Bossa Nova” with Wesley Fata on November 16, 1968. Ms. de Lavallade’s late husband, the great Geoffrey Holder, choreographed this piece This is jut an excerpt of a much longer dance. Continue reading

8/13/23 O&A NYC GOSPEL SUNDAY: Delta Rhythm Boys – Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho

Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho performed by the Delta Rhythm Boys resemble many other spirituals who dual propose. The song  alluded to eventual escape from slavery – in the case of this song, “And the walls came tumblin’ down. The lyrics refer to the old testament verses Joshua 6:15-21, which tells the story of the Battle of Jericho in which Joshua led the Israelites in battle against Canaan.  Continue reading

7/27/23 O&A NYC THROWBACK THURSDAY: Billie Holiday – God Bless The Child (film)- Presented by Chicago Blues Museum

Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan [April 7, 1915 — July 17, 1959) an American jazz singer and songwriter Nicknamed “Lady Day” by her friend and musical partner Lester Young. Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. Continue reading

5/7/23 O&A NYC SUNDAY AFTERNOON JAZZ CONCERT: Untamed Elegance Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis (Full Concert) 

Watch the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis commemorate the Jazz Age with Untamed Elegance, a suite composed by master saxophonist and veteran JLCO member Victor Goines. The Roaring Twenties were defined by jazz. A grand decade when “the parties were bigger, the pace was faster, the buildings were higher, the morals looser.” 

Continue reading

12/5/22 O&A NYC SONG OF THE DAY: Boney James – Detour

Detour is chart-topping Jazz/R&B artist Boney James 18th studio album. Appropriately titled, this latest album is a subtle stylistic turn that builds on the commercial success of 2020’s Solid, his highest charting release ever on the pop charts, peaking in the Top 10 on the Billboard 200.

Continue reading

11/27/22 O&A NYC SUNDAY AFTERNOON JAZZ CONCERT: Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite- Quantum of the Seas Orchestra

unknown

On Christmas Eve, 2015, the Quantum of the Seas Orchestra performed the entire Duke Ellington version of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite.
Continue reading