Odd pairing.

[Hardbopjazz]

Back in October 1994 Don Pullen played with Najee. I can't see this working. To me Pullen was a genius, so maybe he was able to pull it off. A recording of this does exist, which I hope to obtain soon. To me Najee is an extension of the G-man.

Anyone can think of any other odd parings?

[David Gitin]

I once heard Pete Seeger backed by Bud Freeman at the Newport Jazz Festival!

[Free For All]

James Brown/Oliver Nelson charts/Louis Bellson band. Very odd combination but dammit, I like it!

[Chuck Nessa]

I once heard Pete Seeger backed by Bud Freeman at the Newport Jazz Festival!

I once saw Bud Freeman and Sun Ra sitting on a sofa deep in discussion. Later that week I saw Bud and Cecil Taylor in discussion at a bar. No music in either situation.

[Christiern]

When you think of it, and do a wee bit of research, Don Pullen playing with Najee and—in the course of doing so—pulling something off..... well?

[ep1str0phy]

When you think of it, and do a wee bit of research, Don Pullen playing with Najee and—in the course of doing so—pulling something off..... well?

I played a set with Eddie Gale's band at the Oakland Yoshi's a few months back (part of a package tribute deal to a local trumpet/pedagogy patriarch)... the evening culminated in an all-star, more or less "locals" jam--Eddie, Bobby Hutcherson, John Handy, Marcus Shelby, Steve Turre, Winard Harper--and Najee. According to my ears (in the 20 mins. or so that jam lasted), I could completely understand how a musician of Najee's particular nature could fit in with the likes of Pullen (who has/had as multifaceted a voice as any piano player in modern jazz)--Najee was a completely reputable, if not necessarily "challenging," mainstream blues player. Maybe it's a George Benson kind of deal... you put any measure of time in to music, there's a lot in there you learn, a lot you probably never use.

Not a particularly odd pairing, but I've always been fascinated by Sun Ra's work with Walt Dickerson and the apparent empathy two so different musicians seem to have shared... yes, they're both "progressives" in some sense, but Dickerson's music hews as much to dry, hard bop earthiness as Ra's does to early jazz, swing, and reverb-y cosmic abstractions.

[JSngry]

Najee can play. He makes sucky records, but he can play.

Back in the day, Don Pullen played with Charles Williams. If Najee would have been around then, him and Charles Williams would have been working the same type circuit, I'm sure.

Different world, different market dynamics, whole lot of stuff is different now. But a lot of people who make sucky records can actually play.

And I'll tell you who it would be a mistake to try to fuck with unless you had a half-deck of aces in the hole - Gerald Albright & Kirk Whalum.

Bur, ok, odd pairing - George Coleman & Ahmad Jamal.

[Uncle Skid]

Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington - "The Great Summit".

Both of those guys suck, individually. But, together... WTF!!!

[marcello]

Teresa Brewer & a whole lot of people:

[JSngry]

Hey, you're married to Bob Theile, you get opportunities...

[jlhoots]

Kenny Davern & Steve Lacy

Kenny Davern, Roswell Rudd & Steve lacy

Edited December 12, 2010 by jlhoots

[Hardbopjazz]

James Brown/Oliver Nelson charts/Louis Bellson band. Very odd combination but dammit, I like it!

I guess James couldn't get that stain out of his jacket.

[Steve Reynolds]

Ed Thigpen on John Lindberg's 2 great albums - Quartet Afterstorm & Resurrection of a Dormant Soul - also with Albert Mangelsdorff

Keith Rowe with Evan Parker, Barry Guy and Eddie Prevost- Supersession

especially Rowe with Guy wouldn't seem to make sense but for me it worked in 1984

Paul Lovens playing straight swing drums on Schlippenbach's Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra - Live in Japan I think in 1996 - I am still wondering if it really him...

would always like to hear the straight or mainstream players of today play with guys like Bennink, Dresser,etc - but they don't....

[Stereojack]

Johnny Hodges & Lawrence Welk

Buddy Tate & Dollar Brand (Abdullah Ibrahim)

Stan Kenton & Tex Ritter

[brownie]

Barney Wilen appearing on Fleetwood Mac's Stevie Nicks album 'Rock a Little'.

[kh1958]

Najee is on a Charles Earland recording, and he's okay on it.

[sidewinder]

This Tubby Hayes appearance comes to mind:

And Joe Harriott with Chris Barber's band.

Edited December 12, 2010 by sidewinder

[BillF]

... with Barney Kessel on guitar!

[Big Wheel]

Speaking of Louie Bellson there's this record, with Alex Acuña and Manolo Badrena, Francisco Aguabella and Cachao, and...Cat Anderson on a track or two?

[rostasi]

[brownie]

[Mark Stryker]

And I'll tell you who it would be a mistake to try to fuck with unless you had a half-deck of aces in the hole - Gerald Albright & Kirk Whalum.

Whalum swings his ass off in a Stanley Turrentine mold on the title track of "Work to Do," the latest record by the Carl Allen & Rodney Whitaker Project (Mack Ave.) Here's a taste, though it cuts off just as the solo really gets going.

Edited December 12, 2010 by Mark Stryker

[Gheorghe]

Archie Shepp-Chet Baker shortly before Chet´s death.

Miles Davis and Dixieland trumpetist Max Kaminsky both on stage sharing solos on a broadcast I got with Charlie Parker

[Caravan]

Thelonious Monk and Dave Brubeck playing together on a late 1960s Columbia record.

Thelonious Monk and Joe Turner playing together, Berlin, 1969

[Peter Friedman]

Pee Wee Russell & Thelonious Monk

Pee wee Russell & Jimmy Giuffre

Steve Kuhn with Pee Wee Russell & Henry "Red" Allen