Zev Feldman Interview

[Ken Dryden]

I interviewed Zev Feldman via Zoom yesterday and it was a real blast talking to The Jazz Detective. I plan to air it on my show, which broadcasts April 14th, though I will gladly post an archive.org link, as few people have time to sit by a computer for two hours on a pretty Sunday afternoon.

The RSD Art Tatum, Yusef Lateef and Chet Baker & Jack Sheldon RSD releases are incredible, still to be heard are the Sonny Rollins and Sun Ra.

I may work in some of the previous RSD releases on Jazz Detective, Resonance and Elemental Music, depending on whether I do one show or two.

 

 

[GA Russell]

Ken, I'd like to hear that!

I'll look forward to seeing the link.

[sidewinder]

Same here !

[Dan Gould]

Anything revealed about future releases or does he keep it close to the vest? I assume you would ask.

[Ken Dryden]

Zev can't reveal future projects until all of the contracts are signed and they have a planned released date in mind. His public relations rep, Ann Braithwaite, tells journalists about upcoming releases but they are embargoed so we can't say anything about them publicly until the labels are ready for them to be announced. I did learn that he has a huge set of Jazz at the Penthouse raw tapes so I am sure he is checking out selected artists when he has time to see if there is a good fit for a potential release. Like with Mosaic, he and his partners have to estimate all the costs involved in producing a set, then decide whether they can sell sufficient units to make it happen.

I wish that US stations and radio networks did a better job of archiving live jazz broadcasts, though I know he has uncovered a wealth of music in the archives of various European radio networks. The one time I wrote liner notes for a concert aired by NPR on Jazz Alive!, Mel Torme with George Shearing and Gerry Mulligan, I was disappointed that they omitted all three Mulligan big band instrumentals. I guess Concord Jazz couldn't justify a 2 CD set of the entire show, which I had recorded off the air back around 1979 before I got into my twin careers in public radio and jazz journalism.

 

[ghost of miles]

Thanks for posting this, Ken. Enjoying the Tatum set as I type!

[Ken Dryden]

Zev was telling me that I could edit a lot of his remarks, my reply was I usually pare down my questions and comments. 

He is an extremely gracious individual, he must be a great guy to work with.

[clifford_thornton]

Apparently he bought the Kharma Records archive. There are unissued sessions in that archive, included some that were mastered for CD release but Dan Serro (RIP) wanted too much money from potential licensees so they have not yet seen the light of day. Assuming (and I think it's a fair assumption) that Feldman doesn't issue this material, will he license it out? The Charles Bobo Shaw session is one I'd like to see. Shaw wanted it to be released, but Serro was holding it hostage. Now that neither of them are alive, is it possible that something could happen?

[felser]

10 minutes ago, clifford_thornton said:

Apparently he bought the Kharma Records archive. There are unissued sessions in that archive, included some that were mastered for CD release but Dan Serro (RIP) wanted too much money from potential licensees so they have not yet seen the light of day. Assuming (and I think it's a fair assumption) that Feldman doesn't issue this material, will he license it out? The Charles Bobo Shaw session is one I'd like to see. Shaw wanted it to be released, but Serro was holding it hostage. Now that neither of them are alive, is it possible that something could happen?

Just looked at that label in Discogs.  Some really interesting looking late 70's releases, none of which I was familiar with!  We can only hope....

[colinmce]

2 minutes ago, felser said:

Just looked at that label in Discogs.  Some really interesting looking late 70's releases, none of which I was familiar with!  We can only hope....

I've never heard the Gunter Hampel album they released, but the rest are all fantastic. Unreleased sessions aside, the existing catalogue could fit nicely on a 5-6 CD box set.

[JSngry]

Yes to Kharma, please. 

[T.D.]

+1 on the Kharma thing. I'd even go for the above-mentioned box set.

Edited March 30, 2024 by T.D.

[clifford_thornton]

The only one I didn't keep was the Butch Morris -- just could not get into it at all, even with Moncur being present. The others are all worth having or at least hearing, with the Jerome Cooper 2LP, Frank Lowe, and the Sunny Murray probably being the highlights.

I recall that the Charles "Bobo" Shaw album included a rousing take of "St. Louis Blues" and some other music from that era. In an interview, Charles said to me it was the best thing he ever did and I've been clamoring to hear it ever since. 

[mjzee]

Dan Serro was a character.  At the jazz record store I worked at, he was our connection for Japanese LP releases that were hard to come by in this country (this was before Tower was importing them in bulk).  I had a promo copy of Burton Greene's "Variations on a Coffee Machine".  Someone once said Dan Serro wasn't his real name; he adopted it because at one time he was a dancer.

[Ken Dryden]

Although we have drifted away from discussing Zev Feldman, here's a recording on the Kharma label I'd like to hear:

 

[JSngry]

50 minutes ago, Ken Dryden said:

Although we have drifted away from discussing Zev Feldman, here's a recording on the Kharma label I'd like to hear:

 

Very!