Today's playlist. This 14th edition features swing jazz artist Bud Freeman.
I bought it at my favorite record store in Shimokitazawa, "Flash Disc Ranch."
This store is a record shop I've been frequenting since I first moved to Setagaya. Their loyalty card, which is valid as long as the store exists, has a popular and amazing system: once you collect 50 stamps, you get 50% off any number of records under 15,000 yen.
Shimokitazawa is a place where I often feel like making an impromptu stop on my way home on the Odakyu Line.
Whenever I get off at Shimokita, I always stop by here, buy a few records, and then head home.
I've been doing this for about five years now.
Lawrence "Bud" Freeman (April 13, 1906 – March 15, 1991) was an American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer, best known for playing the tenor saxophone and clarinet.
In 1922, Freeman and his high school friends formed the Austin High School Gang. Freeman played the C-melody saxophone with bandmates like Jimmy McPartland and Frank Teschemacher, but switched to the tenor saxophone two years later. The band was influenced by the New Orleans Rhythm Kings and Louis Armstrong. Freeman, with McPartland, would watch Armstrong perform at Lincoln Gardens while Armstrong was with King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band. They were nicknamed the "Alligators".
In 1927, he moved to New York City, where he worked as a session musician and band member with Red Nichols, Roger Wolfe Kahn, Ben Pollack, and Joe Venuti. One of his most notable performances was a solo on Eddie Condon's 1933 recording "The Eel." This became a nickname for Freeman's long, snake-like improvisations. Freeman played with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra (1936–1938) and the Benny Goodman Orchestra in 1938. Afterward, he formed the Summa Cum Laude Orchestra (1939–1940). During World War II, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and led a U.S. Army band in the Aleutian Islands.
After the war, Freeman returned to New York and led his own groups. He also performed with Buck Clayton, Ruby Braff, Vic Dickenson, and Jo Jones. In 1960, he wrote the book and lyrics for the Broadway musical Beg, Borrow or Steal, which included the ballad "Zen Is When," later recorded by the Dave Brubeck Quartet for their 1964 album Jazz Impressions of Japan. He was a member of the World's Greatest Jazz Band in 1969 and 1970. In 1974, he moved to England, where he continued to record and perform. Freeman stayed on the Isle of Man and was a guest of Manx musician Jim Caine. After returning to Chicago in 1980, he remained active into his 80s.
He wrote two memoirs (You Don't Look Like a Musician (1974) and If You Know of a Better Life, Please Tell Me (1976)), and an autobiography with Robert Wolf (Crazeology). In 1992, Freeman was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame.
At WAITER-U, we not only select camping gear, but also music, books, and movies.
We also create playlists on Spotify, so feel free to listen to them in your car on your way to a camp.
