The more I play this guitar, the more it just tickles me from the inside.  The big warm sound radiates from the wood with such a silky glow that it sparks an uncontrollable giggle.  Walden’s “boutique for less” approach hit it again!

Creator, master luthier, friend: Jonathan Lee (and for all you cinderblocks out there, yes, he was born in the USA)

Instrument specifications:

B-1’s First Night Out

Baritone guitar first entered my awareness with the Danelectro, as used by some guy in a hippie rock band in upstate New York.  I went into a store right away to check one out and ended up with a Fender Subsonic electric [sparkly blue!].  What fun!  Instead of using it the way most would – for low register single note lines a la spaghetti Westerns – I found it to be really fun for the Joe Pass/Tuck Andress approach.  Independent bass lines and chord rhythms and/or melodies become really pronounced.

As the baritone became more and more a part of my front line of guitars in use, more and more I wanted an acoustic one…

I host a show at the Metropolitan Room in New York City the first Thursday of each month called DUOS.  Each month I bring up two guests, one at a time, and we play a few tunes, talk a bit, and include the audience in the conversation.  The guests are all from my circle of friends and colleagues, and all are top shelf, established artists.  They vary from singers to instrumentalists of all kinds.  My guitar of choice has always been my G1070ce, as it has a broad enough range to handle any situation that might arise – it rocks, it swings, it arpeggiates, it grooves blues and R&B…  Everything sounds good on it, and the soundman loves it because it’s easy for him to dial in a great tone.

The October 4 show was Guitar Night.  My two guests were guitarists Julio Fernandez of Spyro Gyra and Gil Parris.  Since there were already two great guitarists, my role changed a bit.  Julio played mostly a Godin nylon electric and some Strat.  Gil played a stock ’87 Strat Plus and a gorgeous Artinger Custom hollowbody electric.

Gil has a very refined tone on his electrics and Julio’s voice on the guitar covers a lot of ground.  My function was to glue them together; give a context to their riffs and melodies.  The new B-1 Baritone was the perfect complement to support them, both individually and for the all-in encore.  Its warm, woody tone was very much what you’d expect from a Grand Auditorium bodied steel string.  Plus, the added low frequencies made it sound as if a bassist were in the room.  The instrument has so much presence that minimal playing provided ample compliment to Julio and Gil’s guitar mastery.

Personally I have to ‘transpose’ to a different key – try as I might, that shape will always be a ‘G’ chord in the first position, even though now it’s a [concert key] ‘D’.  Everything is still very accessible, though.  For instance, Julio’s song De La Luz is mostly in ‘E minor’ with a

||: E-     | A-  B7  : ||  progression.

That simply becomes ||:  A-    | D-   E7 : || on the baritone.

Walden did plenty of soul-searching in the development of this fine instrument.  For instance, the finish is very light to allow the wood as much vibration as possible.  The bracing is different, hence the offset placement of the soundhole.  The 26.75” scale length sets the bridge back an inch or so into the body, more like a classical.  That puts it closer to the center of the lower bout, adding to the low frequency resonance.

Far from being boomy, the low register is clear as a bell, with a tight, punchy response that feels almost electric even when playing acoustically.  The fit and finish is right on par with what I’ve come to expect from Walden – “boutique for less”.  As your eye scans the various details of the B-1, from the soundhole rosette, to the inner bracings, to the joints, to the lovely rosewood binding, you discover the care and thoughtfulness that went into creating this very new, very sensible instrument.

Deeply rooted in classic guitar design, this is a breakthrough instrument with a personality all its own.

B-1’s Second Night Out

The next appearance for this fine axe was a concert called “Blue: The Music of Joni Mitchell” with Rachel Bay Jones and Bob Stillman.

On a side note, I have to tell you the music was stunning.  This was a spectacular homage to some of the most beautiful songs of the 20 th century, and I was honored to be a part of it.

Anyhow, my part of it was a little different from usual – I was the bassist.  Most of the songs had me on a fretless four string with flatwounds and big single-coil passive pickups.  Warm, and then some.  I brought the B-1 to the rehearsal, though, to see where it might fit in and everyone loved it.  It came in very handy for songs like Circle Game and Both Sides Now; and especially Coyote, where I even got a nice long solo.  Once again, the B-1 bridged the gap between guitar and bass – this time from the other side!

In fact, it was very interesting to play a song on the B-1 as a bassist, and then when my instrumental feature section came up I explored the song and the instrument from the bottom up.  The low register is very bass-like, full and rich.  Then as you go across the strings and up the fingerboard, it’s all the familiar shapes of guitar, just with a different color.  This is a healthy exercise for any guitarist!

At the end of the show as we’re clearing the stage I thanked the soundman for doing such a fabulous job of keeping us all happy on stage and making it delicious in the house.  He commented on how he enjoyed my bass playing, but he actually liked the sound of the baritone better!  Unsolicited.

My fancy, sophisticated guitar rig for these and most events, by the way, is a George L.’s cable with a right angle plug on the guitar end going into a Radial Passive DI box.  The end.  You hear guitar, strings, and fingers.  That’s my signal chain to the board.  No complaints yet!

Cheers,

Sean

Digital Download from ODEG

CD from ODEG

~liner text~

Time-honoured music associated with the holiday season has the almost magical ability to transport listeners beyond their thoughts…into a world of reminiscence, nostalgia, feeling, and emotion.

For H2, exploring this music that is not typically approached in the jazz genre presents real challenges, with keeping melodies recognizable being paramount.  The creative process starts with finding a rhythmic basis for each song, followed by choices of harmony, melodic explorations, and where best for the music to be written out or improvised.  But most importantly for H2′s Mike & Sean, the artistic experience has to be fun.

it is H2′s hope that Home for the Holidays will become a valued part of their friends’ and fans’ holiday season.  And they wish to remind everyone that, as their cover art depicts, HOME can be anywhere so long as you’re with good company!

H2 thanks Taka, Chuck H, Chuck D, MB, Joe & Matt at ODEG, Mark Miller, Randall Bruce Plourde at Evergreen of Vermont.

US: 1.201.239.1428    /    Canada: 1.647.888.6707

Mike Herriott plays a Yamaha YFH 8310Z Flugelhorn with a custom “Herriott”
signature line Wedge Mouthpiece.

Sean Harkness plays a Wilson Nouvelle Oval hand-carved arch top guitar
and the Walden 1012e-sh 12-string acoustic guitar

www.yamaha.ca
www.wedgemouthpiece.com
www.waldenguitars.com

H2 – Mike Herriott & Sean Harkness, Co-Producers
Recorded by Ron Allaire, and Mike Herriott (track 6),
Doghouse Studio, Ontario
Mixed by Ron Allaire
Mastered by Chris Muth
Baby Jack Design Studio, graphics design & layout
Joseph S. Szurly, concept & package coordinator
Janina Laughton, project manager
Photos by Chuck Herriott

All selections public domain except:
track 4 P 1966 Lee Mendelson Film Productions Inc.,
track 5 P 1954 Roncom Music Corp.

All arrangements by H2, Sean Harkness & Mike Herriott except:
track 6 P 2011 Herriott Music SOCAN,
track 8 P 2011 Sean Harkness Music BMI

A friendship grew and a musical bond developed. This collection of music is the second recorded exploration of arrangement ideas, combining Sean’s guitar and Mike’s flugelhorn.

The new DUOS series at the Metropolitan Room got off to a rockin’ start on Thursday, May 3rd with Nina Henessey and Brian Camelio as my first ever guests.  There was much spontaneity, audience interaction, intimacy, exploration, and gorgeous music.  Brian and I have known each other for many years and he remembers stories I kinda’ wish he didn’t.  Nina was the lead in my first theatre production in NYC back in 1994 and we covered some very fresh ground in a duet.

Brian is one of my favorite guitar players – always fresh, sincere, and inventive.  He is also the creator of ArtistShare – the original, and multi-Grammy winning internet platform for fan funding.

Nina has way more up her sleeve than being a Broadway diva – she improvises beautifully in any genre, as evidenced by her work with Andreas Vollenwieder and Craig Peyton.

The Thursday, June 7 DUOS Show saw Kj Denhert and Mimi Jones, two of the most dynamic women on the scene here.  They both compose, they both sing, they both play the bejesus out of their respective instruments [guitar/bass], and they both take the audience for a thrill ride.  It was a magical night.

KJ and I met through my first ever roommate [at Berklee College of Music in Boston] Etienne Stadtwijk.  He is her current pianist and bandleader.  He invited me to come sit in with her and I ended up a fairly regular part of her band.  She won’t let me ‘learn’ her music from charts or recordings – it must be ‘by ear’.  A first for me, and I LOVE the trust.

Mimi and I met at the Edison ballroom on a Gregory Generet show with Doug Oberhamer at the musical helm.  We sparked.  She plays in my band, I play in hers, we do duets [such as Top Of The Rock, and H2 CD release in NYC], and the result is always greater…

The first Thursday in July, DUOS was supposed to be Ian Herman and Martha Redbone.  At 4:00 that afternoon Martha called to cancel due to a powerful flu bug.  That had to be a hard call, poor dear.  She will be in soon, so stay tuned.  In the meantime, the effervescent Valerie Ghent jumped in last minute and literally rocked the house.  Ian’s compositions and stunning piano playing required at least that for proper balance.  It was incredible.

I played in Val’s band, she played on a record I was producing, we have so many mutual friends – so glad we could bring this to life.  Her new CD is out and her star is on the rise.  See also her Songwriter’s Beat and Feel The Music non-profit.

Ian is a rare and precious human with both a musical skill honed by untold years of diligence and a sense of humor that makes my ribs hurt.  We did a duo concert at Iridium in May and we’ll be recording our collaboration very soon.  Venture capital welcome.

August 2nd I was star struck by Karen Akers and Len Cariou on stage with me for the DUOS show.  They each had stories and songs to inspire people of all walks of life.  This show is developing beyond my dreams already.

Len and I met at Mark Janas’s 60th birthday bash.  Getting to know each other has been very enjoyable.  When I asked him how he knew his star was on the rise he told me some wonderful stories about performing with his childhood idols on Broadway in a show created for him … That would do it!

Karen is the prototype of a Performing Artist.  Her every move, gesture, facial expression, vocal timbre, are all part of an ongoing work of pure Art.  I am captivated by her very presence.  Len and I did actually appear on a stage together once before DUOS, so he just gets in under the wire – but Karen actually broke the rule.  We never worked together!  This was our debut.  She’s going to break the rules again, though, as she will be back as a recurring guest on DUOS.  You’ll know all about it, I promise.

The next DUOS show on September 2nd has Yaron Gershovsky and Steve Doyle.

Yaron and I met for the first time back in 1988 when Smadaar and Rueven Yaari came to NYC from Amsterdam to record with him.  I was living in Boston again at that time, but had worked extensively with Smadaar and Oshri Even Zoar while living in Amsterdam, so a trip down to The City was required.  He probably doesn’t remember that, though.

We met more recently in an airport on the way to a concert with Debbie Friedman.  I had started out as a sub for Alex Skolnick and eventually became the regular.  Yaron took over after David Bravo, and we did a few shows together in New York and other cities.  We actually spend more time talking about jogging than music, but we’ll do our best to rein it in for this show.

Steve Doyle and I met the way most folks meet him – at Birdland Jazz Club’s Cast Party with Jim Caruso.  Steve plays with all sorts of cream of the crop artists.  He recommended me for a few acts – Todd Murray’s Croon, Collen McHugh’s Calendar Girl, and Karen Oberlin among them.  I have much to thank him for, and helping him to spread the good word about his delicious new recording is the least I can do.  We have a right natural ball playing together with him on bass, and his talents on piano and vocals transcend that by a good margin.  In other words, he rocks.

The November installment of DUOS [actually happening on Wednesday, October 31st] will be a complete groundbreaker – I will have onstage with me violinist Shem Guibbory [Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, ECM Jazz, Suzanne Vega…], and legendary flutist Paula Robison.

Every show is new, spontaneous, virtuosic, and audience-interactive [you might be called upon to give the chords or melodic elements for a spur of the moment composition].  Nothing happens the same way twice.  We already have many return visitors.  I hope you’re next!

Looking forward,

Sean

[here are composite pictures from past episodes of DUOS:]

Here in New York City it’s Labor Day Weekend, which is both a tip of the proverbial hat to Workers everywhere and the official end to summer vacations.  Here at Harksongs Entertainment we enjoyed a few nice trips this summer, one to Nashville and the Caribbean, and another to the Blue Ridge Mountains of southwestern Virginia.  As you’ll see by the listings below, a bit of R&R was well in order…

[all productions mentioned are things I am involved with unless otherwise specified]

[and click on the images to enLARGE!]

The last blog entry left off at the end of April, so I’ll pick up from May 1 [May Day] and bring us up to the present…

Mark Miller’s Septet rode again at Somethin’ Jazz Club.  Whenever I finish one of these shows, I grin for days.  This is the music I came to New York to be a part of.  The forthcoming CD is now in the mix stage [rough mixes here].

May 3rd was the first ever DUOS show with Nina Hennessey and Brian Camelio.  That and the next installments get slightly more in detail HERE.

Speaking of why I came to New York, the weekend of May 4-7 was among the coolest productions I’ve been involved with yet: Lyrics & Lyricists at the 92^nd Street Y.  The show was “Noël & Cole: A Battle of Wits”.  The top shelf band led by Don Rebic had Ray Marchica, Dick Sarpola, and me blazing through beautiful arrangements of Noel Cowherd and Cole Porter songs.  The singers presenting these genius lyrics and melodies were Colleen McHugh, Latanya Hall, Harriett Harris, T. Oliver Reid, Jeff Harnar, and Edward Hibbert [I know!], and the whole thing was presented by Mark Waldrop.  Every aspect of this production was a red carpet ride, backstage and Front Of House.  Even the audience was fancy.

May 8th was another milestone: Ian Herman and I did our first duo concert at Iridium Jazz Club on Broadway in Times Square.  We combined our original music – he learned some of my songs, I learned some of his – and the result left people literally standing up screaming.  This will happen again, both on stage and on recordings.

Here’s an example of how silly a musician’s life can be – with all projects WELL worth the major schlep: Friday the 11th drive to Concord, NH to give a concert of Joni Mitchell’s music with Bob Stillman, Rachel Bay Jones, and a slammin’ band.  Then make it back in time to do an early soundcheck for a performance at Joe’s Pub Saturday night the 12th with Anne Steele.  Then first thing in the morning get up early and drive upstate to Marlboro, NY to do a jazz brunch with Kj Denhert and Jennifer Vincent at the Falcon.  Monday the 14th I slept a lot.

More May: Bria Skonberg and I enjoyed a duet at NY’s exclusive Core Club; Champagne Pam walked the dog at Long Beach Cabaret Festival in her show “The Dog-Walking Diva” [more Don Rebic!]; Marcus Simeone rocked Union City, NJ; Jillian Lauraine wowed ‘em again at the Metropolitan Room; Tycoon Dog rocked the Band Shell in Central Park; Kj Denhert lit up the rooms at Smoke and 55 Bar; and Terese Genecco did it again Rat Pack style at Iridium Jazz Club; and Raissa Katona Bennett kicked off the season at Concerts for Tudor City Greens.

June began on stage with Swedish heart-throb Anders Holst [Bennett Paster MD-ing from the piano].  The 2nd was a beautiful event: Joanne Weaver made her debut at Theatre 80 in the Village to launch her new CD Interstellar Songbook, produced by the hyper-competent Andre Fratto.  I played ukulele on the CD, but much electric guitar at the show.  And white balloons.

New York history was made in June with the opening of the new venue 54 Below.  [It’s below Studio 54]  Patti LuPone had the prime-time feature spot [not me - Larry Saltzman on guitar], and afterwards they held a new program called The Green Room.  Steve Doyle and I had Tuesday nights from 9:30-12:30, John Miller Wednesday nights, and Barry Levitt Thursdays.  It continues with a variety of luminary performers entertaining The Hang after hours at this perfect new club.  Amazing how something can come right out of the box and instantly be the best.

I made my Lincoln Center debut in June, but not the way you’d expect.  Martha Redbone invited me to accompany her and Lisa Fischer to honor the memory of Gregory Clark.  It was a very moving ceremony.  May we all know so much active love and support in our lives!

I could write an entire blog entry about this one – Taka and I made our first trip ever to Cherry Grove, Fire Island.  For those of you who don’t know what that means, we went to a very gay destination.  Terese Genecco and I performed our Elvis ’56 show at the Cherry Grove Arts Project theatre.  Drag queen Robin Cradles was the Homecoming Queen of the parade that day and opened our show in gallant form.  Being there was like another country.  Or planet.

It was inspiring and beautiful on so many levels.  A rare example of evolved humanity.

More June: DUOS had Kj Denhert and Mimi Jones; Scott Siegel’s Broadway By The Year series put me on stage at New York’s Town Hall with Marc Kudisch, Ron Bohmer, and Santino Fontana; Tycoon Dog rocked some more at the Turtleback Zoo, Maplewood Park, and Tompkins Square; Mark Janas celebrated his 60th birthday with a star-studded cast up on 73rd; Anders Holst delighted them again at Don’t Tell Mama’s; Tudor City Greens beat the weather again; and bass players got a major feast at the Firehouse with Patrick Pfeiffer, Mike Visceglia, Adam Nitti, and Mike Pope.

July was the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel – Taka and I spent a week in Nashville doing Walden Guitars things at Summer NAMM, then spent nine delightful days in the Caribbean all by ourselves, no gigs.  This also requires its own blog entry, even if just for the photos…  Here’s a couple:

And somehow during all of this my name got on the cover of Vintage Guitar Magazine.

Small print at the top, but it’s about the Walden Sean Harkness signature 12-string, an article written by my dear friend Chip Wilson.  How’s the weather down there in N’awlins…?

That was in the middle of July – before and after that: DUOS had Ian Herman and Velerie Ghent [Martha Redbone got a strong flu bug day of show!  She’ll be back...]; Tycoon Dog rocked in Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park; Kj Denhert, Jennifer Vincent & I played outdoors in Kingston, NY on a lovely afternoon; I gave a solo concert at The Mansion in Bloomfield, NJ; Terese wowed her fans at Iridium; and my fabulous uncle Hugh turned 80 on The Boat.

August began with a bang: first, I played and sang my arrangement of Neil Sedaka’s “Bad Blood” at Tudor City Greens – to Mr. Sedaka himself; then jumped in a cab and went to the Metropolitan Room to host DUOS, this time with Karen Akers and Len Carriou.  How’d that happen?

Then for the first time I played  with Lucie Arnaz.  Ron Abel led the band with David Mann, Ray  Marchica, Roger Squitero, Tom Hubbard, and me.  She is even more of a delight in person that we could all collectively imagine.  It’s a really fun show, too – mostly a tribute to her dad, Desi Arnaz.

August is a notoriously slow month for those of us not in the wedding band circuit, and thankfully for me it was filled in with Fancy Hotels: four Sunday nights at The Carlyle with Karen Oberlin, Tedd Firth [Jon Weber one night], and Steve Doyle; and a five night run at Feinstein’s with Raissa Katona Bennett [also celebrating the release of her new CD: Another Kind Of Light].

Steve Doyle, NYC’s most ubiquitous bassist, celebrated the release of his new CD Home To You at 54 Below – and he’s playing piano and singing!

The band was all ringers with Quinsin Nachoff on sax, Greg Ritchie drums, Matt Clohesy on bass, and me.  KJ Denhert did it yet again at the 55 Bar.  My favorite pot dealer Mac Kohler turned 50.  (please click his link to know what I mean by that)  Carole Demas, Ian Herman, and I recorded at Bicoastal Music up in Ossining, NY [which, incidentally, is for sale].  Tycoon Dog rocked in Battery Park and the Zoo.  Terese kicked it up at Iridium again, and Mark Miller finally shared his transcendent Septet again at the Zinc Bar.

We enjoyed another brief respite, this time with R/C planes, a motorcycle, and a kayak in the hills of southwestern Virginia.

There is so much coming up, so please stay tuned.  The Shows calendar here is up to date, so check in often, and come out to a show!  There’s always something going on…

SH

CLICK for info/reservations...

Starting Thursday, May 3rd and continuing the 1st Thursday of every month at 9:30pm at the Metropolitan Room I will host my new show called “Duos”.  I’ll have two guests, each of whom will do a few songs with me.  This month I have Nina Hennessey and Brian Camelio.  Other confirmed guests so far: Will Ackerman, Tuck Andress  & Patti Cathcart, Karen Akers, Jim Brickman, Robert Cucciolo, Carole Demas, KJ Denhert, Will Galison, Yaron Gerchovsky, Shem Guibbory, Barbara Higbie, Liz Larsen, Rhonda Larson, Mark Rapp, Paula Robison, Liz Story, Samite, Wendy Starland, Gordon Stone, Craig Taubman

Thursday, May 3 at 9:30pm – $20 / 2 bev. min.   212.206.0440 – 34 West 22nd Street, NYC

CLICK for info/reservations...

Then next Tuesday the 8th at 8:00pm at Iridium Jazz Club, Ian Herman and I do our show 110 Strings.  All original music by Ian and me.  Words can’t describe it – you gotta’ come see it.  We’re having so much fun putting it together…

Tuesday, May 8 at 9:00pm – $25  212.582.2121 -  1650 Broadway at 51st, NYC

*  *  *

Once again I skipped the steady weekly postings and now have to catch up.  For a LOT.  I’ll keep it to kind of a list format and use pictures wherever possible.  (My camera broke so I’m at the mercy of others for their kindness)  Here goes…

Bass Immersion day on January 8 with Will Lee [David Letterman Band, etc], Gerald Veasley

photo: William DiCecca

[Grover Washington,Jr., etc.], Michael Visceglia [Susanne Vega, etc], and Patrick Pfeiffer [PHX, For Dummies, Hal Leaonard, Schirmer, etc]; the rhythm section was David Meade [dr], Mitch Schechter [p], Brian Sears [sax], and me.

Karen Oberlin and I had a nice run of events from the Nitelife Awards at Town Hall; the National Arts Club; Feinstein’s; 3 nights at the Metropolitan Room; and Ronny Whyte’s Midtown Jazz at Midday series at St. Peter’s.

Craig Taubman and I gave concerts in West Palm Beach Island and Beverly Hills.  We did some video too, I’ll keep you posted.  He remains the best I’ve ever seen at How To Connect With An Audience.  A blessing, he is.

Mark Miller took his septet in to Systems Two recording studio in Brooklyn to immortalize his absolutely gorgeous contribution to the world of music.  I’m humbled to be in the cast with Mark, Nicki Denner, Anton Denner, Cliff Lyons, William ‘Beaver’ Bausch, and Gary Wang.  We’re doing a show Tuesday, May 1 at 9p at Somethin’ Jazz Club on East 52 by 3rd ave.

KJ Denhert and I have been getting together a lot at the 55 Bar and Saturday brunches at Smoke.  She reminds me why I do this.

Bob Stillman put together a beautiful show at the Winter Garden Atrium with the combined talents of Bryce Ryness, Martha Redbone, Rachel Bay Jones, and Bria Skonberg.

Carole Demas, Ian Herman, and I finished our run of shows at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.  We’ll break ground on a new project soon…  In addition to becoming a dear friend, she is to me an inspiring phenomenon.

And don’t miss Ian and I together at the Iridium on May 8!

Dawn Derow and I did a whole run of kickin’ shows as a duo.  Randie Shane [video link!] also put the faith in me as sole accompanist to wonderful results.  Tamela D’Amico made a record with a 10 piece band, Jeff Franzel at the helm.  Tom Vaughan had such a good turnout and response to his birthday show at the Metropolitan Room that he did an encore performance.  Nina Siegel stole my heart at her shows at the Beechman.  Keep an eye out for Nina…

Mark Goodman called me in last minute to fill out the very large band supporting Lucio Fernandez for Less Cuban Than Ever.  What a riot!  Stacy Sullivan and Jon Weber entrusted me to the guitar chair in her Peggy Lee tribute at the Iridium.  What an honor!  The Salon with Mark Janas had me as a host with a full dance card of my ladies in attendance.  A night to remember, for sure.  What I remember of it…

After a beautiful show at Feinstein’s, Annie Kozuch put the magic band together again for a show at Union City PAC – Samuel Torres, Frank Ponzio and me.

Natalie Douglas put me onstage at Birdland Jazz Club for two shows – a tribute to Nina Simone and the powerfully moving Freedom Songs show.

Bria Skonberg had me onstage at the Metropolitan Room for her show Brass & Belles.  She was then kind enough to join me for my show at the Players Club, along with Ian Herman.

Music At The Mansion invited me back for a lovely Sunday afternoon show; Anders Holst has been growing a wonderful trio presentation with Bennett Paster and I; Monique Varsames debuted at the Metropolitan Room with Sparkie Sandler on drums, Skip Ward bassing one night and Mimi Jones another; powerhouse talent Collen McHugh dazzled ‘em twice more at the Duplex with Tedd Firth, Steve Doyle, and I; and Pamela Luss blessed me by putting me on stage with Houston Person, Brandon McCune, Cook Broadnax, Jaimeo Brown, and John Burr.  Gabrielle Stravelli invited me to trio with her and bassist deluxe Patrick O’Leary at Le Pescadeaux in the Village.  Joshua Stedman graced the Bitter End once again with his soulful songs – along with Donna Kelly and bassist deluxe Andy Galore !

The MAC Awards this year threw me a curve ball when our H2 CD “Home For The Holidays” got Best Recording of 2012.  A wonderful surprise, that.  It’s such an honor to be a part of this thriving community in New York that a little holiday music was the least I could offer.  A MAC Award was way more than I ever expected.

The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey celebrated its 50th anniversary this year at their annual Gala – my fourth time at the post.  Luminaries this year included Baby Jane Dexter, Robert Cuccioli, Donna Bullock, Tamara Tunie, Gregory Generet, Joe Discher, Tom Galantich, Jay Liebowitz, Peri Gilpin, and Jim Reilly.  All were fortunate to enjoy the musical red-carpet of music director Doug Oberhamer.

Terese Genecco celebrated her third year of monthly shows at Iridium Jazz Club with a new live CD, and even got a partially accurate review by the New York Times [syntax Stephen, syntax... someone ELSE called her the love child of... oh, never mind].

Tycoon Dog has started the outdoor Sunday afternoon concert series!

As if nothing else were going on – Karen Kohler and I have taken to illuminating the underworld of The City with renegade Art and Beauty by doing random sets in the Subway…

I have come to truly love New York City.  Coming as I did from the natural splendor of Vermont I resisted that for years, but now it’s unavoidable.  This town is amazing.  Every week I meet new people of dizzying ability who know all the same people I know and we just met somehow.  Where else?

May your days be blessed,

SH

Joined by Mark Miller on trombone, here is Mike Herriott on flugel horn and your humble narrator on a Fender Subsonic baritone electric:

02. Harkness Herriott – Flights Vol 1 – Leap Year

[very lo-res mono mp3 that fits here - for the real deal click one of these 3]

(August 12, 1937 – November 8, 2011)

I wrote this when Jimmy died on November 8, 2011:

Every day I have the opportunity to go out into the world and do something special, to touch people’s hearts.  To take them for a ride, in the moment, the Now.  You were a huge teacher for me in how to do this.  In each moment that I share with an audience, you are there with me with that gracious smile of yours.  Reminding me of that elusive ‘it’ that you managed to embody.  I will take that with me wherever I go, for the rest of my days.  It is a goal of my own now that someday there will be a someone who feels as I do now, so thankful.  You were a blessing.  I will miss you.

* * *

Back when Mike Kissel was still alive, we had a jam session at his KMA Studio every Monday.  It started out on the ninth floor of 1650 Broadway and moved with him to the Brill Building.  We recorded everything and jammed in headphones.  We never knew who would come by: Sun Ra Arkestra, George Clinton, Carlos Alomar, Miki Howard, Bernard Purdie, Oli Rockberger, Scott Sherrard…  All sorts of young up and coming cats, singers, songwriters…  It was called the Songwriters Studio.  We’d work on tunes, that was the whole thing.  Mike had a few standards he liked to do for fun, but most of it was stop and start, develop parts, build songs… For fun!  We’d work towards getting one good take then move on.  Sometimes it got stupid when some vain chick singer came by and it was just all about her, but we’d politely find our way back to the music, the magic, to the craft of building songs sooner or later.

The magic night when Jimmy Norman came in was one I’ll never forget.  I knew nothing about him at all but was instantly electrified.  He sang, we jammed, he went with us wherever we went and had something for us at every turn!  He wasn’t about pulling focus, he improved it.  We all knew we were in the presence of someone special without even hearing a story.  That came later – something about the Coasters, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, some old hit song the Stones did, whatever.  Those things were secondary.  He was just It.  We were all jazzed.  Everyone had a plan to do something special with him, and many did.  He hit jackpot for himself that day, looking to get back into it as he was.  I just sat back and watched; continuing my job of making sure everyone had a chart.

This went on for a year or more.  Periodically we’d do a show in public with our core rhythm section and some of Mike’s favorite singers and do Mike’s original tunes with our arrangements.  The Cutting Room, a chartered boat, the Triad, even a karaoke joint in Times Square.  Jimmy would become the headliner.  It seemed to be a thrill for him too.  Once in a while we’d go by and cheer him on when he would sit in with Jonny Rosch’s band with Kerryn Tollhurst downstairs at Penang.

Then one day Jimmy pulled me aside and asked if I would put a band together for him to do shows at Penang and another place uptown called Roth’s Steakhouse.  I was honored.  Then I started working on it…  I put together a list of the hottest players I had access to, went though all his CDs and made charts of the tunes that I thought would work with a trio, booked rehearsals, and away we went.

Penang closed after a spell, but we carried on at Roth’s for the better part of four years every Saturday might.  After some natural selection of schedules and personalities we ended up with the core group of Freddie Simpson on bass and Steve Loecher on drums.  Every so often we’d have Paully Tillotsen on piano when he was on town.  Sometimes the piano player from the first set would stay and play with us.  Other musicians and singers would come by to sit in.

Freddie and Steve put their entire heart and soul into the gig.  We developed our own signature arrangements of Jimmy’s tunes.  We had a show.  It was good.  There was a lot of laughter on the bandstand, strong and wrong backing vocals, volume complaints…  But always respect and love.  All the way around.

Jimmy’s health was getting slowly but steadily worse.  He would sit on a stool every time, and after a while, he would only sing three or four tunes and take a break.  But let me tell you, even when he had no energy and could barely lift his head he still had more charisma and connectivity with an audience than anyone else I know.

The management and the JFA people would express concern for Jimmy’s health and suggest he take it easy, maybe not sing…  It was the singing that kept him alive!  Stop it and stop him!  He would look at me pleading as if to say don’t let them do it!  I gotta’ sing!  So we played.

We also did a whole bunch of daytime shows at schools and nursing homes and libraries and community centers for the JFA.  He got ‘em every time.  People always appreciated what was happening as it was happening.  Young and old.  Rich and poor.  They all got it.

We went to Florida once, to Sanibel Island.  Did a few shows at Ellington’s Jazz Club with some great players down there.  I gotta say it’s great to fly with an old black man in a wheelchair.  TSA treats you like royalty.  Anyway, this is where my favorite Jimmy Norman memory happened.  Mark Roth, Jimmy, and I sat around on the beach for a couple hours having a smoke and just talking.  We each shared a bit, but Jimmy got to telling stories and Mark and I go to listening and asking…  I could have sat there forever.  Early on, I saw what was happening and I went upstairs to grab my little recorder.  I just put it on record, threw it under my chair, and let him keep going, unaware.  He kept going when we got back up to the room to prepare for the show.

He said he wanted to write a book.  I put those recordings, indexed, onto a CD for him and gave it to him one night at Roth’s.  Here, write it!  Don’t know if he ever started.  It would be well worth reading.

The Jazz Foundation of America was a very important element in his later years and his gratitude was palpable.  At one point Jimmy co-wrote a song with guitarist Joel Fass called “Foundation” to express his thanks to the JFA.  To start the production I brought in my A Team with Freddie and Steve, Ron Allaire engineering at Kampo studio.  We had Georgia Brown, Valerie Capes, Anette St. John, Danny Mixon singing on it, Davell Crawford on keys, and Mark Roth as executive producer.  It played at a big JFA event with video and all.

He came to visit Taka and I a few times, we would go with him to Harlem for soul food or visit Showman’s, or Sylvias, or St Nick’s.  He loved the night life.  We did try to encourage him to not smoke, drink, etc…  He’d say “why stop now?”  He knew my father and his wife.  He knew Taka’s mother and father and friends that would come visit from Japan.  Anyone that came to visit from out of town got a Jimmy Norman experience, if they were lucky.

He had a funny way of saying things sometimes.  Whenever he’d hang up the phone he’d say, “me and you”.  Instead of saying “thank you for doing that thoughtful thing”, he’d say “good lookin’ out”.  Whenever he’d ask about my wife he’d say “how’s my girl?”…  When something wonderful happened, musically or otherwise, he would exclaim, “that’s what I’m talkin’ about!”.  I would summon my whitest speaking voice and reply, “I’m glad you say that Mr. Norman, because I hadn’t the slightest idea what the %@#& you were talking about”.

He was quite comfortable with asking for help.  He’d ask anyone for whatever he needed, and somehow whoever he asked felt it was an honor to be doing something for him.  He’d call about charts or a song to add to the show and he’d start with “now look here…”  I was always waiting for the “boy” to follow, but never did.  Meanwhile I could hear in the background that someone was there in his house helping with his computer or something.

Ah, Jimmy’s minions.  We were all Jimmy’s minions.  Happily.

I loved the man.  I miss him already.  But the time I spent with him is a treasure I get to keep.

SH

H² (SEAN HARKNESS & MIKE HERRIOTT)
HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Opening Day Entertainment Group

iTunes

AmazonMP3

-review by Rob Lester for TalkinBroadway.com

Highly visible Sean Harkness is the guitarist of choice for a staggering number of NYC cabaret singers, his Bistro Award as outstanding instrumentalist and the MAC Award for his own debut as a solo artist in clubs and nominated for his prior CD with flugelhorn-playing colleague Mike Herriott nominated, too, I am happy to find they have just issued a Christmas album. When working together, they call themselves H² (H-squared). Their Christmas collaboration is especially satisfying. It’s not just that both play with taste and distinction, but they are respectful of the 10 traditional and sacred songs included without ever seeming creatively intimidated. And their snuggled-into renditions of “Christmas Time Is Here” and the melody that gives the CD its title (appealingly given a chill pill from its usual pep rally-ing cry) work quite well, too.

It’s quite the accomplishment that they can approach one melody conservatively and take another, like “It Came Upon the Midnight Clear,” and loosen its formal, reverent architecture to seduce it into loose jazz sensibilities and make it feel just as at home for the holidays. They play with overlapping lines and phrases, answering each other or staying in a unison approach, to make it all feel right in the same number (“O Tanenbaum”) and then branch out with new growth but not losing the thread. “Carol of the Bells,” not what one might expect a duo of this sort to tackle, is aced as a showpiece that builds without the approximating of the dizzying ding-dong that would be cheap frenzy.

While the interactive work is compelling, solo times never “time out” on the interest scale. Striking and haunting is the special studio mixing of the dreamlike brass sounds for “Meditation on ‘Lo, How E’er Rose Blooming’” and it stays in the mind. On the Harkness “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” the guitar does seem to sing and rejoice.

Home for the Holidays brings so much to the table beyond holiday evocation that I daresay it could find a home in CD players, iPods, etc. during non-holiday time. The mind may say “December,” but appreciative ears know no season.

Mid-May to mid-November of 2011 contained a great deal of musical activity for me.  To get caught up to the present and not make a freekin’ book out of it I’ll make a list of things with short descriptions, using pictures where possible.

*  *  *

Walden Guitars – we’ve done some fun things together this year.  First, they were nice enough to put my picture on the cover of their 2011 product catalog.  Then we built a custom [soon to be signature] 12-string guitar based on our previous collaboration, the Supra Natura G1017ce.  Then we went to the NAMM show in Nashville to show it off, both on the floor and in a concert with Majestic vibraphone player Jason Marsalis.  Then Jonathan Lee and I did a short clinic tour around the Northeast, introducing Walden to stores and their public.  Complete blast.  We’ll be developing some [LONG overdue] video content early next year, so stay tuned!

Stylus Pick – speaking of video content, this little device is an amazing practice tool for anyone who uses a pick.  We started the process of documenting how I use it and will have content available soon.

Sweet Days – I produced and arranged an extremely satisfying CD for Monique Varsames called Sweet Days.  Recorded by Ron Allaire, we had Valerie Ghent on keys/back vox, Skip Ward on bass, Sparky Sandler on drums, and Mauro Refosco on percussion.  We’ll be doing promo for it coming soon, but do take a listen, start to finish.  There’s love in it.

Croon – This show’s got legs!  So far we’ve done Los Angeles, Palm Desert, and San Francisco, CA; Feinstein’s and the Metropolitan Room in New York; New Orleans, Baton Rouge, LA; Lewisburg, PA; and next week we go off to Omaha and Brownsville, NE, and Liberty, MO for more shows.  Then Mexico.  Steve Doyle, Alex Rybeck and I sing a lot and otherwise completely enjoy the delicious arrangements.

Duo shows – It doesn’t always have to be piano!  More and more I’m being asked to be the sole accompanist for some fabulous singers.  The first was Deb Berman with her show “All In Good Time”.  She’s hilarious on stage, with a good through line, and more to the point she’s got chops.  Vocalese for days.  We had a great time creating completely original arrangements of some classic tunes.  She also somehow has an encyclopedic knowledge of songs.  And a gift for matching people with them – keep it in mind…  Randie Shane also put me to the task and created a beautiful warm show, with another on the way for February.  Dawn Derow and I had a rockin run of shows at Don’t Tell Mama’s, as well as the Core Club.  Then Kathleen France and I celebrated the release of her first Miranda Music CD called The Book Of Love with a duo show called the Book Of Love Part 2.  The girls all have me singing now too, which I enjoy greatly.  I have finally shed my stage jitters around that.

H2 – My first visit to St. John’s, Newfoundland with Mike Herriot was a blast.  The Jazz & Blues festival treated us nicely, we did a clinic and a show, then went for a visit to Dildo By The Sea.  A great time was had by all.  Keep an eye out for our Christmas CD “Home For The Holidays”.  I’ll do a special page for that next…

The summer shows with Tycoon Dog satisfied my inner rocker.  All outdoors [Central Park, Washington Square Park, Battery Park, Tomkins Square Park, Memorial Park in Maplewood, etc], these shows feature all original music in the style of Dire Straits,  Grateful Dead, The Meters, Santana, Steely Dan, etc.  Well arranged, rockin tunes.  I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.

KJ Denhert rocked my world.  We met through a couple mutual friends, I sat in, ended up as a regular guest on her shows at the 55 bar.  If you haven’t heard her yet – check it out!  She’s a rippin’ guitarist, soul –stealin’ vocalist, and a first rate songwriter.  She packs them in at the 55 so come early…

Patrick Pfeiffer, John Pattitucci, Anthony Wellington, Mike Visceglia – these guys put on an event called ‘Bass Immersion Day’ with clinics in the daytime and a concert at night.  I go to play in the ‘house band’ that backed them all up.  What a treat!

Will Lee – on the subject of bassists, Will hosted a beautiful evening at S.I.R studios to benefit Japan’s earthquake/tsunami/radiation victims.  Great roster, great vibe, great hang.  Taka and I loved it!

I’m running out of time for writing as I must pack for tomorrow’s early morning flight to Omaha.  So, I’ll do this in magazine fashion…

Performances since May include:  East coast shows with Craig Taubman, including an upcoming URJ Biennial in D.C. [with President Obama as a guest!]; Songwriter’s Beat and concert appearances with Val Ghent; solo performances at Madison Avenue Baptist Church and Community Church of Wurtsboro; a few ‘socials’ with Doug Acosta; recordings with Lina Koutrakos and Dan Gross’ Southern Rain; Terese Genecco keeps me busy with shows at Iridium, Out Music Awards, Queens Public TV, and Fresh Fruit Festivals; award winning Tudor City Greens concerts with Raissa Katona Bennett; an outdoor concert with Jonny Rosch, Sue Williams, and Sammy Merendino In Westtown, NY; the Mark Miller Septet hit it at Mile’s Café and the Zinc Bar; more shows with Mimi Jones; the Beechman and Metropolitan Room with Jillian Lauraine’s ‘Hello Gorgeous’; Miranda Music: Tracy Stark’s new CD; Marcus Simeone’s new CD; Kathleen France’s new CD; SUPER fun shows at the Duplex with Colleen McHugh; a solo slot on Jamie DeRoy’s televised show from the MetRoom; a run at Feinsteins w/Croon, Annie Kozuch and Frank Ponzio, and Elizabeth Tryon; house concerts in Dallas; one night in Scranton with Sam Glaser; Tamela D’Amico put together a big band for a couple shows; Peggy Herman made a CD; Broadway Sings For Pride [on the big weeked!]; Natalie Douglas shook the rafters at Birdland again; Melissa Heche rocked Triad; so happy to have befriended Anders Holst, and work with him at the Empire Room; Carole Demas reprised her stunning show at the Beechman, and delighted the folks at Music At The Mansion; dancer Mark Stuart brought meto Town Hall; Susan Winter gave a beautiful program at LeFrak Hall at Queens College; Christine Riley hired me to play my 12 string for a reading of Stewart F. Lane’s new show A Moment In Time which features the music of John Denver, featuring Drake Bell, Robert Cuccioli, Liz Larsen, and Lindsay Pearce; and finally, I feel privileged to share the stage with Mark Goodman for Lucio Fernandez’ show Less Cuban Than Ever.

In other news:

• My Dad got married!  Welcome VERY warmly the lovely Melanie Fredericks to the Harkness clan…
• Taka’s photography is growing fast – catch her now while you can still afford her.
• I’ve become a member of The Players Club, and am very much enjoying meeting new people there.  I’ll be giving a concert on the 7^th of December…
• My good friend Rob Kohler [husband of Chantuese Karen Kohler] launched his new business Hammersmith Copper Cookware
• The world lost a great one last week with the death of singer songwriter Jimmy Norman.  He will be remembered with so much love and respect.
• The earthquake in Japan this past march continues to be a real problem, particularly the way the Japanese government is handling the distribution of aid.  Red Cross is NOT the way to go.  This one is better: http://www.japansociety.org/page/earthquake

Coming up: Omaha, Mexico, San Diego, D.C., New Orleans, solo shows at The Players, Urban Stages, moreMusic at the Mansion, Somethin’ Café, then Christmas!  Thanks for reading.  Please comment, share, rate, review, tweet, and generally keep it moving along.

SH

[aside from misspelling Mike's family name in their original post, we're very pleased to be appreciated with such clarity!  (Bold print added here on sh.com)]

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Flights Volume One by Sean Harkness and Mike Herriott

Written by  Aaron Craven