The music I chose to play from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on KCOU 26 years ago:
1. Moonlight Serenade-Charlie Haden Quartet West
(When you start your show with an elegant, expansive piano, bass, and saxophone instrumental, that sets a certain mood...)
2. The Passion Theme-Warren Hill
(...that would be appropriate to continue during your first music set. I still think this segue from traditional jazz to a smooth jazz saxophone melody works. I remember "The Passion Theme" coming up fairly often on the playlist during my KNJZ days.)
3. Lullaby For Shana Bly-Charles Fambrough
(I wanted to up the tempo while staying true to the mood I'd established. Fambrough's bass-anchored melody for saxophone accomplished this. I also recommend Grover Washington, Jr.'s version.)
4. Air-Ron Carter
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5. Down The Avenue-Wynton Marsalis Septet
6. J Mood-Wynton Marsalis
7. All New Meaning-Christopher Hollyday
8. At The Crossroads-Bobby Watson
(The bounce of this Watson track would segue smoothly with Gene Harris's version of "Strollin'.")
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9. Things Are Getting Better-David Benoit
(I never hear any smooth jazz station play this, and it's a missed opportunity; Benoit's appropriately titled piano melody maintains its optimism...)
10. Mountain Dance-Dave Grusin
(...and flows with this optimistic piano-based tune.)
11. Strawberry Letter 23-Phil Upchurch
(A fine jazz/funk instrumental cover of the Shuggie Otis tune that The Brothers Johnson popularized.)
12. Our Time Has Come-Sala Brothers
13. Bassically Taps-Stanley Clarke
(I'd forgotten how much this bass track, with fancy footwork from Gregory Hines, reminds me of Victor Wooten's bass playing.)
14. My Place In Space-Jimmy Smith
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15. Just Like The Movies-Betty Carter
16. It's Like Reaching For The Moon-Billie Holiday
(I like that there was a place on KCOU for throwback vocal and instrumental elegance from 1936.)
17. Purple Avenue-Holly Cole Trio
(In the wrong voice, reflective lyrics such as these could easily be oversung. Fortunately, Cole avoids this trap in her vocals. I hadn't listened to this cover or the Tom Waits original in years, and I regret it.)
18. You Must Believe In Spring-Abbey Lincoln
19. Friends In High Places-Tuck & Patti
(Patti Cathcart's vocal delivery here reminds me of Tracy Chapman.)
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20. Bernie's Tune-Lee Konitz with The Gerry Mulligan Quartet
(You might not recognize this 1953 tune by name, but If you're over a certain age, you've probably heard this tune's seeming gangster movie riff used as background music.)
21. There'll Come A Time-Bix Beiderbecke
22. Double Date-Metronome All-Stars
(A stellar meeting of the bebop minds in 1950, featuring such luminaries as Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, and Max Roach.)
23. Rosetta-Henry "Red" Allen All -Stars
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24. Turtle Rock-Bela Fleck & The Flecktones
(Some ear-catching, contemporary-for-its-time spacey jazz rock, featuring the aforementioned Victor Wooten on bass.)
25. Scuttlebutt-Bela Fleck & The Flecktones
(One of the more memorable rock-ish banjo melodies from the strong "UFO Tofu" album. Something about the way this track comes together reminds me of John Scofield.)
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