Calling From the Left Bank

Vault discoveries featuring Sonny Stitt, Shirley Scott and others speak to a different live-music dynamic in Baltimore

Tucked in the middle of “A Different Blues” from a newly unearthed 1973 Sonny Stitt performance is an instantly intriguing live-recording artifact: After a short pause in the tenor solo, a voice fairly close to a microphone shouts “One” at the top of a chorus. The tempo is brisk, but seems to be mostly under control thanks to the unflappable tandem of bassist Sam Jones and drummer Louis Hayes. Still, this voice repeats the “One” shout/admonition; then the tenor returns to a blazing line of post-bop inquiry. (Could it be Stitt? I have no idea what the late saxophonist’s voice sounded like, and there’s an uncredited second tenor on the tune. Some Left Bank denizens guess it’s the esteemed Mickey Fields...Perhaps someone with knowledge can meet up with us over in the Substack Notes space?).

We hear enough ambient sound to sense that the crowd inside the Famous Ballroom is lively and engaged; can’t help but wonder what happened on stage next. Were there stern eyebrows-furrowed looks flying around? What was the audience reaction? After all, these were jazz listeners, people who knew a little something about bandstand dynamics. Because starting in 1964, the Left Bank Jazz Society, which presented this show, brought hundreds of jazz legends to Baltimore, including Duke Ellington, John Coltrane and Sun Ra (whose performance there is part of Robert Mugge’s enlightening 1980 documentary Sun Ra: A Joyful Noise).

Stitt’s set is one of three live titles just brought out by Jazz Detective/Deep Digs, the label founded by Zev Feldman to showcase rarities and vault discoveries. The others: A terrific, peak-energy performance by organist Shirley Scott featuring tenor virtuoso George Coleman (Queen Talk: Live at the Left Bank), and a more sedate quartet date, Bish at the Bank, led by the underappreciated pianist Walter Bishop Jr. with (the equally underappreciated) Harold Vick on tenor.

These chronicle an almost quaint disappearing sliver of live-music culture: Gigs that were organized by dedicated music lovers (as opposed to clubowners or concert promoters) and, over time, cultivated an informed, dedicated audience that showed up for the big names and also, crucially, lesser-known talents. This was an era before not-for-profit organizations became, by necessity, presenters of live music. It was a time when music was its own social network: As the artists interviewed for the liner notes recall, live shows presented by the Left Bank Jazz Society were community happenings.

“I used to love playing at the Famous Ballroom in Baltimore....I remember the vibe and it was very cool,” pianist Kenny Barron said. “Every time you’d go there, you would see pretty much the same people.....They served food if you wanted it, or people would sell food. People were really there for the music.”

Katea and Jason Stitt, Sonny Stitt’s children, share similarly fond memories of the multiple times their father performed for the series. “Some of our earliest glimpses into the power of this music to create community – to heal and restore souls – were in that sacred space.”

Certainly Stitt was up to that lofty challenge, just about every time he performed: He was the protean improvisor who never let technical command be the only story; he managed his gifts so as to remain immersed in the musical conversation.

This 1973 date, which is after his return to acoustic saxophone following several years with the Varitone electric pickup system, captures him playing characteristically intricate bebop on alto and undertaking slightly more expansive, relaxed exploration on tenor. He switched horns depending on the tune (on the opening “Baltimore Blues” he solos on both); there’s a deep lesson about musical “identity” waiting on this and other live recordings where Stitt employs smart, highly developed idiomatic devices on each instrument. He never simply draws on his bag of practice-room tricks, even on the extended flag-waving tags he deployed to wrap up so many tunes. He uses song quotes and barnburning reville-style riffs to launch (and organize) forays into unknown territory. It doesn’t take long for him to move from something jargony to something fresh on either instrument. He’s an uncanny split personality: The way he plays on alto is completely different from what he does on tenor. Yet it’s clearly the same ruthless, impossibly dexterous musician behind each horn.

The Left Bank Jazz Society, which inspired similar endeavors in other cities, is no longer active; it presented shows until the early 1990s. Many of them were recorded: In the ‘90s, Verve issued two rousing Joe Henderson titles with the Wynton Kelly Trio, Four and Straight No Chaser, drawn from the Left Bank archives, and in recent years other business entities have sought to make significant performances from the series, which is part of the collection of the Morgan State Library, available to the public. The sound quality on the titles I’ve heard over the years varies somewhat, but the music is almost always inspired, at the level of spontaneous interaction that prevails on the Stitt.

It’s impossible to explain with any precision why that is, but here’s a guess: The Left Bank created an environment in which musicians felt comfortable. As a result, the audiences felt comfortable, like they were part of a happening and not just an exploitable target market. As a result, they came back and were able to develop a deeper connection to music. And as a result of that, improvised music – to a degree dependent on atmospheric conditions – was able to flourish. Not just for one night in a performing-arts-center season but on a reasonably regular schedule, at times almost weekly, for years and years. That “social music” dynamic has power; it’s another aspect of old music culture we should try to hang onto. If possible.

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