JAMMING WITH WARREN
A special musical delight for me over the years has been recording a number of times with Warren Chiasson, a highly regarded musician in the jazz world whom the New York Times called “one of the six top vibraphonists of the last half century.”
Warren also happens to be an enjoyable companion and we’ve become good friends. He has given me some helpful instruction on the vibes and advised on instruments and mallets. Warren performed at some notable family events, such as my son Erik’s wedding and my 75th birthday party, plus a celebration of Simon & Schuster’s publication of my Smart Negotiating book.
Warren was born in Nova Scotia and moved to New York in 1959 where he played as a member of the famed George Shearing Quintet for several years. His vibes trademarks are a four-mallet technique and percussive melodic style. He later formed his own groups and has performed with such notable musicians as Chet Baker and Tal Farlow, and recorded with jazz icons like Chuck Wayne.
Along with vocalist Annette Sanders and bassist Dmitri Kolesnik, I’ve recorded over a dozen tunes with Warren. I selected six of my favorites for this September blog entry – a half-hour of exhilarating jazz.
The tunes are (in this order):
1. Oh, Look at Me Now
2. There Will Never Be Another You
3. The Very Thought of You
4. On a Slow Boat to China
5. Gone with the Wind
6. Stompin’ at the Savoy
I’ve also included a video excerpt of the duet on There Will Never Be Another You that Warren and I performed on a single vibraphone at my 75th birthday party – it still gives me a thrill to watch.
Click on the Play button to listen to the six-tune medley.
Click on the button below to play our vibes duet video.
Click below for the accompanying liner notes, which you can access before, during or after hearing the music.