The main event of this release is the new "Street of Dreams Remix" of "Zoot's Soprano." Like most of THE BECHET CENTURY, the original release of this track was quite sparse, a reflection of the fact that the album was assembled in a great hurry to mark the centenary of Bechet's first surviving recordings from June 1913. In late 2023, I went back to the track to thicken its texture somewhat, and also bring further forward my brother Frank's spectacular bass playing!

As simple as the tune is, "Zoot's Soprano" is also the guitar solo I'm most proud of (by far!). For whatever reason, on that day in March 2023, things felt like they were cooking. The whole track (except for the bass, which Frank added later) came together in 20 minutes.

The tune owes something to Zoot Sims' classic "Brahms...I Think." As I've noted previously, the title came about because when Zoot took up the soprano saxophone in the 1970s, he named his new horn Sidney, after his inspiration on the instrument. But it was, of course, Zoot and not Bechet who was inclined to play in this sort of bossa-inflected style, particularly in the '70s and '80s. Come to think of it, "Brahms...I Think" sounds more like a horah than it does a bossa.

Anyway, as we approach the anniversary of the THE BECHET CENTURY, let's look back on that project through the lens of some alternate takes and mixes! Some of the stuff here is lo-fi even by my usual standard, but I do think those tracks are at least interesting enough to share, if not charge for. (Also included are a couple of bits related to my new album, GUITAR SKETCHES.)

THE OTHER SONGS

LADY LUCK BLUES (alternate take): This is a different take entirely from the version that appeared on THE BECHET CENTURY. During the session, I gave the song two complete run-throughs (including mandolin and piano overdubs), and this one was rejected due to a bit of string noise early in the track, even though I thought it might be a slightly better performance overall. The main differences between this version and the album take are the addition of a bass, and a bit more mandolin.

A GREEN GAL CAN'T CATCH ON (album preview mix): This was the second track recorded specifically for THE BECHET CENTURY ("Viper Mad" was the first). At the time, I was kicking around two different projects and it was still unclear to me whether the Bechet one would win out. A short while later, while also working on "Summertime," I prepared this mix as a preview of what I was working on. This was about 2 months before Frank came onboard to transform this track and "Zoot's Soprano," so the bass on this version is mine. The Bandcamp download version includes the video that I cut together for the track, based on this same early mix.

DEEP RIVER/DEAR OLD SOUTHLAND: The version of "Deep River" that appeared on THE BECHET CENTURY was a composite of two takes, consisting of two verses of an earlier take and a third verse from a later one. The basic guitar performance that makes up the first half of this track is the full later take, so it is 2/3rds a different performance than the previously released version. As with "Lady Luck Blues," I was uncertain at the time which version was stronger, adding bass to both, but didn't think too hard about the question. In late 2023, after the release of the album, I returned to the alternate and overdubbed the piano (and replaced the bass), and then added the choral second section, titled in tribute to the great Charles Gayle, who had performed "Deep River" in the 1970s. Second-guessing myself, I snipped off the vocal section and earmarked the track for my new album, GUITAR SKETCHES. But here is the whole thing!

LADY LUCK BLUES (electric demo, part 1): I decided very early on that I wanted to do this song as part of the Bechet project, but it took me a long time to figure out an arrangement, and the final version was one of the last things recorded for the album. Before I made up my mind to sing it, I experimented with an instrumental version, and this extremely lo-fi recording captures my intiial sketch of that idea. This track is exclusive to Bandcamp. A second verse and chorus is included as a bonus track with the download version..

BECHET'S BIRTHDAY (solo guitar stem): The simple blues "Bechet's Birthday," aka "Birthday Blues," took almost 2 years of intermittent work to arrive at the MJQ-influenced version on THE BECHET CENTURY. A different version, mixing earlier and later elements, appears on GUITAR SKETCHES. This mix isolates the solo guitar fragment on which the Bechet version was built, recorded on my then-new Jaguar in October 2022.

AS-TU LE CAFARD? (alternate solo): During the session for this acoustic version of the beloved Bechet theme, I took two cracks at the guitar solo. Unlike some other tracks on the album (e.g. "Summertime" and "Green Gal") where I did the same thing but then left the faders up on the final mix, for this tune I made an arbitrary choice of what seemed to me the "best" take. This mix, exclusive to Bandcamp, brings forward the rejected solo.

WHOOP MISS WOLF AWAY FROM MY DOOR (A CAPELLA MIX): My original idea for arranging this Coot Grant blues (recorded with Bechet and Mezzrow in the '40s) was as a kind of doo-wop. The result, which survives as a brief demo sketch, is too embarrassing to share, but it did eventually give way to the final six-part vocal arrangement, which is presented here a capella. It's another Bandcamp exclusive.

REPRISE: THE WRATH OF DR. CRANIUS!: I'll let you experience this one for yourself .It's based, of course, on the rhythm track of "Zoot's Soprano," including both Frank's bass and my original rejected bass part from before he came on board. It also features an alternate guitar solo, and another appearance by "The Charles Gayle Memorial Choir."

THE COVER

The cover image depicts the jazz section of Atelier Grigorian, Canada's finest music store, just before it closed in spring 2019. Grigorian played an essential part in my musical education. I am in debt to the Grigorian family for all they've done for music in this city.

Notes: Toronto, Spring 2024