Don Sickler: In a little over a week, on August 30 (Kenny Dorham's 100th birthday), we start celebrating the Kenny Dorham Centennial year. Jazzleadsheets.com is determined to continue enriching our catalog of Kenny Dorham's music throughout the year. K.D. (as Dorham was affectionately known) is a vitally important trumpet player and composer: all jazz musicians should experience playing his very special music. On his birthday, we'll be adding some more K.D. gems to our catalog.
For this week, we want to take you back to the mid 1940s bebop era, after Kenny arrived in NYC. In Kenny's own words, published in Downbeat's 1970 Music Directory "Fragments of an Autobiography": After having been a protege in the first Dizzy Gillespie Orchestra (1945)--Dizzy's protege--I was groomed to succeed Fats Navarro, who had succeeded Diz in Billy Eckstine's orchestra. It was really a hot chair. I was following the two most outstanding trumpeters in jazz history . . .
During his early time in NYC, he was also getting playing and recording experience with big bands like Mercer Ellington.
On August 23, 1946, Kenny did a morning and afternoon recording session as the trumpet player in two Sonny Stitt All Stars sessions for Savoy Records. The morning session included what I believe are Kenny's first two recorded compositions, Bombay and Fool's Fancy, both now on jazzleadsheets.com. In 1947, he recorded The Thin Man (already on jazzleadsheets.com), and we're now making Baby Sis available from Kenny's May 15, 1949, recording session in Paris, France with the Max Roach Quintet. The first recording I know of Kenny Dorham with Max was the Christmas Eve radio broadcast, Royal Roost, NYC, December 25, 1948, when Kenny started working as the trumpet player in the Charlie Parker Quintet. Kenny's work with Charlie Parker finally brought him to the attention of the jazz world.
As Kenny Dorham's publisher, my main goal remains the same: to make correct editions of Kenny's music available to musicians and fans worldwide. I will work in earnest to bring out many more editions of his music during his Centennial year. Educationally, K.D.'s music is extremely important, as his writing requires and inspires engagement and cooperation among all playing it. I'm going to be working on expanding The K.D. Challenge editions, which give insight into the intricacy and importance of his incredible rhythm section writing that makes each member of the rhythm section part of the compositional process. I feel all jazz rhythm sections need to experience playing this music.