Rene Thomas

[pubylakeg]

Really, Ok, I'd never seen that from any authoritative source. That's a real shame. Too many greats lost.

[pubylakeg]

The National Audiovisual Institute of France (ina.fr) has archive recordings from the mid 50's featuring Rene Thomas on the radio programme "Piano Parade".

There are free extracts to review, or alternatively, one can stream or download the broadcasts for a minimal fee.

You can find them on their website under the heading "audios",

Recherche Ina fr

[Jehu]

So was Rene a straight-up economy picker? He clearly used a lot of sweeps, but it's sort of hard to tell what else is going on.

[AlsoRan]

I went on Amazon and sampled Rene Thomas' songs. I was in traditional Jazz heaven, as song after song featured a full rocking rhythm section and nice lyrical lines by Rene.

Its kind of like my musical Blues journey - I keep finding records from old Blues men who recorded songs in the Blues style that I like. I will probably never stop discovering "new music" this way.

At this moment, Rene is my favorite Jazz guitarist.

[neatomic]

nice to see the renewed rene thomas appreciation ...he was early fan of jimmy raney...when raney hit europe on his first tour with sonny clark in the early 50's, thomas was there!!! and soaked in that raney nyc bird infused bop first hand..well 2nd hand

great player, respect was paid to him on one of the first "fusion" lps ever...larry coryells spaces...john mclaughlin on 2nd guitar..

(with slightly out of tune guitars,hah)

cheers

[wintermoon]

Back in the day on my honeymoon in Paris I was perusing a local used record store and bought a copy of Chet Baker's lp "Chet Is Back" on French RCA.
I only bought it because I was on a big Chet Baker kick at the time. Didn't know the other cats on the date, the same ones in the "Oleo" video linked above.
Bobby Jaspar, tenor/flute, Rene, Amadeo Tomassini, piano, Benoit Quersin, bass and the great Daniel Humair drums.
It quickly became one of my favorite lps, just a gem.
These cats from Franca, Belgium and Italy are as good as anyone from the US.
If you like ReneThomas, this is a must have recording, not to mention everyone is burning, and maybe Chets best bop playing ever, superb band!

[mr. beaumont]

Great record.

Early Rene sounds like...well, early Raney. But in my opinion, there's not enough early Raney recordings, so Rene''s stuff is welcome.

RT went on to become very much his own player, as well.

[joe2758]

i haven’t heard this, thanks!

[AlsoRan]

Back in the day on my honeymoon in Paris I was perusing a local used record store and bought a copy of Chet Baker's lp "Chet Is Back" on French RCA.
I only bought it because I was on a big Chet Baker kick at the time. Didn't know the other cats on the date, the same ones in the "Oleo" video linked above.
Bobby Jaspar, tenor/flute, Rene, Amadeo Tomassini, piano, Benoit Quersin, bass and the great Daniel Humair drums.
It quickly became one of my favorite lps, just a gem.
These cats from Franca, Belgium and Italy are as good as anyone from the US.
If you like ReneThomas, this is a must have recording, not to mention everyone is burning, and maybe Chets best bop playing ever, superb band!

Loved it, man!

[AlsoRan]

Great record.

Early Rene sounds like...well, early Raney. But in my opinion, there's not enough early Raney recordings, so Rene''s stuff is welcome.

RT went on to become very much his own player, as well.

He does remind me of Raney. I noticed many of his recordings are better quality than early Raney and I am guessing that while Raney took that long hiatus, Rene was able to take advantage of advances in recording.

So sad Jim Raney could not have kept going and I hope he still had a fulfilling life. BTW, there is a duet album with Thomas and Raney.

[sgcim]

At the time Thomas was getting big on the scene, Raney was reportedly bugged about the fact that RT sounded a lot like him.

I've never been able to find a recording of RT playing the RT song on "Spaces, "Rene's Theme". Does anyone know if he ever recorded it?
RT's fellow Belgian buddy, Bobby Jaspar was a great tenor sax/flute player, and appears on a lot of East Coast jazz recordings in the late 50s-early 60s.
They recorded an album together in '62 with Daniel Humair called 'The Bobby Jaspar Quartet, Live at Ronnie Scott's " where they both played as great as I've ever heard them. Rene really had his thing together on that LP. Jaspar died at a pretty young age from drug use.

[sgcim]

He does remind me of Raney. I noticed many of his recordings are better quality than early Raney and I am guessing that while Raney took that long hiatus, Rene was able to take advantage of advances in recording.

So sad Jim Raney could not have kept going and I hope he still had a fulfilling life. BTW, there is a duet album with Thomas and Raney.

Which album was a duet with Raney and Thomas?

[AlsoRan]

Which album was a duet with Raney and Thomas?

It's called "Two Guitars in Paris"

Here is the link on Amazon.
Two Guitars In Paris by Jimmy Raney Rene Thomas on Amazon Music - Amazon.com

Enjoy.

[sgcim]

It's called "Two Guitars in Paris"

Here is the link on Amazon.
Two Guitars In Paris by Jimmy Raney Rene Thomas on Amazon Music - Amazon.com

Enjoy.

I don't think they actually play together on that album.
They just took some cuts from two albums Raney recorded in Paris 'Jimmy Raney in Paris" and "Pennies From Heaven" and used those cuts for the raney part of it.

For the Thomas part they used an album by Rene called "The Real Cat" from a series of recordings on Gitanes called 'Jazz in Paris'.
They re-issued another old Thomas LP on that series (Jazz in Paris) called "Meeting Mr. Thomas". I've got all of those records by both Raney and Thomas.

[mr. beaumont]

He does remind me of Raney. I noticed many of his recordings are better quality than early Raney and I am guessing that while Raney took that long hiatus, Rene was able to take advantage of advances in recording.

So sad Jim Raney could not have kept going and I hope he still had a fulfilling life. BTW, there is a duet album with Thomas and Raney.

Jimmy made records throughout the 70''s and 80's, even early 90's. He was playing at a very high level later in his life, some of his best work.

[lawson-stone]

Jimmy made records throughout the 70''s and 80's, even early 90's. He was playing at a very high level later in his life, some of his best work.

I think The Master was one of the later albums of JR, and I loved it.

I love also from the liner notes of one of Raney's albums this piece of trademark Jimmy Raney humor:

"A few days ago I began to wonder how I had become a Living Legend. It has happened in the last few years. Before that I was an Old Master. I'm not sure what a Living Legend is. I've also become an Elder Statesman. I don't know what that is either. I don't do much anymore, so I think about these things. That last sentence is a good example of what a Living Legend does. When I first became an Old Master, it worried me. I knew it meant the end was in sight, but I didn't know what to do about it. I know who's behind it though: it's the Jazz Critics.

I picture a secret meeting of Jazz Critics International held in upstate New York, where the Mafia had their ill-fated session. It's getting near lunchtime and most of the important things, such as what the new trends are and what Ira Gitler says they mean for jazz, have been taken care of. Then someone says:

"What are we going to do about the old players?"


"Like who?"

"Well. .. like Jimmy Raney, for instance."

"Who?"

"Raney. Raney. Don't you young guys ever listen to anything but Fusion?

"Oh yeah, now I remember. He played with Bix Beiderbecke."

''No. No. No. That was Eddie Condon --way back in the twenties. Raney came up in the Fifties: he played with Stan Getz or somebody. You're going to have to do some homework or you're in serious trouble. You can't get away with doing all your writing with old Leonard Feather articles, a pair of scissors, and a pot of glue."

"Why do we have to do anything?", somebody says, 'I hear he's dead anyway."


"He's not dead, he's deaf. That was a typo."


"Well, then he doesn't play anymore, so what's the problem?"


"No, he still plays once in a while. He played at Bradley's and Zinno's a couple of years ago and Ira didn't cover it, so I don't know what to say. He seemed to be doing the same sort of thing, but I'm not sure. I finally had to fall back on that old saw about 'crystal clear logical lines stretching to infinity.' You know the one: you've all used it. Geez, we can't keep doing stuff like that. People are beginning to catch on."

[AlsoRan]

Jimmy made records throughout the 70''s and 80's, even early 90's. He was playing at a very high level later in his life, some of his best work.

OK. I am goin' crazy.

For some reason, I thought I had read he slowed down his output for a while, like Tal Farlow. I am getting my artists mixed up.

Thanks, Mr. B.

[AlsoRan]

I don't think they actually play together on that album.
They just took some cuts from two albums Raney recorded in Paris 'Jimmy Raney in Paris" and "Pennies From Heaven" and used those cuts for the raney part of it.

For the Thomas part they used an album by Rene called "The Real Cat" from a series of recordings on Gitanes called 'Jazz in Paris'.
They re-issued another old Thomas LP on that series (Jazz in Paris) called "Meeting Mr. Thomas". I've got all of those records by both Raney and Thomas.

Thanks for pointing that out. I had not given it a listen, yet.

[AlsoRan]

I think The Master was one of the later albums of JR, and I loved it.

I love also from the liner notes of one of Raney's albums this piece of trademark Jimmy Raney humor:

He really seemed to be quite a fellow, with his sense of humor.

Because I have friends who are (and want to be) musicians, I have found myself getting opportunities to talk to several older working musicians. Some don't realize they really are treasures in that there is so much history, and so many stories in them.

I almost feel protective of some, because I am only beginning to understand the physically demands of being a working musician when you are in your 60's and 70's and beyond. I know that they many have not lived a life of sainthood, while others may have. The conversations with them are so enthralling, and there is a resiliency there that you don't always see in the average person.

[AlsoRan]

One last post (I guess that 2nd cup of coffee has me revved up) before I go play.

Here is a pretty nice trio with Rene. Apologies if someone already posted it on this thread.

Eddy Louiss Trio, with Rene Thomas and Kenny Clarke


Nardis (feat. Kenny Clarke & Rene Thomas) by Eddy Louiss Trio on Amazon Music - Amazon.com

[lawson-stone]

OK. I am goin' crazy.

For some reason, I thought I had read he slowed down his output for a while, like Tal Farlow. I am getting my artists mixed up.

Thanks, Mr. B.

Actually there does seem to be a pause. He recorded steadily up through 1957. Then I can find only one album between 1957 and 1972 "Two Jims and a Zoot." So maybe 1957-1972 was something of a hiatus? Somewhere in that period he left New York and came back home to Louisville, Ky. During Raney's last decade or so, I stupidly lived only 75 minutes away and never went to hear him. Life's got its regrets, and that's one of mine.

[wintermoon]

this video always manages to get deleted from youtube, but here it is for now.
three and a half minutes of burning organ trio...

[sgcim]

Despite the tinitus thing, Raney kept it together up to the end. My first guitar teacher was at a Guitar Show JR played at right before he died, and said he was still playing astoundingly great. I saw him live at Zinno's in the late 80s, and it's still the greatest musical experience of my life. It completely transcended any aspects of modern and old fashioned playing. It was simply the greatest jazz improvisation I've ever heard on the guitar, bar none.
It was like he went into some type of trance state, and was speaking in tongues. He seemed to have lost control of his facial expressions, and was frightening to look at; I had to avert my eyes, because it was actually disturbing to watch.

I think it had to do with the 'alpha state' that he and Getz used to talk about; where the music just flows out of them with no conscious thought on their part. But it wasn't the same thing as a musician like Trane going crazy all over the horn. The phrase he mentioned in that thing he wrote, "crystal clear logical lines stretching to infinity", seemed to apply .

He mentioned it in an interview with Terry Gross on NPR; how he understood music well enough to be able
to play okay when wasn't able to get into this state, but his best playing was done in that state.

H

[neatomic]

I don't think they actually play together on that album.
They just took some cuts from two albums Raney recorded in Paris 'Jimmy Raney in Paris" and "Pennies From Heaven" and used those cuts for the raney part of it.

For the Thomas part they used an album by Rene called "The Real Cat" from a series of recordings on Gitanes called 'Jazz in Paris'.
They re-issued another old Thomas LP on that series (Jazz in Paris) called "Meeting Mr. Thomas". I've got all of those records by both Raney and Thomas.

yes thats right..they dont play together...just a mixture

cheers

[sgcim]

Actually there does seem to be a pause. He recorded steadily up through 1957. Then I can find only one album between 1957 and 1972 "Two Jims and a Zoot." So maybe 1957-1972 was something of a hiatus? Somewhere in that period he left New York and came back home to Louisville, Ky. During Raney's last decade or so, I stupidly lived only 75 minutes away and never went to hear him. Life's got its regrets, and that's one of mine.

I think he had to stay in Louisville to take care of his mother, who was ill, and detox from alcohol. He had to accept local gigs like playing for weddings with mediocre players. He recorded with Gary McFarland ('Point of Departure'), and Dave Pike (the "Oliver" album) in the 60s, and if you're lucky enough to have the 'Strings and Swings' LP on Muse- it never made it to CD, because of legal reasons, one side of it has the phenomenal piece he composed for guitar,cello,violin,viola, bass and drums, "Suite For Guitar Quintet" which has five movements, and lasts for 30 minutes, recorded in 1957.
On the other side is a jazz concert given under the auspices of the Louisville Jazz Council at the Port O' Call Gallery in 1969. It features him playing in a quintet with Bobby Jones-tenor sax, and Bob Lam-piano, playing fabulous versions of Bernie's Tune, Darn That Dream, Stella, and Round Midnight.