Take 5 Jazz

The latest show:

  • Start my program with tenor saxophonist Tina Brooks, track from the lp “Back to the Tracks” recorded September/October 1960 with Jackie McLean: alto sax, Blue Mitchell: trumpet, Kenny Drew: piano, Paul Chambers: bass, Art Taylor: drums
  • Vibraphonist Nat Steele, track from his cd “Afternoon in Paris-The Music of John Lewis & The M.J.Q.” recorded august 29 & 30th 2023 with Scott Hamilton: tenor sax, Matyas Gayer: piano, Dave Green: bass, Steve Brown: drums
  • Vibraphonist Carl Schulze, track from the cd “April Dance” , recorded may 22 & 22nd 2003 with Jean Louis van Dam: keyboards, Martin Zand Scholten: bass guitar, Maarten Kruijswijk: drums
  • Vibraphonist Ruben Estrada, track from the cd “Get out of my Way” recorded march 16th 1996 with Henry Estrada: saxes & flute, Ruben Estrada, Jr: drums and percussion, Joe Rotondi, Jr: piano, Malcolm Ian Peters: bass, Raul Rico: congas, percussion
  • Guitarist Louis Stewart, track from the new release from Livia records “I Thought About You” recorded march 18th 1977 with John Taylor: piano, Sam Jones: bass, Billy Higgins: drums
  • The Ben Webster special, track 322/520, this week Ben’s Lp “Saturday Night at the Montmartre” recorded january 30th 1965 with Kenny Drew: piano, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen: bass, Alex Riel: drums
  • Hammond organist Pete Johnstone, track from his cd “Resistance is Futile” recorded October 22nd 2023 with Joe Locke: vibraphone, Tommy Smith: tenor sax, Alyn Cosker: drums
  • Trumpeter Randy Brecker with the All Stars “Live in Munster” recorded November 7th 1987with Bennie Wallace: tenor sax, Elaine Elias: piano, Dieter Ilg: bass, Peter Erskine: drums
  • Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Big Band, track from “Live at the Doelen, Rotterdam” recorded September 9th 1969 with Danny Moore, Al Porcino, Snooky Young: trumpets, Eddie Bert, Jimmy Knepper, Cliff Heater: trombones, Jerry Dodgion, Jerome Richardson: alto saxes, Eddie Daniels and Joe Henderson: tenor saxes, Pepper Adams: baritone sax, Roland Hanna: piano, Richard Davis: bass

About Take 5 Jazz

In the weekly show of Take 5 Jazz I will take you into the great world of Jazz. Beyond the mainstream and well known recordings, my show is an entrance to the vast range of all the various styles within the genre, such as Bebop, West Coast jazz, and most notable: Latin. Jazz music knows many faces: from the old American Jazz standards to the British scene, and from big bands to Cool Jazz; ranging from the oldest to the most recent of recordings, every week some of the finest from my collection will be played.

One of my aims is present something unknown every week; to give some airplay to those musicians to whom people pay too little attention to, as well as providing rare recordings of well-known musicians. Take 5 Jazz offers a blend of the familiar and unfamiliar, mostly jazz and sometimes a bit of blues, but always with the intent to find something new and interesting.

Jan Klein, the man behind Take 5 Jazz

An article in a Dutch newspaper, marking the 300th show of Take 5 Jazz.
(Click to enlarge)

Back in 1997 people, who knew about my passion for Jazz, asked me to start a radio show at a local radio station. Rather than generic pop music usually aired, this new show, Take 5, offered the best Jazz and Blues that was within my ever-expanding collection.

My collection spans a great number of LPs and CDs, and started in the early seventies. At the time, as a little boy, I bought my first LP: Cal Tjader’s Latin Kick. This marked the beginning of my love for the genre. The quality of his sound and the quality of performance drew me to Ben Webster. Ben, like Cal, is one of the cornerstones of my collection.

For several years I aired this music, but times change. Progressing from a small local radio station to the World Wide Web, I became fully independent. Now I am able to share my love for the music with an audience from all over the world!

For over forty years after I collected every known recording that Cal Tjader produced, making me one of the few in the world who managed to complete the entire discography of Cal. The combination of Jazz and Latin was what started my love for Jazz, and thus it was something I wanted to give special attention in my show. From October 14, 2002, to July 31, 2018, I aired my entire collection: one track a week, every week. It was a monumental task, and I am proud that I managed to complete it.

Once I reached the end of my Cal Tjader special, I had to switch to a different musician. A poll amongst my listeners finalized my decision: for 520 weeks in a row there will be at least one track of Ben Webster in my show!

A painting given to me to celebrate my 500th show of Take 5 Jazz

Sem van Gelder from The Swingmaster, one of the main sources of my collection.

Cal Tjader and Ben Webster are but two examples of the musicians that I count amongst my favourites. The long and wonderful history of the Jazz genre has brought forth many musical geniuses. And while Jazz might originate from the United States, those gifted in the art of music are born all over the world. The jazz scene in Britain, for instance, featured artists such as Tubby Hayes and Phil Seamen. And for me, hailing from Holland, there are many ‘local’ musicians whom I admire, whose albums I collected. The most notable of these are Jan Akkerman and Rob Franken.

For a more expansive summary of the musicians whose music I appreciate, click here.

A few years ago I picked up a hobby. Next to my big love for listening to jazz music, and sharing this passion through my show Take 5 Jazz, I’ve started painting.

Please take a look on this page, where I share some of my paintings.

Contact

Contact me either through one of the social media buttons on the top of the page, or use the form below to send me an e-mail.