 |
||||||
|
|
||||||
 |
||||||
       |
||||||
 |
||||||
|
Search our site:           |
|
 The John Park Collection
One day, Jerry Atkins stumbled in bearing an armload of John Park's recording “If Winter Comes....” Bubbling over with enthusiasm, he breathlessly told me about John Park's history and Cinderella tour with the Kenton Band. I ordered a number of copies, mainly because pianist George Salisbury, a good friend, accompanied John on one side. Like Park, Salisbury spent little time in the recording studio. Putting the needle to the groove of the promotional copy Atkins left behind, I fell under the spell of Park's lyrical saxophone. So did others. Usually, whenever I played the record in the store a customer left with one in hand. A few years later, I met Park's son, Kim, who turned me on to his father's masterful solo on “Street of Dreams” from the Stan Kenton “Birthday in Britain” album. Over the last several years, Kim and I often discussed establishing the John Park Collection at the Marr Sound Archives. Kim inherited 13 open-reel tapes of the Kenton tour of Britain, recorded live by legendary sound engineer Wally Heider, along with several other odds and ends. After considerable back and forth phone calls earlier this year, Kim showed up at the archives bearing several boxes containing the coveted Kenton Britain tapes. Scott Middleton, the archives audio engineer, lovingly transferred the tapes to CD for patron use and preservation. The tapes are a revelation. Park's soaring solos reach new heights, and the band is in top form. Happily, now that the tapes have been digitized, Kim is completing an album featuring him and his father with big bands, including Stan Kenton. It will be available soon along with “If Winter Comes....” on the Kim Park Archive label at www.artistworkshop.com. Other projects are in the works, promising to significantly enrich the recorded legacy of John Park. These flowers are long overdue. For further information, go to www.kimparkmusic.com. For more information about the John Park Collection, contact Chuck Haddix at haddixc@umkc.edu. Chuck Haddix RETURN
TO OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2004 MAIN INDEX
|
|
           |
|
 |
||||||
Like most jazz fans, I discovered the genius of John Park after his untimely passing. During the late 1970s, I managed Penny Lane records, first on Wornall Road, then on Broadway. Penny Lane on Wornall, a small, casual, comfortable store specializing in jazz and blues, doubled as a gathering spot for the jazz community. Howard Rittmaster, Bill Fogerty, Dick Wright, and other big-time records collectors held court, recounting the pedigree of reissues in great detail. Musicians received a discount, and collectors flocked to the back room where bins overflowed with Blue Note and Impulse cutouts, selling for a few dollars each. Naturally, the store featured recordings by local and regional artists.