Musically, shortly after leaving Monk, Dunlop signed with Atlantic Records. In 1964, Frankie recorded several rather commercial singles under this own leadership, Frankie Dunlop & His Orchestra, including Latin Twist, Lowdown Waltz, and Uptown Downtown. He freelanced on some small group recordings with Mose Allison, Sonny Rollins, and bassist Richard Davis. The Davis album, The […]
The story of Thelonious Monk’s engagement at the Five Spot in the summer of 1957 has entered into jazz lore as possibly the most consequential club engagement in the history of jazz, bringing together Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane and serving to rapidly propel both careers forward. But Frankie Dunlop’s very short role in it […]
Buffalo, by virtue of its large and growing Black population as well as its geographic location- about halfway between New York City and Chicago, 200 miles from Cleveland and 90 miles from Toronto, Canada- was a frequent destination for the nationally known big bands as well as small groups playing “the new thing,” bebop. Nothing, […]
American culture has a rich history when it comes to the art of the big band. Running through the stream of our American conscious is the influence of popular big bands dating back to the era of Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Harry James, and Glenn Miller. Duke Ellington, and to a large degree Count Basie, […]
