Old Pals Colley, Koonse Hope Reunion Will Be a Charm

As aspiring teenage musicians growing up in Eagle Rock nearly 20 years ago, bassist Scott Colley and guitarist Larry Koonse played together often at any club or restaurant that would have them.

Their long-standing musical relationship took a hiatus in 1988 when Colley moved to New York and began working with Art Farmer, T.S. Monk, John Scofield and others. Koonse remained in Southern California to pursue studio work, teaching and performing as a member of the L.A. Jazz Quartet and other bands.

The two will be working together again next week when Colley returns to Los Angeles to record and appear with his old friend. Since leaving California nine years ago, the 33-year-old CalArts graduate has become one of the jazz world’s most in-demand bassists.

But Colley, in a phone conversation from his Manhattan apartment, downplays the importance of his move, saying it was not so much a conscious attempt to break into the high-visibility New York scene but more a matter of convenience.

“I was working with Carmen McRae at the time,� Colley says, “and we were playing Europe and the East Coast all the time. That gave me the opportunity to move to New York with a way to pay the bills.�

In fact, Colley was traveling so much with McRae when he first moved to New York that it took him a while to get a handle on the local scene. Saxophonist Clifford Jordan, who often traveled with the singer, took notice and hired the young bassist for his own band. Colley met Farmer through Jordan and ended up doing several European tours with the fluegelhornist-trumpeter. McRae introduced him to Dizzy Gillespie, leading to Colley’s participation in several of the late trumpeter’s last European appearances.

Colley went on to work with guitarist Scofield and record with drummer Monk’s post-bop revival band, including making the 1995 Monk album “The Charm� (Blue Note). In the last two years, he’s been frequently heard with guitarist Jim Hall. He traveled last summer with saxophonist Joe Lovano and earlier this month, he visited Japan with harmonica virtuoso Toots Thielemans.

But Colley has never forgotten his friends or formative experiences in California. A call last summer to Koonse, 35, led to plans for a recording. The two, with drummer Alex Cline and pianist David Roitstein (who directs the jazz program at CalArts), will record at Chick Corea’s Mad Hatter Studio in February and play at three locations next week.

“I’ve been playing with Larry since I was a kid,� Colley says. “We played clubs like Donte’s, Alphonse’s and Dino’s in Pasadena when I was in high school. He had me playing at Le Omelette in Pasadena when I was only 13.�

Colley also gives much credit to Roitstein’s program at CalArts for his success. “I had no plans to go to college,� he says, “but then I heard about CalArts’ program and the fact [bassists] Charlie Haden and Fred Tinsley of the L.A. Philharmonic were there. Between the two of them, I was able to go to both ends of the spectrum.�

“I knew when we were teenagers that [Colley] had a real gift,� Koonse says.

“I hadn’t heard him him play in a while and then got a chance to see him with the T.S. Monk band. He played one solo that made my mouth drop open. I couldn’t believe the growth. He’d become a world-class musician.�

Colley, who estimates he played on as many as 15 record dates last year, says he really isn’t concerned with comparisons between the New York and L.A. jazz scenes.

“I’m in no way trying to diss L.A.,� he explains. “I grew up [in Southern California] and went to New York to see what it was like someplace else. So much of the music that I was listening to was being played here, and there’s a lot of opportunity to work in Europe and Japan that wouldn’t come up in L.A.

“But I’m not trying to talk anybody into moving. New York’s a difficult and strange place, it’s very expensive, and getting around with a bass can be very hard. I often long for the days [in California] when I could just throw the bass in the back of my truck and get on the freeway with a cup of coffee and drive to the club.�

* The Scott Colley-Larry Koonse Quartet plays the Jazz Bakery, Tuesday, (310) 271-9039; Club Brasserie in the Bel Age Hotel, Thursday, (310) 854-1111; and the free jazz series at LACMA, Feb. 7, 5:30 p.m., (213) 857-6000.

The Envelope Please: Country music has its own music awards show. Why not jazz?

To that end, the recently formed National Assn. of Jazz Artists is talking to a number of networks about televising its coming Jazz Awards program, to be held April 5 at the Terrace Theatre in Long Beach. The show is part of a four-day jazz conference at the Sheraton Hotel Long Beach.

“Every kind of music has an awards show,� says Al Williams, president of Rainbow Promotions, which is arranging the event. “We think jazz artists should be recognized for their achievements on camera, not at some pre-event ceremony like they do at the Grammys.�

Jazz fans will be able to vote for their favorite artists in 15 categories in both “traditional bebop� and “contemporary� categories. Ballots are being distributed at Tower Records stores, jazz clubs and other venues across the country.

Among the live performances scheduled during the conference are a grand battle of high school and college bands as well as the “Jazz on Line� series, with combos appearing on trains and stops along the MTA’s Blue, Green and Red lines.

Information: (310) 436-7794.

Free Music: English jazz vocalist Ian Shaw appears at Borders Books and Music in West Hollywood, tonight at 8:30, (310) 659-4045; at Pedrini Music in Alhambra on Saturday at 1:30 p.m., (213) 283-1932; at Borders Westwood on Saturday at 7 p.m., (310) 475-0784; and at Borders Santa Monica on Sunday at 2 p.m., (310) 393-9290.