L.A. Jazz Quartet Plays on Polish Connection

It’s based in Los Angeles, capital of the record business, and even takes the city’s name as its own. But the Los Angeles Jazz Quartet’s latest album, “Family Song,” was pressed in Austria and released by a record label located in Krakow, Poland.

How can this be?

The answer lies with the group’s bassist, Darek Oleszkiewicz, who’s better known to local fans as Darek Oles. Living in Krakow in the early 1980s, Oles befriended his future executive producer, Marek Winiarski, at Winiarksi’s local record shop.

“It was one of the best record stores in Poland,” says Oles, “and I used to go there and pick up Miles Davis albums and other jazz. He had a very good selection of imports.”

Oles relocated to Los Angeles in 1987 and has since become a first-call bassist. He joined with guitarist Larry Koonse, saxophonist Chuck Manning and drummer Kevin Tullius in 1993 to form the Los Angeles Jazz Quartet, and when it came time to make the group’s first record, Oles contacted Winiarski, who was then an executive at Krakow-based GOWI Records. The result was “Astarte,” released in 1994.

In 1996, the group was the runner-up in the annual Cognac Hennessey Jazz Search, an honor that resulted in their signing to the jazz division of the international classical label Naxos. Naxos released the quartet’s “Journey to the East” in 1997.

Though a second Naxos disc is planned, the group, according to Oles, is loaded with new material and couldn’t wait to record. “Naxos is such a big company, it just takes forever to get things out. Since we didn’t have an exclusive contract with them and wanted to get something out right away while this new music was fresh, we went ahead and recorded.”

In Krakow, Winiarski had just started his own label, Not Two Records, and again agreed to take on the musicians from L.A. “Family Song” is Not Two’s second release.

“We had such good international sales with the first album,” says Oles. “I’m hoping it will happen again. The album represents what we’ve been doing the last year. Our sound has always represented various styles, straight-ahead, rhythm & blues, bebop, ECM-styled tunes like those from [pianist] Keith Jarrett or [saxophonist] Jan Garbarek, and free-form improvisations.”

* The Los Angeles Jazz Quartet plays Jax in Glendale, Wednesday, (818) 500-1604, and will hold a record release party at Rocco’s in Bel-Air on Dec. 11. Information: (310) 475-9807.

Tyner Stays Flexible: McCoy Tyner, the pianist who in 1995 returned to Impulse!, the label that released his first recordings in the early 1960s, confirms in a phone conversation that he’s again changed labels. His coming release scheduled for next March, “McCoy Tyner and His Latin Jazz All-Stars,” will be on TelArc. The CD documents an ensemble that includes trombonist Steve Turre, saxophonist Gary Bartz, trumpeter Claudio Roditi, flutist Dave Valentin and others.

Tyner, who first recorded for Impulse! between 1962 and 1965, notched two releases for Impulse! in the 1990s, a trio date, “Infinity,” with guest saxophonist Michael Brecker, and last year’s Tommy LiPuma-produced collection of Burt Bacharach tunes with symphony orchestra.

During that time, Impulse! also reissued Tyner’s 1962 debut, “Inception,” with drummer Elvin Jones and bassist Art Davis, as well as the 1962 trio date “Reaching Fourth” with drummer Roy Haynes and the 1964 recording “McCoy Tyner Plays Ellington,” with Jones, Coltrane-bassist Jimmy Garrison and, in early evidence of Tyner’s interest in Latin rhythms, percussionists Willie Rodriguez and Johnny Pacheco.

Tyner, who has recorded for a host of companies during his career, most notably Milestone, Columbia and Blue Note, said by phone from his Manhattan home that it was time for a fresh start.

“I’m a little shy of signing any long-term contract. I like to move around, like the idea of a record company getting excited about a project. It’s easy for a jazz artist to get lost in the shuffle when he’s with a big record company.”

Holiday Sounds: “A Smooth Jazz Christmas,” with saxophonist Dave Koz, keyboardist David Benoit, guitarist Peter White and singer Brenda Russell, brightens up the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts on Wednesday, (800) 300-4345; keyboardist Gregg Karukas, vocalist Shelby Flint and others team for “Holiday Jazz” at the Cal State Northridge Performing Arts Center, Dec. 6, (818) 677-3943; trumpeter Bobby Rodriguez celebrates “A Latin Jazz Christmas” at the Luckman Fine Arts Complex, Cal State L.A., Dec. 20, (323) 343-6600.