Manny Albam - West Side Story

Manny Albam gathers some buddies and records what is essentially a big band recording of the most influential soundtrack from my teens. When I was just a lad I didn't realize how this soundtrack would work it's way into the very fiber of my being. It resides there to this day, just waiting to be shaken awake occasionally. You can't tell me you don't find it so yourself.

 Did I mention that Albam and friends pulled it off? Cuz they did.

 Manny Albam and his Jazz Greats

 1.Prologue and Jet Song ..
.2.Something's Coming
 3. Cool
 4. Maria
 5. Tonigt
 6. I Feel Pretty
 7. Somewhere
 8. Finale

Manny Albam's Jazz Greats on this lp are: Gene Quill, Ernie Royal, Osie Johnson, Milt Hinton, Hank Jones, Al Cohn, Bob Brookmeyer, Wendell Marshall, Ed Costa, amongst others.


Decca Records DL4517

vinyl rip

Coleman Hawkins - JATP and more

 

It's a Friday night and we gotta lotta love for Hawkins round Chez Hook this evening. Had a itch needed scratchin' so I threw together these live tracks. Couple of oddball bonus cuts thrown in.

I started off with an old Verve lp that has 3 from a 1950 JATP set, next up another 3 from 49. Rifftide from the second set should be recognized as Hackensack by Monk, obviously from their time together. The first lp finishes off with Hawkins accompanying MJQ on 4 tracks.

Next I tacked on Hawkins set from a Pablo box entitled "The Greatest Jazz Concert In The World", a claim that doesn't actually hold up. Go figure! But it is fun.

Then I slapped on a couple of odd tracks from weird compilations before finishing with a "jam session" from the afore mentioned earth shaking concert. The jam is a Duke staple and I'm pretty sure my cloth ears say Hawkins in sandwiched between the Prez and Benny Carter solos.

1. Yesterdays
2. Hawk's Tune
3. Stuffy
4. Body and Soul
5. Rifftide
6. Sophisticated Lady
7. Bean Stalkin'
8. I Can't Get Started
9. Time On My Hands
10. The Walker
11. Moonglow
12. Sweet Georgia Brown

13. Lover Come Back To Me
14. Blues Changes
15. Skippy
16. Battle of the Saxes

17. C Jam Blues

Coleman Hawkins - The Hawk And The Hunter

 I'll be honest. I don't often enjoy strings with my jazz.Well instrumentalists anyway. Even with singers I am a tad wishy-washy. It's like that thick icing on birthday cakes, all show but so cloyingly sweet it can only be ingested in small amounts. Save the strings for soundtracks is my general philosophy.
 But then again, when a giant of the idiom and a personal favorite thinks it's a good idea, I have to give it a listen. A fair listen.
 As any follower of this blog will note, I am a big Hawkins fan and besides just laying over some strings, he brought along a rhythm section for this recording. Well, actually two, and one of them sports one of my favorite pianists as well, Hank Jones.
 Despite the fact that the strings do indeed get a bit saccharine at times I still kinda dig this lp.It's very reminscent of those Moodsville lps. Hawkins shines through especially on the self penned tunes. Unfortunately this version of Brahm's Lullaby makes me long for a version without strings. That would have been some ballad.

Groovy cool cover for bonus points.

The Hawk and the Hunter

1. Easy Walker*

2. Traumerei

3. All The Time *

4. Lazy Butterfly

5. Not Quite Right*

6. Pebbles*

7. I Knew Dana*

8. Lullaby

9. Hawk Talk

10. Misty Morning

11. Lonely Tenor

12. Whisper To Me*

Coleman Hawkins - tenor sax
Frank Hunter - conductor

tunes marked *
Dick Hyman - piano
Milt Hinton - bass
Osie Johnson - drums

all others
Hank Jones - piano
George Duvivier - bass
Jimmie Crawford - drums

no recording info included

Mira records LP-3003
 

The Great Jazz Trio - Love For Sale

 I have never understood why these guys chose such an ridiculous name...not that they didn't hold up to it. Still....it just seems such a bad idea. But moving on...
 Something just happens when a classic trio locks into it and covers classic tune after tune. It's after dark and the temperature is still hovering over the 80 degree mark and yet the music makes me feel cool and comfortable. How nice is that?

The Great Jazz Trio

Love For Sale

1. Love For Sale

2. Glad To Be Unhappy

3. Gee Baby, Ain't I Good To You

4. Secret Love

5. Someone To Watch Over Me

6.  Autumn Leaves

Hank Jones - piano

Buster Williams - bass

Tony Williams - drums

recorded 5/22/76, Vanguard Studios NYC

originally released on East West records this is from my vinyl copy of an Inner City reissue.. IC 6003




 

DJ Theme Somgs

There was a time I was living on the outskirts of Chicago. I lived in a basement bedroom and WDCB was a ray of light in my dismal existence.Things are far better now but I still enjoy listening to these recordings of some of the shows I made back then. Saved my soul, they did.

This is just one of those shows. If I ran a radio station, I would love to play this stuff. It's short, but certainly worth your time. Enjoy.

Songs written for or inspired by Disc Jockeys

1. One For Daddy - O

2. Chicago

3. Coral Reef

4. At Long Last Love

5. Be-Bop Charlie

6. Nasty Magnus

7. The Mark of Jazz

1. The Cannonball Adderly Sextet

2. Count Basie/Tony Bennett

3. Neal Hefti

4. Frank Sinatra

5. Bob Florence

6. Count Basie

7. Maynard Ferguson

another radio show

Hoagy Carmichael - The Classics

So we are at 200. Hardly a milestone for some. But a monster for me. This is my turning point. It seems most of the stuff I own is now available. I've got maybe a handful of radio shows and very little else. So maybe I should just wind this thing down. Except I like being part of this little jazz blogger community. So maybe we just plug along with cool things we like and see where it goes.

Back to the subject at hand. A three lp boxset dedicated to one of the greatest songwriters ever. Hoagy's own vocals here are the highlight for me.
The great set spans from his earliest recordings to a Wynton Marsalis cover closer. While a clever lyricist, Hoagy more often than not worked as the melodicist in the company of his peers. I bought this set at a garage sale for $3. I didn't even try to barter. Chock full of some of the greatest evergreens ever composed. And then somewhere among all those covers, you get Ray singing Georgia On My Mind, a song that still stops me in my tracks to this day. For the record, my mom's 7' of Artie Shaw's Stardust is one of the records that pointed me towards jazz at a younger age than my friends.
There's not a lot I more I can say without breaking the thing down song by song...not my style. You'll know what you like and hopefully you will find some gems in here.

Originally released jointly by The Indiana Historical Society and The Smithsonian Collection of Recordings. Taken from my vinyl....

Hoagy Carmichael
The Classic Box Set

Disc One
1. Riverboat Shuffle - Frankie Trumbauer
2. Washboard Blues - Paul Whiteman
3. Stardust - Louis Armstrong
4. Lazy River - Louis Armstrong
5. Charlie Two-Step - The Boswell Sisters
6. New Orleans - Bennie Moten
7. Judy/Moon Country - Hoagy Carmichael
8. Rockin' Chair - Mills Brothers
9. Moonburn - Bing Crosby
10. Lazybones - Claude Hopkins
11. Ballad in Blue - Benny Goodman
12. Sing Me a Swing Song (And Let Me Dance) - Benny Goodman
13. Lyin' To Myself - Louis Armstrong
14. Jubilee - Louis Armstrong
15. Rockin' Chair - Mildred Bailey
16. Small Fry - Mildred Bailey
17. Two Sleepy People - Bob Hope and Shirley Ross
18. Kinda Lonesome - Maxine Sullivan
19. Old Man Harlem - Ethel Waters
20. Bread And Gravy - Ethel Waters
21. Blue Orchids - Glenn Miller

Disc Two
1. Ooh! What You Said - Bob Crosby
2. Can't Get Indiana Off My Mind - Kate Smith
3. Stardust - Artie Shaw
4. Georgia On My mind - Billie Holiday
5.The Lamplighter's Serenade - Frank Sinatra
6. Hong Kong Blues - HC
7. Lazy River - HC
8. The Old Music Master - HC
9. Don't Forget To Say No Baby! - HC
10. Stardust - HC
11. Ole Buttermilk Sky - HC
12. Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief - Betty Hutton
13. Ivy - Jo Stafford
14. The Monkey Song - HC
15. In The Cool, Cool, Cool Of The Evening - Bing Crosby and Jane Wyman
16. Stardust - Ella Fitzgerald
17. I Guess it Was You All Along - Ray Anthony
18. The Nearness Of You - Jo Stafford
19. Heart And Soul - Hank Jones
20. Memphis in June - Lucy Ann Polk
21. One Morning In May - Mel Torme
22. The Rhumba Jumps - Mel Torme



Disc 3
1. Skylark - Carmen McRae
2. Georgia On My Mind - Ray Charles
3. Serenade To Gabriel - HC
4. Stardust - Frank Sinatra
5. Baltimore Oriole - Sheila Jordan
6. Skylark - Bob Brookmeyer
7. How Little We Know - Susannah McCorkle
8. The Nearness Of You - Sarah Vaughn
9. Winter Moon - Art Pepper
10. I Walk With Music - Marlene VerPlank
11. Ole Man Moon - Marlene VerPlank
12. Come Easy, Go Easy Love - Dave McKenna
13. I Get Along Without You Very Well ( excepts sometimes) - Margaret Whiting

14. Stardust - Wynton Marsalis

One

Two

Three

The Definitive Jazz Scene Vol 2 - Impulse Comp

The second set of amazingly unreleased (at the time) sessions from the Impulse stable. Other than the Ray Charles track this is easily as strong as the last batch. Not that the uncle Ray track is a slouch, it just seems a tad outta place. Granted it does make a fine opener.

Highlights for me this time include Shirley Scott doing an instrumental version of the song that was her vocal debut, Coltrane's massive take on contemporary Stan Getz' signature tune and Oliver Nelson making his septet sound huge!

The Definitive Jazz Scene
Vol. 2
1. Without A Song
2. The Blues Ain't Nothin' But Some Pain
3. Moon Over My Annie
4. Night Lights
5. Gloria
6. Dear Old Stockholm
7. You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To
8. Blues Company
9. Anything I Do

1. Ray Charles - piano; and a whole crapload of people of whom you have never heard. 7/10/63
2. Shirley Scott - organ; Bob Cranshaw - bass; Otis Finch - drums 5/14/64
3. Lionel Hampton - vibes; Clark Terry - flugelhorn; Ben Webster - tenor sax; Hank Jones - piano; Milt Hinton - bass; Osie Johnson - drums 10/28/64
4. Oliver Nelson - arr.; Thad Jones - tp; Phil Woods - alto sax; Phil Bodner - french horn; Pepper Adams - baritone sax; Roger Kelleway - piano; Richard Davis - bass; Grady Tate - drums 11/11/64
5. J.J. Johnson - tb; Harold Malbern, Jr. - piano; Arthur Harper, Jr. - bass; Frank Gant - drums 5/1/64
6. John Coltrane - tenor sax; McCoy Tyner - piano; Jimmy Garrison - bass; Elvin Jones - drums 4/29/64
7. McCoy Tyner - piano; Jimmy Garrison - bass; Albert Heath - drums 6/4/63
8. Manny Alban - arr.; Johnny Coles - tp; Urbie Green - tb; Phil Woods -slto sax; Oliver Nelson - tenor sax; Jim Hall - guitar; George Duvivier - bass, Gus Johnson, Jr. - drums; others 1/12/62
9. Tommy Flanagan - piano; Richard Davis - bass; Connie Kay - drums


Impulse A-100

Hank Jones - Swings Gigi

Hank Jones could have been a star. Maybe he should have been. I'm not sure what Hank wanted. While his personality may have been understated, his playing was not. But he was never the star.
Here we have an infrequent turn as leader. Even better we have a go at the Lerner/Lowe masterpiece. I love the soundtrack to this musical. It has been translated fantastically many different ways. Put this near the top of the list.

Let us also thank the BCB denizen who passed this record my way. This is a rip from his original vinyl We are humbled.

Hank Gones
Swings Gigi

1. Gigi
2. I'm Not Young Anymore
3. Thank Heavens For Little Girls
4. It's A Bore
5. Say A Prayer For Me Tonight
6. Gossip
7. Waltz At Maxim's
8. The Parisians
9. I Remember It Well
10. The Night They Invented Champagne

Hank Jones - piano
Donald Lamond - drums
Arnold Fishkin - bass
Joe Galbraith - guitar

Golden Crest Records
CR 3042

The Definitive Jazz Scene Vol 1 - Impulse Comp

It seems like I have owned this record forever, pulling it out every couple of years to be floored once again at all the great music it has that I just never run into elsewhere. Cah-rist! Ellington and Hawkins! Coltrane! Webster! Mingus! Tyner! and more Hawkins!
Of the series of three, and none of them are weak, this is probably my favorite. The two Bean tracks are simply outstanding. And this is the part where I mess with you...this issue has far more detailed notes about the recordings sessions including anecdotes, which the following lps tended to lack. Of course I can't share them with you due to the digital block in my brain.

But I will share as much info as my poor tired fingers will allow....

The Hawkins/Ellington tune was recorded after the session had ended and Hawk talked a few guys into playing one of his favorite Ellington themes, Basie looks back at his roots with a new incarnation of his Kansas City Six. Mingus makes my soul soar with this version of Freedom, while I dig the soprano version of Trane's selection. Hawkins sneaks in again with Shelley Manne on an outtake from their lp. Ben Webster showcases Ellington's "Single Petal Of A Rose". Webster shows up again on Clark Terry's bonus track.
You're gonna have to trust me here...there ain't a bad track on this compilation.
Without doing a whole lot of homework, I will assume that most of these tracks have appeared across the board on the respective artist's releases, but at the time this vinyl was the shit!!

The Definitive Jazz Scene
Vol. 1

1. Solitude
2. Trey of Hearts
3. Single Petal of a Rose
4. Tippie
5. Lisa and Pam
6. Big Nick
7. Avalon
8. Freedom
9. Hammer-Head Waltz
10. Flapstick Blues

1. Duke Ellington - piano, Coleman Hawkins - tenor sax, Ray Nance - violin, Sam Woodyard - drums, Aaron Bell - bass 8/18/62
2. Count Basie - piano, Thad Jones - trumpet, Frank Wess, Eric Dixon - flutes, Freddie Green - guitar, Ed Jones - bass, Sonny Payne - drums 3/22/62
3. Ben Webster - tenor sax, Hank Jones - piano, Richard Davis - bass, Osie Johnson - drums 3/11/64
4. Terry Gibbs - vibes, Kenny Burrell - guitar, Sam Jones - bass, Louis Hayes - drums 1/16/64
5. Shirley Scott - organ, Earl may - bass, Jimmie Cobb - drums 8/22/63
6. John Coltrane - soprano sax, McCoy Tyner - piano, Jimmy Garrison - bass, Elvin Jones - drums 8/11/62
7. Coleman Hawkins - tenor sax, Shelley Manne - drums, Hank Jones - piano, George Duvivier - bass 2/5/62
8. Charles Mingus - bass, narration, Eddie Preston, Richard Williams - trumpets, Britt Woodman - trombone, Don Butterfield - tuba, Jerome Richardson, Dick Hafer, Booker Ervin, Eric Dolphy - saxophones, Jaki Byard - piano, Walter Perkins - drums 10/20/63
9. Clark Terry - trumpet, Phil Woods - alto sax, Ben Webster - tenor sax, Roger Kellaway - piano, Milt Hinton - bass, Walter Perkins - drums 3/13/64
10. McCoy Tyner - piano, Jimmy Garrison - bass, Albert Heath - drums 6/4/63

Impulse A-99

Eddie Bert - Like Cool

There's just something about the trombone and heavy snow that go together. Eddie obviously knew that from this lp cover. Tonight I am looking at another foot of the white stuff and it looks like a day off tomorrow. A great night to post a record like this.

Like any good snowstorm, this starts languid and slow but picks up steam as she goes. By the time everything wraps up, you have a pretty nice little overlooked bop album.

All told, Hank Jones' piano rules this record.

Like Cool
The Contemporary Trombone Artistry of Eddie Bert

1. I'm Through With Love
2. Blue Beetle...Original
3. In A Meditating Mood
4. Father Time
5. Cool School Days
6. Pennies From Heaven
7. Home Cookin'
8. Speedster

Eddie Bert - trombone
Dave Schildkraut - tenor sax
Barry Galbraith - guitar
Hank Jones - piano
Clyde Lombardi - bass
Osie Johnson - drums

I have seen this record listed several ways. Everything tells me it was recorded sometime in 1955. You are getting a copy of my vinyl...

Somerset P-5200