Cal Tjader - West Side Story

 I know this is beat to hell. If I had a better copy I share it. Doesn't really make a difference here but I have this really groovy red vinyl copy.


1. Prologue - Jet Song
2. Something's Coming
3. Maria interlude
4. Maria
5. Tonight
6.America
7. Cool
8. One Hand, One Heart
9. I Feel Pretty


Cal Tjader - vibraphone
Clare Fischer - piano
Red Mitchell - bass
Shelly Manne - drums
Red Callender - tuba
Milt Holland - drums
Paul Horn - flute
Mongo Santamaria - conga
Willie Bobo - drums and Timbales

and a whole host of horn and string players I don't recognize. There are people out there that spend far too much time compiling lists for slackers like me, so the complete personel should be available with little effort.

Fantasy 3310

Johnny Mandell - I Want To Live

I've really been digging into some soundtracks lately so when I came across this in the collection I was psyched. I had completely forgotten that I owned it. It's one of those damn sleeves with no spine.
 Cool west coast jazz just seems to work for this crazy little film and the best part is it works as well without the visuals. It's unfortunate that some of the pieces couldn't stretch out a bit more.
 Dig that groovy cover, cats and kittens.

1. Main Theme
2. Poker Game
3. San Diego Party
4. Henry Leaves
5. Stakeout
6. Barbara Surrenders
7. Trio Convicted
8. Trip To Corona
9. Peg's Visit
10. Gas Chamber Unveiling
11. Nightmare Sequence
12. Preparations For Execution
13. Letter Writing Sequence
14. The Last Mile
15. Death Scene
16. End Title

Jack Sheldon, Al Porcino, Ed Leddy - trumpets
Frank Rosolino, Milt Bernhart, Dave Wells - trombones
Dave Wells - bass trumpet
Vince de Rosa, Sinclair Lott, John Cave, Dick Parisi - french horns
Harry Klee - picolo and flutes
Abe Most, Bill Holman - clarinets
Joe Maini, Marty Berman - bass clarinets
Joe Maini, Bill Holman, Chuck Gentry - saxes
Red Mitchell - bass
Pete Jolly - piano
Al Hendrickson - guitar
Shelly Manne, Larry Bunker, Mel Leweis, Milt Holland, Mike Pacvhenco - percussion
Kathryne Julye - harp

Arrangement by Johnny Mandell

taken from imported lp London SAH-T 6024

Shelley Manne - Hot Coles

Another crazee lp I dragged over from the CP blog. Shelly gathered up a bunch of mid '70's LA session men and turned out an lp of  Cole Porter arrangements that would not have been out of place on a nice space-age bachelor  pad recording. Spool thread on the reel to reel baby 20 years too late...



 This recording comes with permission from our sadly missed friend Arkadin. Swing cats, swing!!

1. From This Moment On
2. Easy To Love
3. Get Out Of Town
4. Begin The Beguine
5. Night And Day
6. All Of You
7. Love For Sale
8. In The Still Of The Night

Shelly Manne - drums, percussion
Tom Scott - flute, soprano sax
Oscar Brashear - trumpet
Tommy Tedesco - guitar
Victor Feldman - piano
Mike Wofford - electric piano
Chuck Domanico - electric bass
Mailto Correa, Moacir Santos - percussion

Flying Dutchman Records BDL1-1145
1975

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

Art Pepper Shelly Manne - Pepper Manne

I've listened to these tracks pretty closely and I am fairly sure I don't have these versions of the Art Pepper tracks elsewhere.

I know I don't have the Shelly Manne tracks but I know very little of him. Assuming that those tracks are different that previous versions as I suspect the Pepper tracks are then you truly have a little gem here. The Art Pepper tracks would have been recorded during his mid 50s period.

I bit of research turned up this from dustygroove...

Excellent work by both players -- even if the source of the material's a bit sketchy! This set probably has less to do with the Charlie Parker imprint than most albums on that label -- and we suspect that the material was taped by Apex in LA, and later relased by Charlie Parker in a dodgy one-off deal. Who cares, though? Side one features some incredible work from Art Pepper -- playing here in a quartet with Russ Freeman on piano, and sounding incredibly sharp, with an edge that's missing from some of his bigger-known sides at the time. The group plays "Diane", "Pepper Pot", and "Besame Mucho", as well as a great version of "I Surrender Dear". Side two features Shelly Manne leading a very unusual group -- a sextet with piano by Robert Gil, and a heavily percussive lineup that includes extra drums, bongos, and conga. The sides have a strong Latin flavor, in keeping with the red peppers on the cover of the album.

Art Pepper Shelly Manne
Pepper Manne

1. Pepper Pot
2. Besame Mucho
3. Diane
4. I Surrender Dear

Art Pepper - alto
Russ Freeman - piano
Ben Tucker - bass
Gary Frommer - drums

5. Move
6. Sometimes I'm Happy
7. Fascination
8. Caravan
9. Rhumba
10. Magitos

Shelly Manne - drums
Mike Pacheco - bongos
Carlos Vidal - congos
Roberto Gil - piano
Julio Ayala - bass
Frank Guerrero - drums

Charlie Parker Records PLP836

In Glorious Mono

Bill Evans - Empathy

Bill Evans cultivated this certain feeling. He knew how to work it.

Bill Evans records always made you feel like a perfect summer night. Warm. Clear. All The Stars Are Out.

But early on he had not yet perfected that. But this may very well have been the starting point.

Very much a piece of it's time and label. You know what to expect and you get it. But you cannot be disappointed. This is nice stuff.

Tonight the air is a crisp 15 degrees, the moon is full but fuzzy with fog. What a better way to listen to this record for a few minutes on the porch.

Soon Evans will be a bit more exploratory. Soon I can stand outside and stare at the sky for awhile without freezing my ass off.

Shelly Manne/Bill Evans with Monty Budwig
Empathy

1. The Washington Twist
2. Danny Boy
3. Let's Go Back To The Waltz
4. With A Song In My Heart
5. Goodbye
6. I Believe In You

Bill Evans - piano
Monty Budwig - bass
Shelly Manne - drums

recorded 8/14/62

Verve records V/V6 8497

Something I found a bit funny.. when I googled the cover, more often than not Evans was listed first on he cover. Mine is the one you see. I wonder when they decided Evans was a better market than Manne?

Jazztone - West Coast Jazz Anthology Vol. III

Jazztone was a small mail order club label. Much like Book of the Month or ARS, subscribers would be sent a cool jazz lp once a month or so, often with original sessions made for the label. It was only around for 3 years but they still managed to swing some mighty fine sessions.

I started with Vol. III in this series for a couple of reasons. Vol I has some previously released stuff and...well I don't happen to own a copy of Vol. II.

This volume contains some very nice live sessions and a handful of studio dates that I don't think you will see around much. I have no doubt some of these recordings have appeared elsewhere at some point, but this should be their first appearance.

As usual, ripped late at night from a questionable condition lp - this is music for music lovers and not connoisseurs of high art.

Jazz West Coast, Vol III
1. There Will Never Be Another You - Gerry Mulligan
2. Mr. Smith Goes To Town - Chico Hamilton
3. Polka Dots and Moonbeams - Bud Shank
4. Old Croix - Art Pepper
5. Little Girl - Chet Baker
6. Love Nest - Russ Freeman/Chet Baker
7. Sweet Georgia Brown - Bud Shank/Bob Cooper
8. Things Ain't What They Used To Be - Jim Hall
9. Too Marvelous For Words - Phil Urso/Bob Burgess
10. Brother, Can You Spare A Dime - Russ Freeman/Bill Perkins

Gerry Mulligan Sextet
Mulligan - piano
Zoot Sims - tenor sax
Bob Brookmeyer - valve trombone
Jon Eardley - trumpet
Red Mitchell - bass
Larry Bunker - drums
Hoover High School Auditorium - LA - 12/54

Chico Hamilton Quintet
Hamilton - drums
Fred Katz - cello
Paul Horn - clarinet
John Pisano - guitar
Carson Smith - bass
Forum Theater - LA - 10/56

Bud Shank Quartet
Shank - flute
Claude Williamson - piano
Don Prell - bass
Chuck Flores - drums
Forum Theater - 2/56

Art Pepper Quartet
Pepper - alto sax
Pete Jolly - piano
Leroy Vinnegar - bass
Stan Levey - drums
Forum Theater - 10/56

Chet Baker Sextet
Baker - trumpet
Art Pepper - alto
Richie Kamuca - tenor
Pete Jolly - piano
Leroy Vinnegar - drums
Stan Levey - drums
Forum Theater - 10/56 (and recorded at the same session as the one above)

Russ Freeman - Chet Baker Quartet
Freeman - piano
Baker - trumpet
Leroy Vinnegar - bass
Shelley Manne - drums
Radio Recorders - 11/56

Bud Shank - Bob Cooper Quintet
Shank - flute
Cooper - oboe
Howard Roberts - guitar
Don Prell - bass
Chuck Flores - drums
Capitol Studios - 12/56

Jim Hall Trio
Hall - guitar
Carl Perkins - piano
Red Mitchell - bass
Radio Recorders - 1/57

Phil Urso - Bob Burgess Quintet
Urso - tenor sax
Burgess - trombone
Bobby Timmons - piano
Jimmy Bond - bass
Peter Littman - drums
Radio Recorders - 10/56

Russ Freeman - Bill Perkins Quintet
Freeman - piano
Perkins - tenor sax
Bud Shank - alto sax
Carson Smith - bass
Shelley Manne - drums
Music Box Theater - LA - 2/56

Jazztone Society J1274