Jazz Classics In Stereo - an Introduction

Robert Parker was an Australian sound engineer who was passionate about early jazz. He also pissed alot of folk off with his technique for "cleaning up" these old 78's.
He explains his reasons for this at the beginning of this recording, the first in a series of 18 broadcast in the early 90's if I recall correctly.
 These are the Jazz Classics In Stereo shows not to be confused with the later "digital stereo" series of shows and discs. These, as far as I know never made disc format.

 This first one is aptly titled "Introduction to Jazz Classics". I'm gonna offer up a few of my favorites shows. Each show will be only 1 or 2 tracks without breaks.

As far as these recordings...well I probably would never have heard a lot of  them at all but for these shows so I'm not about to complain.

John Lindberg - Trilogy Of Works For Eleven Instruments

I've been trying to load the record up for weeks but can never think of the right things to say. The music seems ragged and yet always fits. Kinda like when you first heard Mingus. This will never reach those heights but that should not be reason to dismiss this entertaining set. Three pieces written by Lindberg, with Braxton conducting for the recording.

1. Holler

2. m to M

3. Dresden Moods

Hugh Ragin - trumpet
Mike Mossman - trumpet, piccolo trumpet
Ray Anderson - trombone
Vincent Chancy - french horn
Marty Ehrlich - alto sax, flute, piccolo
J. D. Parran - tenor sax, clarinet
Pablo Calogero - Baritone sax
Alan Jaffe - electric guitar
Eric Watson - piano
John Lindberg - bass
Thurman Baker - drums, bells, and xylophone

recorded Sept 8/9, 1984

Black Saint BSR 0082

Sonny Stitt - Sonny's Blues (Up Front lp)

Not the live record from Ronnie Scott's nor the recording done just a year before his death but another record with the same title.
 This blog has always been about the music I love with no pretensions towards rare or obscure recordings. I'm pretty sure the sessions on this very short release have been available elsewhere but this seems to be the only examples I have in my collection.
 Clocking in at a mere half hour, my first exposure to these recordings were a cassette tape most likely purchased at a 7-11 type joint for 2 bucks when that was a more common occurrence. Needless to say I had only dim fond recollections of the music when I ran across this lp at a flea market a couple of weeks ago. Not the best sounding recording but now I have another 2 dollars wrapped up so I thought I would share. And I fing I still dig the title tune as much as I remember.

Not a lick of info on the sleeve but that's where completists and other record geeks come in. Your turn to shine. Fill us in if you can.

Sonny's Blues

1. Star Eyes

2. Autumn In New York

3. Sonny's Blues

UPF-196

Tommy Dorsey Cole Porter 7" set

 

A  super short swinging set of 45's in a cool little box. All of life should be so cool. Got nothin' else on these records.

Tommy Dorsey plays Cole Porter for dancing

1. Just One Of Those Things

2. Love For Sale

3. Why Shouldn't I

4. You Do Something To Me

5. I Get A Kick Out Of You

6. It's Delovely

RCA WP263

Linda Lawson - Introducing

 Tonight is the occasional vocal offering. Not much out there to be found about Miss Lawson. This is a pretty decent record that was never destined to set the world on fire.
 Here's the rub. The backing band was put together by Marty Paitch. We know that Paitch used Art Pepper whenever he could. This would have been recorded during Pepper's break from incarceration. Even though he is not listed in the personnel, some of the solos are his without a shred of doubt. Now I'm not a research guy (Straight Life is 3 ft, away) so maybe this is common knowledge and I just don't remember it.
 Either way this is an opportunity to offer up a nice record on a Saturday evening. A nice mix of enjoyable covers of evergreens and a few oddballs thrown in for good measure.
 Best part is, it was offered to me by a friend who digs the blog.

1. Are You With Me

2. Where Flamingos Fly

3. But Beautiful

4. Me and My Shadow

5. You Don't Know What Love Is

6. Easy To Love

7.Meaning Of The Blues

8. Mood Indigo

9. Like Young

10. Hi-Lilli-Hi-Lo

Jimmy Rowles (piano);
Bud Shank (alto, sometimes);
Art Pepper - alto
Med Flory (baritone sax);
Bill Perkins (tenor sax);
Al Porcino, Stu Williamson, Jack Sheldon (trumpets);
Frank Rosolino (trombone);
 Bill Pitman (guitar);
Joe Modragon (bass);
 Mel Lewis (drums)

Earl Hines plays Cole Porter

Amazingly, before Hines recorded this tribute of solo piano pieces in 1974, he had never before recorded a single Cole Porter tune, nor was he to do so after.
Hines is great at capturing that feeling a love about Porter tunes when done right. All classy but firmly tongue in cheek. Unfortunately Hines sticks strictly to the the known masterpieces.I wish more folks would dig out some hidden gems.

Earl Hines play Cole Porter

1. You Do Something To Me
2. Night And Day
3. Rosalie
4. I've Got You Under My Skin
5. I Get A Kick Out Of You
6. What is This Thing Called Love
7. Easy To Love

Earl Hines - piano
recorded 4/16/74 at RCA studio, NYC

Sidney Bechet ep's

Tonight brings a couple of old Bechet sessions. Short but highly entertaining. I know this stuff has ended up on various compilations before so this is nothing the completest can't drag out. Yes, I cobbed this stuff together from a couple of lps.
 The first session is from that Jazz A La Creole lp. (for those keeping score, my cover is a dull pinkish color, otherwise exactly as above). I have only included the Bechet side because, well, it was the best part of the record. C'mon its a trio with Bechet, Lil Armstrong and Zutty Singleton. This shit is just so cool. It swings in all the best ways.
 Not to be outdone is the Bechet/ Spanier sessions, which swings in a whole different way. No drums, with guitar. These sessions were probably recorded for the H.R.S. I happen to own some crazy West German comp that pools the eps together.
 No matter how much I listen to "modern jazz" I always find myself amazed at this roots stuff.

Jazz A La Creole

1. Milenburg Joys

2. Rockin' Chair

3. Big Butter and Egg Man

4.My Melancholy Baby

5. Limehouse Blues

6. Black Bottom

7. I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues

Sidney Bechet - soprano sax
Lil Armstrong  - piano
Zutty Singleton - drums

Archive of Jazz

1. Sweet Lorraine

2. The Lazy River

3. China Boy

4. Four or Five Times

5. That's A Plenty

6. If I Could Be With You

7. Squeeze Me

8. Sweet Sue, Just You

Sidney Bechet - clarinet and soprano sax
Mugsy Spanier - cornet
Carmen Mastrem - guitar
Wellan Braud - bass

Benny Carter Plays Can-Can & Anything Goes

Another one swung over from the Cole Porter thing, this one though is a disc a ran across who knows where.
 Taken from a couple of short sessions recorded in '58. Both are fine blowing sessions that reflect the times perfectly. There some real stray tunes here that you don't get to hear much..


Don't know what it is, but CP seems to grab at my underlying pop sensibilities. I would figure I am not alone given that so many fine folk cover his songs. Get used to it, they're here to stay.

1. I Love Paris
2. C 'est Magnifique
3. It's All Right With Me
4. Allez-vous En, Go Away
5. I'm In Love
6. Anything Goes
7. All Through The Night
8. Waltz Down The Aisle
9. Buddy Beware
10.You're the Top

Benny Carter - alto
Hal Schaefer - piano
Joe Banjamin  - bass
John Drew - bass*
Gus Johnson - drums
Ted Sommer - percussion~
Teddy Charles - vibes*

recorded NYC. The Can-Can session~ was recorded 10/58, the Anything Goes* was recorded  11/58.

This was re-released by Lone Hill Jazz and is from their cd 

Miroslav Vitous - Infinite Search

 When I was just a young lad, still held in the throes of prog, and other lesser 70s ilk, I was the first of my friends to turn my eye in the direction of jazz. At first it was the relatively accessible lps of CTI, then of course the Blue Notes and Impulses but even then these were rarities in the used bins, my main source of records. Easier to find were fusion records and they were the hot item at the time. I fell in line...for awhile. Eventually found the records too...busy for my herbal induced lifestyle, and they fell by the wayside.
 Funny thing about life is everything seems to cycle back through at some point. 30 something years later, and I find I'm listening to fusion again, albeit in a much more particular manner. I've been through free jazz and world music and this stuff doesn't seem as frantic as I remember.
 That's one long winded tale to show off this record which I really dig.
 Released a year after Bitches Brew, with this crew, this can be classified as nothing but fusion. Add to the fact that the session leader plays bass, even though this is his first date as such, you know where you stand before you drop the needle.Still it must have been a buzz being so young and landing this gig, and playing your own tunes as well.(The opener is by Eddie Harris, a fusion dude himself.) It is passionate and awesome. Easily one of my favorite lps of the genre and I am glad I snatched it up when I did, wherever that may have been. Still a bit lost in that herbal cloud.

Infinite Search

1. Freedom Jazz Dance

2.  mountain In The Clouds

3. When Face Gets Pale

4. Infinite Search

5. I Will Tell Him On You

 6. Epilogue*

Miroslav Vitous - bass
Joe Henderson - tenor sax
John McLaughlin - guitar
Herbie Hancock - piano
Jack DeJohnette - drums
Joe Chambers - drums*


recorded NYC 1970
Embryo Records SD 524

The Music Of Cole Porter Played By America's Greatest Jazzmen.

I'm gonna move some of the Cole Porter stuff from my other blog over just cause I think it is too cool to go unnoticed. Porter  just always seemed to translate well to jazz renditions.
 The first one is this Moodsville lp, which was just Prestige light, right? These recordings are smooth but swinging. There are some great performances included here that probably slipped through the cracks in the grand scheme of things. Hope everybody digs em like I do.

 I wonder what Shirley Scott thought about being billed on a record titled "America's Greatest Jazzmen?".

The Music Of Cole Porter

Played By America's Greatest Jazzmen


1. You'd be So Nice To Come Home To
2. Easy To Love
3. Love For Sale
4. Just One Of Those Things
5. I've Got You Under My Skin
6. All Of You
7. You Do Something To Me
8. Get Out Of Town
9. What Is This Thing Called Love

1. Frank Wess - flute; Dorothy Ashby - harp; Herman Wright - bass; Roy Haynes - drums
2. Gene Ammons - tenor; Richard Wyands - piano; Doug Watkins - bass; Ray Baretto - conga;
 JC Heard - drums
3. Billy Taylor - piano; Earl May - bass; Candido - conga; Percy Brice - drums
4. Steve Lacy - soprano sax; Gil Evans - piano; Louis Mucci, Jake Koven - trumpets; Jimmy
 Cleveland - trombone; Bart Varsalona - bass trombone; Willie Ruff - french horn; Dave    Kurtzer - bassoon; Lee Konitz - alto; Paul Chambers - bass; Nick Stabulas - drums
5. Stan Getz - tenor; Al Haig - piano; Tommy Potter - bass; Roy Haynes - drums
6. Modern Jazz Quartet - Milt Jackson - vibes; John Lewis - piano; Percy Heath - bass; Connie Kay - drums
7. Shirley Scott - piano; George Duvivier - bass; Artur Edgehill - drums
8. Coleman Hawkins - tenor; Tommy Flanagan - piano, Major Holley - bass; Eddie Locke -drums
9. Red Garland - piano; Paul Chambers - bass; Art Taylor - drums


Moodsville 34