Gene Ammons - Bad! Bossa Nova (1962) [re-rip]

Bad! Bossa Nova is right – as Gene Ammons really hits a great groove here – one that's not exactly bossa, but which has lots of Latin and tropical touches! The session makes great use of 2 guitars at the same time – using that of Kenny Burrell for soulful rhythm, but also adding in Bucky Pizzarelli for some nice acoustic embellishments – in a mode that's similar to the soul jazz-com-bossa style used on records like Ike Quebec's Soul Samba or Charlie Rouse's Bossa Nova Bacchanal. The overall rhythms are a bit more complicated, and a bit more soul jazz based than those sets – with Hank Jones on piano, Oliver Jackson on percussion, and Al Hayes adding in some sweet extra bongo! Titles include the classic "Ca'Purange" – plus "Anna", "Yellow Bird", "Cae Cae", and "Moito Mato Grosso".  © Dusty Groove, Inc.

Prestige Records, PR 7257, 1962

Recorded 9^th September, 1962 At Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ

Musicians:

Gene Ammons - Tenor Saxophone

Hank Jones - Piano

Kenny Burrell - Rhythm Guitar

Bucky Pizzarelli - Spanish Guitar

Norman Edge - Bass

Oliver Jackson - Drums

Al Hayes - Bongos

Tracks:

A1. Pagan Love Song {Nacio Herb Brown, Arthur Freed} (4:46)

A2. Ca'purange [Jungle Soul] {Mussapere} (9:34)

A3. Anna {Roman Vatro, Francesco Giordano, William Engvick} (3:20)

B1. Caé Caé {Roberto Martins, Pedro Berrios, John Latouche} (3:46)

B2. Moito Mato Grosso {Gene Ammons} (7:44)

B3. Yellow Bird {Alan Bergman, Michael Keith, Norman Luboff} (5:07)

Credits:

Producer - Ozzie Cadena

Recording & Mastering Engineer - Rudy van Gelder

Cover Design - Don Schlitten

This was Ammons' final recording before "being made an example of" and getting a lengthy jail sentence for possession of heroin; his next record would be cut over seven years later. The music is surprisingly upbeat, with Ammons joined by two guitars (Bucky Pizzarelli and Kenny Burrell), a fine rhythm section (pianist Hank Jones, bassist Norman Edge, and drummer Oliver Jackson), and the bongos of Al Hayes for a set of Latin-flavored jazz that was masquerading as bossa nova. ~ by Scott Yanow, AMG.