The Bill Perkins Quartet - Journey To The East (1984) [vinyl]

For some strange reason, this doesn't appear to have had a CD reissue.

Review by Scott Yanow
Bill Perkins, a West Coast jazz legend, evolved from a cool-toned tenor into a John Coltrane-inspired player who did not lose his original musical personality. For this fine effort (not yet reissued on CD), Perkins is joined by pianist Frank Strazzeri, bassist Joel Di Bartolo and drummer Peter Donald for seven standards, two Strazzeri songs and one by Alan Broadbent. Perkins uses a saxophone-synthesizer interface that he invented on a few numbers to make the ensembles fuller, but he mostly plays his solos on a regular tenor and flute. Highlights include an emotional version of Billy Strayhorn's "Blood Count," "I'm an Old Cowhand," "'Tis Autumn" and "Invitation." One of Bill Perkins' better sessions.

1. From The Hip
2. Blood Count
3. I'm An Old Cowhand
4. Mendocino Nights
5. Moose The Mooche
6. Journey To The East
7. 'Tis Autumn
8. Invitation
9. You Must Believe In Spring
10. All Through The Night

Bill Perkins (tenor saxophone, flute) Frank Strazzeri (piano) Joel Di Bartolo (bass) Peter Donald (drums)
Granada Hills, CA, November 19, 20 & 21, 1984
[Contemporary 14011]

Gary Giddins' Post-War Jazz: An Arbitrary Road Map, 1986 - 1993

Gary Giddins' Post-War Jazz: An Arbitrary Road Map, 1986 - 1993 by Kingcake on Mixcloud

Randy Weston Sextet - Monterey '66

Recorded in Monterey, California. The Monterey Jazz Festival of 1966. "I think this is the best band I've ever had. We were together almost 3 years. It was Booker Ervin on tenor saxophone, Ray Copeland on trumpet; Bill Wood was on bass; Lenny McBrowne on drums, and Big Black on congas. It was very difficult for us to be recorded because it was a very strong African message. I'm talking about around maybe 1963, '64, '65 during that period. So it was hard for us to get gigs, you know. And so finally, our last appearance together was at the Monterey Jazz Festival, the same night as Duke Ellington, the same night as Carmen McRae. So you know we had to play strong. And it was an incredible band because number one, we had Booker Ervin. Booker Ervin, for me, was on the same level as John Coltrane. He was a completely original saxophonist. I don't know anybody who played like Booker. But Booker, he was very sensitive, very quiet-not the sort of guy to push himself or talk about himself. You know what happens with Black artists-they (the industry) can never let too many come out at the same time. There was a big emphasis on Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane. And everybody was into Coltrane but meanwhile Booker Ervin was kind of left out. He was a master saxophonist, and the song I wrote for my mother, Portrait of Vivian, only he could play it; nobody else could play that song.

In fact, the African Cookbook, which I composed back in the early 60's, was partly named after Booker because we (musicians) used to call him "Book," and we would say, "Cook, Book." Sometimes when he was playing we'd shout, "Cook, Book, cook." And the melody of African Cookbook was based upon Booker Ervin's sound, a sound like the north of Africa. He would kind of take those notes and make them weave hypnotically. So, actually the African Cookbook was influenced by Booker Ervin. By the way. Ervin was from Texas and he had the typical big sound from Texas. I don't know why, but for some reason many great tenor saxophonists come from Texas and they have all got this big sound. For instance, Billy Harper is from Texas, Dexter Gordon, Frank Haynes. I could go on and on and on....Randy Weston

Stanley Black and His Orchestra - Place Pigalle (1957)

As ‘Monty Python’ would say “And Now For Something Completely Different”.

As a young boy my parents would often play this album around the home. Upon hearing again today it brings back fond memories of the joy and happiness that it brought to the atmosphere and wellbeing of our family. My mother as an Australian in particular was fascinated by French culture and longed to experience for herself the richness of Parisian life. Fortunately this dream became a reality with an overseas trip in later years. Up until that time she would immerse herself in this wonderful LP and attend to her daily chores.

For the majority of Britons, Stanley Black (1913-2002) needs no introduction. He goes down in their annals as one of their most talented and prestigious pianists, composers, conductors and arrangers of classical music and orchestral jazz. He wrote and arranged many film scores and recorded prolifically for the Decca and London labels. Beginning with jazz collaborations with American musicians such as Coleman Hawkins and Benny Carter during the 1930s, he moved into arranging and recording in the Latin American style and also won awards for his classical conducting. He received for his dedication and contribution s to music an OBE. He was made a life fellow of the Institute of Arts and Letters, and life president of the Celebrities Guild of Great Britain. So it is fitting that something of his legacy can be shared here. Enjoy!

Decca Records, LK 4212, 1957

Track Listing:

A1. Dominó {Ferari} (2:00)

A2. Why Do You Pass Me By {Trenet, Hess} (2:45)

A3. At Last! At Last! {Miles, Trenet} (2:45)

A4. Autumn Leaves {Kosma} (2:48)

A5. C'est Si Bon {Betti, Hornez, Seelen} (2:37)

A6. La Mer [The Sea] {Trenet} (4:08)

B1. Waltz Of Paree {Gerard, Dreajac} (2:15)

B2. Chez-Moi {Misraki} (2:45)

B3. Boom! {Trenet} (2:22)

B4. Mademoiselle {Durand} (2:49)

B5. When The World Was Young {Vannier, Philippe, Gerard} (2:53)

B6. Au Revoir {Olivieri, Poterat, Sosenko} (2:26)

Makin' Whoopee - Sex & the Tenor Saxophone

Lord knows this isn't by any means an original idea, but in my defense I put this one together 15 or 20 years ago. I checked around for covers and discovered that many commercial and private collections used the same theme, but none of them had an even remotely similar playlist. Frankly I think mine's a lot better than any of them. I focused first on the sound of the horn, then on actual songs. Oddly enough, a sort by artist first name yielded a listening experience that was so good, I wasn't tempted to screw with it.

Makin' Whoopee - Sex & the Tenor Saxophone by Kingcake on Mixcloud

 

 

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY

Bill Barron Quartet - Live At Cobi's, Vol. 2 (1985)

As indicated in the previous post, Bill Barron in two distinct quartet formations was recorded ‘Live at Cobi’s’ during the mid to late eighties and made available through SteepleChase Records as two volumes. This is the 2^nd of the two. However, it must be noted that the music found here was recorded earlier and released a year later than the first. In some ways the best was kept till last. Bill is joined by his very talented brother Kenny on piano; Santi Debriano is replaced by the master bassist Cecil McBee whilst Ben Riley maintains his position on drums. Straight away the listener is swept along by the exuberant synergy developed by the brothers’ years of interaction. Kenny’s playing flows beautifully alongside his brother’ soloing. Equally Cecil and Ben offer a solid backing for this wonderful quartet. For this date the majority of the tunes were penned by Bill with one by Kenny and like before two additional well-known standards are showcased. On ‘Tragic Magic’ Bill swaps to soprano, but for the rest of the tracks he is featured on tenor. Any way as before Enjoy!

SteepleChase Records, SCCD 31596, 2006

Recorded 5^th October, 1985 at Cobi's, New York City

Personnel:

Bill Barron - Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax (#5)

Kenny Barron - Piano

Cecil McBee - Bass

Ben Riley - Drums

Track Listing:

1. September 1979 {Bill Barron} (11:22)

2. Spring Thing {Bill Barron} (15:37)

3. What's New? {Bob Haggart, Johnny Burke} (8:50)

4. Interpretation {Bill Barron} (14:57)

5. Tragic Magic {Kenny Barron} (8:23)

6. Cherokee {Ray Noble} (11:18)

Credits:

Producer, Mastering, Restoration, Photography - Nils Winther

Mal Waldron - Manfred Schoof

This is a gorgeous album delivered by an exemplary quintet of jazz pros.  In some ways, on paper anyhow, they almost seem incompatible.  I liken this album and grouping to Benny Bailey's SABA release: Soul Eyes.  What we end up getting is a highly capable group who can take the music to both likely and unlikely destinations.

As we listen, we find out that what really makes this quintet tick - their incredible sensitivity.  It's what allows the music it's interesting flavour, at least as much as their collective talents on their respective axes.

Sonically, this recording is beautiful and the album itself is super minty.  Some of you may have this already as an Enja release.  For those who don't, don't miss it.  This is really adventurous music which never gets boring OR pretentious.  Ripped at 24/96 and dithered to 16/44.1 FLAC... enjoy!!!

Horace Silver - Live 1964 & The Natives Are Restless

Well Grumpy's post of a Silveto album got me looking back through the archives and it has been quite some time since I dragged these gold nuggets out of my stash bag. For me, the discovery of these albums was some kind of jazz wet dream. One of my personal fave periods with monsters everywhere and all captured really well and live....GASP!

All the old guard here at the Crypt will already have these of course, but maybe some new friend will have the same kind of knee buckling experience that WE had back we first heard this stuff. The view into what it was like to hear these wonderful bands in the club is like a magical Way-Back Machine opportunity not to missed!

Gary Giddins' Post-War Jazz: An Arbitrary Road Map, 1977 - 1985

Gary Giddins' Post-War Jazz: An Arbitrary Road Map, 1977 - 1985 by Kingcake on Mixcloud

Cecil Payne - Brookfield Andante (1966) [vinyl>flac]

New link now available. Never reissued on CD.

Review by Michael Shera, Jazz Journal, September, 1972:

With the exception of Harry Carney, Cecil Payne probably has a longer pedigree on his instrument than anyone else currently playing. He's paid his dues, and its about time he got some of the recognition. Although he was one of the stars of Dizzy Gillespie's pioneering big band of the forties, he was largely overshadowed as a soloist on his instrument by the brilliance of Serg Chaloff (and I certainly wouldn't care to argue that Cecil was better than Serge). By the early fifties, however, Gerry Mulligan became such a big name (and with such a small talent) that Cecil became almost forgotten. His fans had to be content with occasional, highly treasured records. The early sixties were little better, though a couple of fine Cecil items were issued on the cheap Egmont label ('Plays Bird' and 'Music from The Connection"). In recent years, Cecil has visited these shores [UK] four times, as a single act and with the Herman, Gillespie and Basie bands. The first occasion was in 1966, when during a brief, ill-publicised tour this music was recorded by a local enthusiast, and is now issued only through the persistence of Mark Gardner and Tony Williams. Recording quality is very fair, though the bass is under-recorded and the piano could have done with the attention of a tuner. These minor blemishes aside, there is little doubt in my mind that the album contains the best of Cecil's work by far to be issued to date. Despite the shortest track being over nine minutes, Cecil has no problems producing a series of exciting and melodically interesting ideas which hold the listener's rapt attention. The rhythm section swings hard, with pianist Joe Palin also soloing well. The Opener starts a little slowly, but soon Payne is cooking on this up-tempo riff tune. Brookfield Andante is a beautiful waltz with an engaging melodic line and some of the most lyrical work Cecil has ever put down. Azoff Blues is a superb fast bebop blues, with long and inventive solos by all four members of the group. Sterling Place, another delightful composition by Payne, was originally written for the score of The Connection, and has more virile and melodically strong playing by the leader.
I can end only by urging everyone to rush out and buy this album immediately, and by fervently concurring with annotator Mark Gardner that since this album has been issued ten years after his last one, let's hope we don't have to wait another ten years for the next!

[NB I do not concur with the opinion of Mulligan, expressed by Shera!]

1. The Opener
2. Brookfield Andante
3. Azoff Blues
4. Sterling Place

Cecil Payne (bs) Joe Palin (p) Alan Cooper (b) Ron Parry (d)
Club 43, Manchester, England, November 5, 1966.
(Spollite CP2)

Bill Barron Quartet - Live At Cobi's, Vol. 1 (1987-88)

After studying Bill Barron’s discography, I realised I still hadn’t heard the sets he performed ‘Live at Cobi’s’ recorded between 1985 and 1988 and  released on CD nearly two decades later as two volumes by SteepleChase records. Any way the good news is here we have the first one with the second to follow. Bill’s playing on this date is outstanding; his quartet here is a very tight unit; with Fred Simmons on piano, Santi Debriano on bass and Ben Riley on drums. All players step up to the mark in supporting Bill’s excellent musicianship and lyricism. There is plenty of room for all to display their individual talents with the solos beautifully integrated into the tunes. Most of the compositions are written by Bill and few by his brother Kenny, the remainder being a couple of well-known standards. I ripped the disc to wav reassembling all tracks carefully removing where possible any excessive applause. Overall, if you are a Bill Barron fan like me you will want to have this in your collection. Enjoy!

SteepleChase Records, SCCD 31570, 2005

Recorded 24^th October, 1987 - 4^th March, 1988 at Cobi's, New York

Personnel:

Bill Barron - Tenor Saxophone

Fred Simmons - Piano

Santi Debriano - Bass

Ben Riley - Drums

Track Listing:

1. This One's For Monk {Bill Barron} (13:00)

2. Easy Does It {Bill Barron} (12:15)

3. Confirmation {Charlie Parker} (10:54)

4. Row House {Kenny Barron} (9:44)

5. Angel Eyes {Matt Dennis} (5:52)

6. Voyage {Kenny Barron} (8:40)

7. Until Further Notice {Bill Barron} (9:18)

Credits:

Producer, Mastering, Restoration, Photography - Nils Winther

Gary Giddins' Post-War Jazz: An Arbitrary Road Map, 1968-1976

In part 3 I find myself disagreeing with Giddens' choices far more often than I'd agree. There is a lot of material in this one that is farther 'out' than my tastes, I find it a difficult listen, primarily due to the Cecil Taylor, and The Revolutionary Ensemble.

I would personally take issue with Giddens near disregard of the rich spiritual jazz and soul jazz traditions of this era in favor of an overemphasis on the avant garde. Only the excellent Art Ensemble of Chicago track even nods in that direction. 

Gary Giddins' Post-War Jazz: An Arbitrary Road Map, 1968-1976 by Kingcake on Mixcloud