Harry Allen Quintet - A Night At Birdland, Volume 2 (1995)

Harry Allen leads a fine quintet on the second of two volumes recorded over a pair of nights in 1993 at Hamburg's Birdland nightclub. The tenor saxophonist was quite familiar with bandmates trumpeter Randy Sandke and drummer Oliver Jackson, having worked with them extensively on recordings and in all-star lineups assembled by George Wein. The band is rounded out by two veterans of the British jazz scene, pianist Brian Dee and bassist Len Skeat. Obviously, the familiarity keeps the group from sounding like a pickup effort with little or no rehearsal. Allen's melodic solos are steeped in the tradition of Coleman Hawkins and Ben Webster, especially in rich ballads like "My Foolish Heart" and the deliberate "Sweet Lorraine." For a little bit of variety from the swing era, the quintet offers a stimulating bop number and the early jazz chestnut "Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives to Me." ~ by Ken Dryden, AMG.

Nagel-Heyer Records, NHCD 010, 1995

Nagel-Heyer Records, NHCD 5005, 2003

Recorded 19^th & 20^th Nov. 1993 Live At Birdland Jazzland, Hamburg, DE

Musicians:

Harry Allen - Tenor Saxophone

Randy Sandke - Trumpet

Brian Dee - Piano

Len Skeat - Bass

Oliver Jackson - Drums

Tracks:

01. Isn't This A Lovely Day {Irving Berlin} (6:17)

02. From This Moment On {Cole Porter} (8:01)

03. My Foolish Heart {Ned Washington, Victor Young} (6:20)

04. The Song Is You {Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern} (8:45)

05. Blues My Naughty Sweety Gives To Me {Russ Morgan, Arthur Swanstone} (8:39)

06. Sweet Lorraine {Clifford R. Burwell, Mitchell Parish} (5:42)

07. All God's Chillun Got Rhythm {Walter Jurmann, Gus Kahn, Bronislaw Kaper} (6:50)

08. Stardust {Hoagy Carmichael, Mitchell Parish} (5:42)

09. Now Is The Time {Charlie Parker} (7:24)

10. Sophisticated Lady {Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Mitchell Parish} (6:00)

11. Lover Come Back To Me {Oscar Hammerstein II, Sigmund Romberg} (7:40)

Total Time: 77:20

Credits:

Producer, Liner Notes - Hans Nagel-Heyer, Frank Nagel-Heyer

Producer - Sabine Nagel-Heyer

Recording, Mixing & Remastering - Bernd Schultze

Assistant Engineer - Axel Fidelak

Photography - Jan Sandtke, Harry Allen

Art Direction - Nikolai Woeller

Notes:

Special Limited Edition: 24 bit digitally remastered reissue of NHCD 010

Source: http://www.nagelheyer.de/cd-details/cd/a-night-at-birdland-volume-2-1.html

CD ripped to WAV and excess applause trimmed prior to converting to FLAC