Harold Ousley - The Kid! (1972) [vinyl>flac]

Harold Says "I try to play in a style that everyone can relate to. I view each tune as an individual thing, so I play in many different ways, trying to reach the individuality of the tune." When referring to this album Ousley states the "Songs fall in categories--rock, funky rock, funky jazz, ballads. I try to keep somewhat within the idiom, even in the solos. On this album we play straight jazz, a ballad, a thing out of the country field, an R&B tune, and some funky stuff. In each case we try to create the proper mood."

Beside the strong Ousley horn, the element that holds the music together is the cohesion among the sidemen. Neal Creque plays acoustic piano, electric piano and organ. Guitarist Rose who produced the album, is one of the most versatile musicians on the New York scene. Bassist Jay Leonhart, drummer Jim Young and percussionist Danny Barrajanos round out the rest of the rhythm section. ~ Excerpts taken from Liner Notes, by Don Lass.

Cobblestone Records, CST 9017, 1972

Recorded 28^th March, 1972

Musicians:

Harold Ousley - Tenor Saxophone

Neal Creque - Piano, Organ, Electric Piano

Bob Rose - Guitar

Jay Leonhart - Electric Bass

Jim Young - Drums

Danny Barrajanos - Percussion [Miscellaneous]

Tracks

A1. The Kid {Harold Ousley} (5:46)

A2. Forget It, I've Got It {Jimmy Miller, Gary Wright} (5:14)

A3. Me And Bobby McGee {Kris Kristofferson} (9:07)

B1. The Prodigal Son {Harold Ousley} (5:53)

B2. Come Sunday {Duke Ellington} (5:47)

B3. One For The Masses {Harold Ousley} (8:16)

Credits:

Producer – Bob Rose/Alstan Productions

Recording Engineer - George Kablin

A&R Coordinator - Joe Field

Design, Photo - Don Schlitten

Liner Notes - Don Lass

Neal Creque - Creque (1972) [vinyl]

Creque is the 3rd album I’ve bought from this keys player. Bassist Gene Taylor starts things off with a grooving open bass line leading into a bit of an off-kilter song called Rafiki. Sis Daisy is a light and upbeat soul-jazz number with some nice congas by Richard “Pablo” Landrum. What’cha Call It is a slow and bluesy number that would make a nice listen when you’re in the right mood. ~ Soulstrut.com.

Cobblestone Records, CST 9005, 1972

Muse Records, MR 5226, 1976

Recorded at RCA Recording Studio, New York City

Musicians:

Neal Creque - Piano, Electric Piano, Organ, Clavinet

Billy Butler - Guitar

Alfred Brown - Violin

Kermit Moore - Cello

Gene Taylor - Bass, Fender Bass

Steve Berrios - Drums, Tympani

Julian Barber - Drums

Richard Landrum - Conga, Bongos, African Oboe, Misc. Percussion

Selwart Clarke - Misc. Percussion

Jackie Soul & Johnny Gittens - Misc. Percussion

+

Strings

The Ikinen Singers (#A2)

Tracks:

A1. Rafiki (4:57)

A2. Years Of Regret (4:29)

A3. Sis Daisy (4:34)

A4. Nina (4:38)

B1. What'Cha Call It (5:02)

B2. Black Velvet Rose (4:28)

B3. Cease The Bombing (4:56)

B4. Before The Rain Came (5:41)

All Compositions by Neal Creque

Credits:

Producer, Design, Photography - Don Schlitten

A&R Coordinator, Liner Notes - Joe Fields

Recording Engineer - Paul Goodman

Note:

Released on Cobblestone Records, and reissued January, 1976 on Muse Records as "Black Velvet Rose".

Neal Creque - Contrast! (1972) [vinyl>flac]

Neal Creque was a soul-jazz luminary of the late ‘60’s and ‘70’s, recording extensively with Grant Green, and writing and arranging many of Cuban conguero Mongo Santamaria’s funkiest efforts. This album of his is all over the map stylistically, from solo piano tunes to Latin-funk fusion, and it encapsulates a number of varied moods within its relatively short playing time. Not easy to acquire. ~ by dmay28.

Ripped from a well-used LP, contains a few artifacts, otherwise a great listen, Enjoy!

Cobblestone Records, CST 9023, 1972

Personnel:

Neal Creque - Piano, Electric Piano, Clavinet, Organ, Bells

Billy Butler - Guitar

John Hart - Fender Bass

Kermit Moore - Cello

Al Foster - Drums

James Morrison, Leo Flemming, Richard Landrum, Steve Kroon, William Bivins:
Congas, Bongos, Tambourine, Triangle, Cuica, Shekere, Bells, Oboe [African],
Bajo Quinto, Claves, Guiro, Percussion [Other Miscellaneous]

Alfred Brown, Selwart Clarke, Winston Collymore - Viola

Tracks:

A1. Kenya (8:00)

A2. Help Yourself (4:32)

A3. Bacalau (4:24)

A4. Happy Go Lucky (2:23)

A5. Just A Moment (2:52)

B1. D Train (3:27)

B2. Love And Life (5:18)

B3. Jasmine (2:59)

B4. Two Loving Hearts (3:19)

B5. All This World Has To Offer (6:00)

All Compositions by Neal Creque

Credits:

Producer, Design, Photography - Don Schlitten

Executive-Producer, A&R Coordinator - Joe Fields

Recording Engineer - Paul Goodman

Mastering - Sam-Feldman (Bell Sound Studios, New York City)

Composer, Arranger - Neal Creque

Newport in NY '72, The Jam Sessions, vols 3 & 4

Newport in NY '72, The Jam Sessions, vols 3 & 4
Cobblestone 1973

Volume 3: Radio City Music Hall July 6
1) Perdido
2) Misty
3) Now's the Time

Joe Newman, Nat Adderley trumpet; Illinois Jacquet, Budd Johnson tenor sax; Tyree Glenn trombone; Gerry Mulligan baritone sax; Jaki Byard piano; Chubby Jackson bass; Elvin Jones drums

Volume 4: Radio City Music Hall (side A July 6, side B July 3)

1) Blue N' Boogie

Clark Terry & Howard McGhee trumpet; Sonny Stitt & Dexter Gordon tenor sax; Gary Burton vibes; Jimmy Smith organ, George Duke piano; Al McKibbon bass; Art Blakey drums

2) So What

Harry 'Sweets' Edison trumpet; James Moody, Flip Phillips, Zoot Sims & Dexter Gordon tenor sax; Roland Kirk tenor sax, manzello, stritch, whistle; Kai Winding trombone, Chuck Wayne guitar, Herbie Hancock piano; Larry Ridley bass; Tony Williams drums

This may well be the best side out of all six LP's - Kirk's solo is jaw dropping!

Newport in New York '72 vol 5, The Jimmy Smith Jam

A look at the pictures on the cover would lead one to believe that this was a lovely outdoor event with everyone in good spirits and grooving on this dynamite band eh? Yeah, well that is not exactly how it went down; things may well have been pleasant and relaxed when these guys played that day but hardly ANYONE would have seen it!

Here is what happened: My buddy and I had popped the whole $7 for the floor of the stadium (see ticket ad below) and we arrived around 6:00 (as you can see it was scheduled for 7:00) only to find the doors already open and to our horror the music already started! We rushed in only to manage to catch the last 5 minutes of this set which ENDED at 6:25!!!!! When we and the others now filling the stadium realized what was happening we protested loudly - This Sucked! How could they possibly justify opening the doors and hour and a half to two hours early and have this act play for about 1000 people?

As more and more people poured in and were informed what had been done the mood turned ugly - people were shrieking obscenities at George Wein who made some lame apologies and a vague promise to bring them back later in the show (THAT never happened!). One particularly loud New Yorker must have harangued Wein for 2 hours minimum, following him everywhere, calling him a fat toad and demanding his money back. It got so bad Wein couldn't continue as MC over the waves of booing.

Sadly for us and seemingly everyone around us the evening had been poisoned beyond repair and the bad vibes continued, tempers were short, things got too crowded and the whole thing continued to go badly. Bad vibes, fights, Police taking on the bad mood too, it was a mess! I remember a few nice moments during Nina Simone but little else. We actually ended up leaving early and junking our plans to go back the following day; my first and last stadium show and only time in Yankee Stadium was an unmitigated disaster and we fled New York entirely the next morning. I went back the next year but nothing could ever temp me into a stadium show ever again.

Listening to this set now 40 years later, it is a shame that they couldn't have played for all of us because it is a lovely set and I'm sure that had it started at the proper time, the whole evening would have gone much better and some of the other music would be on these records too. You will notice that NOTHING else played that day has ever been published despite the big names - Hopefully the second day went a little better, it couldn't have been much worse.

Newport in New York '72, The Soul Sessions, Vol. 6

Well I'm finally getting around to the last album of the series!

Newport in New York '72, The Soul Sessions, Vol. 6
Cobblestone Records, Vinyl LP

A1 Billy Eckstine –     I Apologize

    Bass – Art Koenig, Composed By – A. Goodhart*, A. Hoffman*, E. Nelson*, Drums – Charlie Persip, Piano – Bobby Tucker, Vocals – Billy Eckstine
       
A2     Billy Eckstine –     Jelly Jelly

    Bass – Art Koenig, Composed By – B. Eckstine*, E. Hines*, Drums – Charlie Persip, Piano – Bobby Tucker, Saxophone [Tenor] – Sonny Stitt, Trombone – Kai Winding, Trumpet – Dizzy Gillespie, Vocals – Billy Eckstine
    
A3     Curtis Mayfield –     Stone Junkie

    Bass – Lucky Scott* Bongos, Congas – Master Henry Gibson* Composed By – C. Mayfield* Drums – Scott Harris* Guitar – Craig McMullen Guitar [Lead], Vocals – Curtis Mayfield
    
A4     Curtis Mayfield –     Pusherman

    Bass – Lucky Scott* Bongos, Congas – Master Henry Gibson* Composed By – C. Mayfield* Drums – Scott Harris* Guitar – Craig McMullen Guitar [Lead], Vocals – Curtis Mayfield
   
B1     B.B. King –     I Need My Baby

    Bass – Wilbert Freeman Composed By – King*, Taub* Drums – Sonny Freeman Guitar – Milton Hopkins Guitar, Vocals – B.B. King Piano – Ron Levy Saxophone [Alto] – Earl Turbinton Saxophone [Baritone] – Louis Hubert Saxophone [Tenor] – Bobby Forte Trombone – Joseph Burton* Trumpet – Ed Rowe*
    
B2     Herbie Mann –     Hold On, I'm Comin'

    Bass – Andy Muson Composed By – Hayes/Porter* Drums – Reggie Ferguson Electric Piano – Pat Rebillot Flute – Herbie Mann Guitar – Sonny Sharrock Saxophone [Tenor] – David 'Fathead' Newman*
    
B3     Les McCann –     The Price You Got To Pay To Be Free

    Bass – Jimmy Rowser Composed By – N. Adderley, Jr.* Congas – Buck Clarke Drums – Donald Dean Guitar – David Spinnoza* Piano, Vocals – Les McCann
    
B4     Roberta Flack –     Ain't No Mountain High Enough

    Bass – Terry Plumeri Bass [Fender] – Jerry Jemmott Composed By – N. Ashford/V. Simpson* Drums – Grady Tate Electric Piano – Richard Tee Guitar – Eric Gayle Percussion – Ralph McDonald* Piano, Vocals – Roberta Flack
    
B5     Roberta Flack –     Somewhere

    Bass – Terry Plumeri Bass [Fender] – Jerry Jemmott Composed By – L. Bernstein*, S. Sondheim* Drums – Grady Tate Electric Piano – Richard Tee Guitar – Eric Gayle Percussion – Ralph McDonald* Piano, Vocals – Roberta Flack

"Compared to the first five volumes in this series (which contain jam sessions), this single LP is easily the weakest, particularly from the jazz standpoint. Billy Eckstine is fine on two numbers, welcoming Dizzy Gillespie and Sonny Stitt to a remake of his hit blues "Jelly Jelly." Otherwise the music is more in the R&B field with performances by Curtis Mayfield, an okay blues from B.B. King, Les McCann's vocal on "The Price You Got to Pay to Be Free," a decent jam by flutist Herbie Mann and two songs from Roberta Flack. Nothing too unique occurs during this fairly lively program." scott yanow

Ouch! Scotty didn't like it! I will point out the title of the volume in response to his lack of jazz comment but in the end I have to agree with him for the most part.  

Newport in NY '72 - The Jam Sessions 1 & 2

I recently picked up all six volumes in NM condition for $20! I confess I got lazy on the scans and used the ones that accompanied my old mp3 copies from the Cobblestone blog of a few years back.

Foolish and violent vandals nearly succeeded in putting an end to the Newport Jazz Festival in 1971. George Wein underestimated the draw of booking The Allman Brothers, 10's of thousands more people showed up than there were tickets or room on the grounds for and a mob of gate crashers boiled through the fences during Dione Warwick and rushed the stage, destroying everything in their path. The relationship with the city of Newport, always a rocky one, suffered such damage it would take nine years to recover from it.

As a result Wein moved his festival to New York City in 1972, using multiple venues like Yankee Stadium, Radio City Music Hall and Wollman skating rink in Central Park for the next 9 years. I went for the first two and saw some of these shows. Newport has always been the home of the Jam Session; for better or worse George has always loved putting diverse groups of musicians on a stage and letting the sparks fly. These two jams were at the old Radio City Music Hall I am pretty sure I did not see either of these (it has been a looong time).

Volume One: Radio City Music Hall, July 6, 1972 

side a: Jumpin at Woodside
side b: Lo-Slo Blues

Cat Anderson, Jimmy Owens - trumpet; Charles McPherson alto sax; Buddy Tate tenor sax; Milt Buckner organ; Roland Hanna piano; Charles Mingus bass; Alan Dawson drums

Volume Two: Radio City Music Hall, July 3, 1972

side a: Bag's Groove
side b: Night in Tunisia

Dizzy Gillespie trumpet; Stan Getz tenor sax; Benny Green trombone, Milt Jackson vibes; John Blair violin; Kenny Burrell guitar; Mary Lou Williams piano; Percy Heath bass; Max Roach drums; Big Black congas

Were I looking at the program and trying to decide where to spend my money (and I suppose I was back then, I just don't remember) I would have chosen the July 3 show over the July 6 show....and I would have been wrong! For whatever reason the Volume One jam gels much more than the Volume Two show, the second show has some powerful moments no doubt, Diz, Kenny and John Blair all have some great solo moments, but there is a lot of indecision and differences of opinion on tempo and such too.