Earl Hines Quintet - "Fatha" Blows Best

Hey gang.  This is a re-up from three years ago at the "old" Crypt.  Been spinning it recently and thought that perhaps some of you missed the original post.  You will notice that three out of four members of the JPJ Quartet appear on this album together.

Next up is the curiously titled "Fatha" Blows Best. Since we all know that Earl Hines was a pianist, I am not exactly sure what he blows...I will leave that up for you guys to figure out.

Title aside, this is another hard swingin winner. The group are all veterans of jazz, and it shows on the album. This quintet doesn't rush much of anything as they cook their way through ballads and mid tempo numbers.

Thinking Of You raises the fever, but only for a couple minutes. Infact most of the tunes don't exceed 3 minutes with the exception of Shine On Harvest Moon. On that tune, the group must have really been feelin it as it almost triples any other song on the album in length.

Hines mostly comps for his front line although he does throw in a pinch of hot pepper every now and again. Budd Johnson is excellent here, and fans will want to hear him tear through these numbers on both tenor and soprano. Infact his soprano work is excellent and it adds a nice dimension to the recording, expanding the realm of possibility and keeping things interesting. Buck Clayton was also having a fine day and compliments his partner well. Pemberton and Jackson mostly just keep things swingin for the group, which is fine by me.

This session could easily have appeared as a Swingville or Moodville side. The overall vibe gives me a visual of a hot southern day. This group had been together for some time, with the exception of Clayton, and clearly knew how to use their rapport to paint a picture.

This minty LP was ripped at 24/44.1 wav and dithered to 16/44.1 FLAC. A wonderfully swingin album...enjoy!!

Decca (DL75048) Mar. 8/11, 1968 NYC

Earl "Fatha" Hines - piano and vocal; Budd Johnson - soprano/tenor sax; Buck Clayton - trumpet; Bill Pemberton - bass; Oliver Jackson - drums

Erskine Hawkins - The Hawk Blows At Midnight

Maaaaaaaaaaan oh man...

I don't even know where to start with this one - this happens when I am excited to share.  This album was Erskine's first small group recording, being legendary in the big band dept., and it proved to be a real gem.  Not knowing what to expect, I assumed it would be a solid mainstream affair.  It certainly is, but, there is alot of colour all around to make it not quite so typical.

Hawkin's choice of songs and sidemen produce an album with clear blues and R&B influences.  I mean, Bobby Smith and Shep Sheperd!?!?!  Fuh'geddaboudit... These guys make every single tune interesting and upbeat, even tackling a ska approach on the main lick in Someone's Rocking My Dreamboat.  They infuse a similar approach into a couple other tunes, such as Things Ain't What They Used To Be, but only as a quick bridge.

I guess it's fair to say that this album surprised the hell out of me.  It's a fun, swingin and colourful set of tunes which also happened to be recorded really well.  The transfer you are getting is a stereo version - and it's solid gold.  Wonderful fidelity with great balance and diplomacy between all the instruments.  That said, the horns have an incredible immediacy about them so that when the solos come in, they hit real, real hard.  Of course this was ripped in 24/48 wav and converted to 24/48 FLAC.  The wax is quite clean and you'll find there's little analog distraction.  I spent some extra time with this one to guarantee that it's a special event... enjoy!!!

Decca DL-74081
1961

Erskine Hawkins - trumpet;  Bobby Smith - sax;  Leroy Kirkland - guitar;  Ernest Hayes - piano;
Lloyd Trotman - bass;  Shep Sheperd - drums.

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)

Charlie Barnet - Skyliner

Well, as promised here's one of Charlie Barnet's most infamous albums from his orchestra's glory days.  If you ever buy or see a big band comp with Barnet included, the tune Skyliner is almost certainly going to be there.

If you Google "Charlie Barnet Skyliner", a prolific amount of albums will be displayed.  All you need to know is that this is the REAL deal, the original Skyliner on Decca.  His band arguably released their most popular sides with Bluebird during the late 30's and early 40's, but Skyliner was still one of the best.

As far as the playing goes, expect the usual quirky and fun style that you heard on the last post, Cherokee.  The soloing is sporadic but the ensemble work is tight.  Peanuts Holland really makes the session with an awesome rendition of Drop Me Off In Harlem.  I could be wrong, but I am pretty sure when this was released in 1944, the Foxtrot was the rage - and can be heard on Skyliner.  I hope some of you will take a chance on a great piece of jazz history, and one of the more interesting jazz figures from the big band era.  Barnet was well respected by Basie and Ellington, and as such remains in the annals of 40's jazz storytelling (mostly for the bands wild antics off stage).  It should also be noted that at the time of this recording, Barnet and other like minded leaders were moving away from "audience driven" jazz and into something more like what bop was to become.  At this point the arrangers were really key and Barnet knew it inviting some of the best to voice his orchestra.  Generally speaking, Barnet didn't care for being popular or mainstream - he just wanted to have fun playing the most contemporary jazz of the day.

I know that when you hear this music, it's hard to imagine that the players could have possibly been "cutting edge", or considered outsiders.  I think that overall, Barnet wisely towed the line between both sides of the coin.  The bottom line is, this fun, sophisticated music should never be forgotten!!

This was ripped at 24/44.1 wav and dithered to 16/44.1 FLAC.  The album is in excellent condition, an original US pressing!!  A real jewel in my collection, and in fabulous mono of course.   Get ready to have some fun... Enjoy!!!

DECCA DL8098
1944

The best I can find is a list of his band members for BOTH of his DECCA releases.  I can't nail down exactly who is on this album, but Peanuts Holland and Dodo Marmarosa are a definite.  Can anybody help??

Charlie Barnet (soprano, alto & tenor saxophones);

Peanuts Holland, Art Robey (vocals, trumpet); 

Frances Wayne, Kay Starr (vocals); 

George Bone, Conn Humphries, Murray Williams, Buddy DeFranco (alto saxophone); 

Kurt Bloom, James Lamare (tenor saxophone); 

Bob Dawes (baritone saxophone); 

Roy Eldridge, Art House, Irving Berger, Joe Ferrante, Chuck Zimmerman, Al Killian, Jimmy Pupa, Lyman Vunk, George Seaberg (trumpet); 

Lawrence Brown, Russ Brown, Kahn Keene, Wally Baron, Bill Robertson, Eddie Bert, Ed Fromm, Spud Murphy, Bob Swift (trombone); 

Dodo Marmarosa (piano); 

Tommy Moore, Barney Kessel (guitar); 

Jack Jarvis, Bob Elden, Irv Lang (bass); 

Cliff Leeman, Harold Hahn (drums)