Monty Alexander - The River (1985)

On this Concord CD, pianist Monty Alexander performs religious hymns plus a few of his originals that also fit comfortably in that tradition. Accompanied by bassist John Clayton and drummer Ed Thigpen, Alexander's sensitive, but generally swinging, interpretations of these timeless melodies communicate very well. ~ by Scott Yanow, AMG. 

Beautifully Lyrically Sacred Music
=========================
Monty Alexander is not exactly a pop star but he should be included in any serious music connoisseur's collection. Monty's prowess on the piano is legendary in his native Jamaica, but even his fans may not know his spiritual side so beautifully revealed in The River: an inspired sacred collection played in inimitably playful, non-conventional Monty style - rhythm & syncopation with sweet, sensuous (oops - pure Monty ;-) musicality. ~ Melanie N, 5 Stars, Amazon.com. 

Concord Jazz, CCD-4422, 1990
Recorded in October 1985 at Omega Studios, Rockville, Maryland 

Musicians:
Monty Alexander - Piano
John Clayton - Bass
Ed Thigpen - Drums 

Tracks:
01. Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus {George Duffield, George James Webb} (5:23)
02. The River {Monty Alexander, Frank Severino} (5:37)
03. The Serpent {Monty Alexander} (3:26)
04. Ave Maria {Franz Schubert; Arr. Monty Alexander} (4:32)
05. David Danced {Edward Kennedy Ellington} (4:55)
06. Renewal {Monty Alexander} (8:30)
07. Ain't Gonna Study War No More {Traditional; Arr. Monty Alexander} (4:05)
08. Holy! Holy! Lord God Almighty {Reginald Heber, John Dykes; Arr. Monty Alexander} (3:31)
09. What A Friend We Have In Jesus {Horatius Bonar, Charles Crozat Converse} (6:17)
10. How Great Thou Art {Traditional; Arr. Monty Alexander} (5:18) 

Total Time: 51:38 

Credits:
Producer, Liner Notes - Monty Alexander
Executive Producer - Caarl E. Jefferson
Recording Engineer - Bob Yesbek
Assistant Recording Engineer - Billy Brady
Assembling Engineer - Phil Edwards
Mastering Engineer - George Horn
Art Direction - Sandi Young

LINK

Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus

Gene Ammons - Sock! (1954,55,62) [re-rip]

Sock! is an album by Gene Ammons compiling sessions recorded between 1954 and 1962 and released on Prestige in 1965.

A striking title - and a strong set of grooves, even if the tracks were pulled from a variety of different sessions, and not recorded as a unified album. Jug plays tenor on all cuts - working in formats that range from a Mal Waldron led trio to larger honking groups with horn players like Henderson Chambers, Cecil Payne, Nate Woodward, and Gene Easton. Tracks are short, and most are pretty rocking - with titles that include "Blue Coolade", "Short Stop", "Scam", "Sock", "What I Say", and "Rock Roll". © Dusty Groove, Inc.

Prestige Records, PR 7400, 1965

Recorded 26^th November, 1954 (B1-B4); 4^th November, 1955 (#B5,B6);

Recorded 13^th April, 1962 (#A4) & 5^th September, 1962 (#A1-A3)

At Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, New Jersey

Personnel:

Gene Ammons - Tenor Saxophone

Nate Woodward - Trumpet (#B1-B6)

Henderson Chambers - Trombone (#B1-B4)

Edwin Moore - Trombone (#B5-B6)

Gene Easton - Baritone Saxophone (#B1-B4)

Cecil Payne - Baritone Saxophone (#B5-B6)

Mal Waldron - Piano (#A1-A3)

Patti Bown - Piano (#A4)

John Houston - Piano (#B1-B4)

Lawrence Wheatley - Piano (#B5-B6)

Wendell Marshall - Bass (#A1-A3)

George Duvivier - Bass (#A4)

Ben Steuberville - Bass (#B1-B4)

Ernie Shepherd - Bass (#B5-B6)

Ed Thigpen - Drums (#A1-A3)

Walter Perkins - Drums (#A4)

George Brown - Drums (#B1-B6)

Tracks:

A1. Blue Coolade {Mal Waldron} (4:11)

A2. Short Stop {Mal Waldron} (3:33)

A3. They Say You're Laughing At Me {Jerry Livingston} (3:58)

A4. Scam {Gene Ammons} (5:27)

B1. Sock! {Gene Ammons} (2:47)

B2. What I Say {Ray Charles} (2:38)

B3. Count Your Blessings {Richard Morgan} (4:25)

B4. Cara Mia {Lee Lange, Tulio Trapani} (3:08)

B5. Blues For Turfers {Gene Ammons} (4:03)

B6. Rock Roll {Chico O'Farrill} (2:58)

Total Time: 37:09

Credits:

Supervision - Esmond Edwards [Side A] - Bob Weinstock [Side B]

Recording Engineer - Rudy van Gelder

Design - Don Schlitten

Liner Notes - Jack McKinney (July, 1965)

Gene Ammons - Velvet Soul (1960,61,62)

Classic mellow Jug - from a time when Prestige discovered that Gene Ammons would sell equally well to the mellow jazz crowd as to the jukebox jumpers. Most of the cuts feature Gene with a deep soulful tone that could qualify as "velvet",  but which still has enough of a rough edge to remain soulful. One track is played by a larger group, and the rest are with small combos that either feature organ or piano. Tracks include "Salome's Tune", "Velvet Soul", "Stranger In Town", and "Light N Up". © 1996-2013, Dusty Groove, Inc.

No Matter in what context we hear Gene Ammons, his characteristic directness and passion can easily be heard. As this set closes we can feel Ammons' concern with all that he plays and the passion with which he invests his music. Ammons has had his outing and he has, once again proven himself worthy of our attention. ~ Extracts from Liner Notes by Michael Gold (Feb. 1964).

Prestige Records, PRST 7320, 1964

Recorded 17^th June, 1960 (#A1,A2); 13^th June, 1961 (#B2);

& 5^th September, 1962 (#A3,B1,B3)

At Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey

Personnel:
Gene Ammons - Tenor Saxophone
Frank Wess - Tenor Saxophone (#A1,A2)

Hobart Dotson, Clark Terry - Trumpet (#B2)

Oliver Nelson - Alto Saxophone (#B2)

George Barrow, Red Holloway - Tenor Saxophone (#B2)

Bob Ashton - Baritone Saxophone (#B2)

Richard Wyands - Piano (#B2)

Johnny "Hammond" Smith - Organ (#A1,A2)

Mal Waldron - Piano (#A3,B1,B3)

Doug Watkins - Bass (#A1,A2)

Wendell Marshall - Bass (#A3-B3)

Arthur Taylor - Drums (#A1,A2)

Ed Thigpen - Drums (#A3,B1,B3)

Bill English - Drums (#B2)

Tracks:

A1. Velvet Soul {Johnny "Hammond" Smith} (8:54)

A2. In Sid's Thing {Gene Ammons} (5:26)

A3. Salome's Tune {Mal Waldron} (4:13)

B1. Light'n Up {Mal Waldron} (3:59)

B2. The Song Is You {Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II} (9:41)

B3. A Stranger In Town {Mel Tormé} (5:58)

Credits:

Supervision - Esmond Edwards

Recording Engineer - Rudy van Gelder

Photography - Gai Terrell

Liner Notes - Michael Gold (Feb. 1964)

Billy Taylor - Billy Taylor Introduces Ira Sullivan 1956 (LP-24-48-flac)

 
A great early session from Chicago trumpeter Ira Sullivan – a very strong player who came out strongly in the late 50s as one of the big jazz hopefuls from the Windy City. This set has Ira backed by the Billy Taylor Trio – presented by Billy on ABC, where the Taylor trio was recording at the time. Tracks have a nice open-ended feel, and a lot more drive than Billy's own work at the time, and the best numbers feel like they were recorded for a Prestige blowing session. Titles include "Strolling", "Leslie's Gauge", "You Don't Know What Love Is", and "So In Love".  (dustygroove.com)
 
Tracks...

  1. So In Love
  2. Imagination
  3. Strolling
  4. They Can't Take That Away From Me
  5. Leslie's Gauge
  6. In A Mellow Tone
  7. You Don't Know What Love Is

Personnel...

Billy Taylor - Piano
Ed Thigpen - Drums
Earl May - Bass
Ira Sullivan - Trumpet

My LP > flac 24/48 > Complete 600 DPI Scans > 491MB

Jazz For Playboys

During the 50's, Savoy released quite a few mainstream jam sessions.  They generally revolved around the same batch of players, mostly culled from Basie's band.  The results were excellent and most importantly, consistent.  Jazz For Playboys is no exception and overall is a pleasant ride through jazzville.

You will find that this side gets listed under Frank Wess and Kenny Burrell's names... rightly so.  They appear on all of the tracks and definitely lead the charge as far as soloing is concerned.

I thought this would be a nice break from the Basie project, while still staying in a related sound.  This minty Savoy side is a 1985 reissue, ripped at 24/44.1 wav and dithered to 16/44.1 FLAC... enjoy!!

Savoy Jazz MG-12095

Roots - Saying Something

Every now and again, one of our friends here will send me a share that gets buried in my inbox and forgotten but they always resurface once I get around to going thru emails. Obviously I am inferring that this is one of those; bluebird sent this nearly a month ago and I am just now getting around to it.

Roots is a saxophone ensemble that toured Europe each summer or much of the 90's. The band was lead by Nathan Davis and always featured at least 3 other killer saxophonist and a first class rhythm section. Each tour the band would focus on 2 or 3 sax masters and songs associated with them. Here the focus' are Wayne Shorter, Lester Young and John Coltrane and Dr. Davis is joined by Arthur Blythe, Benny Golson and Chico Freeman on the front line. The rhythm section is merely Kirk Lightsey, Buster Williams and Ed Thigpen.

The powerful 7 song live program is full of great moments and lovely songs; all done with plenty of room for folks to stretch out - now that bluebird has reminded me of them, perhaps some other recordings of this great band will be forthcoming.