Lou Donaldson - Mr. Shing-A-Ling (1967)

Here we have a reissue of one of Blue Note's LPs to remain out of print. Essentially, it is a classic soul-jazz album by the great jazz saxophonist & band leader, Lou Donaldson whom was a predominant fixture throughout the sixties. Lou had his own tone and thrived on expressing the boogaloo style which many later artists attempted to mimic and sample in the eighties onwards. "Mr. Shing-A-Ling", the follow up album to Lou Donaldson's hit album "Alligator Boogaloo", has long been considered the best of Lou Donaldson's funk/soul-jazz albums from the late-60s. For this date Lou surrounds himself with a who's who of great soul jazz players, including legendary trumpeter Blue Mitchell, organist Lonnie Smith, guitarist Jimmy Ponder and drummer Leo Morris. Together they showcase four popular tunes with the addition of Lou's own composition "The Humpback". Recorded by the master engineer Rudy van Gelder at his home studio in New Jersey, and now this audiophile vinyl reissue produced by Joe Harley and features an all-analogue vinyl is available. A revitalised and worthy addition to any Lou Donaldson fan's collection. [DR14] 

Blue Note, BST 84271, 1967
Blue Note, BST 84271, 2019
Recorded 27th October, 1967 at Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey 

Musicians:
Lou Donaldson - Alto Saxophone
Blue Mitchell - Trumpet
Lonnie Smith - Organ [Hammond B-3]
Jimmy "Fats" Ponder - Guitar
Leo Morris - Drums

Tracks:
A1. Ode To Billie Joe {Bobby Gentry} (6:30)
A2. The Humpback {Lou Donaldson} (5:27)
A3. The Shadow Of Your Smile {Johnny Mandel, Paul Francis Webster} (6:23)
B1. Peepin' {Lonnie Smith} (8:18)
B2. The Kid {Harold Ousley} (10:57) 

Total Time: 37:35 

Credits:
Producer - Frank Wolff
Reissue Supervisor - Joe Harley
Recording Engineer - Rudy van Gelder
Mastering, Lacquer Cut - Kevin Cray
Design [Cover], Photography [Cover] - Reid Miles
Liner Notes - Del Shields 

The Humpback

Nat Adderley - Calling Out Loud (1969) [re-rip]

A pretty great little album from Nat - recorded with arrangements by Bill Fischer, who gives the record a tightly compressed big band sound that's perfect for Nat's sharp funky horn! The album's not exactly "funk", but there's plenty of it in the mix - as lead horn grooves around nicely, while Joe Zawinul plays electric piano, and Leo Morris (aka Idris Muhammad) plays drums. Titles include "Biafra", "Haifa", "St M", "Grey Moss", and "Calling Out Loud". © Dusty Groove, Inc.

For this album Adderley composes the majority of the tunes and sets about laying down some impeccably beautiful solos on his chosen instrument the cornet. In addition, he surrounds himself with some of the usual session men of the time such as Ron Carter, Leo Morris, Joe Zawinul, Jerome Richardson and Hubert Laws. The interplay of the Idris & Ron and Nat & Joe pairings takes this album to some special places as it hits some real highs, with Nat's cornet leading the way. Zawinul sets up some nice solos on both Biafra and the following tune Haifa. Carter gets into stride with a loud bass line in parts of Grey Moss. The highlight is the swinging Soul-Jazz of Comin' Out The Shadows with some good soloing. The title track is a touch slower but showcases Zawinul’s biting tones on his electric piano. Of merit are the compositions written and arranged by Bill Fischer; St. M, Nobody Knows and shared with Nat Calling Out Loud. Nat’s playing on Nobody Knows is just perfect. Of equal value are Joe Zawinul’s two tunes; Grey Moss & Ivan's Holiday.

The real issue in preparing this rip is that it is assembled as a suite with a series of transitional mini-movements joining the tunes together. With my first post I carefully spliced the two sides into individual tracks that I believe worked. However, when revisiting this gem I decided to leave well alone and upload just as Side A and Side B, Enjoy!

A&M/CTI Records (Japan), C25Y3819, 1986

Recorded 19th, 21st November & 4th December, 1968

At Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey

Personnel:

Nat Adderley - Cornet

Joe Zawinul - Electric Piano

Hubert Laws - Flute, Piccolo Flute

Jerome Richardson - Saxophone

Seldon Powell - Saxophone

George Marge - Clarinet, English Horn, Saxophone (#A1)

Paul Ingraham - French Horn

Donald MacCourt - Bassoon

Romeo Penque - Bass Clarinet

Danny Bank - Saxophone (#A1)

Jerry Dodgion - Saxophone (#A1)

Richard Henderson - Saxophone (#A1)

Ron Carter - Bass

Leo Morris - Drums

Tracklist:

Side A: [18:46]

1. Biafra {Nat Adderley} (6:34)

2. Haifa {Nat Adderley} (4:59)

3. St. M {W. S. Fischer} (3:54)

4. Grey Moss {Joe Zawinul} (3:27)

Side B: [17:32]

1. Nobody Knows {W. S. Fischer} (6:11)

2. Comin' Out The Shadows {Nat Adderley} (4:58)

3. Ivan's Holiday {Joe Zawinul} (3:11)

4. Calling Out Loud {Nat Adderley, W. S. Fischer} (3:17)

Credits:

Producer - Creed Taylor

Engineer - Rudy van Gelder

Arranger & Conductor - Bill Fischer

Cover Photo - Pete Turner

Cover Design - Sam Antupit

Note:

Original rip is still active, check link in comments.

Lou Donaldson - Hot Dog (1969) [re-rip>flac]

From the title, to the cover, to the gritty grooves way down in the wax - this has got to be one of the funkiest Blue Note albums ever - a real landmark from the legendary Lou Donaldson! The set kicks off with a hard and heavy groove from the very first note - thanks to some super-tight drumming by a young Idris Muhammad - still billed under his birth name of Leo Morris on the sleeve, but already hitting the kit with that snapping post-Popcorn style that would revolutionize funky jazz in years to come! Donaldson's plenty smoking himself on electrified alto sax - played with that great mix of flatness and echo that you'd hear in Eddie Harris' albums of the same time - and the rest of the lineup is equally cooking, with Melvin Sparks on guitar, Charles Earland on organ, and Ed Williams blasting away on funky trumpet! Titles include killer remakes of "It's Your Thing" and "Who's Making Love" - plus Donaldson originals "Hot Dog" and "Turtle Walk" - all nice and long, and with a really raw sound!  © Dusty Groove, Inc.

A wildly erratic slice of funky soul-jazz in keeping with Lou Donaldson's late-'60s commercial accessibility, Hot Dog isn't a total washout, but it's just as hit-and-miss as many of Donaldson's albums from the era (even if you are a fan of the style). The main sticking points are the contemporary R&B covers that open and close the album. "Who's Making Love" has an out-of-tune group vocal that fails to be charming in its amateurishness, and the funk of "It's Your Thing" sounds leaden and lifeless despite the best efforts of breakbeat legend Leo Morris (later Idris Muhammad) on drums. Take those away and Hot Dog would be a fairly decent effort. Also featuring guitarist Melvin Sparks, organist Charles Earland, and trumpeter Ed Williams, the ensemble really catches fire on "Turtle Walk," a Donaldson original where the groove sounds natural and helps push the soloists. The Donaldson-penned title cut also gets pretty funky, though the underlying vamp is a little insubstantial to stretch out over ten minutes. The Tommy Turrentine ballad "Bonnie" returns Donaldson to the sweet, romantic territory he's mined so well over the years. So Hot Dog does have some worthwhile moments; it's just a pity the overall finished product isn't more consistent -- the cover photo is great. ~ by Steve Huey, AMG.

Blue Note, BST 84318, 1969

Recorded 25^th April, 1969 at Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey

Personnel:

Lou Donaldson - Alto Sax [Varitone], Vocals (#A1,B2)

Ed Williams - Trumpet

Charles Earland - Organ

Melvin Sparks - Guitar

Leo Morris - Drums

Track Listing:

A1. Who's Making Love? {Homer Banks, Bettye Crutcher, Don Davis, Raymond Jackson} (6:44)

A2. Turtle Walk {Lou Donaldson} (7:53)

A3. Bonnie {Tommy Turrentine} (4:55)

B1. Hot Dog {Denny Dedmon, Lou Donaldson, Buck Owens} (10:42)

B2. It's Your Thing {Rudolph Isley, O'Kelly Isley, Ronald Isley} (8:58)

Credits:

Producer - Francis Wolff

Recording Engineer - Rudy van Gelder

Art Direction, Cover Photo - Frank Guana

Back & Inside Photos - Clyde Stringer

Liner Notes - George Butler