Hilton Ruiz - Strut (1988)

Pianist Hilton Ruiz mixes together elements of salsa, r&b, funk and jazz but, instead of his music becoming some type of hybrid, the result is a very danceable variety of jazz that is both accessible and challenging. Ruiz, whose main influence is McCoy Tyner, gathered together a very interesting assortment of players for Strut. Trumpeter Lew Soloff contributes some high notes and leads the horn riffing, trombonist Dick Griffin's extroverted trombone is witty in its short spots, Sam Rivers (mostly on tenor) and percussionist Mongo Santamaria add their sounds to the brew and guitarist Rodney Jones is second only to Ruiz in taking solo honors. It is particularly rewarding to hear a Latin remake of "The Sidewinder" and many of the other good-natured melodies are catchy. Strut should be able to win over both jazz fans and those listeners who claim to not understand or be able to appreciative creative music. ~ by Scott Yanow, AMG. 

Novus Records, PD83053, 1989
Recorded 30th November & 1st December, 1988 at Studio B, RCA Studios, New York City

Musicians:
Hilton Ruiz - Piano
Lew Soloff - Trumpet
Dick Griffin - Trombone
Sam Rivers - Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax
Rodney Jones - Guitar, Bass (#7)
Francisco Centeno - Electric Bass
Robby Ameen - Drums, Timbales, Percussion (#4,5)
Steve Berrios - Drums (#4,5)
Mongo Santamaria - Congas 

Tracks:
1. The Sidewinder {Lee Morgan} (6:19)
2. Goin' Back To New Orleans {Hilton Ruiz} (10:45)
3. Bluz {Sam Rivers} (4:59)
4. Aged In Soul {William Allen} (4:19)
5. All My Love Is Yours {Dick Griffin} (8:07)
6. Soca Serenade {William Allen} (5:55)
7. Why Don't You Steal My Blues {Bradley Cunningham} (2:34)
8. Lush Life {Billy Strayhorn} (6:24) 

Total Time: 49:24 

Credits:
Producer - Ed Michel
Producer [Series] - Steve Backer
Engineer - Tony May
Disc Mastering - Jack Adelman
Art Direction, Design - Ria Lewerke, Pietro Alfien
Photography - Brian Davis 

Aged In Soul

Dick Griffin - The Eighth Wonder (1974)

Trombonist Dick Griffin's big, hearty sound has been a well-defined asset in any of the musical buffets he has taken part in during his long career. Whether part of a James Brown horn section or a small modern jazz band, Griffin's trombone is a steaming dish - if it was literally part of a smorgasbord spread there would always be several hungry customers lined up behind it, ladles ready. Jazz buffs wanted to dig right in when the trombonist served up his own album for the Strata-East co-operative label in the '70s, but the result was more like a stew that is not fully cooked at mealtime. By the time this one gets to full boil, many of the guests have gone home and hit the hay, to continue the analogy. When Sam Rivers takes off on a tenor solo during "Flying Back Home," the listener does the usual standing at attention, ears cocked, that is a required part of experiencing a Rivers solo. Yet by this time the record has already been flipped, it is only a bit more than ten minutes until the whole thing is over, and worst of all, the Rivers fan has already contemplated in sullen sadness why the first side went by without much more than a few peeps from the man. Bassist Cecil McBee does get in one of his gorgeous bass solos on the first side. He is part of an exceptional rhythm section partly made up of Griffin associates from Rahsaan Roland Kirk's Vibration Society. Kirk would never had let the first side of one of his albums drag so badly, despite his love of ballads. He would have known when enough was enough in terms of a beautiful sound and would have made an effort to shake things up. In many ways "The Eighth Wonder" shows that Griffin's greatest abilities may not be as a bandleader; the recorded sound and technical execution is as flawless as the multi-phonic chops he displays when the needle first hits, but there isn't much sign of the expressive drive that makes the music of many of Griffin's employers over the years so compelling. ~ Extract by Eugene Chadbourne, AMG.

Strata-East Records, SES-19747, 1974

Musicians:

Dick Griffin - Trombone

Sam Rivers - Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Flute

Warren Smith - Vibraphone, Percussion

Ron Burton - Piano

Cecil McBee - Bass

Freddie Waits - Drums

Leopolodo F. Fleming - Percussion, Congas, Bells

Tracks:

A1. Eighth Wonder (5:59)

A2. It Could Be     (6:50)

A3. Girl, I Really Love You So (6:43)

B1. Jakubu's Dance (4:07)

B2. Flying Back Home (8:21)

B3. Come Be With Me (9:31)

All Compositions and Arrangements by Dick Griffin

Credits:

Producer, Arranger, Composer, Liner Notes - Dick Griffin

Recording Engineer - Rudy Cotman

Photography [Front Cover] - Clarence Eastman

Roots Salutes the Saxophone

Our good buddy Bluebird is back with another lovely goodie from Nathan Davis' Roots project. This time Nathans' front line teammates are Sam Rivers, Arthur Blythe and Chico Freeman! WHEW!!

While the tunes are all mainstream, this particular ensemble plays much closer to the 'edge', for lack of a better term. That shouldn't be particularly surprising, given that the participants all have pretty fair free jazz backgrounds. This was actually the first Roots ensemble recorded live in 1991. It is a riveting and fun ride start to finish!

"Recorded at the Leverkusen Jazz Festival, where this outstanding all-star saxophone repertory band made its début in 1991, this album features ROOTS celebrating some of the great saxophonists in jazz with memorable versions of the great compositions with which they are associated.
"What ROOTS celebrates so enjoyably... is the sheer vitality, adaptability and diversity of the jazz tradition itself, providing as it does an ever-expanding body of work to be interpreted anew by each succeeding generation of musicians."

(Chris Parker, Jazz Correspondent , Daily Telegraph Weekend)