COLEMAN HAWKINS - Body & Soul (1996) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Much of the material on this two-LP set has been since reissued on CD, but, one way or the other, this music (particularly the first 16 tracks) belongs in every serious jazz collection. In 1939, Hawkins returned to the U.S. after five years in Europe, and it took him very little time to reassert his prior dominance as king of the tenors. This set starts off with the session that resulted in Hawk's classic version of "Body and Soul," teams him with Benny Carter (on trumpet) for some hot swing (including a memorable rendition of "My Blue Heaven"), and then finds Hawkins using younger musicians (including trumpeter Fats Navarro and trombonist J.J. Johnson) on some advanced bop originals highlighted by "Half Step Down Please." The remainder of this set is also good, but less historic, with Hawkins being well-showcased with three larger groups in 1956, culminating in a remake of "Body and Soul." Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1     Meet Doctor Foo 2'32
Coleman Hawkins
2     Fine Dinner 2'33
Coleman Hawkins
3     She's Funny That Way 3'14
Neil Moret (Chas. N. Daniels) / Richard A. Whiting
4     Body and Soul 3'00
Frank Eyton / Johnny Green / Edward Heyman / Robert Sour
5     When Day Is Done 3'15
Buddy DeSylva / Robert Katscher
6     The Sheik of Araby 2'56
Harry Beasley Smith / Ted Snyder / Francis Wheeler
7     My Blue Heaven 2'46
Walter Donaldson / George A. Whiting
8     Bouncing with Bean 3'03
Coleman Hawkins
9     Say It Isn't So 2'57
Irving Berlin
10     Spotlite 3'06
Coleman Hawkins
11     April in Paris 3'06
Vernon Duke / E.Y. "Yip" Harburg
12     How Strange 3'02
Earl Brent / Gus Kahn / Herbert Stothart / Traditional
13     Half Step Down, Please 3'02
Tadd Dameron / Coleman Hawkins
14     Angel Face 3'12
Coleman Hawkins / Victor Herbert / Hank Jones
15     There Will Never Be Another You 2'57
Mack Gordon / Harry Warren
16     The Bean Stalks Again 3'24
Coleman Hawkins
17     Body and Soul 4'51
Frank Eyton / Johnny Green / Edward Heyman / Robert Sour
18     I Love Paris 3'30
Cole Porter
19     Under Paris Skies 2'45
Jean Dréjac / Kim Gannon / Hubert Giraud
Notas.
Recorded between 1939 and 1956 at RCA Studios, New York.