Roy Eldridge visited Stockholm in January of 1951. The first two numbers recorded there were issued on Classics 1259 (1950-1951). These remaining Swedish selections cover a wide range of styles and moods. Eldridge's adaptation of Louis Jordan's "Saturday Night Fish Fry" was issued on two sides of a 78-rpm platter. His approach to "They Raided the Joint" is not quite as rowdy as that of Hot Lips Page. "The Heat's On" and "Estrad Swing" convey powerful currents of what at the time was modern, up-to-date jazz, comparable to what Coleman Hawkins was blowing. "No Rolling Blues" is a slow exercise in artful complaining, the subject being a dishonest woman. Two final Stockholm recordings, spruced up with Charles Norman's harpsichord, resemble the Artie Shaw Gramercy Five at their finest, when the tinkling keyboard was handled by Johnny Guarnieri. Back in Paris during March of 1951, Eldridge pooled his energies with tenor saxophonist Don Byas and a rhythm trio featuring Claude Bolling at the piano. This blowing session, resulting in three pressure cookers and a cool processional, was energized by the inspired drumming of Armand Molinetti. On the following day, Eldridge recorded a fine pair of duets with Claude Bolling as a tribute to Earl Hines and Louis Armstrong. "Wild Man Blues" evokes the original pairing, while "Fireworks" is based on the famous stomp by Armstrong's Hot Five. Back in New York six months later, Eldridge collaborated wonderfully with tenor saxophonist Buddy Tate on a mixed bag of selections recorded for the Mercury label. Tate pours himself into "Baby What's the Matter With You." "Sweet Lorraine" features the trumpet with lots of reverb, and "Yard Dog," initially waxed by Eldridge's big band in May of 1946, whips along at an almost alarmingly rapid pace, with Charlie Smith socking the drums and Buddy Tate booting away on his tenor. Considering the fact that "Jumbo the Elephant" is a novelty singalong, Eldridge's band manages to swing fairly hard with it. In December of 1951 Norman Granz recorded Eldridge backed by a large string ensemble. This was not at all unusual at the time, as Charlie Parker and Billie Holiday made many wonderful records using this sort of instrumentation. Roy Eldridge was such a soulful, pungent player that these orchestral settings come off as honest, reflective, and substantial. arwulf arwulf
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