LOUIS ARMSTRONG AND HIS ALL STARS – 1947, Vol. 2 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1144 (2000) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Louis Armstrong's All-Stars were the perfect postwar traditional jazz band, with Armstrong, Jack Teagarden, and Barney Bigard backed by Dick Cary, Arvell Shaw, and Sidney Catlett. Here on one disc are nearly all of the recordings made at Boston's Symphony Hall on November 30, 1947. The first four selections from this concert were issued on the previous volume of the complete recorded works of Louis Armstrong on the Classics Chronological Series. The Symphony Hall transcriptions were among the first extended Armstrong records to be made available to the public. Although eight of these titles were once issued in two parts, they are seamlessly presented here as uninterrupted jams. The most expanded track, clocking in at just over seven minutes, is "Steak Face," containing what is probably the longest drum solo ever recorded by Sid Catlett. The title comes from Armstrong's nickname for Catlett. In addition, Arvell Shaw was given room for an extended bass solo on "How High the Moon." The stylistic range represented here is enormously satisfying, encompassing old favorites like "High Society" and "Mahogany Hall Stomp" as well as progressive ideas from Duke Ellington ("C-Jam Blues") and Coleman Hawkins ("Boff Boff," also known as "Mop! Mop!"). There are marvelous vocals by Jack Teagarden, Louis Armstrong, and Velma Middleton, who spools out a magnificent rendition of Buddy Johnson's "Since I Fell for You." arwulf arwulf     Tracklist + Credits :

LOUIS ARMSTRONG – 1954 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1402 (2005) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This 22nd volume in Classics Records' chronological survey of the complete recordings of Louis Armstrong is a bit of a transitional one. It features Armstrong's last recordings for Decca Records, opening with a handful of studio versions of songs that were featured in the movie The Glenn Miller Story (including yet another take on "Basin Street Blues") and moves on to a pair of novelty songs, the utterly goofy "Spooks?" and a completely unnecessary rendition of Joyce Kilmer's poem "Trees" turned into a song. The miracle is that Armstrong's vocal almost -- almost -- makes "Trees" work as a legitimate song, but in the end a boat won't float if its design prevents it from doing so, and "Trees" just leaves one shaking one's head. What makes this installment worthwhile, though, is that it closes out with nine of the 11 songs that were featured on Armstrong's marvelous 1954 Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Handy LP from Columbia Records, including fine versions of "Ole Miss," "Beale Street Blues," "Loveless Love," and what may well be the definitive version of "St. Louis Blues," which comes in at just under nine minutes in length. The remaining two tracks from the 1954 Handy sessions, "Yellow Dog Blues" and "Sing 'Em Low," will presumably open Classics' 23rd installment of Armstrong's musical biography. The only truly essential tracks here are the Handy tunes, which have been reissued by Columbia anyway, complete with a full track listing and a couple of alternate takes, so unless you're collecting the complete Classics Armstrong series, this installment isn't particularly vital, although thanks to the Handy sides, it's a solid listen. Steve Leggett   Tracklist + Credits :  

EARL HINES AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1947-1949 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1120 (2000) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This segment of the Earl Hines chronology finds the pianist leading smaller ensembles rather than the big band for which he had become famous throughout the 1930s and early '40s. Back in Chicago during December of 1947, Hines cut a handful of sides for the diminutive Sunrise record label. "Blues for Garroway" features the electrified guitar of Skeeter Best and Morris Lane's smooth tenor sax. "Honeysuckle Rose" is rendered by the interesting combination of organ, piano, sax, and violin, almost like gentle salon or chamber music. That's Eddie South on the fiddle, and Hines plays what sounds like an upright piano. "Dark Eyes" spotlights the viol with bass and piano accompaniment. Hines spent the last day of 1947 making six more records for Sunrise. The pianist sings a spruced-up version of "Sheik of Araby," proudly referring to himself as "streamlined" and quoting from "I'se A-Muggin'" as a lead-in to a duet with Wini Brown. The next three tracks have bluesy vocals by trumpeter Duke Garrette, but the most interesting components are Eddie South, alto saxophonist Bobby Plater, and young bassist Charles Mingus, whose solo on the "No Good Woman Blues" is tasty. Mr. Ming also mingles with the Earl behind rockin' vocals by Wini Brown and the band on "Bama Lama-Lam," a jump tune spiced with Garrette's trumpet and the baritone sax of Charlie Fowlkes. The rolling "Spooky Boogie" might be the coolest tune in the whole package, as all four horns, Mingus, and South each really strut their stuff. These last two titles were issued under the name of Curley Hamner & His Orchestra, although why Hamner -- also listed in discographies as Hamer and Hammer -- was designated as the leader is anybody's guess. If the Classics chronology is accurate, Earl Hines wasn't able to record again until December of the following year, this time for the MGM label in New York. Hines' "Swingtette" consisted of himself, guitarist Floyd Smith, bassist Arvell Shaw, and percussionist supreme Sidney Catlett. "Lazy Mornin'" is a very slow essay made of lovely tones, and the other three tunes sizzle merrily. Hines' next recording gig was in Paris on November 4, 1949, waxing eight sides for the Royal Jazz label. Forming a trio with Arvell Shaw and Wallace Bishop, Hines produced a lovely version of his own composition "I Never Dreamt," then augmented a lively number called "Snappy Rhythm" with actual finger snaps and some wild arpeggios spanning several octaves up and down the piano keyboard. Adding Buck Clayton and Barney Bigard on the same date, Hines now had a quintet with which to relax and cook up a series of fresh interpretations of old-fashioned melodies, along with "Night Life in Pompeii," a minor dance that seems to have been created especially for the marvelous clarinet artistry of Barney Bigard. arwulf arwulf
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EARL HINES – 1949-1952 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1288 (2003) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This disc begins with five excellent recordings that Earl Hines made for the Royal Jazz label in Paris. These joyous, optimistic trio renderings of "Honeysuckle Rose" and "Fine and Dandy" were part of a sizable bundle of great music recorded on November 4, 1949, the balance of which occupies the final eight tracks of Classics 1120. Two days later, Hines created three interesting piano solos for Royal: a relaxed revisit with Maceo Pinkard's old-fashioned love song "Sugar," a tough and powerful remake of "Boogie Woogie on the St. Louis Blues," and "Singing for My French Brothers," during which the pianist scats amiably. In July of 1950, Hines recorded eight outstanding trio performances to be issued on Columbia's newly developed long-playing 33-and-1/3-rpm format. The combination of Hines with bassist Al McKibbon and the impeccable J.C. Heard was remarkably fruitful. "These Foolish Things" seems to unfold as gradually as the dawn, "Velvet Moon" and "When I Dream of You" are slow and reflective, and the rest of this trio's work swings marvelously. "Diane" develops something like a Cuban rhythm halfway through, then prances the rest of the way home. In December of 1952 Hines was able to wax seven sides for the D'Oro label, which was created especially to record the Earl Hines Sextet, with a front line of trumpeter Jonah Jones, trombonist Bennie Green, and Aaron Sachs, who played clarinet and tenor sax. Vocalists heard here are Helen Merrill (this was her very first appearance on record), Lonnie Sattin (who bellows and croons like an Eckstine caricature), and a soulful Etta Jones (who has a lot of fun hollering "Stop"). Hines himself sings over a rhumba called "Ella's Fella," and "Whirl on a Whirl" also has a bit of that rhythmic Caribbean energy running through it. "Green's Corner" -- which in fact uses the bridge from "Love Is Just Around the Corner" -- is a friendly study for trumpet, tenor sax, and trombone with rhythm accompaniment, including brief solos from bassist Tommy Potter and Earl "Fatha" Hines. arwulf arwulf
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TEDDY WILSON – 1947-1950 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1224 (2002) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The eleventh volume in the extensive Classics Teddy Wilson chronology combines the last of his Musicraft recordings, cut in December 1947, with a pair of trio dates for Columbia that took place during the summer of 1950. As all of this excellent music has languished in obscurity for years, the producers of this series have once again done the world a gracious favor by taking the time to compile and reissue it for 21st century ears. The first four tracks, waxed on December 3, 1947, feature trumpeter Buck Clayton in perfect accord with Wilson, bassist Billy Taylor, Jr. and drummer Denzil Best. Between December 15 and 18, Wilson and Taylor returned to the studio with drummer William "Keg" Purnell to cut eight more sides, four of them garlanded with sweet vocals by Kay Penton. Because of his teaching duties at Juilliard, steady work as house pianist on the air at WNEW and periodic live performances with Benny Goodman, there are sizeable gaps in Teddy Wilson's discography during the period between 1946 and 1952. The largest of these -- two-and-a-half years -- separate the Musicraft and Columbia recordings heard on this compilation. On June 29, 1950 Teddy Wilson resumed recording as a leader for Columbia records, cutting seven relatively brief tracks with bassist Arvell Shaw and drummer "J.C. Heard." This leg of the chronology closes with four titles recorded on August 25, 1950 with bassist Al McKibbon and drummer Kansas Fields. arwulf arwulf  
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TEDDY WILSON – 1952-1953 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1364 (2004) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Between the years 1946 and 1952, pianist Teddy Wilson made few recordings as a leader, spending most of his time and energy teaching music at Juilliard, working as an all-purpose utility pianist at radio station WNEW, and gigging occasionally with Benny Goodman. On October 6, 1952, Wilson cut eight tracks for the Metronome label in Stockholm, Sweden with excellent support from bassist Yngve Akerberg and a feisty drummer by the name of Jack Noren. In keeping with personal artistic patterns established over his first 20 years of professional musicianship, Wilson concentrated upon jazz standards, breathing new life into each melody. Volume 12 in the Classics Teddy Wilson chronology also contains the excellent recordings Wilson made for the Mercury and Clef labels from December 1952 through early September 1953 under the auspices of producer Norman Granz. At each session, Wilson found himself grouped with his musical peers: bassists John Simmons, Aaron Bell, and Arvell Shaw as well as drummers Buddy Rich, Denzil Best, and J.C. Heard. With ingredients like these, it's no wonder the music came out so well. arwulf arwulf  
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