LOUIS ARMSTRONG – 1952-1953 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1352 (2004) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This 21st chapter in the Classics Louis Armstrong chronology documents the great jazz trumpeter's steady development into a mainstream pop vocalist with recordings made for the Decca label between September 22, 1952, and October 22, 1953. The first four titles are among the most heavily sugared he ever recorded; although Pops could make even "White Christmas" and "Winter Wonderland" sound good, the Gordon Jenkins Orchestra & Chorus had a way of drenching everything in Karo syrup. It's a pity the voices were used on "Listen to the Mockingbird," as Louis sounds marvelous intoning the words to this old-fashioned melody, originally published in 1855 by a Philadelphian Afro-American music instructor named Septimus Winner. On February 23, 1953, Armstrong was in Detroit making records with an orchestra using arrangements by Sy Oliver; his performance of "Your Cheatin' Heart" was waxed only weeks after the sudden death of Hank Williams. During the spring and summer of 1953 Armstrong was able to record with a reasonable number of solid jazz players -- most importantly clarinetist Barney Bigard, trombonist Trummy Young, tenor saxophonist Sam Taylor, pianists Joe Bushkin and Marty Napoleon, bassist Arvell Shaw, and drummer Cozy Cole. Two extra-long performances, "Basin Street Blues" and "Otchi-Tchor-Ni-Ya," were recorded in Los Angeles during June of 1953 for intended inclusion in The Glenn Miller Story, a Universal motion picture starring Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson. Both tracks perk up halfway through with pyrotechnic drumming by Gene Krupa. Although Bigard, Young, Shaw, and Cole were with Armstrong on the session that took place on July 16, 1953, they had to contend with relatively corny material and square arrangements foisted upon the world by the Jack Pleis Orchestra. The following session, featuring a big band billed as Louis Armstrong & the Commanders, resulted in two more Christmas tunes and three perfectly reasonable big-band ballads, the best of which was Armstrong's own composition "Someday You'll Be Sorry." This itinerary is a good illustration of Armstrong's career as it stood in the early '50s, represented by a little bit of jazz surrounded by a whole lot of pop, some of it rather overbearing. While "Someday" is a record of which Armstrong was justifiably proud, "'Zat You, Santa Claus?" typifies the kitschy excesses of the U.S. entertainment industry during the Truman/Eisenhower era. arwulf arwulf       Tracklist + Credits :

TOMMY DORSEY AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1936-1937 | The Classics Chronological Series – 916 (1996) FLAC (tracks), lossless

The fourth installment in the Classics Tommy Dorsey chronology opens with the Dorsey Orchestra's last seven recordings of 1936. Fortified with trumpeter Max Kaminsky, tenor saxophonist Bud Freeman, guitarist Carmen Mastren, and master percussionist Dave Tough, this was a particularly fine band. Their instrumental rendition of Fats Waller's "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now" is one of Dorsey's all-time greatest recorded achievements. At her best, Edythe Wright sang a bit like Lee Wiley, and therefore her voice might grow on you if you sit still for it. This is more than can be said for either Jack Leonard or the goofy trio billed as the Three Esquires. Beginning on January 7, 1937, Dorsey hit the jackpot when he hired trumpeter Bunny Berigan, a man who had spent most of the first half of the 1930s backing up pop vocalists like Chick Bullock. The pleasant instrumentals on this disc all went over well with the record-buying public. Will Hudson's "Mr. Ghost Goes to Town" and something called "Who'll Buy My Violets?" are catchy tunes that benefit from the absence of vocalists. "Melody in F" receives a bouncy treatment that would certainly have startled its composer, Anton Grigorevich Rubinstein. Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "Song of India" was a smash hit for Dorsey, who was now commercially clambering to the top of the heap. Yet his really big hit of 1937 was gleaned not from classical Russian composers but was filched from musicians of color in Philadelphia. Dorsey's famous version of Irving Berlin's "Marie" was based on a group vocal arrangement that originated in the mind of a banjoist, guitarist, vocalist, and arranger by the name of Steve Washington, a remarkable individual who had risen to prominence in the jazz world as a member of the Washboard Rhythm Kings. Washington died of pneumonia in January 1936. A few months later his arrangement of "Marie" was being performed at Nixon's Grand Theater in Philadelphia by the Sunset Royal Serenaders, an Afro-American jazz orchestra led at that time by trombonist Doc Wheeler. Dorsey was in the audience one night. He memorized the routine and used it in January 1937 to make a record that ended up earning him enormous quantities of money. This sort of racially informed cultural larceny would soon occur again as Glenn Miller scored his all-time biggest cash money hit by swiping "In the Mood" from Edgar Hayes. arwulf arwulf      Tracklist + Credits :

TOMMY DORSEY AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1937, Vol. 2 | The Classics Chronological Series – 995 (1998) FLAC (tracks), lossless

This sixth installment in the Tommy Dorsey chronology opens with Paul Weston's snappy big-band orchestration of "Humoresque" by Antonin Dvorák, including a quote from Stephen Foster's "Old Folks at Home," better known as "Swanee River." For the flip side of this Victor recording, guitarist Carmen Mastren fashioned a lovely arrangement of the famous theme from Dvorák's Symphony No. 9 in E Minor and casually rechristened it "Rollin' Home." Crooner Jack Leonard is featured on the next three titles, and although "You're Precious to Me" is one of his least insipid performances on record, it pales considerably when compared with Wingy Manone's soulful version. Relief arrives in a smokin' jam on W.C. Handy's "Beale Street Blues." This marvelous traditional jam scintillates with Dave Tough's cymbal work and the incredible warmth of Bud Freeman's tenor sax solo. Six sides recorded on June 12, 1937, by the Clambake Seven sustain the friendly mood with a succession of catchy studies in small-group swing with vocals by Edythe Wright. The party culminated with "Posin'," a slaphappy stop-action novelty singalong punctuated with abbreviated instrumental breaks by several of the band's star players, including Dave Tough, who was famous for his reluctance to take drum solos. Three fine big-band instrumentals were recorded at the same session: "That Stolen Melody" by Fred Fisher, "Barcarolle" by Jacques Offenbach, and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "Hymn to the Sun." About one month later, Edythe Wright and Dorsey's Clambake Seven returned to the Victor recording studios to wax four swinging renditions of romantic Tin Pan Alley marzipans. The session concluded with two more Wright vocals backed by the big band and "Are All My Favorite Big Bands Playing or Am I Dreaming?," a hilariously bizarre pastiche of sound effects and cornball novelty licks accompanying Bud Freeman as he recites wistful lyrics in a theatrical British accent. Interestingly, this sounds a lot like a premonition of "The Wrong Idea," that ruthless send-up of big-band gimmickry that Charlie Barnet would record more than two years later during the autumn of 1939. arwulf arwulf           Tracklist + Credits :

TOMMY DORSEY AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1938, Vol. 2 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1156 (2000) FLAC (tracks), lossless

The tenth installment of the Classics Tommy Dorsey chronology presents a series of Victor recordings he made during midsummer and early autumn 1938 in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York. Edythe Wright was Dorsey's primary vocalist from 1935 to 1939. While some of her recorded performances are pleasantly zippy and entertaining, she sometimes had to participate in Dorsey's tightly scripted mechanical cornball routines, rhythmically chanting rhymed verse in an atmosphere almost entirely devoid of spontaneity, not to mention dignity. The stupidest, most painfully contrived Clambake Seven recording of all was "A-Tisket, A-Tasket," and Wright's duets with Skeets Herfurt are almost as obnoxious. Instrumental tracks therefore take on a comparative aspect of richly rewarding artistic merit. A high-stepping rendition of "Panama" by William H. Tyers, Hoagy Carmichael's wistful "Washboard Blues," the catchy "Copenhagen," and the soon to be famous "Boogie Woogie" were each arranged by tenor saxophonist Deane Kincaide. Other rewarding instrumentals heard here are "Carolina Moon," a bouncing oddity with eccentric modulations and a dash of boogie flavoring called "Lightly and Politely," Benny Carter's "Symphony in Riffs," and "Chinatown, My Chinatown," expertly swung by the Clambake Seven, a tight little group that sounds for all the world like a contingent from the Eddie Condon mob as they tear through a sizzling salute to "The Sheik of Araby." arwulf arwulf     Tracklist :

TOMMY DORSEY AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1938-1939 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1197 (2001) FLAC (tracks), lossless

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TOMMY DORSEY AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1939 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1237 (2002) FLAC (tracks), lossless

This 12th installment in the Classics Tommy Dorsey chronology documents the trombonist's Victor studio recordings dating from the first half of 1939. Drummer Dave Tough was back with the band for a few months and Yank Lawson was in the trumpet section for a grand two-part version of the Jelly Roll Morton/New Orleans Rhythm Kings collaborative masterpiece "Milenberg Joys." This excellent stomp was arranged by Deane Kincaide, whose charts helped to make the Dorsey band sound somewhat hipper than it ever had before. The five other instrumentals included in this part of the Dorsey chronology are "Dawn on the Desert," "Marcheta," "By the River Sainte Marie," "Tea for Two," and "Peckin' with the Penguins," a loping opus composed and arranged by Kincaide. Edythe Wright was on her way out of the Dorsey dynasty at this point, which might explain why she's only heard singing on four of the titles reissued here. The best of these is Koehler/Bloom's whimsical "Got No Time." For an interesting listening experience, compare this performance with Fats Waller's version of the same song, recorded one day later for Victor's subsidiary Bluebird label. Speaking of Waller, on the session of February 9th, goofy Skeets Herfurt tried hard to navigate the scat line from "Hold Tight (Want Some Seafood Mama)." Waller's definitive version had been waxed on January 19th and Dorsey, always on the lookout for catchy material to spice up his act, hastened to cover the song as soon as he'd heard it. Rodgers & Hart's "Blue Moon," with its brusque band vocal behind crooning Jack Leonard, gets the same treatment that had made "Marie" into a hit record. The band swings well enough but Dorsey's willingness to milk this routine must have made some listeners wonder which popular song would next become transformed into something so obviously patterned after "Marie." arwulf arwulf        Tracklist :

TOMMY DORSEY AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1939, Vol. 2 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1278 (2002) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Tracklist + Credits :

SIDNEY BECHET – 1940 | The Classics Chronological Series – 619 (1991) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Classics' chronological reissue of Bechet's recordings (at least the regular takes) continues with a pair of songs made with blues singer Josh White, eight very enjoyable performances cut with a quartet consisting of cornetist Muggsy Spanier, guitarist Carmen Mastren and bassist Wellman Braud, and a pair of Bechet's Victor sessions. This is one of the strongest entries in this valuable series. Scott Yanow
Tracklist + Credits :

JOE MARSALA – 1936-1942 | The Classics Chronological Series – 763 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

All 21 of clarinetist Joe Marsala's early recordings as a leader are on this enjoyable CD. An excellent swing clarinetist who was flexible enough to play hot on Dixieland records, Marsala's six sessions reflect his versatile musical tastes. Among his more celebrated sidemen on these formerly rare selections are trumpeters Marty Marsala (his brother), Pee Wee Erwin, Bill Coleman, and Max Kaminsky, trombonist George Brunies, altoist Pete Brown, violinist Ray Biondi, drummers Buddy Rich and Shelly Manne (both making their recording debuts), and several fine rhythm sections. Marsala's wife, Adele Girard, the first great jazz harpist, is notably added on 11 of the numbers. Her hot harp playing on "Bull's Eye" and "I Know That You Know" steals the show. Highly recommended. Scott Yanow
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WINGY MANONE AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1935-1936 | The Classics Chronological Series – 828 (1995) FLAC (tracks), lossless

1935 and '36 were red-hot years for Fats Waller, and many musicians deliberately chose to record songs which had quickly become closely associated with him. Wingy Manone was capable of covering such tunes without sounding like an imitator. Unlike Waller's slow, almost erotic version, Wingy's "Sweet and Slow" trots along as briskly as "Lulu's Back in Town." Other songs popularized by Waller and revisited here are "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter" and the cheerful "I've Got My Fingers Crossed." Wingy's bands during this time period featured reedmen Bud Freeman, Eddie Miller, Matty Matlock and Joe Marsala, and two of the sessions were bolstered by the presence of trombonists Jack Teagarden and George Brunies. Teagarden plays exceptionally fine trombone on the records made in October of 1935. His vocal contributions, however, consist only of spoken interjections. Johnny Mercer is heard making his own remarks during both takes of "I've Got a Note." Teagarden engages in a bit of conversation with Wingy on take one. Take two is markedly faster and hotter. Wingy was capable of singing and playing practically any song that came along. He performs "The Music Goes 'Round and Around" as if it had been written just for him, and takes on Louis Armstrong's "Old Man Mose" without flinching. "The Broken Record" comes as a pleasant surprise, giving the singer and band a chance to imitate a skipping record as the phrases "you're gorgeous," "I kiss you" and "I love you" each get stuck and are repeated six times apiece. (Note that this immortalizes the hasty rate at which 78 rpm records skip. It's much different from a 33-and-1/3 rpm skip.) Finally, as the trombone gets stuck in the same repetitious manner, Wingy says "Man, take that broken record offa there, and throw it out the window!" arwulf arwulf
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WINGY MANONE AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1936 | The Classics Chronological Series – 849 (1995) FLAC (tracks), lossless

The Classics series (along with the unrelated Collectors Classics label) has been reissuing all of trumpeter Wingy Manone's recordings of the 1930s, many of which did not even reappear during the LP era. By 1936, Manone's records were getting a bit predictable, but taken in small doses they are still quite fun. Manone sings on all of the 22 selections except "Panama," verbally urges on his sidemen (which at times include clarinetist Joe Marsala and tenor saxophonist Eddie Miller) and takes some Louis Armstrong-inspired solos. This CD is the fourth Manone set put out by Classics and has four sessions from a four-month period; highlights include "Is It True What They Say About Dixie," "Dallas Blues," "Swingin' at the Hickory House," "Sing Me a Swing Song" and "Panama." Scott Yanow
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WINGY MANONE AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1936-1937 | The Classics Chronological Series – 887 (1996) FLAC (tracks), lossless

The fifth in Classics' complete Wingy Manone series of CDs features the good-humored trumpeter/singer on 21 selections from a nine-month period. A fair amount of Wingy's sidemen are obscure, but they do sometimes include clarinetists Joe Marsala and Matty Matlock and trombonist George Brunies. Manone sings on all of the selections, and even if many of the songs are far from classics, the swinging solos and jubilance of these Dixieland-oriented performances make the music worth hearing. Highlights include "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" (which has Manone interacting with singer Sally Sharon), "In the Groove," "Let Me Call You Sweetheart," "Floatin' Down to Cotton Town" and "You Showed Me the Way." Scott Yanow
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WINGY MANONE – 1940-1944 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1091 (1999) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The seventh in Classics' Wingy Manone series (reissuing all of the trumpeter-vocalist's recordings as a leader into the mid-'40s) has 21 numbers from his lesser-known 1940-1944 period. The good-humored Manone is heard leading Dixielandish groups that include at various times clarinetists Joe Marsala and Matty Matlock, trombonists George Brunies and Abe Lincoln, pianists Mel Powell and Joe Sullivan, and drummer Zutty Singleton plus many lesser-known names. The best cuts are "Ain't It a Shame About Mame," "Ochi Chornya," "Mama's Gone Good-Bye," a remake of "Isle of Capri," "The Tailgate Ramble" (which has Manone sharing the vocals with its lyricist Johnny Mercer), "Sister Kate," and the only instrumental, "Memphis Blues." The six-part 16-minute "Jam and Jive" (which is rarely reissued) is a disappointment, mostly featuring Manone jiving in unimaginative fashion with the vaudevillian Eddie Marr. But, otherwise, the music is reasonably enjoyable if not essential. Scott Yanow  
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BUD FREEMAN – 1945-1946 | The Classics Chronological Series – 942 (1997) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The third Bud Freeman CD in Classics' reissues of all of his early sessions as a leader has some memorable performances. The classic tenor heads an all-star octet (with trumpeter Yank Lawson, trombonist Lou McGarity and clarinetist Edmond Hall) on four hot numbers; he creates a pair of hilarious verbal introductions to a couple of satirical V-Disc numbers ("The Latest Thing In Hot Jazz" and "For Musicians Only"); and on "The Atomic Era," Freeman performs an unusual duet with drummer Ray McKinley. However, this CD gets a lower rating than expected because 12 of the 21 performances showcase the Five De Marco Sisters, a pleasant but fairly mediocre swing vocal group. Although there are some good solos and ensembles on those selections, the recordings overall are only of interest to completists. Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1    Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    I'm Just Wild About Harry    3:04
 Eubie Blake / Noble Sissle
2    Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    I Got Rhythm    2:34
 George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
3    Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Where Have You Been?    2:53
 Cole Porter
4    Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Ol' Man River    3:17
 Oscar Hammerstein II / Jerome Kern
5    Eight Squares And A Critic–    The Latest Thing In Hot Jazz    1:16
 Traditional
6    Bud Freeman And The V-Disc Jumpers–    For Musicians Only (A Musical Treatise On Jazz)    6:07
 Traditional
7    The V-Disc Jumpers–    Love Is Just Around The Corner    4:45
 Lewis Gensler / Leo Robin
8    Bud Freeman And His Boys–    Coquette    4:44
 Johnny Green / Gus Kahn / Carmen Lombardo
9    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Flat River, Missouri    2:59
 Shannon
10    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    It's Been A Long, Long Time    2:34
 Sammy Cahn / Jule Styne
11    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Love Is Such A Crazy Thing    2:53
Unknown
12    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Chico Chico (From Porto Rico)    2:44
 Harold Adamson / Jimmy McHugh
13    Bud Freeman And Ray McKinley–    The Atomic Area    2:43
 Eddie Sauter
14    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Hop, Skip And Jump!    2:41
 Milton Drake / Al Hoffman / Jerry Livingston
15    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    I Don't Know Why (I Just Do)    3:02
 Fred E. Ahlert / Roy Turk
16    Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    I'll Tell You How I Feel    2:52
Unknown
17    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Sweet I've Gotten On You    2:56
 Brad Reynolds / Willard Robison
18    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Blue    3:10
 Kenny Dorham / Horace Silver
19    Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Her Majesty's Dance    2:43
Unknown
20    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    Doin' What Comes Natur'lly    2:50
 Irving Berlin
21    Five DeMarco Sisters Acc. By Bud Freeman And His Orchestra–    That Wonderful Worrisome Feeling    3:06
Hoffman / Roberts / Livingstone