After a couple of fine sides from 1928, the saga of King Oliver turns another corner, heading into 1929 armed with little more than a Victor recording contract. There are plenty of strong performances here. Charlie Holmes puts his personality on the front line, and Fats Pichon sings "I've Got That Thing" with plenty of mustard as usual. But things are definitely changing. On "I'm Watching the Clock," a relaxed recording made in September of 1928, King Oliver expressed himself beautifully, but his chops were on the wane. By the beginning of 1929, Louis Metcalf is the featured cornet soloist in front of King Oliver's Orchestra, using the mute a lot like Joe had brandished it years earlier. "Call of the Freaks," "The Trumpet's Prayer" and "Freakish Light Blues" are beautiful vignettes. Punch Miller appeared briefly on a date that featured the flashy piano of Cass Simpson. For the remainder of 1929 Oliver's nephew Dave Nelson took on the task of trumpeting and occasionally composing for the band. He even sang for a minute but someone must have begged him to knock it off. Teddy Hill played tenor sax for Oliver's orchestra in 1928 and 1929. He worked in a lot of big bands that couldn't give him enough solo space, which is probably why he eventually formed his own progressive swing band where Dizzy Gillespie would take his first solos on record in 1937. Teddy would go on to create an open environment that was conducive to extended improvisation during the early 1940s. On this CD you get to hear him paying his dues. The best of Oliver's solid components still make for good listening. Clinton Walker, for example, would operate the tuba with energetic precision all the way through to May of 1930. James P. Johnson and Hilton Jefferson showed up. That's serious business! So is Roy Smeck's steel guitar solo on "Everybody Does It in Hawaii," although jazz purists wrinkle their noses and roll their eyes at such stuff. Smeck also plays harmonica on "Frankie and Johnny." The combination of tuba and mouth harp is a remarkable sonic blend, for those who aren't too proud to have a wild adventure in the company of crusty old records like these. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist + Credits :
20.8.23
KING OLIVER AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1928-1930 | The Chronogical Classics – 607 (1991) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless
1.8.23
HENRY "RED" ALLEN AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1936-1937 | The Chronogical Classics – 590 (1991) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless
The fourth in the Classics label's five-CD series of Red Allen recordings reissues 20 obscure performances from a seven-month period. Although Red Allen was mostly playing with big bands during the 1930s, these small-group sides gave him a chance to be showcased quite a bit more than usual. Allen takes vocals on each of the tunes and, although many of the songs are long forgotten, his trumpet solos and the improvisations of altoist Tab Smith, clarinetist Buster Bailey and Ted McRae on tenor keep one's interest. This is actually the weakest of the five CDs but all are worth picking up. Scott Yanow
Tracklist + Credits :
HENRY "RED" ALLEN AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1937-1941 | The Chronogical Classics – 628 (1992) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless
The final of the five Classics CDs that document the early recordings of trumpeter Henry "Red" Allen covers music from three very different bands. Allen is first heard singing and playing trumpet on eight pop tunes he uplifts with a recording group in 1937 that features altoist Tab Smith. Allen also plays four Dixieland standards with a hot septet in 1940 that includes trombonist Benny Morton, clarinetist Edmond Hall and pianist Lil Armstrong. The final eight numbers (four of which were previously unreleased) showcases his regular band from 1941 (with trombonist J.C. Higginbottham and clarinetist Edmond Hall) really romping through some hard-swinging performances, including "K.K. Boogie" and a two-part version of "Sometimes I'm Happy." All five of these Classics CDs are easily recommended; this is one of the better ones. Scott Yanow
Tracklist + Credits :
25.4.23
WILLIE BRYANT AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1935-1936 | The Classics Chronological Series – 768 (1996) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless
Don't let this one fall through the cracks! Willie Bryant's Orchestra
was an exceptionally fine big band, teeming with skilled jazz musicians
during the mid-'30s Bryant was born in New Orleans and raised in
Chicago. By 1926 he was dancing professionally and eventually appeared
in duet performance with Bessie Smith. His band came together towards
the end of 1934, and by the January 4, 1935 they were making great
records for the Victor label. Teddy Wilson and Cozy Cole were the
backbone, and recognizably strong players like Benny Carter and young
Ben Webster greatly fortified the ranks. While each solo by Ben Webster
is priceless, you'll get a lot out of meeting the rest of the guys in
the band, like Robert "Mack" Horton and his husky, growling trombone,
outrageously featured at the beginning of "The Sheik." Bryant's sense of
theater was highly developed, and it served him well during the more
topical numbers. Of all the humorous routines ever created in imitation
of a revival meeting, one of the very funniest and most solidly swung is
"Chimes at the Meeting." Bryant impersonates an oily, opportunistic
preacher who is obviously only interested in the contents of the
collection plate. Calling each member of the congregation by name, he is
soon inventing all kinds of characters while pointedly pronouncing
nicknames for each soloist in the band. At one point Bryant, lending his
voice to the imaginary individual "Brother Goldberg," sings an
imaginative scat vocal built upon the time-honored syllables "Oy" and
"Yoy." The bizarre vaudeville patter fits perfectly over an exciting big
band stomp that makes it very difficult to sit still! "Steak and
Potatoes" is a hilarious ode to the enigma of Love versus Food. Willie
makes it clear that he would always opt for a table full of greasy, hot
goodies rather than messing with Love, even if it does "make you feel
like a thousand Mickey Mouses running up and down your spine." Again,
the combination of top-notch big band swing and a humorous vocal line is
irresistible! Accessible to an even wider audience on Victor's
affordable Bluebird series during the year 1936, Bryant continued to use
this same formula with great success. There is a flute solo -- quite
rare in jazz back then -- by Charles Frazier during "The Right Somebody
to Love," which has a funky vocal by trumpeter Jack Butler. If Bryant's
polished southern drawl sounds a bit conspicuous at times, it definitely
conjures up a minstrel show when combined with Butler's enthusiastic
clowning on "I Like Bananas (Because They Have No Bones)." Taft Jordan
sings up a passion during "All My Life," a song made famous during this
same time period by Thomas "Fats" Waller. "Cross Patch" was also a hit
for Waller, but Bryant's band cooks it hotter, with a beefy baritone sax
intro by Stanley Payne. This music really grows on you. It occupies a
sort of limbo between the formative swing of the early 1930s and the
fully mature jazz of the early 1940s. Bryant only made a handful of
records after 1936 -- following one Decca date in '38, economic
pressures forced him to take his band apart. Given the smooth sound of
his singing and speaking voice, it is not surprising that Willie went on
to work as an emcee, a deejay and even in television. He did lead a
band in Harlem during the year 1946, and after hearing these wonderful
sides from the middle 1930s, you might ask yourself, did the 1946 Bryant
band make any records? This calls for further investigation. arwulf arwulf
+ last month
ANDREW CYRILLE | WADADA LEO SMITH | BILL FRISELL — Lebroba (2018) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless
Lebroba, Andrew Cyrille's second leader date for ECM, finds the septuagenarian rhythm explorer trading in all but guitarist Bill Frisell...
