STAN GETZ – 1951 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1299 (2003) FLAC (tracks), lossless

1951 was a very busy year for Stan Getz. After leaving Woody Herman's band in 1949 and spending the greater part of a year on his own, he found his first great rhythm section at a club in Hartford and recorded with them, lived in Sweden for several months and recorded there, then formed a quintet with guitarist Jimmy Raney and recorded several sides (including a live date). The Classics label's wrap-up of a year in the life of jazz's most innovative tenor of the time finds him in great company, first at the March 1951 session spawned by a Hartford jam session where he found Horace Silver. Silver appears on the first four sides, contributing his sublime original "Split Kick" that Getz is able to weave a spell around. Barely three weeks later Getz was in Stockholm, recording eight sides -- which ranged from Porter's "Night and Day" to the traditional "Ack, Värmeland du Sköna" -- in two days with a tasteful all-star group featuring a light-fingered young pianist named Bengt Hallberg. Back in New York by August of 1951, Getz worked with a quintet for the rest of the year, initially including both Silver and Raney. The group, with drummer Roy Haynes and bassist Leonard Gaskin, really cooked on "Melody Express" and "Yvette," a pair of Gigi Gryce songs. 1951 closes with four tracks recorded in October at a Boston club named Storyville, where Raney's nimble solos do much to keep Getz focused (and challenged). A note for the Getz completist: With the exception of the eight titles from Sweden (which appeared on a Metronome LP), all of these tracks also appear on Getz's The Complete Roost Recordings, though the Proper box set The Sound does the same work at a cheaper price. John Bush      Tracklist :

STAN GETZ – 1951-1952 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1338 (2003) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

In response to shortsighted comments implying that Stan Getz and Zoot Sims sounded too much like each other and too similar to Lester Young, Ira Gitler liked to use the analogy of "...a friend calling you on the telephone. You know who it is immediately. It's the same thing when you hear a musician play." The secret, of course, is to listen so carefully and consistently that you feel as though you have become a friend of the artist. This sort of empathy is a vital ingredient in jazz -- the empathy between composers, players, and listeners. Hearing Stan Getz recorded live in performance at Boston's Storyville club on October 28, 1951, spells it out marvelously. Backed by pianist Al Haig, guitarist Jimmy Raney, bassist Teddy Kotick, and drummer Tiny Kahn, Getz sounds as though he has arrived at a hard-won maturity. One great aspect of this music lies within the comparative nature of every sound. In Getz listeners can hear Jimmy Giuffre, Lee Konitz, even Charles Lloyd -- but best of all, Getz himself. By this time his artistry had evolved well beyond where he had been only a couple of years earlier. In some of these bands there's something of the marvelous complexity of Lennie Tristano's fascinating ensembles. Eight 1952 recordings originally released on 78-rpm singles bearing the baby-blue Roost label appeared under the heading of the Johnny Smith Quintet. Smith's quicksilver guitar, heard most dynamically on the rapid Tristano-like "Jaguar" and a fantastic cruising theme called "Tabu," acts as a stunning foil for the tenor. The slower numbers are positively intoxicating. Even with the guitar predominating, "Moonlight in Vermont" stands among the loveliest ballad recordings this saxophonist ever participated in. The band's next session took place in November of 1952, and resulted in music of comparable excellence. On December 12, Getz collaborated for the very first time with producer Norman Granz. Backed by a rhythm section including pianist Duke Jordan, the saxophonist had clearly found his own voice. "The Way You Look Tonight" is a powerful closer for this outstanding album of vintage early modern jazz. arwulf arwulf     Tracklist :

GEORGE AULD – 1946-1951 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1371 (2004) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Volume three in the Classics Georgie Auld chronology opens with the last four sides he cut for the Musicraft label on June 14, 1946. The 16-piece big band had Neal Hefti in the trumpet section, Auld, Al Cohn and Serge Chaloff in the reeds, and vocalist Sarah Vaughan featured on "You're Blasé." While Hefti's two original compositions are pleasantly modern sounding, the true gem from this date was Budd Johnson's rock-solid "Canyon Passage." Changes in the postwar entertainment industry resulted in the dissolution and dispersal of many big bands. Auld threw in the towel and waited about two-and-a-half years before resuming his recording career on January 17, 1949. His new band had ten pieces, including trombonist Billy Byers, pianist Jimmy Rowles and drummer Alvin Stoller. Eight sides cut for the Discovery record label on this date and on March 21 used mostly Hal Vernon arrangements; Byers scored the charts for "Hollywood Bazaar" and "Mild and Mellow." (For a 100-percent satisfying example of Auld leading a ten-piece band similar to this one, seek out You Got Me Jumpin' (Sounds of Yesteryear 6680), recorded live at the Empire in Hollywood, CA, 1949.) The next leg of the chronology consists of nine titles recorded for the Royal Roost record label on January 24, 1951 by the Georgie Auld Quintet, with trombonist Frank Rosolino, pianist Lou Levy, bassist Max Bennett and drummer Tiny Kahn, whose eccentric opus "Seh! Seh!" is group participation bop; the band shouts the song's title at regular intervals as part of the melodic line. This little-known session hatched a veritable goldmine of cruising cookers and luscious ballads; "Taps Miller" and "New Airmail Special" are particularly piquant. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist + Credits :

AL COHN - Al Cohn's Tones (1950-1992) MONO | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Cohn stretches out here for a program heavy with up-tempo swingers. Cut in two sessions during 1950 and 1953, Cohn's Tones finds the usually more mellow tenor great feeding off the driving drum work of both Tiny Kahn and Max Roach. Besides the ballad evergreen "How Long Has This Been Going On" and a bluesy "Ah-Moore," the eight-track set is all Cohn originals done in a Lester Young-on-the-West Coast style. Also featuring the talents of pianist Horace Silver, this early Cohn release is at once hot and cool, vigorous and lithe. Stephen Cook
Tracklist :
1     I'm Tellin' Ya 5:58
Al Cohn
2     Jane Street 4:37
Al Cohn
3     Infinity 2:57
Al Cohn
4     How Long Has This Been Going On? 3:13
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
5     That's What You Think 4:50
Al Cohn
6     Ah Moore 4:57
Al Cohn
7     Groovin' With Gus 2:36
Al Cohn
8     Let's Get Away from It All 3:10
Matt Dennis
Credits :    
Bass – Curly Russell (tracks: 1, 2, 5, 6), Tommy Potter (tracks: 3, 4, 7, 8)
Drums – Max Roach (tracks: 1, 2, 5, 6), Tiny Kahn (tracks: 3, 4, 7, 8)
Piano – George Wallington (tracks: 3, 4, 7, 8), Horace Silver (tracks: 1, 2, 5, 6)
Tenor Saxophone – Al Cohn
Trumpet – Nick Travis (tracks: 1, 2, 5, 6)

AL COHN - The Progressive Al Cohn (1953-1994) RM | SJL Collection | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This CD (reissued by Savoy in 1994) has tenor saxophonist Al Cohn's first two sessions as a leader. Cohn, who was very influenced during the era by Lester Young, is in fine early form with a 1950 quartet that also includes pianist George Wallington, bassist Tommy Potter and drummer Tiny Kahn, and with a 1953 quintet that has trumpeter Nick Travis, pianist Horace Silver, bassist Curley Russell and drummer Max Roach. All but two numbers ("How Long Has This Been Going On" and an excellent version of "Let's Get Away Ffrom It All") are Cohn's inventive originals; best are "Infinity," "That's What You Think" (heard in two versions) and "Ah-Moore."  Scott Yanow

Tracklist :
1 Infinity 2:53
Al Cohn
2 Groovin' With Gus 2:31
Al Cohn / Dizzy Gillespie
3 How Long Has This Been Going On 3:10
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
4 Let's Get Away From It All 3:05
Al Cohn / Matt Dennis
5 That's What You Think (Take 1) 4:46
Al Cohn / Margaret Whitfield
6 I'm Tellin' Ya 5:57
Al Cohn
7 Jane Street 4:30
Al Cohn
8 Ah-Moore 4:51
Al Cohn
9 That's What You Think (Master) 4:44
Al Cohn / Margaret Whitfield 

Credits :
Bass – Curly Russell (tracks: 5 to 8), Tommy Potter (tracks: 1 to 4)
Drums – Max Roach (tracks: 5 to 8), Tiny Kahn (tracks: 1 to 4)
Piano – George Wallington (tracks: 1 to 4), Horace Silver (tracks: 5 to 8)
Tenor Saxophone – Al Cohn
Trumpet – Nick Travis (tracks: 5 to 8)