The Blues," Blues Fell and That the Derivative Wonderful
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Kessel first place 1956,1957 and 1958 Down Beat, Metronome and Playboy polls recordexclusivelsy for Contemporary —and has since 1953! MUSIC TO LISTEN TO BARNEY KESSEL BY "to swing or not to swing" CONTEMPORARY C3521 """mi"""""""" Barney Kessel Vol. 3 LI-"• tililHlt, Barney's first CR album, with Barney & quintet featuring Barney in a free-wheeling ses- Barney and his arrangements Bud Shank or Buddy Collette Bob Cooper, oboe & tenor sax, sion with"Sweets" Edison, Bill of standards for woodwind or- featured on alto sax & flute, on 12 favorites like My Old Perkins, Georgie Auld, Red chestra. Laura, Makin' Whoo- Red Mitchell,Claude William- Flame, Speak Low, Love Is Mitchell, Jimmie Rowles, pee, Carioca, Indian Summer, son, Shelly Manne, etc. C3511 Here To Stay, etc. C3512 Shelly Manne, etc. C3513 etc. C3521 & Stereo S7001 Barney, with Shelly Manne & Barney, Shelly and Ray again Great standards from the hit The first modern jazz album Ray Brown (who also were 1st demonstrate their supremacy. movie done in modern jazz ... of an opera—Barney's adapta• in the '56, '57, and '58 Down Volare, Be Deedle Dee Do, The Runnin' Wild, Sweet Sue, etc., tion of Bizet's music with or• Beat, Metronome, Playboy Merry Go Round Broke Down, with Art Pepper, Joe Gordon, chestra & stars like Previn, polls). C3535 and Stereo S7010 etc. C3556 and Stereo S7029 etc. M3565 and Stereo S7565 Manne. M3563, Stereo S7563 monophonic albums, $4.98; stereophonic albums, $5.98 —at dealers everywhere (nationally advertised manufacturer's suggested list prices) 8481 MELROSE PLACE CONTEMPORARY RECORDS LOS ANGELES 46. CALIFORNIA for a jazz-oriented audience, why does he regularly take such pains to describe the personal appearance of the artist under review? Is it really necessary to write an insulting description of Erroll Garner for people who, if they haven't actually seen him in person, must have seen at least a thousand photographs of him? Whoever Whitney Balliett thinks he is- writing for, the fact is that his work is read by a general (as opposed to jazz- minded) audience, which naturally must include a few jazz enthusiasts as well as other interested parties. For one thing, the jazz reviews only appear every four weeks or so, and sometimes at even longer intervals that that. Very few jazz enthusiasts are going to take out a subscription to a magazine solely to catch a critic who isn't in it 75% of the time—especially if they aren't particularly interested in the rest of the magazine. Apart from a few people who happen to be jazz enthu• siasts and regular New Yorker readers, it is the general reader who is on the receiving end of Mr. Balliett's articles, and it is for the benefit of this same reader that well-known musicians have LETTERS their names prefaced by descriptions like 'the saxophonist', and that ex• planations of expressions like 'lay out' are given. PERSONNEL PROBLEM Miles Davis (tp); Herbie Fields (as); In regard to Mr. Ira Gitler's review of Arnett Cobb (ts); Lionel Hampton (pi); Mr. Balliett may feel that he is en• the Miles Davis discography by Jorgen Al Casey (g): Slam Stewart (b); Fred riching the English language with Grunnet Jepsen. Radcliffe (d). words like 'thunk' (isn't 'thunk' the First, Kenny Dorham never recorded 5818 Just Relaxin' Sav 592 past tense of 'think'?), and maybe he with the Eckstine band; the personnel 5819 Run Down (remake?) Sav 591 is, but he still hasn't explained what a listed was given by Billy Eckstine him• 5820 Camp Meeting (remake?) Sav 591 'tufted' tone is, and if he should ever self and published in The Discophile 5821 Four O'Clock Blues Sav 592 decide to do so, he might also explain some time back! New York, May 6, 1945. what 'tweedy' chords are, or what Josh Jackson is Josh Jackson and he 'snaky' emotion is. He should not as• plays tenor sax on the recording listed; (Note: masters 5805-5808 are by Rub• sume that because he has great skill Josh also recorded with Louis Jordan ber Legs Williams; no trumpet.) with words, his creations carry some on Decca. John Jackson, alto sax, was Miles once stated in Down Beat that kind of built-in expiicitness. It's pos• on some earlier Eckstine recording be• his first record date was with Fields, sible to know what a crab is, and what fore Miles joined the band. but that he was too nervous to play, grapesfiot is (a grapeshot?), and still As in the Ellington discography there and only played in the ensembles, no fail to see the connection, or be en• are a few minor typographical errors, solos. lightened by their use as an attempt which are partly my fault, for I sent Ernie Edwards, Jr. at musical description. "Lester Young information to Mr. Jepsen, when we Los Angeles, Calif. frequently turns the beat inside out, as first started compiling these disco- if looking for change in it" is a very graphies. clever idea, I suppose, but what does Below is the correct information on HIPPY it convey, apart from the fact that its the Herbie Fields Savoys. author has been working hard? Please remove my name from your "My style is ... an attempt to describe Snooky Young (tp); Al Hayes (tb); mailing list. I've discovered a magazine Herbie Fields (as, ts); Manny Albam music, an essential that has fallen which is much hipper than your—one largely into disuse," says Mr. Balliett. (bs); Milt Buckner (p); Billy Mackel which uses the term "mother" at least (g); Charlie Harris (b); Freddy Rad- But you can't describe music this way, five hundred times per monthly issue: if at all. You can only try to get across cliffe (d). The Ladies Home Journal. 5774 Jumpin' For Savoy Sav 560 to the reader what certain things sound 5775 How Herbie Feels Bob Freedman like to you. Observations such as "the 5776 Mel's Riff Sav 540 Medford, Mass. bass drum (in Bebop) . gives off a 5777 Buck's Boogie Woogie pinched, final sound, like a distant New York, January 16, 1945. door slamming," and, "Sidney Catlett's cymbals . sound like curtains rustling Fields (as, ts); John Mehegan (p); Al in the breeze" may be very good as BROADSIDE? Casey (g); Slam Stewart (b); Lionel 'poetry', but from a musical point of Hampton, Fred Radcliffe (d). It was kind of Whitney Balliett to reveal view, the end result of this sort of 5809 OK Sarge Sav 654 that he is trying to make his readers writing can hardly amount to more 5810 It's The Talk Of the Town uniss. hear what jazz is. Which readers would than a catalog of insignificant irrele- 5811 Star Dust Sav 654 those be? Dizzy Gillespie, Pee Wee vancies. 5812 Camp Meeting (???) Sav 591 Russell, and the others he mentions, 5813 Run Down (???) Sav 591 or the non-jazz audience alleged by Peter Turley New York, May 4, 1945. Max Harrison? If Mr. Balliett is writing New York City 3 Press' next list? JAZZ IN PRINT The Newport Youth Band ostensibly is primarily an educational undertaking, but education for what? I cite this Billboard review of their Coral single of Jazz Me Blues: "The young jazz ork turns to a rock arrangement on this catchy theme..." Is Marshall going to try a rock arrangement of 'Round Midnight soon?... Cashbox reviews Paul Clayton's Monument single of This Land Is Your Land as a "fine inspirational- patriotic oldie." The trade didn't always say that when the Weavers used to sing it. Songs of Work and Freedom Not generally advertised (Roosevelt University, are Victor's Gold Standard Chicago, Labor Education series of $1.29 EPS: Division.) Most of the Ellington's I Got It Bad vintage anthems are here and three other tunes ; with music and lyrics in a Fats Waller's Your Feet's loose-leaf binding that is Too Big and three others ; geared for piano racks. and Great Theme Songs. Talking Union. The Boll including Artie Shaw's Weevil, Dark as a Dungeon Nightmare... Jet reports: - all the songs of my "A new law forbids the militant, ineffectual beating of tom-toms and youth... The Louisiana State the holding of tribal University Press, which is dances on public days in building a record as the the West African French- by NAT HENTOFF publisher of the worst books on jazz (Stephen associated Dahomey Republic. From now on Longstreet' s The Real Jazz t Old and Hew appeared under citizens who wish to beat its imprint) is now tom-toms must apply for responsible for H. 0. a special permit." Brunn's The Story of the Washington Square, yes, Fred Ramsey's Been Here Original Dixieland Band. but Congo Square? and Gone, a record of his A couple of years ago, Said Dinah Washington to Southern trips, will be another publisher (also a Ralph Gleason in the published by Rutgers university press) asked me San Francisco Chronicle: University Press in June. to read the manuscript, "...Billie Holiday was a Pictures and text. Sam and I strongly advised great influence on me. Charters, who has seen the against their publishing I had two of her records proofs regards it as the it. I feel the same way when I was a kid and best boot k of its kind yet. now. The book reads as if almost wore them out. I ...Paul Oliver's book on Louis Armstrong and King used to listen to them "the meaning and content Oliver had never existed over and over.