The View From Jazzbo's Head - The Six

 

Phweedan

The View From Jazzbo's Head

The Six

Cover: Burt Goldblatt

Rep Records REP-210

1956

Bob Wilber - Clarinet, Tenor Sax

John Glasel - Trumpet

Sonny Truitt - Trombone

Bob Hammer - Piano

Bill Britto - Bass

Jackie Moffitt - Drums

From the back cover: "It's nice to see such a clean-cut group so dedicated to their work." This comment was passed by a hard-boiled publicity man at New York's Club Bohemia during an engagement The Six had there during the winter. Coincidentally, he said in effect what many of us have known about this group for many months, i.e., that they are young and devoted students of their art, constantly striving for perfection of technique and expression.

Much has been written about the corporate nature of this distinctive unit so that we feel it unnecessary to elaborate the point save to say that the operation is controlled six ways. More important is the definite musical direction which the group has taken. The decision to bend to a left-of-center format was agreed to by each member of The Six in view of the fact that a "road" unit must have an identifiable trademark in order to interest club owners and customers.

In a more artistic sense, The Six found that adapting the group to the writing talents of such contemporaries as Washington, D.C., arranger Bill Potts gave a new flavor to the unit. Their original plan to fuse the best elements of two or more schools of jazz had reached a cross-road which demanded their ultimate decision.

Consider the wealth of talent amalgamated into this unit. In addition to his instrumental skill, each man makes an added contribution of specially written arrangements based upon his own interpretation of the group's sound and the instrumental technique displayed by each member. Certainly for unity of purpose within a small group there can be no more ideal union than this.

The discipline generated by the mutual efforts of The Six is not only musically gratifying but makes the task of recording an LP a far easier job. Rehearsals for the session started a full month prior to the date, and this extraordinary devotion to perfection resulted in the preparation of more tunes than the physical limits of a 12" platter will allow.

The tune analysis presented here was especially written for this liner by Bob Wilber. His attention to accuracy and detail reflects, in writing, the same dedicatory spirit which motivates The Six.

GIGGLES: Here is a Bill Potts arrangement of the familiar 12-bar blues theme with altered harmonic structure in the first four bars. Melody consists of four bars of even eighth notes, followed by a series of shorter, more conventional phrases. The arrangement achieves great unity through the use of interludes before each soloist and as background. (NB: The tenor-trombone background behind the second trumpet chorus is in reality the first phrase of Sonny Truitt's "Shifty" played in half time. The hard driving quality of the last chorus is suggestive of the type of writing Potts does for THE Orchestra in Washington, DC.

PHWEEDAH: This slightly exotic composition by Bob Wilber derives its title from a verbalization of the two note phrase which forms its base. The phrase is most closely as- sociated with Miles Davis and was first heard in "Venus de Milo" recorded by Miles in 1949. It's also heard in Bill Potts "Strange Diet" in the group's intial Bethlehem release. Dissonance of harmony is achieved through very close voicing of the three horns. The harmonic structure, which starts in B-flat major and ends in E-flat minor, gives the soloists something stimulatingly different upon which to improvise.

OVER THE RAINBOW: This one-chorus arrangement by Bill Britto is orchestrated for trombone, trumpet, tenor and bowed bass. This is obviously not jazz in the strict sense of the word but rather a contrapuntal four part arrangement of a familiar theme with a great deal of harmonic variation. Rhythmically the very straight melody in the trumpet is contrasted with a good deal of movement in the other three voices.

THE VIEW FROM JAZZBO'S HEAD: This sprightly num- ber, written by Bill Britto, is dedicated to our favorite disc jockey and any similarity in the title to a well known, best selling novel is completely uncoincidental. The tune illustrates Bill's most original use of form, quite a departure from the usual popular song type of construction, i.e., the improvised portions by trombone, trumpet and tenor are all of different length and different chord structure. This also gives our drummer, Jackie Moffitt, a chance to shine. His solo sustains the light, whimsical mood of the piece right through to its ensemble conclusion.

BLUE LOU: This is one of Sonny Truitt's few arrangements of a standard. He is much better known for his intriguing origi- nals. This particular arrangement has been played by various bands in the past few years, but this is the first time it has been recorded. While seemingly quite traditional in its close adherence. to the melodic line, it is nevertheless, unmistakably Truitt in its meticulous workmanship, logicality, and clever use of syncopation. The arrangement sets the mood for very relaxed soloing and close with some ensemble variations on the melody and a Kansas City-style tag.

OUR DELIGHT: Bob Hammer arranged this composition by Tad Dameron, the brilliant composer/arranger of the post- war jazz era. Although Dameron's compositions reflect the modern trend, they retain the directness and simplicity of the swing era. The tune is very conducive to extrovertish, uninhibited wailing and that's exactly what happens. After everyone's had their say, we modulate to a brighter key and romp to the finish.

MY OLD FLAME: This rather abstract arrangement by Bob Wilber features the clarinet throughout, opening with the three horns and bass. The five part writing is achieved by having the bass play double stops. This gives way to the clarinet's melodic variations over a line played by the bass. The piano doesn't enter until its solo, followed by clarinet in a new key bringing the piece to a close.

THE TROGLODYTE: The title of this Bill Britto original was suggested by a newspaper review of The Six while on tour in the mid-west in which the reviewer referred to our "Troglodytic Bass Player." The description fits Bill's retiring nature, not his playing as the tune will demonstrate. "The Troglodyte" is a tour-de-force in the tradition of "Jack the Bear," "One Bass Hit" etc,. and will serve to bring wider notice to Bill's superb musician- ship. – BOB WILBER

Giggles

Phweedah

Over The Rainbow

The View From Jazzbo's Head

Blue Lou

Our Delight

My Old Flame

The Troglodyte

Jazz Hall Of Fame Series - Barney Bigard

 

Barney Bigard

Jazz Hall Of Fame Series

Barney Bigard

Liberty Records LRP 3072

1957

Barney Bigard - Clarinet

Jackie Coons - Trumpet & Mellophone

Burt Johnson - Trombone

Bruce MacDonald - Piano

Charlie Lodice - Drums

Bob Stone and Al Morgan* - Bass

Note: The cover on this issue is a one color print on a velveteen material.

From the back cover: Life has been great to me... If I were to write it All Down people wouldn't believe it...

My grandmother raised me in New Orleans, and she took great interest in me and my life. She heard me whistle as a youngster and asked her son Emil Bigard, who was a jazz violinist, to take an interest in my musical ability.

Emil was the front man for Kid Ory's band at that time, and he decided to start me on clarinet – I wanted to play trumpet – but they talked me out of it by telling me that it would take a lot more wind. He borrowed an Eb clarinet from Ory's clarinet man and told me he would get me a good teacher.

The teacher turned out to be the famous Lorenzo Tio, who came from a whole family of clarinet players. His father was the solo clarinetist with the Barnum and Bailey Circus Band. We lived on Villary Street in the French Quarter, and as I improved, a friend of the family, a bandleader named Octave Gaspar, stopped by the house and asked grandmother if I could play a job with him. She thought I was too young but he volunteered to get me home safely, so she finally gave in. That night at the job we had a rough time. I couldn't get with those cats – the first thing they put on me was Tiger Rag, and I was still trying to make the first part by the time they were already to the breaks. Everybody was holding their heads and moaning, but I didn't care, I wanted to learn and I had what they called a "hard face" in those days. My early experience was one big round of similar experiences including being payed off with car fare home before the job if they could get a better man at the last minute. My desire to play made it impossible to insult me, and I guess it was a good thing because I played so badly they used to call me the "snake charmer".

When the sax came out I got me a tenor and I discovered it was a lot easier to play than the clarinet. My reputation and my calls improved quite rapidly, and before long I got my revenge. If they wanted me they had to pay double, that meant a dollar fifty a night instead of Iseventy five cents.

One day I received a telegram from King Oliver in Chicago. Albert Nickolas, a clarinet player, and Luis Russell, a pianist, had gone on to Chicago before, and when the King asked them about a tenor man they recommended me. We were to open Christmas Eve at the Royal Gardens, but didn't get to because the place burned down that night. Nickolas and I roomed together scuffling 'til the King could gel another job. We finally opened at the Plantation and "Satchmo" was across the street at a place called The Gunset. After a long run at the Plantation we went on the road – got stranded in St. Louis and finally made it into New York... box car fashion, that is.

We worked on and off around New York, but it was rough, so when I got a telegram from Charlie Elgar in Milwaukee, I was glad to take the job for the summer. I came back to New York and joined Luis Russell at a club called the "Nest". What a crazy place – Lillian Russell, Durante and lots of famous people hung out there. Sometimes we didn't leave 'til noon. It was here that I met Duke Ellington. He used to come in to hear the band and after talking things over I decided to join his band – stayed fourteen years. The only reason I left the band was because traveling got bad during the war. I joined Freddie Slack for a while, did a lot of recording, both records and sound tracks for pictures. Had groups of my own for a while, worked with Kid Ory shortly, and then joined a group of All-Stars that Louis Armstrong was forming at Billy Berg's on Vine Street in Hollywood. That was the band with Teagarden, Hines, Catlett, Shaw and Velma Middleton.

I think the part of old New Orleans that made the biggest impression on me was the way the bands would ride around town in wagons advertising dances they were going to play later that night. When two bands advertising different dances came together and "locked wheels", you were sure to hear some "tough" blowing sessions. The way the people gathered around and the way the bands played was something I couldn't overlook. It I wouldn't have been hard for me to take up some other trade in fact, I did do some work as a cigar maker and later I worked as a photo engraver for the Times-Picayune. The talk I heard around the house about the more famous New Orleans musicians was too much of an influence however, and after I heard them in person, they fascinated me completely. Heard Buddy Pettit, Manuel Perez, Freddie Keppard... I didn't become acquainted with Louis Arm- strong until later in Chicago.

When I first joined Ellington after playing with the New Orleans bands, there was a vast difference. I had the feeling that I was playing wrong notes. The more I played Ellington's music and as my ear became accustomed to it, the more I liked it. He was so far advanced the guy was phenomenal still is. To be truthful, Duke and everybody in the band at that time floored me – Tricky Sam, Hodges, Carney, Tommy Green, Wellman Braud played tuba too – like Hurricane Audrey.

Mood Indigo came about at a rehearsal. After I got the melody, Duke made the arrangement and as soon as I recorded it with a small band of my own, I sold the tune for twenty five dollars. In those days we were selling everything. Some of the tunes I wrote were "Rockin' In Rhythm", "Saturday Night Junction", "Clouds in My Heart", "Clarinet Lament", "Sophisticated Lady" and "Javinette".

The Ellington band with Blanton was the best band I was in. Jimmy just loved to play – he made all the sessions. He was the greatest bass player I ever heard before or since. Jimmy put the bass players to work and after he was told he wouldn't be able to play anymore he just didn't want to live.

I learned a lot in the Ellington band – especially from the Duke himself. It is a sad thing to say, but working in Europe with Ellington and Armstrong has convinced me that the Europeans are more appreciative and aware of jazz as an American art form than Americans.

The eight years I spent with Satchmo were similar to Ellington in one respect-we were traveling all the time.. The only difference was that we covered the world and believe me, Louis Armstrong is not only an ambassador, he is The King, and the King can do no wrong. He is loved all over the world. To me, Louie is the most influential and important jazz musician ever. He taught me the meaning of " 'Taint what you do, it's the way you do it".

Music, as long as it's played well, whether it's Dixieland, Bop, Modern or Classical... it goes with me... I love it!

It sure was exciting to make this album. I had a chance to do some things I did years ago as well as some jazz standards and some originals. There are more examples of my work in this album than anything I have done before, and I feel everyone will agree the boys in the band did a great job backing me. I feel that these boys are among the finest I've ever worked with. Bruce MacDonald is my pianist, and he is one of the best in the business. Jackie Coons, the trumpet player, has an important future. Burt Johnson is one of the best plunger trombonists around today. The drummer, young Charlie Lodice, is definitely a comer and Bob Stone, the bass player, is one of my proteges.

As a parting remark, I would like to say that being a jazz musician and a part of an art form that is truly American is one of my biggest thrills in life. My advice to student musicians would be to study the present form of jazz and its fine standard. Try to live with the times and if you're going to play jazz, play modern. – Barney Bigard

C-Jam Blues

Mardi Gras Time

Ab Mur

Mahogany Hall Stomp*

Louisiana And Me

Step Steps Up

Step Steps Down

Rose Room*

Moon Indigo*

Campus Concert - Erroll Garner

 

These Foolish Things

Campus Concert

Erroll Garner

Accompanied by Kelly Martin - Percussion and Eddie Calhoun - Bass

Recorded Live at Purdue University

Album Producer: Martha Glaser

Mastering: Don Young, George Engfer

Editing: Dave Green

Director of Engineering: Val Valentin

Cover Design: Acy Lehman

Cover Photo: RAMA

MGM Records E-4361

From the back cover: As any student of physics knows, when two giant forces meet, a massive interaction takes place. When Erroll Garner, a titan of the piano keyboard, jazz improvisation and the concert stage, meets another giant of our time, the college audience, a special excitement occurs.

This exciting decade might almost be called the Student Sixties. The national press has been taking repeated long looks at this dynamic new American entity The Student Class. The world of show business, too, has become increasingly attracted to the college audience as a major showcase for new and established talent. By 1966 the campus has become one of the most coveted sites for performers to appear.

The American college community numbers some five million students. With population growth and broadening educational facilities, the student population is expected to reach seven million by the end of the decade. The college audience has truly become a giant, possessed of a new interest in all the arts and a new power to make or break stars.

To this audience, Erroll Garner has been speaking knowledgeably as few performers can. On "Campus Concert" is recorded the special brand of rapport be- tween stage and spectator that Garner brings to all his performances. There were 6,000 students packed into the Purdue University Music Hall auditorium (in spring of 1964) for this session. But the concert might be considered typical of any of the scores of campus programs Garner has given since the early 1950's.

Why does Erroll Garner fit in so companionably with the new student mentality? Clearly, he has a cer- tain youthfulness and vitality that they identify with. There is his sense of evergreen style, his daring improvisations and rhythms, timeless freedom and irreverent humor that make the student feel as much at ease with him as with each other. But it is a two-way love affair, for Garner has a special affection for the campus concert in return. He has played to standing ovations at dozens of schools, and invariably is asked to return. If the pianist is asked how old he is, he will jest: "About 27." Perhaps it is no jest, for that is about how old he feels, even though he has been performing since his boyhood in the 1930's.

Whenever Garner has a campus date, he likes, if possible, to show up a day early. Nothing gives him a greater sense of ease than to roam the secluded greens and stately buildings that form the campus. Nothing gives him greater impetus than to talk with students. Thus, he has become a familiar figure at the Big 10 and "the little 20," having played at Yale and Chapel Hill, in Ann Arbor and at Ohio State, Loyola University and Podunk College. Even when appearing at such off-campus halls as Orchestra Hall in Chicago, the audience make-up will reflect a heavy turnout of collegians.

On a purely objective level, Erroll Garner's music can be considered as healthy an expression as any the students might be exposed to. In a period when some jazz and some rock 'n' roll have maneuvered themselves into corners of passionless esoterica, blind-alley alienation and just sound-for-sound's sake, Garnerism points another direction.

Garnerism, students, might be defined, as a type of joy, an affirmation of the non-neurotic view of the world, a romanticism and a theatricality that says its prophet is still youthfully, idealistically in love with the beautiful sounds and the beautiful ideas in this world. This music seems to have no beginning or ending dates, and the students just dig it for its intrinsic joyfulness.

Garner is still concerned with communication in an age of self-avowed alienation. A commentator on Garnerism puts this involvement this way: "To Garner, his audience is the fourth member of his trio, its response and receptiveness triggering his program and his entire performance." (An apt occasion to identify his other supporters – Kelly Martin on drums and Eddie Calhoun on bass.)

This album places no great need for interpretation of what Garner does. The signature of the master is there and the tell-tale stylistic imprints are all over the place: the playful little noodlings while Garner is "getting on the runway" for a high-flying excursion into improvisation. The straight-off-the-ground heli- copter take-offs. The tags which help him get off the stage from a still-demanding audience.

The program runs through some very un-standard performances of standards like Indiana and My Funny Valentine to a not so widely known show tune, Lulu's Back in Town, which dates back to "Broadway Gondolier" of 1935. Mambo Erroll is a Garner original, a reminder that the pianist, with more than 200 compositions to his credit, including the world-renowned Misty, should be properly described as a composer and pianist.

The familiarity of this tune, or the novelty of that one, all quickly become suffused into an over-all amalgam we have been calling Garnerism. Each element of the whole is stamped with the fine hand of one of the great individualists in American music. Each element is emblazoned with the uncopyable copyright of an interpreter winning over a new generation with an eminently durable approach.

Garner's collegiate audience is by no means just an All-American team, for he is equally popular with students throughout the world. Long before the entertainment world was formally geared toward the campus audience, Erroll Garner was playing for students. With the truly great masters, of which he is one, there are always listeners ready to listen, to learn and to wonder at a master's art. – Notes by STACEY WILLIAM

Indiana (Back Home Again In Indiana)

Stardust

Mambo Erroll

Lulu's Back In Town

Almost Like Being In Love

My Funny Valentine

These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You)

In The Still Of The Night

Top Hits Of '54 - Vol. 1

 

Tops Hits Of '54

Top Hits Of '54 - Vol. 1

By Todays Top Artist

The most popular selections from best selling records

Capitol Records H9117 (10 inch LP)

The Man Upstairs - Kay Starr

Young At Heart - Frank Sinatra

Until Sunrise - Joe "Fingers" Carr

Answer Me, My Love - Nat King Cole

Oh Baby Mine - Four Knights

I Really Don't Want To Know - Les Paul & Mary Ford

Hey Brother Pour The Wine - Dean Martin

If You Love Me - Kay Starr

Around The World In Jazz - England - Buddy Featherstonhaugh / Harry Hayes

 

Around The World In Jazz - England

Around The World In Jazz

England

Buddy Featherstonhaugh and The Radio Rhythm Club Sextet

Harry Hayes and His Band

RCA Victor Popular Collector's Issue LPT 3034 (10-inch disk LP)

1953

From the back cover: Jazz With A British Accent 

Jazz, which until recently was regarded in this country exclusively as an export product, has gained increasing recognition during the past few years in its imported form. Because of the success in America of such artists as George Shearing and Marian McPartland, English Jazz in particular has enjoyed the respect of American jazzmen and the enthusiastic support of the American public.

The two artists featured in the present collection, though virtually unknown in this country, have enjoyed long and successful careers in England careers that date back even before George Shearing was known in his native land.

Rupert Edward Lee ("Buddy") Featherstonhaugh, born in Paris, in 1909, of an English father and a Scottish mother, acquired his first saxophone in 1924 while in Eastbourne College in England, and became prominent a few years later as tenor sax soloist with the celebrated Spike Hughes recording outfit. A solo he played on one of his early records was copied note for note by Joe Garland in a later record of the same tune (Buddy's Wednesday Outing) by Mills' Blue Rhythm Band. This was doubtless the first example on record of an American jazz soloist imi- tating an Englishman.

Buddy played and recorded in most of the top English bands, including Ray Noble's; he was a featured soloist with the British band formed by Louis Armstrong on the latter's first visit to England; he played on a number of Benny Carter's English recordings.

In his spare time, Buddy achieved some fame as an auto racing driver for Whitney Straight, and was the first Englishman in ten years to win a European Grand Prix. During the war he formed a band in the RAF, which became the BBC Radio Rhythm Club Sextet. This is the group heard in the present recordings.

* * *

Harry Hayes, like Buddy, worked with both Benny Carter and Louis Armstrong during their tours, and has long been considered the English counterpart of Carter on the alto sax. Like Buddy, too, he is a Melody Maker poll, winner (first place on alto from 1942 through 1948).

Harry played with many name bands before the war, among them Ambrose, Maurice Winick, Geraldo, and Harry Roy. During the war he enlisted with the Welsh Guards. After demobilization, he formed his own band to play at Churchill's Club in London.

On his long series of records for RCA Victor's English affiliate, Harry featured such musicians as Kenny Baker, England's top trumpeter; George Shearing, who played piano and wrote many arrangements for many sides; and Norman Stenfalt, a leading pianist and arranger who used to vie for honors with George. Stenfalt's Three o'Clock Jump, in this group of performances, is a good example of his work. – Leonard Feather - Associate Editor, Down Beat

Buddy Featherstonhaugh and The Radio Rhythm Club Sextet

One O'Clock Jump

Soft Winds

Stevedore Stomp

Seven Come Eleven

Harry Hayes and His Band

One, Two, Three, Four, Jump

No Script

Three O'Clock Jump

Horn A-Plenty - Bobby Hackett

 

Horn A-Plenty

Horn A-Plenty

Bobby Hackett

Trumpet Solos

Commodore Records FL 20,016 (10 inch LP)

1951

Side One - 1

Personnels:

JACK TEAGARDEN, Trombone; BUD FREEMAN, Tenor Sax; PEE WEE RUSSELL, Clarinet; JESS STACEY, Piano; BOBBY HACKETT, Cornet; EDDIE CONDON, Guitar; GEORGE WETTLING, Drums; ARTIE SHAPIRO, Bass. (April, 1938)

Side One - 2

BOBBY HACKETT, Cornet; PEE WEE RUSSELL, Clarinet; BUD FREEMAN, Tenor Sax; GEORGE BRUNIES, Trombone; JESS STACEY, Piano; EDDIE CONDON, Guitar; GEORGE WETTLING, Drums; ARTIE SHAPIRO, Bass. January, 1938)

Side One - 3, Side Two - 1, 4

BOBBY HACKETT, Trumpet; PEE WEE RUSSELL, Clarinet; ERNIE CACERES, Baritone Sax; LOU MCGARITY, Trombone; EDDIE CONDON, Guitar; JESS STACEY, Piano; GEORGE WETTLING, Drums. (September, 1944)

Side Two - 2, 3

BOBBY HACKETT, Trumpet; MIFF MOLE, Trombone; PEE WEE RUSSELL, Clarinet; ERNIE CA- CERES, Baritone Sax; EDDIE CONDON, Guitar; GENE SCHROEDER, Piano; BOB CASEY, Bass; JOE GRAUSO, Drums. (April, 1944)

Embraceable You

Jada

When Day Is Done

New Orleans

Beale Street Blues

I Must Have That Man

Skeleton Jangle

Brad Gowans And His New York Nine

 

Brad Gowans And His New York Nine

Brad Gowans And His New York Nine

RCA Victor LJM-3000 (10 inch LP)

1954

Brad Gowans - Trombone

Billy Butterfield - Trumpet

Arthur Rollini - Tenor Sax

Joe Dixon - Clarinet

Paul Ricci - Bass Sax

Joe Bushkin - Piano

Tony Colucci - Guitar

Jack Lesberg - Bass

Dave Tough - Drums

From the inside (gatefold) cover: The selections in this album were all recorded on April 10, 1946, by a band especially assembled under the tutelage of the celebrated master of the combined valve-and-slide trombone, Brad Gowans. Only two of these sides Jazz Me Blues and Singin' the Blues have ever been released before; in all eight is heard some of the most remarkable jazz of any period, the result of a session which produced startlingly original work in both solos and ensemble.

If anyone set out to prove just how inventive good jazz can be, these sides would offer the most convincing evidence. Take Brad Gowans and Billy Butterfield, two of the best brass men in the business; throw in a considerable amount of Arthur Rollini at his best; add a dash of Joe Dixon and Paul Ricci; and serve with a superlative rhythm section-the results could not be anything but the most exciting.

In addition to his status as one of jazzdom's great trombonists, Brad Gowans is possibly the country's number one baseball fan, a fact which offers sufficient explanation for the sporting title of his recording group. It is also interesting to note, if only in passing, that the session was led by Gowans attired in his habitual baseball cap, an accoutrement which may or may not account for the music's complete abandon. With a long background of great recordings he has cut sides with such musicians as Eddie Condon, Bud Freeman, Bobby Hackett and Art Hodes – Brad finally came into his own when he assembled this band for the eight sides heard here. Blowing a combination valve-and-slide trombone of his own invention – he is undoubtedly the only musician playing a bastard instrument of this kind-he brought to the present aggregation not only his marvelously driving style, but an ensemble spirit that sparked everyone else to feats of greater virtuosity.

Almost equally responsible for the excitement of these sides is Billy Butterfield, a trumpeter who blows both hot and sweet, and whose style and tone have made him one of the most sought- after sidemen in the game. His marvelous lead work on Poor Butterfield a Gowans original which, incidentally, contains a tasty Rollini solo reminiscent of Bud Freeman's on The Eel – is at least equalled by the poetic way in which he attacks the lovely Carolina in the Morning.

It is, indeed, difficult to single out any particular soloist in this all-star aggregation. Joe Dixon's clarinet, especially in Clari-jama, is both aggressive and restrained; and Paul Ricci's bass sax lends a different flavor to every side. The rhythm sec- tion is solid throughout, with Joe Bushkin contributing several of his fanciful solo flights, and with Dave Tough-this was, in- cidentally, his last date-backing everyone with the beat that made him one of the greatest, and most underrated, of drummers. In all, this is the sort of jazz one is not privileged to hear very often rugged, but disciplined; exhilarating and com- pletely relaxed. It was a session in which all the participants were equally inspired, one in which they created, singly and together, some of the most memorable jazz of recent years. – BILL ZEITUNG

Poor Butterfield

I'm Coming Virginia

Jazz Me Blues

Stompin' At The Savoy

Singin' The Blues

Clari-jama

Carolina In The Morning

Jada

Classics In Jazz - Bobby Sherwood

 

Classics In Jazz

Classics In Jazz

Bobby Sherwood

Capitol Records H320 (10 inch LP)

From the back cover: Bobby Sherwood is a musician's musician... a fine arranger, he also blows great trumpet and saxophone and plays sensational guitar. Born in Indianapolis of parents who were vaudeville stars, Bobby's whole life has been spent in show business... did a banjo act in blackface when he was nine... later formed his own trio to work with Ken Murray at the Los Angeles Paramount Theatre... then into radio and motion picture music... a stint with Artie Shaw's band... in 1942 formed his own band. This collection displays the versatility of that wonderful aggregation of the 1940's...a band with two outstanding characteristics: First, a solid "drive," always apparent... second, a matchless precision in performance – rhythm, brass, and saxes blend, phrase and "feel" together perfectly. Truly one of the great bands of all time!

SHERWOOD'S FOREST recorded June 18, 1946 in Los Angeles, California: Bobby Sherwood, Mannie Klein, Jack Walker, Don Dean, John Gabel, Ray Downs, Trumpets; Herbie Haymer, Seymour Press, Henry Facometta, Martin Glaser, Dave Cavanaugh, Merle Bredwell, Saxes; Wesson Cope, Phil Layton, Bob Leaman, James Marshall, Trombones; Ike Carpenter, Piano; Bart Edwards, Bass; Keith Williams, Drums; Bass Hutchinson, Guitar.

A progressive treatment of a modern descriptive piece. Orches- tration is full and performance sets a new standard. This is the first selection Sherwood recorded for Capitol.

SWINGIN' AT THE SEMLOH recorded December 2, 1943 in New York City: Bobby Sherwood, Trumpet and Guitar; William Moore, Bob Higgins, Charles Cognata, Eddie Greene, Trumpets; Albert Chait, Bob Leaman, Dave Clark, Trombones; Eddie Lucas, Ray Beckenstein, David Pell, Evan Aiken, Franklin Myers, Saxes; Joe Geneli, Bass; Ray Harte, Drums; Harold Becker, Piano; Charles Hutchinson, Guitar.

Bobby Sherwood is featured on unamplified guitar throughout this original, which has become a classic for all guitarists - incidentally the Semlôh was a ballroom located in Salt Lake City.

COTTON TAIL recorded October 30, 1945 in Los Angeles California: Bobby Sherwood, Eddie Greene, Keith Williams, Bobby Burns, Bob Haddick, Trumpets; Ken Matlock, Bob Leaman, Don Kelly, Trombones; Les Webel, Eddie Lucas, Herbie Haymer, Saxes; Joseph McAnarney, Clarinet; Garth Rasmus- sen, Baritone; Eddie Kalfas, Bass; Hollis Sulser, Piano; Bass Hutchinson, Guitar; Melvin Patterson, Drums.

Real wild jazz in breakneck tempo- outstanding Sherwood trum- pet, two choruses of Joe McAnarney's lightning-fast clarinet and superb Herbie Haymer tenor sax.

WALKIN' AND TALKIN' recorded October 30, 1945 in Los Angeles, California: Bobby Sherwood, Eddie Greene, Keith Williams, Bobby Burns, Bob Haddick, Trumpets; Ken Matlock, Bob Leaman, Don Kelly, Trombones; Les Webel, Eddie Lucas, Herbie Haymer, Saxes; Joseph McAnarney, Clarinet; Garth Rasmussen, Baritone; Eddie Kalfas, Bass; Hollis Sulser, Piano; Bass Hutchinson, Guitar; Melvin Patterson, Drums.

Relaxed rhythm – nonchalant, yet full-throated trumpet - and a discing that displays the Sherwood band's precision.

THE ELKS' PARADE recorded May 5, 1942 in Los Angeles, Cali- fornia: Bobby Sherwood, Gene Morgan, Bob Goodrich, Clyde Hurley, Trumpets; Bill Covey, Willy Martinas, John Hamilton, Bud Carlton, Champ Webb, Saxes; King Jackson, Joe Yukl, Trombones; John Cyr, Drums; Jud Denant, Bass; Bass Hutchin- son, Guitar; Gene Plummer, Piano.

A "parade" number comparable to the famous "South Rampart St."... alto sax as played by Bill Covey combines rhythm and tone Willy Martinas' clarinet and the Sherwood trumpet build with the band into a real "flag-waver"– great tenor sax by Johnny Hamilton.

BUGLE CALL RAG recorded March 17, 1947 in Los Angeles, California: Bobby Sherwood, Bob McKinzie, Frank Beach, Claude Bowen, Trumpets; Dave Cavanaugh, Herbie Haymer, Joe Koch, Art Herfurt, Claude Lakey, David Pell, Saxes; Phil Washburn, Ralph Pfiffner, Walter Benson, Ray Sims, Trom- bones; Bass Hutchinson, Guitar; Harold Becker, Piano; Keith Williams, Drums; Herman Stutz, Bass.

An unusual interpretation of the bugle call theme – Sherwood plays the trumpet down in the low register and effectively spots the half-valve technique.

POOR LITTLE RICH GIRL recorded November 13, 1944 in Los Angeles, California: Bobby Sherwood, Eddie Greene, Don Anderson, George Wendt, George Thow, Trumpets; E. V. Covey, M. L. Carlton, Eddie Lucas, Joe Philips, Harry Schuchman, Saxes; L. L. Nichols, Piccolo; Joe Yukl, Jack Jenney, Bob Leaman, Trombones; Stan Wrightsman, Piano; Bass Hutchinson, Guitar; Artie Shapiro, Bass; John Cyr, Drums. 

A solid beat from rim to edge, paced by John Cyr's great drums. Bobby's powerful horn provides the solo spots.

MAKIN' WHOOPEE recorded December 4, 1944 in Los Angeles, California: Bobby Sherwood, Eddie Greene, Bobby Burns, Don Anderson, Bill Waddilove, Trumpets; Bob Leaman, Bert Johnson, Al Thompson, Trombones; Joe McAnarney, Bob Graettinger, Herbie Haymer, Eddie Lucas, Harry Schuchman, Saxes; Don Tosti, Bass; Bass Hutchinson, Guitar; John Cyr, Drums; Fritz Becker, Piano.

A change of pace demonstrating the moderate tempo treatment of a fine standard. Again, Bobby Sherwood's identification is his full-toned trumpet.

Great Jazz - Various

 

Great Jazz

Great Jazz

Galaxy Series Longplay 4831

From the back cover: CARLOS WESLEY "DON" BYAS, tenor saxophonist, was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma on October 21, 1912. His mother played the piano, his father, the clarinet. He had his own group at college in 1930 and was with Eddie Barefield in Los Angeles in 1935. He worked with Don Redman, Lucky Millinder, Eddie Mallory and Andy Kirk. He was with Count Basie in 1941 and at the Yacht Club with Coleman Hawkins. In 1944 he was with Dizzy Gillespie's quintet and in 1946 worked with Don Redman in Europe. Byas remained and toured the continent and made a European tour with Duke Ellington in 1950. He finally settled in France. He is known for the big tenor sound in the Hawkins school but with his own modern characteristics added, rhythmically and melodically. 

BENJAMIN FRANCIS WEBSTER, tenor sax, was born in Kansas City, Missouri on February 27, 1909. He studied violin and piano but mainly taught himself on saxophone. He made his professional debut as a pianist in a band in Enid, Oklahoma; played piano with Dutch Campbell, alto and tenor sax with Gene Coy, then worked with Jap Allen, Blanche Calloway and Andy Kirk. He came to New York City in 1932 with Bennie Moten. In 1933-34, he played with Benny Carter and Fletcher Henderson, and later with Willie Bryant, Cab Calloway, Stuff Smith. He became best known through a long intermittent association with Duke Ellington which began in 1935 and he was with the Duke continuously from late 1939 until 1943 and again for a few months in 1948. In the mid-'40s he worked mainly with local bands in Kansas City. After his last departure from Ellington he toured with his own combo.

Webster belongs with Coleman Hawkins and Chu Berry among the titans of the tenor saxophone. He is of the "old school" in the sense that his tone is big and warm, his style vivid and forceful. He is of a timeless school, inasmuch as his work has been respected and eulogized by adherents of every jazz faction.

COLEMAN HAWKINS, tenor saxophonist, was born in St. Joseph, Missouri, on November 21, 1904. He started on piano, later cello and then the tenor sax. He attended Washburn College in Topeka. He worked with Mamie Smith's Jazz Hounds on tour in 1922-1923, coming to New York with her. He made his first records with Fletcher Henderson in June, 1923, and during his decade with this band became the first (and for a while the only) jazzman to attain fame as a tenor saxophonist, his monopoly on the instrument later being challenged by Bud Freeman, Chu Berry, et al. Having earned a world-wide reputation, he left Henderson in 1934, worked in England with the bands of Jack Hylton and Mrs. Jack Hylton, then toured the continent on his own, making many records, with Benny Carter, Django Reinhardt and others. He returned to the United States in 1939 and formed a nine-piece band which, on October 11th, recorded 'Body and Soul' for Bluebird. This became his biggest hit and established him as a national jazz name. Hawkins' role as a pioneer in his field was one of incomparable importance. He brought to this hitherto-ignored instrument a full-blooded warmth of tone, a buoyancy of rhythmic feeling that put him head and shoulders above the handful of tenor artists who attempted to challenge his dominance in the 1930s. By the early '40s there were innumerable great tenor sax soloists on the jazz scene; by the late '40s it had become the most-used, most abused instrument in jazz, with the advent of the "honking" and other freak styles appealing to race and blues audiences, but Hawkins, whose big tone was no longer fashionable after the advent of the Stan Getz "cool school," remained a superb musician whose performances on slow tempi were still vital and compelling.

STANLEY GETZ, tenor sax, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on February 2, 1927. He started on bass in New York City, then bassoon. He attended James Monroe High School in the Bronx and played in the All City Orchestra. When he was 15, he played with Dick "Stinky" Rogers, went back to school, and then into bands again at 16 with Jack Teagarden, Dale Jones, Bob Chester. He played with Kenton from 1944 to 1945, then briefly with Jimmy Dorsey Benny Goodman. He worked with Randy Brooks, Buddy Morrow and Herbie Fields and then moved to California in 1947 where he worked with Butch Stone and also had his own trio at the Swing Club in Hollywood. In September, 1947, he joined the new Woody Herman band in rehearsal and remained until 1949. Getz, Zoot Sims, Serge Chaloff, Herbie Steward, (later Al Cohn) comprised the celebrated "Four Brothers" in the tone of that name which was recorded by Woody Herman and that gave the band its identifying sound. Getz rose to prominence with Woody Herman's record of "Early Autumn". He led a quartet with Al Haig on piano. In 1951 he toured Scandinavia and in 1952 he did NBC studio work. in New York City but soon returned to leading his group, usually a quintet. One of the great interpreters of ballad material, a sound style-setter in the post-bop "cool" era and a fine technician, Getz was internationally recognized as the top tenor sax man of the 1950s.

CHARLIE VENTURA (Charles Venturo), saxophonist and band leader, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 2, 1916. He was the fourth of 13 children. He started playing the C melody sax in 1931 and was greatly influenced by Chu Berry. He worked in his father's hat factory, and from 1940 to 1942 at the Navy Yard, jamming frequently with Bill Harris, Dizzy Gillespie, "Little Jazz" Eldridge, "Buddy" De Franco. He played tenor with Gene Krupa in 1942 to 1943 and again from 1944 to 1946 and also with Teddy Powell from 1943 to 1944. He had his own band from 1946 to 1947 and from 1947 to 1949 he led a series of small bop combos that earned him great popularity as a leader. He made frequent use of bop singing, often in unison with his own horn. He had his own big band gain for a year, but gave it up in February, 1951. He ran his own night club, the Open House, outside of Philadelph December, 1950 until the summer of 1954. He was featured in the "Big Four" with Buddy Rich, Chubby Jack Napoleon from August, 1951, was then with Gene Krupa trio from January to June, 1952, during which tinted Japan with Krupa. Since that time he has his own combos. Though Ventura is mainly known as a tenor saxophonist he has often been heard on soprano, alto, baritone and bass sax.

THEODORE MALCOLM "TED" NASH, tenor saxophonist, flutist, piccolo player, etc. was born in Somerville, Massachusetts on October 31, 1922. His mother was a concert singer. Nash, who had no formal training other than school, went on the road at the age of 17. He is best known as the featured soloist with Les Brown in 1944 to 1946 and Jerry Gray, 1947 to 1952. However, he has been heard (mostly on records) with dozens of name hands while living in Los Angeles, among them Bob Crosby, Dave Barbour, Pete Rugolo and Ray Anthony He has also worked frequently in movie studios.

Don Byas

September Song

They Say It's Wonderful

Ben Webster

Honeysuckle Rose

Coleman Hawkins

Ole Man River

Wrap Your Troubles

In Dreams

Stan Getz

Don't Worry About Me

And The Angels Sing

Charlie Ventura

Dark Eyes

Big Deal

Ted Nash

Over The Rainbow

Annie Laurie

The Metropolitan Pops Orchestra Plays Instrumental Version of Bob Dylan Favorites

 

Bob Dylan Favorites

The Metropolitan Pops Orchestra

Plays Instrumental Versions of Bob Dylan Favorites

Produced and Arranged by Alan Lorber

Director of Engineering: Val Valentin

Cover Art: Peter Max

Cover Design: Michael Malta

Metro Records STEREO MS-597

1966

From the back cover: It may seem a strange, mixed bag at first; "What's the work of a fiery, wild-haired composer, high-priest of the beatniks and teeny-boppers doing – being played by, for heaven's sake, the Metropolitan Pops Orchestra?" The fascinating answer is right here in the grooves of this record. A sampling will make you feel that Mr. Dylan and the Metropolitan Pops were practically made for each other.

Like A Rolling Stone

It Ain't Me Babe

It's All Over Now Baby Blue

She Belongs To Me

Don't Think Twice, It's All Right

One Too Many Mornings

Positively 4th Street

All I Really Want To Do

Mr. Tambourine Man

The Times They Are A-Changin'

Piano Rhapsodies Of Love - George Greeley

 

Rhapsody On A Theme Of Paganini

Piano Rhapsodies Of Love

George Greeley - His Piano and Orchestra

R-6092

From the back cover: Although the word "rhapsody" can be traced to Homer, it has been a popular label only since the nineteenth century, only indeed since Liszt. It was he, with his Hungarian Rhapsodies, who turned the term for a mere fragment into the definition of a richly set medley. And a piano rhapsody, in particular, has since his time always evoked the image of a master at the keyboard: a man of classi- cal training and virtuosity, a man with personal style. Such is certainly the description of George Greeley. Educated at Columbia University, the University of Southern California, and the Juilliard School of Music, Greeley also took private instruction under Ernst Toch in California. It is to Toch especially he feels most indebted for his knowledge of form and his attitude toward composition. When it comes to playing the music of other composers, Greeley says, "I try never to violate the composer's intention." With regard to Ravel's Pavane pour une infante defunte, for example, which has been popularized as "The Lamp Is Low," Greeley returned to Ravel's original piano score, published in 1899. Ravel himself had orchestrated the piece nine years later, and Greeley was also influenced by that treatment in the coloration of his own. "The tune always dictates the style of the arrangement. In Rachmaninoff's 18th Variation on a Theme of Paganini and in Debussy's Clair de lune I merely orchestrated the piano part. And what I play on the piano is exactly what was published." When a classical theme is widely known as a popular song, however, Greeley feels at liberty to make whatever modifications he wants. And both of the Chopin works here are his own recensions. Sometimes he blends both the old and the new to give an old standard brand-new excitement. The traditional air "Greensleeves" has once again received a traditional orchestral setting, with the suggestion of Elizabethan lutes and hautboys. But the tempo is hardly traditional: strictly measured, slightly up-tempo, it creates an amusing picture of minstrels who march, not wander, through jolly Old England. "Mardi Gras," the concluding section to Ferde Grofé's Mississippi Suite, begins with Greeley retaining Grofé's syncopated rhythms of the Twenties. But then there is a transition to a contemporary tempo and Greeley's distinctive phrasing. Grofé has always called "Mardi Gras" his favorite work, and he should certainly favor this arrangement.

How to handle the melodic line in performance is a matter that perplexes every musician. Gide frequently fretted about it in his journals and finally concluded he wanted it "deeply embedded in the friendly atmosphere created by the other voices, which evoke a constantly shimmering immaterial landscape." George Greeley defines the problem differently. Originally a rhapsody was a song; therefore the problem is to treat the piano as though it too could breathe and sing. When a song has a lyric, Greeley says "I read the lyric and play the tune as though it were singing. I impose the tune loosely on the orchestra." It is this melodic interpretation, this holding-back in the rhythmic phrasing, which keeps the image of the pianist always before one as he listens to a Greeley record. The virtuosity of the man never escapes us.

Nor do his energy and versatility. For the 1963-64 TV season he is writing and conducting the music for a CBS Sunday night series, "My Favorite Martian." It means scoring a new show every six days for a minimum of twenty-six weeks. During the same months he will also give a series of ten concerts on the West Coast. And, hopefully, he will be thinking about another album. He has cut twelve LPs in the past five years. This is his first on Reprise, the first of a new series. And it's a great beginning. –LAWRENCE D. STEWART

Smile (Theme from "Modern Times")

The Lamp Is Low (Pavane)

Blue Star (The Medic Theme)

Clair De Lune

The Dream Of Olwen

Rhapsody On A Theme Of Paganini (18th Variation, Opus 43)

Mardi Gras  (Mississippi Suite)

My Reverie (Debussy's Reverie)

No Other Love (Chopin's Etude In A Major)

Greensleeves

Chopin's Nocturne in E Flat

Whirlwinds - Deodato

 

West 42nd Street

Whirlwinds

Deodato

Produced by Eumir Deodato for Kenya Music, Inc.

Recorded at Record Plant East, New York

Sound Engineer: Carmine Rubino

Assistant Engineers: Richard Apuzzo, Kevin Herron

Cover and Inside Photos: Alen MacWeeney

Liner Photo: Frank Laffitte

Special thank to John Tropea (big help), Carmina (never tiring sound engineer), Oscar (all copies),  Elliot Donald, Barry, Mary Beth, Arlene, Bud, Gary, Cliff, Bert and all the very important people

MCA Records MCA-410

1973 (from disc label) 1974 (from jacket)

Guitar - John Tropea

Bass - John Giulino (all tracks), Tony Levin (center section and solo on "Moonlight Serendade")

Congas & Bongos - Rubens Bassini

Percussion - Gilmore Digap, Rubens Bassini, Eumir Deodato

Trumpets - Mary Stamm, Alan Rubin, John Faddis, Victor Paz, John Eckert, Larry Spencer

French Horns - Jimmy Buffington, Brooks Tillotson

Trombones - Urbie Green, Sam Burtis (solo on "Havana Strut")

Tuba - Tony Price

Flutes & Saxophones - Romeo Penque, George Marge, Phil Bodner, Artie Kaplan, Joe Temperley

Violins - Emanuel Green, Irving Spice, Michael Spivakowshy, Harold Kahn, Harry Glickman, Paul Winter, Marvin Morgenstern, Max Ellen, Carmel Malin, Norman Carri

Violas - Al Brown, Selwart Clark

Cellos - Alan Shulman, Charles McCracken

Gloria Lanzarone

Arco Basses - Russel Savages, Alvin Brehm

Moonlight Serenade

Ave Maria

Do It Again

West 42nd Street

Havana Soul

Whirlwinds

The Ramsey Lewis Trio In Chicago

 

What's New

The Ramsey Lewis Trio In Chicago

Supervision: Jack Tracy

Engineer: Ron Malo

Cover Phot: Bill Claxton

Recorded April 30, 1960, during performance at the Blue Note, Chicago

Argo LP 671

Ramsey Lews - Piano

Eldee Young - Bass

Red Holt - Drums

From the back cover: MENTION the Blue Note to any jazz fan, especially one who lives around Chicago, and you're likely to be answered by, "Wasn't that a shame!"

Because just a few weeks after this album was recorded there, the club that for more than a decade had hosted every top name in jazz had to shut down. The entertainment center of Chicago moved from The Loop across the river to the Near North side, and the Blue Note was left isolated, head still high but without a nickel in its jeans.

A lot of us who had been regulars at Frank Holzfeind's establishment ever since he first opened remembered the big years and were unhappy. Years when it was just about the only game in town, and you could walk in an hear Basie or Kenton or Woody or Brown or James or even Elliot Lawrence Or Charlie Parker with strings or Lester Young carefully picking his way through the audience after a set to head back to the dressing room where the gin was poured in larger than one-ounce quantities.

Or the one bill some years ago that featured Maxine Sullivan, Doc Evans' band, Slim Gaillard's trio, and a young, good-looking pop singer named Harry Belafonte. Or Charlie Ventura in the halcyon days with Jackie and Roy singing those wild lines and drawing crowds of the size that Miles and Jamal do now. Or Lee Wiley and Bobby Hackett, or Red Norvo, or Lennie Tristano, or Duke Ellington playing the annual Christmas parties at which kids who could barely walk heard their first big band and were big-eyed. Or Sarah Vaughan coming in time after time, year after year.

It was one helluva club, believe me, and if you never made it there you missed something..

Ramsey Lewis got there just under the wire and it was almost like old times the Saturday night we recorded him. Al greeted you at the door and Frank was already in his office (first table to the right as you walked in), martini at hand.

The audience was of healthy size, and it included a couple of disc jockeys who dropped in to see what was happening and a night life columnist who used to fall by almost every night for a quick blast before being subjected to such. indignities as having to review Liberace.

The trio was comfortably set up on the big bandstand that was really designed for Kenton and Basie and those-type housewreckers.

Not much happened the first set. Ramsey and Eldee and Red were con- scious of the recording mikes and were playing safe. They skated easily through Bags Groove and Greensleeves and two or three more, sounded good, got a nice hand, and that was about it.

The next two sets were something else. The trio forgot about the mikes and began playing to the audience. They had no difficulty establishing the warm rapport they almost always get with people, and thus nourished by sincere applause and attention, they opened up.

This 38 minutes of music is the cream of those two sets. By the fourth set the crowd had thinned considerably, the piano was drifting noticeably out of tune (Ramsey and Oscar Peterson not only play pianos, they almost destroy them at a single sitting), and the party was just about over.

You judge for yourself how good the music is. I am of the opinion it's the best the group has ever sounded on records. Happy, dynamic, swinging, colorful, it is the sort of trio you are not likely to forget once you hear it.

At the end of the evening, Frank, fresh martini held in steady grip, men- tioned idly, "You know, in all the years we've been going, no one has ever cut an album at the Blue Note before. Ramsey's will be the first.".

It will also be the last. But it's a good one, and that's the way it should be. – Jack Tracy

Old Devil Moon

What's New

Carmen

Bei Mir Bist Du Schon

I'll Remember April

Delilah

Folk Ballad

But Not For Me

C. C. Rider

The Piano Musi Of Henry Cornell - Doris Hays

 

The Piano Music Of Henry Cowell

The Piano Music Of Henry Cowell

Doris Hays

Produced by Ilhan Mimaroglu

Cover Photography: Dave Whitten

Liner Photo of Doris Hays: David Gahr

Liner Photo of Henry Cowell: Courtesy of BMI Archives

Art Direction and Cover Design: Lynn Breslin

Recording Engineer: George Piros - Atlantic Recording Studios, New York, N.Y.

Finnadar Records SP 9016

Distributed  buy Atlantic Recording Corporation

A Warner Comminications Company

1977

From the back cover: The vitality of a musical culture is apparent from the way its traditions are investigated, tested, tinkered with and generally overhauled. Henry Cowell was one investigator who influenced countless composers and listeners through his compositions, his teaching and numerous concert tours around the world performing his piano music.

Henry Cowell was born in Menlo Park, California, in 1897. He began his experiments in sound production at the keyboard, using fists, forearms and palms to produce masses of adjacent seconds which he called tone clusters. His earliest-known piece using clusters is entitled Adventures in Harmony, completed when he was about fifteen. From that time into the thirties, Cowell wrote dozens of pieces using tone clusters in a surprising variety of ways. Sometimes the cluster is pictorially program- matic, as the ostinato bass clusters imaging the pulse of waves in The Tides of Manaunaun; or is used as accenting tone mass, in Advertisement; or, for special colorative effects, as in The Voice of Lir.

Cowell also explored possibilities provided by the strings of the grand piano: damping strings at various nodes for timbre and Bitch change (Sinister Resonance); scraping and rubbing the windings of bass strings (The Banshee); and strumming and plucking strings (Aeolian Harp).

Henry Cowell began concertizing outside of the U.S. in the twenties; he gave his first concert in Europe in 1923. It was after a successful visit to Russia in 1928 that the Russian government published Tiger and The Lilt of the Reel, a first in publishing for an American in Soviet Russia. In mid-1950s Cowell and his wife toured the Middle and Far East under State Department and The Rockefeller Foundation auspices. He composed symphonic works which carry the spirit of his impressions of oriental scales and rhythmic modes gathered during these trips and from childhood influences of Chinese and other cultures in California-Ongaku, the Madras Symphony, Persian Set, Concerto for Koto.

The relationship of dissonance to consonance and the functions of overtones in harmonic theory which Cowell had explored instinctively. in his early tone cluster pieces, he then organized into carefully formulated ideas, published in the twenties as New Musical Resources, which was reissued in 1969 by Something Else Press, In 1927 he began the New Music Edition, a quarterly that published compositions of many composers who are now considered among the finest of this century including Berg, Chavez, Copland, Vivian Fine Ives, Dane Rudhyar, Ruggles and Ruth Crawford Seeger. He taught at the New School for Social Research in New York City. His wide acquaintance among living composers made of him a continuing contact center and information exchange on several continents.

Henry Cowell died December 10, 1965, at his home in Shady, New York."

The Voice of Lir (ca. 1918): "Lir of the half tongue was the father of the gods, and of the universe. When he gave the orders for creation, the gods who executed his commands understood but half of what he said, owing to his having only half a tongue; with the result that for everything that has been created there is an unexpressed and concealed counterpart, which is the other half of Lir's plan of creation." John Varian*

One of the wittier pieces, Advertisement (1914, revised in 1959) is Cowell's representation of Times Square, its lights, car horns, crowds and general bustle. In the middle of the piece, two passages of fist clusters are repeated ad lib, as one might see the signs flashing above the busy streets.

Anger Dance (ca. 1917) contains several passages to be repeated a number of times as a rather repressed fury builds.

Amiable Conversation (ca. 1914)-an (un) amiable such in a Chinese laundry, with the three-level pitch intonation of the Cantonese speech common in San Francisco when Cowell was a child. Tone cluster repartee moves back and forth between right and left arm.

The Tides of Manaunaun (1912): "Manaunaun was the god of motion, and long before the creation, he sent forth tremendous tides, which swept to and fro through the universe, and rhythmically moved the particles and materials of which the gods were later to make the suns and worlds."-Varian.

"In Aeolian Harp (ca. 1923) chords are silently depressed by the left hand, the right hand fingers strum across that string area inside the piano and the chord tones sound without a percussive hammer stroke. Strings are also plucked, and by placing or strumming the strings both behind the dampers and in front of them nearer the string pins, different timbres are obtained. It's a fairly strong wind that blows over this lyre.

This is the first disc interpretation of The Hero Sun. It was published in 1922 as part of Three Irish Legends, along with The Tides of Manaunaun and The Voice of Lir. "The gods created all the suns and sent them out into space. But these suns instead of lighting the universe, congregated closely together, enjoying each others' society, and the universe was in darkness. Then one of the gods told the suns of a place where the people were living in misery on account of the lack of light, and a strong young sun rose and hurled himself out into the darkness, until he came to this place, which was our earth; and the Hero Sun who sacrificed the companionship of the other suns to light the earth is our Sun." – Varian.

In Tiger (ca. 1928) chords built on major sevenths and massive tone clusters are the basic sound elements. Many of the techniques of cluster sound are used: both forearms fully extended with the hand to play all keys within a four-octave span in passages marked ff-ffff; flat of hand, fists, silently depressed chords of sympathetic vibration following ferociously loud clusters.

The Six Ings (Copyright date, 1922) are among the most delicate pieces Cowell wrote, if Seething and Frisking and Scooting can be called delicate because of their framework which, like an eloquently simple setting of a polished stone, however unimportant the stone, allows it a certain preciousness.

Dynamic Motion (1914) is one of the more abstract sound structures Cowell built. Opening measures make use of sympathetic vibration with silent depression of a chord, then sharply detached and accented subsequent chords related to overtones of the first chord. The sound result is light pings of overtones released indirectly, as pungent odors momentarily wafted. At one extremely loud point where a cluster is repeated by the left hand palm sixteen times, the composer calls for the right fist to press down the left hand for each repetition, which lends a certain intensity to the sound.

The Harp of Life (ca. 1925): "In Irish mythology the God of Life, who was called the Dagna, possessed the Harp of Life, whose sound-post extended above the ridge of heaven, while the pedal-stool was beneath hell; and the strings were stretched across time and space, and into eternity; and with each tone the Dagna played upon this mighty instrument, something came to life in the universe."-Varian.

What's This? (ca. 1915), published as First Encore to Dynamic Motion, is almost as short as the question,

Sinister Resonance (ca. 1930) opens with the lowest strings of the piano finger-damped at various points to produce different pitches. By damping strings in various ranges of the piano at different points along their lengths, varying overtones are augmented or suppressed and the timbral character is changed.

Fabric (ca. 1917): Within each measure in 2/4 time, three contrapuntal lines weave a texture of contrasting rhythms, dividing the whole two beats into 6 parts along with 3 parts and 8 parts in the other voices; or other combinations such as 7 to 5 to 8 parts, or 6 to 4 to 9 parts. Cowell used his own notation (various note heads) which indicated these divisions by the part of a whole note they represent, not by the usual subdivisions by halves (i.e. whole, half, quarter, eighth) which becomes confusing when odd numbers such as half-note triplets are to be represented. Cowell proposed 2/3 notes, 4/5 notes, etc.

An antinomy is a contradiction between principles each taken to be true, says Webster's. In Antinomy (ca. 1914) it occurs between clashing forearm clusters in chromatic and tonal scale passages, polyharmonic passages between hands and among curiously contrasting passages in this cemented structure.

The Trumpet of Angus Og (ca. 1922) contains hand platches on the white keys, clusters outlining the interval of a fifth, much as a child first handles the keyboard. Cowell subtitled the piece The Spirit of Youth.

The Banshee (ca. 1923), Irish haunt, wails and moans at the coming of death. These sounds, believe it or not, come from the rubbing of finger tips, scraping of finger nails and strumming of fingers and flat of hand along the windings of the bass strings inside the piano, plus an occasional string pluck in the middle range. The damper pedal is being held throughout-here by Güngör Bozkurt.

Maestoso (1938, published 1940 in New Music Edition, recorded here for the first time) uses secundal harmony as an inner voice, played by the fingers between outer octaves in the treble. The piece is a seldom example of Cowell's use of small clusters with finger technique, and a pointer for the direction his music took in later years away from the mystical muddiness of broad piles of massed seconds.

The Lilt of the Reel (ca. 1928) uses forearm and palm clusters as fattened tonal chords. As in the Irish dance, the music hurries and slows at points, but reverts always to the steady whirling 6/8. – Notes by DORIS HAYS

*In the titling and publication of his compositions Henry Cowell sometimes used John Varian's fanciful images for those listeners who required a programmatic association for his sound structures. John Varian's descriptions are quoted here by the kind permission of Associated Music Publishers Inc.

Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Doris Hays lived in Chattanooga until she was 21. Her earliest serious music study was with Harold Cadek in Chattanooga. Other teachers included Friedrich Wührer, Hedwig Bilgram and Oskar Koebel at the Munich Hochschule für Musik where she studied from 1963 to 1966 on a fellowship from the Bavarian Ministry of Culture. She also studied with Paul Badura-Skoda at the University of Wisconsin as a Zella Armstrong Fellow for Advanced Music Study. She discovered Henry Cowell while looking through the library of Ellsworth Snyder in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1967, and has been playing Cowell's piano music in her concerts ever since.

In 1971 she won First Prize in the Inter- national Competition for Interpreters of, New Music at Rotterdam. She has given many concerts for broadcasting stations and festivals in Holland, Germany, Italy and Yugoslavia, including the Como Festival, the Gaudeamus Composers' Week, and the May Festival with the Residence Orchestra at The Hague. Her performances in the United States include concerts on a number of university campuses, and lecture-recitals about repertoire and playing techniques of contemporary piano music.

She taught at the University of Wisconsin, Cornell .College, and Queens College of CUNY. In the autumn of 1975, she was Artist in Residence with the Georgia Council for the Arts. Doris Hays is also active as a composer and in 1976 organized and co-directed a concert series at the New School for Social Research in New York, called "Meet the Woman Composer." Since 1969 she has made her home in New York City.

Side One

1. THE VOICE OF LIR (4:29) 

2. ADVERTISEMENT (1:35) 

3. ANGER DANCE (1:33)
4. AMIABLE CONVERSATION (0:49) 

5. THE TIDES OF MANAUNAUN (3:00) 

6. AEOLIAN HARP (2:20) 

7. THE HERO SUN (3:40)
8. TIGER (3:14)
9. SIX INGS (8:05) a. Floating
   b. Frisking c. Fleeting d. Scooting
   e. Wafting
   f. Seething

Side Two

1. DYNAMIC MOTION (3:30) 

2. THE HARP OF LIFE (5:20) 

3. WHAT'S THIS? (0:51)
4. SINISTER RESONANCE (2:55) 

5. FABRIC (1:18)
6. ANTINOMY (3:20)
7. THE TRUMPET OF ANGUS OG (3:40)
8. THE BANSHEE (3:20)
9. MAESTOSO (3:32)
10. THE LILT OF THE REEL (1:55)