Angela Mia - Vic Damone

 

Arrivederci, Roma

Angela Mia
Vic Damone
Orchestration under the direction of Glenn Osser

Arrangements by Glenn Osser
Photo: Harold Lang
Columbia Records CL 1088
1958

From the back cover: That strange combination of romance, melancholy and melody that makes up the Italian popular song is treated to one of its most sympathetic examinations in this new collection by Vic Damone. Long considered one of the finest singers around, Vic has a special feeling for these songs, and it is evident in his interpretations, which are thoughtful and fascinating. It is all too easy to take songs such as these and wind up with a spongy set of sounds that strive too earnestly after a "Mediterranean" atmosphere, a peril that Vic and conductor Glenn Osser neatly side-step by treating the music with familiarity, affection and a relaxation that is altogether winning.

One of the most immediately noticeable aspects of these songs is their rolling gait, derived perhaps from the old barcarolles, a gait that sends the melodies soaring into a pleasingly romantic atmosphere. Vie Damone, with his Italian heritage, is particularly identified with such songs, and brings to them an easy mastery of their idiom. From the beginning of his career he has displayed a natural fondness for them, and many of them are almost inseparable from his interpretations. In this collection he sings them mainly in English, although including an occa- sional half chorus in Italian, and his approach throughout is keyed to an intimate approach. This is not to say that there are not moments of full- throated lyricism, but his basic idea is that of the serenade rather than the concert.

Among the songs that may be familiar under other titles are Just Say I Love Her ("Dicitencello vuie"), You're Breaking My Heart ("Mattinata") and I Have but One Heart ("O marenari- ello"). Conversely, Non dimenticar may also be known as "Don't Forget," Luna rossa as "Blushing Moon" and Anema e core as "With All My Heart and Soul." Glenn Osser's arrangements and conducting of these songs is keyed to the basic idea of a serenade, and skillfully underlines its romantic Italian character without overwhelming the melodies.

The Damone family arrived in America shortly after the first World War, bringing with it the Italian passion for music that found its outlet at first in home concerts, sung by Vic's father, with his mother at the piano. A houseful of music is contagious, and young Vic sang along, expanding his activities to include school presentations and at fifteen-radio, when he made his first major appearance on Station WOR. Soon thereafter Vic got a job ushering at the Paramount Theatre, where he watched and heard most of the great stars in popular music. Later, as an elevator operator, he made a captive audience of Perry Como, who advised him to take his singing seriously. An appearance on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts was caught by Milton Berle, who promised to help him along with his career, and soon Vic was singing at La Martinique, famous as a spot where many young singers won their first major attention.

In 1947, Vic was given his own radio show, and in 1950, made his movie debut. His records were among the best-sellers every year, and, save for a two-year intermission serving with the Army in the United States and Europe, there has rarely been a time when his records were not among the most popular. Recently he has been seen on his own television show, an easy-going and appealing presentation.

Married to one of the most luminously beautiful young movie stars, Pier Angeli, Vic may have had a special feeling in mind when he recorded these songs; whatever the occasion, his singing is warm, vibrant and velvety, and his interpretations of the songs is richer than ever. This is the charming new collection Damone fans have been waiting for, and the verdict is a resounding Che bellezza!

Angela Mia
Tell Me You're Mine
Arrivederci, Roma
Just Say I Love Her

Non Dimenticar
'O Sole Mio
You're Breaking My Heart
Serenade In The Night
Luna Rossa
I Have But One Heart
Anema e Core
Tell Me That You Love Me

An Evening With Hugh Downs

 

Lord Of All Hopefulness

An Evening With Hugh Downs
Accompanied by Mundell Lowe and His Friends
Epic Records LN 3597
A product of CBS
1959

From the back cover: Perhaps this should be called: Hugh Downs Sings, Too. 

But then, if you're at all familiar with the illimitable Hugh Downs personality as it is uncovered on peerless Jack Paar's Monday-through-Friday late-night Witenagemot, you're not surprised to learn that Hugh sings, too. You probably know about his other sidelines: skin diver, astronomer, antique gun and furniture authority, student of American history, delver into philosophy and psychology, ardent volunteer worker in Mental Health Campaigns (he works with patients at Wards Island State Mental Hospital in New York), studious collector of symphonic recordings, composer, pianist, guitarist, artist, amateur physicist, hi-fi set builder, telescope maker, avid reader, husband and father. He supports all this activity by serving as the unruffled announcer-straight man-actor on the Paar show and host of NBC-TV's daytime quiz show, "Concentration."

(For those who may be keeping unofficial score in some kind of All-Time Universal Man Contest, it should be stated that there is really no race between Hugh and that pre-video universal man, Leonardo da Vinci, the 15th-century painter, sculptor, architect, who was also a musician, engineer, philosopher and scientist. Leonardo, as far as is known, never cut an album of songs for Epic and Hugh has never tried carving marble. So they're not evenly matched.)

THE ALBUM: Every six months or so, Downs makes what he calls his "semi-annual farewell appearance as a singer" on the Paar show. His last such performance led to (1) praise from Burl Ives and (2) this album, which includes tasteful show tunes, superb folk songs (some in the "rouser" vein, others "moody"), sea chanteys, hymns and some apt talk.

"I didn't think I'd ever make 12 songs sound different," Hugh said after it was all over. "But Mundell Lowe is a genius. He turned out arrangements with so much individuality and imagination that I was forced to outdo myself in trying to match his work. If there is any freshness in my numbers, it is all Mundell's doing."

Incidentally, Mr. "Big Daddy" Ives thought Hugh did so well he paid him the highest tribute. "Told me I deserved to wear a beard," said Hugh. "I told him I wouldn't grow one. I had a mustache for five years but I finally did it in. It was sapping my strength."

Actually, Hugh has had vocal training, but he doesn't want to be known as a singer. "I don't want to be known as anything. If someone wants a singer on TV, they can easily find one better than me. If they want Hugh Downs, why, nobody can be Hugh Downs better than I."

THE SINGER: Born in Akron, Ohio, on Valentine's Day, 1921, Hugh made his debut as a radio announcer at the age of 17 when he joined the WLOK staff (part-time) in Lima, Ohio, after graduating from Shawnee High School in nearby Shawnee. While attending Blufton College, he also worked as a church singer, putting to use his voice training. When he sang at his Episcopal Church, he could accept no remuneration. But when Baptist and Methodist churches required his baritone voice, Hugh quickly turned pro. His singing also approached operatic quality. (Never quite reached it, just approached it, you understand.) That adventure occurred after he attended Wayne University in Detroit and worked, again part-time, at WWJ and left to join NBC's Chicago outlet, WMAQ in 1943. He was a disk jockey, interviewer and emcee and, in his spare time, once sang in productions of "Pagliacci" and "Cavalleria Rusticana" at the Eighth St. Theater.

In 1954, after 11 years in Chicago, Hugh arrived in New York to serve as co-star and host of the "Home" TV show with Arlene Francis. (He can, as a result of this work, chat about cooking, sewing and decorating without a blush and with impressive authority when the occasion arises.) He was the announcer on "Caesar's Hour" during the 1956-57 season and was selected by Paar for "Tonight" (now "The Jack Paar Show") in July 1958.

Hugh's electronically-induced popularity hasn't short-circuited his modesty or his humanity. "The thought I keep in mind," he explains, "is that the downfall of the magician begins when he starts believing in his own magic. I'm not in this business for the acclaim, as pleasant as that may be for the ego. This is, for me, total expediency. I just want to make money. If I could earn the money I make now on the condition that I never appear on TV or before the public in any way, I'd do it. The reason is that the fuss people make over you is an insidious thing. It can warp your thinking if you're not careful.

"And I'm not after money for material reasons. I don't even own a car. I just find that in order to feed my curiosity about the world, I need money. And, naturally, I would like my kids to enjoy the world, too."

Hugh lives in a Manhattan apartment with his wife, the former Ruth Shaheen, and their two children, Hugh, 13, and Deirdre, 10. There's also an all-important 15-feet of shelf space on which Hugh keeps an impressive library of record albums.

INSIDE AND UPSIDE DOWNS: On camera, Hugh is an accomplished salesman of floor wax, paint, underwear, headache remedies or carpeting.. Off camera, Hugh relates his enriching pastimes to a serious quest for answers about man's role on earth and his relationship to his universe.

The common thread tying his seemingly varied interests together is Ultimate Truth. His studies of astronomy, physics, psychiatry, music, poetry and history all serve to help Hugh understand with more clarity our reasons for being. Like Socrates, he has disciplined himself "to investigate the reason of the being of everything-of every- thing as it is, not as it appears..."

His interest in cosmology, that branch of philosophy that treats the structure of the universe as a whole, has taken Hugh into the study of atoms and beyond.

"I have studied Einstein's theory of relativity enough to know that I probably haven't the mental equipment to master it. And that is quite a humbling feeling," said Hugh, a 175-pound, near-six-footer whose brown hair, at 38, is gray-tipped around the eartops. "I had believed that the ultimate truths reside in the cosmos, but I'm about to abandon it. I believe they will be found in man. Remember when the atom meant the smallest indivisible particle of a substance? Well, we've smashed the atom and that theory to ridiculousness and this shows me that maybe we are on the wrong track. Maybe the whole basic atomic theory is wrong.

"This is disheartening, but it leads me to believe that perhaps we cannot find the answers in technology. Maybe inner man holds the answer. So I go into other fields. And that has led to my interest in mental health. Maybe probing our minds may be our salvation. I think man's proper study now should be the relationship between the mind and heart."

The universality of Hugh Downs has one blind spot. "I like almost all kinds of music except the pop or hit parade music. That's of no interest to me. But," Hugh added, "I'm a big fan of the Nashville music, the Grand Ole Op'ry. I think Red Foley is one of the greatest singers of all time. And I include him with Caruso. This usually evokes laugh- ter, but I'm serious. His singing represents life and that's what music should do.

"Otherwise, I prefer the symphonic literature. I'm enamored of Anton Bruckner, Gustav Mahler and Richard Strauss. I have everything Mahler ever wrote. At home, I plan Mahler music festivals that last a month. That's one advantage of our technology. It has made me better acquainted with him, through hi-fi, than the wealthiest concertgoer of his time. You know, someone was trying to sell me a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL. That's quite a car. But I said no, that's the primrose path. I have Mahler's Second on disks and that's what counts."

His fondness for poetry, like his antique gun collection, starts with domestic samples. "It all ties in with my interest in history. I buy guns not because I'm interested in ballistics. It's because they tell something about our history. In poetry, I like the American poets. That sounds chauvinistic, I know, but I just like their flavor, their ways of reflecting our history. Stephen Vincent Benet is one favorite."

That, briefly, is Hugh Downs. A civilized man. – NOTES BY FRED DANZIG

Two Brothers
To Pass Away The Time
I Wonder As I Wander
The E-r-i-e Was A-risin'
Drink To Me With Thin Eyes
The Ride Back From Boot Hill
So Long, Blue Valley
Sweet Li'l Jesus Boy

Look To The Rainbow
The Delaware Light
Scarlet Ribbons
Lord Of All Hopefulness

The Many Faces Of Jazz Vol. 39 - Claude Luter

 

The Many Faces Of Jazz Vol. 39

The Many Faces Of Jazz Vol. 39
Claude Luter et ses lorientais
Mode Serie - Vogue International Industries
Collection Universelle CMDINT. 9843

From the back cover: The name of Claude Luter and his "Lorientais" is, more than any other, associated with the vogue for New Orleans music in France. 

In fact, what was the deeper meaning of this "NEW ORLEANS REVIVAL"? 

It's important to understand that the public, and more specifically the youth of the Old World, only truly began to discover jazz in the aftermath of the Second World War. It was perfectly natural that this introduction, like jazz itself, should begin with its original form, and Claude Luter, like his followers, first sought inspiration from the great pioneers who had given New Orleans its distinctive sound. 

For a long time, King Oliver's old records constituted the veritable "Bible" for New Orleans musicians, whose atmosphere needed to be recreated and whose secrets of collective improvisation needed to be rediscovered.

We still remember the extraordinary enthusiasm for "Les Lorientais" in that cellar in the Latin Quarter where these new "apostles," like their "gods," preached this new religion. And this is not just a metaphor. For this phenomenon must be considered a social event whose profound repercussions were felt for a long time among French youth. And it is precisely to some of the works of King Oliver, Kid Ory, and Louis Armstrong that this LP by Claude Luter is dedicated, where the Lorientais demonstrate the extent to which they had managed to identify with their mentors.

New Orleand - Oh! Didn't He Ramble
Workin' Man Blues
Jazz Lips
Steppin' On The Blues
Ory's Creole Trombone
Alligator Blues
Gumbo Creole
Oriental Strut
Georgia Bo Bo
Chattanooga Stomp
Riverside Blues
Buddy's Habits
Weather Bird Rag
Tia Tia

Bird In A Silver Cage - Herbie Mann

 

Birdwalk

Bird In A Silver Cage
Arranged and Conducted by Sylvester Levay
Produced by Michael Kunze and Sylvester Levay for Rosalba Music, Inc.
Recorded at Union Studios, Munich, Germany
Recording Engineer: Zeke Lund
Cover Art: Don Brautigam 
Design & Art Direction: Paula Bisacca
Atlantic SD 18209

1976

Flutes - Herbie Mann
Keyboards - Sylvester Levay
Drums - Martin Harrison
Bass - Gary Unwin

Guitar - Nick Woodward
Percussion and String Ensemble of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Fritz Sonnleitner

Background Vocals on all tracks by Jerry Rix except on "Aria," Munich Studio Choir. The Lady on "Aria" is Penny McLean

Bird In A Silver Cage
Aria
Fly, Robin, Fly
Birdwalk
Years Of Love
The Piper

Maria Teresa Vera

 

Sovre Una Tumba Una Rumba

Maria Teresa Vera
Y Sus Canciones

Con Nene Allue y Su Conjuntio
Kubaney 109
1956

From the back cover: ABOUT THE IDEA FOR THIS RECORD: This recording is a legitimate source of pride for KUBANEY RECORDS, as it has satisfied the desire of the immense public who, day after day, throughout the years, have listened to and admired Maria Teresa Vera on various radio frequencies throughout the Republic. We have achieved a high level of sound quality on this record, never before attained in a recording based on guitars and rhythm. Therefore, we would like to congratulate the person directly responsible for the high quality of this Long Play, Mr. Medardo Montero, recording engineer at Radio Progreso.

ABOUT THE PERFORMER: MARIA TERESA VERA, a legitimate source of Cuban pride (she is undoubtedly the greatest exponent of the romantic songbook of yesteryear, where so many heartfelt songs were forged).

Her unique style has earned her the affection of a large audience for over forty years, an audience that has continued to delight in the romantic melodies that only she has been able to interpret.

María Teresa has taken our music to various Latin American countries. She has visited the United States on several occasions, where she recorded for different labels.

On this album, María Teresa perfectly blends her diverse interpretations, from her incomparable "Santa Cecilia" to her highly personal style of the Bambuco "Esta vez toca perder." The Clave Ñáñiga "En la alta sociedad" is a particularly striking addition to this album, appearing for the first time on a long-playing record.

ABOUT THE ACCOMPANIMENT: The accompaniment for this recording is provided by the performer herself, showcasing her mastery of the guitar, and the Nené Allué Ensemble, composed of two guitars, a treble, bass, and rhythm guitar.

Disc Label Track List

Santa Cecilia
Sobre Una Tumba Una Rumba
Doble Inconciencia
Y Tu Que Has Querido ?
Esta Vez Toco Perder
Veinte Amos
El Soldado
Nena
Boda Negra
En La Alta Sociedad

Longina
Pensamiento

Jacket Track List

Santa Cecilia
Longina
Veinte Años
Y Tu Que Has Hecto
El Soldado
Nena
En La Alta Sociedad
Doble Inocencia
Pensamiento
Sobre Una Tumba Una Rumba
Esta Vez Toco Perder
Bodas Negras

In The Last Analysis

 

In The Last Analysis

In The Last Analysis
The University Of Cincinnati Department Of Psychiatry 
17th Annual Christmas Skit, 1965
Written and Performed by The First Year Residents Department of Psychiatry University of Cincinnati
Recorded and Edited by Paul L. Whitehead and Perry B. Bach
Photography and Cover Design by Edward H. Stein and Perry B. Bach

Cast in order of appearance: James Robinson, Melvyn M. Nizny, Perry B. Bach, Richard Schaefer, Alan B. Levy, Perry Marshall, Robert Meitus, Robert Buchalter, Richard Arbogast, William MacMaster, Harry B. Woods, P. Gloria Burk, E. David Burk, Robert T. Daehler and Milton E. Block

From the back cover: Following the rich traditions set by their predecessors, those residents in their first year at the Department demonstrated their proficiency in psychoanalytic and insight directed therapy by writing the musical skit, "In the Last Analysis." Fortified by the Christmas Spirits, and having been assured that the audience had also imbibed, the writers turned performers. The production was recorded live, as it was performed on December 20, 1965, in the fabulous Sky Room of Cincinnati General Hospital, over- looking the picturesque Avondale quarter of Cincinnati.In adding their chapter to the traditions of the Department, the first year residents salute the denial defense mechanism which has done more than anything else to keep the traditions alive. In addition, this particular skit reaffirms a persistent suspicion regarding the omnipotence of the Department of Psychiatry Chairman.

New York's A Song - Ralph Burns

 

New York's A Song

New York's A Song

Ralph Burns and his Orchestra and the Sounds of The City

Sounds by Joan Franklin

Photo Essay of The City by Ed Hamilton

Decca Records DL 79068

1959

From the inside (blue colored booklet): About Ralph Burns - How, in one musical language, do you interpret the pulse of a city as complex and contradictory as New York? In this exciting new album, the music of Ralph Burns gives the answer. You don't. You can only portray this city, musically or graphically, in as many varied languages, colors, contrasts and moods as it continually reflects. Here, in a collection of songs culled from the almost inexhaustible store of melodies inspired by New York, are those most broadly and vividly representative. And, through the extraordinary arranging skill and fruitful imagination of Ralph Burns, one of the most modern and perceptive musicians of our time, we present a unique musical portrait of New York ... at times elaborately coiffured, more often with its hair down. The authentic sounds of the city give added color.

Ralph Burns, composer-conductor-arranger-piano soloist, was classically trained, but his experience runs the gamut of musical expression. His most recent plaudits have been garnered in television, but he is equally well known, in each of his outstanding musical func- tions and capacities, in the fields of jazz and popular music.

In attempting to define or classify the music in this collection, we can only say its scope is as broad as the fantastic potpourri of human activity and emotion of the city. In short, if it's a part of what makes New York a song... it's a part of this album

Side One

1. Sound: Sightseeing Bus Guide
Music: "I HAPPEN TO LIKE NEW YORK" Sound: Traffic jam-Times Square

2. Music: "LULLABY OF BROADWAY"
Sound: Broadway theatre crowds, taxis, newspaper vendor

3. Sound: Children in playground
Music: "MELTING POT" – Medley
Sound: More children in playground

4. Sound: Subway train loading at station and departing Music: "TAKE THE 'A' TRAIN"
Sound: Independent Subway "A" Train leaving station.

5. Sound: Harlem street sounds and voices
Music: "HARLEM NOCTURNE"

6. Sound: Puerto Rican children singing in church Music: "RICO VACILON"

Side Two

1. Sound: Herald Square street sounds at Christmastime Music: "MANHATTAN"
Sound: East side street traffic and fire engines

2. Sound: Rain and thunderstorm - Manhattan penthouse Music: "PENTHOUSE SERENADE"
Sound: Thunder-Manhattan roof-tops

3. Sound: New York harbor and waterfront sounds Music: "I COVER THE WATERFRONT"
Sound: More New York harbor and waterfront sounds

4. Sound: Third Ave. Elevated train and horse-drawn vehicle Music: "LITTLE OLD NEW YORK"-Medley Sound: Hansom cab in Central Park

5. Music: "AUTUMN IN NEW YORK" Sound: Hansom cab in Central Park

6. Sound: Chinatown "Double Ten" celebration - fireworks Music: "CHINATOWN MY CHINATOWN" Sound: Chinatown fireworks and street parade

7. Sound: Ticker tape machines-Wall Street customers room Music: "TICKER TAPE TOWN"
Sound: Sightseeing bus guide

Teen Scene! - Chet Atkins

 

Teen Scene

Teen Scene!
Chet Akins
Pickwick by Arrangement with RCA Records
Previously released as LSP-2719
Pickwick ACL-7005

1975 

From the back cover: I don't guess you've ever had the opportunity to interview Chet Atkins. I have – and somehow managed to accomplish the assignment. It was no easy feat. He is not known in Nashville music circles for being a braggart or the most talkative of sorts. As a matter of fact all during the interview I kept thinking how Chet reminded me of the great Gary Cooper. Coop was tall, slim, and rather imposing. Ditto Atkins. And Coop was famous for his "Yeps" and "Nopes." Ditto Atkins. It probably just all goes to show you that when you accomplish a lot of things in your career and life, you really don't have to go around telling everybody about them. If they've been good deeds and merits, people will know without you telling them. That must be Chet Atkins' way of thinking, because after spending one hour with him talking about his many-sided career as one of the prime forces behind the popularity of country music around the world, you know the accomplishments certainly outweigh the simplified answers of "Yep, I did that," "Everybody made a lot of that, but it really wasn't much," and "I guess they elected me into the Country Music Hall of Fame because they felt sorry for me-thought I was dying of cancer and wouldn't be around till next voting."

Chet Atkins is a man of sparse words and mean accomplishments. He is a believer in the motto that action speaks louder than words. His life and career in the music business has been nothing but action – and that's action with a capital A.

The gifted guitarist has recorded over 60 albums for RCA during his 27-year association with the label. Many of them are Gold Records – all of them are classics in one way or another and major best-sellers. He has garnered Best Instrumentalist, Grammy, and CMA Awards galore; been elected into the prestigious Hall of Fame, and even "played the White House and lived to tell about it."

He has gone from the dire poverty of life on a 50-acre Clinch Mountains (Tennessee) farm with 15 brothers and sisters to Nashville's suburb of million- aires, Belle Meade. Through it all, he has changed little from that "little kid in the hand-me-down clothes with the inferiority complex!"

The performer and successful record producer attributes his longevity as an entertainer and his knack of creating hits for other artists as "just pure luck." When asked to explain some of the innovations he brought to country music and the influences he has had on setting trends, Chet says humbly – and sincerely, "I really can't pick on a guitar very well, you know. I may have changed a trend or two by playing with my fingers. Up till then everybody had a pocketful of picks. I just decided it was necessary for me to use 'em. I said 'What's wrong with my fingers?'"

And that's a fact!

Actually Chet also developed the technique of using the thumb and three fingers to play the guitar – influenced by his mentor and country great Merle Travis' thumb and one finger method. Atkins modeled his style after the guitarists in the Western Kentucky coal fields and that of classic guitar virtuosos, such as Andres Segovia.

Over the years Chet Atkins has adapted to the music styles as they have come and gone – and even invented a few himself. He can play the most country of Texas hillbilly swing and then turn right around and do memorable renditions of Bach. "The only bad thing," he says, "is that when I play Bach, it comes out country. But I don't plan to change!"

This most outstanding collection of Chet Atkins instrumentals shows his ability to handle just about any kind of tune that comes his way. There's the Broadway touch with "Bye, Bye, Birdie" – the reminisces to and the nostalgia of yesteryear in "Back Home Again in Indiana"-the hard-driving rock-a-billy of "I Got A Woman" – the warmth and simplicity of "I Love How You Love Me" – and there are the Atkins stable of hits and personal favorites, such as "Alley Cat," "Walk Right In," and "Teen Scene!"

They call Chet Atkins "Mr. Guitar." In music circles they speak of him in revered tones. They say he is the man most responsible for promoting "The Nashville Sound!" Let's face it, folks, Chet Atkins is a legend.

Then, why is he such a disappointment to interview-no hate stories about some artist stealing one of his songs, no grudges, no patting himself on the back for the wonderful job done. Then I thought that perhaps that was why Chet Atkins was so interesting. For all the things he is and has become and stands for, he is just like our ole neighbor next door. With one exception, of course: Chet Atkins is the singularly, most outstanding instrumentalist in all the world of country music and a stunning exponent of what the country sound is all about. – ELLIS NASSOUR, Music City News, Nashville

I Got A Woman
Sweetie Baby
Teen Scene
Back Home Again In Indiana

Rumpus
Walk Right In
I Love How You Love Me

Alley Cat
Bye Bye Birdie

Jazz Best Coast - Various

 

Jazz Best Coast

Jazz Best Coast
Coral Records 97 010 LPCM
Original American Recording
Deutsche Grannophon
1958

From the back cover:

Bill Holman and his Orchestra / Evil Eyes. Bright Eyes

Personnel: Bill Holman, aranger-composer-tenor and leader...

Trumpets: All Porcino, Ray Linn, Conte Candoli, Stu Williamson (also plays valve trombone)

Trombones: Bob Fitzpatrick, Ray Sims, Harry Betts Saxes: Charlie Mariano, Herb Geller, altos; Charlie Kennedy, Richie Kamuca, tenors; Steve Perlow, baritone.

Rhythm: Lou Levy, piano, Max Bennet, bass; Mel Lewis, drums.

Solo Annotation

Evil Eyes: Lou Levy, Bill Holman, Stu Williamson, Charlie Mariano, Max Bennet.

Bright Eyes: Lou Levy, Stu Williamson, Bill Holman, Max Bennet.

In cross-the-continent correspondence concerning this Album Bill made his position clear.

"In the writing for this album, I was working for form, continuity, and economy while trying to retain. the swing and vitality necessary to a good jazz feel. This aim is certainly not new, but I think it's a direction in which jazz can do a lot of growing. 

"I don't consider myself an innovator. Rather than use odd instrumentations and/or pseudo-classical writing, I prefer to build the music on a fairly traditional base, letting what novelty there is come from the swing and sincerity of the band and the soloists, and from what individuality might be in the writing.

"The instrumentation here is a common one for a band of this size. It's light but capable of generating a lot of energy when required. The harmonies used are mostly simple, not so tense that they defy swing... Harmonic progressions should provide momentum of their own.

"Melodically, I try to write human, singable lines with natural curves, sometimes trying for an improvised feel...

"Rhythmically, I use a lot of syncopation and off- beat accents in the ensembles as a band seems to be able to get together easier on off-beats than on on-beats.

"Solos are fewer but longer, to give the soloists a better chance to build something of their own. Regarding backgrounds to soloists, I feel they shouldn't be confining to the soloist, (Ed. note they usually aren't in Holman's writing) although this premise is sometimes sacrificed for the sake of continuing a mood or idea."

Al Cohn Zoot Sims Quintet /Gone With The Wind

Personnel: Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, tenors; Mole Alli- son, piano; Teddy Kotick, bass; Nick Stabulas, drums.

COHN and SIMS, an earthy duo, by any measuring rod, in an informal mood. The dominant emphasis is on blowing; the propagation of an honest, unleashed swing. The cause is a winning one, in this case, for great rapport exists between the two; a sense of oneness within the group as a whole.

Both Cohn and Sims make stylistic reference to Lester Young. However, rather than reflecting on the grandeur of the man who so heavily mannered. their playing at an earlier time, the mirrow is turned inward; talent and jazz experience permitting individuality within a frame originally fashioned by Young.

After a conversational opening, Sims takes two solo choruses; Cohn three. They proceed to a chorus of eight bar exchanges initiated by Sims, and then a chorus and a half of "fours", which leads to the closing.

(Other recordings of this session on 57171.)

Joe Newman Sextet / Joe's Blues

Personnel: Joe Newman, trumpet; Frank Wess, tenor; Frank Rehak, trombone; John Acea, piano, Eddie Jones, bass; Corinie Kay, drums.

As arrangers Ernie Wilkins and Manny Albam have repeatedly said to me: "JOE NEWMAN is a modern trumpeter with the rare facility and flexibility to be able to deal expressively with both old and new formats in jazz It is also to be noted that he retains his own musical personality, while projecting the spirit of the materials he is dealing wth. On his appearance here with a sextet, Newman turns to the heart of jazz, the blues. Certainly a fruitful form when dealt with adequately, the blues are demanding on the musician in that he is dealing with only three basic chord changes, and must produce.

Having been associated with the Count Basie band from 1943 to 1946; from 1952 to the present, New- man has become well-oriented in the letter and spirit of the blues, for the Basie library is essentially blues in feeling, if not in form

In his entourage of blues blowers, Newman has two associates from the Basie band: tenorist Frank Wess and bassist Eddie Jones. In addition, MJQ's timekeeper, Connie Kay, who essays a virility in his work here, seldom manifested with the John Lewis unit; 'New Star' Down Beat poll winner Frank Rehak on trombone, and at the piano, the extremely knowledgeable blues player, John Acea.

Within this expanded, blues commentary, one is apt to be impressed with the pointed economy of the solos. The solo commentators speak in a flowing manner, but never over-embellish, thus intimating all the more by their restraint.

The opening and closing choruses of this selection. feature Joe and bassist Jones; the opening setting the stage, issuing the clarion call; the close com- pleting the design of the blues fabric. (Other recordings of this session on 94 103.)

Manny Albam and the Jazz Greats of Our Time 

Arranger composer MANNY ALBAM charts the way for an excellent array of soloists on both of these selections with unintursive yet provocative frameworks. In his compositional relationship between writing and blowing, one seems to nourish the other; the balance, flow of one to the other, to be noted.

Essaying strong ties with jazz's ancestry by fusing elements particular to jazz tradition and the idiom's individuality in his writing: the beat, improvisation within a disciplinary frame, jazz's own unique feeling, Albam is just another example, a most valid one, at that, of the basing of modern outlook on the secure plank of traditionalism. Home Brew

Personnel: Conti Candoli, "Trumpeter X", trumpets; Stu Williamson, valve trombone; Herb Geller, alto; Richie Kamuca, Charlie Mariano, tenors; Bill Holman, baritone; Lou Levy, piano; Red Mitchell, bass; Shelly Manne, drums.

Selection is initiated by an eight bar piano intro by Lou Levy, establishing the 'feel" of material. A full chorus of ensemble follows with 'Trumpeter X' playing a one note commentary on last four bars of the bridge. Solo choruses by Geller, Williamson, the ever-charming 'Trumpeter X', and Kamuca separated by four bar ensemble send-offs and underlined by interweaving sax figures are next. The 'out chorus' is notable for a repeated two-bar riff with drum adornments by Manne; a four-bar drum break and 'Trumpeter X's' four-bar interjection in the last 16 of the tune.

(Other recordings of this session on 57 142.)

Am I Blue

Personnel: Art Farmer, Nick Travis, trumpets; Bob Brookmeyer, valve trombone; Phil Woods, alto; Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, tenors; Gerry Mulligan, bari- tone; Hank Jones, piano, Milt Hinton, bass; Osie Johnson, drums.

The relaxation, general tenor of the interpretation, evokes memories of Jimmie Lunceford in its off- hand but pointed movement.

Altoist Woods is the dominant voice in the first 16 bars of the theme chorus which plays off the saxes, anchored by Mulligan, against the brass. Brookmeyer wends his way in and out of ensemble textures during last 16 of first chorus. The lyrically inclined Cohn tenor glides in next, framed by quietly flowing backgrounds. Woods then voices his backstory in his typically virile manner, as the ground fabric changes color. Mulligan takes cue from ensemble figure preceding his stint, enlarges upon it in a rhythmic manner; paries with the figure again, then delineates further, leading directly into Art Farmer's muted solo. Zoot Sims continues the skein, and makes some thoughtful yet pulsating Hank Jones takes the solo spotlight, engages primarily in interplay with the band, and moves the opus into closing theme chorus. Latter is notable for bassist Hinton's conversation with the band, and a lyrical stint by Travis on the bridge. (Other recordings of this session on 57 173.)

Hal McKusick Quintet featuring Art Farmer /  This Time The Dream's On Me

Personnel: Hal McKusick, alto; Art Farmer, trumpet; Ed Costa, piano; Milt Hinton, bass; Gus Johnson, drums.

Hal McKusick has always been quite concerned with projecting his feelings through his horn, working in circumstances which permit him to do so. 

"I don't feel that larger bands. have a negative function, but in most cases, they tend to emphasize the orientation of the arranger or composer rather than the improvisor, and the feeling of creation notable in the small group is lacking. 

"The group of musicians I had on this session all feel strongly about individual expression, but realize there is a need for a certain amount of writing to frame the expansive blowing sections. 

"Manny Albam, a writer who understands the needs of the jazz player, created a substantial, non-ccn-stricting chart, which helped engender the relaxed, impovisory feeling we wanted.

In the final evaluation of this track, the heat and flow of the solos is not to be overlooked. The latter indicative of the compatibility of the players; the capacity of highly competent individuals to make for a cogent whole.

(Other recordings of this session on 57 131.) – Burt Korall

Shelly Manne by Courtesy of RCA Victor_Records Lou Levy by Courtesy of Contemporary Records

Die Dubarry / Die Rose von Stambul - Erika Koth, Rudolf Schock, Horst Wilhelm

 

Die Dubarry / Die Rose von Stambul

Die Dubarry - Millocher/Mackeben
Die Rose von Stambul - Fall
Ouerschnitte: Erika Koth, Rudolf Schock, Horst Wilhelm
Eurodisc 60 018 GE (10 inch 33 rpm disc)
1962

Erika Koth, Sopran
Horst Wilhelm, Tenor
Der Gunther Arndt-Chor
Die Berliner Symphoniker
Dirigent Frank Fox