WBOF Presents Concert By The Sea

 

Concert By The Sea

WBOF Presents Concert By The Sea

East Coast

Actually recorded at the First Virginia Beach Jazz Festival on August 30th, 1959

Featuring Charlie Byrd, Matt Mathews, Sam Most, Ernie Caceres, Hal Posey, Ann Rayburn, Tommy Gwaltney, etc.

Vee Bee Records LP - 101

From the back cover: The crowd came, the rains didn't and the joint jumped 'till midnight!

Thus, in the words of music critic Tony Stein the morning after, the First Annual Virginia Beach Jazz Festival was a rousing success.

A tremendous crowd turned out for the one night event to watch and hear a continuing parade of top jazz musicians take on the spotlight on the stage of the Robert E. Lee Amphitheater. 

Weeks before, Leo Hoarty, president and general manager of WBOF Radio, met with Festival Producer Tommy Gwaltney, well known musician formerly with Bobby Hackett, Billy Butterfield and others. Noth decided on recording the entire session.

Gwaltney opened the show with his rousing Jolly Roger Band. Sparked by the leader's lyrical and vital clarinet solos, the group romped through a set of Dixieland standards. Danny Meyer's trombone work proves him to be an exciting and colorful "new star." The band really roars here on both their album selections.

Next in line was the New York Jazz Quartet including the great Dutch accordionist Mat Mathews; Whitey Mitchell, bass: Sam Most, flute; and Joe Puma, guitar. Most's intentionally distorted intonations on flute in "I'll Remember April," really broke it up. Later, Mathews brought a hush over the crowd when featured on his original composition of "Mat's Way." Both selections appear in their entirety on this album.

Ann Rayburn, lovely young jazz singer, stopped the show with her set, highlighted by "I Gotta A Right To Sing The Blues."

A touch of real humor was added to the Festival after intermission when "Billy And His Gang" took the stage. They were followed out immediately by a plump gentleman wearing the full dress Confederate army uniform. He was introduced simply as "Stonewall Jackson, World's Greatest Clarinet Player." It really turned out to be Ernie Caceres, veteran clarinet player, who removed his "dress sword" and wailed with complete abandon.

Then came the Charlie "Top" Schneer-Hal Posey Quartet. Both local jazz players who have made a hit in Washington, D.C. at the "Showboat." They led their fine group thought a clever medley of Ellington favorites.

Of course, the night's biggest thriller was Charlie Byrd.

Hailed by critics as one of the most compelling jazz personalities on the music scene today, Byrd is as highly regarded for his classical guitar as he is for his jazz interpretations. Just back from a tour of Europe with Woody Herman, and a smash success at the Monterey, Calif. Jazz Festival, Charlie is presented here in some of his best and hitherto unrecorded work.

One of the highlights of the Festival, and there were many, was the superb sound reproduction engineered by Jack Garrison, Chief Engineer of WBOF Radio. Jack, in addition to doing a beautiful job at the Festival, somehow had the time to record the show, and the good sounds on the album are due to his efforts.

the critics had nothing by praise for the Festival. Warner Twyford of the Norfolk Virginian - Pilot said: "A program of uniform excellence."

And said Clarence Walton of the Norfolk Ledger - Star: "...a rousingly successful show!"

Finally came the comment from Joe Dunn of the Princess Anne Free Press: "Top musicians beat out great jazz!"

Gwaltney and his associates in the project, Walter Baldwin and Ray Kipper, have stated that a two-day program is planned for the 1960 edition of the Virginia Beach Jazz Festival

The Washington - Lee Swing - Tommy Gwaltney and the Jolly Rodgers (Gwaltney, Leader and Clarinet; Ziggy Harrell, Trumpet; Danny Meyer, Trombone; George Hall, Guitar; W.D. "Pat" Roberts, Piano; Alton Smith, Bass & Ray Kipper, Drums)

The Tin Roof Blues - (Same Personnel)

I'll Remember April - The New York Jazz Quartet (Sam Most, Flute; Mat Mathews, Accordion; Whitey Mitchell, Bass & Joe Puma, Guitar)

Mat's Way (Same Personnel)

I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues - Ann Rayburn with Johnny Derieux and the Jolly Rogers Rhythm Section

The Royal Garden Blues - Billy And The Gang (Ernie Caceres, Clarinet; Danny Meyer, Trombone; George Hall, Guiat; W.D. "Pat" Roberts, Piano; Alton Smith, Bass & Ray Kipper, Drums)

Don't Get Around Much Anymore - Charlie Schneer - Hal Posey Quartet (Schneer, Piano; Posey, Trumpet; Keeter Betts, Bass & Bartell Knox, Drums

Play Fiddle Play - Charlie Byrd Trio (Byrd, Guitar, Betts, Bass & Knox, Drums)

Prelude No. 1 In E Minor - Charlie Byrd

Les Elgart And Blazing Brass

 

Claire De Lune

Les Elgart And Blazing Brass

Supervision: Bill Lazerus

Sutton SU 283

I'm In The Mood For Love

Mabel, Mabel

L'il Lisa Jane

Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen

Chicken Lickin'

Going Home

Evening Star

When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again

On Brave Old Army Team

Claire De Lune

Blues And Vanilla - Jack Montrose & Red Norvo

 

Concertino Da Camera

Blues And Vanilla

Jack Montrose Quintet with Red Norvo

RCA Victor LPM-1451

1957

From the back cover: This is Jack Montrose's first album for RCA Victor. It will not be his last, nor his next to last, nor his fifth or tenth to last. Besides being a soloist of considerable ability, Montrose can certainly be considered one of our brightest young jazz writers. Jack, who has both a sense of humor and a lack of self-consciousness, takes his composing most seriously, and is dreaming of the day when he may yet write ballets and operas.

Briefly, Montrose was born in Detroit, played in his high school band at Chattanooga, and was graduated from the Los Angeles State College in 1953. He has played with both Jerry Gary and Art Pepper, and wrote, among other things, Etude de Concert for Shelly Manne's brass choir.

He Jack Montrose's music sounds to you is, of course, the most important thing about this album. It is also important to know who played it.

On Concertino da Camera this is the personnel:

Tenor Sax - Jack Montrose

Alto Sax - Joe Maini

Vibes - Red Norvo

Bass - Walter Clark

Drums - Shelly Manne

Supervision - Shorty Rogers

For the other pieces, the personnel is as follows:

Tenor Sax - Jack Montrose

Vibes - Red Norvo

Guitar - James Hall

Bass - Max Bennett

Drums - Bill Dolney

Supervision - Shorty Rogers

When asked for some comments about his music, Jack Montrose sent along the following:

"I have discovered, generally, that the practice of analyzing the form and structure of my compositions serves only to detract from my primary purpose, which is to have the listener devote all of his attention purely to listening and enjoying the music without any deliberate concern for form, structure, etc. Analysis, I feel, is a task for students of music composition, and such distractions must not be instigated upon the lay listener. Nevertheless it has occurred to me that because of its length and scope and some other unusual aspects to be found therein, Concertino de Camera might perhaps be made more readily accessible with the aid of a few words of explanation.

"Its sub-title, Blues And Vanilla, is derived from the fact that the composition is separated into two large, easily recognizable sections, the first of course being the "blues" section and 'vanilla' comprising section two. These two sections are constructed identically, though each, of course, is confined to its own melodic material. Section I, or The Blues, consists of three separate and distinct blues themes, each of which undergoes an individual metamorphosis and development until the three finally emerge together and are performed contrapuntally to one another, each in its entirety. Section II, or Vanilla, consists of three separate and distinct theme of the type which I like to consider as being 'vanilla,' As in section I, each theme undergoes its respective development until at length all three appear concurrently and contrapuntally, as occurred in section I. The coda consists of a re-statement of  the blues theme from section I, thus forming an over-all large compound three-part song form. The composition is almost totally contrapuntal in texture, and great caution was exercised to ascertain that each voice of the counterpoint was a complete and naturally swinging entity in its own right.

"One of the prime objectives here was to create lines for each voice of such a completely natural and plausible jazz feeling that each player, upon gaining familiarity with his part, was able immediately to convey the impression that he may have been improvising it. The entire composition is interspersed with short, frequent solos from all of the players.

"I have not attempted to prove anything to anyone, nor am I crusading for any course, nor am I competing with or trying to out-do any other composer, nor am I even experimenting musically (I do not consider my self as being iconoclastic). I compose Concertino de Camera solely because it afford me intense pleasure and satisfaction to do so. Its length happened not at all deliberately, but purely by accident, as I merely allowed it to develop mostly on its own accord. I consider it to be my most important and satisfactory recorded work to date. It's dedicated to Nesuchi Ertegen who was largely responsible for exposing me to the particular early jazz influences which inspired the work.

"It was a ball to write!"

"It was a ball to play!"

"It absolutely has got to be a ball to listen to!"

– Jack Montrose

Concerto De Camera (Blues And Vanilla)

Bockhanal

Don't Get Around Much Anymore

Bernie's Tune

For The Fairest

A Dandy Line

Charlie Ventura Plays For The People

 

Exactly Like You

Charlie Ventura Plays For The People

Craftsmen C 8039

1960

From the back cover: Here you have Charlie Ventura, a saxophone virtuoso who for many years has been an unparalleled great. His technique, warm tone, and ability to play with a strong swinging beat have won him the respect and admiration of fans and critics throughout the world. After graduating from South Philadelphia High School in 1935, he spent as much spare time as he could jamming with jazz men at various Philadelphia clubs. Eventually, Ventura formed his own group and their fresh approach won them first place in Down Beat, Metronome & Orchestra World polls.

From Billboard - October 10, 1960: Ventura has reached into the great land of standard tunes to put together this nine-track set. He plays both tenor and baritone in front of a rhythm trio with much enthusiasm even if his technique has become a mite tarnished. Best of the tunes include "Sweet Sue," "Exactly Like You," "Bill Bailey," and "Sweet Lorraine." A variation of his jazz hit some years ago, "Dark Eyes" is also included.

Honeysuckle Rose

When The Saints Go Marching In

Sweet Sue, Just You

Exactly Like You

Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home

Dark Eyes

Stardust

Sweet Lorraine

I've Got You Under My Skin

Count Basie Presents The Eddie Davis Trio & Joe Newman

A Misty One

Count Basie Presens 

Eddie Davis Trio & Joe Newman

Recording Supervison: Teddy Reig

Cover Photography: Chuck Stewart

Birdland Series Roulette R-52007

1958

From the back cover: This is the first of a series of performances under the aegis of Count Basie. Sextets, quintets, quartets – whatever combination of music and musicians, of instruments and personalities, may strike Basie's fancy will make up the special shelf of jazz archives to be known as "Basie Presents."

Basie fancy is fancy indeed, at least the sense of being fresh and imaginative, the product of a taste of considerable individuality and, of course, of singular authority – on piano.

Basie's piano moves behind each of the performances in this collection. Doubling with the organ, accompanying the tenor or the trumpet, or taking off on solo flights of his own, Count is called upon early and often and Count responds. Eddie Davis is a musician to his taste, a fitting musician with which to open this series, and Basie lets him and all who listen know it: he blows.

Several qualities makes Davis a musician in the Basie pattern. He is, to begin with, a man with a beat, one who has to swing all the time because that is the cut of his temperament and hence of his performances as well. He is, to the go, a man of few notes; he doesn't just run his horn, clicking off notes like numbers on an adding machine. His phrases are short, pointed, punched, of the kind associated for more than two decades with the music of Count Basie. And he has a sense of humor, the kind that Basie himself has, that turns sentimentality into something approaching satire and makes everything bounce at least a little, no matter how ponderous the tune or portentous the lyric.

All the members of the sextet are cut from the same pattern. Joining Basie and Davis are a couple of men associated with both. On drums there is Butch Ballard, who has worked with Eddie Davis's small band and with Count Basie's big one; on trumpet, Joe Newman, a fixture for years with Basie, and as a result a sidekick of Eddie's in his tour of duty with Count. George Duvivier, the bass player, is a longtime habitué of the same musical circles, and Shirley Scott, the organist, is part of Eddie Davis' Trio right now.

Family atmosphere, you might call it. Certainly the groove they find and keep so easily is altogether familiar to all of these musicians. It never becomes hackneyed, however. They enjoy themselves too much for that, as they make their way happily down the lines of the blues and the standards and the more recent riffs. There is, too, another reason for the freshness amid familiar figures: the matching of electric organ and piano sonorities all the way through the set.

Little Shirley Scott is an astonishing musician. She has a big man's power at the manuals and pedals. As the stentor roars forth and the rhythmic impulse gathers force, on finds it hard to believe that this girl weighs, at most, one hundred pounds. But the power, effective as it is, is not Shirley's most compelling contribution. It is rather, I think, the surrealist touches with which she decorates the ballads, Don't Blame Me and Street Of Dreams – especially the latter, which is really a showpiece for her, sweet and funny and touching and odd by turns.

Shirley is a master – or should one say "mistress"? – of textures too. Listen, for example, to the way she adjusts her sound to prepare the way for Count's piano or, differently, to follow him. Follow the changes in volume and register with which she accompanies key and chord changes and the move from solo spit to background voice. Sometimes it is just a suggestion of melodrama, occasionally of a gentle thumbing of a stop, often an eloquent matching of beat and texture, as in almost all her double-time passages in the slow blues, A Misty One, which in its opening choruses offers a masterly sample of her skills.

A similar range of sound informs Joe Newman's playing here. A variety of muted elegances can be heard in Joe's solos in the fleet and flashy Marie, Telegraph and Swingin' Till The Girls Come Home an din the infectious middle-tempo Save Your Love For Me. Open, he helps make Broadway and Farourk ball along and settles Misty soldier into its insinuating mode. In the ensembles, he is the meticulous counterpart of the keyboards and the tenor, particularly noteworthy for his precise playing.

There is no guitar, but the rhythm section sounds six-men deep, and in a sense it is, because every time the sextet blows together, it blows as one. Even when it is only one soloist against two-man rhythm support, there is an impression of depth, the result of Butch Ballard's steadiness, of George Dunivier's deliberate plucking and the handsomely recorded, big bass sound upon which everything and everybody rests, cradled as in a billowing cloud.

When all is toted up and the credits distributed – and there are many – it remains Eddie Davis' album, however, for here Eddie steps out from behind his nickname, "Lockjaw," steps out of the Basie sax section and assumes a significant identity of his own. As indicated above, that means that one hears a fair number of brightly socked little phrases bout not a plethora of notes; it means a swinging wit and an engaging swagger. But there is more to bring out: ballads and solos that have a vocal flavor and all the push associated with the "Lockjaw" of yore –   but no shriek, no shake, no rub-in.

Don't Blame Me has all the expressive contours of a well-felt ballad and a fine economy of line as well, in Eddie's solo. The vocal quality seems to me unmistakable in Farouk. There, Eddie sounds like a veteran and highly talented blues singer kicking an old-time tune into line. With that estimable contribution under his mouthpiece, he turns to the bumptious Lock-Up, a kind of three or four o'clock jump, in which the leaps are all Eddie's.

One last word for Eddie's sound: it's big – the word and the sound. This is a tenor saxophone in the robust tradition inaugurated by Coleman Hawkins, but entirely up to date in time and taste, the natural complement of Basie, Scott, Newman, and the others. Need one say more? – Barry Ulanov - Author of "A Handful Of Jazz" and "A History Of Jazz In America"

From Billboard - May 5, 1958: This is the first in the label's new jazz series titled "Count Basie Presents." The man Basie is presenting here is Eddie Davis, a fine tenor man in the Coleman Hawkins tradition, but modernly styled. In addition, the Count himself is here on piano, along with a fine fem organist, Shirley Scott. Trumpet man Joe Newman helps out strongly on many of the sides. The Davis Trio, plus Basie, plus Newman, really swings and the album is an auspicious one for all concerned. Tunes include standards and originals.

Broadway

Don't Blame Me

Marie

A Misty One

Save Your Love For Me

Telegraph

Farouk

Lock-Up

Street Of Dreams

Swingin' Till The Girls Come Home

Woodchopppers' Ball - Terry Gibbs & Bill Harris

 

Blue Flame

Woodchoppers' Ball

Terry Gibbs and Bill Harris

Premier Records PM 2006

Personnel: 

Bill Harris - Trombone

Terry Gibbs - Vibes

Lou Levy - Piano

Red Mitchell - Bass

Stan Levey - Drums

From the back cover: Terry Gibbs and Bill Harris were featured sidemen in one of the best of the big bands ever, led by the great Woody Herman. Woody is among the handful of name leaders who have stumped to the corners of the globe with an assembly of all-star musicians in the interest of programming the music he loves. Whatever fame Woody has earned for himself has been passed along to the men who have associated with him, and many of today's most successful jazz attractions owe their start to the existence of a Woody Herman band.

Sidemen of exceptional caliber were attracted to the Herman aggregations for the duo purposes of a dependable income and the challenge of performing on one of the most spited and dynamic ensembles in jazz history. From the days of "The Band That Plays The Blues" down to the present day, Woody personnel bas been drawn from the ocean of available talent and has, at times, generated an enthusiasm for its work that has never been equalled on the American music scene. On these sides, five such sidemen with vivid memories of that stimulating experience, gather to pay tribute to the boss.

Almost as colorful as Woody's long history is the legend that centers on trombonist Bill Harris. There can be little question that the happy sound of Bill Harris is the trademark of the Herman band, so much so, that Bill has been in the brass section of every band, starting with the first herd. Starting incredibly late – age 27 – Bill's brisk and intelligent musicianship astounded the trade and created an entirely new concept for jazz trombone. Despite the many styles which proceeded his arrival, Bill Harris is today one of the most influential and imitated players in the province of contemporary music.

Slight more spectacular, from a visual point of view, has been the rise of vibist Terry Gibbs to a place of eminence as a jazz percussionist. Terry was a feature of Woody's Four Brothers band, being then in the company of pianist Lou Levy and Bill Harris. Terry secured the personnel for this session and mapped the tunes and arrangements which transcend the history of the band. He contributions are self-evident.

Handsome Lou Levy, who stepped out of music shortly after his tenure with the second herd, was a logical choice for the piano bench on this LP. His devotion to jazz is a reflection of the Herman-spawned inspiration, and his unerring technique places him in the forefront of modern pianists.

Of the many men who have held the bass and drum positions on Woody's bands, Red Mitchell and Stan Levy were particularly impressive under his leadership. Red is a graduate of the third herd who has built a magnificent reputation as a master bassist, specializing in speed and conception, which continues to awe his most experienced colleagues. With the first herd as his springboard, Stan Levy became one of the most highly touted members of the modern  drum school. Stan's uncanny rhythm  sense and facility of execution have installed him as the most frequently recorded drummer west of Chicago.

Apple Honey

Everywhere

Your Father's Moustache 

Laura

Woodchoppers' Ball

Lemon Drop

Early Autumn

Blue Flame

That's Where It Is! - Junior Mance

 

God Bless The Child

That's Where It Is!

A Superb Performance By

The Junior Mance Trio

Produced by David Cavanaugh

Capitol Records T 2393

1963

From the back cover: The group is the superb Junior Mance Trio – three expert musicians who have been playing around the country together in key jazz spots, so already had a head start on the relaxed, interpersonal "think as one" sound that only night after night of performing together in all kinds of situations can bring.

Junior Mance has been called, by eminent jazz critics, "the best of the  younger blues-rooted pianists" and "one of the most swinging of contemporary pianists." He solidly rated both tributes. Junior no sooner made it big on the jazz scene than he won a Down Beat new star award in 1961m and he has gone right on to become a jazz star and jazz master who is warmly and enthusiastically respected by critics, the jazz public and his fellow musicians, both as an outstanding pianist and a uniquely likable man.

Bobby Thomas is a rare architect of percussive sound whose experience has been as widespread as a stint with the Herbie Mann group and a period of service as percussionist with Ballet U.S.A. Pushing the beat and drive for the Trio, or taking the solo spotlight, he has the buoyantly surging swing of the finest jazz drummers.

George Tucker was house bassist and leader at Minton's Play House, and his previous group alliances have placed him in the distinguished company or such musicians as Earl Bostic, John Coltrane and Sonny Stott. He's a throbbing, singing bassist of astonishing tone and strength whose instrument now pulsates with the locomotive vigor of a ship's engine and now sings out like a horn.

From Billboard - October 9, 1963: A manor jazz poll award winner, blues-rooted Mance presents sensitive interpretations of material ranging from Gershwin and Handy to his own originals. This is the sort of relaxed yet swinging-after-hours jazz that almost anyone can curl up with. Strong traditional background with a deft new touch.

Wabash Blues

In The Dark

The Host (W.L.Y.T.M.)

I've Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)

I Want A Little Girl

That's Where It Is!

St. Louis Blues

It Ain't Necessarily So

Caribe Blues

God Bless The Child

Hanky Panky

Conception - John La Porta

 

Perdido

Conceptions

John La Porta - Septet, Quartet and Duo

Fantasy 3-228

1956

From the back cover: John La Porta, as one of the important figures in the jazz world, has had a career filled with the experience necessary for the development of a complete jazz musician.

Born in Philadelphia in 1920, he took up the clarinet when he was nine and studied with Ernest Toch, Alexis Haieff and others. Prior to his dance band experience, he played in the Youth Symphony conducted by Stokowski.

Beginning in 1940, La Porta played with dance bands, Bob Chester, Ray McKinley and Woody Herman, mostly as section man and rarely soloing. While he was with Woody Herman's Band, he composed "Non-Alcoholic." La Porta was one of the first musicians attracted to the talent of Lennie Tristano and studied and also recorded with him. He was one of the Metronome All-Stars in 1951 and 1952 and during recent years he was concentrated on teaching in Long Island. During the late 40s, when the radio program "Modern Jazz vs Figs" was broadcast, La Porta was one of the featured musicians along with Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker and Lennie Tristano. He plays both clarinet and alto on this LP and has been featured as a composer and performer in the Composers' Workshop Series in New York in 1954-55. Aside from his recording activity with Kenny Clarke, Lennie Tristano and Woody Herman, he can be heard on Fantasy's record "Modern Music From Philadelphia" by the Sandole Brothers' orchestra. John has played with Claude Thornhill, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller and Red Norvo and has also been featured in the Composer's Workshop Series.

Sonny Russo, trombone, is a veteran of the Artie Shaw, Dorsey Brothers, Sam Donohue, Stan Kenton and Sauter-Finegan orchestra and was featured in the latter group's album, "Inside Sauter-Finegan." He also has recorded with Neal Hefti.

Sol Schlinger, bariton saxophone, is another big band veteran, having served with Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey and also with Benny Goodman. He has recorded with Al Cohn, Phil Woods and Gene Quill.

Wally Cirillo, piano, like La Porta and Mucci, is one of the musicians who participated in the Composer's Workshop Series. His experience with jazz groups includes time spent with Chubby Jackson-Bill Harris small band and groups led by Charles Mingus and Two Macero. He has also recorded with his own group.

Clem De Rosa, drums, is also a graduate of the Chubby Jackson-Bill Harris group and has recorded with Charles Mingus and the Sandole Brothers. He is a graduate of the Manhattan School Of Music.

Wendell Marshall, bass, is one of the best known of the modern bassists. A veteran of the Duke Ellington orchestra, he is also a first cousin of the great Ellington bassist, Jimmy Blanton. He has played with Lionel Hampton, Stuff Smith and Mercer Ellington and has recorded extensively.

From Billboard - September 22, 1956: The modernist clarinet-alto sax man plays mainly his own compositions. As a writer or as a soloist, he's interested in small doses, but interest wanes with over exposure as he never catches fire. Avant-garde followers will support this favorite of the clique, but the market is limited to the cognoscenti.

Concertina For Clarinet

Nightly Vigil

Perdido

Triplets, You Say?

Small Blue Opus

Little Fantasy

Absentee

Washday

En Rapport

Lou's Tune

Ferme La Porta