The Epitome Of Jazz - Herbie Mann

 

After Work

The Epitome Of Jazz

The 14 Best Of Herbie Mann

Herbie Mann

Bethlehem Records - Cincinnati, Ohio

BCP 6067

From the back cover: This is a collection of what Bethlehem Records believes to be the "Best of Herbie Mann" tracks cut during Herbie's stint on the Bethlehem label. Herbie recorded four albums for Bethlehem, the first in December, 1954.

BCP 24, "The Herbie Mann Quartet" was recorded three months after he had organized his quartet featuring Joe Puma on guitar, Chuck Andrus on bass, and Harold Granowsky 24. BCP 58, "Herbie Mann Plays" came next, featuring again a quartet, but with different personnel on the two recording sessions. Benny Weeks on guitar, Joe Puma guitar, Keith Hodgson bass, Whitey Mitchell bass, Lee Rocky drums and Herbie Wasserman drums. BCP63, "Love And The Weather" was a new approach and featured his alto flute with Ralph Burns conducting and arranging on the A side and Frank Hunter conducing and arranging on the B side. The orchestra was basically strings and rhythm using five  violins, two violas, and one cello, Harry Lookofski concertmaster and Urbie Green is heard on trombone, the only wind instrument used. On BCP 40, the great Sam Most teams with  Herbie Mann to present the Mann-Most Quintet and it is in this album that the flute as a jazz instrument really comes of age. The nuclei of the former groups – guitarist Joe Puma, bassist Jimmy Gannon and drummer Lee Kleinman – rounded out the unit. Russ Garcia contributed twelve original arrangements of some of the great jazz classics.

The success story of Herb Mann is best summed by Joe Quinn who wrote "The present day components of jazz – like the music itself – have come about through the process of evolution that has made certain instruments vital to the structure of such units *** rather flute had come of age." Quinn was discoursing on the acceptance of the flute as a jazz instrument and with this the ascent and talent and recognition of Herbie Mann as a star. As all jazz buffs know, Herbie concentrate on tenor at first but as he experimented with the flute he became more and more aware of the flute's lyrical and lightly swinging characteristics.

In the years since his introduction on Bethlehem, Herbie Mann has continued to grow in stature and perfect his ideas and techniques, but the beginning is all found in the tracks contained in this latest Bethlehem LP with are truly the end – the epitome – the best – culled from the Herbie Mann vault master!

For those of you who haven't been acquainted with the life of Herbie Mann, we repeat his own story:

"I was born in Brooklyn in 1930, started playing clarinet when I was 9 years old, and but the time I graduated from high school I had begun to take sax and flute lessons. After high school I spent four year in Trieste (had a ball!). In January 1953, I met Mat Mathews and worked with I'm until I joined Pete Rugolo's band in September 1954, the latter gig lasting until Pete disbanded in November."

"A few week later I heard that Bethlehem Records was looking for some new groups. They liked my ideas for the group, so we proceeded to prepare the first LP."

"A group that has a flute in it should be a light swinging, happy sounding one. Those are the qualities of the instrument. But a great deal of the flute jazz recorded to date is lacking in this respect. Many potentially great jazz flutists have been hampered by heavy, sluggish, accompaniment that failed to complement the flute sound. The flute cannot be treated like any other horn. It must be surrounded with instruments which do not weigh it down to that point at which it loses its natural character." 

"Guitar is, I believe, the natural complement to the flute sound. Our guitarist was Benny Weeks. I'd known him for over two years (we were both in Mat Mathews' group). Benny and our drummer, Lee Rockey were with Neal Hefti's first band. Benny and I both had worked frequent gigs with our bassist, Keith Hodgson, so the four of us felt our rapport was entirely adequate for a recording session."

"I got together with Benny on December 4th, 1954, to decide on the tunes, and to get a rough sketch on how we were to do them. We had our first rehearsal with the group the following Tuesday, mainly working out the chords for the session. At a subsequent rehearsal on Thursday we made some changes. Keith, Benny and Lew worked out the intros on Suede Shoes and After Oak. We had a final rehearsal the following Monday, We now felt we were beginning to swing. The group recorded the next day. – Hal Neely

My Little Suede Shoes

Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea

Autumn Nocturne

Why Do I Love You

Empathy

Woodchuck

A Sinner Kissed An Angel

Chicken Little

After Work

Deep Night

The Things We Did Last Summer

It Might As Well Bt Spring 

Love Is A Simple Thing 

But Beautiful