Journey To Capricorn - Stan Kenton

 

Celebration Suite

Journey To Capricorn

Stan Kenton

Recorded August 16, 17 & 18 at United Western Studios, Hollywood, California

Executive Producer: Stan Kenton

Producer: Bob Curnow

Production Supervision: Bill Putnam

Engineer: Jerry Barnes

Assistants: Gordon Shryock & Gary Boren

Remix: Jerry Barnes, Bill Stilfield & Julio Aiello

Mastering: Stan Ricker at JVC Cutting Center, Hollywood, California

Art Direction Yasuko Shannon

Cover Art: Dennis Millard

Personal Management: The Cameron Organization, Inc.

Creative World ST 1077

1976

Reeds: Terry Layne, Roy Reynolds, Dave Sov, Greg Metcalf, Alam Yankee (Bill Fritz on Celebration Suite)

Trumpets: Jay Sollenberger, Dave Kennedy, Steve Campos, Joe Casano, Tim Hagans

Trombones: Dick Shearer, Mike Egan, Jeff Uusitalo, Allan Morrissey, Douglas Purviance

Rhythm: Stan Kenton, piano; John Worster, acoustic & electric bass; Gary Hobbs, drums; Ramon Lopez, Latin percussion

From Billboard - January 15, 1977: One must approach the six tracks comprising this tightly grooved record just as one would a Messiaen record or Cage LP. It is only for the daring, for the adventurous, for those who welcome the uncommon.

Now well into his 36th year as a leader, the boldly uncompromising Kenton may well shock his most frequent disciples with this LP. He craftly introduces the set with Stevie Wonder's "Too Shy To Say" and, with cunning, leads the listener into an immensely complex Mark Taylor chart with his own simple, melodic piano introduction. Much of it is out of tempo – rubato – but the harmonies are tight, ultra modern and severe. Occasionally the Wonder melody is evident.

It isn't what Kenton does as a bandleader, but that he dares. No other maestro possesses his guts and integrity. Along the distant path from Balboa Beach in 1941 Stan has acquired and lost countless followers, but by striving for fresh musical sounds he constantly replaces his losses with new and youthful devotees. That's the way he wants it.

Hank Levy's "Pegasus" is a horse in a different color and mood. The second of the half-dozen instrumental tracks spots Timmy Hagan's, son of an Ohio banker, on solo trumpet along with Terry Layne's saxophone. Tempo is bright. Hagans again is featured on Mark Taylor's "Granada Smoothie" and there's a short Jeff Usitalo trombone contribution. The ensembles are powerful, propelling and precise but the band forever swings as Basie and Herman swing these days.

Kenton's attitude is that it doesn't have to swing to be good music. And his philosophy again is evident through "Ninety Degrees Celsius," another Levy original with Hagans and Layne again soloing at blistering tempo, and "Journey To Capricorn" with the indefatigable Hagans and saxist Alan Yankee hogging the solo mikes. Levy again is the composer-arranger.

To this long-time booster of Kentonia, the LP's prime rib is the final track on side two, Chick Corea's succulent "Celebration Suite" running 12 minutes and charted by Yankee. It is today's Kenton product at its juiciest and most meaty, harmonically and rhythmically. "Celebration" displays all of the most admirable facets of the band as Stan knuckles the Kanabe and John Worster, bass; Roy Reynolds, saxophone; Ramon Lopez, Latin percussion, and Cary Hobbs, conventional drums, pop through with uniformly ebullient, moving and often exciting contributions. 

"Celebration Suite" is an ideal track to close out a highly cerebral program unsweetened by old pop tunes in 1977 dress.

There is no pandering to commerciality in this package. One listens to the mass of sound coming down and recalls Stan's oft-repeated view that he is not ahead of the times. "There are," he offers, "just a lot of people who are behind the times."

He taped this package knowing well that its appeal is limited, an attitude he as maintained through the decades except for a period in the mid-40's when he half-heartedly emphasized a clarinet section and cute pie vocals not only by June Christy and Gene Howard but by a bulky, unimpressive mixed vocal group.

Yet one ponders if Kenton's complex fare may in time be accepted by the masses. People change just as music, art and everything else changes, perhaps imperceptibly, with the months and years. There are sufficient musicians and Kenton buffs today to sustain Stan's efforts; perhaps before the '70s end his intransigent convictions will be hailed and revered by a new legion of record buyers eager to discard the shallow pop and jazz confections of the moment.

"Journey To Capricorn" was recorded last August at United Western Studio, Los Angeles, with Bob Curnow as producer and Jerry Barnes, chief engineer. Creative World's sales and marketing director, Julio Aiello, assisted Barnes and bill Stilfield with the mix-downs. There is no acutely needed annotation – only titles and credits are listed. But as Big Stan willingly admits, only a minuscule minority of the nation's 215 million will give a damn. – Dave Dexter, Jr.

Too Shy To Say

Composer: Stevie Wonder

Arranger: Mark Taylor

Soloist: Stan Kenton

Pegasus

Composer & Arranger: Hank Levy

Soloists: Tim Hagans & Terry Layne

Granda Smoothie

Composer & Arranger: Mark Taylor

Soloists: Jeff Uusitalo & Tim Hagans

90° Celsius
Composer & Arranger: Hank Levy
Soloists: Tim Hagans & Terry Layne

Journey To Capricorn
Composer & Arranger: Hank Levy
Soloists: Alan Yankee & Tim Hagans

Celebration Suite

Composer: Chick Corea

Arranger: Alan Yankee

Soloists: Stan Kenton, Roy Reynolds, John Worster & Gary Hobbs