Holiday In Trombone

 

Holiday In Trombone

Holiday In Trombone

Jack Teagarden & Benny Morton

Cover Art: Ed Bedno

Marcy MG-26019 (10-inch 33 1/3 RPM)

1954

From the back cover: Every day would be a holiday if it had this quintet of trombonists to lead the parade. And, on the first side of this long playing record, Jack Teagarden gets really energetic parading from Coleman Hawkins, Joe Thomas, Hank D'Amico, Pianist Herman Chittison, Bassist Billy Taylor, and drummer George Wettling.

Home has Jack sliding out of the ensemble introduction, leading into one of his characteristic vocals, as relaxed and drollful as his playing. Hawkins follows, blowing with his incisive, breathy sound until Herman Chittison, who is seldom heard today, shows the strong Teddy Wilson influence on his style, Joe Thomas blows a brief bit and Hank D'Amico plays a more fluid solo than he does today in his various studio assignments.

You Brought a New Kind Of Love To Me shows Hawkins at his best, making short phrases seem long through the ease with which he plays. Jack plays with real authority, Hank has a short solo and Jack sings with, again, the drawl emphasizing the droll. Joe Thomas's solo leads into a final bit by the group.

Somebody Loves Me – this is probably the only time that Jack ever played this tune without singing it – has a bright Herman Chittison piano chorus coming out of the ensemble and a very Eldridge-like solo by Joe Thomas. Jack goes to any and all lengths of his slide before Coleman blows a swinging, biting chorus.

Benny Morton's Trombone Choir makes up most of the group on the second side of the LP. And the inevitable comparison of the four should prove interesting to the modern listener, especially those listeners who admire Bill Harris. For Bill sounds here like a continuation of Benny and Vic (in that order), with Claude Jones thrown in somewhere for good measure. What did the man say? Bill Harris a dixielander? A modern dixielander the man said, and these sides are proof enough of that.

There's nothing here to bother the modernist though, for everyone blows with spirit and freshness. Almost any modern band could be proud of as well an integrated a trombone quartet as can be heard here.

Liza has a cute introduction featuring all four. Listen especially to Sid Catlett's drum work here and at the end of the side. Benny leads through the first chorus, and Johnnie Guarneri's piano is exceptionally pleasant. Vic Dickenson follows the clever ensemble figure until the four divide the ending measures.

Where Or When shows off the ensemble sound which we mentioned before. Then it's a guessing game as the four alternate choruses with only Johnnie's piano breaking into the game of follow the leader. Since these are Keynote masters, there's some doubt about the official order, but our ears make it out as Benny first, then the Guarnieri piano chorus, followed by Bill Harris, Vic Dickerson, Johnnie again, Claude Jones, Johnnie, ensemble, Johnnie and out. Anyway there's more to this game than guessing; the music is a wonderful representation of what was wonderful along 52nd Street in the middle 1940's. 

Once In A While has Benny, Bill Harris and Vic Dickerson, in that order with two choruses of Guarneri's piano.

Benny and Vic are the individual stars of this trio of sides as a first listening will assure you. Here Benny is his languorous best, always cool in the best sense of that tortured word. Benny and Vic were section mates in Count Basie's famous 1942 band and, although Vic is now starting to receive some of the attention which he deserves, Benny has been out of the jazz scene for several years.

Where Benny is languorous, Vic is lazy. The funny noises for which he was famous with Basie are more cultured on these sides into fetching phrases with more than one suggestion of the humor that is so much a part of his professional and personal life.

Which brings us back to the six sides in this album and what the music represents. This is some of the richest jazz in the short history of the form. During these years, which were among the happiest for jazz, there was a settling down period, waiting for the new jazz which was already incubating in Minton.

Those musicians who were without inspiration began to rot here. But others perfected what had already been done. And these six sides represent that perfection, these other musicians who remain as fresh today, because of their attitudes, as they were then. For jazz, in its essence, is a way of looking at things, and the expression of that looking. These sides are the essence of jazz. They're good looking and even better listening.

Home

You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me

Somebody Loves Me

Liza

Where Or When

Once In A While