Lorez Alexandria - Lorez Sings Prez: A Tribute to Lester Young

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 31:23
Size: 73,3 MB
Art: Front

(0:33)  1. Introduction
(2:24)  2. Fine And Dandy
(3:31)  3. Fooling Myself
(2:58)  4. D.B. Blues
(1:57)  5. You’re Driving Me Crazy (What Did I Do)
(3:21)  6. Easy Living
(3:00)  7. Polka Dots And Moonbeams
(3:45)  8. No Eyes Blues
(2:30)  9. This Year’s Kisses
(2:31) 10. There Will Never Be Another You
(4:47) 11. Jumpin’ With Symphony Sid

Lorez Alexandria was a superb singer in the Sarah Vaughan tradition. Alexandria recorded more than 20 albums over a 36-year period starting in 1957. Why she isn't a household name today is beyond me. Perhaps it was the smaller labels she was on or her decision to cling to Chicago, a lesser media market, for much of her career. Or maybe one Sarah Vaughan was sufficient. There are no bad Alexandria albums. All have a hip, confident charm.  One of my favorites is her second album, Lorez Sings Pres: A Tribute to Lester Young. Recorded after hours for King in front of an audience of friends at an unnamed Chicago club on November 6 and 13, Alexandria was accompanied by Paul Serrano (tp), Cy Touff (b-tp), Charles Stepney (vib), King Fleming (p), Eldee Young (b) and Vernell Fournier (d). Each of the Chicago players had a celebrated career. Drummer Fournier was a member of the Ahmad Jamal Trio and one of the great brush players. Cy Touff was an exceptional bass trumpeter who recorded many terrific albums as a leader. Paul Serrano shifted from trumpet to record engineering and worked with major jazz, rock, soul and gospel artists, including Michael Jackson and Mick Jagger. He eventually became head engineer at Delmark Records. Stepney would work as a producer for numerous soul artists in the 1960s and '70s. Fleming worked steadily in Chicago throughout the 1960s and beyond. And Eldee Young was a member of the Ramsey Lewis Trio, before leaving the group in the mid-1960s to become the Young in Young Holt Unlimited (Soulful Strut). [Photo above of Vernell Fournier on drums with the Ahmad Jamal Trio]. As the liner notes on the back cover of Lorez Sings Pres points out, all of the songs chosen were recorded by Lester "Pres" Young. Alexandria here proves she had an in-depth feel for Young without succumbing to mimicry. For her, the Young material was simply a springboard to be herself. Interestingly, this album preceds Sarah Vaughan's After Hours at the London House by four months. Makes you wonder whether Lorez's album gave Mercury the idea to record Sassy live in a Chicago club filled with friends. ~ Marc Myers https://www.jazzwax.com/2019/05/lorez-alexandria-sings-pres.html

Lorez Sings Prez: A Tribute to Lester Young

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