Randy Sandke - The Music Of Bob Haggart

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:00
Size: 138,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:26)  1. It Ain't Necessarily So
(2:30)  2. It Takes a Long Pull To Get There
(2:35)  3. I Got Plenty O' Nuttin'
(3:00)  4. Summertime
(3:11)  5. Bess, You Is My Woman Now
(2:12)  6. Oh, I Can't Sit Down
(3:24)  7. I Loves You, Porgy
(4:26)  8. My Man's Gone Now
(3:07)  9. Bess, Oh Where's My Bess?
(2:23) 10. There's a Boat Dat's Leavin' Soon For New York
(3:20) 11. Mardi Gras Parade
(3:22) 12. What's New?
(5:42) 13. Dogtown Blues
(3:10) 14. My Inspiration
(4:39) 15. South Rampart Street Parade
(4:58) 16. At the Jazz Band Ball
(4:27) 17. Big Noise From Winnetka

Most jazz fans are well acquainted with some arrangement or another of George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, but few of them are acquainted with Bob Haggart's charts of the score. The reason is simple: Haggart's arrangements, released at the same time as the Porgy and Bess movie, were pushed to the back of the record racks by versions of the same music by (among others) Miles Davis and Gil Evans, the Modern Jazz Quartet, the Oscar Peterson Trio and Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald. Modern-day trumpeter Randy Sandke has decided that this was an unfair quirk of history, and after some detective work and painstaking transcription he's reassembled Haggart's Porgy and Bess plus some other charts under the prosaic title The Music of Bob Haggart.

Haggart's charts for Gershwin don't try to reinvent the wheel as other interpreters at the time did; their sound, straightahead, tart and tight, takes the listener back to Gershwin's own idiom with minimum fuss and maximum verve. Frequent solo breaks allow the stellar band Sandke has assembled to shine; while everyone puts their best foot forward in this endeavor, the two most impressive players are Jon-Erik Kellso on the (frequently muted) puje, sounding period without sounding old, and Sandke himself, alternately caressing and goosing some of the most famous melodies ever written. Jazz fans shouldn't lose sleep over having favored Miles, Oscar or Louis and Ella for so many years; Haggart's version isn't that compelling. But, as this recording proves, it can be a lot of fun in the right hands. ~ Andrew Lindemann Malone  http://jazztimes.com/articles/13713-the-music-of-bob-haggart-under-the-direction-of-randy-sandke-randy-sandke

Personnel:  Bob Haggart (arranger, bass); Randy Sandke (leader, trumpet); Scott Robinson (tenor & baritone saxophones); Jack Stuckey (baritone saxophone); Byron Stripling (trumpet); John Allred, George Masso, Wycliffe Gordon (trombone); Ken Peplowski (clarinet); Derek Smith, Ed Metz, Sr. (piano); Howard Alden (guitar); Greg Cohen (bass); Joe Ascione, Tony DeNicola (drums).

The Music Of Bob Haggart

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Ruby Braff - Ruby Braff Goes “Girl Crazy”

Styles: Trumpet Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2009
Time: 39:20
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 92,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:56) 1. Embraceable You
(4:18) 2. Treat Me Rough
(6:28) 3. But Not For Me
(3:07) 4. Boy! What Love Has Done For Me
(5:39) 5. I Got Rhythm
(5:27) 6. Bidin' My Time
(6:18) 7. Could You Use Me
(3:03) 8. Barbary Coast

The then-32-year-old trumpeter Ruby Braff was fond of show tunes, and took for his concept the songs from the Gershwin brothers' Broadway stage play Girl Crazy for this album, his sixth as a leader. The music played by this band under the moniker of the Shubert Alley Cats is fairly predictable within the swing style, but this recording at times leans more toward bop with the inclusion of pianist Hank Jones, guitarist Jim Hall, and especially Al Cohn, who plays his trusty tenor sax and a lot of clarinet.

The musicianship is solid enough, the songs a bit stretched with solos, and the jazz fairly interesting within the conservative, mainstream, straight-ahead idiom. The hottest tune is the last, "Barbary Coast," as bassists Bob Haggart and George Duvivier go to town while the horns jam, while the slowest "Embraceable You" is the opener, a ballad where Braff plays in a style akin to Louis Armstrong.

In the middle you get a contradictory easy blues in "Treat Me Rough," and the uncharacteristically down-home "I Got Rhythm," accented by Jones and Hall, which merges into swing via Cohn's tenor. Hall's role as a rhythm guitarist seems untoward in what he would be as a leader, but his feature during the old-fashioned "Could You Use Me?" sets up the horns counterpoint, and is particularly pronounced on "But Not for Me."

While Cohn's clarinet might not settle into familiar territory for those who know him as a bop tenor, he's especially sweet with Braff on "Treat Me Rough," and repentant for the poignant, lovely, melancholy, no-frills take of "But Not for Me." There's one more ballad, "Bidin' My Time," which is as basic as it gets, while a more vocal sound from Braff's muted trumpet comes forth on "Boy! What Love Has Done for Me."

While the music is sophisticated, the heat of this music barely sparks any real flames, excepting the fine drumming of Buzzy Drootin and the always exceptional Jones when he chooses to turn it up a notch. It would have been nice to hear a follow-up recording from this clearly talented ensemble, for this instance captured in the early years of their lengthy and successful careers.By Michael G.Nastos
https://www.allmusic.com/album/ruby-braff-goes-girl-crazy-mw0000819868

Personnel: Trumpet – Ruby Braff; Tenor Saxophone – Al Cohn; Piano – Hank Jones; Guitar – Jim Hall; Drums – Buzzy Drootin; Bass – Bob Haggart, George Duvivier

Ruby Braff Goes “Girl Crazy”

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Bud Freeman - Chicago

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1962
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:04
Size: 87,6 MB
Art: Front

(5:54)  1. Saturday Night Fish Fry
(4:06)  2. Meet As In San Juan
(6:11)  3. Basin Street Blues
(2:05)  4. Chicago
(5:02)  5. Schooldays
(3:20)  6. All By Myself
(5:35)  7. Loveless Love
(5:48)  8. One For The Money

Three of the selections on this LP are taken from a January 15, 1962 session reissued in full on a Black Lion CD. The great veteran tenor Bud Freeman is in fine form fronting a quartet also including pianist Dave Frishberg, bassist Bob Haggart and drummer Don Lamond. The other five numbers are part of a lesser date actually led by guitarist Elmer Snowden and featuring trumpeter Roy Eldridge, who takes a couple of vocals. Freeman is actually a bit out of place on the spirited if erratic set, which also includes pianist Ray Bryant, bassist Tommy Bryant and drummer Jo Jones. Get the Black Lion CD instead. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/chicago-mw0000913151

Personnel:  Tenor Saxophone – Bud Freeman,  Trumpet, Vocals – Roy Eldridge;  Bass – Bob Haggart, Tommy Bryant ; Drums – Don Lamond, Jo Jones; Guitar – Elmer Snowden; Piano – Dave Frishberg, Ray Bryant .

Chicago

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The World's Greatest Jazz Band Of Yank Lawson & Bob Haggart - Live At The Roosevelt Grill

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:32
Size: 106.5 MB
Styles: Big band, Dixieland
Year: 1970/2007
Art: Front

[3:25] 1. That's A Plenty
[3:48] 2. Five Point Blues
[5:06] 3. My Honey's Lovin' Arms
[3:25] 4. Black And Blue
[4:12] 5. That D Minor Thing
[3:37] 6. Royal Garden Blues
[5:26] 7. Come Back Sweet Papa
[4:05] 8. Under The Moonlight Starlight Blue
[3:49] 9. Constantly
[5:05] 10. New Orleans
[4:30] 11. The Jazz Me Blues

This all-star group was founded in 1968 by Dick Gibson at his sixth annual Jazz Party. Despite the impossibility of living up to its outrageous name, the band was indeed the finest in Dixieland/classic jazz. Co-led by Yank Lawson and Bob Haggart, and also featuring Billy Butterfield, Bud Freeman, Bob Miller, and Ralph Sutton, the WGJB originally alternated standards with Dixiefied versions of current pop tunes like "Mrs. Robinson," but its finest album (Live on Atlantic) sticks to hot jamming. After the personnel changed a bit (Eddie Miller and Dick Wellstood passed through the band), the group broke up in 1978, although reunions by Lawson and Haggart in later years sometimes revived the name. Their recordings for Project 3, Atlantic, and their own World Jazz label are pretty much all worth getting. ~bio by Scott Yanow

Live At The Roosevelt Grill

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Dick Hyman - Fabulous

Styles:  Piano Jazz
Year: 1963
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 32:47
Size: 75,8 MB
Art: Front

(2:29)  1. Washington Square
(2:09)  2. Danke Schoen
(2:44)  3. I'll Be Around
(2:51)  4. Wives & Lovers
(2:39)  5. Sonny Boy
(3:10)  6. What'd I Say
(2:34)  7. S'posin'
(3:06)  8. So Easy
(3:15)  9. The Best Is Yet to Come
(2:37) 10. I'll Remember April
(2:28) 11. Living on Borrowed Time
(2:39) 12. Mr. Lucky

The Command label had a lot of great jazz artists, but they frequently seemed stuck in instantly dated and very corny sounding commercial dates that obviously haven't stood the test of time very well. Dick Hyman is heard exclusively on the Lowery organ (a lightweight distant cousin of the better-known Hammond) and, although his supporting cast includes other jazzmen such as Bob Haggart and Osie Johnson (who, like the leader, were in heavy demand for all kinds of recording sessions), there's very little of interest to their fans on this record. "Danke Schoen" is recast as a slightly out-of-tune carousel calliope setting providing some humor, while it would be hard to believe that composer Alec Wilder wouldn't have stormed out of the studio had he been present for the wretched and bland take of his famous ballad, "I'll Be Around." Hyman is a superb pianist and pipe organ player who sounds overly restricted by the limits of this obsolete keyboard, so it is safe for nearly everyone to bypass this long unavailable record. ~ Ken Dryden http://www.allmusic.com/album/fabulous-mw0000857020

Personnel:  Dick Hyman - Piano;  Tony Mottola – Guitar;  Osie Johnson – Drums;  Bob Haggart – Bass;  Bob Rosengarden – Percussion;  Phil Kraus - Percussion

Fabulous

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Joyce Breach - Nothing But Blue Skies

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:06
Size: 153.6 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 1997
Art: Front

[2:55] 1. Blue Skies
[4:15] 2. If I Had You
[4:11] 3. Somebody Loves Me
[3:20] 4. You're An Education
[5:39] 5. I Can Dream, Can't I
[3:33] 6. Sand In My Shoes
[3:53] 7. But Not For Me
[4:17] 8. P.S. I Love You
[3:04] 9. I've Heart That Song Before
[3:40] 10. Look At That Face
[2:26] 11. Too Marvelous For Words
[6:36] 12. The Nearness Of You
[3:22] 13. A Hundred Years From Today
[4:30] 14. What's New
[4:13] 15. Love Is Here To Stay
[4:09] 16. You're Gonna Hear From Me
[2:54] 17. Just One Of Those Things

Joyce Breach is a fine cabaret singer with a deep voice who mostly sings songs fairly straightforwardly. This is one of her most jazz-oriented releases, not because she starts improvising any more than normal, but due to her strong sidemen: trombonist Bob Havens, clarinetist Bobby Gordon, pianist Keith Ingham, bassist Bob Haggart and drummer Hal Smith (who is the leader of the backup quintet). Most of the selections are either from the swing era or played in that style, and there are plenty of short solos from Havens and Gordon. Breach sounds fine on such tunes as "Somebody Loves Me," "I Can Dream, Can't I," "But Not for Me" and "A Hundred Years From Today," although she rarely makes any of the vintage standards her own. ~Joyce Breach

Nothing But Blue Skies

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The Dick Hyman Trio - Cheek to Cheek

Styles: Piano Jazz

Year: 1996

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 66:00

Size: 151,5 MB

Art: Front

(5:26)  1. Cheek to Cheek

(6:43)  2. Django

(5:48)  3. Well, You Needn't

(8:47)  4. Misterioso

(5:46)  5. Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man

(3:10)  6. Lotus Blossom

(4:42)  7. Baby Boom

(8:23)  8. Get Out of Town

(2:40)  9. The Bobby Hackett Waltz

(7:23) 10. The Claw

(7:08) 11. My Inspiration

Although Dick Hyman has the ability to play quite credibly in most jazz styles, he has spent much of the 1980s and '90s performing stride and swing. This release, a trio date with guitarist Howard Alden and bassist Bob Haggart, was a change of pace, for Hyman plays mostly in a more boppish and modern mainstream vein. In the wide repertoire, the pianist ranges from "Django" and a pair of Thelonious Monk tunes to Flip Phillips' "The Claw," Billy Strayhorn's "Lotus Blossom," and two of his originals. The music is excellent, if not overly memorable. ~ Scott Yanow  http://www.allmusic.com/album/cheek-to-cheek-mw0000595251

Personnel: Dick Hyman (piano); Howard Alden (guitar); Bob Haggart (Bass).

Cheek to Cheek

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The World's Greatest Jazzband Of Yank Lawson & Bob Haggart - Hark The Herald Angels Swing

Styles: Holiday, Christmas
Year: 1972
File: MP3@224K/s
Time: 32:46
Size: 56,8 MB
Art: Front

(2:36)  1. Hark, The Herald Angels Swing!
(2:53)  2. Little Drummer Boy
(2:50)  3. Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer
(3:52)  4. Silent Night
(2:45)  5. Joy To The World
(3:11)  6. Jingle Bells
(3:24)  7. White Christmas
(1:49)  8. I'll Be Home For Christmas
(3:17)  9. The Christmas Song
(3:10) 10. Winter Wonderland
(2:53) 11. Deck The Halls

This is one of the happier Christmas jazz LPs ever released. Filled with delightful performances of Yuletide favorites including "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer," "Joy to the World," "Jingle Bells," and "Winter Wonderland," showing that many Christmas songs lend themselves well to Dixieland. The hot music is performed by trumpeters Yank Lawson and Billy Butterfield, trombonists Vic Dickenson and Eddie Hubble, Bob Wilber on clarinet and soprano, tenor saxophonist Bud Freeman, pianist Ralph Sutton, bassist Bob Haggart, and drummer Gus Johnson. Recommended. ~ Editorial Reviews  http://www.amazon.com/Hark-Herald-Angels-Swing-Christmas/dp/B002SFGESM

Personnel:  Bass – Bob Haggart;  Clarinet, Soprano Saxophone – Bob Wilber;  Drums – Gus Johnson;  Piano – Ralph Sutton;  Tenor Saxophone – Bud Freeman;  Trombone – Eddie Hubble, Vic Dickenson
Trumpet – Billy Butterfield, Yank Lawson

Hark The Herald Angels Swing

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Bob Haggart & Yank Lawson - World's Greatest Jazz Band Of Bob Haggart & Yank Lawson

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:19
Size: 106.1 MB
Styles: Dixieland
Year: 1985/2008
Art: Front

[3:29] 1. I Can't Give You Anything But Love
[4:04] 2. Midnight Sun
[3:58] 3. Diane
[2:31] 4. 42nd Street
[3:51] 5. Sometimes
[3:40] 6. Lonesome
[3:36] 7. Big Noise From Winnetka
[5:33] 8. Squeeze Me
[3:28] 9. At The Jazz Band Ball
[7:06] 10. St. Louis Blues
[4:59] 11. Jazz Me Blues

By 1985 the World's Greatest Jazz Band (which had last recorded in 1977) had been history for quite a few years. However under their original title, the former co-leaders (trumpeter Yank Lawson and bassist Bob Haggart) put together a talented octet for a European tour that also included clarinetist Abe Most, tenor saxophonist Eddie Miller, trombonist Bob Havens, pianist Lou Stein, guitarist Marty Grosz and drummer Nick Fatool. The liner notes to this album often confuse the composers with which musicians get featured (Abe Most did not write "I Can't Give You Anything but Love") but the disc is worth searching for by Dixieland collectors. Although Yank Lawson and Eddie Miller were both 74 at the time, they emerge as the main stars and sound quite strong. Highlights include "At the Jazz Band Ball," "St. Louis Blues" and "Jazz Me Blues." ~Scott Yanow

World's Greatest Jazz Band Of Bob Haggart & Yank Lawson

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Maxine Sullivan, Bob Haggart, Ike Isaacs - Enjoy Yourself

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:27
Size: 156.7 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 1981/1999
Art: Front

[2:38] 1. My Very Good Friend, The Milkman
[3:45] 2. This Heart Of Mine
[2:29] 3. Come Rain Or Come Shine
[4:48] 4. You Go To My Head
[2:11] 5. By Myself
[2:23] 6. I Hadn't Anyone Til You
[2:14] 7. It's Only A Paper Moon
[2:50] 8. Everything Happens To Me
[2:09] 9. I Could Write A Book
[2:17] 10. Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries
[2:06] 11. This Can't Be Love
[2:45] 12. Truckin'
[3:44] 13. What's New (Take 3)
[4:17] 14. Get Happy
[4:44] 15. Get Out And Get Under The Moon
[3:58] 16. Ain't We Got Fun
[3:16] 17. It's The Talk Of The Town
[2:34] 18. Make Someone Happy
[2:20] 19. When A Woman Loves A Man
[3:15] 20. Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think)
[4:04] 21. What's New (Take 5)
[3:26] 22. Side By Side

Maxine Sullivan is a master. Unvarnished, not over stylized, just damn good music recognized and respected by a pro. ~Richard P. Randall

With The Ike Isaacs Quartet & The Bob Haggart Quintet. featuring Dardanelle-pno, Sil Austin-tnr, Dan Wall-pno + 1978 & 1985.

Enjoy Yourself 

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The World's Greatest Jazzband - The World's Greatest Jazzband of Yank Lawson and Bob Haggart

Styles: Jazz
Year: 1969
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:47
Size: 82,4 MB
Art: Front

(2:19)  1. Sunny
(2:23)  2. Panama
(3:21)  3. Baby, Won't You Please Come Home
(2:45)  4. Up, Up &  Away
(3:24)  5. Ode To Billy Joe
(3:44)  6. Honky Tonk Train
(3:04)  7. A Taste Of Honey
(3:56)  8. Limehouse Blues
(2:40)  9. Big Noise From Winnetka
(2:48) 10. This Is All I Ask
(2:57) 11. Mrs. Robinson
(2:20) 12. Bugle Call Rag

The World's Greatest Jazz Band was an all-star jazz ensemble active from 1968 to 1978. Dick Gibson founded the group at his sixth Jazz Party, an annual event. The group performed mostly Dixieland jazz and recorded extensively. It was co-led by Yank Lawson and Bob Haggart, and did early jazz standards alongside contemporaneous pop songs done in a Dixieland style. Though the group disbanded in 1978, the name was revived several times by Lawson and Haggart for limited engagements. 

More..http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_Greatest_Jazz_Band

This all-star group was founded in 1968 by Dick Gibson at his sixth annual Jazz Party. Despite the impossibility of living up to its outrageous name, the band was indeed the finest in Dixieland/classic jazz. Co-led by Yank Lawson and Bob Haggart, and also featuring Billy Butterfield, Bud Freeman, Bob Miller, and Ralph Sutton, the WGJB originally alternated standards with Dixiefied versions of current pop tunes like "Mrs. Robinson," but its finest album (Live on Atlantic) sticks to hot jamming. After the personnel changed a bit (Eddie Miller and Dick Wellstood passed through the band), the group broke up in 1978, although reunions by Lawson and Haggart in later years sometimes revived the name. Their recordings for Project 3, Atlantic, and their own World Jazz label are pretty much all worth getting. Bio ~ Scott Yanow   http://www.allmusic.com/artist/worlds-greatest-jazz-band-mn0000683075/biography.

The World's Greatest Jazzband of Yank Lawson and Bob Haggart

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Bob Haggart's Swing Three - Hag Leaps In

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 68:38
Size: 157.1 MB
Styles: Swing
Year: 2006
Art: Front

[3:34] 1. Big Noise From Winnetka
[4:45] 2. If I Had You
[4:32] 3. Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise
[4:55] 4. All Too Soon
[4:20] 5. Hag Leaps In
[6:59] 6. Always
[4:51] 7. I'm Beginning To See The Light
[5:57] 8. Dot's Cheesecake
[3:51] 9. Shky Breaks The Ice
[4:51] 10. My Inspiration
[5:47] 11. Azurte
[4:10] 12. Passion Flower
[5:42] 13. Chelsea Bridge
[4:16] 14. Air Mail Special

Bassist Bob Haggart, 81 at the time of his Arbors trio set, is heard still in prime form, whether accompanying the 74-year-old pianist John Bunch or guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli (a mere 69). The most unusual aspect of Haggart's date is that his group performs "Big Noise From Winnetka" without a drummer, which actually makes the song a bit pointless. Otherwise, the repertoire (swing standards and a few basic originals, including the title cut, which is based on "Lester Leaps In") is conventional and enjoyable. The music consistently swings, the three veterans split the solo space fairly evenly, and everyone plays at their usual high level. ~ Scott Yanow

Hag Leaps In

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Various - Swingin' The Blues

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 49:56
Size: 114.3 MB
Styles: Big band
Year: 2009
Art: Front

[5:20] 1. Swingin' The Blues
[3:13] 2. Moten Swing
[5:08] 3. Blue And Sentimental
[3:49] 4. April In Paris
[5:14] 5. Lil' Darlin'
[3:36] 6. Big Noise From Winnetka
[8:09] 7. Broadway
[6:01] 8. Baby Won't You Please Come Home
[9:22] 9. The King

Randy Sandke's second volume of a concert salute to Count Basie is equal to the earlier CD. Sandke has long been underrated as a soloist, but he more than proves himself. These performances, utilizing both new charts by bandmembers as well as tried and true scores, have the feeling of Basie-type head arrangements, flowing easily yet swinging hard. Yet none of the music comes across as a museum-piece re-creation; rather, the selections featured here are updated treatments of favorites. Joining him are trombonist Dan Barrett, multi-reed player Brian Ogilvie, tenor saxophonist (and Basie alum) Billy Mitchell, pianist Mark Shane, guitarist James Chirillo, drummer Joe Ascione, and the legendary bassist and composer Bob Haggart. Mitchell arranged the lush chart of "Blue and Sentimental" and Sandke shines in "April in Paris," while omitting the traditional (if trite) quote of "Pop Goes the Weasel." The one non-Basie-related track is Haggart's fun-filled duet with Ascione of "Big Noise from Winnetka," which dates from his days as a member of Bob Crosby's Bobcats. All in all, this is a very enjoyable tribute. ~ Ken Dryden

Features Randy Sandke, Dan Barrett, Brian Ogilvie, Billy Mitchell, Mark Shane, James Chirillo, Bob Haggart & Joe Ascione.

Swingin' The Blues

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