Paul Asaro, The Fat Babies - What A Heavenly Dream: The Fats Waller Rhythm Project

Styles:  Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:27
Size: 125,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:27)  1. Truckin
(3:56)  2. You're My Dish
(3:29)  3. Abdullah
(3:16)  4. Got No Time
(3:55)  5. Baby Brown
(3:29)  6. Your Feet's Too Big
(5:01)  7. Lonesome Me
(3:40)  8. I Wish I Were Twins
(4:11)  9. Sweet and Slow
(3:12) 10. I'll Dance at Your Wedding
(4:14) 11. Blue, Turning Grey Over You
(3:24) 12. Don't Let It Bother You
(2:59) 13. Winter Weather
(5:08) 14. Ain'tcha Got Music

In this highly-anticipated release, Paul Asaro and The Fat Babies pay homage to the recordings of "Fats" Waller and His Rhythm. Asaro, already well known to jazz aficionados for his long association with Leon Redbone, takes center stage here with piano and vocals that recall the humor, wit, and sublime pianistic talents of Waller without ever resorting to slavish imitation. With him are The Fat Babies, favorites on the Chicago jazz scene, who fully capture the spontaneous excitement of the original Waller recordings with a fresh twist. In addition to Asaro at the piano, the band includes Andy Schumm, cornet; John Otto, clarinet; Jake Sanders, guitar; Beau Sample, bass; and Alex Hall, drums. CD includes a 12-page illustrated booklet with liner notes by Paul Asaro. https://rivermontrecords.com/products/2222?variant=39571024335

What A Heavenly Dream: The Fats Waller Rhythm Project

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The Fat Babies - Uptown

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:20
Size: 107,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:01)  1. Uptown
(2:42)  2. Edna
(3:59)  3. The Bathing Beauty Blues
(3:41)  4. Harmony Blues
(3:13)  5. Ruff Scufflin'
(4:27)  6. Out of a Clear Blue Sky
(3:27)  7. Sweet Is The Night
(3:00)  8. Thumpin' 'n' Bumpin'
(4:40)  9. The Spell of the Blues
(3:26) 10. That Gal of Mine
(3:13) 11. Traveling That Rocky Road
(2:59) 12. The Sophomore
(3:27) 13. Harlem Rhythm Dance

The Fat Babies are back for their fourth effort for Delmark Records, and this time the dance tunes are lathered with the butter of sophisticated, atmospheric textural arrangements. While the band continues to develop and make great music, this recording captures the band at what some listeners consider its apogee, as an 8-piece with Jonathan Doyle (Mighty Blue Kings, Four Charms, Tuba Skinny) jumpin’ around the skillet. This was the form of the band between 2016-2018, when they held court in Uptown on the north side every Tuesday and in Pilsen on the south side every Sunday. The band was always cookin’, the dance floor was always full, and every set seemed to build incessantly towards the ebullient chorus at the end of the show when everyone screamed as the horns stood up to take it all back home. Uptown scintillates with virtuoso execution, and I don’t mean show-off turns; I mean good, clean, clear execution of rhythmic and melodic passages. The ensemble playing as arranged by cornetist Andy Schumm is highly complex and nuanced, sashaying through a variety of intriguing textures. From the evocative dark atmosphere of “The Spell of the Blues”, to the stride party vibe of “The Sophomore”, the cool austerity of “Sweet is the Night”, and the heartening pretty melody of “Out of a Clear Blue Sky”, this record proves this ensemble can show you around America in the ’20s and ’30s like few others can. “Out of a Clear Blue Sky” in particular compels a great sense of comfort by taking this listener back to the golden age of Hollywood cinema; this recording evokes a nostalgia of the days of radio and nightclubs a few steps below ground level. https://delmark.com/product/258/

Uptown

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The Fat Babies - 18th & Racine

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:56
Size: 118,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:12)  1. Liza
(3:35)  2. Till Times Get Better
(4:32)  3. The Stampede
(2:48)  4. Mable's Dream
(4:20)  5. Nobody's Sweetheart
(3:28)  6. I Can't Dance (I Got Ants in My Pants)
(4:55)  7. 18th & Racine
(2:40)  8. King Kong Stomp
(2:44)  9. El Rado Scuffle
(2:23) 10. Oh Baby
(3:36) 11. Stardust
(2:45) 12. I'll Fly to Hawaii
(3:21) 13. Oh Me! Oh My!
(3:13) 14. The Chant
(3:18) 15. Blueberry Rhyme

Early jazz stylists The Fat Babies' second album 18th & Racine is bolder than their first in their choice of material and their delivery of the songs included. Encouraged by the successful execution of their debut Chicago Hot (Delmark 2012) the band presents 14 lesser-known gems and an original composition by their cornetist Andy Schumm. The relative obscurity of these delightful pieces and the deftness by which the dust of history is polished off them exposes their raw emotion and makes for a very intriguing listening experience. Vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Charlie Gaines' whimsical "I Can't Dance (I Got Ants in My Pants)," first popularized by pioneering trumpeter Valaida Snow, features group vocals over drummer Alex Hall's clear, resonating beats and pianist Paul Asaro's bright, stride solo. Pianist Joseph Robichaux's "King Kong Stomp," which in its original incarnation in 1933 was one of the first recordings to introduce the vibraphone, opens with a primal, thumping rhythm that Hall and leader/bassist Beau Sample lay down. Reedman John Otto Richardson agile, elastic saxophone and Schumm's burnished horn contrast nicely with trombonist Dave Bock's bluesy growl. Banjoist Jake Sanders shines in a brief, crisp and innovative improvisation on composer Owen Murphy's "Oh Baby." Schumm plays the romantic and deceptively simple melody with a lilting tone and sophisticated flair. Shumm's own original, the title track, invokes the ambience of suave nightspots like the legendary Cotton Club. Schumm blows his horn with unbridled passion while Sample and Bock's exchanges add a dark and nocturnesque streak. Bock's trombone moans and roars over the syncopated rhythms with an urbane swagger. Pianist/composer Mel Stitzel's (of New Orleans Rhythm Kings fame) "Chant" epitomizes the exuberant camaraderie of this energetic ensemble. The various members engage in thrilling musical exchanges as they take their turns in the spotlight. This highly enjoyable and engaging disc closes with a nod to yet another pianist, this time Harlem giant James P. Johnson. Asaro plays Johnson's mellow "Blueberry Rhyme" with agility and elegance with only the backing of Hall's brushes. With 18th & Racine the "trad jazz combo" The Fat Babies have honed and perfected their skills not only as musicians but also as true revivalists. They have resurrected, with their unique approach, unjustly forgotten tunes and together the nostalgic aura of a bygone era. 

~ Hrayr Attarian https://www.allaboutjazz.com/18th-and-racine-the-fat-babies-delmark-records-review-by-hrayr-attarian.php

Personnel: Beau Sample: bass; Andy Schumm: cornet and alto saxophone; John Otto: clarinet and alto saxophone; Dave Bock: trombone; Jake Sanders: banjo; Paul Asaro: piano; Alex Hall: drums.

18th & Racine

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The Fat Babies - Chicago Hot

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:33
Size: 141,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:18)  1. Snake Rag
(2:42)  2. London Cafe Blues
(4:58)  3. San
(3:41)  4. Alexander's Ragtime Band
(4:04)  5. I Surrender Dear
(4:04)  6. Dardanella
(2:54)  7. Black Snake Blues
(3:21)  8. Here Comes the Hot Tamale Man
(4:31)  9. Froggie Moore
(4:25) 10. Willow Tree
(2:55) 11. Weary Blues
(4:50) 12. Liza (All the Clouds'll Roll Away)
(4:00) 13. Please
(2:43) 14. Susie
(3:43) 15. Tight Like This
(4:19) 16. Stomp Off, Let's Go

What 's old is new again or maybe it's more accurate to say, what used to be hip is hot again. The Fat Babies' Chicago Hot harkens back to the early jazz-blues amalgamation of King Oliver, and is as vibrantly interpreted by this seven-piece ensemble as it was when the music was originally pressed onto 78 RPMs. In the past decade, Hot Jazz has been steadily gaining fans as many contemporary musicians find new inspiration in these old forms. The Fat Babies is a very talented incarnation of this hep-cat renaissance. Borrowing mainly from the music of Chicago's famous South Side, the Fat Babies also incorporates the phrasing and feel of hot jazz extraordinaire, Bix Beiderbecke thanks to cornetist Andy Schumann. Coupled with the sly lines of clarinetist John Otto, Schumann's inventive and catchy improvisations radiate on tracks like Jelly Roll Morton's "Froggie Moore" and "Black Snake Blues," by blues singer Victoria Spivery. The music really comes to a boil when cornet and clarinet are joined with the propulsion of trombonist Dave Bock's melodic turns. In "Here Comes the Hot Tamale Man," all three wind instruments rise and fall in a torrent of Dixieland bliss trading eights while the others lay down a supportive bedrock. With Otto flying high, Schumann lets loose a swinging, raspy solo invention before giving ground to Bock's rhythmically exciting and melodically spot-on solo. Typical of Chicago style Hot Jazz, most tracks employ a swinging, upbeat style whose format lends itself to inventive, fast-paced soloing. A notable exception is Fats Waller's medium-paced classic "Willow Tree," its beautiful melody allowing the soloists time to intersperse quick melodic darts with glistening, held notes. 

The track is also a great opportunity for the rhythm section; throughout Chicago Hot, these three display remarkable timing as a unit, masterfully weaving together for the fast tempo and quick accent breaks of the Hot Jazz format. On this slower track, however, there's space and time to drink in their combined appeal. Pianist Paul Asaro impresses with his dramatically quiet intro to "Liza (All The Clouds'll Roll Away)" before the tune takes off into a quick, trotting pace, matched beautifully by the pianist's crisp, accentual phrasing. There may not be many second acts in American history, as author F. Scott Fitzgerald claimed, but there is a long tradition of second looks especially in music which has always proven itself extraordinarily malleable and awaits only a young enough audience to appreciate the newness these old sounds can accommodate. 

~ Jack Huntley https://www.allaboutjazz.com/chicago-hot-the-fat-babies-delmark-records-review-by-jack-huntley.php

Personnel: Beau Sample: string bass; Andy Schumm: cornet; John Otto: clarinet, saxophones; Dave Block: trombone; Paul Asaro: piano; Jake Sanders: tenor banjo; Alex Hall: drums; Mike Walbridge: tuba.

Chicago Hot

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The Fat Babies - Solid Gassuh

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:54
Size: 111,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:07)  1. Doctor Blues
(2:54)  2. After a While
(2:55)  3. Feelin' Good
(4:23)  4. Did You Ever See a Dream Walking?
(2:39)  5. Original Charleston Strut
(2:52)  6. Pencil Papa
(2:48)  7. I Miss a Little Miss
(2:36)  8. Parkaway Stomp
(2:47)  9. You Were Only Passing Time with Me
(3:10) 10. Alabamy Bound
(3:02) 11. Slow River
(3:57) 12. Delirium
(3:25) 13. Egyptian Ella
(3:45) 14. Sing Song Girl
(3:26) 15. Maple Leaf Rag

There is nothing innovative about the Fat Babies. The Chicago hot-jazz band is stuck, firmly and proudly, in the long-ago past. The seven musicians in this group may all appear to be young fellows, but they are very old men at heart. Their third proper album, Solid Gassuh, is more of the same, and that’s a great thing. The music of the 1920s and ’30s comes crisply alive in modern fidelity. The septet Andy Schumm on cornet, Dave Bock on trombone, John Otto on clarinet and alto saxophone, Jake Sanders on banjo and guitar, Paul Asaro on piano, Beau Sample on bass and Alex Hall on drums transports us to an innocent age well before the chaos of bebop. On familiar tunes like “Doctor Blues” and “Maple Leaf Rag,” and less-remembered ones like “Parkway Stomp” and “Sing Song Girl,” horns swing wildly atop drumming locked in with metronomic bass plucking and banjo strumming and rollicking stride piano. The musicianship is superb and everything sounds so historically accurate from Schumm’s hearty blasts and Bock’s low growls to Asaro’s boogie-woogie runs and Hall’s hi-hat hits. Even Asaro’s earnest vocals he sings on five tunes including the wonderful great-grandpa hit “Did You Ever See a Dream Walking?” are perfectly dated. If the Fat Babies had overdubbed cracks and pops onto this album, you’d swear it was a compilation of old 78s. ~ Steve Greenlee https://jazztimes.com/reviews/albums/fat-babies-solid-gassuh-delmark/

Personnel:  Andy Schumm on cornet, Dave Bock on trombone, John Otto on clarinet and alto saxophone, Jake Sanders on banjo and guitar, Paul Asaro on piano, Beau Sample on bass and Alex Hall on drums.

Solid Gassuh

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