Various Artists - Esquire Jazz Concert - Metropolitan Opera House

Styles: Swing,Dixieland
Year: 1944/2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 74:44
Size: 175,6 MB
Art: Front

(2:00)  1. Esquire Bounce
(4:12)  2. Basin Street Blues
(3:22)  3. Sweet Lorraine
(8:26)  4. I Got Rhythm
(2:52)  5. The Blues
(5:13)  6. Esquire Blues
(4:23)  7. Mop Mop
(3:39)  8. Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me
(4:15)  9. Billie's Blues
(1:28) 10. I'll Get By
(3:43) 11. I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues
(3:25) 12. Tea For Two
(3:06) 13. My Ideal
(2:51) 14. Buck Jumpin'
(3:13) 15. Stompin' At The Savoy
(5:01) 16. For Bass Only
(3:33) 17. Back O' Town Blues
(3:06) 18. I've Got A Feeling I'm Falling
(1:39) 19. Honeysuckle Rose
(2:43) 20. Squeeze Me
(2:23) 21. Muskrat Ramble

The first Esquire All-Star Concert, which took place in 1944, has been well documented on various discs, generally in bits and pieces, but this CD has more of the music than most issues. Originally recorded on transcription discs for distribution by various Armed Forces Radio programs, including One Night Stand, Jubilee, and Swing Session, the music is sometimes briefly intruded upon by an announcer who felt obligated to identify a soloist in the middle of a song. But this is a rare opportunity to hear many jazz masters of the 1940s in a jam session atmosphere, including Louis Armstrong, Jack Teagarden, Lionel Hampton, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Eldridge, and Red Norvo, to name a few. But the true star of the evening is the phenomenal pianist Art Tatum, who proves himself as a more than competent pianist in a group setting, something he was always accused of not being able to do. The highlight of the 21 selections on this Italian CD is easily the intense eight-minute workout of "I Got Rhythm," with potent solos by Tatum, Eldridge, Hawkins, and clarinetist Barney Bigard. The sound quality isn't bad for a vintage 1940s broadcast, though the rhythm section isn't always clearly audible. Unfortunately, the spelling of names and song titles is a bit sloppy, the music is out of sequence (unlike most reissues), and the concert took place on January 18, 1944, not January 13 as listed. This memorable concert should be part of any serious jazz collection. ~ Ken Dryden https://www.allmusic.com/album/esquire-jazz-concert-1944-mw0000927901

Esquire Jazz Concert - Metropolitan Opera House

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Al Hirt, Ann-Margret - Beauty And The Beard

Styles: Trumpet And Vocal Jazz
Year: 1964
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 31:51
Size: 74,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:12)  1. Personality
(2:11)  2. Tain't What You Do
(3:15)  3. Bill Bailey
(2:07)  4. My Baby Just Cares for Me
(2:13)  5. Everbody Loves My Baby (But My Baby Don't Love Nobody but Me)
(2:12)  6. Little Boy (Little Girl)
(3:11)  7. The Best Man
(2:17)  8. Ma (He's Making Eyes at Me)
(2:39)  9. Mutual Admiration Society
(2:20) 10. Row, Row, Row
(3:29) 11. Baby, It's Cold Outside - Remastered
(2:39) 12. Just Because

Beauty and the Beard is an album by Al Hirt released by RCA Victor in 1964. Ann-Margret was featured on the album. The album was arranged by Marty Paich and produced by Steve Sholes. The album landed on the Billboard 200 chart in 1964, reaching #84. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beauty_and_the_Beard

Personnel:   Ann-Margret - vocals;  Al Hirt - trumpet;  Jerry Hirt - trombone;  Pee Wee Spitelera - clarinet;  Eddie Miller - tenor saxophone;  Red Norvo - vibraphone; Fred Crane - piano; Al Hendrickson - guitar;  Lowell Miller - bass;  Jimmy Zitano - drums

Beauty And The Beard

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Benny Goodman and His Orchestra - The Sound of Music

Styles: Clarinet Jazz
Year: 1959
Time: 35:08
Size: 80,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:22)  1. No Way To Stop It
(4:13)  2. Sixteen Going To Seventeen
(4:13)  3. So Long Farewell
(3:22)  4. Climb Ev'ry Mountain
(3:35)  5. The Sound Of Music
(4:40)  6. My Favorite Things
(4:14)  7. An Ordinary Couple
(3:23)  8. Maria
(4:02)  9. Do-Re-Mi

This release presents, for the first time on CD, Benny Goodman album devoted to the compositions of Rodgers & Hart's The Sound of Music (MGM SE3810). Performed by an all-star tentet featuring Jack Sheldon, Bill Harris, Flip Phillips and Red Norvo, it contains the first jazz version ever of My Favorite Things, taped nearly a year before John Coltrane's celebrated rendition. A live set by the exact same tentet recorded a week earlier (playing one of the tunes from The Sound of Music) has been added as a bonus.

Personnel: Benny Goodman, clarinet; Jack Sheldon, trumpet; Flip  Phillips, tenor sax; Bill Harris, tromboe; Jerry Dodgion, alto sax, flute; Red Norvo, vibes; Gene Di Novi, piano; Jimmy Wyble, guitar; Red Wootten, bass; John Markham (d).

The Sound of Music

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Teddy Wilson - Interaction

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 36:17
Size: 83.1 MB
Styles: Swing, Piano jazz
Year: 1995/2017
Art: Front

[2:03] 1. If Dreams Came True
[3:07] 2. Untitled
[2:52] 3. After You've Gone
[2:25] 4. Sweet Lorraine
[3:06] 5. Red Bank Boogie
[3:02] 6. How High The Moon
[3:12] 7. Tea For Two
[4:19] 8. The Way You Look Tonight
[3:47] 9. Stompin' At The Savoy
[3:19] 10. You're My Favorite Melody
[4:58] 11. The Sheik Of Araby

Bass – Oscar Pettiford; Clarinet – Edmond Hall; Drums – Morey Feld, Big Sid Catlett, Specs Powell; Guitar – Remo Palmieri; Piano – Teddy Wilson; Trombone – Benny Morton; Trumpet – Charlie Shavers, Cootie Williams, Roy Eldridge; Vibraphone – Red Norvo. Recorded June 15 & December 22, 1944, these recording were made for broadcasts.

The tracks on this album were recorded between June 15 and December 22, 1944. Featured in these great sessions are Teddy Wilson on piano; Roy Eldridge, Charlie Shavers and Cootie Williams on trumpet; Benny Morton on trombone; Edmund Hall on clarinet; Red Norvo on vibraphone; Remo Palmieri on guitar; Al Hall, Oscar Pettitford and Slam Stewart on bass; and Big Sid Catlett, Morey Feld and Specs Powell on drums. What all-star swinging lineups.

This is brilliant music. Note that there is actually an untitled Track 2, which is a great tune, bringing the total number of tracks to 11. Highly recommended. ~Jack J. Bieler

Interaction mc
Interaction zippy

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Red Norvo - Just a Mood

Styles: Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 1954
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:16
Size: 154,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:52)  1. Just a Mood
(7:23)  2. Easy on the Eye
(7:03)  3. The Night is Blue
(8:43)  4. Sunrise Blues
(3:11)  5. Blue Room
(3:28)  6. Blue Moon
(3:27)  7. Serenade in Blue
(2:55)  8. Blue Lou
(3:38)  9. Roses of Picardy
(3:48) 10. Rose Room
(3:43) 11. Blue Rose
(3:00) 12. Rose of the Rio Grande

Vibraphonist Red Norvo was among the most flexible of improvisers from his generation. On this Bluebird CD, Norvo is heard with three very different groups. He interacts with trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison, tenor saxophonist Ben Webster and pianist Jimmy Rowles in a swing-oriented sextet; their performances are highlighted by the memorable "Just a Mood." In addition, Norvo plays four songs that have the word "Blue" in their titles with a quintet that is an outgrowth of his trio of a few years earlier (this group consists of flutist Buddy Collette, guitarist Tal Farlow, Monty Budwig or Red Callender on bass and drummer Chico Hamilton) and four "Rose" songs with the who's who of West Coast Jazz: trumpeter Shorty Rogers, clarinetist Jimmy Giuffre, pianist Pete Jolly, Farlow, Callender and drummer Larry Bunker. No matter what the setting, Norvo fits in quite comfortably and the consistent high-quality of the formerly rare music makes this a highly recommended set to bop collectors.
~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/just-a-mood-mw0000188491      

Personnel: Red Norvo (xylophone, vibraphone); Ben Webster (tenor saxophone); Harry Edison, Shorty Rogers (trumpets); Buddy Collette (flute).

Just a Mood

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Red Norvo - Jivin' The Jeep

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:06
Size: 144.5 MB
Styles: Swing, Vibraphone jazz
Year: 1994/2009
Art: Front

[3:02] 1. It All Begins And Ends With You
[3:14] 2. A Porter's Love Song To A Chambermaid
[2:52] 3. I Know That You Know
[3:16] 4. Picture Me Without You
[3:06] 5. It Can Happen To You
[2:53] 6. Now That Summer Has Gone
[2:58] 7. It's Love I'm After
[3:05] 8. Peter Piper
[3:18] 9. When Is A Kiss Not A Kiss
[2:59] 10. A Thousand Dreams Of You
[3:05] 11. Smoke Dreams
[2:44] 12. Slumming On Park Avenue
[2:55] 13. I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm
[3:15] 14. Remember
[2:44] 15. Liza
[2:56] 16. I Would Do Anything For You
[3:05] 17. Jivin' The Jeep
[2:56] 18. Everyone's Wrong But Me
[2:26] 19. Posin'
[3:15] 20. The Morning After
[2:51] 21. Do You Ever Thing Of Me

All of the music on this Hep LP (except for the final two of the 16 performances) has since been reissued in the Hep CD Dance of the Octopus which also includes the xylophonist's earlier recordings. However, this LP is perfectly done, tracing Norvo's career in complete fashion during a seven-month period in 1936. He leads an octet that also includes trumpeter Stew Pletcher, Herbie Haymer on tenor and the mellophone of Eddie Sauter (who provided all of the arrangements). The final two numbers were Norvo's first recordings at the head of a big band. Not every selection is essential (particularly not the two vocals by the voice of Betty Boop, Mae Questal) but in general, these chamber swing performances are quite unique and memorable. ~Scott Yanow

Jivin' The Jeep mc
Jivin' The Jeep zippy

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Red Norvo - Red In New York

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:24
Size: 122.3 MB
Styles: Vibraphone jazz
Year: 1977/2002
Art: Front

[4:11] 1. Hindustan
[5:03] 2. A Ghost Of A Chance
[5:13] 3. I Love You
[6:37] 4. On A Slow Boat To China
[5:49] 5. Undecided
[4:16] 6. All Of Me
[5:22] 7. There Will Never Be Another You
[4:27] 8. Hindustan (Take 2)
[6:51] 9. A Ghost Of A Chance (Take 1)
[5:29] 10. I Love You (Take 2)

Red Norvo's third and final recording as a leader for the short-lived Famous Door label is most notable for being one of the earliest recordings of tenor saxophonist Scott Hamilton. In addition, vibraphonist Norvo was glad to once again have the services of his favorite pianist of the era, Dave McKenna, along with bassist Richard Davis and drummer Connie Kay. Together they perform seven swing standards, ranging from "Hindustan" and "All of Me" to "Undecided." Everyone plays up to par, and Red Norvo, 46 years after his recording debut, is still in his musical prime. This LP will be hard to find, but is worth the search. ~Scott Yanow

Red In New York mc
Red In New York zippy

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Red Norvo Quintet - The Forward Look

Styles: Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 1957
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 70:26
Size: 162,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:31)  1. Rhee Waahnee
(7:24)  2. The Forward Look
(6:02)  3. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea
(4:00)  4. My Funny Valentine
(6:42)  5. How's Your Mother-In-Law?
(3:27)  6. Saturday Night
(3:19)  7. Mountain Greenery
(6:34)  8. I'm Beginning To See The Light
(7:46)  9. When Your Smiling
(4:31) 10. Room 608
(4:52) 11. Foe Lena And Lennie
(9:13) 12. Cookin' At The Continental

The music on this CD, taken from a New Year's Eve concert, had never been issued prior to the release of this CD by Reference in 1991. With Jerry Dodgion (mostly on alto and flute), guitarist Jimmy Wyble, bassist Red Wooten and drummer John Markham being his sidemen, this was a well-integrated group despite the lack of major names. 

Norvo's vibe playing was in its prime and he is in excellent form during a wide-ranging set that ranges from "My Funny Valentine" and "When You're Smiling" to Quincy Jones's "For Lena and Lennie" and "How's Your Mother in Law"; the repertoire includes quite a few obscurities. This surprisingly well-recorded CD is well worth picking up as an example of Red Norvo's playing in the latter half of the 1950s. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-forward-look-mw0000096135

Personnel: Red Norvo (vibraphone, background vocals); Jimmy Wyble (guitar); John Markham, Red Wootten (drums).

The Forward Look

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Red Norvo Quintet - ...Naturally!

Styles: Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 1957
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 32:15
Size: 75,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:44)  1. I'll Remember April
(4:11)  2. Spider's Web
(3:45)  3. Tenderly
(3:57)  4. Lullaby Of Birdland
(3:19)  5. Stella By Starlight
(3:59)  6. Scorpion's Nest
(3:55)  7. Funny Valentine
(4:20)  8. Love For Sale

This reissue of a 1957 Rave Records release features Red Norvo's Quintet with Bob Drasnin on flute and alto; Jimmy Wyble on guitar, Buddy Clark on bass and Bill Douglass on drums. This quintet has a hard-swinging low-key style that epitomizes the 'cool' jazz of Hollywood in the 1950's. Great solos by Red on vibes, Bob Drasnin on alto and flute and Jimmy Wyble remind us of how alive this music could be in the hands of these consummate professionals. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Naturally-Red-Norvo/dp/B0009G3B9M

Personnel: Red Norvo (vibraphone); Robert Drasnin (alto, flute); Jim Wuble (guitar); Bill Douglass (drums)

...Naturally!

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Jack Montrose - Blues And Vanilla & The Horn's Full

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2010
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 78:46
Size: 186,0 MB
Art: Front

(18:29)  1. Concertino Da Camera (Blues And Vanilla)
( 3:43)  2. Bockhanal
( 5:47)  3. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
( 2:52)  4. A Dandy Line
( 3:35)  5. For The Fairest
( 5:47)  6. Crazy She Calls Me
( 5:09)  7. Dark Angel
( 3:18)  8. Bernie's Tune
( 3:17)  9. Headline
( 3:16) 10. Rosanne
( 5:04) 11. Polka Dot And Moonbeams
( 3:03) 12. The Little House
( 3:25) 13. Solid Citizen
( 2:56) 14. Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me
( 3:29) 15. True Blues
( 2:44) 16. The Horn's Full
( 2:47) 17. Goody Goody

The two LPs compiled here are among the best works by the late Jack Montrose (1926-2006), a fine tenor sax player, remarkable jazz composer and arranger, and a key figure in the 1950s West Coast jazz movement. The first includes Montroses extended work Concertino da Camera (subtitled Blues and Vanilla), his most ambitious project, devised within an essentially contrapuntal structure. The quintet sides prove the cleverly conceived aspects of his compositional concepts, with their sense of symmetry in the use thematic material. Montrose is accompanied here by some strong voiceswith a high level of individual performancesuch as Joe Maini, Shelly Manne, Jim Hall, Barney Kessel, and Red Norvo. The interplay, sympathy and good feeling between them are something to hearand one thatdoesnt pall with repeated hearings.

Personnel:  Jack Montrose (ts), Joe Maini (as), Red Norvo (vib), Jim Hall, Barney Kessel (g), Buddy Clark, Max Bennett, Lawrence 'Red' Wooten (b), Shelly Manne, Bill Dolney, Mel Lewis (d)

Blues And Vanilla & The Horn's Full

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Ruby Braff, Red Norvo - Swing That Music

Styles: Cornet And Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 1969
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 69:42
Size: 164,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:16)  1. Cornet Chop Suey
(4:08)  2. (Was I To Blame For) Falling In Love With You
(6:17)  3. I Got A Feelin' I'm Fallin'
(4:47)  4. It's Wonderful
(4:10)  5. When It's Sleepy Time Down South
(5:24)  6. Thankful
(2:57)  7. Swing That Music
(5:23)  8. Someday, You'll Be Sorry
(4:22)  9. Spider's Webb
(3:37) 10. Confessin'
(4:40) 11. Rose Room
(3:46) 12. The Girl From Ipanema
(5:22) 13. Lulaby Of The Leaves
(5:00) 14. Sunday
(6:27) 15. Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams

This two-record set combines separate sets by Ruby Braff and Red Norvo from the same 1969 Paris studio session, though both musicians use the identical rhythm section of pianist George Wein, bassist Larry Ridley, drummer Don Lamond, and guitarist Barney Kessel, who has many nice solos in both sessions. Braff, playing cornet, pays tribute to Louis Armstrong throughout his performance, ranging from a brisk "Cornet Chop Suey" and Satchmo's perennial theme song "When It's Sleepy Time Down South" to pretty ballads like "(Was I to Blame For) Falling in Love With You?" and the swinging "I've Got a Feelin' I'm Fallin'," which features some nice exchanges between Braff and Kessel. Norvo's soft mallet technique contrasts with most of the players who have followed him on the vibraphone. "Spider's Webb" has fallen into obscurity but Norvo swings it mightily. He throws a curve to anyone expecting nothing but swing with the bossa nova megahit "The Girl From Ipanema." Norvo ends his session with an inspired treatment of "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams." Strangely, the producers evidently didn't think of adding each leader to the other's set for one number, though they are pictured together in the studio on the front cover of this long unavailable release. Although Swing That Music is not an essential acquisition for swing fans, those who locate it will not be disappointed. ~ Ken Dryden http://www.allmusic.com/album/swing-that-music-mw0000916891

Personnel:  Ruby Braff-cornet (# 1-8);  Red Norvo-vibroharp (# 9-15)replace Ruby Braff;  George Wein-piano;  Barney Kessel-guitar;  Larry Ridley-bass;  Don Lamond-drums

Swing That Music

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Teddy Wilson - How High The Moon?

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1945
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 28:36
Size: 66,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:22)  1. How High The Moon?
(2:52)  2. After You've Gone
(2:54)  3. Dinah
(2:29)  4. Stompin' At The Savoy
(3:03)  5. I Surrender Dear
(1:56)  6. I Know That You Know
(2:55)  7. I'm Confessin'
(2:23)  8. Rose Room
(3:24)  9. It's The Talk Of The Town
(3:13) 10. Flyin' Home

The music on this CD has appeared a countless number of times, most recently as part of a Vintage Jazz Classics CD. The 1945 Teddy Wilson sextet (which features the pianist, vibraphonist Red Norvo and trumpeter Charlie Shavers) make the most of every second during their very concise versions of ten selections; all but two are under three minutes. Most of the solos are just a half-chorus long, but there are some strong moments, particularly from Shavers' fiery horn. The final selection, listed as "Flyin' Home," actually has no relation to that tune and is an obscurity called "Speculation." This is fun music, but due to the extreme brevity of this set (under 28 minutes) and the availability of the much more complete VJC CD, this can be safely skipped. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/how-high-the-moon-mw0000977218

Personnel: Teddy Wilson (piano); Remo Palmieri (guitar); Charlie Shavers (trumpet); Red Norvo (vibraphone); Specs Powell (drums).

How High The Moon?

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Benny Carter All Stars - Benny Carter All Stars

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:22
Size: 136,5 MB
Art: Front

(10:32)  1. Easy Money
( 5:27)  2. Memories Of You
( 4:39)  3. Here's That Rainy Day
( 8:47)  4. Blues For Lucky Lovers
( 5:34)  5. Work Song
( 6:33)  6. When Lights Are Low
( 6:24)  7. Just Friends
( 4:30)  8. Lover Man (Oh Where Can You Be)
( 6:51)  9. What Is This Thing Called Love

To say that Benny Carter had a remarkable and productive career would be an extreme understatement. As an altoist, arranger, composer, bandleader, and occasional trumpeter, Carter was at the top of his field since at least 1928, and in the late '90s, Carter was as strong an altoist at the age of 90 as he was in 1936 (when he was merely 28). His gradually evolving style did not change much through the decades, but neither did it become at all stale or predictable except in its excellence. Benny Carter was a major figure in every decade of the 20th century since the 1920s, and his consistency and longevity were unprecedented.

Essentially self-taught, Benny Carter started on the trumpet and, after a period on C-melody sax, switched to alto. In 1927, he made his recording debut with Charlie Johnson's Paradise Ten. The following year, he had his first big band (working at New York's Arcadia Ballroom) and was contributing arrangements to Fletcher Henderson and even Duke Ellington. Carter was with Henderson during 1930-1931, briefly took over McKinney's Cotton Pickers, and then went back to leading his own big band (1932-1934). Already at this stage he was considered one of the two top altoists in jazz (along with Johnny Hodges), a skilled arranger and composer ("Blues in My Heart" was an early hit and would be followed by "When Lights Are Low"), and his trumpet playing was excellent; Carter would also record on tenor, clarinet (an instrument he should have played more), and piano, although his rare vocals show that even he was human.

In 1935, Benny Carter moved to Europe, where in London he was a staff arranger for the BBC dance orchestra (1936-1938); he also recorded in several European countries. Carter's "Waltzing the Blues" was one of the very first jazz waltzes. He returned to the U.S. in 1938, led a classy but commercially unsuccessful big band (1939-1941), and then headed a sextet. In 1943, he relocated permanently to Los Angeles, appearing in the film Stormy Weather (as a trumpeter with Fats Waller) and getting lucrative work writing for the movie studios. He would lead a big band off and on during the next three years (among his sidemen were J.J. Johnson, Miles Davis, and Max Roach) before giving up on that effort. 

Carter wrote for the studios for over 50 years, but he continued recording as an altoist (and all-too-rare trumpeter) during the 1940s and '50s, making a few tours with Jazz at the Philharmonic and participating on some of Norman Granz's jam-session albums. By the mid-'60s, his writing chores led him to hardly playing alto at all, but he made a full "comeback" by the mid-'70s, and maintained a very busy playing and writing schedule even at his advanced age. Even after the rise of such stylists as Charlie Parker, Cannonball Adderley, Eric Dolphy, Ornette Coleman, and David Sanborn (in addition to their many followers), Benny Carter still ranks near the top of alto players. His concert and recording schedule remained active through the '90s, slowing only at the end of the millenium. After eight amazing decades of writing and playing, Benny Carter passed away quietly on July 13, 2003 at a Los Angeles hospital. He was 95. https://itunes.apple.com/gb/artist/benny-carter/id2984502#fullText

Personnel: Benny Carter (alto saxophone); Nat Adderley (vocals, trumpet); Horace Parlan (piano); Red Norvo (vibraphone); Ronnie Gardiner (drums).

Benny Carter All Stars

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Benny Goodman - Easy Does It!

Styles: Clarinet Jazz
Year: 1952
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 24:15
Size: 78,2 MB
Art: Front

(2:44)  1. Henderson Stomp
(3:09)  2. Makin' Whoopee
(2:52)  3. Sweet Georgia Brown
(2:58)  4. Behave Yourself
(3:06)  5. I Never Knew
(3:03)  6. Puttin' On The Ritz
(3:17)  7. I Can't Get Started
(3:04)  8. That's A Plenty

For a kid who liked jazz, Chicago was a great town to grow up in. Musicians had begun working their way north from New Orleans about the turn of the century, and by the early 1920s giants like "Jellyroll" Morton, Sidney Bechet, "King" Oliver and Louis Armstrong were playing in Chicago and making history. Kids who paid attention to this development were going to make history themselves in a few more years - Bud Freeman, Davie Tough, Eddie Condon, Milt Mesirow (Mezz Mezzrow), Gene Krupa, "Muggsy" Spanier, Jimmy McPartland, Jess Stacy - and a kid in short pants who played the clarinet. Benny Goodman was only 10 when he first picked up a clarinet. Only a year or so later he was doing Ted Lewis imitations for pocket money. At 14 he was in a band that featured the legendary Bix Beiderbecke. By the time he was 16 he was recognized as a "comer" as far away as the west coast and was asked to join a California-based band led by another Chicago boy, Ben Pollack. Goodman played with Pollack's band for the next four years. His earliest recording was made with Pollack, but he was also recording under his own name in Chicago and New York, where the band had migrated from the west coast. In 1929, when he was just 20, Benny struck out on his own to become a typical New York freelance musician, playing studio dates, leading a pit orchestra, making himself a seasoned professional. 

By 1934 he was seasoned enough to be ready for his first big break. He heard that Billy Rose needed a band for his new theatre restaurant, the Music Hall, and he got together a group of musicians who shared his enthusiasm for jazz. They auditioned and got the job. Then Benny heard that NBC was looking for three bands to rotate on a new Saturday night broadcast to be called "Let's Dance," a phrase that has been associated with the Goodman band ever since. One band on the show was to be sweet, one Latin, and the third hot. The Goodman band was hot enough to get the job, but not hot enough to satisfy Benny. He brought in Gene Krupa on drums. Fletcher Henderson began writing the arrangements - arrangements that still sound fresh more than a half century later. And the band rehearsed endlessly to achieve the precise tempos, section playing and phrasing that ushered in a new era in American music. There was only one word that could describe this band's style adequately: Swing. After six months of broadcasting coast to coast the band was ready for a cross-country tour. The band was ready but the country was not. The tour was a disaster until its last date in August, 1935, at the Palomar Ballroom in Los Angeles. The only plausible explanation for what happened there is that "Let's Dance" was aired three hours earlier on the west coast than in the east. The kids in Los Angeles had been listening, and thousands of them turned out to hear the band in person at the Palomar. They hadn't even come to dance; instead they crowded around the bandstand just to listen. It was a new kind of music with a new kind of audience, and their meeting at the Palomar made national headlines.

When the band headed east again, after nearly two months at the Palomar, they were famous. They played for seven months at the Congress Hotel in Chicago, where Teddy Wilson joined them to complete the Benny Goodman Trio. Back in New York Lionel Hampton made it the Benny Goodman Quartet, and the band was a sensation at the Hotel Pennsylvania's Madhattan Room. The band made it even bigger at the Paramount Theatre, where lines began forming at breakfast time and continued through the last daily show. It was grueling for the kids who waited for hours to dance in the aisles. It was more grueling for the band; they returned each night to the Madhattan Room for still more swing. At the age of 28 Benny Goodman had reached what seemed to be the pinnacle of success. The new radio program, "The Camel Caravan," was scheduled in prime time, and the whole nation listened not only to the band itself but to the intelligent commentary by some of the most influential critics of the day, including Clifton Fadiman and Robert Benchley. But it was not quite the pinnacle. On January 16, 1938, Sol Hurok, the most prestigious impresario in America, booked the Benny Goodman band into Carnegie Hall. For generations Carnegie Hall had been the nation's greatest temple of musical art, home of the New York Philharmonic and scene of every important artist's debut (even if they had played in a hundred other concert halls first).

So this was a debut not only for Benny Goodman but for jazz. Though many others followed him to Carnegie Hall, there has never been another concert with such an impact. It even made his "classical" Carnegie Hall debut more newsworthy a few years later when Benny returned there to launch his second career, as a soloist with major symphony orchestras and chamber groups. Benny Goodman was indisputably the King of Swing - the title was invented by Gene Krupa - and he reigned as such thereafter until his death in 1986 at age 77. Over the years he played with the greatest figures in jazz: Bix Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, Mildred Bailey, Bessie Smith and countless others. Many of those who played with him as sidemen later achieved fame as leaders of their own bands, as soloists, or even as movie or TV actors - Harry James, Ziggy Elman, Gene Krupa and Lionel Hampton to name a few. 

A list of Benny's hits would fill a book. In fact it filled several books by his devoted discographer/biographer Russ Connor. That crowded career, spanning more than six decades, had an almost unparalleled impact on popular music and the importance of the clarinet in both jazz and classical music. Thousands of youngsters throughout the world were influenced to play the clarinet through listening to Benny Goodman's recordings and live performances, and the style of those who turned to jazz was universally patterned after what they heard Benny play, whether or not they realized it. The popularity of the "big band" format is another of the legacies of this musical giant. http://www.bennygoodman.com/about/biography.html

Personnel: Benny Goodman - clarinet & bandleader; Mel Powell, James Rowles, Jess Stacy – piano;  Tom Romersa, Bill Douglass – drums;  Artie Shapiro, Harry Babasin – bass;  Allan Reuss, Al Hendrickson – guitar;  Red Norvo – vibes;  Jake Porter – trumpet;  Ernie Felice - accordion

Easy Does It!

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Stan Hasselgard - California Sessions

Styles: Vocal And Clarinet Jazz

Year: 2010

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 76:46

Size: 176,8 MB

Art: Front

(2:53)  1. Gotta Have More Money

(3:13)  2. Hortense

(2:35)  3. Flying Foam

(2:34)  4. Gone After You

(3:02)  5. Swedish Pastry

(2:46)  6. Sweet And Hop Mop

(2:51)  7. Who Sleeps

(2:58)  8. I'll Never Be The Same

(4:26)  9. Indiana

(2:42) 10. Swedish Pastry

(1:07) 11. Greetings To Sweden

(0:55) 12. One O'clock Jump

(4:14) 13. C Jam Blues

(2:33) 14. I Never Loved Anyone

(3:37) 15. What Is This Thing Called Love

(6:16) 16. Jam Session At Jubilee

(1:35) 17. Who's Sorry Now

(1:30) 18. One O'clock Jump

(5:11) 19. Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone

(3:07) 20. Jelly

(5:42) 21. Blues For Billy

(4:54) 22. Just You, Just Me

(2:40) 23. Sweet And Hot Mop

(3:14) 24. I'll Never Be The Same

Greatly influenced by Benny Goodman, Stan Hasselgård was an ill-fated Swedish clarinetist who focused on swing in the late '30s and '40s, but started exploring bebop toward the end of his life. In fact, he was among the first musicians to play bop on the clarinet. The jazzman was born Ake Hasselgård in Sundsvall, Sweden, but grew up in the small town of Bollnas. Hasselgård was given a clarinet for his 16th birthday. At 19, while he was attending the University of Uppsala in Uppsala, Sweden, he joined a small group called the Royal Swingers. Hasselgård joined bassist Arthur Osterwall's quintet in 1945, which was also the year in which he helped form a new Royal Swingers lineup. By the mid-'40s, the clarinetist had become well-known in Swedish jazz circles, and 1946-1947 found him being featured prominently on recordings by the Swingers, as well as the sextet of bassist Simon Brehm.

By July 1947, Hasselgård was living in New York, where he sat in with Jack Teagarden at the Famous Door on the legendary 52nd Street not long after his arrival. Then in 1948, Hasselgård got a chance to play and record with his idol, Benny Goodman, who employed the Swede in a two-clarinet septet that also included Mary Lou Williams and Wardell Gray. It was also in 1948 that Hasselgård employed American musicians on some small-group recordings of his own and headlined the 52nd Street club called the Three Deuces, where he had a quintet that boasted Max Roach on drums. On the opening night of his Deuces engagement in October 1948, he was billed as "the Bebop King of Sweden" and found that none other than Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie were in the audience. Hasselgård's last recording sessions came on November 18, 1948. Four days later, on November 22, he was killed in an auto accident in Decatur, IL, at the age of 26. ~ Alex Henderson http://www.allmusic.com/artist/stan-hasselg%C3%A5rd-mn0000743950/biography

Personnel: Stan Hasselgard - clarinet & vocal #1;  Johnny White - vibraphone & piano;  Red Norvo - Vibraphone;   Arnold Ross, Jimmie Rowles Dodo Marmarosa - piano;   Wardell Gray - tenor sax;  Guy Scalisi, Barney Kessel, Al Hendrickson - guitar;   Rollo Garberg, Harry Babasin, Billy Hadnott - bass; Frank Bode, Jackie Mills, Don Lamond - drums; Frances Wayne & Billy Eckstine - vocal.

California Sessions

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Red Norvo & Ross Tompkins - Red & Ross

Styles: Vibraphone And Piano Jazz
Year: 1979
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:41
Size: 95,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:40)  1. Whisper Not
(7:09)  2. The One I Love Belongs To Somebody Else
(8:28)  3. How About You
(6:24)  4. It Might As Well Be Spring
(7:09)  5. All Of Me
(6:49)  6. Everything Happens To Me

Vibraphonist Red Norvo, 48 years after his first recording, sounds in fine form on this live set with pianist Ross Tompkins, bassist John Williams and drummer Jake Hanna. Tompkins, who takes the opening "Whisper Not" as his feature, fits in well with the masterful vibist and their two-chorus duets in the middle of "The One I Love" and "All of Me" (during which the bass and drums drop out) are the high points of a spirited and consistently swinging session. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/red-and-ross-mw0001881466

Personnel:  Bass – John Williams (8) ; Drums – Jake Hanna ; Piano – Ross Tompkins ; Vibraphone – Red Norvo

Red & Ross

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Red Norvo - Mister Swing

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:38
Size: 99.9 MB
Styles: Swing
Year: 1999/2010
Art: Front

[4:16] 1. Seven Come Eleven
[2:40] 2. Which Switch Witch
[5:06] 3. Lagwood Walk
[5:00] 4. The Sergeant On Furlough
[4:34] 5. Too Marvelous For Words
[4:40] 6. Blue Skies
[4:48] 7. Purple Feathers
[3:06] 8. The Bass On The Barroom Floor
[5:07] 9. In A Mellow Tone
[4:15] 10. Flying Home

This British LP has ten of vibraphonist Red Norvo's 16 V-Discs of 1943-44. Eight of the selections feature Norvo either on Oct. 28 or Nov. 16, 1943 heading a group also including tenor saxophonist Flip Phillips (shortly before he joined Woody Herman), trumpeter Dick Pierce, trombonist Dick Taylor, clarinetist Aaron Sachs, pianist Ralph Burns, bassist Clyde Lombardi and drummer Johnny Blowers; Helen Ward takes a vocal on "Too Marvelous for Words." The music is essentially late-period swing, with Phillips often taking solo honors. The remaining two selections (from Aug. 14, 1944) showcase Norvo and Sachs in a sextet also including pianist Danny Negri, guitarist Remo Palmieri, bassist Al Hall and drummer Specs Powell. The personnel and dates are only partly accurate in the brief liner notes, but the somewhat rare music (some of which has since been reissued) is quite enjoyable and finds Norvo in prime form. ~Scott Yanow

Mister Swing

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George Shearing, Red Norvo - Midnight On Cloud 69

Styles: Piano And Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 1956
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:49
Size: 90,2 MB
Art: Front

(3:21)  1. Sorry Wrong Rumba
(2:50)  2. Cotton Top
(3:04)  3. Be Bop's Fables
(3:10)  4. Midnight On Cloud 69
(3:50)  5. Little White Lies
(4:11)  6. I'm Yours
(3:13)  7. Moon Over Miami
(2:44)  8. Cherokee
(3:11)  9. Life With Feather
(2:24) 10. Four Bars Short
(2:37) 11. Time And Tide
(4:08) 12. Night And Day

For a long stretch of time in the 1950s and early '60s, George Shearing had one of the most popular jazz combos on the planet so much so that, in the usual jazz tradition of distrusting popular success, he tended to be underappreciated. Shearing's main claim to fame was the invention of a unique quintet sound, derived from a combination of piano, vibraphone, electric guitar, bass, and drums. Within this context, Shearing would play in a style he called "locked hands," which he picked up and refined from Milt Buckner's early-'40s work with the Lionel Hampton band, as well as Glenn Miller's sax section and the King Cole Trio. Stating the melody on the piano with closely knit, harmonized block chords, with the vibes and guitar tripling the melody in unison, Shearing sold tons of records for MGM and Capitol in his heyday. The wild success of this urbane sound obscures Shearing's other great contribution during this time, for he was also a pioneer of exciting, small-combo Afro-Cuban jazz in the '50s. 

Indeed, Cal Tjader first caught the Latin jazz bug while playing with Shearing, and the English bandleader also employed such esteemed congueros as Mongo Santamaria, Willie Bobo, and Armando Peraza. As a composer, Shearing was best known for the imperishable, uniquely constructed bop standard "Lullaby of Birdland," as well as "Conception" and "Consternation." His solo style, though all his own, reflected the influences of the great boogie-woogie pianists and classical players, as well as those of Fats Waller, Earl Hines, Teddy Wilson, Erroll Garner, Art Tatum, and Bud Powell and fellow pianists long admired his light, refined touch. He was also known to play accordion and sing in a modest voice on occasion.

Shearing, who was born blind, began playing the piano at the age of three, receiving some music training at the Linden Lodge School for the Blind in London as a teenager but picking up the jazz influence from Teddy Wilson and Fats Waller 78s. In the late '30s, he started playing professionally with the Ambrose dance band and made his first recordings in 1937 under the aegis of fellow Brit Leonard Feather. He became a star in Britain, performing for the BBC, playing a key role in the self-exiled Stéphane Grappelli's London-based groups of the early '40s, and winning seven consecutive Melody Maker polls before emigrating in New York City in 1947 at the prompting of Feather. Once there, Shearing quickly absorbed bebop into his bloodstream, replacing Garner in the Oscar Pettiford Trio and leading a quartet in tandem with Buddy DeFranco. In 1949, he formed the first and most famous of his quintets, which included Marjorie Hyams on vibes (thus striking an important blow for emerging female jazz instrumentalists), Chuck Wayne on guitar, John Levy on bass, and Denzil Best on drums. Recording briefly first for Discovery, then Savoy, Shearing settled into lucrative associations with MGM (1950-1955) and Capitol (1955-1969), the latter for which he made albums with Nancy Wilson, Peggy Lee, and Nat King Cole. 

He also made a lone album for Jazzland with the Montgomery Brothers (including Wes Montgomery) in 1961, and began playing concert dates with symphony orchestras. After leaving Capitol, Shearing began to phase out his by-then-predictable quintet, finally breaking it up in 1978. He started his own label, Sheba, which lasted for a few years into the early '70s and made some trio recordings for MPS later in the decade. In the '70s, his profile had been lowered considerably, but upon signing with Concord in 1979, Shearing found himself enjoying a renaissance in all kinds of situations. He made a number of acclaimed albums with Mel Tormé, raising the singer's profile in the process, and recorded with the likes of Ernestine Anderson, Jim Hall, Marian McPartland, Hank Jones, and classical French horn player Barry Tuckwell. He also recorded a number of solo piano albums where his full palette of influences came into play. He signed with Telarc in 1992 and from that point through the early 2000s continued to perform and record, most often appearing in a duo or trio setting. Shearing, who had remained largely inactive since 2004 after a fall in his New York City apartment, died of congestive heart failure at New York's Lenox Hill Hospital on February 14, 2011. He was 91. 

Bio ~ Richard S.Ginell  http://www.allmusic.com/artist/george-shearing-mn0000642664/biography

Personnel: George Shearing (piano); Marjorie Hyams, Red Norvo (vibraphone); Tal Farlow, Chuck Farlow (guitar); John Levy, Charles Mingus (bass); Denzil Best (drums).

Midnight On Cloud 69

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Red Norvo - Red Plays The Blues

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 47:26

Size: 108.6 MB

Styles: Vibraphone jazz

Year: 1958/2009

Art: Front

[5:37] 1. Britt's Blues

[7:00] 2. The Night Is Blue

[4:32] 3. Shed No Tears

[7:20] 4. Easy On The Eyes

[6:48] 5. Just A Mood

[7:25] 6. I Sing The Blues

[8:40] 7. Sunrise Blues

Red Norvo played the vibes while leading his own band during the swing era and grew into smaller groups in the forties and fifites once the practicality of leading a large ensemble became too much. He was one of the first to specialize of what has always been somewhat of an unusual instrument for jazz, but his nimble soloing and chords provided a template for others like Milt Jackson to follow.

Red Plays the Blues is a fantastic session. Four of the numbers feature Ben Webster and Harry "Sweets" Edison in the front line, and it's very difficult to have anything less than a captivating listen when those two are involved. With Jimmy Rowles at the piano (who was also Billy Holiday's go to accompanist) Webster and Edison are completely in their wheelhouse with Webster's gusty swoops offering a counterpoint to Edison's bright bursts. Norvo seems invigorated by their presence and lays down some soulful bluesy lines. The remaining tracks return to the big band sound of Red Norvo in Stereo. This time, however, Humes sounds more at home in the bluesy number than she did on dance numbers. Red Norvo Plays the Blues is hard to beat in presenting both sides of the vibraphonist's talents. ~David Rickert

Red Norvo - Vibes; Jimmy Rowles, John Williams: piano; Helen Humes: vocals; Harry Edison: trumpet; Ben Webster: tenor sax; Red Mitchell: bass.

Red Plays The Blues

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The Red Norvo Trio - The Savoy Sessions

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:02
Size: 144.3 MB
Styles: Bop, Vibraphone jazz
Year: 1995/2010
Art: Front

[2:51] 1. I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me
[2:31] 2. Time And Tide
[3:43] 3. Little White Lies
[4:02] 4. Prelude To A Kiss
[2:35] 5. Move
[3:30] 6. September Song
[4:01] 7. I'm Yours
[2:24] 8. I Get A Kick Out Of You
[3:25] 9. Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart
[2:38] 10. Cheek To Cheek
[4:05] 11. Night And Day
[4:08] 12. Godchild
[3:29] 13. Mood Indigo
[4:06] 14. If I Had You
[1:50] 15. Deed I Do
[3:18] 16. I'll Remember April
[2:28] 17. This Can't Be Love
[2:21] 18. I've Got You Under My Skin
[2:25] 19. Swedish Pastry
[3:01] 20. Have You Met Miss Jones

One of the first great improvisers on the xylophone and marimba, Red Norvo was also one of the few swing-era stars to make a successful transition to the harmonic and rhythmic challenges of bebop (he recorded with Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie in 1945). By that time he had switched up to a vibraphone--a more versatile instrument with its amplified sound and sustain pedal--but his steely rhythmic articulation always reflected his experiences as an acoustic mallet player.

THE RED NORVO TRIO WITH TAL FARLOW AND CHARLES MINGUS chronicles his 1950-51 recordings with the innovative guitarist and bass player, and are among the most influential examples of what has come to be known as chamber jazz. When economic conditions made touring with a sextet impossible, Norvo decided to dispense with a rhythm section. In Farlow and Mingus he found players who shared his fascination with sophisticated harmonies, and were able to hang with him at the brisk tempos he favored.

Thanks to their elaborately crafted arrangements, the trio created a full orchestral dimension and a powerful rhythmic thrust. On "Prelude To A Kiss," Mingus' rich arco work triggers several cunning thematic variations, while Norvo's tart dissonances behind Farlow's solo create a harmonic tension which is only resolved during his own improvisation--together, they create a series of fanciful motifs behind Mingus' solo. Denzel Best's "Move" is driven along by Mingus' articulate, up-tempo melodic variations, as Norvo and Farlow navigate his equestrian changes with imperturbable refinement. Farlow's witty percussive effects on "Night And Day" and Mingus' flamboyant bowing on "Time And Tide" make it seem as if the musicians are playing with roses between their teeth. From the classical grandeur of "I'll Remember April" to the boppish drive "Godchild" and "Swedish Pastry," the wit and technical range of this band is phenomenal.

Recording Date: October 31, 1950 - April 13, 1951

The Savoy Sessions

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