The Guide to Classic Recorded Jazz (51 page)

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Authors: Tom Piazza

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BOOK: The Guide to Classic Recorded Jazz
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Page 207
The Reed Section
Sidney Bechet
Sidney Bechet's career spanned over four decades, from the New Orleans of the early days of jazz to fame and adulation as an expatriate in France, where he died in 1959. Although he was one of the premier New Orleans clarinetists, he is perhaps better known as the greatest soprano saxophonist who ever lived. A profound influence on musicians as far apart in age as Johnny Hodges and John Coltrane, Bechet was the only musician in the early 1920s who could compare to Louis Armstrong in knowing what to do with an improvised solo. Duke Ellington referred to him as "one of the truly great originals." His sound on soprano was wide, full of vibrato, and bursting with emotion.
Another thing to know about Sidney Bechet is that he didn't make bad records. Everything he did shows the same joie de vivre, understanding of the blues, overwhelming swing, pathos, and intensity. He was most commonly found in a New Orleans or "traditional" jazz format, with a trumpet, trombone, and rhythm section, playing mostly repertoire from the 1920s and earlier. But Bechet was at home with all manner of popular songs, blues, and rag-time pieces; on the traditional New Orleans-style ensemble, his soprano could always be heard cutting through even the densest grouping of horns.
A perfect introduction to his work is
The Legendary Sidney Bechet
(RCA/Bluebird 6590-2-RB), which features Bechet's soprano and clarinet in various settings between 1932 and 1941, including sessions with pianists Jelly Roll Morton and Earl Hines, and one of the famous 1941 "one-man band" sides, on
 
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which Bechet accompanies himself, through overdubbing, playing clarinet, soprano, tenor, piano, bass, and drums. From the first notes of the earliest sides here, scorching versions of "Maple Leaf Rag" and I Found a New Baby" made with New Orleans trumpeter Tommy Ladnier in 1932 and released as by the New Orleans Feetwarmers (a recording name Bechet would keep for the next ten years), Bechet goes for broke, playing to the hilt, his wide, reedy sound dominating the ensembles and lending his solos an exhilarating lift that still have the power to awe. He is at his most rhapsodic in a 1940 performance of the popular song "Indian Summer," his long, held notes almost trumpet-like in their power and emotional weight, and he illuminates Duke Ellington's "The Mooche" and "Mood Indigo'' in a way that makes both tunes sound almost as if Ellington had written them with Bechet in mind (not impossible - Bechet had worked with Ellington briefly in the 1920s, and the bandleader had a life-long admiration for him).
But it is Bechet's way of playing in, against, and through a New Orleans ensemble, as here on "Shake It and Break It," for just one example, that remains perhaps the most exciting aspect of his playing; he had such a strong sense of how to fit into a group counterpoint while at the same time projecting his own personality. He gives the ensembles a life they would not have had without him.
If you already like Bechet, you may want to skip
The Legendary Sidney Bechet
and proceed directly to
Sidney Bechet/The Victor Sessions - Master Takes 1932-43
(RCA/Bluebird 2402-2-RB), a three-CD set that includes everything on
The Legendary Sidney Bechet
as well as everything else recorded at the same sessions (except for alternate takes) and the results of a couple of other sessions. This set is a real feast for anyone who has a taste for Bechet; it includes all four sides from the 1939 Jelly Roll Morton session with Bechet (two alternate takes from the session are included on
The Jelly Roll Morton Centennial
[RCA/Bluebird 2361-2-RB]), the six 1932 titles with Ladnier, the famous tracks from 1938 with Ladnier and clarinetist Mezz Mezzrow, and much more.
The continued adventures of Bechet are chronicled on a truly first-class set from Mosaic,
The Complete Blue Note Recordings of Sidney Bechet
(Mosaic MD4-110). This four-CD box has Bechet in a number of different settings recorded between 1939 and 1953; some of the most interesting are five 1945 tracks with rediscovered New Orleans trumpet legend Bunk Johnson, a hard-charging set of 1920s jazz standards ("Copenhagen," "China Boy," "Mandy, Make Up Your Mind") with cornetist Wild Bill Davison and pianist Joe Sullivan, an incendiary 1945 date with Davison and pianist Art Hodes, and a very solid 1953 date with trumpeter Jonah Jones (who always seemed to bring out Bechet's hardest-swinging side). But you wouldn't want to miss Bechet's
 
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deep, woody blues clarinet classic "Blue Horizon," his gorgeous "Dear Old Southland," accompanied only by Teddy Bunn's guitar, Pops Foster's bass, and Big Sid Catlett's drums, or any of the rest of this fine set.
Johnny Hodges
Johnny Hodges was the first great alto saxophonist in jazz. Nicknamed "Rabbit" and "Jeep" (after a mythic character in the comic strip "Li'l Abner"), he came to prominence with Duke Ellington's late-1920s band. Except for a brief period in the early 1950s, he remained with Ellington for the rest of his life.
Hodges recorded frequently outside the Ellington context, but he was always set off to the best advantage in Ellington's musical universe. His twin fortes were the blues and ballads, both of which he could play with heart-piercing expressiveness. A perfect introduction to Hodges's ballad style is the essential Ellington album ...
And His Mother Called Him Bill
(RCA/Bluebird 6287-2-RB), a 1967 set composed entirely of compositions by Billy Strayhorn, Ellington's musical alter-ego. "After All," "Day Dream," and, especially, the supernaturally beautiful "Blood Count" show Hodges to perfection. His sound alone is one of the monuments of jazz music.
Almost every album Ellington recorded after Hodges rejoined the band in 1955 has at least one excellent feature for the altoist. "Prelude to a Kiss," from the 1957
Ellington Indigos
(Columbia CK 44444), is on a level with the previously mentioned tracks, as is all of Hodges's work on the incomparable
Anatomy of a Murder
(Rykodisc RCD 10039), Ellington's 1959 score for the Otto Preminger film of the same title, and
The Far East Suite
(RCA/Bluebird 7640-2-RB), on which he makes a classic statement on "Isfahan." Hodges also has unforgettable ballad moments in "The Degas Suite," from
Duke Ellington - The Private Collection, Volume 5 - The Suites
(SAJA 7 91045), and several features ("On the Sunny Side of the Street," "All of Me,'' and "The Star-Crossed Lovers") on
The Great Paris Concert
(Atlantic 304-2).
A definitive example of Hodges's way with the blues is "Jeep's Blues" from
Ellington at Newport
(Columbia CK 40587), on which his insinuating, preaching style electrifies the crowd at the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival. More Hodges blues playing (and topflight ballad work as well) can be heard throughout the ten individually available volumes of SAJA's
Duke Ellington - The Private Collection
, except for
Volume 6
(SAJA 7 91230), for which Hodges was absent.
Volume 9
(SAJA 7 91233) has an especially fine "Sophisticated Lady."
But no fan of Hodges's blues playing will want to miss
Back to Back - Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges Play the Blues
(Verve 823 637-2), a small-group date from 1959 on which the two leaders are joined by trumpeter Harry Edison
 
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and a rhythm section including Jo Jones on drums for readings of old standbys such as "Beale Street Blues," "Royal Garden Blues," and "Wabash Blues.'' The tempos are moderate and the groove is mellow for the most part; the tracks are all between five and eight minutes long, leaving plenty of room for unhurried statements from everyone. A companion set,
Side by Side: Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges
(Verve 821 578-2), features the same band on three tracks and six tracks with a group including trumpeter Roy Eldridge and tenor saxophonist Ben Webster. Good as this sounds, the set isn't quite the equal of Back to Back for relaxed blowing.
Hodges was heavily featured on Ellington's recordings of the 1930s and 1940s as well; the densest concentration of masterpieces from this earlier period can be found on
Duke Ellington: The Blanton-Webster Band
(RCA/Bluebird 5659-2-RB), which covers the years 1940-1942. Such tunes as "Never No Lament" (which later became "Don't Get Around Much Anymore"), "Warm Valley," and "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)" show why Hodges is regarded as one of the very greatest ballad players in all of jazz. On "Blue Goose," a tone poem featuring Hodges on the soprano saxophone, he shows the influence of one of his inspirations, Sidney Bechet. This is an essential set for any reason you can think of. Its natural companion is
The Great Ellington Units
(RCA/Bluebird 6751-2-RB), a collection of 1940 and 1941 small-band dates under the leadership of Hodges, trumpeter Rex Stewart, and clarinetist Barney Bigard, drawing their personnel from the Ellington band. The eight Hodges titles, including the ballads "Passion Flower" and "Day Dream," the blues "Things Ain't What They Used To Be," and the jump tune "Squatty Roo," show off all sides of Hodges's work and rank as classics.
For a good glimpse of 1930s Hodges outside the Ellington context, check out his kicking solo on "Honeysuckle Rose," a jam session from Benny Goodman's 1938 Carnegie Hall concert available on
Benny Goodman Live at Carnegie Hall
(Columbia G2K 40244) that, like "Squatty Roo," shows how hard Hodges could swing. Several all-star tracks on
Hot Mallets, Volume 1
(RCA/Bluebird 6458-2-RB) - including "Buzzin' Around with the Bee" and "Stompology" - illustrate the same point. Hodges's performance of "On the Sunny Side of the Street" on the same set underlines the debt he owed to Bechet for much of his phrasing.
Hodges's 1967 set
Triple Play
(RCA/Bluebird 5903-2-RB) draws from three small-group sessions involving Ellingtonians Ray Nance, Paul Gonsalves, Cat Anderson, Buster Cooper, and Harry Carney, along with ringers like trumpeter Roy Eldridge and pianist Hank Jones. This is one of Hodges's best late-career small-group dates; he is in his prime on a mixed program that leans to-
 
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ward the blues and swingers and has excellent work from everyone involved. Three previously unreleased tracks add to the set's value. The up-tempo, "I Got Rhythm"-based "Monkey on a Limb" has especially good Nance and Gonsalves. Hodges's most extended moments come on the blues "Sir John" and the previously unreleased ballad "Figurine." Don't miss his preaching solo on the gospel-based "On the Way Up,'' either.
A 1966 collaboration with organist Wild Bill Davis,
In a Mellotone
(RCA/Bluebird 2305-2-RB) features some good playing from a live gig in Atlantic City but is marred by Davis's too-heavy hands on the Hammond. The recording balance, too, is a little casual. Oliver Nelson's tense and overarranged 1970 big-band album
Black, Brown and Beautiful
(RCA/Bluebird 6993-2-RB) was one of Hodges's last dates; the altoist plays well, but the rearrangements of Ellington classics like "Rockin' in Rhythm" seem pointlessly tricked-up. Skip this one.
One not to skip is Mosaic's
The Complete Johnny Hodges Sessions 1951-1955
(Mosaic MR6-126, LP only), a collection of everything recorded under Hodges's leadership for Norman Granz's Clef and Norgran labels during the period in which the altoist was absent from Ellington's orchestra. The repertoire, played by big small-bands (trumpet, trombone, alto, tenor, and rhythm) of shifting personnel, includes blues, ballads, and jump tunes, as well as remakes of Ellington and Strayhorn tunes associated with Hodges from his earlier days with the band, such as "Warm Valley" and "I Got It Bad." Especially good here is a 1952 session including Ben Webster in ferocious form on the blues "Jappa." Some of the material here is inspired, some is merely workmanlike, but any Hodges fan will absolutely need it.
Another set from this period that is not to be missed is
Jam Session
(Verve 833 564-2), an all-star date on which Hodges is teamed with the other great altoist of the swing era, Benny Carter, and the preeminent altoist and musician of the bop era, Charlie Parker, in a program of four extended workouts - a fast and a slow blues, an up-tempo version of "What Is This Thing Called Love?," and a medley of ballads on which Hodges plays "I'll Get By." Others on the date include tenorist (and Hodges disciple) Ben Webster, Webster's tenor disciple Flip Phillips, trumpeter Charlie Shavers, and a rhythm section of pianist Oscar Peterson, guitarist Barney Kessel, bassist Ray Brown, and drummer J. C. Heard. The set is fascinating for the contrast in styles among the altoists. Hodges doesn't compete in rapid-fire articulation with Parker (or with Benny Carter, for that matter) but uses his singing tone strategically to hold his own. On his ballad feature and the slow blues (entitled "Funky Blues"), he is on his own best turf. On "Funky Blues," Hodges, Parker, and Carter solo
 
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back-to-back, and I'm sure neither Parker nor Carter particularly wanted to follow the mess of perfect blues Hodges laid down (although both do, very well).
Benny Carter
Benny Carter is surely one of the most prodigiously gifted musicians in jazz; best known as one of the preeminent alto saxophonists, arrangers, and composers in the music, he has also recorded extensively on trumpet. In addition, Carter recorded and performed on tenor, clarinet, trombone, and piano, but it is for his alto stylings that most jazz fans search out his recordings.
Carter's arrangements were important to the late-1920s Fletcher Henderson orchestra; with the coming of the swing era, Carter became one of the most active arrangers around, eventually producing arrangements for almost every major band. Born in 1907, Carter is still extremely active. In the summer of 1990 he composed an original work for vibraphonists Milt Jackson and Bobby Hutcherson, which was premiered at Lincoln Center's Classical Jazz series.
As an altoist, Carter was, and is, remarkable for his pure tone, perfect intonation, harmonic knowledge, and impeccable execution of unexpected melodic swoops and turns. A great showcase for his playing and writing is
Jazz Giant
(Contemporary/OJC-167), on which he plays both alto and trumpet with a small band including tenorist Ben Webster and trombonist Frank Rosolino in a program of older jazz standards such as "Old Fashioned Love," "I'm Coming Virginia," and "Blue Lou,'' as well as several Carter originals. Carter really stretches out in fine form on "Ain't She Sweet" and "Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives to Me," on which the other horns lay out and the leader's alto is spotlighted.
Some good Carter-led big-band tracks from 1933 can be found on
Ridin' in Rhythm
(DRG/Swing CDSW 8453/4). Tenor saxophonist Chu Berry graces "Swing It" and "Six Bells Stampede"; some slightly later sides feature pianist Teddy Wilson. But Carter's fine orchestrations, especially for the reed section (check out "Blue Lou"), are the main attraction.
Coleman Hawkins - Ben Webster - Benny Carter: Three Great Swing Saxophones
(RCA/Bluebird 9683-2-RB) has a generous sampling of Carter's alto in various settings from 1929 through 1946, including a famous 1939 side ("Early Session Hop") with Lionel Hampton on which all three saxophonists are featured, with the additional presence of Chu Berry. "Cadillac Slim," a 1946 track pairing Carter and Webster (and loosely resembling Billy Strayhorn's "Rain Check"), has some excit-

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