Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (I)

Jazz In Hollywood

✤Liberty LJH 6001✤

This is the first in an unlimited series of Jaz recordings to be released by LIBERTY. The artists featured in this album are not new-comers. These are the established, schooled and respected musicians of the West Coast. They are musicians in the true sense of the word. Unlike the "Tooters" who play and record in the name of Jazz, many of the artists in this album are also actively engaged in other phases of music. 

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There are many facets to this gem called "JAZZ"; and I’m sure you'll feel as I do that some of the choicest are evident here. The rare cello work of Harry Babasin, the sophisticated improvisations of Jimmy Rowles, the incredible tempo achieved by Lou Levy and Buddy Wise, Dom Frontiere’s flawless accordion technique, the drive and imagination displayed by Abe Most on the clarinet, the precision of the Hollywood Saxophone Quartet and the familiar earthy sounds expressed by Herbie Harper, Bob Gordon, Bud Shank, Virgil Gonsalves and Bob Enevoldsen.

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As a disc jockey and jazz enthusiast who really loves music, I am very impressed with the fine taste displayed in the presentation of this album. And this is just the beginning. These and other top jazz artists will be presented in LIBERTY albums of their own in the very near future.

*Jack Wagner (liner notes)*

Liberty scoops up a wide variety of West Coast jazz musicians and presents them under the title "Jazz In Hollywood". We hear samplings of the talents of Herbie Harper, Bud Shank, Jimmy Rowles, Virgil Gonsalves, Harry Babasin, Lou Levy, Dom Frontiere, Abe Most, Bob Enevoldsen, Bob Gordon, Buddy Wise, and the Hollywood Saxphone Quartet. Space does not allow comments on each artista involved. As an over-all description, it is an interesting collection of assorted talents playing easy to listen to west coast jazz. Improvisations in most cases stick close to the Melody line. Jazz fans should find it strong interest. *Billboard, September 24, 1955*

Side 1

1 - Sanguine

(Paich)

Herbie Harper (trombone), Bud Shank (alto, tenor and baritone saes),

Marty Paich (piano), Harry Babasin(bass), Roy Harte (drums).

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, September 16, 1954

2 - There Will Never Be Another You

(Gordon, Warren)

Hollywood Saxophone Quartet:

Russ Cheever (soprano sax), Jack Dumont (alto sax), Morrie Crawford (tenor sax),

Bill Ulyate (baritone sax), Mike Rubin (bass), Dick Cornell (drums).

Recorded at Capitol Studios,  September 1955

3 - Serenade In Blue

(Gordon, Warren)

Jimmy Rowles (piano), Red Mitchell (bass), Art Mardigan (drums).

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, December 13, 1954

4 - Yesterdays

(Kern, Harbach)

Virgil Gonsalves (baritone sax), Bob Enevoldsen (valve trombone), Buddy Wise (tenor sax),

Lou Levy (piano), Harry Babasin (bass), Larry Bunker (drums).

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, September 29, 1954

5 - The Girl Friend

(Rodgers, Hart)

Harry Babasin (bass, cello), Larry Bunker (vibes),

Jimmy Rowles (piano), Bob Enevoldsen (bass), Roy Harte (drums).

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, September 23, 1955

(other source gives April 18, 1954)

6 - Bloo Denim

(Levy)

Lou Levy (piano), Harry Babasin (bass), Larry Bunker (drums).

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, August 29, 1954

Side 2

7 - Perpetual Motion

(Paganini)

Dom Frontiere (accordion), Abe Most (clarinet), Bill Ulyate (bass clarinet),

Jack Marshall (guitar), Mike Rubin (bass), Nick Fatool (drums).

Recorded at Capitol Records, Hollywood, California, summer 1955

8 - Bob White

(Mercer, Hanighen)

9 - Danza Do Brazil

(Paich)

Bob Enevoldsen (tenor sax [#8], valve trombone [#9]), Marty Paich (piano),

Howard Roberts (guitar), Harry Babasin (bass), Don Heath (drums), Roy Harte (bongos [#9]).

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, summer 1954

10 - Bab-O-Ling

(Babasin)

Harry Babasin (bass, cello), Larry Bunker (vibes),

Jimmy Rowles (piano), Bob Enevoldsen (bass), Roy Harte (drums).

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, September 23, 1954

(other source gives April 18, 1954)

11 - Jive At Five

(Edison)

Herbie Harper (trombone), Bob Gordon (baritone sax),

Jimmy Rowles (piano), Harry Babasin (bass), Roy Harte (drums).

Recorded at Gold Star Studios, Hollywood, California, February 27, 1954  

(other source gives Recorded at United Western Recorders, February 27, 1954)

12 - Love Me Or Leave Me

(Kahn, Donaldson)

Virgil Gonsalves (baritone sax), Buddy Wise (tenor sax), Bob Enevoldsen (valve trombone),

Lou Levy (piano), Harry Babasin (bass), Larry Bunker (drums).

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, September 29, 1954

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (0)

 

A dozen single albums plus a first compendium as a presentation will star in the next OUTLET JAZZ series.

This time, the collection was the result of the association of two famous record labels from the 1950s: Liberty, again, and Nocturne Records.

Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Alvin Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer, while Nocturne Records, a label based in Hollywood concentrated on West Coast jazz, was a jazz record company and label founded in 1954 by drummer Roy Harte and bassist Harry Babasin.

Even before the first Liberty album came out, Simon Waronker was working to obtain sources for new records and this effort was finally realized in late May 1955. 

The news was reported in a small article in Billboard magazine in the June 4, 1955 issue under the title "Liberty Merger With Nocturne":

Indies Liberty and Nocturne Records this week completed a merger whereby the latter firm's catalog will henceforth be issued under the Liberty label.

Liberty, headed by 20th-Fox music director Si Waronker, Will release the Nocturne output under its "Jazz in Hollywood" series. Harry Babasin, former president of the jazz line, Will continue to supervise the repertoire function of the line.

Liberty created the prefix "LJH" for that purpose and the thirteen-disc collection was called the Liberty 6000 series. We will meet them in the next 13 posts...

◈◈◈

Liberty Records • Lighthouse Series (III)

Max Roach And Stan Levey

Drummin' The Blues

Lighthouse Series • Volume 3

The art of jazz drumming has come a long way since the day of the bass drum player in the marching bands of ole New Orleans. Today we have come to expect a drummer to be an excellent technician, a well rounded percussionist, capable of improvising as well as any solo instrumentalist in any musical aggregation. It would take a very thick book to discuss the requirements of being a jazz drummer, and even then, it would be necessary to interpret the printed word through skins, sticks, cymbals and mechanical contrivancesin order to express yourself and your feeling for the music.

No doubt about it, drums and drummers are popular subjects; whether you're an avid jazz enthusiast or bandleader, it is always interesting to hear and compare notes on the way different drummers play.

Among my personal favorites are two very good friends — two wonderful guys, each representing the moder idiom in the best possible manner: Max Roach and Stan Levey.

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When they expressed the desire to do this album, it was may great pleasure (and Liberty's) to be able to record it. However this is where the parallel ends, because, although they are the best of friends, great believers in the other's playing, they both display what every good jazz musician strives for — his own distinct musical personality. Care to compare? *Howard Rumsey (liner notes)*

Stan and Max are about as unlikely a pair as you could imagine — both jazz drummers, but one with a cooler, more laidback sound (Levy), the other with a harder, more full-on and bop driven approach (Roach). This set features each drummer alternating track to track — supporting a core group with Bill Perkins on tenor, Conte Candoli on trumpet, and Frank Rosolino on trombone. Given that such a setting is more Levy's territory than Roach's, he actually fits in a bit more with the sound — but even on the Roach tracks, the west coast jazz vibe pervades — so don't expect a super-huge change in the style. Titles include "Breadline Blues", "Facts About Max", "Royal Garden Blues", "The Count's Blues", and "Blues In The Night". *Dusty Groove, Inc.*

1 - Facts About Max

(Marty Paich)

2 - Milano Blues

(Bob Cooper)

3 - Swingin' The Blues

(Count Basie, Eddie Durham)

4 - Breadline Blues

(Dick Shreve)

5 - Bye Bye Blues

(Lown, Gray, Bennett, Hamm)

6 - Blues In The Night

(H. Arlen, J. Mercer)

7 - Royal Garden Blues

(C. Williams, S.Williams)

8 - The "Count's" Blues

(Conte Candoli)

Conte Candoli (trumpet), Bill Perkins (tenor sax [#1, #3, #6, #8]), 

Bob Cooper (tenor sax [#2, #4, #5, #7]), Frank Rosolino (trombone),

Dick Shreve (piano), Howard Rumsey (bass),

Max Roach (drums [#1, #3, #6, #8]), Stan Levey (drums [#2, #4, #5, #7]).

#1, #3, #6, #8:

Recorded in Los Angeles, California, March, 1957

#2, #4, #5, #7:

Recorded at "The Lighthouse", Hermosa Beach, California, March 1957

Liberty Records • Lighthouse Series (II)

Bill Perkins And Richie Kamuca

Tenors Head-On

Lighthouse Series • Volume 2

To anyone familiar with the jazz scene, the names BILL PERKINS and RICHIE KAMUCA mean fresh tenor excitement at its grooviest and innovating best. This album more than successfully combines these two major talents in a free-swinging, right-from-the-head session. And I am sure that you will find the spontaneous, contrapuntal interplay of the horn players, as well as the material utilized, most interesting.

Please keep in mind that no written arrangements were used... which as you know, makes for wonderful, easy-to-listen-to jazz brimming with spirit, emotion and spontaneity. 

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This album was not merely happenstance. It was a long time in the making. It actually started back in '54 when Richie and Perk were blowing for Woody. They spent a lot of time practicing together, exchanging ideas and discussing tenor men... mostly "Pres". That groundwork really became apparent that first Sunday evening I heard them blending their crazy sounds at the Lighthouse. Right then it was decided to blend them with a rhythm section, and this album is the culmination of that idea.

It was a genuine thrill to be in on this one, and considering the fact the entire opus was recorded in one session and a half hour overtime is in itself conclusive that it was a wonderfully cohesive experience for all concerned... Drop the diamond, relax, and join the group.

*Howard Rumsey (liner notes)*

A killer date from two of the hippest tenors of the west coast scene in the 50s — Bill Perkins and Richie Kamuca — both musicians who worked in the cool school, but could also come across with plenty of soul! The album's got both tenors working head on — hitting counterpoint modes at times, but also opening up more freely at others — showing the balance between composition, arrangement, and improvisation that made the scene so great at the time — yet executed with a bit more depth of feeling, as we'd expect from Perkins and Kaumca. Rhythm is from the trio of Pete Jolly on piano, Red Mitchell on bass, and Stan Levey on drums — and titles include "Spain", "Pick A Dilly", "Oh! Look At Me Now", "Don't Be That Way", and "Blues For Two".

*Dusty Groove, Inc.*

Side 1

1 - Cotton Tail

(Harry Brewer)

2 - I Want A Little Girl

(W. S. Stevenson)

3 - Blues For Two

(K. Mitchell)

4 - Indian Summer

(B. Gregory)

Side 2

5 - Don't Be That Way

(Goodman, Sampson, Parrish)

6 - Oh! Look At Me Now

(J. Bushkin, J. DeVries)

7 - Spain

(Jones, Kahn)

8 - Pick A Dilly

(Al Cohn)

Bill Perkins, Richie Kamuca (tenor saxes); Pete Jolly (piano);

Red Mitchell (bass); Stan Levey (drums).

Recorded in Los Angeles, California, July, 1956

Liberty Records • Lighthouse Series (I)

Howard Rumsey's Lighthouse All Stars

Host Charlie Persip And His Jazz Statesmen

Double Or Nothin'

Lighthouse Series • Volume 1

One of the few albums ever cut as a leader by crack drummer Charlie Persip — and a great record that you might have missed because Howard Rumsey's name is bigger on the cover than Charlie's! The album's one of Rumsey's "Lighthouse Series" sides of the 50s — but it's a lot harder-driving and more energy-filled than most of the other Lighthouse-related sides coming out of LA at the time. Half the record features Charlie's group — a set of east coasters that includes Lee Morgan, Benny Golson, and Wynton Kelly — and the other part features some of the players from that ensemble mixing it up with drummer Stan Levey and other LA talents that include Frank Rosolino, Conte Candoli, Bob Cooper, and others. In all, the album's a great meeting of east and west coast hardbop styles — with short driving tracks that include "Reggie Of Chester", "Celedia", "Moto", "The Champ", and "Wildwood". *Dusty Groove, Inc.*

Double or Nothin' promises a creative East Coast-meets-West Coast musical confrontation, but never delivers. Ace trumpet men Conte Candoli, based in California, and Philly-born Lee Morgan, then making his first impression on the jazz world, headline this 1957 session that grew out of a Charlie Persip gig at the legendary Pacific Coast club the Lighthouse. These two all-star groups belie the assumptions made at the time about the differences between the East and West Coast sounds (with underlining racial assumptions). Both trumpet players draw heavily on Dizzy Gillespie for inspiration, and both saxophonists (Benny Golson and Bob Cooper) are more indebted to swing master Lester Young than to any bebop saxophonist. Indeed, the contrast between the two is one of the pleasures of the session. Golson's lines are blurry and oblique, while Cooper's are finely etched and to-the-point. Both are also more noted for their writing skills, which are also on display here. Though the listener may expect such a jam session would feature usual blowing vehicles, here the music is largely original or of more recent vintage (though two [Golson's "Stablemates" and Horace Silver's "Quicksilver"] were destined to become standards). While the repertoire is refreshing, it leads to tentative performances on the tracks in which the two groups interact. The solos have awkward pauses between phrases, and loquacious soloists such as Morgan and trombonist Frank Rosolino rely on pet turns of phrase. The strongest playing comes on the tracks when the Morgan group and the Lighthouse All-Stars play as separate units. *David Dupont*

1 - Reggie Of Chester

(Benny Golson)

2 - Stablemates

(Benny Golson)

3 - Celedia

(Benny Golson)

4 - Moto

(Bop Cooper)

5 - The Champ

(Dizzy Gillespie)

6 - Blues After Dark

(Benny Golson)

7 - Wildwood

(Gigi Gryce)

8 - Quicksilver

(Horace Silver) 

#1: 

Lee Morgan (trumpet), Benny Golson (tenor sax),

Wynton Kelly (piano), Wilfred Middlebrooks (bass), Charles Persip (drums).

#2:

Lee Morgan (trumpet), Frank Rosolino (trombone), Benny Golson (tenor sax),

Dick Shreve (piano), Red Mitchell (bass), Stan Levey (drums).

#3:

Conte Candoli (trumpet), Frank Rosolino (trombone), Bob Cooper (tenor sax),

Wynton Kelly (piano), Wilfred Middlebrooks (bass), Charles Persip (drums).

#4:

Lee Morgan, Conte Candoli (trumpets); Frank Rosolino (trombone);

Benny Golson, Bob Cooper (tenor saxes); Dick Shreve (piano),

Red Mitchell (bass), Stan Levey (drums).

#5:

Conte Candoli (trumpet), Frank Rosolino (trombone), Bob Cooper (tenor sax),

Dick Shreve (piano), Red Mitchell (bass), Stan Levey (drums).

#6:

Lee Morgan (trumpet), Benny Golson (tenor sax),

Wynton Kelly (piano), Red Mitchell (bass), Charles Persip (drums).

#7:

Lee Morgan, Conte Candoli (trumpets); Frank Rosolino (trombone);

Benny Golson, Bob Cooper (tenor saxe); Wynton Kelly (piano);

Wilfred Middlebrooks (bass); Charles Persip (drums).

#8:

Conte Candoli (trumpet), Frank Rosolino (trombone), Bob Cooper (tenor sax),

Dick Shreve (piano), Red Mitchell (bass), Stan Levey (drums).

Recorded at Liberty Studios, in Hollywood, California,

February 14 (#2, #4) and 27 (#1, #3, #5 to #8), 1957

Liberty Records • Lighthouse Series (0)

Liberty Records was founded in 1955 in Hollywood by Simon Waronker. He liked lush orchestral music and the label´s catalog was in the beginning filled with movie music, big bands. In 1957, Liberty acquired Pacific Jazz Records, and in mid 1960s they also acquired Blue Note Records. A few years later Liberty was sold to the owner of United Artists Records, who in 1971 dropped the Liberty name. But in 1980, a new owner, EMI, dropped United Artists name and revived the Liberty name.

More information about its history and associations with other record labels can be found on sites like bsnpubs.com or friktech.com.

But there is one very particular partnership about which there is Little — if any — information. It is documented only in the press release published by Billboard on April 13, 1957, which announced:

"In a move to solidify its position in the jazz market, Liberty Records has signed Howard Rumsey to a long-term pact in a dual capacity. Rumsey, credited with being one of the pioneer's of the West Coast jazz movement, will henceforth handle all artist and repertoire chores on all of the company's future jazz efforts, and in adition will record with the Lighthouse All-Stars.

According to Vice President Jack Ames, Rumsey will be given free rein with the Lighthouse series of albums to create and develop new ideas and talent for the firm". 

Bassist Howard Rumsey initiated a jazz program at the Lighthouse Cafe in Hermosa Beach, California, in 1949. His Lighthouse All-Stars performed every night, typically hosting a 12-hour jam session on Sundays. Although Rumsey eventually created his own record label, Lighthouse Records, the primary recording outlet for the Lighthouse All-Stars was Lester Koenig's record company, Contemporary Records.

Hence, the aforementioned partnership between Rumsey and Liberty Records is interesting, given that the "project" only had three volumes released.

It is this rare and obscure trilogy that will motivate the next three OUTLET JAZZ posts.

◈◈◈

Charlie Mariano On Bethlehem

In the 1950s, Charlie Mariano was one of the most promising of the bop-oriented altoists. His personnel here is consistent, with Mariano joined by pianist Claude Williamson, bassist Max Bennett, drummer Stan Levey, trombonist Frank Rosolino, and the cool-toned trumpeter Stu Williamson. The repertoire mixes together fairly basic group originals and swinging standards with many fine solos by the horns. An excellent example of Charlie Mariano's playing in the '50s.

Charlie Mariano

Charlie Mariano Plays

Altoist Charlie Mariano, active since the late Forties playing around his native Boston, became much better known through his stay at Stan Kenton's orchestra (1953-1955). He managed to assert his own individual quality and his own musical importance while keeping a deep-seated devotion to Charlie Parker. On these early sides, recorded in Los Angeles, Mariano blows with a great deal of emotion, authority, bite and consistency, showing why he became one of the most demanded studio sidemen in the West Coast (1953-1957) as well as one of the most important altoists in modern jazz since Charlie Parker.

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The Hollywood studio sessions included in this CD were originally produced and released by Bethlehem Records. In the three of them, Charlie Mariano is backed by the same solidly-swinging rhythm section composed of Stan Levey on drums, Max Bennett on bass and Claude Williamson on piano, one of the more felicitous trios to come from the West Coast. The result of their effort and talent is a driving, swinging and thoughtful beat.

On these recordings Charlie Mariano reached new heights as a musician. In them, we begin hear a change in his style, a style that allowed him to assert his own individual quality and his own musical importance while keeping a deepseated devotion to Charlie Parker. Mariano blows with a great deal of emotion, authority, bite and consistency, showing why he became one of the most demanded studio sidermen in the West Coast as well as one of the most important altoists in modern jazz. *Jordi Pujol (liner notes)*

1 - 'S Nice

(Charlie Mariano)

2 - Chlo-E

(Moret, Kahn)

3 - Three Little Words

(Ruby, Kalmar)

4 - Green Walls

(Charlie Mariano)

5 - My Melancholy Baby

(Burnett, Norton)

6 - You Go To My Head

(Coots, Gillespie)

7 - Slugger

(Claude Williamson)

8 - There Will Never Be Another You

(Warren, Gordon)

9 - Sunday

(Coots, Grey)

10 - Sapphire

(Stu Williamson)

11 - Don't Get Around Much Anymore

(Ellington, Russell)

12 - Strike Up The Band

(G. and I. Gershwin)

13 - Just Max

(Max Bennett)

14 - Sweet Georgia Brown

(Bernie, Pinkard, Casey)

15 - I'll Never Smile Again

(Ruth Lowe)

16 - T.K.

(Tiny Kahn)

17 - Rubberneck

(Frank Rosolino)

18 - Jeppers Creepers

(Warren, Mercer)

#1 to #6: from the album Mariano (Bethlehem Records - BCP 1022)

Stu Williamson (trumpet), Frank Rosolino (trombone), Charlie Mariano (alto sax),

Claude Williamson (piano), Max Bennett (bass), Stan Levey (drums).

Recorded in Hollywood, December 21, 1954

#7 to #12: from the album Saphire (Bethlehem Records - BCP 1024)

Stu Williamson (trumpet), Charlie Mariano (alto sax),

Claude Williamson (piano), Max Bennett (bass), Stan Levey (drums).

Recorded in Hollywood, January 18, 1955

#13 to #18: from the album Max Bennett (Bethlehem Records - BCP 1028)

Frank Rosolino (trombone), Charlie Mariano (alto sax),

Claude Williamson (piano), Max Bennett (bass), Stan Levey (drums).

Recorded in Hollywood, January 27, 1955

Herb Geller Quintet

Herb Geller

Stax Of Sax

Herb Geller is a blowing soloist. "STAX OF SAX" is Herb Geller blowing a whole lot of variety and mood and style out of his alto. Add to that solos, tempos and treatments, plus integrated teamwork from five of the best musicians out of the West.

"STAX OF SAX" puts the full style of Herb Geller on display. Here is evidence of the atmosphere and influence, the technical mastery and the assimilation. Here are Herb's statement in rhythm, in melody, in form and in content.

The group accomplish blends and effects in solo and ensemble work that point up the links of understanding from the pulse of the bass and the drums to the improvisations of the alto and the piano and the vibes. There is a unity of expresión and musical idea.

Herb Gelles is a blowing soloist. Herb Geller blows a whole lot of alto in "STAX OF SAX", piling imagination and feeling on esciting technique. *Mort Goode (liner notes)*

This somewhat obscure recording by the bop-oriented altoist Herb Geller features him in a 1958 quintet with vibraphonist Victor Feldman, pianist Walter Norris, bassist Leroy Vinnegar and drummer Anthony Vazley. Other than a session for Atco, this was Geller's last American album until 1993; it would be 1975 before he recorded as a leader again. Geller is in fine form on three of his originals and two standards ("Change Partners" and "It Might as Well Be Spring"). Originally cut for Jubilee, this Fresh Sound CD is part of an extensive series that has brought back many forgotten dates from the 1950s. Bop collectors will enjoy this one. *Scott Yanow*

An incredible album from saxophonist Herb Geller — one that's quite different than his better-known sides for Mercury, and which features Geller blowing in an amazingly evocative tone! The first three tracks on the album are haunting originals by Herb — tunes that have a more open style than some of his more tightly arranged work, and which show the kind of fascination with sound structures that would show up much more heavily in later years. The group features Victor Feldman on vibes, Walter Norris on piano, Leroy Vinnegar on bass, and Anthony Vazley on drums — and the mix of vibes with Geller's horn is an especially nice element, one that adds to the haunting feel of the whole set. Titles include "Nightmare Alley", "A Cool Day", "The Princess", "Change Partners", and "It Might As Well Be Spring". *Dusty Groove, Inc.*

1 - Nightmare Alley

(Herb Geller)

2 - A Cool Day

(Herb Geller)

3 - The Princess

(Herb Geller)

4 - Change Partners

(Irving Berlin)

5 - It Might As Well Be Spring

(Rodgers, Hammerstein)

Herb Geller (alto sax), Victor Feldman (vibes),

Walter Norris (piano), Leroy Vinnegar (bass), Anthony Vazley (drums).

Recorded at Radio Recorders, Hollywood, California, December 12, 1957

[other source gives: Recorded in Los Angeles, 1958]

Rare And Obscure Criteria Jazz Recordings (IV)

The Modern Jazz Orchestra

featuring Kenny Drew

This is the fourth of several VSOP releases of Criteria recordings. Criteria was a small jazz label founded by Mack Emerman that showcased Miami jazz musicians of the late 1950's. All Criteria LPs are extremely rare and highly sought after. The music on this CD is primarily written, orchestrated and directed by Don Vincent. Don who studied at Carnegie Mellon and under Nikolai Lapatnikoff later went on to lead the orchestra at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas and currently runs a recording studio in Los Angeles. The band is made up of Miami's all stars of the day. It is a fine jazz orchestra. Highly recommended. *magnebit.xeran.com*

The Modern Jazz Orchestra was a stage band that worked a little bit in Florida before breaking up. Its one recording, from 1960, comprises this reissue. Don Vincent contributed five of the eight selections and wrote all the arrangements for the 16-piece ensemble. The only well-known musician on this set is pianist Kenny Drew, although the musicianship is excellent. Despite its potentially forbidding name, the music is essentially bop to hard bop, including versions of "Blue Monk," "A Night in Tunisia," and Miles Davis' "Flamenco Sketches." It is very nice to have this obscurity (originally from the tiny Criteria label) back in print again. *Scott Yanow*

When Billy Ladley (drummer), Joe Galovan (conductor), and Don Vincent (composer and arranger) asked me to write the liner notes for this album I was very pleased to do so. 

The "hanger" came when I started delving into the story behind the album and found, among other things, that the story was actually an epic. For if it wasn't for Billy Ladley's knowledge that such a band could be in Miami or Don Vincent's creative talent giving the band material it needed, or Joe Galovan's dogged insistence upon the formation of such a band, it would have never been realized. But a band without the benefit of the wonderful facilities that Criteria Records offers would have been for naught.

It all started with Joe Galovan. It seems to me that Joe Galovan was born to be a catharsis. At Least that's his function with the MJO.

⁂

 The “Band Idea” hit him in March of 1959, while he was recovering from a year and a half on the road with his friend, Don Vincent.

⁂

Joe asked Don to write some arrangements for a band similar to the MJO. Don wrote them and together they recorded a demonstration album which Joe took to New York. New York received it with mild interest. The recording companies asked where the band was playing, and the clubs asked if the band had recorded. Joe came back to Miami in August and he and Don revamped the band through August and September. But they were met with Miami’s own special brand of apathy, and by December they were ready to throw in the towel or the baton, or just about anything. They had had it. They felt they couldn't get top notch players, and the interest Miami had exemplified was close to a minus point.

In March, Bill Ladley returned to Miami from Las Vegas, and administered a kick in the pants to the two. He showed them that since December, good musicians had been drifting into Miami, and were available for a record date. New plans were made, and in April, Don started building a straight Jazz book. In May they recorded. The men in the band were so enthused that they played their best, and subsequently, most of the cuts are first or second takes.

⁂

As for the band, it's a great first album, and with your help, it will be followed by a second that is greater. Shall we put our collective shoulders to the wheel! *Pat O'Neil (liner notes)*

1 - Black Pits Of Luna

(Don Vincent)

2 - Flamenco Sketches  (or All Blues?)

(Miles Davis)

3 - Eulogy

(Don Vincent)

4 - Waltz For Stephen

(Don Vincent)

5 - Off The Grate

(Don Vincent)

6 - Blue Monk

(Thelonious Monk)

7 - Don's Idea

(Don Vincent)

8 - Night In Tunisia

(Dizzy Gillespie)

Gene Goe, John Georgini, Duke Schuster, Bill Robbins (trumpets); Berry Polger (alto sax, flute); 

Gus Mas, Billy Miller, Jerry Brockman , Jimmy Casals, Kirby Campbell (saxophones);

Lon Norman (trombone); Loren Reichert (french horn); Jim Lawrence (tuba);

Kenny Drew (piano); Bill Christ (bass); Bill Ladley (drums).

Recorded at Criteria Recording Co., Miami, Florida, May 1960 

⁂

[Note: I couldn't find any reference or correction in any review that points out a curiosity: track #2 identified as "Flamenco Sketches" is, in fact, "All Blues". Both compositions are from Miles Davis' iconic Kind Of Blue which (another curiosity) on some vinyl reissues, the label switched the order for the two tracks on side two, "All Blues" and "Flamenco Sketches". *blbs*]

Rare And Obscure Criteria Jazz Recordings (III)

The Lon Norman Sextet

Gold Coast Jazz

(Volume 2)

This is the third of several VSOP releases of Criteria recordings. This 1957 recording exemplifies the high caliber of jazz that made it onto this label. In addition to Miami's finest, this recording features Johnny Williams and Vinnie Tanno.   Lon Norman had started with the U.S Army Field Band in Washington, D.C., and joined the Willis Conover-Joe Timer aggregation, "The Orchestra", for which he wrote charts and filled in on trombone.  He left D.C. in 1957 with Herbie Fields Sextet and settled in with their stady gig at the Fountainbleau Hotel. Later he worked on the Jackie Gleason show and on H.B. Barnum's T.V. show in the 1970s.

This recording is the second of two that Lon Norman led, the first one being "The Octet" Criteria 1.  At various times, Vinnie Tanno takes over this session with his extroverted style. Lon Norman, not to be outdone, provides some very fine trombone and outstanding charts, demonstrating that he is definitely deserving of significant recognition. A fine CD. *magnebit.xeran.com*

"The whole is greater than the sum of its parts". This "truism" applies not only to the world of physics but to the world of music as well. How so? Well, music has its own fascinating physical laws. For example, when more than one musical tone is sounded simultaneously, the blending of overtones of the fundamental sounds creates an extra-dimensional voice. This acoustical phenomenon may be called the blend of sound, and its nature is directly related to the volumen, pitch, and general proportion of the basic tones. Once this "new voice" is created, it takes an active part in shaping and blending the basic tones, working its complex acoustical properties on the original tones. It will enhance one tone and darken another, becoming the master painter in the musical picture. This is scientific fact.

Less scientific, perhaps, but widely-held, is the belief that just as there is a blending of musica tones, so is there a blending of personality overtones among the musicians who créate these sounds -- nad taht this blending of personalities also adds an extra-dimensional ingredient to the music.

Does this happy blend of musical personalities always accur? By no means. A recording sesión, for example, can be a tedious and exasperating experience. Jazz music, after all, is largely a matter of individual interpretation, for even the written note serves only as a general guide to the way the music is to be played. Thus, two men could hold widely divergent opinions on the way a passage should be phrased, and neither one could be accused of being wrong. What happens, then, when musicians of equal skill and reputation disagree violently on the interpretation of an arrangement? Such a dilemma frequently calls for hours of pleanding, cajoling, arbitration and compromiso before a solution is reached that satisfies all "egos" involved. It is probably unnecessary to point out thet a recording waxed under such strained circumstances usually emerges cold, stilted and sterile.

No such catastrophe marred the creation of this album. As a matter of fact, the psychological compass was pointed in exactly the opposite direction. The minds of the individual musicians were in such a state of complete harmony that the harmónica blend of the music itself reflects the presence of this happy extradimension, for the Sextet swings along through Lon Norman's intrincate arrangements as though all the sidemen had been fused into a single vibrant personality. The resulting musical porridge that is served up, hot, contains a savory blend of elements that will please the particular palate of the jazz gourmet. *Val Machen (liner notes)*

1 - Fu-Dunk

(Lon Norman)

2 - Evelina

(Harold Arlen)

3 - I Remember You

(Schertzinger, Marcus)

4 - Lons-On-Ya

(Lon Norman)

5 - How Deep Is The Ocean

(Irving Berlin)

6 - Star Eyes

(De Paul, Raye)

7 - Everything Happens To Me

(Adair, Dennis)

8 - Pu-Dah

(Lon Norman)

Lon Norman (trombone), Vinnie Tanno (trumpet), Gus Moss (tenor sax),

John Williams (piano),  Al Simi (bass), Bill Ladley (drums).

Recorded at Criteria-Reela Studios, Miami, Florida, August 1957