The RCA Victor Jazz Workshop #6

The Arrangers

RCA Victor Jazz Workshop

The next release in RCA Victor’s Jazz Workshop series was led by John Carisi. The three recording sessions in April, May, and June of 1956 were assigned a release number, LPM-1371, but it remained in the vault until 1988 when Executive Producer Steve Backer tapped veteran jazz producer Ed Michel to put together a CD release of sessions from the Jazz Workshop series. Michel was given a free hand to select tracks for the compilation.

John Carisi started composing seriously during World War II, while stationed with Glenn Miller's Air Force Band on the Yale campus. "I'd run around and find out who wasn’t going into New York for the weekend and write for whoever was left— whether it was a cello and a French horn, or a piano and a tuba. Two people —we had a band", he remembers.

I asked Ed if he found any alternates from the Jazz Workshop series while producing the album: "No alternates surfaced.  I was motivated by a desire to get the Gil Evans stuff out, and fascinated by the Carisi stuff (the parallel versions under his name and Miles' Birth of the Cool).  Lewis' Jazz Workshop stuff was a wonderful idea.  I have no real data, but have to assume that RCA suits wanted bigger sales numbers.  I note that while I was working on BMG reissues, the head of the music division was formerly in charge of refrigerators for Gil Evans". 

This compilation focuses refreshingly on the arrangers. It has selections from Hal McKusick's and John Carisi's Jazz Workshop albums, offering overlooked scores by Evans, George Russell and Carisi. It is rounded out by the work of Rod Levitt, a trombonist and commercial arranger who occasionally worked with Evans in the '60's. His charts, excerpts from his mid 60's recordings for RCA, make full use of the experimental ideas that the Miles Davis's Birth of the Cool crowd had ushered in years before. *James Harrod*

A lot of unusual music appears on this Bluebird CD. Altoist Hal McKusick (with arrangmeents contributed by George Russell and Gil Evans) performs five numbers (including a version of "Blues for Pablo" that was cut a year before Miles Davis's recording) with a variety of musicians including trumpeter Art Farmer and trombonist Jimmy Cleveland. Arranger John Carisi (heard here on trumpet) interprets seven previously unreleased numbers with an octet and trombonist Rod Levitt performs five of his arrangements with his own advanced octet. Although these performances would have little influence on future developments in jazz (the free jazz movement of the 1960s overshadowed the trend toward using elements of modern classical music in charts), the music still sound quite fresh and unpredictable today. *Scott Yanow*

~Hal McKusick - The RCA Victor Jazz Workshop~

1 - Blues for Pablo

(Evans)

2 - Jamblange

(Evans)

3 - Miss Clara

(Russell)

4 - The Day John Brown Was Hanged

(Russell)

5 - Lydian Lullaby

(Russell)

Hal McKusick (alto sax [#1, #2, #3, #4]); Art Farmer (trumpet [#1, #3]); Jimmy Cleveland (trombone [#1, #3]); Gene Allen (baritone sax [#1, #3]); Bill Barber (tuba); Jimmy Raney [#1, #2]), Barry Galbraith (guitars); Milt Hinton (bass); Osie Johnson (dums); George Russell (tambourine [#1], drums ([#4]).

Recorded at Webster Hall, New York City, April 4 (#1, #2, #3), and March 3 (#4, #5), 1956.

~John Carisi - The RCA Victor Jazz Workshop~

6 - Honeysuckle Rose

(Razaf, Waller)

7 - Springsville

(Carisi)

8 - Israel

(Carisi)

9 - Lestorian Mode

(Carisi)

10 - Barry's Tune

(Carisi)

11 - How About You

(Freed, Lane)

12 - Hips

(Carisi)

John Carisi (trumpet, arranger); Eddie Wasserman (tenor sax); Ray Beckenstein (alto sax, clarinet); Urbie Green (trombone); Sol Schlinger, Danny Bank [#8] (baritone saxes); Barry Galbraith (guitar [#8]); Milt Hinton, Russ Saunders [#8] (basses), Osie Johnson, Herb Wasserman [# 8] (drums).

Recorded at Webster Hall, New York City,  April 21 (#8), May 5 (#6, #9, #10),  and June 11 (#7, #11, #12), 1956.

~The Rod Levitt Orchestra~

13 - Vera Cruz

(Levitt)

14 - Holler N°3

(Levitt)

15 - Morning In Montevideo

(Levitt)

16 - Greenup

(Levitt)

17 - Mr. Barrelhouse

(Levitt)

Rod Levitt (trumpet, arranger), Rolf Ericson (trympet, flugelhorn), Buzz Renn (flute, clarinet, alto sax), George Marge (piccolo, flute, alto flute, clarinet, tenor sax, oboe), Gene Allen (baritone sax, clarinet, bass clarinet), Sy Johnson (piano), John Beal (bass), Ronnie Bedford (drums, whistle).

Recorded at RCA Studio "C", New York City, December 10 (#13), December 11 (#14), 1964, and July 7 (#16), July 8 (#15, #17), 1965.