Rare And Obscure Argo Recordings (XXVI & XXVII)

 Barry Harris - Breakin' It Up

A hard to find early album by the great Detroit pianist Barry Harris! Barry's playing here in a trio with William Austin on bass and Frank Gant on drums, and the tracks have a definite boppish quality to them — more straight ahead than some of the flowing lines he brought to later work in the 70s and 80s — but still uniquely soulful, with a really strong sound for such a young player. Titles include bop standards like "Ornithology", "Passport", and "Allen's Alley" — plus Harris originals like "SRO" and "Bluesy" — and the album's got a nice, tight, soul jazz feel overall!

*Dusty Groove, Inc.*

Sonny Stitt - Burnin'

A great lost gem from Sonny Stitt — one of his most obscure sides for Argo, recorded with a no-nonsense quartet that included Barry Harris on piano, William Austin on bass, and Frank Gant on drums — all on the day after the trio worked together on Harris' Breakin It Up session for the label! There's a soulful quality to the rhythm section that takes Stitt way past bop — a relaxed groove from Harris that flows nicely into that confident, exploratory territory that we love so much on Stitt's Verve and Roost albums from the time. Sonny blows strongly on both alto and tenor sax — and titles include "It's Hipper Than That", "I'll Tell You Later", "Lover Man", and "A Minor Sax".

*Dusty Groove, Inc.*

Barry Harris Trio

Breakin' It Up

Barry Harris' debut Argo session captures a uniquely soulful interpretation of bop sensibilities. Light yet commanding, Breakin' It Up moves from strength to strength, belying the pianist's relative youth and inexperience. Paired with bassist William Austin and drummer Frank Gant, Harris dispenses with frills, paring familiar melodies like "Ornithology" and "All the Things You Are" to their absolute essentials. The overall approach is far more straight-ahead than his subsequent efforts, yet his signature melodic ingenuity is firmly in place. Breakin' It Up was reissued on CD by Jazz Beat in a two-fer alongside Burnin', recorded a day later under the leadership of saxophonist Sonny Stitt. *Jason Ankeny*

The current CD contains the two subsequent entries from Barry Harris' discography: the pianist's debut LP as a leader Breakin' It Up, and the album Burnin' featuring the same trio (Harris, Austin and Gant) backing Sonny Stitt in Chicago on August 1, 1958, the day after Breakin' It Up sesión! Burnin' marks the first recorded collaboration between Harris and Stitt.

The music throughout both recordings is impeccable, and their approximation in feeling, personnel, date, location and recording technique, give them a consistency that makes them sound more like one single studio sesión, than two separate dates.

Barry Harris has taught performed with many of the idiom's most celebrated musicians and has recorded some truly exquisite recordings, of wich these two albums are perfect examples.

*(from liner notes)*

1 - All The Things You Are

(Kern, Hammerstein)

2 - Ornithology

(C. Parker)

3 - Bluesy

(B. Harris)

4 - Passport

(C. Parker)

5 - Allen's Alley

(D. Best)

6 - Embraceable You

(G. and I. Gewrshwin)

7 - SRO

(B. Harris)

8 - Stranger In Paradise

(Wright, Forrest)

9 - Lover Man

(Davis, Sherman, Ramirez)

10 - Ko-Ko

(C. Parker)

11 - How High The Moon?

(Lewis, Hamilton)

12 - Easy Living

(Robin, Rainger)

13 - It's Hipper Than That

(S. Stitt)

14 - A Minor Sax

(S. Stitt)

15 - Reed And A Half

(S. Stitt)

16 - I'll Tell You Later

(S. Stitt)

17 - Look For The Silver Lining

(Kern, DeSylva)

#1 to #8: from the album Breakin' It Up (Argo LP 644)

Barry Harris (piano), Billy Austin (bass), Frank Gant (drums).

Recorded in Chicago, July 31, 1958

#9 to #17: from the album Burnin' (Argo LP 661)

Sonny Stitt (alto sax, tenor sax), Barry Harris (piano), Billy Austin (bass), Frank Gant (drums).

Recorded in Chicago, August 1, 1958