The Don Scaletta Trio on Capitol

Don Scaletta was born on August 16, 1937 in Cumberland, Maryland, and died in Orlando, Florida on May 18, 2015.

Don earned a national reputation as a jazz pianist, arranger, and composer which resulted in numerous recording contracts. Two of his albums, were spotlighted in Billboard and Cashbox Magazines. Don toured with the Glen Miller and Charlie Spivak Orchestras and other famous entertainers. Don taught Jazz Improvisation at the University of Louisville and the University of North Florida. He performed at the Walt Disney World Village with many notable musicians. Don entertained on the inaugural cruises of Disney's Magic & Wonder. His latest work includes concerts with his 20-piece orchestra, "The Jazz Project", a tribute to the incomparable Stan Kenton.

Webster states that a trio is "three persons playing together". The Don Scaletta Trio is indeedd three persons playing together, but there ends the similarity to Mr. Webster's trio.

The Scaletta sound is much like a rainbow in which each color is dependent on the precise placemente of the adjacent color to establish its form, the result of four years of working toward the same goal — one total, distinct, individual sound. When the play, the music turns, pivots and floats as one sound, suddenly bursting into colors but always related and always recognizable whether up tempo bossa nova, a jazz waltz or a down home blues.

Don Scaletta: leader, writer and piano player, is the serious looking, intense, bearded pivot point of the trio. Don comes from Cumberland, Maryland. and came to his jazz playing while traveling through the Middle East, Asia Minor and North África as a member of the USAF band. Following discharge, he played in and out of New York while the Charlie Spivak and Ray McKinnley band. Leaving after a year, he formed the present trio.

The Trio's first LP, Any Time... Any Groove! appeared on Capitol in February of 1965 and was followed by their second LP reléase, All In Good Time!. The oustanding reception to their earlier recordings affored them the opportunity to tour the college concert circuit in company with many greats like Bill Cosby, Bob Newhart and June Christy.

We felt that the group's growth is now complete and his culm ination was recorded live at Sausalito's famous waterfront jazzroom, The Trident, and Will son be available on Verve. Watch  out! *Promotional flier about the Don Scaletta Trio from northwestern.edu*

The Don Scaletta Trio

Any Time... Any Groove!

A "really diferent" trio sound that ranges from the exciting to the romantic makes this album a delight for any listening mood.

The nine arrangements included in this album were conceived and honed to a fine edge over the past sixteen months in night clubs scattered throughout the southwest. And pianist Don Scaletta feels that the time has been well spent.

"Because we have to fight poor acoustics and clinking glasses on many of our dates", says Don, "we're constantly striving for a big, full sound. We've written and rewritten our arrangements so that the piano, bass and drums can work independently of each other, or as a solo unit, much on the same order as a big band. This technique allows us a wide range of creative freedom and helps assure that every arrangement doesn’t sound the same".

An indication of how effectively the trio works in parts and as a unit is readily apparent on "York's Sauna". Scaletta's economic, whiplash piano, moving authoritatively against rhythm, effortlessly sets the scene for a Segovia-inspired bass solo and a repetitive call-to-arms drum sequence. Bursting with tonal and rhythmic color, "York's Sauna" exemplifies how deeply the trio will probe for musical interest.

"Ted and I wrote this arrangement in 1948", says Scaletta, "while we were stationed in North Africa with the Air Force. All in all we wrote six versions before we felt we had captured the Spanish influences prevalent throughout Mediterranean Africa. Because of its length we’d use it to close the final set of the evening. When anyone asked what it was called we'd say 'North African Night'". 

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The trio's ability to handle both standard and original material with equal aplomb in a variety of styles and tempos most assuredly guarantees them a selective and important place in music. Together, they have produced an album of splendid taste and dignity, one which is as interpretive and romantic as anything you're likely to hear for a long time to come. *Noel Wedder (liner notes)*

A surprisingly nice little groover, with that tight kind of pop jazz feel that Capitol was so good at during the late 60s! Scaletta's trio is nothing fancy — piano, bass, drums — but they hit some pretty nice moments on this album, which happens to be one of their best. The nicest tracks have a kind of rolling soulful feel — similar to work by Les McCann and Ramsey Lewis. Titles include "York's Sauna", "Taste Of Honey", "Tomorrow Never Comes", and "Jani's Tune".  *Dusty Groove, Inc.*

Side 1

1 - Yankee Doodle Boy

(Trad., Arr. Don Scaletta)

2 - Hello, Dolly!

(Jerry Herman)

3 - Tomorrow Never Comes

(Don Scaletta)

4 - Old Folks

(Williard Robison, Dedette Lee Hill)

5 - Jani's Tune

(Jewkes, Scaletta, Lamkin)

Side 2

6 - York's Sauna

(Don Scaletta)

7 - Over There

(George M. Cohan)

8 - With The Wind And The Rain In Your Hair

(Jack Lawrence, Clara Edwards)

9 - A Taste Of Honey

(Ric Marlow, Bobby Scott)

Don Scaletta (piano), Ted Blondell (bass), Nikki Lamkin (drums).

Recorded in Los Angeles, California, 1964

✳✳✳

The Don Scaletta Trio

All In Good Time!

Another superb album by the new instrumental group that creates fresh sounds in every mood and tempo. 

Late of an evening, significantly on the first day of spring, the Don Scaletta Trio began recording their second album for Capitol Records. One thing that distinguished this 

session from their first album date (Any Time... Any Groove!) was an attentive audience of Los Angeles disc jockeys and music critics, who had come to hear the trio record — the highest compliment that can be paid a musical artist. 

Less than two weeks after the release of their first album last January, executive producer Lee Gillette was swamped with requests for more music by this trio. "l knew that this would undoubtedly happen", he said. "Just as soon as I heard the imaginative way they treat such standards as "We Kiss In A Shadow", "Exodus", "Secret Love", and the new Academy Award winner "Chim Chim Cheree", and sensed the personal rapport they have with audiences, I knew that people would quickly realize that this trio has a new and exciting sound all its own. 

Don Scaletta is the first to admit that muchof his music is new, because it is taken from personal reminiscences. "Many of our ideas are initiated by everyday happenings", he says. "For instance, when Donna, my three-year-old, began to walk she'd move to and fro just like a little oriental doll. 'Walk With Buddha' comes as close to approximating her movements as anything I could have set time to". 

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The fact that the Scaletta Trio does relate to the audiences and intimately involves them in what it is doing musically has caused a score of recording executives and musicians to predict that this will be one of the most listened-to groups in music, and probably one of the most imitated. If they are right, the listening future promises to be filled with beauty and adventure. *Noel Wedder (liner notes)*

This 1965 album was by The Don Scaletta Trio, a piano trio consisting of Don Scaletta, Nikki Lamkin, and Ted Blondell, known as the white Ramsey Lewises. The album includes "We Kiss In A Shadow", which focuses on elegant piano playing and features bass and drum solos, the gradually building jazz bossa "Bitter Wine", and the captivating "Secret Love", with its beautiful buildup. A great jazz album with elegant cover art! A rare and wonderful experience. As viable now as it was when it was recorded. *vivrantdiscstore.com*

Side 1

1 - Exodus

(Ernest Gold)

2 - You're My Girl

(Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne)

3 - Walk With Buddha

(Don Scaletta)

4 - They Can't Make Her Cry

(Mack David, Jerrry Livingston)

5 - Secret Love

(Sammy Fain, Paul Francis Webster)

Side 2

6 - We Kiss In A Shadow

(Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II)

7 - Chim Chim Cheree

(R. M. Sherman, R. B. Sherman)

8 - Here's That Rainy Day

(James Van Heusen, Johnny Burke)

9 - Bitter Wine

(Don Scaletta)

Don Scaletta (piano), Ted Blondell (bass), Nikki Lamkin (drums).

Recorded in Los Angeles, California, 1964

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (XIII)

Buddy Childers

Buddy Childers Quartet

✤Liberty (LJH 6013)✤

Inspiration is sometimes a quick and exciting, exacting but generous travel companion. It knows no constant wellspring; it makes no compulsive demand of one for the same backdrop against which to create a work of art.

This second LIBERTY album showcasing the trumpet talents of Buddy Childers — unlike his previous delightful presentation, Sam Songs (LJH 6009) — was born far beyond the glitter of Hollywood amid the rustling palms and calm tropicana of Nassau in the Bahamas.

It was while Buddy was on tour of the lovely isles of the Caribbean with Charlie Barnet in late 1955 and the early months of 1956 that the idea for this album was conceived. Curiously, the album's godfather was a non-musician — a genial hotel boys so at home in his Holiday House in Nassau, encouraged the lot of them to play loud, long and merrily. Says Childers, recalling those lush days and nights, "They call Ulrich Ferguson 'Playboy of the Bahamas', which he may be for all I know. 

But in the time we spent at Holiday House, he was only the perfect host. He was so wonderful to us all in his hospitality and understanding that I feel the least to be done in repayment is to dedicate this album to him".

While at this tropic hotel, the Barnet sidemen would gather round the piano and play as their liberated spirit dictated. There most of the tunes in this collection were formulated. In sets when Barnet was absent from the stand, Childers, Arnold Ross, Boone Stiles and the bass player would work out numbers among them in quartet format. 

"One evening on the job", relates Buddy, "one of the local hipsters requested 'Bernie's Tune' We worked up a head arrangement, possibly influenced by the Afro-Latin environment of the islands, and it stayed with us just that way. The version in this album is 'Bernie's Tune' as we played it in Nassau".

By the time he returned to Hollywood the idea for a quartet album was fixed in Buddy's mind. It had been such a ball playing with Ross and Stines that using others was unthinkable. But they needed a bass player. "I called Harry Babasin", Buddy says, "and the date was set. If there is one bass man who knows how to fit in with any group, it's Harry".

Thus on a March evening in 1956 the Buddy Childers Quartet gathered in the auditorium studio at Western Recorders in Hollywood and produced the following album. *John Tynan (liner notes)* 

A good blowing session with trumpeter Childers, pianist Arnold Ross, bassist Harry Babasin, and drummer Boone Stines. The rhythm section achieves a moving groove although Stines could soften his sound somewhat on up-tempos. Ross plays well, and Babasin's solos are a delight in sound, structure, and beat. Childers improvises with professional intelligence and welcome brass-proud fire although his conception is not too personally imaginative. He is particularly expressive, though a little too deliberate, on ballads. His sound is also most impressive on slow tempos.

The originals (two by Childers and one by Ross) are unlikely to be Heard from again but do allow for uncluttered blowing. Excellent engineering by John Neal and helpful notes by John Tynan who might, however, have given us some biographical data on Stines.

*Nat Hentoff (Down Beat, December 26, 1956)*

Side 1

1 - Buffy

(Buddy Childers)

2 - You Call It Madness

(Conrad, Du Bois, Columbo, Gregory)

3 - Holiday House (Take #1)

(Buddy Childers)

4 - Holiday House (Take #2)

(Buddy Childers)

Side 2

5 - It's Gotta Be Happy

(Arnold Ross)

6 - You Go To My Head

(Gillespie, Coots)

7 - Indiana

(MacDonald, Hanley)

8 - Bernie's Tune

(Miller, Stoller, Leiber)

Buddy Childers (trumpet), Arnold Ross (piano), Harry Babasin (bass), Boone Stines (drums).

Recorded at Western Recorders, Hollywood, California, March 21, 1956

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (XII)

Red Norvo • In Hi-Fi

Vibe-Rations

✤Liberty (LJH 6012)✤

That Red Norvo now wears a beard (which makes him look somewhat like one of Saul Steinberg's cats) has nothing whatever to do with his having been born Kenneth Norville about forty-seven years ago in Beardstown, Illinois, but it is symbolic of his standing as one of the evergreen geniuses of jazz; Red was in Chicago in the late twenties when Eddie Condon and that bunch were, and although it was difficult for him to wheel his instrument, then the xylophone (Red says "zillaphone"), to the sessions at which they drank bad gin and played much music that was probably almost as bad but sounded great partly because it was fresh and exciting (and partly 

because of the gin), he nevertheless won the respect of all, even that of the staid Goodman, who later hired him when he was between combinations of his own; and at the risk of challenging the Times' Gilbert Millstein's title of World's Longest-Opening-Paragraph Writer, I must add that Red continued to grow and grow until the kids who play progressive began to pay strict awestruck attention to his work on the vibes (which replaced the "zillaphone"), a continuing homage which he has acknowledged by uttering the beard. 

Few other musicians can make that claim, let alone that transition. 

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I don't want to talk about the music except to say that it is strikingly representative of the personality of its creator: I am no musician, and it speaks for itself, swinging with lightness of touch beautifully fitting for the profound and humorous imagination that conceives it. I have spent the happiest times I've ever had with jazz listening to Red Norvo play, and I have had some of the happiest times I've ever had with another human being listening to Red Norvo talk. I want to talk about Red the human being: 

In the summer of 1956 when I was in Hollywood on some magazine jobs, I went to hear him (Norvo) every night I could make it at Ken Brown's place in Santa Monica. I would sit there marveling as he played "Rhee! Oh Rhee!" (my favorite) and the rest, and between sets we would sit around and talk about the days seven or eight years ago when he was playing at the Embers in New York and after hours hd and I and Eddie Condon would go to a Chinese restaurant where the proprietor would bring us a teapot full of what Condon always called "slant-eyed whisky". After the playing and reminiscing were over – I'm talking about the Hollywood visit again – Red and I would go out somewhere and eat. One night I noticed that he was strangely quite. I didn't want to ask what was wrong. He is sometimes shy, I thought this was one of his shy nights, and he couldn't bring himself to say much (in that Embers period, he often thought of more to say than some of us felt was necessary; but he had not yet gone on the wagon, then) We ate, said good night, and he went over to his house in Santa Monica and I went back to my hotel. The next evening he apologized. He said, "I'm sorry for being so quiet last night. We had to take our little boy to the hospital yesterday. It was sort of serious. I started to tell you about it but then I knew you'd worry and I didn't want to spoil your evening".

That is one side of him. Adjectives may now be filled in at random, and all the noble one will do.

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That's Red. Here, on these selections, is the man's music. He has augmented his trio with Jack Montrose, who plays tenor, second flute and clarinet; Bob Drasnin, first flute: Bill Kosinski, English horn; and Bill Douglass, drums. Eugene Wright plays bass, and Bill Dillard, who was burned to death a few weeks after these sides were recorded, is the guitarist and composer, with Red, of "Rhee! Oh Rhee!" and "Porsche". 

Like everything else about Norvo, they are remarkable, and it is my great pleasure to commend them to everyone who loves jazz. *Richard Gehman (liner notes)*

On Vibe-Rations, Red's associates are the late Bill Dillard, guitar; Jack Montrose, tenor, clarinet, flute; Robert Drasnin, flute; Bill Kosinski, English horn; Gene Wright, bass; Bill Douglass, drums. The rhythm section has the rare combination of pulsating sureness and a light, ensemble-conscious, fluid, knitted sound. Dillard's loss was obviously a great one. He plays here with impressive warmth, ideas, and time. Red himself is, as always, youthfully imaginative and a marvelously relaxed master of the vibes. At 47, he remains a musician who transcends stylistic lines. His contributions to jazz have been many and major. He is the best and the most personal soloist on the date. Montrose blows good, vigorous tenor, Drasnin's flute is skilled but lacks funk. Kosinski makes his assignments. Chief liability of the set are the anemic arrangements, most bloodless in the rather wispy ensemble sound, and the rather routine nature of the ensemble figures. The date would have been more successful either as a straight blowing session or with more challenging frameworks. Anyway, it's worth owning for Red, the rhythm section, and Dillard. Good, pointed notes by Dick Gehman, and fine sound. *Nat Hentoff (Down Beat, December 12, 1956)*

Side 1

1 - Sweet Georgia Brown

(Bernie, Pinkard, Casey)

2 - It Could Happen To You

(Burke, Van Heussen)

3 - All This And Heaven Too

(DeLange, Van Heusen)

4 - Fascinatin' Rhythm

(G. and I. Gershwin)

Side 2

5 - Rhee! Oh! Rhee

(Dillard, Norvo)

6 - Get Out Of Town

(Cole Porter)

7 - Ship Without A Sail

(Rodgers, Hart)

8 - Porsche

(Dillard, Norvo)

Red Norvo (vibes), Jack Montrose (tenor sax, clarinet, flute), Robert Drasnin (flute),

Bill Kosinski (English horn), Bill Dillard (guitar), Gene Wright (bass), Bill Douglass (drums).

Recorded in Hollywood, California, May 21 [#1 to #4, #6, #7] and May 28 [#5, #8], 1956

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (XI)

Ted And Dick Nash

The Brothers Nash

✤Liberty (LJH 6011)✤

Ted Nash, birth name Theodore Malcolm Nash (October 31, 1922 – May 12, 2011) was a jazz musician who played saxophone, flute, and clarinet. He was a session musician in Hollywood studios. His brother is trombonist Dick Nash and his nephew is saxophonist Ted Nash, who is a member of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra led by Wynton Marsalis.

Nash was born in the Boston suburb of Somerville, Massachusetts. His goal was to become a classical flutist until he began playing saxophone in his early teens. His professional career began when he went on the road with a succession of dance bands. In 1944, he became tenor saxophonist for the Les Brown big band.With Brown he played on the number one hits "Sentimental Journey" and "My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time", both sung by Doris Day.

In the late 1940s, after getting married, Nash settled in the Los Angeles and became active as a session musician in the Hollywood movie and television studios. In 1956, he recorded with Paul Weston's orchestra the album Day by Day, with vocals by his former colleague and close friend, Doris Day.

He was the featured soloist on The Music from Peter Gunn soundtrack, performing the alto saxophone solo on the theme and on the second bridge of "Dreamsville". He was known for his mastery of the extreme altissimo register of the saxophone. He wrote Ted Nash's Studies in High Harmonics for Tenor and Alto Saxophone published in 1946.

Through the 1950s and 1960s, he worked as a sideman for June Christy, Nat King Cole, Bing Crosby, Billy Eckstine, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and Nancy Wilson. During the 1970s, he worked with Judy Collins and Quincy Jones. He retired in the 1980s.

Dick Nash, birth name Richard Taylor Nash (born January 26, 1928) is an American jazz trombonist most associated with the swing and big band genres.

He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and began playing brass instruments at ten. He became more interested in this after his parents died, and he was sent to Kurn Hattin Homes for Children in Vermont. At Kurn Hattin Homes, the first instruments he studied were the trumpet and bugle. His first professional work came in 1947 with bands like that of Tex Beneke. He served in the California National Guard from 1950 to 1952 and played for a band.

After his discharge from the military, he went back to Boston, where he attended Berklee College of Music. He then joined Billy May's band. Later he became a first-call studio musician in Los Angeles, California. He was composer, conductor Henry Mancini's favorite trombonist, and was featured soloist on several Mancini soundtracks, beginning with "Mr. Lucky" and "Peter Gunn". Nash's trombone is featured on the "Theme From Hatari!" from the soundtrack for the John Wayne film (1962), Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), and Days of Wine and Roses. In 1959 he played bass trombone on Art Pepper + Eleven – Modern Jazz Classics.

His brother was the saxophonist Ted Nash and he has three children, Ted, also a saxophonist, Nikki, and Bill. *wikipedia.org*

This, [album] is in the nature of a new beginning for two brothers who have made names for themselves independently and are united at last in California with their music. 

Here, they have pooled their extreme musical talents and come up with an album of rare taste and quality. The music here is a pleasure to listen to. It combines clean, crisp sounds with good jazz. It is sometimes delicate, sometimes forceful. Often quiet — more often, exciting. And always conceived and executed with good taste.

The sound the group gets is amazing. Six men manage to sound like a group twice its size. They make it seem easy. Piano and guitar (Jimmy Rowles and Tony Rizzi) work first as a unit then as independent voices. Bass and drums (Harry Babasin and Roy Harte) are ever-present but never flambuoyant. Dick's trombone is joined by Ted, at one time or another, on alto, tenor, soprano, baritone, flute, alto flute, piccolo, clarinet, and bass clarinet to give a startling aural exhibition — and did I say only six in the total aggregation?

Much of the group's balance and continuity are due to the subtle arrangements of Frank Comstock, Chuck Kopley, Bob Harrington, and Jim Emerson.

The brothers Nash could hardly have picked a more swinging group of tunes for their Liberty Records' debut. *Don Nelson (liner notes)*

Side 1

1 - I Remember You

(Schertzinger, Mercer)

2 - We'll Be Together Again

(Carl Fisher, Frankie Laine)

3 - Juntos

(Frank Constock)

4 - Prelude To A Kiss

(Ellington)

5 - Theme From "The Bad And The Beautiful"

(Raskin)

6 - I Could Write A Book

(Rodgers, Hart)

Side 2

7 - Back In Your Own Backyard

(Jolson, Rose, Dreyer)

8 - For Heaven's Sake

(Meyer, Bretton, Edwards)

9 - Cuban Verandah

(Harrington)

10 - The Nearness Of You

(Washington, Carmichael)

11 - Night Soliloquy

(Kent Kennan)

12 - You Are Too Beautiful

(Rodgers, Hart)

Ted Nash (alto, tenor, soprano and baritone saxes, flute, alto flute, piccolo, clarinet, bass clarinet),

Dick Nash (trombone), Tony Rizzi (guitar), Jimmy Rowles (piano),

Harry Babasin (bass), Roy Harte (drums).

Recorded at Western Recorders, Hollywood, California, December 1, 1955 and April 6, 1956

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (X)

Virgil Gonsalves

Jazz • San Francisco Style

✤Liberty LJH 6010✤

Virgil Gonsalves was born on September 5, 1931 in Monterey, where he grew up and attended elementary and high school. He later enrolled at the San Francisco State University. After graduating in 1952, he began touring with the bands of Alvino Rey, Jack Fina and Tex Beneke. Between seasons, Virgil introduced an artfully arranged sextet at concerts and club dates, contributing to the development of a nascent modern jazz scene in San Francisco, notably represented by the Dave Brubeck Trio.

In June 1954 some 400 students crowded the Tamalpais High School auditorium to dance to the beat of the Tam Dance Band. The featured attraction of the date was the appearance of the Virgil Gonsalves Sextet whose increasingly frequent and successful modern jazz performances were beginning to attract the attention of concert promoters and owners of the best clubs.

The work that the Virgil Gonsalves sextet had been developing particularly impressed Monterey local disc jockey Johnny Adams. In his eagerness to spread the word, Adams sent Gonsalves with tapes to a few jazz record labels, including the local Fantasy, as well as others in Los Angeles, such as Pacific Jazz and Nocturne Records.

After several weeks and a couple of meetings in L.A., Gonsalves finally struck a deal with Harry Babasin, producer and bassist for the newly formed and up-and-coming Nocturne label — but on one condition: for the recording session, instead of employing Gonsalves's usual San Francisco bandmates, Babasin would recruit a group of better known Los Angeles based jazz musicians in order to include the album in their "Jazz in Hollywood Series".

Babasin arranged a recording session at Western Recorders for September 29, 1954. With engineer John Neal on board and producer Babasin on bass, the sextet was rounded out by leader Gonsalves on baritone, the former Gene Krupa tenor saxophonist Buddy Wise, valve trombonist Bob Enevoldsen, pianist Lou Levy, and drummer Larry Bunker. The result was an excellent 10-inch album released in February 1955.

In November 1955, Gonsalves traveled to Los Angeles to record — again with sound engineer John Neal — a 12" for Liberty Records, but this time he did it with his original sextet, which by now had remained stable since high school. Its members — and Virgil's schoolmates for that matter — were Bob Badgley, valve trombone; Dan Pateris [a.k.a. Danny Patiris], tenor sax; Clyde Pound, piano; Max Hartstein, bass; and Gus Gustafson, drums. The arrangements were provided by Jerry Cournoyer and Bob Searle. After their first recording session, bassist Max Harstein fell ill and had to be replaced by the excellent Ron Crotty, who previously played with Brubeck. On this album, Gonsalves' work comes off with inventiveness and flow, and he managed to demonstrate his inherent rhythmas a soloist. The interplay between him and Dan Patiris keeps the swinging level of this set of the so-called San Francisco Jazz Style performances. *freshsoundrecords.com*

Music has played an integral role in the development of San Francisco as the cultural outpost of the West. Her Opera House is of world renown; her symphony orchestra and museums are rated with the nation’s finest. However, until recently, San Francisco's contributions to the jazz scene were limited to Lu Watters' Yerba Buena Jazz Band, a driving crew of Dixielanders; Kid Ory's Creole Band; and the usual assortment of unorganized groups who played mostly for their own pleasure (and little remuneration) at the city's many night spots.

In 1950, however, the City by the Golden Gate rose to national jazz prominence on the steely fingertips of Dave Brubeck, a pianist with an immense classical background, who gave the nation the first new sound in a decade. His fertile, imaginative application of polytonality in jazz started a whole new trend in music... one that could really be called Jazz — San Francisco Style. 

Thus began the renaissance of jazz in San Francisco. Many groups with varying sounds began to make their mark in the Bay area. 

Perhaps of all these, the group led by Virgil Gonsalves is the one following closest in Brubeck’s footsteps. Gonsalves' cool articulation on the baritone sax has jazz critics hailing him as the hottest star on this instrument since the heyday of Gerry Mulligan. 

"JAZZ-SAN FRANCISCO STYLE" is a Swinging album! The vibrant solo efforts are indicative of the uninhibited jazz feel that Virgil and his group generate. The spirit and drive shown in this LP give us the feeling that Virgil Gonsalves will soon emerge as one of the nation’s leading jazz figures. *Harry Babasin (liner notes)*

1 - Whitewash

(Cournoyer)

2 - Our Love Is Here To Stay

(Gershwin)

3 - Lost World

(Cournoyer)

4 - I'll Take Romance

(Oakland, Hammerstein)

5 - Searle's Corner

(Searle)

6 - Viva Zapata

(Shorty Rogers)

7 - Half Mine

(Searle)

8 - Goody-Goody

(Mercer, Malneck)

9 - Gar-Din

(Marabuto)

10 - My Heart Stood Still

(Rodgers, Hart)

11 - Fascinatin' Rhythm

(Gershwin)

12 - Bags' Groove

(Gonsalves)

Virgil Gonsalves (baritone sax), Bob Badgley (valve trombone), Dan Pateris (tenor sax),

Clyde Pound (piano), Ron Crotty [#1, #4 to #11] (bass),

Max Hartstein [#2, #3. #12] (bass), Gus Gustafson (drums).

Recorded at Capitol Records, Hollywood, California, November 1955

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (IX)

Buddy Childers

Sam's Songs

✤Liberty LJH 6009✤

When nominating the top trumpet men in the business, Buddy Childers has been consistently among the leaders. For the past thirteen years, his stiff upper lip has been winning the plaudits of discriminating musicians and fans alike while a member of the bands of Stan Kenton, Woody Herman, Benny Carter, Tommy Dorsey and Charlie Barnet. Except for his stint with Herman in late 1949, however, Buddy has been tied to the lead trumpet chair throughout his career.

"Not that I didn't enjoy blowing lead", he remarked in his rapid, positive manner, "but the fact is I always wanted to play jazz, and the lead book really gets monotonous at times".

Buddy is one of those wonder children of the trumpet who never had musical schooling. He is largely self-taught. Born in St. Louis, Missouri February 12, 1926, he inherited his first horn originally intended for his father "‘who just kept it around the house; he never got around to studying it". Childers played with the high school band in Belleville, Illinois, and at sixteen was auditioning for Stan Kenton in December of '42, an association which continued over an eleven year period. In fact, Buddy's first date was on Kenton's Artistry In Rhythm.

Although Buddy made many records with various bands in small groups during these years, the desire to cut records under his own name, and in his own style, persisted. For eighteen months Buddy worked in the pit band at Hollywood's famous Moulin Rouge. The nightly routine, however, proved too confining and Buddy decided to form his own group so that he "could begin to enjoy playing again!" *John Tynan (liner notes)*

⁂

My reasons for choosing these men [Herbie Steward, Bob Harrington, Harry Babasin and Milt Holland] are twofold. First, they're extremely capable musicians; secondly, they're all close personal friends of mine. Though their names may not be too well known to relative newcomers to jazz music, they’ve all been on the scene for years. Although they all are not now in the so-called main-stream of jazz, I believe they are consistently great performers. After listening to the results, I'm sure you'll agree that they are. *Buddy Childers (liner notes)*

Sam Songs is the first LP by 30-yearold trumpeter Childers, who played lead with Kenton, Woody Herman, T. Dorsey, Carter, and Barnet and jazz horn with Herman in 1949. His sympathetic associates are Herb Steward on tenor instead of his usual lead alto of recent years; pianist Bob Harrington; bassist Harry Babasin; studio drummer Milt Holland, who came out for some air. Unfortunately, due to Liberty's insistence on damaging their squeezing 12 tracks into this one isn't the success been.

The writing (seven by Childers and five by Harrington) is pleasant, with some of the themes quite attractive, but there is no space to develop them, and as a result, a shortened sameness is a post-listening impression. Half as many tunes and some extended blowing and/or more extensive structuring would have made for a higher rating. As it is, Childers blows well and while no giant of jazz trumpet, has taste and a good beat.

It's good to hear Herb, a distinguished ex-Hermanite again. There is some degree of inhibition in Steward's blowing here, perhaps because of his length of time away from the tenor, but his flowing sense of time, good sound, and conception are still evident. Harrington is a swinging, economical pianist and his rhythm section colleagues are effective. The sam-titling is a too extended joke without a punch line. *Nat Hentoff (Down Beat, May 30, 1956)*

Side 1

1 - Honeysuckle Sam

(Buddy Childers)

2 - Sam Metrically

(Buddy Childers)

3 - My Wild Irish Sam

(Buddy Childers)

4 - Sentimental Sam

(Bob Harrington)

5 - Ding Dong, Sam Is Dead

(Buddy Childers)

6 - Sam 'N' Eggs

(Bob Harrington)

Side 2

7 - Deviled Sam

(Bob Harrington)

8 - Wham Sam!

(Buddy Childers)

9 - Thank You, Sam

(Buddy Childers)

10 - Sam's Serenade

(Bob Harrington)

11 - Three Sam's In A Fountain

(Buddy Childers)

12 - Canned Sam

(Bob Harrington)

Buddy Childers (trumpet), Herbie Steward (tenor sax),

Bob Harrington (piano), Harry Babasin (bass), Milt Holland (drums).

Recorded at Western Recorders, Hollywood, California,

November 29 (#2, #3, #4, #8, #9, #12) and December 6 (#1, #5, #6, #7, #10, #11), 1955

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (VIII)

Bobby Enevoldsen

Smorgasbord

✤Liberty LJH 6008✤

Smorgasbord is a delightful album. The title is so intriguing because it is so descriptive and applicable. According to Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, "Smorgasbord" is a Scandinavian word meaning "a variety of appetizers served before the main meal". Mr. Enevoldsen is Scandinavian (Danish to be exact), and this is his album, but that's only the first parallel. The arrangements, also Mr. Enevoldsen's, are interestingly varied; and the songs run the gamut from the old to the new, from the soulful beauty of the ballad, "My Ideal", to the almost raucous blues of "Bob's Boy", and, then to the up-tempoed "You're In Love". The musicians themselves offer even more variety to the sum total, because four of them double and triple on instruments: Red Mitchell on bass and piano; Marty Paich on piano, organ and accordion; Larry Bunker on drums, vibes and piano; and Bob, himself, on tenor saxophone, valve trombone, and bass. So you see, it's really a smorgasbord of jazz. And it's all very stimulating. In too many jazz albums today there's a regrettable lack of judgement and care. You listen and know that the entire twelve sides were conceived, arranged, and recorded within a two or three day period. This is an excellent method for a company to release six or seven albums every month; but it's also an excellent method of not taking advantage of talent and good musicianship. Smorgasbord, fortunately, is not this kind of album. Each composition was obviously carefully arranged and rehearsed. And the end result is more than worth the time and effort consumed in getting the desired sound. *Bobby Troup (liner notes)* 

Back in the early 1950s, jazz musicians were impossibly gifted. A good number not only could play their primary instrument with enormous skill and flair, they often could play quite a few others. This was particularly true on the West Coast, where studio work was abundant but your share depended largely on how many axes you could grind. If you played only the tenor sax, your odds of being called consistently for a job were slim given the competition. But if you played three or more instruments, you could find yourself recording on several sessions a day. One of these highly versatile West Coast jazz musicians was Bob Enevoldsen, who played valve trombone, tenor sax and upright bass.

Born in Montana, Enevoldsen studied music in Montana, served in the army, taught music in Salt Lake City, and moved to Los Angeles in 1951. There, he played valve trombone and tenor saxophone with Gerry Mulligan, Shorty Rogers, Shelly Manne and Marty Paich. Soon after he arrived, he learned the bass, perhaps as a way to play with the Harry Babasin Quartet and free up bassist Babasin to play the jazz cello.

Enevoldsen also played bass in pianist and singer Bobby Troup's groups from 1954 onward. In 1959, Enevoldsen began working in Las Vegas show bands, and became a staff and studio musician for Steve Allen's TV show from 1962-64. In the decades that followed Enevoldsen remained a steady session and freelance musician on the West Coast.

Among Enevoldsen's key recordings of the 1950s are dates with the Gerry Mulligan Tentet , Shorty Rogers, Bud Shank , Bill Holman, Russ Garcia, Marty Paich and Art Pepper. From 1960 onward, Enevoldsen worked on movie soundtracks and TV show themes, and recorded jazz sessions up until his death in 2005.

Perhaps Enevoldsen's finest leadership date from the mid-1950s is Smorgasbord. The album demonstrates his versatility and humor as well as his spirited arranging skills. In addition to being a highly swinging session, it's notable for the musicians who were there and the instruments they played. The recording features Enevoldsen on valve trombone and tenor sax; Marty Paich on piano, organ and accordion; Larry Bunker on vibes and drums; Howard Roberts on guitar; Red Mitchell on bass and piano; and Don Heath on drums.

Besides the terrific small-group charts by Enevoldsen, you get to hear Paich play the squeezebox, and he does quite a fabulous job ("Swinging on a Star", for example). Also spectacular is Larry Bunker on vibes and guitarist Howard Roberts, who too often is overlooked among the crowd of jazz session guitarists in California during this period.

As one of jazz's early valve-trombonists, Enevoldsen cannot be compared with Bob Brookmeyer. Bob was and continues to be spectacular, and the two artists weren't in the same league. But Enevoldsen was a solid player and arranger who found steady work playing three different instruments. And he played them with ease and grace. *Marc Myers*

Side 1

1 - Ding Dong, The Witch Is Dead

(Arlen, Harburg)

2 - Swingin' On A Star

(Van Heusen, Burke)

3 - Swinger's Dream

(MacDougald)

4 - My Ideal

(Robin, Whiting, Chase)

5 - How Low The Tune

(Troup, Enevoldsen)

6 - John's Jumble

(Enevoldsen)

Side 2

7 - You're In Love

(Bobby Troup)

8 - Thinking Of You

(Kalmar, Ruby)

9 - No Time For Love

(Davidson)

10 - Mr. Know-It-All

(Bobby Troup)

11 - Oh! Look At Me Now

(John DeVries)

12 - Bob's Boy

(Bob Gordon)

#1:

Bob Enevoldsen (tenor sax), Marty Paich (piano), Larry Bunker (vibes),

Howard Roberts (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#2:

Bob Enevoldsen (tenor sax), Marty Paich (accordion), Larry Bunker (vibes),

Howard Roberts (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#3:

Marty Paich (organ), Red Mitchell (piano), 

Larry Bunker (vibes), Bob Enevoldsen (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#4:

Bob Enevoldsen (valve trombone), Marty Paich (accordion), Larry Bunker (vibes),

Howard Roberts (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#5:

Marty Paich (accordion); Larry Bunker (vibes); Howard Roberts (guitar);

Red Mitchell, Bob Enevoldsen (basses); Don Heath (drums).

#6:

Marty Paich (piano), Bob Enevoldsen (bass), Larry Bunker (drums).

#7:

Bob Enevoldsen (valve trombone), Marty Paich (piano),Larry Bunker (vibes), 

Howard Roberts (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#8:

Bob Enevoldsen (tenor sax), Marty Paich (piano),Larry Bunker (vibes), 

Howard Roberts (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#9:

Bob Enevoldsen (tenor sax), Marty Paich (accordion), Larry Bunker (piano),

Howard Roberts (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#10:

Bob Enevoldsen (tenor sax), Marty Paich (organ),

Larry Bunker (vibes), Red Mitchell (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#11:

Bob Enevoldsen (valve trombone), Marty Paich (piano), Larry Bunker (vibes), 

Howard Roberts (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass), Don Heath (drums).

#12:

Marty Paich, Larry Bunker, Red Mitchell (pianos); Howard Roberts (guitar);

Bob Enevoldsen (bass); Don Heath (drums).

Recorded in Hollywood, California, November 25 and 29, 1955

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (VII)

Jack Millman Sextet

Shades Of Things To Come

✤Liberty LJH 6007✤

A great lost treasure from the LA scene of the 50s — one of the few albums recorded by trumpeter Jack Millman as a leader, working here with a well-named set of "all stars" that includes Jimmy Giuffre on baritone and clarinet, Buddy Colette on flue and alto, Bob Harrington on piano, Harry Babasin on bass, and Larry Bunker on drums! The set's got a similar feel to other west coast work of the time, but the tracks are tighter, more composed, and a bit more swinging — sort of halfway between swing and the chamber jazz of some of the headier groups. Titles include "The Great Lie", "Along About F", "Butterfingers", "Thinking Of Russ", and "Da Bloosiest Blues". 

*Dusty Groove, Inc.*

Shades of Things To Come, as this is titled, is a consistently attractive, immediately assimilable album by flugelhornist Millman. It's considerably more relaxed and generally imaginative than his recent Decca Jazz Studio 4 set. Everyone blows warmly and with a fine collective, cohesive swing. The musicians include Buddy Collette, flute, alto, and tenor; Jimmy Giuffre, baritone sax and clarinet; Bob Harrington, piano; Harry Babasin, bass and producer of the date; Larry Bunker and Fred Capp, alternating on drums.

The writing throughout is unpretentious, tinged with wit, and quite fresh in places. The notes provide composition and arranging details. The writers involved are Millmann, Carson Smith and Jimmy Hall, Don Peterson, Bunker, Harrington, Charles Deremo, and Collette.

It’s too bad that 12 tracks ar jammed swiftly into this one LP.

When will a&r men realize that the chief virtue of the 12'' LP (aside from added sales) is the breathing space it's capable of providing writers and blowers? Anyway, the set is certainly recommended as an unusually friendly one, a word that really fits this particular context.

Millman on flugelhorn is, by the way, one of the hotter, unabashedly emotional hornmen on the coast. As a writer, Harrington has a commendably easeful touch. This is another good engineering job by John Neal. *Nat Hentoff (Down Beat, May 16, 1956)*

When this session was originally planned, Jack intended to use the late Bob Gordon on bass clarinet and the arrangements were written with Bob specifically in mind.

Bob's untimely passing created a problema — mainly, where to find another swinging bass clarinetist. The answer proved to be a simple one, for Jimmy Giuffre was available and readily stepped in. Although he could play the bass clarinet, he didn't own one! So all arrangements were finally rewritten for regular clarinet. Jimmy’s playing in the low register produced a particularly fine sound.

⁂

This is not Jack Millman's first album, but it is most definitely his "swingin'est". In listening to the crop of upcoming West Coast jazz men, it is increasingly apparent to what degree these young musicians are constantly progressing. With each successive record, it is possible to hear the advancement in ideas, technique and tonal quality. Jack's work on both trumpet and flugelhorn, as with so many of our young jazz men on the West Coast, shows this continuous advancement. 

"SHADES OF THINGS TO COME" offers an intriguing speculation on future jazz.

*Sleepy Stein (liner notes)*

Side 1

1 - Thinking Of Russ

(Millman)

2 - Along About F

(Harrington)

3 - Butterfingers

(Millman)

4 - Polka Dots And Moonbeams

(Van Heusen, Burke)

5 - There Will Never Be Another You

(Warren, Gordon)

6 - The Great Lie

(Hefti)

Side 2

7 - Da Bloosiest Blues

(Millman)

8 - Mother's Whistler

(Harrington)

9 - Gone With The Wind

(Wrubel, Magidson)

10 - Skylark

(Carmichael, Mercer)

11 - It Could Happen To You

(Van Heusen, Burke)

12 - That Old Feeling

(Fain, Brown)

Jack Millman (flugelhorn); Buddy Collette (flute, alto sax, tenor sax);

Jimmy Giuffre (baritone sax, clarinet); Bob Harrington (piano); Harry Babasin (bass);

Frank Capp [#1 to #4, #8, #10, #12], Larry Bunker [#5 to #7, #9, #11] (drums).

Recorded in Hollywood, California, September 1955

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (VI)

Steve White

Jazz Mad

The Unpredictable Steve White

✤Liberty LJH 6006✤

Bucking an age of stultifying conformity, the jazz world has of necessity its generous share of individualists. One otf the most outstanding among these is Steve White. His vigorous, uninhibited playing has identified him on the West Coast these past few years with that rare brand of untrammieled jazz instrumentalists are content to play anywhere just for the sheer joy of blowing jazz. On this, his first LIBERTY album, Steve is allowed absolute freedom. 

Stephen Gaylord White is a jazz musician who exercises his art form passionately in his dedication to complete self-expression. Although he has a background of much big band experience (Butch Stone, Jimmy Dorsey, Alvino Rey), he has never made a name for himself in that area. He has, rather, been content to play in comparative obscurity around the Los Angeles nightspot circuit, winning the admiration of contemporary musicians and a loyal contingent of fans. 

If you enjoy jazz in a modern vein untyped by "school"’ or intellectual classification, then this free-blowing session by "The Unpredictable" Steve White is cut to order for you.

*John Tynan (liner notes)*

Jazz Mad: The Unpredictable Steve White is the LP debut of the 30-yearold Los Angeles tenor who has worked with Butch Stone, Jimmy Dorsey, Alvino Rey, and in L.A. clubs. He is accompanied by a competent rhythm section of pianist Bob Harrington, bassist Harry Babasin, and drummer Boone Stines. On the first and better side, White just plays. He sings the last five titles, and his decision to vocalize is extremely ill-advised for just about every reason ir the book. His own lyrics on "What Makes Me Blue Today?" are the most alarmingly mediocre in my experience.

As for his playing on both sides, White is a modern, Pres-derived tenor with frequent touches of Getz. He does not, however, have the flow of invention and the constant good taste of Getz. His taste, in fact, sometimes lapses and while there are pleasant moments in his work due to a generally good tone, frequent vigor, and fluent technique, he is not especially individual nor is his conception usually fresh.

Other negative aspects of this LP are several too-short tracks and the inexplicable fading at the end of three of the numbers. The writing, moderately attractive for the most part, is, however, also not distinctive. It’s all by White or by White and Harrington.

Hardly recommended for anyone on a record budget since the "singing" ruins almost all of the second side. *Nat Hentoff (Down Beat, May 6, 1956)*

Well, not exactly "mad" as in wild, but this is an excellent — albeit pedestrian — jazz platter. White was fine Tenor sax player, equally adept at free-swinging arrangements such as "Liberty In White" and "Stopped — You See", as well as ballads like "I Only Have Eyes For You" and "Lazy Lady Blues". He is supported on this record by en excellent group consisting of Harry Babasin (bass), Boone Stines (drums) an Bob Harrington (piano). All provide excellent support throughout the entire record. This record features one of the more elaborate and aestheticly pleasing album covers of it's day, an excellent, carnival-esque painting by Ed Graves. *Matthew Greenwald*

Side 1

1 - Liberty In White

(White)

2 - Mister Thing

(White, Harrington)

3 - Musin'

(White, Harrington)

4 - I Only Have Eyes For You

(Warren, Dubin)

5 - Rushin' The Blues

(White, Harrington)

6 - Beside A Sea

(White, Harrington)

7 - Stopped — You See

(White)

Side 2

8 - Lazy Lady Blues

(Moore, Feather)

9 - What Makes Me Blue Today?

(White)

10 - Paper Moon

(Arlen, Rose, Harburg)

11 - Don't Worry 'Bout Me

(Bloom, Koehler)

12 - April Showers

(Silvers, DeSylva)

Steve White (tenor sax, vocals), Bob Harrington (piano),

Harry Babasin (bass), Boone Stines (drums).

Recorded in Hollywood, California, August 1955

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (V)

Hollywood Saxophone Quartet

Jazz In Hollywood

✤Liberty LJH 6005✤

For even the most avid and best-informed jazz aficionados, the music in this album may be a huge surprise — and reed players, too, will find much to astonish and delight. The Hollywood Saxophone Quartet was composed of four gifted studio saxophonists, who organized the unit mainly to play original music by contemporary composers with a rhythm section added. In a collection of beautifully played arrangements written by some superbly skilled craftsmen such as Lennie Niehaus, Marty Paich, Russ Garcia, and Jack Montrose, the shadings of tone these men achieve are incredibly delicate and profuse in their colorings. The sheer technical ability, ensemble work, rapport and execution is remarkable — and they swing all the way through. *Jordi Pujol*

As Charlie Emge's liner notes point out, the Hollywood saxophone quartet has suceceded in "creating a true ensemble, an ensemble comparable to that of the fine string quartets". This is not the sax ensemble work of the type that Paul Whiteman used to feature, or even Stan Kenton on Opus in Pastels. It is a collection of beautifully played arrangements that were written by some mighty skilled craftsmen, and which come much closer to the jazz idiom than previous efforts.

The saxes are Russ Cheever, soprano; Jack Dumont, alto; Morrie Crawford, tenor, and Bill Ulyate, barritone, and their rapport and execution is most remarkable.

But there is no room open for improvisation, and though the writing generally is interesting, only Marty Paich's Toccata makes the men extend themselves and presents them with a real challenge. Billy May's Cheek to Cheek contains some genuine humor, Russ Garcia's Commotions is worth hearing, and Lennie Niehaus' Make the Most shows some good construction, but perhaps it would have been wiser not to term this a jazz album. For judged on the basis of its musical creativity it could not merit more than three stars. If judged on sheer technical ability and ensemble work, it would get the full five. Thus the compromise rating. Recording quality is superb.

*Jack Tracy (Down Beat, November 30, 1955)*

The saxophone, from Weidoeft to Trumbauer to Parker, has been subject to widely varying conceptions by performers good and bad. As a result, it is difficult for both teachers and players to say to a student with conviction:

"This is the right (or wrong) way to play saxophone".

In the Hollywood Saxophone Quartet, one hears, in my opinion, the four instruments represented — straight soprano, alto, tenor and baritone — played in a manner that establishes a standard. Not only have its members established a standard for individual performance, but they have succeeded in creating a true ensemble, an ensemble comparable to that of the fine string quartets. It didn't happen over-night, nor by chance. The members of the quartet, all successful career musicians, formed the unit some years ago solely for the purpose of playing music for their own enjoyment and for those persons fortunate enough to hear them at private gatherings. 

⁂

Now that the word "jazz"’ has become more meaningless than ever — it was always the wrong word for the wrong music — I hesitate to use it in relation to the music offered in this album. However, for those who understand that "jazz" is an influence rather than something separate and apart from other forms of music — an influence present to a degree in most forms of contemporary musical expression — the music presented here by the Hollywood Saxophone Quartet could very well open a new world of musical enjoyment. *Charles Emge (liner notes)*

Side 1

1 - Toccata In F

(Paich)

2 - Nightcap

(Niehaus)

3 - New York City Ghost

(Victor Young, Peggy Lee)

4 - You Brought A New Kind Of Love

(Fain, Kahal, Norman)

5 - Autumn In New York

(Vernon Duke)

6 - There'll Never Be Another You

(Jacobs, Tinturin)

Side 2

7 - Mixed Commotions

(Russ Garcia)

8 - Cheek To Cheek

(Irving Berlin)

9 - Make The Most Of It

(Niehaus)

10 - Ghost Of A Chance

(Crosby, Washington, Young)

11 - All The Things You Are

(Kern, Hammerstein)

12 - Dancing On The Ceiling

(Rodgers, Hart)

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, Hollywood, California, September 8 and 14, 1955

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (IV)

Abe Most Quintet

Mister Clarinet

✤Liberty LJH 6004✤

Abe Most (February 27, 1920 – October 10, 2002) was a swing clarinetist and alto saxophonist who is known for his performances and recordings of the works of Artie Shaw and Benny Goodman. He began his career in 1939 as a member of Les Brown's big band. After serving three years in the US Army during World War II from 1942-1945, he became a member of Tommy Dorsey's big band.

Most made a few albums with smaller labels, including Superior (1946), Trend (1954), Annunciata (1978) and Camard (1984). He was a studio musician for seven decades, playing on albums by Earth, Wind & Fire, Ted Gärdestad, Dick Haymes, Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, and Dory Previn among others. He can also be heard playing on the soundtrack of the film "How to Marry a Millionaire". He is the older brother of jazz musician Sam Most. *library.ucsb.edu*

Mister Clarinet stands out due to its emphasis on swing music and showcases Abe leading a quintet made up of prominent musicians from that time. The twelve tracks featured on the album highlight Most's remarkable versatility and skill on the clarinet. This album is well-regarded for its sophisticated performances and the high standard of its arrangements, reinforcing Abe Most's status as an exceptional swing clarinetist. *worthpoint.com*

He's a jazz clarinet player and he's the Most! And Abe is his first name. 

He stands 6 ft. 2 in — weighs 15 stone. He’s good-natured, guileless, easy-going and always smiling. As so many of the Hollywood musicians say: "Of all the guys around, Abe is the friendliest and the happiest". 

But. one Christmas Day he cried his eyes out. It was December 25, 1929. He was nine. For three years Jack Teagarden had been his idol. Naturally, young Abe Most wanted Santa to give him a trombone, and he'd "gotten a clarinet instead". 

"You see, things weren't too good in Dad's hat business", Abe told me. And the still youthful Pop Most chimed in: "Yes, licorice sticks were much cheaper than slip horns". 

Anyway, it seems that little Abe soon dried his eyes. He quickly transferred his affections from Big T (Jack Teagarden) to BG (Benny Goodman) and settled down to learn the intricacies of the Boehm system. He practised to good effect, as is amply evidenced on the fascinating new recordings by Abe with his own group of Hollywood jazz stars. 

The accomplished Abe was born, of Russian parents, in New York. Immediately on leaving high school he formed his own jazz quartet, a clarinet-accordion-guitar-bass group. 

However, the California sun lured Abe back. He returned to Hollywood to rejoin Les Brown. The Most clarinet was heard with the Brown band on the Bob Hope and other radio and TV shows emanating from the West Coast.

In 1950, Abe left Les to go to the 20th-Century Fox film studios as their jazz clarinettist. 

Nevertheless, Abe and his friend Buddy de Franco have their own mutual admiration society. Abe was, actually, Buddy's successor in Tommy Dorsey's band. 

Abe has studied extensively under the Schillinger system. He composes and arranges everything played by the group.

You will find that it is not, in any way music for profound study. But it is music for consummate enjoyment. It's modern jazz with a completely unpretentious approach — a swinging, ebullient sound that expresses the personality of its creator — articulate ABE (the) MOST.

*Howard Lucraft (liner notes)*

Side 1

1 - Let's Fall In Love

(Arlken, Koehler)

2 - There's A Small Hotel

(Rodgers, Hart)

3 - You Go To My Head

(Coots, Gillespie)

4 - Smoke Rings

(Gifford, Washington)

5 - The Lively Ghost

(Abe Most)

6 - Myrtha

(Abe Most)

Side 2

7 - Lady Is A Tramp

(Rodgers, Hart)

8 - Little Girl Blue

(Rodgers, Hart)

9 - Makin' Whoopee

(Kahn, Donaldson)

10 - Stuffed Olives

(Abe Most)

11 - What Is There To Say

(Harburg, V. Duke)

12 - Mr. Caddis Thorpe

(Abe Most)

Abe Most (clarinet), Tony Rizzi (guitar),

Paul Smith (piano), Joe Mondragon (bass), Larry Bunker (drums).

Recorded in Hollywood, California, August 1955

Liberty Records • Jazz in Hollywood Series (III)

Herbie Harper

Featuring Bud Shank And Bob Gordon

✤Liberty LJH 6003✤

Hollywood, with its activity in the various fields of entertainment, has, for many years, attracted outstanding musisians of every category. Jazz men, in addition to many of our foremost concert artists, symphonic conductors and composers, make their homes in Hollywood. However, it is the development of local musical talents such as Bud 

Shank and Bob Gordon of which the film city can be most proud. Their emergence as full-fledged stars recalls the fact... Hollywood has been the birthplace of many a musical luminary. LIBERTY'S "JAZZ IN HOLLYWOOD" SERIES, in presenting Herbie Harper, Bud Shank and Bob Gordon, is adding a link in the never-ending chain of fine recorded jazz for which Hollywood is known.

⁂

On these sides, Herbie Harper, Bud Shank and Bob Gordon were in the company of many of Hollywood's (or the nation, for that matter) finest musical talent... the sparkling piano work of Jimmy Rowles on the Gordon sides, the inventive Marty Paich, who played and arranged the Shank sides, the splendid rhythmic backing of Harry Babasin on bass, and the strong drumming of Roy Harte. The combined creative effort of these artists will provide the listener with a representative musical glimpse of JAZZ IN HOLLYWOOD.  *Harry Babasin (liner notes)*

Trombonist Herbie Harper was one of the best underground talents on the LA cool jazz scene of the 50s — and although he cut albums like this, full of tight playing and imagination, he never really got the due that he deserved. He's heard here in two groupings — one with Bud Shank on tenor and baritone, the other with Bob Gordon on baritone. All the tracks are short and ensemble-heavy, with backing by a piano trio that features either Marty Paich or Jimmy Rowles. Titles include "The Happy Clown", "Five Brothers", "Jeepers Leapers", "Summertime", "Herbstone", and "New York City Ghost". *Dusty Groove, Inc.*

Side 1

1 - Now Playing

(Neal Hefti)

2 - The New York City Ghost

(Victor Young, Peggy Lee)

3 - The Happy Clown

(Marty Paich)

4 - Dinah

(Lewis, Young, Akst)

5 - Sanguine

(Marty Paich)

Side 2

6 - Five Brothers

(Gerry Mulligan)

7 - Summertime

(Gershwin)

8 - Herbstone

(Harper)

9 - Jive At Five

(Harry Edison, Count Basie)

10 - Jeepers Leapers

(McDougal)

Herbie Harper (trombone), with:

Bud Shank (tenor sax, baritone sax), Harry Babasin (bass), 

Marty Paich (piano), Roy Harte (drums) [#1 to #5].

Bob Gordon (baritone sax), Harry Babasin (bass),

Jimmy Rowles (piano), Roy Harte (drums) [#6 to #10].

Recorded at United Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California, 

February 27 (#4, #6, #7, #8,#9, #10) and September 16 (#1, #2, #3, #5), 1954