Lighthouse All-Stars Collection V

Howard Rumsey

Howard Rumsey's Lighthouse All-Stars

Volume 4

★Oboe / Flute★

The Bob Cooper-Bud Shank oboe-flute duets started at The Lighthouse in Hermosa Beach, California, the experimental center of West Coast modern sounds, in December, 1953.

This was the first time the jazz possibilities of the flute and oboe had been explored, and public response was instantaneous and enthusiastic. The popularity of the duets indicated a recording session, and since no suitable body of literature existed for the combination, the performers sat down and wrote six of the eight tunes released in the Spring of 1954 as 10" long-playing C2510. These eight selections: Aquarium, Warm Winds, Night In Tunisia, Albatross, Still Life, Bags' Groove, Hermosa Summer, Happy Town, were recorded the afternoons of February 25th and 26th, 1954 with BOB COOPER, oboe & English horn; BUD SHANK, flute & alto flute; CLAUDE WILLIAMSON, piano; HOWARD RUMSEY, bass; and MAX ROACH, drums.

The original album was an unqualified success, and in the three years since its release, the oboe-flute duets have been a fixture at The Lighthouse, and the flute a generally accepted jazz instrument.

By September 25th, 1956, when Waikikian, A Bit Of Basie, Swing House, and Blue Sands were recorded, Bud Shank had left The Lighthouse to form his own group. BUDDY COLLETTE, the versatile master of six woodwinds (see his Contemporary 12" C3522: >Man Of Many Parts<), took over the flute chair as guest star. SONNY CLARK and STAN LEVEY, both regular members of the All-Stars, were present on piano and drums. *(from the liner notes)*

The oboe and flute duets by Bob Cooper and Bud Shank have become quite a tradition at the Lighthouse, one of the few remaining jazz spots in the Los Angeles area these days. The eight selections by these two, Cooper doubling on English horn, were recorded in 1953 and were previously issued on Vogue LDC 146.

Personally I don't much care about the thin emasculated tone of flutes and oboes as applied to jazz, though I can appreciate the musical worth and fine technique of both players in this instance. All the same, except for "Albatross", which swings neatly with some nice piano from Claude Williamson and "Bags' Groove", it all sounds like arty-crafty film background music.

The remaining selections were recorded in 1956 by Buddy Collette, also on flute, plus rhythm section. Though the conception is similar in some cases to the previous session, I find these very much more acceptable in a jazz sense, and Buddy to be much the most talented musician of the three.

"A Bit of Basie" features Sonny Clark at the piano and both this and "Swing House" reveal Buddy’s considerable technique more than adequately. *Peter Tanner (jazzjournal.co.uk)*

This fascinating record features Bob Cooper and Bud Shank/Buddy Collette (fl, alto-fl) exclusively with piano, bass, and drums. Since the sessions are from two different years, the rhythm section is not completely the same on both. The 1954 session, which comprises most of the album, features the renowned drummer Max Roach and Shank on flute. This album came out of many off the cuff oboe and flute duet improvisations that Cooper and Shank were famous for at The Lighthouse in Hermosa Beach, CA. The album is the epitome of "West Coast" jazz from this era, and the tracks are mostly originals, with a couple of more standard tunes ("Night in Tunisia" and "Bag's Groove") thrown in for good measure. This recording is significant because it is definitely one of the earliest, and possibly the first instance of the oboe taking a leading role in jazz. Prior to Bob Cooper, an oboist might take center stage for part of a tune, or possibly even an entire tune, but never an album devoted to specifically jazz oboe. This recording is also important because it features prominent jazz players who were well known in their own time, and continue to be recognized as influential in jazz. *Kimberly Everett Ganong [from A History and Discography of the Oboe in Jazz])*

1 - Aquarium

(Claude Williamson)

2 - Warm Winds

(Bob Cooper)

3 - A Night In Tunisia

(Dizzy Gillespie, Frank Paparelli)

4 - Albatross

(Max Roach)

5 - Blue Sands

(Buddy Collette)

6 - Swing House

(Gerry Mulligan)

7 - Still Life

(Bob Cooper)

8 - Bags' Groove

(Milt Jackson)

9 - Hermosa Summe

(Bob Cooper)

10 - A Bit Of Basie

(Buddy Collette)

11 - Waikikian

(Bob Cooper)

12 - Happy Town

(Bud Shank)

#1, #2, #3, #4, #7, #8, #9, #12:

Bud Shank (flute, alto flute), Bob Cooper (oboe, english horn),

Claude Williamson (piano), Howard Rumsey (bass), Max Roach (drums).

Recorded at Contemporary's Studios, Los Angeles, California,

February 25 (#1, #2, #3, #4) and 26 (#7, #8, #9, #12), 1954

#5, #6, #10, #11:  

Buddy Collette (flute, alto flute), Bob Cooper (oboe, english horn),

Sonny Clark (piano), Howard Rumsey (bass), Stan Levey (drums).

Recorded at Contemporary's Studios, Los Angeles, California, September 25, 1956.