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LOUIS HAYES
The Real Thing
Muse MR-5125
St. Peter's Walk/ Nisha/ Loose Suite/ My Gift
To You/ Jack's Tune/ Marilyn's House.
Recorded May 20/21,1977 in New York.
Woody Shaw (tpt, flghn) , Rene McLean (ss, as,
ts), Ronnie Mathews (p), Stafford James (b),
Hayes (dms). Slide Hampton (tb) on last 3
titles.
Known to most concerned collectors for their
work behind Dexter Gordon on the famous
"Homecoming" LP, the Louis Hayes/Woody
Shaw combo proves here that, even without
the infectious presence of the cerebrated tenor -
man, they are more than capable of sustaining
interest on their own. Although not all of the
soloists are as sk illed in the art of generating
excitement as are Shaw and Hayes, few wilr be
able to fault them for their existing talents
Besides the co-leaders, whose joint expertise
is understandably showcased, there are valuabre
statements uttered by each of the regulars, with
an additional bonus offered in the sometime
appearance of fellow-traveler Hampton.
One can note several stylistic precedents
for the music of this regrettably short-lived
ensemble, those most easily discerned being the
fiery swing of the old Messengers and the tur-
bulent modality of mid-period Coltrane, but
this in no way implies a conscious reiteration
of others' achievements. On the contrary,
these influences are felt to serve more as dir -
ection-pointers than as ends-in-themselves, bla-
tant parrotry hardly being the only option avail-
3ble to such fluent improvisers as constitute
this heady assemblage.
Shaw is obviously one of the better trum-
Jeters of our time. He has a broad, enveloping
;ound, a super-charged delivery tempered by