"
~
mittedly, none of the soloists were as proficient Grappelli's violin has a warm, engaging timbre thoughtfulness, and as neat a way with lyrical
as Gillespie, neither as instrumentalists com- that invites you to listen, whether his line is phrasemaking as one could reasonablyexpect.
fortable in their self-assurance nor as definitive yearning and passionate (Improvisation), cascad- Moreover, his innate excellence as a time-keeper
spokesmen for the new idiom, but irrespective ing over the scale (Parisian), or soaring with enables him to concentrate on the matter at
of their individual shortcomings, together they chords, trills, grace notes, etc. (Wave). George hand almost in defiance of the polymetrical
wielded a raw forcefulness that is bedrock to Mraz's bass joins in for some interesting and support beneath him. McLean is equally at
the jazz ethos. Besides Gillespie's own flawless novel passages, such as the bowed-violin-and- home in the churning whirlpool Hayes creates,
playing, we hear encouraging forecasts from bass figures that open and close Perugia, the his varied sonorities and sharply-contoured lines
Cecil Payne (Stay On It, Hot House, and Pan- jaunty and jagged plucking on Cute, and the suggesting a synthesis of his father's unique sty.
Dameronia) , Ray Brown (Two Bass Hit) , and string section chase chorus with Mel Lewis' le with some of the more quick Iy assimilated
Milt Jackson (Groovin' High, Oo-Bop-Sh'Bam, drums on Parisian. Roland Hanna's piano, as touches of Coltrane. Less dedication to the
and Hot House). The tenor solos (Oop-Pop-A- the other principal solo voice (electric piano on latter could escalate this young talent to an
Da, Oo-Bop-Sh'Bam, and Ray's Idea), though Fascinating and Parisian), is just right, offering even higher level of attractiveness than he
usually attributed to James ",1oody, I believe to Grappelli spare and appropriate support, mov- currently possesses.
be the work of Joe Gales, an early drop-out ing into the spotlight to enhance the mood with Hampton, who appears only on Side B, once
from the scene. In the 1947 soundie, "Jivin' In such interludes as the ruminative-right-hand- again reminds us of his superiority among mod-
Bebop" , Moody can clearly be seen playing in over -droning-bass in Perugia and the light-step- ern trombon ists. He has, apparently, all the
the section, but the solos were taken by the ping fast right-and-Ieft-hand-unison licks in facility he needs to express whatever comes to
other tenorman. Presumably, this was Gales, Cure , and adding muscular-but-not-too-busy mind, and as we know from his prodigious
for the saxophonist in question bears little re- contributions to the closing ensembles. writing over the years, he lacks nothing in the
semblance to George "Big Nick" Nicholas, the The combo makes it on well-integrated play- way of creative imagination. As an instrument-
only other likely contender. Aural evidence is, ing, the name of the game in any style of music. alist, he is facile, tonally secure, and arresting in
unfortunately, unreliable since all three were Their varied effects get the most out of the his eloquence. The rhythm section is superb,
uniformly under the same stylistic impress -material and are handled smoothly and profes- as anyone familiar with their previous work
namely, that of Dexter Gordon -and it would sionally in a spirit of joie de vivre. will have already predicted. Some time ago,
be some time before Moody would develop his Candidly, this disc is several notches more Ronnie Mathews emerged from the same Brook.
own signature. Of lesser importance is my modern than my customary traditionalist fare Iyn milieu that have us Duke Jordan, Gil
desire to see the chord sequence of Pan-Damer- and will not make it to my turntable as often Coggins, and others, and in the years that have
onia properly assigned: it is not based on the as my mouldier favorites. Equally candidly ,the passed since his "big-time" debut, he has never
changes of Sweet Georgia Brown, as erroneously album impresses me on every score and was a failed to turn in a professional performance
reported in the notes, but instead on the even thorough and unqualified delight to review. He appears to be dedicated to the right prin-
more ubiquitous I Got Rhythm pattern, a con- -Tex Wyndham ciples, and his solos generally display original
struction as immediately recognizable as that of thinking. James is a relentless prodder and
the 12-bar blues, or so I've always assumed. But deserves much of the credit for the rhythm
no matter. And certainly not in face of the LOUIS HA YES team's success, but it is Hayes who constantly
album's chief merit -the playing of trumpeter astounds. His solos are numerous, as is only a
Gillespie. The Real Thing leader's prerogative, but they are never irrele-
Still the vibrant young Colossus who, only a Muse MR-5125 vant. -Jack Sohmer
few years earlier, had dichotomized the jazz
world into tvvo irreconciliable camps, G illespie St. Peter's Walk! Nisha! Loose Suire! My Gift ---~
is at the height of his creative powers. Through- To you! Jack's Tune! Marilyn's House. WOODY H E RMAN
out his solos are models of the art. And Recorded May 20/21, 1977 in New York. -
am~ng his similarly devoted colleagues, only The 40th Anniversary, Carnegie Hall Concert
Charlie Parker displayed such logical inevitabil- Woody Shaw (tpt, flghn) , Rene McLean (ss, as, RCA BGL 2-2203
ity in the development of his ideas, such inspir- ts) , Ronnie Math~ws (p) , Stafford James (b) , ..-
ation and such unflagging swing. Would that Hayes (dms). Slide Hampton (tbJ on last 3 It IS obvious from the outset of this album that
every' night's performance of this brilliant im- titles. November 26,1976, was an evening everyone at
provisor had been captured with as much sense .Carnegle Hall enjoyed. Audience and perform-
of presence as this well-programmed document. Known to most concerned collectors for their ers alike gathered to celebrate Woody Herman's
Not only does it add that much more to our work behind Dexter Gordon on the famous fortieth year as a leader, and if no new musical
understanding of bebop's most productive peri- "Homecoming" LP, the Louis Hayes/Woody vistas were opened, the energy level was high
od but it broadens our estimation of Gillespie's Shaw combo proves here that, even without and many of the old favorites were brought out
artistry as well. -Jack Sohmer the infectious presence of the celebrated tenor- for fresh treatment.
man, they are more than capable of sustaining The focus of the first of the two records is
interest on their own. Although not all of the backward as Apple Honey, Four Brothers, Early
STEPHANE GRAPPELLI soloists are as skilled in the art of generating Autumn, Bijou, and Everywhere receive engag-
excitement as are Shaw and Hayes, few will be ing solos by such Herman alumni as Getz,
Parisian Thoroughfare able to fault them for their existing talents Sims, Cohn, Giuffre, Phillips, the brothers Can-
Arista/Freedom AF 1033 Besides the co-Ieaders, whose joint expertise doli, and others. The old warhorses -both
is understandably showcased, there are valuable material and musicians -have well withstood
Love For Sale, Perugia, Two Cute, Fascinating statements uttered by each of the regulars, with the rigors of time, and several of these record-
Rhythm, Parisian Thoroughfare, Improvisation an additional bonus offered in the sometime ings sound at least as convincing as the originals
On Prelude In E Minor, Wave, Hallelujah. appearance of fellow-traveler Hampton. The second record mostly features Herman's
One can note several stylistic precedents present band, and while it is a typical Herd -
Many goodies here. Musicians with complete for the music of this regrettably short-Iived which is to say very good -the highlight of
technical command, good taste, and ability to ensemble, those most easily discerned being the sides three and four and perhaps the entire al-
swing mightily without blasting. An instrument- fiery swing of the old Messengers and the tur- bum is two solos by Stan Getz. on Mercer
ation that allows for unusual changes in texture. bulent modality of mid-period Coltrane, but Ellington's Blue Serge and Gigi Gryce's Blue
A program that covers Latin (Wave) , funk this in no way implies a conscious reiteration Getz Blues (now whatever happened to G igi
(Cure), reflective chamber.type works (Perugia, of others' achievements. On the contrary, Gryce?). Overshadowed with reason in recent
improvisation), and just plain fiat-out steamers these influences are felt to serve more as dir- years by his spiritual brother Sims, Getz shows
(Parisian, HallelujahJ. Charts that allow for ection-pointers than as ends-in-themselves, bla. himself to be the forceful yet consummately
maximum solo freedom within logical develop- tant parrotry hardly being the only option avail- lyrical player we all revered before the advent
ment of the selection. All of it wrapped up by able to such fluent improvisers as constitute of bossa nova. It is rewarding to hear him play.
a quartet that's listening to each other, sharing this heady assemblage. ing so well once again.
a sense of direction, and blended like the Shaw is obviously one of the better trum- This is not the place to evaluate Herman's
strands of a tapestry. peters of our time. He has a broad, enveloping considerable contribution to jazz. That he has
Each man could make it on technique alone. sound, a super-charged delivery tempered by survived for so long and has maintained a high
20 CODA
-~---