Leave Us Leap

* Thanks to "rm" for finding the right cover!

This is in a hurry, given that I'm about to miss a second consecutive month. No, this blog is not dead. I still have much to share, it's just that life and work is consuming a lot of my focus at the moment. Still, ... This is a cd I've been meaning to share for some time, though most of the tracks are widely available. The reason I waited is because I can could no longer find the original cd, nor the original cover on the internet. I tried. It was green stripping, if I recall correctly, with an image of Krupa banging away. More than likely it was a fly-by-night European release, since I bought it out there nearly two decades ago. In any case, Krupa is probably the finest drummer that ever was, and these tracks show off that talent fairly well, touching ever so slightly further into his later career than most single cd issues seem to do. The name of the cd is Drummin' Man, which has been used numerous times for various releases (hence the difficulty in finding the right cover), including an LP of Krupa's back in the late 50s or early 60s. With that, I'll see you all next month. Promise. Enjoy! +

Tracks

01 - Nagasaki
02 - Jeepers Creepers
03 - Do You Wanna Jump Children?
04 - Symphony In Riffs
05 - Drummin' Man
06 - Drum Boogie
07 - Let Me Off Uptown
08 - After You've Gone
09 - Rockin' Chair
10 - Bolero At The Savoy
11 - Massachusetts
12 - Leave Us Leap
13 - Dark Eyes
14 - Stompin' At The Savoy
15 - Opus 1
16 - Lover
17 - How High The Moon
18 - Disk Jockey Jump
19 - Calling Dr. Gillespie

Coppin' A Plea

Anita! Oh, Anita! Ever since I heard Let Me Off Uptown, I was a fan of Krupa, Eldridge and O'Day. What a combination. I suppose this means I need to post some Gene Krupa now to complete the trilogy. For those who are interested, you can watch a video of the aforementioned song on youtube. The MOJ series often includes several alternate takes, and sometimes this can be a bit too much. Do we really need four takes of one song on the same cd? Anyway ...  After Krupa was busted for marijuana possession 1943, O'Day did a month-long stint with Woody Herman, and later a year with Stan Kenton. "Few female singers matched the hard-swinging and equally hard-living Anita O'Day for sheer exuberance and talent in all areas of jazz vocals. Though three or four outshone her in pure quality of voice, her splendid improvising, wide dynamic tone, and innate sense of rhythm made her the most enjoyable singer of the age. O'Day's first appearances in a big band shattered the traditional image of a demure female vocalist by swinging just as hard as the other musicians on the bandstand, best heard on her vocal trading with Roy Eldridge on the Gene Krupa recording "Let Me Off Uptown." After making her solo debut in the mid-'40s, she incorporated bop modernism into her vocals and recorded over a dozen of the best vocal LPs of the era for Verve during the 1950s and '60s. Though hampered during her peak period by heavy drinking and later, drug addiction, she made a comeback and continued singing into the new millennium." (Allmusic.com). Complete scans are included. Enjoy! +


Tracks

01. Two In Love
02. Stop! The Red Light's On
03. How Do
04. Coppin' A Plea
05. Bolero at the Savoy
06. Let Me Off Uptown
07. Thanks For The Boogie Ride
08. Skylark
09. Bolero At The Savoy
10. Thanks For The Boogie Ride
11. Thanks For The Boogie Ride
12. Pass The Bounce
13. Thanks For The Boogie Ride
14. Side By Side
15. Side By Side
16. Harlem On Parade
17. Harlem On Parade
18. Fightin' Doug MacArthur
19. That's What You Think
20. Barrelhouse Bessie From Basin Street
21. Deliver Me To Tennessee
22. That's What You Think

How 'Bout That Mess?

This is one of those cd's that raised my interest in jazz and big bands. Simply, it jumps with an abundance of energy. Although I love this style of music, in all honesty there aren't many that would qualify as "driving" music where you crank up the car stereo. This one is an exception to that rule. I think Krupa is the best drummer ever, even better than the mighty Chick Webb and others. Of course, that's just my opinion. Enjoy. +

Tracks

1. Drum Boogie
2. Full Dress Hop
3. There'll Be Some Changes Made
4. No Name Jive
5. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy
6. The Babe Takes A Bow
7. Rhumboogie
8. St. Louis Blues
9. Boog It
10. Who?
11. Yes! My Darling Daughter
12. Tuxedo Junction
13. Deep In The Blues
14. Sweet Georgia Brown
15. How 'Bout That Mess?
16. Blue Rhythm Fantasy