Pagin' The Devil

It's been another hectic month, what with all the holidays here and there, some travel, work, etc., but I hope to be more active here in the next few months. As it's a rather gray and questionable day out there, and I face the prospect of commuting at least an hour or more through an inevitable oncoming storm, I figured something with some bounce is in order. One of the best to bounce was Lester Young. From Allmusic,com, "This is the first leg of the Lester Young story, covering his exciting years as Count Basie's star tenor saxophonist and master of the metal clarinet. Opening with Young's very first appearances on record in 1936, the compilation boasts several vivid selections by the Count Basie Orchestra, examples of the gentle, relaxed intimacy of Billie Holiday and Pres with Teddy Wilson's band, and several outstanding instrumental small-group jams either led by or simply graced with the presence of Lester Young. These include the famous Kansas City Five and Six on the Commodore label, the Benny Goodman Sextet ("without Goodman" but with Charlie Christian), and various masterworks originally issued on both the Savoy and Keynote labels. There's no real adherence to a strict chronology -- the producers of this compilation were obviously aiming for playback textural ambience rather than concise sequential context. After wading into the cream of Young's work from the early '40s, the focus abruptly lurches back to the late '30s with vintage stomps and swing by Basie's orchestra and the Kansas City Six. Here, then, is a good introduction to Lester Young as he sounded in his prime. The only glaring fault occurs in the enclosed discography; the drummer on "Sometimes I'm Happy" and "Afternoon of a Basie-ite," recorded for Harry Lim's Keynote label in December of 1943, was Sidney Cattlet, not Jo Jones." Scan of the discography is at the bottom of the post. Enjoy! +

Tracks

01. Shoe Shine Boy
02. Lady Be Good
03. Roseland Shuffle
04. Swinging The Blues
05. Taxi War Dance
06. This Year's Kisses
07. I'll Never Be The Same
08. I've Found A New Baby
09. Lester Leaps In
10. Ad Lib Blues
11. Sometimes I'm Happy
12. Afternoon Of A Basie-Ite
13. Lester Leaps Again
14. I Got Rhythm
15. Four O'Clock Drag
16. Jo-Jo
17. I Don't Stand The Ghost Of A Chance With You
18. Blue Lester
19. Jump, Lester, Jump
20. Texas Shuffle
21. I Ain't Got Nobody (And There's Nobody Cares For Me)
22. I Want A Little Girl
23. Pagin' The Devil
24. Twelfth Street Rag

Back Home Again In Indiana

While the last post included some of the first Chick Bullock tunes I managed to find on CD, Bullock had been recording for nearly two years by then (August, 1931). The Bill Coleman collection here (which really jumps about for something "chronological") includes the final two recording sessions by Chick Bullock. Both listed as Chick Bullock and His All Star Orchestra, these were recorded on December 6, 1940 (tracks 3-6) and February 12, 1941 (tracks 7-10). "All star" is an understatement, as that was the norm with Bullock recordings. On these tracks we hear Benny Morton, Bud Freeman, Teddy Wilson and of course, Bill Coleman - each a legend in their own right. My favorite tune from this set is the title of the post. Oh, How I Hate To Get Up in the Morning strikes a chord because I hate to get up in the morning, and because yesterday was Veteran's Day TCM ran a film in which Irving Berlin sang his own song on stage. The review below suggests these cuts may have been Bullock's best recordings, yet I suggest that the reviewer hasn't heard many of his other fine sides. His sides with Mezz Mezzrow (with Arte Karle & His Boys), as well as some of his bluesier tunes from earlier in the 1930s. Lastly, it wouldn't be fair to suggest than the Bill Coleman sides sans Bullock are anything less than very good listening. Enjoy. +

From All Music Guide

This second volume of the complete recordings of Bill Coleman presented in chronological order opens with ten vocal tracks of surprising warmth and intimacy. Remember those marvelous records that Coleman made with Fats Waller and his Rhythm in the middle 1930s? These rare and pleasant performances from 1940 and '41 are faintly reminiscent of those "Rhythm" sides, although naturally neither of the vocalists heard here comes anywhere near Waller's candid charm and effervescence. Eddy Howard does sound remarkably cozy with his two little love songs, and Chick Bullock (said to have been the most heavily recorded vocalist of the 1930s) turns in what might well be his best performances on record. What really makes these pretty pop tunes sparkle and glow is the combination of great instrumentalists. Collectively speaking, trombonist Benny Morton, clarinetists Edmond Hall and Jimmy Hamilton, saxophonists Bud Freeman and George James, electric guitarist Charlie Christian and pianist Teddy Wilson tu...rn each of these songs into relatively substantial jazz. Even "Oh How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning"once Irving Berlin's famous kvetching lyrics are out of the wayswings with abandon largely thanks to the presence of master percussionist J.C. Heard. The Bill Coleman chronology leaps rather abruptly to a pair of swingtobop blowing sessions involving tenor saxophonist Don Byas recorded in Paris on January 4th and 5th 1949. Coleman sings his own "Bill's Brother's Blues" and wields his horn magnificently alongside Byas, particularly on "Liza", "What Is This Thing Called Love" and the "St. Louis Blues". This portion of the Bill Coleman story ends with a session led by pianist Jack Dieval and featuring smoky tenor saxophonist Paul Vernon. Coleman sings again, this time on "I Can't Get Started" and a briskly rendered "Tea For Two". - arwulf arwulf, All Music Guide

Tracks

1. Old Fashioned Love
2. Exactly Like You
3. Smiles
4. It Had to Be You
5. My Melancholy Baby
6. (Back Home Again In) Indiana
7. Dolores
8. Amapola
9. Oh, How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning
10. There'll Be Some Changes Made
11. Just You, Just Me
12. Bill's Brothers Blues
13. Idaho
14. B.C. Blues
15. What Is This Thing Called Love?
16. St. Louis Blues
17. Lover Man
18. Liza (All the Clouds'll Roll Away)
19. Blues at Noon
20. I Can't Get Started
21. Jumpin' in C
22. Man I Love
23. Tea for Two
24. Blue Skies