davef Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 I'd say Blakey on this one.. other artists I like better, but none were as consistent IMO... ...OTOH, that could be because Blakey didn't record for Blue Note after 1964, where many of the other artists on the roster changed styles after that.. evolution, though not necessarily improvement... .. how about Blue Note for most consistent jazz label! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bright Moments Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 WHAT!!!!??????? no mention yet of JIMMY SMITH? Yeah he's BAD, but the only thing it's consistent in - is being the same thing rehashed over and over. OUCH!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soul Stream Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 Lou Donaldson. Not a bad one in the bunch imho, and someone who captured all decades of the label. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 It's mind bogglin' to me that Art Blakey, the personification of Blue Note sound wasn't picked by all or at the top of the list. He is Mr. Blue Note. Aside from Horace, every one else one basically springs from him. As far as consistently high quality recordings (and these were not middling at best) look at his late 50s material, starting with Moaning and just continuing on. It can't be topped in my opinion. He was basically a finishing school for would be leaders. Brad, I'm not sure I understand this. . . . Blue Note was founded in 1939 with boogie piano recordings, and blues/New Orleans style recordings, and small swing groups and grew to champion some modern jazz proponents who became icons such as Monk and Bud. Bu wasn't a force til much later. . . . I'm not discounting Blakey's importance or even his consistency. . . . But he wasn't the wellspring your statement seems to make him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul secor Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 I'm not usually into popularity contests, but Cecil was 2 for 2. .1000 ain't too shabby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pryan Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 See avatar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMP Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 An interesting topic might be who was the most consistent Riverside or Prestige leader of the 50's and 60's. Without giving it much thought, my guess is that their output would far outstrip in number and importance most of the Blue Note material we've been discussing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alon Marcus Posted December 19, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 Riverside is easy: Thelonious Monk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceH Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 All the great ones have been mentioned, one seems to have been overlooked: SONNY CLARK His BN album track records is impeccable: Dial S For Sonny Sonny's Crib Sonny Clark Trio Cool Struttin' Leapin' And Lopin' All goodies... You are so, so RIGHT! Damn me for failing to mention Sonny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceH Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 No mention of Dexter Gordon yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 It's mind bogglin' to me that Art Blakey, the personification of Blue Note sound wasn't picked by all or at the top of the list. He is Mr. Blue Note. Aside from Horace, every one else one basically springs from him. As far as consistently high quality recordings (and these were not middling at best) look at his late 50s material, starting with Moaning and just continuing on. It can't be topped in my opinion. He was basically a finishing school for would be leaders. Brad, I'm not sure I understand this. . . . Blue Note was founded in 1939 with boogie piano recordings, and blues/New Orleans style recordings, and small swing groups and grew to champion some modern jazz proponents who became icons such as Monk and Bud. Bu wasn't a force til much later. . . . I'm not discounting Blakey's importance or even his consistency. . . . But he wasn't the wellspring your statement seems to make him. Lon, I agree with you to a point but this thread is about the 50s and 60s and I think he was the wellspring during that period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danasgoodstuff Posted December 19, 2004 Report Share Posted December 19, 2004 Most consistent Blue Note leader? Why, Alred Lion, of course! Seriously, it's hard to compare guys who made 5 or 6 albums for the label during their prime with guys like Horace or Lou who made 20+ and stuck with the label (with small exceptions, but still) through not only the good years in the '50 & '60s but on into the tuff years in the '70s. Fruit of the Month Club apples vs. average quality of the whole tree... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted December 20, 2004 Report Share Posted December 20, 2004 Okay, I guess I read your post wrong. The earlier material is just more and more my meat these days. . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrJ Posted December 20, 2004 Report Share Posted December 20, 2004 IF we were going to broaden to the earlier BN era, I would definitely say Sidney Bechet and Art Hodes would need to be included in the running for most consistently great sessions as leaders...having just burned to CD-R the LP Mosaic sets of their Blue Note stuff, I can say that despite the short track lengths and some of the formula conventions of recordings of that type of music in the era (as opposed to more chance-taking live recordings where there was a bit more opportunity to stretch out), I never ever felt it was getting repetitious, even with multiple alternate takes. Quite a feat to be able to sustain a listener's interest over that length of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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