Zoot Sims

[Niko]

Couldn't get that website to load. Anyone have any success accessing Totah's site?

All I get is a 'Not Found' answer

that's sad, it was a fine homepage... maybe I saved his recollections of Zoot (on another computer so i can't check right now) if anyone is interested i can try to find it!

[JPF]

I always used to think that "Knobby Totah" was a nom de groove, but that's the bassist's real name.

Actually, his real name is Nabil Totah. Knobby, or Nobby, is his nickname. Here's his website:

http://www.totahbass.com/

Couldn't get that website to load. Anyone have any success accessing Totah's site?

That's very strange! That website existed on 2/17, the day I posted about it. I know because I was looking at it that day. So it has disappeared sometime between the 17th and now; as I said, very strange.

[Peter Friedman]

I just ordered Plays Alto, Tenor, and Baritone as well as Nirvana with Pizzarelli.

These came in the mail Saturday. Both have already exceeded my expectations, particularly the session with overdubbing. Nice!

I imagine that Locking Horns with Joe Newman is also good. Anyone here have it? The only label to purchase it from is (perhaps unfortunately) Fresh Sounds, but their website says it's out-of-stock. Does Fresh Sounds let their inventory go out-of-print?

I have "Locking Horns". It is not among my favorite Zoot Sims recordings. It is certainly ok, but it is just that there are many many others I would rank above that one. My recommendation would be to leave that until you have just about everything else by Zoot.

[brownie]

I have "Locking Horns". It is not among my favorite Zoot Sims recordings. It is certainly ok, but it is just that there are many many others I would rank above that one. My recommendation would be to leave that until you have just about everything else by Zoot.

Peter Friedman says it right! Once more...

[Late]

Thanks for the tip, Peter.

One more question — I'm trying to track down The Art of Jazz, which is confusingly close in title to the Dawn effort called The Modern Art of Jazz. It's another one that was out on Fresh Sounds, but now is (permanently?) out-of-stock on their site.

Is it worth hunting down?

(Cover attached.)

[brownie]

Thanks for the tip, Peter.

One more question — I'm trying to track down The Art of Jazz, which is confusingly close in title to the Dawn effort called The Modern Art of Jazz. It's another one that was out on Fresh Sounds, but now is (permanently?) out-of-stock on their site.

Is it worth hunting down?

(Cover attached.)

Don't bother! That Seeco 'The Art of Jazz' was a straight reissue of 'The Modern Art of Jazz'

Seeco reissued a number of Dawn albums (with new covers) when they bought Dawn in the early '60s.

[Late]

Thanks Guy! That saves me a lot of trouble. I actually don't have Zoot's two Dawn issues, but they're still available, and on my "list." You probably have Plays Alto, Tenor, and Baritone on vinyl, but if not — the new reissue is nice! It's coupled with the Zoot Argo session, and, together, these sessions fill up a cd (without omitting tracks) to the brim.

I didn't think I'd like Zoot's singing, but his (one) vocal on "Where You At?" is actually pretty cool. He sings in tune, swings, and kind of sounds like Chet Baker — but without the marbles in his mouth!

[Late]

Was this one (attached below) ever on compact disc? I don't know anything about it, but since I'm on a Zoot craze ...

[brownie]

Was this one (attached below) ever on compact disc? I don't know anything about it, but since I'm on a Zoot craze ...

There is no mention of a CD release of this one! About time it gets a reissue treatment. Unless there was a Made in Japan release.

My vinyl copy hails from Canada!

[Niko]

didn't find my own copy but www.archive.org still has a copy of nabil totah's interesting recollections of zoot sims (some more is found under http://web.archive.org/web/20051124084550/...totahbass.com/)

I first met Zoot in early 1955 when he came back to New York from California, where he had been working as a house painter. I was new to the scene, having just arrived after discharge from the Army.

Zoot already had a reputation as a swinging jazz saxophone player from his days as one of the Four Brothers, the famous sax section of the Woody Herman Band, which had become well established by 1949.

That sax section, consisting of Zoot, Stan Getz, Al Cohn, and Serge Chaloff, was referred to as the Four Brothers. Woody's various bands at that time were referred to as "Herds." The '49 band, which Herman had formed in '47, was known as the Second Herd.

Sessions abounded in New York during the mid-1950s. There were several hang-outs in the Village where musicians such as Phil Woods, Jon Eardley, Don Joseph, Zoot, Al Cohn, Johnny Williams, Frank Isola, and George Syran would get together to play. Zoot was admired both as a swinger and a hipster.

The name Zoot came from the popular suit style of the time, called "Zoot suits," which incorporated pegged pants along with jackets with broad padded shoulders. His middle name "Haley" was given to him after the comet by that name. He seemed to fill a spot left by the death of Bird in 1954 as an down-home session player on the scene.

Studio musicians abounded in those years, many of whom recorded for major labels and played on radio or for Broadway shows. They would gather at night after work to hear Zoot and Al, wherever they might be playing. Musicians who gigged with big-name bands that toured the country would drop by when their entourages returned to the City.

New York was the place where many of the bands were either formed or disbanded. Many other musicians worked in hotels and night clubs. The City came alive at night. Jazz clubs were open till four a.m., after which musicians would hang out and play at any number of lofts in the East Village or in midtown, such as Hal Overton's pad or Clyde Cox's studio.

I forgot the exact circumstance in which I first played with Zoot. It was probably at a jam session. I had already gigged with Bird, toured for three month across the country with the Les Elgart Band, and played a couple of jobs with the Gene Krupa Quartet. Sitting in at jam sessions around town helped me familiarize myself with the City's night life. In those days, bass players on the New York scene were relatively few: George Duvivier, Curly Russell, Milt Hilton, Teddy Kotik, and Oscar Pettiford- who took me under his wing- were some of the familiar names that come to mind.

A wonderful bassist and musician from Minneapolis, part Cherokee Indian, Oscar could stay up for several days in a row, playing, drinking, and sometimes ending a spree by playing baseball in the early morning. Some bands even formed their own teams. Pettiford, a strong man as well as a definitive bass player of our time was, and still is, a hero of mine.

One of the first steady gigs I worked with Zoot was at the Half Note Night Club. In those early years, the club was a small local bar where the groups would be engaged for two or three months at a time. The place became a well-known hangout for writers, artists, and musicians. The Canterino family who owned the club, located at Spring and Hudson streets in the lower Village, actively participated in the running of the establishment. The brothers initially went around town distributing leaflets announcing the presence of a new jazz club. Mama Canterino cooked the sauce in the morning while Frank, the dad, prepared the food. The sons, Mike and Sonny, bartended, while sister Rose waited on the customers at the tables. Playing there as a member of the groups of Zoot and Al, Lee Konitz, and Herbie Mann could take up the better part of a year.

Our first quartet with Zoot included Dave McKenna on piano and Paul Motian on drums. It wasn't until the following year that Al Cohn joined the band. The improvisatory nature of the group changed somewhat with Al 's writing for the two saxes. His marvelous arrangements added a new dimension to the personality of the group. A busy studio arranger in those days, Al relished playing with Zoot at night, complementing his saucy swinging style. Mose Allison was to join the group after Dave McKenna left. None of us knew then that Mose sang, chiefly because he never advertised the fact. I once asked him why he didn't sing with Zoot and I believe Mose remarked that he wasn't being paid to sing.

A date recorded at the Half Note included Phil Woods and Gene Quill, along with Zoot, Al, Paul Motian, Mose Allison and myself, although Gene Quill's playing was unfortunately left out of the final takes. Phil and Quill subsequently formed their own group and recorded under that name.

Dave McKenna moved to Cape Cod after leaving New York in the late fifties. We once finished a road tour after playing an engagement at Detroit's Rouge Lounge. There was a bowling alley next door where Dave would bowl after work or sometimes even between sets. Closing night found him betting his last dollar, which he subsequently lost, on a game with a bartender. McKenna was last seen that summer hitching a ride back home to South Dennis, Massachusetts, on the Cape. We had initially been surprised that Dave picked the Cape as a place to live, as he did not drive an automobile. He still does not drive, yet has managed to get around to his gigs all over the country for many years.

The scene in the mid-fifties was rife with the use of drugs. While heavy drinking had always been a way of life, especially among some of the older and established musicians of the day, the young comers like Zoot and Stan Getz were turning to, and becoming addicted to, harder drugs like heroin, then called 'junk'.

Charlie Parker, of course, is the most noted example of this tragic lure. Many talented players died from overdose, the use of dirty needles, or just using bad stuff. The life of many others was cut short, such as Chet Baker's, when he jumped or fell out of a hotel window in Amsterdam. I associate the prevalence of drugs at the time with one of the first recordings I played with Zoot.

We drove out to Doris Duke's place in NJ, not far from the City. Her estate included a private railroad spur as well as indoor tennis courts and swimming pool. Her boyfriend at the time was a pianist called Joe. The theatre in her home had a recording studio, and that is where we recorded the album "Jazzville." Doris or someone thoughtfully placed a tableful of assorted drugs, grass and liquors for our use when we took our breaks. I only remember some of the music played at that session, since my copy of the record was borrowed by a friend many years ago and was never returned. The cover shows Zoot and I sitting on a bench in Pennsylvania Station with a sign over the gate saying: "Jazzville."

World War II laws were still in effect that prohibited picture-taking in public facilities. The photographers were just finishing the shoot when a group of police charged in to arrest us. Fortunately, we were able to avoid that embarrassment by convincing the authorities that we were from "Life" Magazine, then a famous publication. There is a tune Zoot sang on the album entitled "Mixed Emotions." It was just about the only time I ever heard Zoot sing and it came as a surprise, since he had never sung or played that tune before. Johnny Williams, an active and talented jazz pianist, was also on the date. Johnny liked to stamp his feet when playing, so he would take his shoes off and dust the floor with talcum powder. A very strange sight, indeed! Zoot engaged an unknown trumpeter, Jerry Horowitz, as the other horn, for the date, maybe believing that calling him for the recording would help Jerry gain some rep. At that time, Horowitz was driving a cab for a living and hitting the sessions when he had time to play.

From about 1956 through 1964, Zoot and I shared the same address at 18 W. 37th Street, in a brownstone off Fifth Avenue. Zoot lived on the top floor in an apartment with a skylight, and fireplace, while I was in a rear apartment on the second floor. The other two apartments were occupied by single women who did not work days, so we were able to have sessions that lasted until eight or nine in the morning. Zoot was always the last to stop playing. He was a tenacious soloist, sometimes playing with just bass or drums, eyes closed and body bent forward. Zoot did not need an audience or rhythm section to play. This determined nature was a part of his personality that manifested itself throughout his life. Most well-known musicians I know would be somewhat particular as to whom they sat in with. Zoot could care less. He played with anyone at sessions and could make a mediocre rhythm section sound good. Zoot had no airs and genuinely appreciated all musicians who wanted to play. On the other hand, he once made a disparaging remark to Gerry Mulligan about his piano technique after he had decided to sit in on piano that had Gerry running off the stage in tears.

Zoot's many years of fast living eventually took their toll. Throat cancer and a blood condition felled him. Towards the end of his terminal illness, when too weak to play standing up, Zoot would play sitting down - something he would seldom have done in public before the illness sapped his strength. Zoot and Al usually played standing side by side in performance, like fighters concentrating in a ring. It was marvelous to see how they complemented each other's playing and stimulated their respective creative juices.

At the end of his illness, Zoot's blowing was still as intense as ever, although he sounded softer and more subdued. I was at the hospital the day before he passed away. Zoot was, for the most part, quiet that day; holding his hand I was comfortable just being there as a friend. Al Cohn, still alive at that time, reported that a doctor had stopped by to examine Zoot and remarked that he didn't look too well. Zoot's reply was: " You don't look so hot yourself, Doctor!" A typically pithy Zootian remark.

Here's a RealAudio sound clip of Zoot playing the alto on an Oscar Pettiford tune called "Bohemia after Dark". This was the first time I remember Zoot playing alto anywhere. It was a surprise to see him pick up the horn, which looked like a toy in his hands, so shortly before the date - and strange, since we were used to hearing him play the deeper-sounding tenor with all the dexterity of someone who had played it all his life.

"The Bohemia" was a jazz club where we used to play in the Village. It was the club where John Coltrane dropped by from Philly to sit in with Miles who was prompt in hiring him. It was also a club that insisted that the bands stay and play until 4 am, even if no customers were present. Miles would often skip the last set there to hang out at other clubs, such as the Village Vanguard up the street, while letting his band finish the last set. The "... After Dark " title might be OP's allusion to that policy. I remember arriving late one night to listen to a band there. The group was playing, although there were no customers in the place. A waiter could be seen sleeping on the street side window ledge.

The album on which Zoot played four altos was an amazing feat of artistry, ingenuity and technology. The first date consisted of the rhythm section playing on some tunes selected by George Handy, who also played piano on the date. Zoot improvised on the tunes, leaving out the melodies. George then took the improvisations home and wrote out three other sax parts to fit Zoot's blowing choruses. We returned to the studio a week or so later where Zoot, with head phones, dubbed in each part separately. The result was astounding, the timing of the solos, seamless.

Jazz is still alive and well, hosted by a legion of young, talented instrumentalists. I do, however, miss the indelible musical signature of a Zoot, Stan Getz, Al Cohn, Ben Webster, or Lester Young. The pioneers of mainstream jazz have left us with memories and recordings. As with the pioneers of the Old West, we can look back at their passing with fond memories.

Edited March 10, 2007 by Niko

[Peter Friedman]

Just finished listening to the latest Zoot Sims release.

Zoot Suite - High Note with Jimmy Rowles, George Mraz and Mousey Alexander.

Louise Sims allowed this to be released after sitting in the can for about 30 years. Another volume is expected to come out sometime soon as well.

Everyone plays beautifully, and the sound, while less that perfect, is quite acceptable. The booklet notes suggest it may have been recorded somewhere in the Carribbean.

[Larry Kart]

A few corrections to that fine Totah memoir: Hall Overton, not Hal Overton;Teddy Kotick, not Teddy Kotik; Jerry Hurwitz, not Jerry Horowitz. Also, Hurwitz, better known as Jerry Lloyd, may have been pretty much off the scene at the time the "Jazzville" album was made, but he had been fairly active in the late '40s and early '50s, recording with Mulligan among others.

[jeffsjazz]

All Zoots Pablo recordings with Jimmy Rowles are good

[brownie]

Zoot Sims appearing in 1977 in the Peter Appleyard TV show in Toronto with Hank Jones, Slam Stewart and others!

Shadow Waltz

Lady Be Good

Stompin' at the Savoy

[Late]

Is Sims' New Beat Bossa Nova worth picking up? On paper, it looks good ...

[Shrdlu]

That says it all, Simon: Something in Zoot's tone speaks to something in us. What a warm, romantic sound he had!

And what a delightful surprise when he added soprano, sounding just like Zoot an octave higher, not at all like most soprano players.

I'm glad that I got to hear him live, at Ronnie's in London, England (1974, twice), and also at that place in Toronto, Canada, Mo's I think (1977) where most famous visitors used to play (there weren't many places in Toronto that had regular jazz).

[Peter Friedman]

Is Sims' New Beat Bossa Nova worth picking up? On paper, it looks good ...

Late,

That's not one I would recommend. It is a recording that I would place very far down on the list of Zoot Sims sessions. It veers heavily toward the commercial side. I had it some time ago on LP and disposed of it. I have no interest to acquire it on CD. There are numerous good to excellent recordings by Zoot out there you should get that are clearly better than "The New Beat Bossa Nova".

[beerandnuts]

The Dave McKenna Quartet featuring Zoot Sims -- Recorded in New York City October 1974

Performers: Zoot Sims, tenor and soprano saxophone; Dave McKenna, piano; Major Holley, bass and vocals; Ray Mosca, drums

[Late]

Is Sims' New Beat Bossa Nova worth picking up? On paper, it looks good ...

Late,

That's not one I would recommend. It is a recording that I would place very far down on the list of Zoot Sims sessions. It veers heavily toward the commercial side. I had it some time ago on LP and disposed of it. I have no interest to acquire it on CD. There are numerous good to excellent recordings by Zoot out there you should get that are clearly better than "The New Beat Bossa Nova".

Good to know. I'll bump it down on the list. Strangely enough, I just picked up the album that new poster "beerandnuts" just recommended. Welcome!

[John Tapscott]

I'm glad that I got to hear him live, at Ronnie's in London, England (1974, twice), and also at that place in Toronto, Canada, Mo's I think (1977) where most famous visitors used to play (there weren't many places in Toronto that had regular jazz).

The Toronto club you heard Zoot in was most likely Bourbon Street. It was the club that featured mostly visiting American soloists with Canadian rhythm sections ( a number of recordings made there have been released over the years by musicians such as Paul Desmond, Jim Hall, Frank Rosolino and Art Pepper).

George's Spaghetti House feautured Canadian jazz groups.

Gee, I always thought there was a pretty active jazz scene in Toronto during those years. It was no NYC, but it's a quarter of the size. Besides those clubs there were some other clubs which inevitably came and went but feautured jazz quite reguarly - The Colonial Tavern, Yellowfingers, a club at the Sheraton Center - forget the name, and a bunch of others that escape me at the moment. Of course, it's not so good now with the closing of Top of the Senator and the Montreal Bistro, but back in the 60's and '70's and even into the early '80's you could hear lots of jazz at various places in the city every night. I never had any problem finding live jazz to listen to; far more than I could take in.

Edited March 19, 2007 by John Tapscott

[beerandnuts]

Thank you for the welcome.

Some of my many Zoot favorites include the duo recording with Joe Pass, the swingin' date he did with Basie (Basie and Zoot) and If I'm Lucky with Jimmy Rowles.

BTW, Lonehill Jazz has just released a 38 track set of Al Cohn and Zoot Sims, the Complete Original Quintet/Sextet Studio Recordings. I have not heard it but I have it on order.

[Late]

B&N — those three you mention are all indeed very good. And as already mentioned above, anything with Jimmy Rowles is going to sound good.

The Pablos (I have all except the Duke and Holiday sets, which I'll get to eventually) are a uniformly excellent lot. My favorite is probably still Warm Tenor, but maybe that's because it was my first Zoot Pablo.

And I really like Plays Alto, Tenor, and Baritone! I wish the Plays Four Altos set would see reissue. I think it will, and probably not too far off, courtesy of some mystical place in Andorra ...

Next on the hunt: Plays Tonite's Music Today. Anyone care to comment? (I like Zoot's singing.)

[Shrdlu]

The Toronto club you heard Zoot in was most likely Bourbon Street. It was the club that featured mostly visiting American soloists with Canadian rhythm sections ( a number of recordings made there have been released over the years by musicians such as Paul Desmond, Jim Hall, Frank Rosolino and Art Pepper).

Yeah, that was the place. Thanks, John! I was in Toronto Jan-May 1977, and got to see Zoot, Pepper Adams, and George Coleman there. It wasn't a nice venue if you were short of bread. We got stuck in a corner, and pestered to buy drinks. Paul Desmond was about to appear there, but, sadly, he died. At other venues, I saw Mingus and Billy Cobham during that stay.

[Peter Friedman]

Next on the hunt: Plays Tonite's Music Today. Anyone care to comment? (I like Zoot's singing.)

Ok Late, now you are talking about a damn fine recording. This was originally on the Storyville label, and is now on a Black Lion CD. This one has Bob Brookmeyer, Hank Jones, Wyatt Ruther and Gus Johnson along with Zoot. It's a winner. I also dig Zoots vocal here.

Another one to get from the same period that was also on Stroryville, and is now on Black Lion, is "Morning Fun". Bill Crow and Jo Jones are on bass and drums on this one with Zoot, Brookmeyer, and Hank Jones.

[Late]

Next on the hunt: Plays Tonite's Music Today. Anyone care to comment? (I like Zoot's singing.)

Ok Late, now you are talking about a damn fine recording. This was originally on the Storyville label, and is now on a Black Lion CD. This one has Bob Brookmeyer, Hank Jones, Wyatt Ruther and Gus Johnson along with Zoot. It's a winner. I also dig Zoots vocal here.

Another one to get from the same period that was also on Stroryville, and is now on Black Lion, is "Morning Fun". Bill Crow and Jo Jones are on bass and drums on this one with Zoot, Brookmeyer, and Hank Jones.

Yup, got that one. I like it. Say, here's the original cover to Tonite's Music (attached below). The small print is hilarious. It says:

"You've heard Barrymore recite Hamlet,

and seen Parlova dance,

now hear Zoot Sims sing the blues."

I didn't know Drew Barrymore was into Shakespeare.