1964 J.J. Johnson Impulse session

[Shrdlu]

You may know J.J.'s superb Impulse album, "Proof Positive". It's one of his best ever albums.

I got the LP when it first came out, and it's been a favorite album ever since. On all but one track, it features his quartet of the time, but a track with Toots Thielemans, McCoy Tyner, Richard Davis and Elvin Jones, "Lullaby Of Jazzland", completes the album. Naturally, it's a cooker! I had the old Jepsen discography back then, and saw that that session also produced two tracks released only on Impulse 45-227.

Here's the details:

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J.J. Johnson Quintet

J.J. Johnson (tb), Toots Thielemans (hca, g), McCoy Tyner (p), Richard Davis (b), Elvin Jones (d).

Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, circa July 4, 1964.

Lullaby Of Jazzland, Impulse A 68

Across The Karoo , Impulse 45-227

Theme From Lilies Of The Field (aka Amen), Impulse 45-227

* J.J. Johnson - Proof Positive (Impulse A 68; MCA 29072; Impulse GRD 145)

* J.J. Johnson - Across The Karoo c/w Theme From Lilies Of The Field (Impulse 45-227)

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When Michael Cuscuna put out the CD of "Proof Positive", I was excited, as I thought the two 45 tracks would be included. We all know he would have put them in there if he could have. But he was unable to locate a copy of the 45. (In case you didn't know, most of the Impulse session reels were tossed out sometime in the 1970s. So Michael could not go to the originals.) He did include the cut that was on one of the Definitive Jazz Scene LPs, though - a track by the quartet.

Well, after a lot of searching, I was able to get a copy of the 45! Great jubilation! You guessed it, it's not mint, but it's very listenable. In true 45 manner, it's in-your-face mono, and an RVG pressing to boot.

The two tracks are superb. On "Across The Karoo" (now there's a title for someone who spent 5 years in South Africa!), Toots plays guitar and whistles. Elvin wails on sticks with a Latino beat! On "Amen", Toots plays his harmonica, and there's a surprise, as McCoy is on harpsichord. Both tunes are the kind that leave you humming them for the next day, and J.J. really digs in on them.

These need to be included on a new CD reissue of "Proof Positive", and I recently emailed Michael to ask how this could be set up, using my 45. This music needs to be heard, and I don't want to sit on it. Turns out that Universal is again a mess, so nothing can be done for awhile. I don't keep up with the doings of Universal/Verve anymore.

I suppose I could upload it onto the hard drive with Musicmatch, and maybe share an MP3 file over MSN if anyone is interested. But I don't want the FBI on my tail, ha, ha! Maybe it's already a 10 year rap for even thinking about it! I'm not a music thief, and I'm not trying to rip off Universal. What I'd really like to do is to get them to put out a new CD. What's the best way to deal with this?

[RDK]

I, at least, won't drop the dime on you. Afaic, share away!

[JohnS]

I got 'Proof Positive' when it first came out too. Still love it and it has very nice vinyl sound. Neo remains one of my favourite Johnson performances. Somehow I never got around to getting the cd so I've missed the extra track. Certainly never heard the 45 tracks.

Definitely make a fine cd reissue.

[Shrdlu]

J J really cooks on Neo, and also on the jazz waltz track. I've never heard him burn as much as that on any other album. The LP sound, and Rudy's engineering adds a lot. What a great rhythm section, too!

The extra quartet track is a short ballad, "Gloria" (by Bronislaw Kaper of "Green Dolphin Street" fame), which survived the 70s tape destruction at Impulse because it appeared on one of the three "Definitive Jazz Scene" LPs. (All the masters of the issued LPs were kept.)

I only knew about the two tracks on the 45 because I had the Jepsen discography. But now, there is a complete Impulse discography online

http://www.jazzdisco.org/impulse/