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BFT 190 Link and Discussion


Dan Gould

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This is such an enjoyable BFT, Dan, with so many recognizable songs. I am not familiar with any of these recordings. I have a few comments.

Whatever album Track 3 comes from, I have to get it. That is one fantastic tenor sax solo! I just love it. What a sound!

Track 4 is so curious to me. I have seen Bobby Watson live many times in his twenty years as a music professor in Kansas City. That sounds like Bobby Watson on alto saxophone. But I am not aware of him recording this type of material. "Things Ain't What They Used to Be" is an older composition than he typically performs.

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5 hours ago, Hot Ptah said:

This is such an enjoyable BFT, Dan, with so many recognizable songs. I am not familiar with any of these recordings. I have a few comments.

Whatever album Track 3 comes from, I have to get it. That is one fantastic tenor sax solo! I just love it. What a sound!

Track 4 is so curious to me. I have seen Bobby Watson live many times in his twenty years as a music professor in Kansas City. That sounds like Bobby Watson on alto saxophone. But I am not aware of him recording this type of material. "Things Ain't What They Used to Be" is an older composition than he typically performs.

Pretty good for minimal thoughts. It is Bobby Watson and you've knocked off one of the few surprises left for the reveal. I imagine someone like Jim S. will do some sleuthing and figure out the Watson recording. He's got 8 days to get to it.

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It's on YouTube, and I played a few cuts. It's solid, but I don't think a whole album of it is in the cards for me.

Still and all, the Hodges vocabulary (both as a player and as a composer/bandleader) is wide and deep, and Watson does not trifle in his engagement with it. A very admirable undertaking, I should say. The only thing that wore on me was the rhythm section, they just didn't have the variety/nance/subtlety of their predecessors over an entire program. But really, that's to be expected. 

But as a BFT selection, yeah, that was a good'un!

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Found some time to listen to this BFT.  Assiduously tried to not read prior comments.

1) Is this an episode of Seinfeld?  Watermelon Man.  Could be playing to a rhythm track; it's funky, but not responsive to the soloists.  Is the drummer Idris?

2) (What's the name of this tune???  Classic BN tune.)  Pianist: muscular clarity.  Ray Bryant?  Sax: strong yet querulous, indeterminate tone.  Reminds me of Von Freeman.

3) Basie from the early '60's?  Jimmy Forrest on tenor?  Dueling tenors.  Busy arrangement, but driving.  I liked this one.

4) Things Ain't What They Used To Be.  Sounds like some swing musicians.  Audience - club.  I hear clarinet and bari.  Not very distinctive.

5) Trombone, trumpet, tenor.  Again, older form.  Pianist is funky, throwing some more modern stuff in.  No clue.  One of those '50's Columbia sessions?

6) A little more modern - recorded in '70's?  Tuba - Bob Stewart?  Guitar, alto...meh.

7) Bossa nova!  (Or is it a boogaloo?)  Saxist play with tone and personality.  Is this Griff and Lockjaw?  Billy Higgins on drums?

8) High energy.  Another tune I've heard a million times but can't tell you its name.  The tenor is good.  My guess is this is from the'80's from the way the bass is recorded.

9) Another tune I know.  Chick Corea composition?  The pianist plays it pretty close to the chord changes.  Left hand is kinda perfunctory.  Should've thought to reorchestrate it a little.

10)  Bird tune.  Two tenors.  Or is the one on the left an alto?  Plays pretty low for an alto; probably two tenors.  No idea who they are, but this would be a pretty good night at the bar.

11) Dizzy's "Tin Tin Deo."  Private recording.  Nothing really distinctive about the performance.

12) Well You Needn't.  Funny how, from the first bar, the drummer brings a party atmosphere to this - he just swings!  Alto sounds like Art Pepper.

13) Old R&B tune.  Night Train?  Listened to the first 3 minutes or so - nothing distinctive going on.  Can't name the soloist.

14) Easy Living.  Someone who loves Ben Webster.  Maybe Lockjaw.

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8 hours ago, mjzee said:

Found some time to listen to this BFT.  Assiduously tried to not read prior comments.

1) Is this an episode of Seinfeld?  Watermelon Man.  Could be playing to a rhythm track; it's funky, but not responsive to the soloists.  Is the drummer Idris?

2) (What's the name of this tune???  Classic BN tune.)  Pianist: muscular clarity.  Ray Bryant?  Sax: strong yet querulous, indeterminate tone.  Reminds me of Von Freeman.

3) Basie from the early '60's?  Jimmy Forrest on tenor?  Dueling tenors.  Busy arrangement, but driving.  I liked this one.

4) Things Ain't What They Used To Be.  Sounds like some swing musicians.  Audience - club.  I hear clarinet and bari.  Not very distinctive.

5) Trombone, trumpet, tenor.  Again, older form.  Pianist is funky, throwing some more modern stuff in.  No clue.  One of those '50's Columbia sessions?

6) A little more modern - recorded in '70's?  Tuba - Bob Stewart?  Guitar, alto...meh.

7) Bossa nova!  (Or is it a boogaloo?)  Saxist play with tone and personality.  Is this Griff and Lockjaw?  Billy Higgins on drums?

8) High energy.  Another tune I've heard a million times but can't tell you its name.  The tenor is good.  My guess is this is from the'80's from the way the bass is recorded.

9) Another tune I know.  Chick Corea composition?  The pianist plays it pretty close to the chord changes.  Left hand is kinda perfunctory.  Should've thought to reorchestrate it a little.

10)  Bird tune.  Two tenors.  Or is the one on the left an alto?  Plays pretty low for an alto; probably two tenors.  No idea who they are, but this would be a pretty good night at the bar.

11) Dizzy's "Tin Tin Deo."  Private recording.  Nothing really distinctive about the performance.

12) Well You Needn't.  Funny how, from the first bar, the drummer brings a party atmosphere to this - he just swings!  Alto sounds like Art Pepper.

13) Old R&B tune.  Night Train?  Listened to the first 3 minutes or so - nothing distinctive going on.  Can't name the soloist.

14) Easy Living.  Someone who loves Ben Webster.  Maybe Lockjaw.

Thanks for your comments - none of your guesses are accurate and you may be surprised if you've read thru the comments as there are hardly any unidentified tracks left.  On track 1 I was surprised at the thought of being played to a rhythm track, and you'll understand when you see - quite literally - the reveal.

So five days to go and we have these orphans left if anyone is concerned:

1. This was not intended as something anyone would know or would be likely to figure out, unless they follow the same path I did to discover it.

2.  Pianist not well known, tenor much more likely to be recognized. And why is it that so few people can summon "Song for My Father" from the depths of their memory? If I gave a hint on the tenor it would give it away and I don't feel like doing that for this track.

5.  Famous tenor soloist, not so famous backing. BillF. had it backwards when he mentioned Brit vs genuine article in his comments.

6.  Maybe the tuba is throwing people off the scent of the studio sound which might help or might not in the identification? Guitarist's record.

7.   There are no clues I could give but I am certainly glad this is so popular.

8.  Famous tenor. My hint is that it had two separate releases on different labels, LP and CD era.

9. If you figure out 8 you can get 9.

12.  It won't help but here's a hint:  American soloist/European trio record.

Edited by Dan Gould
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Getting in just under the wire once again, with some comments noted as I listened. Haven't looked at anyone else's answers yet.

Track 1 - The tune is of course Herbie's "Watermelon Man." This version of it isn't my thing though.

Track 2 - Horace Silver's "Song for My Father." I'm curious who the tenor player is on this-- really great solo, fantastic sound.

Track 3 - Ahhhh...now we're cookin! This is great from beat one. It's another Silver tune-- "Sister Sadie." This band is killin. Great soloists! Don't know the saxophonists but they're tearing it up. Oh, that's gotta be Clark Terry on trumpet, no? Don't know the other trumpet player.

Track 4 - "Things Ain't What They Used to Be." Soulful. Hmmm, actually I don't love this alto player. Hope I don't regret saying that. The rhythm section feels a little uptight. Overall this is ok but feels way too polite.

Track 5 - Sorry, not a huge fan of this one either. That trombonist has a massive sound though!

Track 6 - Holy tuba, Batman! Wow. Some good soloing on this--especially that tuba player. Again I kinda wish the rhythm section could loosen up a little.

Track 7 - Now this is a nice groove. Love the two tenors trading off, they are right in the pocket. This is good stuff. As they get into it, I want to pick a favorite between the 2 but can't as they keep one-upping each other! This one is a blast.

Track 8 - Sorry, again with the rhythm section...just not my thing. But also again, the trombone-- nice solo! Actually I enjoy both horns & the piano solo here but I can't get around the bass player & drummer.

Track 9 - Oh, this is good. Freddie Hubbard's "Little Sunflower." I like this pianist, seems well suited to this type of solo performance. A bit of Chick Corea flavor in there at times. No idea who this is though.

Track 10 - I feel like I'm making a lot of similar comments but again this feels a little too polite. Too overproduced. The bass player sounds like George Mraz. Ah, but the alto player-- I do like this. Definitely curious as to who's on alto here. This solo makes up for the rest of it.

Track 11 - Applause at the beginning always bodes well. :) Oh, this is a Dizzy tune, isn't it? Can't remember the name. Wow, I like this alto player a lot. Several mins later...still intent on alto player. Whoa. Need to know who this is! Not that the rest of the band isn't great...I really dig the piano solo too.

Track 12 - Monk's "Well You Needn't." Good band, nice reading of this. Dynamic horn player and the rhythm section cooks along nicely. A lot of skips in this track, unless it's my internet connection...or they are dropping beats all over the place. ;) :D

Track 13 - Really dig the tenor player. Unfortunately what's going on underneath is distracting me...the bass player is getting lost, and the piano player is playing a second walking line on top of the bass player's line. Oy. Anyway...ok, focus...yes, the tenor player is COOKING. I could listen to that sound all day. DAMN... this guy just keeps ramping the energy up, despite the rhythm section's efforts to weigh him down. What a solo! Definitely looking forward to finding out who this is!

Track 14 - The tune is "Easy Living." Another beautiful tenor sound, warm & smooth. Woo! This is stunning. Great way to end the BFT.

Thanks so much for your efforts on this Dan! Even though it didn't all click with me personally, there's a lot here that I'm anxious to learn more about. Always fun to listen what others put together. Many thanks!

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5 hours ago, webbcity said:

Getting in just under the wire once again, with some comments noted as I listened. Haven't looked at anyone else's answers yet.

Track 1 - The tune is of course Herbie's "Watermelon Man." This version of it isn't my thing though.

Track 2 - Horace Silver's "Song for My Father." I'm curious who the tenor player is on this-- really great solo, fantastic sound.

Track 3 - Ahhhh...now we're cookin! This is great from beat one. It's another Silver tune-- "Sister Sadie." This band is killin. Great soloists! Don't know the saxophonists but they're tearing it up. Oh, that's gotta be Clark Terry on trumpet, no? Don't know the other trumpet player.

Correct it is Clark Terry. I don't think anyone else picked that up. Jim Sangrey puzzled this out.

Track 4 - "Things Ain't What They Used to Be." Soulful. Hmmm, actually I don't love this alto player. Hope I don't regret saying that. The rhythm section feels a little uptight. Overall this is ok but feels way too polite.

Depends how you feel about a certain someone who the grandmaster of the BFT identified.

Track 5 - Sorry, not a huge fan of this one either. That trombonist has a massive sound though!

Track 6 - Holy tuba, Batman! Wow. Some good soloing on this--especially that tuba player. Again I kinda wish the rhythm section could loosen up a little.

Piano on this is a major talent, but bass and drums not so well known. Likely the first time they played together.

Track 7 - Now this is a nice groove. Love the two tenors trading off, they are right in the pocket. This is good stuff. As they get into it, I want to pick a favorite between the 2 but can't as they keep one-upping each other! This one is a blast.

I love the fact that everyone loves this tune, especially the musicians among us.

Track 8 - Sorry, again with the rhythm section...just not my thing. But also again, the trombone-- nice solo! Actually I enjoy both horns & the piano solo here but I can't get around the bass player & drummer.

Track 9 - Oh, this is good. Freddie Hubbard's "Little Sunflower." I like this pianist, seems well suited to this type of solo performance. A bit of Chick Corea flavor in there at times. No idea who this is though.

Track 10 - I feel like I'm making a lot of similar comments but again this feels a little too polite. Too overproduced. The bass player sounds like George Mraz. Ah, but the alto player-- I do like this. Definitely curious as to who's on alto here. This solo makes up for the rest of it.

No Mraz, and two tenors, no alto. Jim got this one too.

Track 11 - Applause at the beginning always bodes well. :) Oh, this is a Dizzy tune, isn't it? Can't remember the name. Wow, I like this alto player a lot. Several mins later...still intent on alto player. Whoa. Need to know who this is! Not that the rest of the band isn't great...I really dig the piano solo too.

Track 12 - Monk's "Well You Needn't." Good band, nice reading of this. Dynamic horn player and the rhythm section cooks along nicely. A lot of skips in this track, unless it's my internet connection...or they are dropping beats all over the place. ;) :D

Yeah this was the roughest vinyl I've ever used for a BFT track. So I'm guessing any missing beats was unjudicious audio editing for pops and clicks. However I am glad that *someone* likes the alto player. Finally. :party:

Track 13 - Really dig the tenor player. Unfortunately what's going on underneath is distracting me...the bass player is getting lost, and the piano player is playing a second walking line on top of the bass player's line. Oy. Anyway...ok, focus...yes, the tenor player is COOKING. I could listen to that sound all day. DAMN... this guy just keeps ramping the energy up, despite the rhythm section's efforts to weigh him down. What a solo! Definitely looking forward to finding out who this is!

Piano and bass played together a lot so your comments are a little surprising. Jim got this tenor.

Track 14 - The tune is "Easy Living." Another beautiful tenor sound, warm & smooth. Woo! This is stunning. Great way to end the BFT.

Thanks so much for your efforts on this Dan! Even though it didn't all click with me personally, there's a lot here that I'm anxious to learn more about. Always fun to listen what others put together. Many thanks!

Thanks for participating Tim. Judging from your comments on other BFTs wasn't sure, if you did participate, if you'd find much to like. But your ears are as big as Thom's and I'm glad that there are some players that struck your fancy.

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