Mark Stryker Posted August 12, 2020 Report Share Posted August 12, 2020 Gobsmacked to discover Yusef Lateef in a place I never would have expected and which never turned up during my book research. Maybe some of you already knew about Lateef's appearance with Dakota Staton on "Dakota at Storyville," but it was news to me. Let me start at the beginning: About a decade ago, an exceptional local record store in metro Detroit closed. During the closeout sale, I bought some 150 LPs at rock-bottom prices -- in some cases less than $1 a side. A lot of them were by vocalists -- Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan, Dakota Staton, Bobby Short, Peggy Lee, Gloria Lynne, Lurlean Hunter, Sammy Davis Jr., Eydie Gorme, Tony Bennett, Della Reese, Joe Williams, and others. A friend suggested I open a supper club when he heard about my haul. I've tried to listen to all of them by now, but occasionally I discover that one has slipped by me. I realized last night that I never checked out "Dakota at Storyville" (Capitol), recorded live at the Boston club on April 29, 1961. The cover identifies her accompaniment only as the Norman Simmons Quartet with no further details. Most of you know that Simmons was a pianist who worked with a lot of singers over the years. I started listening to the opening track, "Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby," and the tenor sax obbligatos behind the vocal caught my ear immediately. Even before a rollicking saxophone solo erased any doubt, it was already pretty clear that it was Lateef -- there's no mistaking that sound! He also plays flute on some tracks and even pulls out the oboe on "Music, Maestro, Please." I did a little Internet searching and while there are sources here and there that do identify Lateef, the bassist and drummer remain a mystery. Discographies shed no light either. I would love to know who the other cats are and especially how Yusef ended up on the record. I did notice, however, when looking closely at the back of the LP, that the hazy black-and-white drawing of Staton at work includes a saxophonist, and it's crystal clear that it's Lateef's profile --which suggests the drawing was done on site at the club. I can't find an artist credit, but it might be buried in the drawing somewhere. Here's a taste of the music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted August 12, 2020 Report Share Posted August 12, 2020 Oh yeah, found this one a few years ago and bought it explicitly because of that drawing. Looked so much like Yusef, and the album wasn't but a few bucks, so why not, right? A fine record it turned out to be too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Stryker Posted August 13, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2020 5 hours ago, JSngry said: Oh yeah, found this one a few years ago and bought it explicitly because of that drawing. Looked so much like Yusef, and the album wasn't but a few bucks, so why not, right? A fine record it turned out to be too! It is amazing (or maybe not) how after a lifetime of study -- I turned 57 yesterday and have been at this music thing since I was 10 -- that there is still so much to discover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjzee Posted August 13, 2020 Report Share Posted August 13, 2020 6 hours ago, Mark Stryker said: I did a little Internet searching and while there are sources here and there that do identify Lateef, the bassist and drummer remain a mystery. Discographies shed no light either. I would love to know who the other cats are and especially how Yusef ended up on the record. Maybe contact the George Wein organization? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted August 13, 2020 Report Share Posted August 13, 2020 Had a Collectables CD reissue too. I don't see that NS has passed - wasn't really sure if he was still around - but this 2017 blog post http://forseniorsonlyws.com/music-notes/norman-straight-ahead-simmons-2-2-billion-seconds-jazz-counting/ has an actual email for him: normangigs@optonline.net Maybe he's still online and reachable. Might be able to recall how Yusef came to be on the gig and who was playing bass and drums, or who typically played bass and drums on those gigs at that time. he is also on Facebook though not very active it seems: https://www.facebook.com/normansimmonsjazz/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Stryker Posted August 13, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2020 1 hour ago, Dan Gould said: Had a Collectables CD reissue too. I don't see that NS has passed - wasn't really sure if he was still around - but this 2017 blog post http://forseniorsonlyws.com/music-notes/norman-straight-ahead-simmons-2-2-billion-seconds-jazz-counting/ has an actual email for him: normangigs@optonline.net Maybe he's still online and reachable. Might be able to recall how Yusef came to be on the gig and who was playing bass and drums, or who typically played bass and drums on those gigs at that time. he is also on Facebook though not very active it seems: https://www.facebook.com/normansimmonsjazz/ Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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