jazztrain

Including the four EPs that he did for RCA in Sweden. And the odd sides that show up on some U.S. EPs. I think Fresh Sound issued a lot of that material, and a Swedish label (Gazelle?) put out the material from Sweden. There's a rather rare South African RCA album as well. His Brunswick/Coral material is actually more of a mess. A comprehensive and complete issue of that material would be welcome.

The Mosaic Select is the way to go with the Zeitlin Columbia material. You get the complete albums plus a fair amount of previously unissued material.

Of course! How about Jimmy Blanton and Scott LaFaro for that matter? For question two (more albums for Blue Note), I wish there were more Ike Quebec albums. Absolutely, and then one obvious name comes to mind: Charlie Christian.

Many good answers already -- Clifford Brown, Eric Dolphy, Wardell Gray, Booker Little. I'm trying to think of others who died far too young who showed great promise and potential. Here are a couple in response to the first question: Frank Teschemacher and Stan Hasselgard.

Boylston Street.

Found the following on line: When initially introduced, 12-inch LPs played for a maximum of 45 minutes, divided over two sides. However, in 1952, Columbia Records began to bring out extended-play LPs that played for as long as 52 minutes, or 26 minutes per side. These were used mainly for the original cast albums of some Broadway musicals, such as Kiss Me, Kate and My Fair Lady, or in order to fit an entire play, such as the 1950 production of Don Juan in Hell, onto just two LPs. The 52+ minute playing time remained rare, however, because of mastering limitations, and most LPs continued to be issued with a 30- to 45-minute playing time throughout the lifetime of their production. However, some albums would eventually exceed even the 52-minute limitation, with single albums going to as long as ninety minutes in the case of Arthur Fiedler's 1976 LP 90 Minutes with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops, made by Radio Shack. However, such records had to be cut with much narrower spacing between the grooves, which allowed for a much smaller amount of dynamic range on the records, and meant that playing the record with a worn needle could damage the record. It also resulted in a much quieter sound. (Other notably long albums included La Monte Young's Dream House 78' 17", whose two sides were each just under 40 minutes; Bob Dylan's 1976 album Desire, with side two being just shy of thirty minutes; Brian Eno's 1975 album Discreet Music, whose A-side exceeded thirty minutes; and Todd Rundgren's Initiation, totalling 67:32 over two sides). Spoken word and comedy albums, not having a wide range of musical instrumentation to reproduce, can be cut with much narrower spacing between the grooves; for example, The Comic Strip, released by Springtime Records in 1981, has a Side A lasting 38:04 and a Side B lasting 31:08, for a total of 69:12.

Allen: Already noted by me three posts up and then confirmed by Ted. On the other hand, the quote attributed to me earlier today by jtaylor ("Interesting that the cover shown on the Amazon site is not the one on the disc. Hep advises that it was a mockup, and was changed because the photo was changed...") was not from me.

Well, Saturn was already taken.

Chris: It probably was "On the Streets of New York" which was issued as a 7-inch ep on Mars, which I believe was owned by Woody Herman.

Many of Scott Robinson's albums feature a plethora of instruments, many of them played by him, and many of them unusual or in unusual combinations.

Ted: I assume you mean Doug Pomeroy, not Herb. Looking forward to hearing this.

I have some partial information but won't have a chance to listen to the LP for a while to aurally confirm the information below or to get some leads on the other tracks. "Lonesome Road" (Side 1, #4) is by Max Kaminsky and His Windy City Six: Max Kaminsky (t), Miff Mole (tb), Pee Wee Russell (cl), Joe Sullivan (p), Jack Lesberg (b), George Wettling (d). Recorded in New York City, 1954. Issued also on various Concert Hall, Hall of Fame, and Jazztone LPs. From the same date are "Never Touched Me" (retitled as "New Orleans Joys" on MK 1001 (Side 2, #4)) and "Stuyvesant Blues" (retitled as "Midnight Blues" on MK 1001 (Side 2, #7)). Susie (Side 2, #1) is by Bud Freeman & His Summa Cum Laude Orchestra. New York City, March 25, 1940. Max Kaminsky (t), Brad Gowans (v-tb), Pee Wee Russell (cl), Bud Freeman (ts), Dave Bowman (p), Eddie Condon (g), Pete Peterson (b), Morey Feld (d). That's all I've traced so far. Information is from Bob Hilbert's Pee Wee Russell discography ("Pee Wee Speaks"). Other commitments loom, so that's all for now... Mine is also signed and dated (October 1978). Anyone have an unsigned copy? Those are probably less common.

Who knows, maybe it will displace the Rod Stewart standards albums that I've been subjected to at my dentist for the past several years...

Carnivore: A few more points: - Mezzrow was a very limited player in most respects. His talents largely resided elsewhere. Having said that, he could play some effective blues choruses and did so in the recordings that he co-led with Bechet. - No one has mentioned Joe Marsala who I also like a lot. He built a personal style based in part on Jimmy Noone and in part on Pee Wee Russell. His legacy continues through Bobby Gordon. - Jimmy Dorsey (who I mentioned in the "favorite alto player" thread) also often gets overlooked on clarinet. He could do a remarkable Jimmie Noone imitation but had his own style that is recognizable on hundreds of hot dance records (and some not so hot ones as well). Many's the time I go "hey, that's Jimmy Dorsey!" on an otherwise unmemorable record. - Buddy (DeFranco) gets short shrift (the "cold player" rap from Leonard Feather). I've seen him many times over the years and have never not been moved by him.

Carnivore: Abe Schwartz played violin. You must be thinking of either Dave Tarras or Naftule Brandwein, each of whom played with Schwartz at various times.

Allen: I interviewed Buddy DeFranco, probably about 20 years ago, before one of his shows at the Regattabar in Cambridge (Massachusetts) and remember asking him if there were any great "unknown" clarinetists. One of the few that he mentioned was Schildkraut. I remember searching later, largely without success, for any recorded examples of his playing clarinet. I think I found something on one of the Jazz Studio (Ralph Burns?) Decca LPs but don't think that he soloes. Do you know of anything that he recorded on the instrument? DeFranco also mentioned a Philadelphia player (Billy Krechmer). I saw Art Pepper slightly later, also either at Paul's Mall or at the adjacent Jazz Workshop. He only played alto. In the same vein, I remember asking (somewhat presumptuously, in retrospect) Phil Woods if he'd ever consider recording an album entirely on clarinet. His response" "I just did." It was the duo album on Philology with Irio de Paula. Also - Boston, 1975 or '76. I was at Pauls Mall, a jazz club, talking with Art Pepper, when a kid comes over and says, "hey Art, do you still play the clarinet?" Pepper looks at me, smiles, takes the kid's clarinet and plays a bunch of runs - and then takes it on stage and plays an incredible blues on the instrument, very boppish but with a lot of his personal feel. Wow.

I didn't mention Bechet, but there's a special place in my heart for "Blue Horizon." I think of him (as he himself did) primarily as a unique voice on soprano saxophone, but his clarinet playing was also memorable. There's an October 1941 rendition of "Mood Indigo" (the take that was on one of the two Victor Vintage LPs) that still gives me chills. "Egyptian Fantasy" is another one. There are several others on which he plays both instruments to great effect such as "Save It Pretty Mama," "Ain't Misbehavin'," and "Nobody Knows the Way I Feel Dis' Mornin'." Daniels achieves almost a flutelike sound on the instrument. I remember most liking "First Prize" on Prestige and, much later, "Breakthrough." Most of the Benny Goodman Quartet, Quintet, Sextet, etc. evocations by later players (and there are scores of them) end up being ultimately unsatisfying. Most of them leave me wanting rather to go back to listen to the original. George Lewis was what he was - a simple musician whose style never changed. His early recordings have a freshness and directness that I like a lot. He probably recorded too much over the years - there's a sameness about many of the later recordings. But there are some good ones, too, like the Atlantic album. George Lewis Plays Hymns, mentioned by jazztrain, works so well because it's so straightforward and sincere. I agree with Greg M. that Bechet's "Blue Horizon" is a masterpiece. I can't follow him into Eddie Daniels appreciation, though. Daniels has amazing command of the clarinet, but his music leaves me cold.

I think I've recommended elsewhere the George Lewis "Plays Hymns" album on Milneberg. Really distinctive. The Louis Cottrell sessions that Christien produced for Riverside are gems as well.

His duo recording with pianist Tom McDermott is also quite nice.

Christopher's latest effort on Arbors (The Remembering Song) is particularly tasty, with several attractive originals. Gee, where to start? I could name dozens and dozens. I've somewhat obsessively collected jazz clarinet recordings for close to 40 years now, and there's such a wide range of sounds that can be made on the instrument. I'd start with Pee Wee. Other favorites, for various reasons, include Edmond Hall, Johnny Dodds, Lester Young, Jimmy Giuffre, Kenny Davern, Buddy DeFranco, and Tony Scott. Jeff is right about Willie Humphrey, someone I discovered recently from the Atlantic recordings on the Mosaic box. That's a good observation about Benny Carter, also. He had a slightly loose embouchure (as is the case for many doublers) but played the instrument really well. Same for Phil Woods. I love those players who achieved a personal and recognizable sound. The elegant filigree work of Albert Nicholas and the edge he gets when he goes up high. Cecil Scott and his buzz tone on recordings with Clarence Williams. For pretty sounds, Fazola, Shaw, and Bigard are certainly high on the list. Can't leave out Benny Goodman, either. And so many others... Any particular album recommendations? Damn. Okay.... I was going to use something from one of these albums on my next Blindfold Test. But this is more important. Try this for a readily available album: Delta Bound on Arbors. My favorite Evan C. album is probably going to be hard to find if you don't live in France. It's called Introduction: Live at the Meridien. I can't even tell for sure what the label is - Classic Jazz, maybe, or Jazz Traditions Project. But it's very cool - Evan plays standards, Ellington, and Ornette with a French guitar/bass/drums rhythm section. Same request here. All I have are four tracks with Billie Holiday & Bunny Berigan. Mostly Faz on Jazz Band is very good. Most of it is two mid-40s sessions from when he moved back to New Orleans. Otherwise look for the stuff he did with Bob Crosby. Yeah, Doreen's great. Not really in the first rank of New Orleans clarinetists, but not that far off, either. And I forgot to mention Ben Schenck, a New Orleans guy who just gets better and better. His band is the Panorama Jazz Band - they've got three albums, of which Come Out Swingin' is the best. They play traditional jazz, klezmer, calypso - all sorts of stuff.

Allen: Agreed that the clip from the Martin Block broadcast sounds better than I've ever heard it before. I just thought it was odd that no one had either recognized it (or bothered to note that it was out before). Having said that, I share your sentiments about the other clips. I'm just hoping that they find their way out somehow, sometime. Makes you wonder what else is there.

Wow! some astonishing clips are posted there. However, the last clip (which they call "Blues Jam") with Armstrong and Waller has been issued many times before. It's from a Martin Bloch Jam Session broadcast that is usually dated as December 14, 1938. Does anyone recognize any of the other clips as having been issued before? The short nature of some of them makes it more difficult to determine.

One of my earliest jazz experiences involved seeing the film "On the Road with Duke Ellington" at a local library in the summer after finishing high school. Most of my prior musical experience had involved classical music and pop music of the day. That film and discovering WRVR-FM in New York (with Ed Beach and others) around the same time were two early factors that started me down a slippery slope of ongoing jazz discovery and acquisition. I saw Ellington once in New Haven in the early fall of 1972. The concert was filmed at least in part (I remember, much to my dismay, a TV camera being set up almost directly in front of my seat), and I often had wished that I could go back and recapture that experience. Earlier this year I received the audio portion of an Ellington concert in New York City from within a few months of the New Haven concert. The sense of deja vu was striking. It's funny how music can stick in ones head. A somewhat similar experience involved a concert in New Haven involving Willie Ruff and Dizzy Gillespie. Years later I remember hearing a record of a live performance and thinking not just that I had heard it before but that I had been at the performance. Sure enough, I had been.

Yes, but Trumbauer played C melody saxophone, not alto.

Jeff: You're welcome! I remember tracking down that information on Gregory Felix. I played the following Zutty Singleton (Zutty And His Band) 78s on Decca the other night: Look Over Yonder / Runenae Papa (I Want A Lot Of Love) (I Would Do) Anything For You / Clarinet Marmalade Royal Garden Blues / Bugle Call Rag You should check out the first one, especially, if you don't know it. It has some wonderful clarinet playing by the rather obscure Horace Eubanks.