Search - Hot Lips Page :: Story 1937-1946

As gifted a vocalist as he was a trumpeter, Oran "Hot Lips" Page was perhaps Louis Armstrong's most inspired disciple. As a young man he toured with Ma Rainey, and he was a key member of the great Kansas City bands of Walter Page, Bennie Moten, and Count Basie. His trumpet was extraordinarily expressive. Muted, he could suggest a muttered aside, a Bronx cheer, or the wail of a freight train, while his open horn was a glorious, brassy declamation of life, each note receiving its own special inflection. This compilation from his greatest years introduces the fine bands he led in the period, from small groups to large, with saxophonists Earl Bostic, Lucky Thompson, and Don Byas among the featured sidemen. The often witty vocals range from the traditional dirge "I Won't Be Here Long" to the topical "Uncle Sam's Blues," and the music touches on the rise of both R&B and bop. --Stuart Broomer