Search - Howard Ramsey :: Sunday Jazz á la Lighthouse, Vol. 1

Cool!

Reck | 03/27/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"While Miles Davis (Birth of the Cool - 1949) properly gets a lot of credit for creating the 'cool' jazz sounds of the late '40's and '50's, Howard Rumsey and the story of cool jazz on the West Coast occurs in the same period and creates a modern jazz sound that is, I think, unique. The Lighthouse All Stars, which Rumsey founded originally from Sunday jams at the Lighthouse Cafe in Hermosa Beach, were high caliber musicians, many from Stan Kenton's orchestra. Their sound has a combination of swing and experimental improvisation a la beBop or just flat out modern (like Brubeck) that had a singular signature. The All Stars included on this CD: Shorty Rogers, Maynard Ferguson,(t) Jimmy Giuffre, Bob Cooper,(sax) Shelly Manne,(d) Milt Bernhart,(trom) Frank Patchen and Hampton Hawes (p) and of course Howard Rumsey (b). My current senior citizen jazz class that is learning about modern jazz thoroughly enjoyed it and the All Stars also do Latin better than Miles. "Viva Zapata" on this CD is fab. Enjoy!"