Search - Shorty Rogers, Pete Jolly :: The Swingin' Nutcracker

Tchaikovsky in jazz, thanks to Shorty Rogers

Bomojaz | South Central PA, USA | 09/03/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Here's Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker put to a jazz setting and, for the most part, it works very well. That is primarily due to Shorty Rogers's excellent arranging skills and the top-notch musicians he's employed - with a saxophone section to kill for (Bill Holman, Richie Kamuca, Bill Perkins, Bud Shank, Art Pepper, and Harold Land, just to mention SOME of them). Solo space is limited and for the most part solos are incorporated into the arrangements, but all selections contain some solos (with the aforementioned sax players on hand it would be a crime not to let them solo). Highlights include the medium-up SNOWBALL, the Latin-tinged SIX PAK, the energetic PASS THE DUKE, and the exciting CHINA WHERE, which has a good Bud Shank flute solo and nice Lou Levy on piano. On the other side of the coin, FLOWERS FOR THE CATS is an up-tempo cooker, but gets locked up in a repetitive rhythmic pattern that the soloists have a hard time breaking out of, and THE SWINGIN' PLUM FAIRY is somewhat stiff and mechanical. A month after Shorty recorded this album Duke Ellington tackled the same music with his orchestra, and I think Rogers's results get the bigger eyes. That's no mean feat."