GOOD LATE FIFTIES / EARLY SIXTIES JAZZ
Stuart Jefferson | San Diego,Ca | 09/28/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Three discs-77,78,69 minutes each approximately. The sound is very clean and still retains some of the warmth of the original vinyl releases. The horns have their own distinctive sound-hard and crisp,the bass is well represented throughout these tracks-sounding deep and warm,yet always on the money. The piano and drums are mixed very nicely on all the tracks. The booklet is fairly informative,with a short biography on Fuller,original album notes (which are written from an era long past,example-"Like,Wow,Man!"..."Detroit is the scene..."),small color reproductions of the original vinyl album covers,and song titles/track times/who played on what track.
Jazz listeners may be aware of an album titled "Blues-ette",which is still very popular. That album along with "Jazz...It's Magic","The Curtis Fuller Jazztet with Benny Golson (Arabia)","Imagination",and "Images of Curtis Fuller",are all contained in this set,along with several alternate takes (6 of 11 tracks on disc three are alternates) of tracks from the various albums.
The players on various tracks,include,beside Fuller-trombone,Sonny Redd-alto sax,Tommy Flanagan,Wynton Kelly,McCoy Tyner-piano,George Tucker,Jimmy Garrison,Milt Hinton-bass,Louis Hayes,Al Harewood,Charlie Persip,Dave Bailey,Bobby Donaldson,Clifford Jarvis-drums,Benny Golson,Yusef Lateef-tenor sax,Lee Morgan,Wilbur Harden-trumpet. These were some of the top-drawer jazz musicians of their day,and the music they produced is still very fine today.
Fuller is the author of a number of tracks ("Soul Station","Blues-ette","Twelve Inch",etc.) on these albums,and his consistent writing and arranging skills help make this set cohesive. Other tracks were written by well known jazz players of the day (Benny Golson,Frank Foster,Dizzy Gillespie,and others),along with a few songs that became standards ("It's All Right With Me","Imagination",as examples). While obviously arranged beforehand,this music has a relaxed,almost "blowing session" feel about it. There's nothing flashy here,no grandstand playing by anyone,just good straight ahead jazz. A number of tracks are in the 5-6-7 minutes range in length,giving ample time for the various band members to just get up and play.
For listeners who know of the album "Blues-ette",this is more of the same. Well thought out,well played,straight ahead jazz. No pretensions,no show-boating,just good music. This is a prime example of "group" jazz,everyone is listening to one another,and the music just flows along seamlessly. For jazz listeners who are unfamiliar with Fuller or any of the other musicians,this is a prime example of fifties jazz at it's best. This style of music never seems to go out of style-it's being played today by any number of current musicians who recognize the timeless quality of this music. On hearing these tracks you,too,will agree that this is some very fine jazz,played by some of the greatest players in jazz history."
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1