About five years ago I found a nice clean copy of Crash! by guitarist Kenny Burrell and organist Brother Jack McDuff (Prestige, 1964) at If Music which was located two floors above an ironmongers in Soho, I listened to the opening track to check that all was well and duly bought the record. Later that evening I was surprised to discover that side two was in fact the second side of a completely different album - Brother Jack McDuff Live! - which has been released on Prestige the year before. Someone must have picked the wrong stampers at the pressing plant.
I’ve yet to come across another copy from this run of faulty pressings and was annoyed to miss out on three tracks (including a terrific version of Stormy Monday). But on the plus side, it did give me three great live McDuff tracks with George Benson on guitar.
For this week’s Jazz On The Beach I’ve chosen The Breeze and I from side one of Crash! with Burrell, McDuff, tenor saxophonist Harold Vick, drummer Joe Dukes and conguero Ray Barretto. If anyone hears of another faulty pressing out there, this time featuring side two of Crash! and side one of Live! I’ll be very happy…
Also on this week’s show, Nathen Page’s great version of Wayne Shorter’s Footprints from the album Page 1 (Hugo’s Music, 1977), recorded live in Washington D.C. with pianist Charles Covington, double bassist Steve Novosel and drummer Tony Green. Page was a fine guitar player who worked with Jackie McLean, Sonny Rollins, Jimmy Smith, Charles Tolliver and Roberta Flack as well as recording a number of albums on his own Hugo’s Music label. Also making the playlist is No Jive by The Frank Derrick Total Experience from the album You Betcha! (P.S. Records, 1974), recorded live at Fiddler’s in Chicago (their regular Sunday gig), with young drummer Frank Derrick leading a deeply grooving multiple horn lineup.
One of the most exciting cuts this week is the title track from the powerful Blackstone Legacy (Contemporary, 1971), the debut album by the great trumpeter Woody Shaw. This 16 minute jazz masterpiece also features alto saxophonist Gary Bartz, tenor saxophonist and bass clarinettist Bennie Maupin, electric pianist George Cables, double bassist Ron Carter, electric bassist Clint Houston and drummer Lenny White.
Among this week’s new releases is The Harper Trio’s spellbinding Passing By from their debut album of the same name (Little Yellow Man Records). Hailing from Hastings on the south coast, the band members are electric jazz harpist/composer Maria-Christina Harper (very apt name), drummer Evan Jenkins and saxophonist Josephine Davies. From up north in Leeds there’s bassist/composer Ozzy Moysey’s 14 piece jazz ensemble Ancient Infinity Orchestra’s title track from River Of Light (Gondwana, 17 November), and afrofusionists KONTIKI with the lively Brother Chumbo from Mangrove Big Head (self release, December).
There’s more from saxophonist Joshua Redman’s Where We Are (Blue Note) with Jimmy Webb’s By The Time I Get To Phoenix that features a beautiful vocal from Gabrielle Cavassa, together with pianist Aaron Parks, double bassist Joe Sanders and drummer Brian Blade. And another track too from pianist Art Hirahara’s excellent Echo Canyon (Posi-Tone), this week it’s Shura written by double bassist Boris Kozlov. I recently wrote about this record for London Jazz News, click here to read the review.
An album I’ve been listening to a great deal since it was released in August is saxophonist & flautist Tenderlonious’ You Know I Care (22a). Tenderlonious (aka Ed Cawthorne) and his band - pianist Hamish Balfour, double bassist Pete Martin and drummer Tim Carnegie - play with great feeling and deep respect on Poor Eric, a composition by pianist Larry Willis written after the passing of Eric Dolphy that first appeared on Jackie McLean’s Right Now.
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Radio Times
Listen live to Jazz On The Beach every Wednesday from 10.00pm - midnight and Blues Beach every other Thursday from 6.00pm - 7.00pm via the internet on DealRadio.co.uk or the TuneIn Radio app.
Both shows are broadcast live from Deal Radio, 69a High Street, Deal, Kent CT14 6EH. Just drop by if you’re passing and browse the records for sale at the front.
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