As a Critic for Downbeat Magazine, every year I get a form to fill out in which to judge the “Best Of” in every category. Every year, when it comes to “Best Label of the Year”, I have to write in the name Fresh Sound Records, because they never include it in the list of labels to choose. Someday, they will get the message.
This 3 disc boxed set (with an incredible book listing the sessions and history) is a perfect example of the importance of Fresh Sound Records.
Have you ever heard of the guitarist Arv Garrison? I’m willing to bet big money the answer is “No”, but you have actually listened to sessions that he’s been on, ignoring his name in the session notes. For example, did you know he was the guitar soloist on Charlie Parkers’ classic Dial sessions from 1946 that included “Moose the Mooche”, “Yardbird Suite”, “Ornithology” and “A Night In Tunisia”? Yep, that’s the guy.
Got your attention, didn’t I?
While spending most of his life in the swinging town of Toledo Ohio, Garrison married bassist Vivien Garry and formed a trio in the mold of Nat “King” Cole, with similar hip harmonies, jivey lyrics and the hubby/guitarist laying out licks in Oscar Moore fashion. The team swings with joy on pieces like “Altitude” and bops thill they drop on “Where You At?” when drummer Roy Hall joins the team with pianist George Handy or Teddy Kaye. Wife Vivien oozes out lyrics on “I Surrender Dear” and the team digs dep on “Tonsilectomy”. A pre-Rawhide Frankie Lane croons on a hip “It Only Happens Once” and on the Armed Forces Radio Service/Jubilee Show the team gets hep on “Where You At” and “It Ain’t Gonna Be Like That”.
As far as the Parker sides, it’s fasincating listen to these songs and not focus on Bird-hey, this guy can play! A 1946 gig at the Club Morocco in Hollywood with Wini Beatty at the piano has the team rip through “How High The Moon”, guaranteed to win a bet on a Blindfold Test, and the Leo Watson sounding like Eddie Jefferson on the vocal pop of “Jingle Bells”, “Snake Pit” and the hilariously non-PC “Tight and Gay”.
A real tour de force happens with Garrison teams up on one of the Jubilee shows and jams with fellow ax grinders Barney Kessel, Irving Ashby and Les Paul as they take turns on a bop medley including “Cherokee” and “How High the Moon”. ARE YOU INTERESTED YET?!?
The last but not least disc has the trio of Garry, Beatty and Garrison in perfect Cole fashion on “Mop Mop” befoe a sizzling “Saturday Night Swing Session” from WNEW (from Sunset and Vine, stated by the emcee) with Garry in Holiday fashion on a drop dead gorgeous “Lover Man” and the team swinging from the trees on “Indiana”. Vocalist Babs Gonzalez does some Slim Gillard jive work on “Blues in B Flat”, but the best is set for (almost) last, as Garrison joins in with Lionel Hampton, Charlie Ventura and Kai Winding for a volcanic read of “Flying Home”. If that isn’t interesting enough, you then have vocalist El Meyers sounding a lot like Jackie Paris on hip swing on “You Can Do It If You Try” and “New Love”.
If you don’t ask yourself (like I did), “Where has this guy been?!?” then maybe you should switch from being a jazz fan to something like macrame. This is IT!