Two styles that have faded away, music for dancing and jazz for snapping the fingers to, are represented on these two reissues..
The early 1960s was the last time dancing became a craze before the disco 70s Here we have four albums that got couples hitting the floor. Chubby Checker himself started it all in 1960 with this “variations on a theme” album that included “The Twist” “Twistin’ USA” and “The Pony”. His followup album included “Let’s Twist Again” and “Peanut Butter”. Joey Dee And The Starliters were a “two hit wonder” with two versions of “Peppermint Twist” along with “Hot Pastrami with Mashed Potatoes”. New Orleans native Gary US Bonds got people twisting with “Twist Twist Senora” and “Dear Lady Twist”. A bunch of singles are included, most notably the “real” original Twist song by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters as well as the iconic Isley Brothers party track “Twist and Shout”. Close only counts in dancing.
Hard bop pianist Wynton Kelly is found in prime form in the late 50s and early 60s. In 1959, he’s teamed with Lee Morgan/tp, Paul Chambers/b, Wayne Shorter/ts and Philly Joe Jones/dr for some bopping originals like “Wrinkles” and “Mama G”. Next year he drops the horns for a trio outing that includes the obscure “Weird Lullaby” and “On Stage”. The following year, he mixes and matches with Chambers and Sam Jones/b alongside Jimmy Cobb/dr for some lovely standards like “Autumn Leaves” and “Come Rain Or Come Shine”. Also included is the rare 1961 one-off album by trumpeter Don Sleet, backed by the classic rhythm sections of Jimmy Heat-Ron Carter/b, Jimmy Cobb/dr and Wynton Kelly/p. You’ll wonder why this is his only session, as it’s a cooker, with a hip read of “Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise” and gorgeous “But Beautiful”. Anyone got more information on this cat?