Few reissue labels release jazz albums that are as diverse as the ones put out by UK based Avid Records, and NO ONE puts out so much music so often. You could EASILY only get your music from this label and have enough excellent jazz from the 40s-60s to hide yourself in. Here is a quintet of tasty morsels!
No one played outside music with the intensity and devotion of Eric Dolphy. He possessed one of the most distinct sounds on THREE instruments. You can tell him a mile away on flute, alto sax and bass clarinet. What more do you need to know about him than the titles of three of these albums-Outward Bound, Out There and Far Cry? The three sessions from 1960 have him in the company of a) Freddie Hubbard/tp, Jaki Byard/p, George Tucker/b and Roy Haynes/dr (a team which is similar to Oliver Nelson’s classic session of less than a year later) b) Ron Carter/cello, George Duvivier/b, Haynes/dr and c) Booker Little/tp, Byard/p, Carter and Haynes. His flute on “Glad to Be Unhappy” is ethereal and heavenly, while his bass clarinet ruminates on the bluesy “Serene” and “Sketch of Melba.” On alto, he agonizes on “Feathers” while he sears on “Ode to Charlie Parker” and “Mrs. Parker of KC.” The Five Spot gig has him with Little, Mal Waldron/p, Richard Davis/b and Ed Blackwell/dr and is an absolute classic, with Dolphy and Little combusting on “Fire Waltz” and Blackwell holding court on “Bee Vamp” while the history of jazz is evoked on the 21 minute “The Prophet.” Watch your ears expand before your eyes!
Vibist Terry Gibbs has been one of the heaviest swingers around, and these four sessions from 1956-60 catch him in a variety of settings. A big band from ’56 has Bob Brookmeyer/valf/tb, Al Cohn/ts and Ernie Royal/tp as ringers that high tail it on “Let’s Wail” or exude aplomb on “Happiness is a Thing Called Joe.” A ’58 tribute to Duke Ellington has Pete Jolly on the accordion along with Gary Peacock-Leroy Vinnegar/b and Gary Frommer/dr swinging like they just came from the Borscht Belt with a highlignt being a wonderfully exotic “caravan” as well as a frenetic “Rockin’ In Rhythm.” A saxy team of Bill Holman-Med Flory/ts, Joi Maini-Charlie Kennedy/as and Jack Schwartz/bari delivery velvety takes of “Moonlight Serenade’ and “The Things We Did Last Summer” to get you into the mood to be woo-ed. A cooking quintet with Herb Ellis/g and Frank Capp/dr sizzle on material from Cole Porter’s Can Can musical, with wonderful and bopping takes of “Just One Of Those Things” and “It’s Alright With Me” while hitting the right vibe on “I Love Paris.” Fun times!
Multi-instrumentalist Roland Kirk is another one of those artists that are beyond category. Sometimes free, other times locked into the blues, he covers the waterfront on these 60-62 releases. His Introductory album has Kirk hitting the ground running on tenor sax, manzello and stritch (go to Google for more info!) along with Ira Sullivan/tp-ts and a rhythms section. He can create some eerie sounds that are still able to swing on “The Call” and “Jack The Ripper” while also hitting you right where you live on ”Our Love Is Here to Stay.” He plays 2-3 instruments simultaneously on Kirk’s Works, while he gets into an intense groove with Brother Jack McDuff’s Hammond on “Skater’s Waltz.” These first albums have a bluesy Mingus feel to it, with a mix of gospel, bop and beyond. The team gels into a rivulet of groove on “Doin’ the Sixty Eight” while “Makin’ Whoopee” will get you up on your feet. In 1961, Kirk bonds with a team that included Hank Jones/p, Charlie Persip/dr and Art Davis/b among others as Kirk gets on the Coltrane on a frenetic “Our Delight” and a classic remake of Charlie Parker’s “Blues For Alice.” The hymnlike “We Free Kings” is a draw dropping original, while “A Sack Full of Soul” will funkify you. The last session from 1962 rotates rhythm sections between Andrew hill-Wynton Kelly/p, Henry Duncan-Roy Haynes/dr and Vernon Martin with his use of multiple instruments including a siren and flute are beyond novelty, as on “Meeting On Terminie’s Corner.” A tenor-manzello combo on “I Believe In You” complete this Class V Rapids of a session.
Mostly known for his intimate small group combos, vibist Red Norvo displays himself in a multitude of settings on these 52-58 releases. With Red Mitchell/ and either Tal Farlow or Jimmy Raney, Norvo gently swings with subtlety on “Dancing on the Ceiling” while revs up the heat on “Lover, Come Back to Me” and “Good Bait.” Farlow is a major plus here, with his lithe lines begging for transcriptions. A slightly larget group from 1957 includes Buddy Collette/fl, Blill Smith/cl, barney Kessel/g, Shelly Manne/dr and Mitchell through some cerebral “Divertimento’s” as well as classy swinging on “Red Sails” and “The Red Broom.” Basie vocalist Helen Humes sits in for a couple sessions with Jimmy Rowles/p, Bud Shank/as, Bill Perkins/ts and Don Fagerquist among others on 57-58 dates that has her hitting the right vibe on “Some Like it Hot,” and “Shed No Tears” while Norvo shows he can play the blues as he meets up with Earry Edison/tp and Ben Webster/ts and Rowles for some agonizingly glorious indigos on “The Night Is Blue,” “Sunrise Blues” and “Easy on the Eye.” Hit me with your best shot!
Pianist Oscar Peterson switches between a trio with bass/ drums and guitar/bass on three of the 56-58 albums and then goes big band with arranger with Russ Garcia for a climax on these four albums. Ray Brown remains the bassist as Gene Gammage/Ed Thigpen do a couple show tune albums. The tribute to Porgy and Bess has Peterson in prime form with some wonderfully bluesy notes on “I Wants To Stay Here” and “Bess, You Is My Woman Now.” The trio with Gammage swings with gusto on “Show Me” and “The Rain In Spain” while they float like a paper airplane on “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face.” In concert at the Stratford Shakespearean Festival with Ellis and Brown in 1956 at Ontario, Canda, Peterson and Company give a dizzying take of “How High the Moon” while waxing eloquent on”Love You Madly.” A big band session from Hollywood in 1959 includes Bud Shank/as, Bill Holman/ts and Biddy Childers/tp on some latin lovers “Cubana Chant” and “Con Alma.” Relentlessly enjoyable!
Avid Music Group