Montreux '77 [Live]

1. Barbados

2. Medley: Some Other Spring/Easy Living

3. Medley: Star Crossed Lovers/Jump for Joy

4. Woody 'N You

5. Blue Bossa

6. Heat Wave

Montreux '77,Tommy Flanagan 3,Ojc,Bop,Jazz,Mainstream Jazz,Pop

Jazz

Music

jazz

Tracks:

Ali And Frazier
If I Were A Bell
Things Ain't What They Used To Be
Just In Time
Bye Bye Blues

Customer Reviews:

Some Jam Session!.......2007-03-10

Not just another Oscar Peterson album (nothing wrong with that anyway!), this also features Clark Terry and Dizzy Gillespie on Trumpets and Eddie 'Lockjaw' Davis on Tenor sax, as well as NHOP on bass and Bobby Durham on drums.

The first track starts at a ferocious pace and never lets up. The story about the title of this first track (Ali and Frazier) is told in the sleeve notes. Count Basie was sitting in the musicians room watching the concert on a TV monitor and noticed how serious the musicians were (you'd have to be serious the speed they are playing the piece at) and said:
"....those cats aren't joking, they know what's coming up". At the end of the first number he turned to Norman Granz and said "Just like Ali and Frazier".

Track 3 is a steady rolling version of "Things Ain't What They Used To" which if the tempo is way down on the first number reaches some fantastic crescendo's - noteably Peterson's rolling tremelo at the end of his solo. The crowd are roaring at the end of this number.

The album features some of the Giants of Jazz and is well worth getting.

ALLSTAR JAM SESSION.......2002-06-12

although I bouht this CD mainly because of Oscar Peterson, this CD should be considered a highlight for all the musicians in it

the trumpets(gillespie and terry)- they are the source of much excitement, especially on that blistering blues number

the bass payer (pederson)- he is consistent throughout with also a huge contribution to the fast blues

oscar- in my opinion, his finest moment comes on Bye Bye Blues when the band stops but he continues with some amazing stride piano

the sax (lockjaw)- i love the sound he gets from the tenor-- that is wails, soars, and groans, etc

Tracks:

Too Close For Comfort
I Ain't Got Nothin' But The Blues
My Man
Come Rain Or Come Shine
Day By Day
Ordinary Fool
One Note Samba
I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart
Billie's Bounce
You Are The Sunshine Of My Life

Customer Reviews:

Definitely worth buying.......2006-12-18

Ella's version of "my man" on this disk is the definitive one for me. Lots of other great tracks, too.

Bouncin' Ella: Good Introduction to Her Style.......2005-09-13

This was my first CD from Ella's set. I found it a really good, very well-rounded collection and sampling of her styles.

Of special interest is One Note Samba, a wonderful examble of Ella's very bouncy scat techniques. Although, it should be noted that the ENTIRE CD is great. Ella's talent shines through.

60 years and still swinging.......2003-03-22

At the end of the 1970s, Ella was in her early sixties (on this particular recording she was 60).
Ella starts with a swinging rendition of `Too Close For Comfort', which was already on her repertoire in the mid-fifties (she first recorded it in duet with Joe Williams accompanied by Count Basies Band). Here her voice has grown older but she proves that doesn't mean her singing qualities have decreased! What follows is a great version of `I Ain't Got Nothin But The Blues', which is much more soulful than her earlier recording of the song with Duke Ellington in 1957.
After that she sings a beautiful version of `my man', at the end her voice seems to slip away but she manages to keep in under control.
On `Come Rain or Come Shine' she forgets some lyrics, which you won't notice if you've never heard her Harold Arlen Songbook version. It's hard to imagine how she treats a song so difficult with only 16 years between her two versions.
`Ordinary fool' (and not `Only a fool', as Ella introduced it) is the other beautiful ballad on this recording. This recording is the only one made of Ella singing this song.
A swinging `One Note Samba' follows, with breath-taking scats. She had recorded it previously in 1968, 1976, and would record it again in 1981, and in 1983. Although I haven't heard those versions I think they can't be so great as this one. It swings so, that Ella gets tired and has to slow down on the next song, `I let a song go out of my heart'. Personally I find her 1956 version better.
Then another song Ella recorded only once; she's caught her breath now and she swings as great as on `One Note Samba'. The crowd went wild, and asked for an encore: Ella does Stevie Wonders' `Sunshine of my life'. It is great.
Ella was accompanied by the Tommy Flanagan trio, which recorded also an LP without Ella on the same day, so they had to work very much on that night of July 14, 1977. If you hear how much energy Flanagan uses, it isn't difficult to imagine why he would get a heart attack some years afterwards.
These recordings are the last Ella made with Tommy Flanagan - he had been her accompanist from 1963 to 1965 and from 1968 to 1978. From their 1978 work no recordings were made.
This concert is often compared to the Montreux 1975 recordings Ella made with the Flanagan trio, and it's often said Montreux 77 is the best of her Montreux recordings. I think you can't say that one of them is the best. Both recordings have beautiful songs, great scats and wonderful interpretations - I would say: listen to them both!

Average customer rating:

Montreux '77
Joe Pass
Manufacturer: Ojc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000000YLB
Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

Blues For Yano San
Blues For Sitges
Blues For Val
Wait Till You See Her
She's Funny That Way
Blues For Martin
Masquerade

Average customer rating:

Jaws with Oscar and Ray: Earth-shaking chemistry

Montreux '77
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis
Manufacturer: Ojc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Soul-Jazz & Boogaloo | Jazz | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00005YF71
Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

This Can't Be Love
I Wished On The Moon
The Breeze And I
Angel Eyes
Telegraph
Land Of Dreams
Blue Lou

Customer Reviews:

Jaws with Oscar and Ray: Earth-shaking chemistry.......2007-04-01

I'm not sure why Norman Granz released so many albums with the title Montreux '77, thereby encouraging listeners to lump them all together and simply ignore them. In any case, this one is certainly a stand-out: Oscar is in full stride and moreover reunited with Ray Brown. Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, moreover, is arguably the Oscar Peterson of the tenor saxophone, simply a fearless, accomplished, inimitable, untouchable player, whose unique rhythmic drive makes him ideally suited to Oscar while his rougher-hewn tones make him a complementary contrast to the pianist's polished style.

It's a wonder Jaws doesn't betray more nervousness, performing all alone with Oscar's trio, especially since the pianist shows absolutely no mercy, counting off the opener at a tempo that would have most players looking for a handy exit. The ensuing numbers are no less busy. Even on the "down tempo" of "The Breeze and I" Oscar double-times his solo, almost threatening to bury the featured soloist in a shower of flying notes. But Jaws was never one to shirk from a challenge, which is exactly what he gets on this occasion. By the time the group gets to a blues, "Telegraph," he's in full control, making his message so loud and clear that it's Oscar who's breathing hard. Jaws goes on to top himself on 'Land of Dreams," using that patented altimissimo register of his as much to spearhead the rhythm section as to create melodic excitement. Now Oscar really has to go after him--which he does, ingeniously employing repeated quarter notes and rhythms in the manner of Lockjaw himself. Predictably, the program ends as it began--with another burner, "Blue Lou" (Is it possible to play any faster?). Jimmie Smith's drums are in there somewhere, but quite frankly the other three musicians are in such a zone that I wonder how any drummer's hi-hat could synch with the blurred off-beats.

Simply put, there's no group of players alive who, even if they put their minds to it, could produce music such as this in the present millennium.

Average customer rating:

WATCH THE DVD
Very good Basie...
Simply Unbelievable.

Montreux '77
Count Basie Big Band
Manufacturer: Ojc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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On the Road

ASIN: B00000GBZF
Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

The Heat's On
Freckle Face
Splanky
The More I See You
A Night In Tunisia
Hittin' 12
Bag Of Dreams
Things Ain't What They Used To Be
I Need To Be Bee'd With You
Li'l Darlin'
Jumpin' At The Woodside
One O'Clock Jump

Customer Reviews:

WATCH THE DVD.......2007-02-08

Other reviewers have examined the excellence of this CD with far more eloquence than that which I am capable. From 1975 through 1983 Basie reached his marvelous maturity with the best big band which ever existed. Although he needed mechanical aid in getting to the piano he needed no help from there on. We are talking Mozart genius at this point. However, most do not know that a DVD exists of the same gig. While the sound quality is not the same the insight into the internal dynamics of the band are displayed before us. Drive from Butch Miles, the rock of Freddie Green and the exciting, wonderful Al Grey stand out but the interface is visually apparent for the entire band. Look at Basie's face with a classic smile. He's having fun! The whole band is having fun! The result is remarkable. Buy the CD and buy the DVD as well.

Very good Basie..........2001-07-15

The only reason I gave this a four star is that I would have liked to hear it done in a studio.It could have been controlled better. Just my opinion. Other then that,It's great stuff!

Simply Unbelievable........2001-03-19

This is my favorite CD ever. You will never hear Basie any better than this. I wrote a paper on this album for language arts. Everything is great. Jimmy Forrest's rendition of "Bag of Dreams" is one of the greatest jazz ballads I've ever heard. Al Grey plays "The More I See You," and, well, he's Al Grey. You probably already own some of these songs, but it doesn't matter. The performance may even make you re-think your opinion on some charts (for me, it did this on "Freckle Face" - I love it!) The band, especially drummer Butch Miles injects everything with unmatched energy. Not a low point on the whole CD. I recommend this CD for anyone - jazz afficionados, or those looking for an introduction. Buy it.

Average customer rating:

Superb Ray Bryant - Live!
Ray Bryant, Live, solo, at the peak of his talent

Montreux '77
Ray Bryant
Manufacturer: Ojc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Alone with the Blues
All Blues
Alone at Montreux
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Here's Ray Bryant

ASIN: B00000I531
Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

Take The 'A' Train
Georgia On My Mind
Jungle Town Jubilee
If I Could Just Make It To Heaven
Django
Blues No.6
Satin Doll
Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child
St. Louis Blues
Things Ain't What They Used To Be

Customer Reviews:

Superb Ray Bryant - Live!.......2006-07-27

Without a doubt Ray Bryant showed up at the 1977 Montreux festival ready to play - and to dazzle. What truly amazes one on this date is how Ray can take fairly common material and make it absolutely his own. SATIN DOLL, for example; it's been played a thousand times but Ray has found a way to present it differently: he does it as a hard-driving, up-tempo, in-your-face swinger - and it's wonderful. So too with John Lewis's dirge-like DJANGO: Ray does it anything but dirge-like but rather as an up-tempo burner accented with a pounding left hand. That forceful left hand is also in evidence on Strayhorn's TAKE THE A TRAIN, with the bass part coming across like something Pete Johnson or Albert Ammons might play. Amazing! JUNGLE TOWN JUBILEE is a sprightly tune written by Lloyd Glenn, a fun-spirited R&B trumpeter from the 40's and 50's, and Ray seems to be having a ball with it. IF I COULD JUST MAKE IT TO HEAVEN reveals gospel elements along with a sound similar to Roger Kellaway playing his ALL IN THE FAMILY theme - a unique performance. Ray plays the ST. LOUIS BLUES at times as if it were a train piece and he was a barreling locomotive. If jazz is the "sound of surprise," this album is a superb example of the music. I think it one of Bryant's very best. Grab it if you can.

Ray Bryant, Live, solo, at the peak of his talent.......2003-09-01

I remember when I first heard this recording in 1978. I was already a dedicated Ray Bryant fan - having worn out both the "Trio" record on Prestige, as well as "Alone With The Blues", a solo trip back in time to another era of two-handed piano playing, but with that Bryant twist. I was not prepared for Bryant Live, though. He must have stolen the show. Quiet to the point of shy in his introduction of the tunes, along with his habit of naming some of his classic blues playing with numbers (like Blues #6, etc.), his opening tune comes out like a speeding train (no pun intended). "Take The 'A' Train" has never sounded like this: rollicking, romping, stomping Boogie-Woogie, and even when the tempo comes way down (you could not possibly keep it at the level of "A Train"), the soulfulness is so present and touchable that you don't mind at all. "...Motherless Child" is stunning in the way it is paced, as well as played. This recording is magic from start to finish, and the irony of hearing it in 1978, at the height of the 'Disco' craze was never lost on me. What I do not understand, though, is why this recording continues to be overlooked and underrated.

Average customer rating:

Eldridge almost convinces me to eat some "Kidney Stew"
Jammin' at Montreux
Bonhomie...but a bit forced
just a really fun album!
Swingin Live Basie

Basie Jam: Montreux '77
Count Basie Big Band
Manufacturer: Ojc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Basie Jam #3

ASIN: B000000YL6
Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

Bookie Blues
She's Funny That Way
These Foolish Things
Kidney Stew
Trio Blues
I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)
Jumpin' At The Woodside

Customer Reviews:

Eldridge almost convinces me to eat some "Kidney Stew".......2006-11-26

I bought the LP of this recording when it was first released, and it knocked my socks off. Strangely, I have yet to acquire the CD, but I just corrected that egregious oversight.

Roy Eldridge's vocal on "Kidney Stew" is a gass. He manages to sound like Louis when he sings the line, "Love that woman like a rootin' hog loves his corn, bop,bop, bop." and then scats like Pops. A Basie jam is always exciting, and great fun. Ever since I was a child in the 1940's I have always loved Basie. I heard him in person with his big band for the first time at Birdland with Joe Williams in 1959. I sat in the Bullpen till they closed. I was the last one out through those glass doors. I thought, "even the doors swing at Birdland."

"Bookie Blues" features some fine licks from everybody. Ray Brown, always a standout, plays great bass. Vic Dickensen and Al Grey heat things up with some boss trombone playing. The great Benny Carter's solo on "These Foolish Things" shows him at his considerable best. One of the greatest of alto soloists and a consummate musician. Zoot was always a joy to hear with Basie, or anyone else for that matter. And Mr. Basie himself, the glue that holds them all together. No one ever swung harder than The Count! As the liner notes on the LP tell us, Basie's playing on "Trio Blues" belies the nonsense of some critics that Basie played very little piano. Carter's comment, "We can't follow that, Bill!" gives it the lie.

So get this CD and marvel at Mr. Basie and his great octet. You'll be glad you did.

Jammin' at Montreux.......2006-10-15

One of a number of albums recorded at the 1977 Montreux Jazz Festival by Norman Granz on his Pablo label, this Count Basie led jam session features some excellent blowing from some of the best jazzmen in the business, including Zoot Sims, Roy Eldridge, Vic Dickenson, Al Grey, and Benny Carter. Some highlights are: Benny Carter darting all over the place on THESE FOOLISH THINGS, Zoot Sims lyrical yet adventurous solo on SHE'S FUNNY THAT WAY, Al Grey playing muted trombone on I GOT IT BAD, and the crowd pleasing Basie-Ray Brown humorous musical conversation on TRIO BLUES. Roy is marvelous on a number of tunes, smearing his notes one minute, calling down the angels the next with clarity and power; he even sings in his inimitable style on KIDNEY STEW. With the stage at Montreux filled with giants such as these, it's no wonder the music is so exciting and appealing. Definitely worth a listen.

[NOTE: This is NOT the Basie big band as implied by Amazon's subtitle above, only an octet.]

Bonhomie...but a bit forced.......2006-01-10

What is great IS great here...but the long Blues and I Got Rhythm jams don't rock MY world. It is heartening to know that Swing Jazz could still be played this authentically as late as '77. But there are tired moments. Right now I'm listening to Vic Dickenson being cruelly goosed by drummer Smith's relentless woodchopping...and then there are these joyless riffs that don't do what ensemble riffing is supposed to do - propel! Basie sounds amazing - vivid and alive. A great rhythm section pianist. Ray Brown's switching to pedal point at the beginning of Roy Eldridge's solo on Bookie Blues (not a Blues, by the way) is a stunning moment. but then Roy tries to play the sax chorus from Ellington's Cottontail - Roy, it ain't 1944! It's pretty approximate...
I bought this CD for These Foolish Things. Benny Carter is great here, but what I love the most is Basie's comping. Nothing much to it. He plays chord after chord, just laying them down, making this ballad into a virtual blues (one of his trademarks). No embellishments, no substitutions...it's so cool.

just a really fun album!.......2001-12-23

This relatively unknown title is a truelly a great JAM session. Pick this one up and enjoy some Basie in a trully unique/relaxed setting. This CD swings so hard you will not be able to sit still when listening to it. I've had this CD for several years now and still enjoy it immensely each time I listen to it. ...seems to be one of 12-20 jazz CDs that ALWAYS gets packed up when going on a trip

Swingin Live Basie.......2000-07-10

Producer Norman Granz commonly liked to showcase his artists for the Pablo label in jam session settings, producing fun results. This Count Basie jam session recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1977 is brimming with good times, featuring ex bandmates like Vic Dickenson and Al Grey on trombones, the fiery Roy Eldridge on trumpet, Benny Carter on alto sax, and Zoot Sims on tenor. The band gets loose on "Bookie Blues", featuring all six soloists and Basie being greatly encouraged in his sparse but excellent stride piano solo. There are a few ballad features for selected hornmen, and a suprise vocal by Roy Eldridge on a roaring "Kidney Stew". Perhaps the best performance on the album is "Trio Blues", with the Count being backed only by the rhythm section of Ray Brown, and drummer Jimmie Smith(no relation to organist). Basie spins a magnificent solo that prompts Benny Carter at the end of the tune to enthusiastically repeat "We Can't Follow That Bill! ". Well, the band indeed rose to the challenge by closing a fantastic set with the Basie anthem "Jumpin At The Woodside". Overall, "Count Basie Jam: Montreux '77" is a very well conceived jam session and a glowing lesser known gem in the late period Basie catalog.

Average customer rating:

Great Intro to Ray Bryant
Unsung Classic From Jazz Master Benny Carter

Montreux '77
Benny Carter 4 , Ray Bryant , N.H.O. Pedersen , and Jimmie Smith
Manufacturer: Ojc
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Binding: Audio CD

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Back at the Chicken Shack

ASIN: B000000YKW
Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

Three Little Words
In A Mellow Tone
Wave
Undecided
Body And Soul
On Green Dolphin Street
Here's That Rainy Day

Customer Reviews:

Great Intro to Ray Bryant.......2004-01-28

Those who know Ray Bryant's piano style know that he is from gospel and the blues but plays mainstream jazz with those overtones but without being derivative. He's original. His good music can be listened to over and over.

I first bought this disc as a vinyl LP from the sale bins at Woolco, and discovered it to be such a treasure that when the CD was issued, I included this disc among those that I want to have the rest of my life.

Ray "owns" St Louis Blues on this live recording and on an earlier studio version. Motherless Child is haunting but none of the disc is out of place. You can use this music for dinner music or to listen critically. Enjoy!

Unsung Classic From Jazz Master Benny Carter.......2001-02-15

Benny Carter is one of the greatest talents of the jazz world, yet he has never become a household name. His genius, however, as an instrumentalist, composer and arranger has always been apparent to his fellow musicians, and he remained active and in demand into his nineties.

Carter began his career in the mid 1920's, and worked with such early Swing bands as McKinney's Cotton Pickers and the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, before leading his own successful swing orchestra. He then went to Europe for five years, working and recording with gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt and fellow expatriate Coleman Hawkins. Upon his return to the U.S. in 1939, he successfully reconstituted his orchestra and guested with such stars as Lionel Hampton and Count Basie. After an extended period composing scores for movies and television, Carter returned to the jazz world on a full-time basis in the mid-1970's, producing some of the greatest music of his career over the next two decades, often working with musicians young enough to be his grandchildren or great-grandchildren.

The alto sax was his primary instrument, and he was one of the finest practitioners of the swing-based, pre-bebop style that was popular in the 1930's and 1940's. When bebop arrived, Carter was more than capable of grasping some of its intricacies and nuances and incorporated them into his playing, without abandoning his earlier style. For this reason, his playing remained vital and exciting, even as his contemporaries fell from fashion. Carter was also an accomplished trumpeter. His greatest achievements, though, were as a composer and arranger. Only Duke Ellington surpasses Carter as a writer of innovative and sophisticated jazz compositions. His work as an arranger was similarly unique, whether for his own bands or with other artists.

"Montreux '77" is one of the great unknown classics of jazz recordings. Recorded at the renowned jazz festival only a few years into his "comeback," this is an often astonishing performance with a sympathetic backing trio. Its hard to believe that Carter was already 70 when this was recorded, because he plays with the fire and intensity of a man half that age. He plays a little trumpet here as well, and if he sounds a bit weaker here, he still plays with great intelligence and beauty. The program are all familiar jazz standards that have seldom been performed better. I feel like an ingrate to state this, but would have been nice to hear a Carter original or two. The recording quality is terrific, as were all of the titles in the series of "Montreux '77" recordings that were released by Pablo Records.

This is a wonderful recording, highly recommended to both serious and casual jazz fans alike. Benny Carter, who will turn 94 in 2001, is a treasure, and this is one of the best recordings in his long and accomplished career.

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Montreux '77
The Pablo All-Stars
Manufacturer: Ojc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Cote D'azur
Pennies From Heaven
Samba De Orfeu
God Bless The Child
Sweethearts On Parade

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The Art of Nathan Milstein

Manufacturer: Music & Arts Program
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