Jazz Focus

Pell made two albums in 1959 and 1960 in tribute to the John Kirby Sextet and some other small groups of the Swing and Cool eras . . featuring Cappy Lewis, Ray Linn, Jack Sheldon (tpt), Hoyt Bohannon, Bob Enevoldsen (tbn), Abe Most and Dave Pell (clarinet), Benny Carter and Art Pepper (alto), Pell (tenor and baritone), Ronnie Lang, Marty Berman and Pell (baritone), John Williams (p), Tony Rizzi (guitar), Red Mitchell (bass), Frank Capp (d)...great playing, especially by the leader on some of his few appearances on clarinet!

Live recordings from the Bing Crosby radio show on CBS between 1949 and 51 - mostly Louis' pop records of the time with a few surprises thrown in!

Classic blues recordings featuring the Empress of the Blues, Bessie Smith accompanied by a very young Louis Armstrong.

Former trumpet soloist with Ben Pollack, Bob Crosby and Tommy Dorsey, Lawson was a powerful player devoted to the New Orleans/Chicago style of Dixieland.  Here, his groups recording for Signature (Ward Silloway, Brad Gowans, Lou McGarity, Miff Mole, Pee Wee Russell, Rod Cless, Bill Stegmeyer, Joe Marsala, Dave Bowman, James P. Johnson, Eddie Condon, Bob Haggart, Johnny Blowers and George Wettling) and a big band for VDisc (Ray Eckstrand, Vernon Brown and Nick Caiazza with Blowers, Bowman, and Haggart) show off his range and sound.

One day (February 11th) in 1954, Stitt played a gig at the HI Hat in Boston with a local rhythm section (Dean Earl, Bernie Griggs, Marquis Foster) and Roulette recorded the whole thing . . Two cds include the entirety of the date with Stitt featured equally on alto and tenor with several baritone sax tracks (about his last on that instrument) thrown in for good measure.

Louis made records with everyone - here are some Decca sides with Ella, Billie and Louis Jordan and a bonus - one track from a Bing Crosby radio show featuring Louis, Bing and Ella doing "Memphis Blues"

Recreation of Louis 1928-34 big band sides with an orchestra directed by Sy Oliver along with the All-Stars - Trummy Young, Billy Kyle, Edmond Hall, Squire Girshback, Barrett Deems . .done for the Louis Armstrong Autobiography project on Deccca.

Al Cooper's Savoy Sultans were the house band at the legendary Savoy Ballroom in New York City from 1937-1946 and so must have pleased the pickiest dancers in the world!  While their music (between a combo and a big band) was not subtle or sophisticated, it swung hard and was the bane of many better known groups who came up against it.  Here are most of their Decca sides from the period, featuring the leader on clarinet, Rudy Williams on alto, George Kelly, Ed McNeil and Irving Brown on tenor, Pat Jenkins and Sam Massenburg on trumpets, Cyril Haynes on piano, Grachan Moncur on bass and Alex Mitchell on drums

Extended recordings made for the V Disc program during WWII (1944 and 45) by Herman's First Herd - features for Sonny Berman, Ray Wetzl, Neal Hefti and Conte Candoli (trumpet), Bill Harris (trombone), Flip Phillips (tenor), Ralph Burns and Tony Aless (piano), Billy Bauer (guitar), Chubby Jackson (bass), Dave Tough (drums), Frances Wayne (vocals) and the leader Woody Herman playing some outstanding clarinet and alto along with a vocal or two.

Jamaican alto saxophonist Joe Harriott had a fascinating career in London during the 1950's and 60's - he recorded with big bands, trad bands, vocalists and others, but perhaps his greatest contribution was with his "Abstract Jazz" - much like the Free Jazz experiments Ornette Coleman was making at the same time.  Here is his quintet on a series of albums in the early 1960's with Shake Keane on trumpet, Pat Smythe and Harry South on piano, Bobby Orr and Phil Seaman on drums and others!