Bethlehem Album Collection

The Six - The Six (1955) {2014 Japanese Bethlehem Album Collection 1000}
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© 1955, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6131 | LP BCP-28
Jazz / Bop / Cool

Reissue. Features the latest remastering. Includes a Japanese description, lyrics. Features original cover artwork. A mainstream jazz combo, but one with plenty of modern edges too – thanks to the skills of the players in the sextet! The musicians here are equally comfortable skirting a number of different styles, which they do very well in the set – especially the horn section, which features Bob Wilber on tenor, Sonny Truitt on trombone, and Johnny Glasel on trumpet! Most numbers are originals by the group members, and the arrangements have that fresh flair that Wilber would bring to later, better-known work – swung by a rhythm section that includes Bob Hammer on piano, Bill Britto on bass, and Eddie Phyfe on drums. Titles include "Itchy Fingers", "Two Kinds Of Blues", "Strange Diet", "Tasty", "As Far As We're Concerned", and "Pink Ice".

Humphrey Lyttelton - Humph Plays Standards (1960) {2014 Japanese Bethlehem Album Collection 1000 CDSOL-6151}
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© 1960, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6151 (BCP-6063)
Jazz / Mainstream Jazz / Trumpet

Humphrey Lyttleton's a British bandleader, but he makes a rare appearance here on Bethelehem Records in the US – on a session that was one of the early ones recorded in Landsdowne Studios! The group's a small one, and features some especially great work from Tony Coe on alto and clarinet – still in a relatively swing-based mode, but already with those sharp edges that we love so much – and the rest of the record has a similar blend of older jazz with modern inflections, played by a group that also includes Johnny Picard on trombone, Ian Armit on piano, and Jimmy Skidmore on tenor – plus Humph himself on trumpet. Titles include "Love For Sale", "Undecided", "Willow Weep For Me", "Blue Lou", "Prelude To A Kiss", and "Bewitched".

Jack Teagarden - Jazz Great (1954) {2014 Japanese Bethlehem Album Collection 1000}
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© 1954, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6132 | LP BCP-32
Jazz / Swing / Trombone

Reissue. Features the latest remastering. Includes a Japanese description, lyrics. Features original cover artwork. The album definitely lives up to the title, and features the mighty Jack Teagarden in a number of small group settings – all with a straight ahead punch that gets away from some of the gimmicks of his other 50s sessions! Teagarden's trombone is still one of the sharpest instruments of his generation of jazz – and Jack works here with a mix of players that includes Jimmy McPartland on trumpet, Edmond Hall on clarinet, Dick Cary on piano, Walter Page on bass, and Jo Jones on drums. Most arrangements are by Cary – and Jack sings just a bit, in that wonderfully raspy style of his. Titles include "Misery & The Blues", "Bad Acting Woman", "Meet Me Where They Play The Blues", "Music To Love By", and "High Society".

John Coltrane - The Bethlehem Years (1957) {2014 2CD Set Japan Bethlehem Album Collection 1000 CDSOL-6151}
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© 1957, 2014 Solid Records Japan / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6151
Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone

Features the latest remastering. Includes a Japanese description, lyrics, and bonus tracks. Features original cover artwork. The complete recordings done by John Coltrane for Bethlehem Records – mostly cut during December of 1957, and issued on the albums The Winner's Circle and Art Blakey Big Band! Both albums were a bit unusual for the label – in that The Winner's Circle was sort of a blowing/jam session type record, cut with some of the big poll winners of the year, but with shorter tracks than the usual Prestige-styled set of that nature. The lineup includes Donald Byrd, Al Cohn, Eddie Costa, Oscar Pettiford, and Philly Joe Jones – and Coltrane's a bit buried in the group, but gets out some nice licks from time to time.

Charlie Mingus - The Jazz Experiments Of Charlie Mingus (1954) {2014 Japanese Bethlehem Album Collection 1000}
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© 1954, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6135
Jazz / Post Bop / Avant-Garde Jazz / Piano / Bass

Reissue. Features the latest remastering. Includes a Japanese description, lyrics. Features original cover artwork. A pivotal album in the career of Charles Mingus – one that really has him honing his sound, and reaching for that trademark mix of modernism and raw emotion that set a whole generation on fire! The album's a lot more freewheeling than other Mingus material from the time – although still a bit more compact than the Atlantic or Columbia sides – and the group's staffed with key early interpreters of Charles' vision – including John LaPorta on alto, Teo Macero on tenor and baritone, Thad Jones on trumpet, Clem DeRosa on drums, and Jackson Wiley on cello – an instrument that really helps shade in some of the darker corners of the tunes. Titles include great early originals like "Four Hands", "Minor Intrusion", "Thrice Upon A Theme", and "The Spur Of The Moment" – plus his great take on "Stormy Weather", which is a bit stormier than most!

Sam Most - Sam Most Plays Bird, Bud, Monk and Miles (1957) {2014 Japan Bethlehem Album Collection 1000 CDSOL-6138}
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© 1957, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6138 | LP BCP-75
Jazz / Bop / Cool / Clarinet

Reissue. Features the latest remastering. Includes a Japanese description, lyrics. Features original cover artwork. Sam Most in two wonderful settings – a large group on half the record, then a smaller combo with David Schildkraut on tenor, Bob Dorough on piano, and Tommy Potter on bass! Sam plays clarinet throughout, but uses some of the phrasing he'd be more likely to employ with a saxophone – a practice that makes the album a great showcase for Most's really unique talents on his instrument. And although the title might make you think the whole thing's a bop rehash record, the arrangements are pretty darn inventive – and really help bring new life into tunes that include "Serpent's Tooth", "Celia", "Bluebird", "Strictly Confidential", and "In Walked Bud" – especially from Sam's solos, and the trumpet work of Doug Mettome.

Milt Hinton - East Coast Jazz Series No.5 +1 (1955) {2014 Japanese Bethlehem Album Collection 1000}
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© 1955, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6127 | LP BCP-10
Jazz / Bop / Swing / Bass

Reissue. Features the latest remastering. Includes a Japanese description, lyrics, and bonus track. Features original cover artwork. One of the best (and few) sessions ever cut as a leader by bassist Milt Hinton – a crucially important player on his instrument, and an important force behind countless sessions of his generation! The album's a nicely laidback one – the kind that lets you get to hear Milt's bass work up front in the mix, a good thing, since it could often be buried in larger arrangements on other albums that he's appeared on. The group's a quartet – with Milt on bass, AJ Sciacca (Tony Scott) on clarinet, Dick Katz on piano, and Osie Johnson on drums – and titles include "Pick N Pat", "Katz's Meow", "Upstairs With Milt", "Mean To Me", "Ebony Silhouette", and "Cantus Firmus". Also features a bonus track – "Milt To The Hilt (alt)".

Urbie Green - Urbie: East Coast Jazz Series No.6 (1955) {2014 Japanese Bethlehem Album Collection 1000}
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© 1955, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6128 | LP BCP-14
Jazz / Bop / Trombone

One of the strongest albums ever cut by trombonist Urbie Green – a player who had a heck of a lot of talent, but who unfortunately could sometimes end up in some schmaltzy settings. Fortunately, this isn't one of them – as the group includes players like Jimmy Lyon on piano, Oscar Pettiford on bass, Osie Johnson on drums, and Ike Horowitz on tenor – actually a nom-du-date for Al Cohn! The arrangements are tight, but never too much so – and there's a good degree of spirit in both the playing, and the compositions – some of which are by arranger Marion Evans. Titles include "Sneaky Pete", "Sassafras", "Melody In Bb", "How About You", and "Mutation".

Herbie Harper - Herbie Harper (1955) {2014 Japanese Bethlehem Album Collection 1000 CDSOL-6124}
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© 1955, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6124 (BCP-1025)
Jazz / Cool / Trombone

One of the most inventive albums we've ever heard from trombonist Herbie Harper – and that's saying a lot, given some of his other records! The group's an unusual one – with some key members that are likely – Jimmy Giuffre on tenor and baritone, Charlie Mariano on alto, and Jimmy Rowles on piano – mixed with other more compelling choices, such as Corky Hale on harp and Paul Sarmento on tuba – both instruments that really expand the sonic range of the session, in ways you might not expect to work this well!

Howard McGhee - Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries (1956) {2014 Japanese Bethlehem Album Collection 1000 CDSOL-6134}
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© 1956, 2014 Solid Records / Bethlehem | CDSOL-6134 | LP BCP-61 | Mono
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Trumpet

Quite an unusual album for trumpeter Howard McGhee – one that has the famous bop trumpeter working in a sweet "with strings" format – ala similar 50s sessions on Verve! Frank Hunter handles the larger group here – working the strings with some nice touches that go way past just sleepy orchestrations – into a realm of playful passages that help coax some quite unfamiliar sounds from Howard's horn! The approach is quite different than some of McGhee's more seminal sides, but is also a great illustration of this under-acknowledge side of his talents – and a voice that definitely seems to echo some of his personal struggles at the time. Titles include "Sonny Boy", "The Thrill Is Gone", "The Best Things In Life Are Free", "Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries", and "My Sin".