Christopher Wright

by Richard S Harvey (Author)

by Rick Love (Author)

"Get It Right" is the 29th studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. It was produced by Luther Vandross, following his successful teaming with the singer for the Gold-certified album, "Jump To It", in 1982. "Get It Right" was not as commercially successful, and Franklin did not have Vandross produce any further albums. The disc's title song became a #1 hit on Billboard's R&B singles chart - knocking Donna Summer out of the top spot - but it stalled at only #61 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was a critical and commercial failure, selling about 200,000 copies in the US. It was belatedly issued on compact disc in the 1990s.

When Lucas Schmid, producer of the WDR Big Band, first mentioned his interest in a program of music from the Christmas Oratorio of J.S. Bach, arranged to feature this ensemble in combination with the King’s Singers, I was immediately interested and excited. Having collaborated several times with this group of uniquely gifted vocalists, including the WDR Big Band’s Bach 2000 project, I knew there was an opportunity to create something very special indeed. Bach composed the work between 1734 and 1735. Since each of the six cantatas that make up the Christmas Oratorio was originally intended for a particular Sunday in the liturgical year, the sheer quantity of music is far too much for a single performance. The first major part of my work, then, would be the musical selection.

This double CD gathers together three former LPs that are unrelated except that they feature swing-era trumpeters in the 1950s. The most consistent date is the largely predictable Harry Edison Swings Buck Clayton and Vice Versa. The two complementary trumpeters Edison and Clayton are joined by tenorman Jimmy Forrest (in excellent form) and a supportive rhythm section.