Gun Fight at Comanche Creek (1963)

For all those who have a big axe to grind with Brubeck, for all those who claim the band was only successful because they were predominantly white, or played pop-jazz, or catered to the exotica craze, or any of that, you are invited to have all of your preconceptions, tepid arguments, and false impressions hopelessly torn to shreds by one of the great live jazz albums of the 1960s…

This is a listening pleasure to the first degree. Unlike any other, Charlie Byrd sincerely knows how to make his instrument speak, sending graceful chords and melodies to this attentive audience. Staged at the Village Gate in New York City, Byrd pulls out a lengthy set of material from his soul, encountering everything from swing jazz to bebop (with the help of two special guests) to Latin America's candid art form. Yes, the trio plays bossa nova with grace and finesse, enlightening the crowd at this "miniature music festival," notes reviewer Joe Goldberg. Byrd prances along with his trio mates, Keter Betts on bass and Bill Reichenbach on the skins. Positively speaking, the majority of the material has a vibrant flair, with some attuned to a candid, easy listening aura, while other tunes heighten the energy with dramatic percussion and more elaborate sonic territory…

This is a listening pleasure to the first degree. Unlike any other, Charlie Byrd sincerely knows how to make his instrument speak, sending graceful chords and melodies to this attentive audience. Staged at the Village Gate in New York City, Byrd pulls out a lengthy set of material from his soul, encountering everything from swing jazz to bebop (with the help of two special guests) to Latin America's candid art form. Yes, the trio plays bossa nova with grace and finesse, enlightening the crowd at this "miniature music festival," notes reviewer Joe Goldberg. Byrd prances along with his trio mates, Keter Betts on bass and Bill Reichenbach on the skins. Positively speaking, the majority of the material has a vibrant flair, with some attuned to a candid, easy listening aura, while other tunes heighten the energy with dramatic percussion and more elaborate sonic territory…

This is a listening pleasure to the first degree. Unlike any other, Charlie Byrd sincerely knows how to make his instrument speak, sending graceful chords and melodies to this attentive audience. Staged at the Village Gate in New York City, Byrd pulls out a lengthy set of material from his soul, encountering everything from swing jazz to bebop (with the help of two special guests) to Latin America's candid art form. Yes, the trio plays bossa nova with grace and finesse, enlightening the crowd at this "miniature music festival," notes reviewer Joe Goldberg. Byrd prances along with his trio mates, Keter Betts on bass and Bill Reichenbach on the skins. Positively speaking, the majority of the material has a vibrant flair, with some attuned to a candid, easy listening aura, while other tunes heighten the energy with dramatic percussion and more elaborate sonic territory…

This is a listening pleasure to the first degree. Unlike any other, Charlie Byrd sincerely knows how to make his instrument speak, sending graceful chords and melodies to this attentive audience. Staged at the Village Gate in New York City, Byrd pulls out a lengthy set of material from his soul, encountering everything from swing jazz to bebop (with the help of two special guests) to Latin America's candid art form. Yes, the trio plays bossa nova with grace and finesse, enlightening the crowd at this "miniature music festival," notes reviewer Joe Goldberg. Byrd prances along with his trio mates, Keter Betts on bass and Bill Reichenbach on the skins. Positively speaking, the majority of the material has a vibrant flair, with some attuned to a candid, easy listening aura, while other tunes heighten the energy with dramatic percussion and more elaborate sonic territory…

This is a listening pleasure to the first degree. Unlike any other, Charlie Byrd sincerely knows how to make his instrument speak, sending graceful chords and melodies to this attentive audience. Staged at the Village Gate in New York City, Byrd pulls out a lengthy set of material from his soul, encountering everything from swing jazz to bebop (with the help of two special guests) to Latin America's candid art form. Yes, the trio plays bossa nova with grace and finesse, enlightening the crowd at this "miniature music festival," notes reviewer Joe Goldberg. Byrd prances along with his trio mates, Keter Betts on bass and Bill Reichenbach on the skins. Positively speaking, the majority of the material has a vibrant flair, with some attuned to a candid, easy listening aura, while other tunes heighten the energy with dramatic percussion and more elaborate sonic territory…

Cut at Gerdes Folk City in New York on February 26, 1962, this record shows Big Joe Williams in top late-era form, enjoying himself before an audience of mostly white college kids and beats. He plays his signature nine-string guitar, accompanying himself on kazoo, which basically works (even subbing for what would have been a fuzz-tone guitar on "Bugle Blues"), although the kazoo was never meant to be captured in digital sound. The material includes Tommy McClennan's "Bottle Up and Go" and 11 traditional songs, including the intense "Trouble Take Me to My Grave" (his version of a song more familiar in Muddy Waters' version as "I Can't Be Satisfied"), "Mink Coat Blues," and "Burned Child Is Scared of Fire," all done in lively fashion with daunting finger-picking…

Cut at Gerdes Folk City in New York on February 26, 1962, this record shows Big Joe Williams in top late-era form, enjoying himself before an audience of mostly white college kids and beats. He plays his signature nine-string guitar, accompanying himself on kazoo, which basically works (even subbing for what would have been a fuzz-tone guitar on "Bugle Blues"), although the kazoo was never meant to be captured in digital sound. The material includes Tommy McClennan's "Bottle Up and Go" and 11 traditional songs, including the intense "Trouble Take Me to My Grave" (his version of a song more familiar in Muddy Waters' version as "I Can't Be Satisfied"), "Mink Coat Blues," and "Burned Child Is Scared of Fire," all done in lively fashion with daunting finger-picking…