Hampton Hawes 1952 Memorial

Avid Jazz here presents three classic Hampton Hawes albums plus including original LP liner notes on a finely re-mastered and low priced double CD. “All Night Sessions Volumes 1, 2 & 3” plus nine tracks from “Hampton Hawes Trio”.
As a group the three albums and sixteen selections comprising “All Night Session” represent a most unusual achievement in the annals of jazz recording. The almost two hours of music were recorded at a single continuous session, in order in which you hear the numbers, and without editing of any kind. Playing steadily for several hours is a taxing physical experience at best, but improvising continually for that length of time is an exhausting one, mentally and emotionally. Yet the later selections in “All Night Session” reveal no flagging of vitality, spontaneity, inventiveness…

Although one would not immediately associate bassist Charlie Haden with pianist Hampton Hawes, they had performed together on an occasional basis since first meeting in 1957. This Artists House LP, a set of five duets, was their last opportunity to play together because Hawes would pass away the following year. The music includes a fairly free improvisation on "Hello/ Goodbye," the duo's intepretation of the title cut, a collaboration on "This Is Called Love" and two originals from the pianist. This quiet and often lyrical set contains a great deal of thoughtful and subtle music by two masters.

This set was pianist Hampton Hawes' last before he started what would be five years in prison on drug charges. He had been arrested 11 days before and ironically chose to record a set of spirituals (plus a blues) as he awaited trial. Not released until 1987, the music (played with bassist Leroy Vinnegar and drummer Stan Levey) is full of intense emotion, strong melodies and a little more variety than one might expect. Hawes' treatments of such tunes as "Down By the Riverside," "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen," "When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder" and "Joshua Fit De Battle of Jericho" are quite haunting.

Hampton Hawes, “For Real!” was recorded in 1958 but not released on the Contemporary Records label until 1961. Featuring Hawes (piano) alongside Harold Land (tenor sax), Scott LaFaro (bass) and Frank Butler (drums) the album incudes a mixture of both jazz standards and originals. This new edition features remastered hi-res audio from the original tapes.

The French horn has rarely been used in jazz as a solo instrument until recent times. Back in the 1950s, jazz's top French horn player was Julius Watkins, with David Amram certainly ranking in the top five. For this 1957 session, trombonist Curtis Fuller and his quintet with altoist Sahib Shihab, pianist Hampton Hawes (Teddy Charles, who contributed three originals, takes his place on one number), bassist Addison Farmer, and drummer Jerry Segal are joined by both Watkins and Amram. On originals by Charles, Amram, and Salvatore Zito, the colorful ensembles and the very adept soloing by the French horns make this a particularly memorable recording. Strange that this album has been obscure for so long. Only the brief playing time keeps this intriguing set from getting a higher rating.

Hampton Hawes, “For Real!” was recorded in 1958 but not released on the Contemporary Records label until 1961. Featuring Hawes (piano) alongside Harold Land (tenor sax), Scott LaFaro (bass) and Frank Butler (drums) the album incudes a mixture of both jazz standards and originals. This new edition features remastered hi-res audio from the original tapes.