J.j. Johnson Nat Adderley The Yokohama Concert

Nat Adderley - The Old Country (1992) {Enja ENJ-7027 2 rec 1990}
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© 1992 Enja | ENJ-7027 2
Jazz / Hard Bop / Soul Jazz / Cornet

Adderley has evidently found a soul mate in alto saxophonist Vince Herring, with whom he works once more on this 1990 date. Herring's voice has grown more impressive with each release, and he now offers more than just dazzling lines and phrases; he's constructing and completing confident statements. Pianist Rob Bargad, another regular, is on board, with bassist James Genus and drummer Billy Drummond.

This nearly forgotten Brazilian trombonist – a protégé of Airto Moreira and Flora Purim who made a moderate impact in the U.S. in the '70s only to mysteriously give it up and return to Brazil and subsequent obscurity – resurfaces on a CD reissue of a star-studded session from 1974. Producer Airto, who appears frequently on percussion (never mind the camouflaged percussion credits "Kenneth Nash and others; " one shake and you know it's Airto), succeeded in enlisting J.J. Johnson to make the horn arrangements and getting the polyrhythmic drums of Jack DeJohnette to drive the session. Cannonball Adderley makes one of his last appearances on record (he died nine months later), his alto sax burning in an otherwise cluttered stab at Baden Powell's "Canto de Ossanha," and venturing on the outside on "Chants to Burn."

To say that Benny Carter had a remarkable and productive career would be an extreme understatement. As an altoist, arranger, composer, bandleader, and occasional trumpeter, Carter was at the top of his field since at least 1928, and in the late '90s, Carter was as strong an altoist at the age of 90 as he was in 1936 (when he was merely 28). His gradually evolving style did not change much through the decades, but neither did it become at all stale or predictable except in its excellence. Benny Carter was a major figure in every decade of the 20th century since the 1920s, and his consistency and longevity were unprecedented…

Considered by many to be the finest jazz trombonist of all time, J.J. Johnson somehow transferred the innovations of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie to his more awkward instrument, playing with such speed and deceptive ease that at one time some listeners assumed he was playing valve (rather than slide) trombone. Johnson toured with the territory bands of Clarence Love and Snookum Russell during 1941-1942, and then spent 1942-1945 with Benny Carter's big band. He made his recording debut with Carter (taking a solo on "Love for Sale" in 1943), and played at the first JATP concert (1944)…

Whatever Norman Granz was using as a thinking man's energy drink in 1957 when he formulated this Jazz at the Philharmonic all-star band should be bottled and sold to the world. This stroke of genius was manifested in pairing Stan Getz with J.J. Johnson, backing them up with pianist Oscar Peterson's legendary trio including bassist Ray Brown and guitarist Herb Ellis, and adding MJQ drummer Connie Kay to this truly classic jazz sextet. Two JATP concerts done in Chicago (in stereo) and Los Angeles (in mono) comprise this expanded edition CD, with some stretched-out jams, repeat tunes, and extra material. Originally tabbed as an unusual teaming of tenor sax and trombone, the two principals sound well-suited, very compatible in their dynamic levels, and especially congruous when they play together, while Peterson is absolutely supportive so that these two giants of jazz can cut loose…