Nightshift: Dave Brubeck

The Dave Brubeck Quartet was always a popular addition to the many internationally famous Jazz Musicians who appeared at the Newport Jazz Festival. Over time Brubeck made a number of appearances and These recordings date from concerts which were performed in front of a rapturous audiences in Freebody Park, Newport, Rhode Island on the 17th July 1955, 3rd of July 1958, 5th July 1959 and 7th July 1963. In the 1950s Brubeck was considered the darling of the “Cocktail Set” and no soiree was deemed complete without a background of his innovative interpretations of topical jazz themes and time signatures as evidenced in his most popular recording “Take Five”.

In 1998, Columbia reissued a bunch of CDs by the Dave Brubeck Quartet, often adding one or two previously unissued selections to the sets. Buried Treasures: Recorded Live in Mexico City, however, is something different, for none of the music had been out before. Recorded live in 1967 during a tour of Mexico that also resulted in the album Bravo! Brubeck!, the set features the classic Brubeck Quartet (with altoist Paul Desmond, bassist Eugene Wright and drummer Joe Morello) performing seven selections they had previously recorded, which was probably why this particular music stayed in the vaults for decades. The quality is certainly quite high, with Brubeck and Desmond really digging into such songs as "Koto Song" (coming up with some inspired ideas over its vamp), "You Go to My Head," a lengthy "St. Louis Blues," and a fairly concise version of "Take Five," one of the few versions by Brubeck of the hit song that does not have a drum solo. Suffice to say, Dave Brubeck fans only need to be notified of two things: they do not already own this music, and the Quartet is heard throughout in prime form. Recommended.

This set of classic Dave Brubeck is a must get if you are a fan of the cool jazz period of 1958 to the mid 1960s. Albums such as Time Out are featured on these CDs largely including many great Live songs and the all time classic Unsquare Dance, must be one of the catchiest songs ever produced. There are also some beautiful romantic jazz ballads such as Georgia On My Mind and Blue Shadows In The Night.
In the 1950s and '60s, few American jazz artists were as influential, and fewer still were as popular, as Dave Brubeck. At a time when the cooler sounds of West Coast jazz began to dominate the public face of the music, Brubeck proved there was an audience for the style far beyond the confines of the in-crowd…

All the Things We Are is a bit unusual in the Dave Brubeck discography. The pianist is heard in a quartet with altoist Lee Konitz on "Like Someone in Love" and a brief "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," with avant-garde giant Anthony Braxton (also on alto) featured on "In Your Own Sweet Way," while both Konitz and Braxton team up for "All the Things You Are." In addition, the Brubeck Trio (with bassist Jack Six and drummer Alan Dawson) plays an exquisite and frequently exciting 21-minute, five-song "Jimmy Van Heusen Medley." A total success, this "experimental" Brubeck set is highly recommended.

This excellent CD reissues the LP Brubeck Time plus half of Red Hot and Cool. One of the few early studio (as opposed to club) recordings by the early Dave Brubeck Quartet (this version has bassist Bob Bates and drummer Joe Dodge in addition to pianist Brubeck and altoist Paul Desmond), the fine unit performs nine standards plus three new compositions: "Stompin' for Mili," "Audrey" (dedicated to Audrey Hepburn) and Brubeck's classic, "The Duke."

While greatest-hits albums from jazz artists are sometimes dubious propositions, Dave Brubeck is the rare exception to the rule. Brubeck concentrated on the song as much as the performance, which is one of the reasons why he appealed to such a wide audience and it's also the reason why Greatest Hits is such an entertaining and effective sampler. Featuring such familiar items as "Take Five," "In Your Own Sweet Way," "The Duke," "Trolley Song," "Unsquare Dance," and "Blue Rondo à la Turk," the collection provides a fine introduction to Brubeck's collegiate jazz for the uninitiated.

For this entry in Dave Brubeck's series of Time albums, his Quartet with altoist Paul Desmond performs "Elementals" with an orchestra and plays five briefer originals including four that have unusual time signatures; "World's Fair" is in 13/4 time.

16 original albums on 10 CDs!
This Box Set combines the best recordings from the crucial first decade of Brubeck's career. The great live recordings at college and festival appearances, the series with odd rhythmic meters that started with "Time Out," his first solo album, the recordings with musical impressions from his worldwide concert tours, and the totally underrated "The Real Ambassadors ", featuring Louis Armstrong, Carmen McRae and Lambert, Hendricks and Ross with a fantastic libretto by Brubeck's wife Iola.

The title of this two-CD compilation of the earliest commercial Dave Brubeck recordings does in fact document some of the early concepts that Brubeck was employing as a young artist in search of his own voice. The well-annotated information included by producer Joop Visser, using much of Ted Gioia’s West Coast Jazz as a reference, follows the progress of Brubeck’s artistic development, as indicated by the chronological recordings. And the liner notes include some little-known information, such as the poor prognosis, and possible paralysis, for Brubeck after a swimming accident in 1951, leading indirectly to the addition of Paul Desmond (then named "Paul Breitenfeld") to the group - which remained intact, becoming one of the legendary quartets in jazzdom, until 1967…