Paul Desmond

Three years after Gerry Mulligan initially sat in with the Dave Brubeck Quartet, the baritone saxophonist arrived at a point where he could perform alongside Brubeck's alto saxophonist, Paul Desmond, for this much anticipated session. When legal issues, wranglings with producer Norman Granz, and the question of which record label would subsidize and release this album were resolved, the two saxophonists went ahead to produce a delightful program of standards and originals where their more playful sides could fully blossom. The wonderful interaction between Mulligan's burly but agile horn and the ultimate smooth - but in this case animated and energized - sax of Desmond is more than just magical, and makes for a fluid, jaunty, delicious combination sure to please even the most jaded or stone-eared music listener…

Paul Desmond - Pure Desmond (1974) {CTI Masterworks Jazz 88697 80378 2 rel 2011}
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© 1974, 2011 CTI / Sony Music / Masterworks Jazz | 88697 80378 2
Jazz / Cool / Mainstream Jazz / Saxophone

With the Skylark "experiment" behind him, Paul Desmond reverted back to the relaxed quartet format that suited him well in the past. The reason? Through Jim Hall, he found a little-known, splendid guitarist in Toronto named Ed Bickert who became his new gigmate in 1974, and this album was meant to show his discovery off. In fact, it sparked a Desmond renaissance where he regained a good deal of the witty spark and erudite cool of his collaborations with Hall, no matter how unfashionable it was to play this way in 1974.

Paul Desmond Quartet with Jim Hall - The Complete Recordings (1988) {4CD Set, Mosaic MD4-120 rec 1959-1965}
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© 1959-65, 1988 RCA Victor / Mosaic Records | MD4-120
Jazz / Cool / Saxophone / Guitar

Although the RCA recordings featuring the Paul Desmond Quartet with Jim Hall were eventually reissued by the original label (also in a boxed set) after the last copy of this limited edition Mosaic box was sold, it is the Mosaic collection which will be remembered as a classic. Only that set includes the initial studio collaboration of Desmond & Hall for Warner Bros.; also present are reprints of Doug Ramsey's warm memorial tribute to the alto saxophonist, as well as Marian McPartland's brilliant portrait (written for Downbeat in 1960) and Desmond's own side-splitting article written for Punch about a Brubeck gig that went slightly haywire, all helping to unfold a portion of the mystery behind this man.

Paul Desmond - The Complete RCA Albums Collection (2011) {6CD Box Set, Sony Music 88697939412 rec 1961-1964}
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© 1962-66, 2011 RCA / Legacy / Sony Music | 88697939412
Jazz / Cool / Standards / Bossa Nova / Saxophone

The most complete package to date of Paul Desmond's RCA works. 6-CD set with all six original albums he cut for the RCA inprint (five of the six albums feature melodic guitar giant Jim Hall, the ideal musical partner for Desmond). All come in nice mini-LP replica sleeves reproducing original cover art, including 24 bonus tracks, and a comprenhensive booklet with full discographical details, rare in-studio photos and liner notes by Grammy-winning box producer Richard Seidel.

Paul Desmond & Gerry Mulligan - Two Of A Mind (1963) {RCA Victor 88697720092 rel 2010}
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© 1963, 2010 RCA Victor / Legacy / Sony Music | 88697720092
Jazz / Cool / West Coast Jazz / Saxophone

Altoist Paul Desmond and baritonist Gerry Mulligan always made for a perfect team during their infrequent collaborations. Both of the saxophonists had immediately distinctive light tones, strong wits, and the ability to improvise melodically. Here the two masterful reed players are featured in pianoless quartets that also include Wendell Marshall, Joe Benjamin or John Beal on bass, and Connie Kay or Mel Lewis on drums. The songs all utilize common chord changes, including the two "originals" ("Two of a Mind" and "Blight of the Fumble Bee"), and the interplay between Desmond and Mulligan is consistently delightful. Highly recommended.

Paul Desmond - Easy Living (1966) {Featuring Jim Hall, RCAVICTOR Gold Series 74321747962 rel 2000}
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© 1966, 2000 RCAVictor / BMG France | RCAVICTOR Gold Series | 74321747962
Jazz / Cool / Saxophone / Guitar

As the Paul Desmond/Jim Hall quartet's recording activities gradually came to a halt by 1965, RCA Victor assembled the remains of a number of their later sessions into one last album, adding two outtakes, "All Through the Night" and "Rude Old Man," when the album was transferred to CD in 1990. These are, however, anything but leftovers; indeed, they constitute the best Desmond/Hall album since Take Ten, more varied in texture and mood and by and large more inspired in solo content than Bossa Antigua and Glad to Be Unhappy. As a near-ideal example of this collaboration at its intuitive peak, "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" opens with Hall paraphrasing the tune, and Desmond comes in on the bridge with a perfectly timed rejoinder that sounds as if he's asking a question.