This exceptional release includes the complete recordings of Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis' collaboration with the inimitable organist. The band remains loose and relaxed throughout 24 classic standards, continuously feeding off of one another and always playing with style, grace and impeccable taste.
All of the many collaborations between organist Shirley Scott and tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine in the 1960s resulted in high-quality soul jazz, groovin' music that was boppish enough to interest jazz listeners and basic enough for a wider audience. This CD reissue has the duo (joined by bassist Bob Cranshaw and drummer Otis "Candy" Finch) performing a pair of Scott originals, Benny Golson's "Five Spot After Dark," Sonny Rollins' obscure "Grand Street" and the veteran standard "Flamingo."
Few organ players can kick into swinging grooves with as relaxed a feeling as those Shirley Scott generates on these two outstanding sessions from the Sixties. She was associated early in her career with tenor saxophonists–most notably Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and Stanley Turrentine–but Prestige Records regularly varied the settings in which she was presented on disc. These are two of the most unusual. The ever-tasteful guitarist Kenny Burrell shares the spotlight on tracks one through six, while Lem Winchester lends his vibraharp mastery to the remainder to help create a unique–and ultimately satisfying– organ/vibes front-line.
After a six-year stay at Prestige, jazz organist Shirley Scott began a lengthy run of albums on Impulse! This two-fer brings together her first two albums for the label, 1963's For Members Only and 1964's Great Scott!! Each album splits its tracks between Scott's regular trio setting (variously featuring rhythms by Earl May/Jimmy Cobb and Bob Cranshaw/Otis Finch) and arrangements written and conducted by Oliver Nelson. Scott's Hammond fits well into each setting, leading the trio with terrific energy and verve, and finding space for lower-wattage performances amid Nelson's charts.
Shirley Scott was one of the Prestige family's most widely recorded artists, and for good reason: the organ's popularity was peaking during her years at the label and Scott handled what could be an overbearing instrument with sure-handed tastefulness and a jaunty sense of swing. Less well known, though, is her work on piano, which shares the spotlight on the two LPs joined herein. Both were made in 1960 for the Prestige subsidiary Moodsville, whose specialties were warming ballads and medium-bounce standards that placed a premium on melodic content. On these 16 trio tracks, widely familiar tunes, for the most part, Scott sustains Moodsville's trademark relaxed, after-hours groove, whether she's at the organ or piano (her stylings on the latter evince strong ties to Erroll Garner)–or, via overdubbing, performing on both simultaneously.
Features 24 bit remastering and comes with a mini-description. Hip soulful work from organist Shirley Scott – one of the first records that has her breaking out of the straighter soul jazz sound of her work on Prestige and Impulse – and a gem of a set that features some great funky arrangements from the great Marty Sheller! The group's all-Atlantic all the way through – with players that include King Curtis, Hank Crawford, and David Newman on "soul" saxophones – backing Shirley up on a batch of tunes are mostly takes on 60s pop and soul hits – given a larger band groove, and a sweet Atlantic swing! The album's got a great funky version of "It's Your Thing", plus "I Wish I Knew How it Would Feel To Be Free", "Get Back", and "Natural Woman".
This CD reissue brings back all of the music previously put out on the two-LP set The Great Live Sessions with the exception of one number ("Shirley's Shuffle") left out due to lack of space; with over 70 minutes of music, one cannot complain too much about the omission. Overall, this is a pretty definitive live set featuring organist Shirley Scott, tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, bassist Bob Cranshaw and drummer Otis "Candy" Finch, one of the great soul-jazz combos of the 1960s.
A later set from Shirley Scott, but one that's recorded with an old school lineup that includes Art Harper on bass and Mickey Roker on drums – plus some guest tenor work from the mighty Buck Hill! The tunes are a lot more open and fluid than Scott's sound on Prestige in the 60s – with a bit of the vibe she picked up during her 70s years, as she really started to loosen up from before. And although the tunes are mostly familiar numbers, this approach really changes them up – moving them farther from the standard ballad mode of earlier Scott albums. Shirley plays piano on one track – "Yours Is My Heart Alone" – and all others feature organ, on titles that include "Skylark", "Triste", "More Than You Know", "Blues For Groove", and "Have You Met Miss Jones."