Zoot+sims

Woody Herman - Live At Monterey (1959) {Atlantic Jazz 7567-90044-2}
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© 1959 Atlantic Jazz / Warner | 7567-90044-2
Jazz / Big Band / Cool / Swing / Clarinet

At the 1959 Monterey Jazz Festival, Woody Herman headed an all-star orchestra that served as the house band for the weekend in addition to performing its own sets. The lineup is quite remarkable, including Herman on clarinet or alto, both Al Porcino and Bill Chase on first trumpets, Conte Candoli and Ray Linn taking trumpet solos, trombonist Urbie Green, Victor Feldman on piano and vibes, guitarist Charlie Byrd, bassist Monty Budwig, drummer Mel Lewis, baritonist Med Flory, and the tenors of Zoot Sims, Don Lanphere, Bill Perkins, and Richie Kamuca. Nearly every one of these players is featured in one spot or another.

Clifford Brown - Jazz Immortal (1954) {2001 PJ Rudy Van Gelder Remaster}
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© 2001 Pacific Jazz / Capitol | 7243 5 32142 2 7 | 24-bit remaster
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Trumpet

Clifford Brown recorded this album in 1954 in California with a great band, including Zoot Sims on Tenor Sax and Russ Freeman on Piano. Clifford Brown was a masterful trumpet player at a very young age and soon achieved a high stature in the jazz world in the early 50's. He played with Charlie Parker and Tadd Dameron, as well as leading his own bands. I think this recording is one of his best, with original songs and arrangements done by Jack Montrose. Clifford Brown's alternatively sweet, tough and complex trumpet playing integrates wonderfully with Zoot Sims saxophone. The song 'Tiny Capers' is a brilliant excursion in jazz improvisation and playfulness, while retaining a beautiful melody.

Although Sarah Vaughan gets top billing on this set, she takes vocals on just two of the ten songs. Four different groupings of Pablo's All-Star musicians are heard from during a tribute to Duke Ellington, and there are many strong moments. Guitarist Joe Pass, vibraphonist Milt Jackson, bassist Ray Brown and drummer Mickey Roker make for a potent quartet on three songs; flugelhornist Clark Terry heads a quintet; Zoot Sims is featured on his lyrical soprano during memorable versions of "Rockin' in Rhythm" and the beautiful "Tonight I Shall Sleep"; and Sassy (backed by just pianist Mike Wofford and guitarist Joe Pass) comes up with fresh interpretations of "I Ain't Got Nothin' But the Blues" and "Everything But You." This is a well-rounded and enjoyable set with plenty of variety.

Since his passing in 1987, Al Cohn has tended to be overlooked by jazz writers, though he developed a strong following among those who played with him, not only for his inventive tenor sax, but also his swinging originals and arrangements. This Avid two-CD set combines three of his albums in their entirety, a fourth where he appeared as a sideman with valve trombonist Bob Brookmeyer, and two bonus tracks. Mr. Music has been one of the harder releases to find, recorded over several days in late 1954, it features many of the top cool and swing stylists, including trumpeter Joe Newman, trombonist Billy Byers, alto saxophonists Gene Quill, Hal McKusick, guitarists Billy Bauer or Jimmy Raney, and two of the most in-demand rhythm section players, bassist Milt Hinton and drummer Osie Johnson…

Pepper Adams - Encounter! (1968) {Prestige OJCCD-892-2 rel 1996}
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© 1968, 1996 Prestige / Fantasy | OJCCD-892-2
Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone

Baritonist Pepper Adams and tenor saxophonist Zoot Sims (who rarely performed together) make a surprisingly compatible team on this CD reissue of a 1968 Prestige session. With pianist Tommy Flanagan, bassist Ron Carter and drummer Elvin Jones forming a fairly adventurous rhythm section, Pepper and Sims sound inspired on material that includes obscurities by Flanagan, Thad Jones and Adams in addition to the Ellington-Strayhorn ballad "Star-Crossed Lovers" and a pair of Joe Henderson songs. The setting is more advanced than usual for Sims, who rises to the challenge.

Dave Pell - I Had The Craziest Dream (1998) {Capitol Jazz–EMI 724349544529 rec 1955-1957}
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© 1955-57, 1998 Capitol Records / EMI | 7243 4 95445 2 9
Jazz / Cool / West Coast Jazz / Saxophone

The Dave Pell Octet was the epitome of mid-'50s West Coast jazz. With its tight arrangements, concise performances (usually around three minutes long despite the rise of the LP), soft tones, and distinctive brand of restrained swing, Pell's ensemble was a perfect representative of cool jazz. The ensemble originally was part of the Les Brown Big Band, gaining an independent life of its own in 1955. This valuable reissue CD from 1998 has all of the first 13 selections that Pell recorded for Capitol – eight from 1955 and the remainder from 1957 – plus four titles (one previously unissued) led by trumpeter Don Fagerquist with a similar band in 1955 (one of only two opportunities that the underrated great had to head his own date).

The tragic death of the great Clifford Brown in a car accident at the early age of 25 on June 26, 1956, put a halt to one of the most promising careers in jazz history. From then on all of the remaining sessions which Clifford had recorded began to be released under titles such as that of Jazz Immortal (Pacific Jazz Records PJ-3), which appeared posthumously and presents a couple of sessions that marked the only existing collaborations between Brown and Zoot Sims. The rare Sims feature “Bones for Zoot”, which completes the date and was omitted from various previous reissues, is included on this edition, as well as a complete 1953 bonus session that pairs Brown with another horn giant, Lou Donaldson.