Donald Allen

Byrd's third and last album for Orrin Keepnews' Landmark label – Part Three of his mainstream comeback – is another mostly straightahead affair with a sextet, sounding a few high-minded themes and taking a few unusual twists. Twice, Art Blakey is memorialized with drummer Carl Allen's sturdy application of the Blakey shuffle ("King Arthur," "Byrd Song"), but his drumming also salutes the M-Base brigade on the concluding "Not Necessarily the Blues." "A City Called Heaven," the spiritual-turned-title track with an nearly operatic vocal by mezzo-soprano Lorice Stevens, gets a moving extended modal treatment where Byrd has some rapid flurries that usually, but not always, hit their mark.

The music on this CD is very much in the Young Lions/modern hard bop vein. In this 1989 session, drummer Carl Allen leads a fairly young all-star group - comprised of trumpeter Roy Hargrove, Vincent Herring on alto, soprano, and flute, pianist Donald Brown, and bassist Ira Coleman - through five originals by bandmembers and five standards. Veteran trumpeter Freddie Hubbard sits in on "Piccadilly Square" (a rare chance for one to hear both Hubbard and Hargrove soloing on the same number) and "In the Still of the Night." Few surprises occur, but the musicians (particularly Herring) play up to expectations and fans of hard bop will enjoy this.

Playing in front of an invited studio audience, Dr. John is featured with a full-scale jazz ensemble on this 1991 session Funky New Orleans. Alto saxophonist Donald Harrison Jr. is the leader of the date, which allows Dr. John to concentrate not only on piano and vocals but also his guitar playing. A hand full of Mac Rebennack and Harrison originals are mixed with the dirty blues of "Shave em Dry" and a nod to Professor Longhair and Earl King on "Big Chief." Also, two instrumental straight-ahead jazz pieces are explored on "Hu-Ta-Nay" and "Walkin Home." This really isn't a Dr. John recording as much as an honest portrayal of these (mainly) New Orleans musicians in an extremely loose and funky setting. Recommended and available on the budget Metro label.

Donald Harrison - Nouveau Swing (1997) {Impulse! IMPD-209}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 422 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 153 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 37 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1997 Impulse! / GRP Records | IMPD-209
Jazz / Post Bop / Saxophone

On his Impulse! Records debut, Donald Harrison mixes his usual straight-ahead work with rhythmic elements from tropical climates. Albert Wonsey plays appropriate piano on all tracks, though Harrison employs two different rhythm sections, Christian McBride and Carl Allen for the more conventional tunes and Ruben Rogers and Dion Parson for the others. The others include "Bob Marley," twhich borrows its rhythmic feel from such later Marley songs as "Exodus"; "Little Flowers," which also has a Caribbean lilt; "Septembro," the requisite samba; and "Duck's Groove," the requisite New Orleans second-line number.

Alto saxophonist Donald Harrison explores another area of his New Orleans heritage, the music of the Mardi Gras "Indians." His solos are more bluesy and R&B-flavored, while the supporting cast includes Dr. John on piano, along with Cyrus Chestnut, drummer Carl Allen, bassist Phil Bowler, percussionists Bruce Cox and Howard Smiley Ricks, and Harrison's father on vocals.

Donald Harrison - Free To Be (1999) {Impulse! IMPD-283}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 447 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 157 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 16 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1999 Impulse! / GRP Records | IMPD-283
Jazz / Post Bop / Saxophone

On his second album for Impulse!, recorded August 18-September 24, 1998, Donald Harrison continues to proselytize for what he called "nouveau swing" on his first date for the label, even going so far as to sing/rap an explanation of his concept in "Nouveau Swing (Reprise)." Essentially, what he seems to mean by the term is that, within an acoustic quartet setting, he intends to introduce elements of a number of musical genres, for example covering the Meters' funk anthem "Cissy Strut" and having drummer John Lamkin use a reggae feel for "Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise," the Sigmund Romberg standard he previously recorded on For Art's Sake.