if i Had my Way

Bunny Berigan began his prime stretch of solo recordings with this collection of songs cut between 1935-1936. Berigan still worked as a sideman for the likes of Benny Goodman during this period, and he even did some session and film work, but it is his own material which has solidified his reputation as a top figure of the big band era. And while later sides from 1937-1939 would trump some of the ones included here, this collection still brims over with exciting and tight material from a variety of Berigan contingents. In addition to his first stab at "I Can't Get Started" (somewhat inferior to the classic version from 1937), Berigan is featured on a bevy of small group and a large ensemble highlights, like "Chicken and Waffles" and "Blues"…

Dave McKenna - Blues Up - Piano Solo (1955, 1963) {Fresh Sound Records FSR-CD-463 rel 2007}
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© 1955, 1963, 2007 Fresh Sound Records | FSR-CD-463
Jazz / Mainstream Jazz / Standards / Stride / Piano

Dave McKenna made a remarkably piano solo debut in 1955 with the fifteen tunes he recorded for ABC Paramount (1-15). The remaining tracks on this compilation also come from a solo album, one he cut almost eight years later for the label Realm. Playing without a rhythm section, a key challenge for a jazz pianist, McKenna accomplished a recital of lasting value and pleasure. He plays with strength, individuality, fine beat and technique, and constant taste in all tempos. He is a wonderfully co-ordinated two-handed pianist.

This CD from the European Classics label has the entire recorded legacy of the Three Peppers (other than obscure sets in 1947 and 1949), 24 selections in all from six recording sessions. Consisting of Oliver "Toy" Wilson on piano, guitarist Bob Bell and bassist Walter Williams, the Three Peppers (which had Wilson, Bell and maybe Williams indulging in group vocals) preceded the Nat King Cole Trio and played hot swing and novelties with plenty of spirit. This CD includes a previously unreleased recording of "The Sheik of Araby" and is highlighted by such tunes as "Swingin' at the Cotton Club," "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere" (one of four numbers with singer Sally Gooding, trumpet, clarinet and drums added), two versions of "Swing Out, Uncle Wilson" and "Pepperism." Recommended for lovers of small-group swing.

Max Kaminsky was a reliable Dixieland player who was featured on many sessions with Eddie Condon's gang in the 1940s and '50s. He played early on in Boston and was a veteran of 1920s Chicago, where he gigged with Bud Freeman, Frank Teschemacher, and Condon. Moving to New York in 1929, Kaminsky had a short stint with Red Nichols and then worked in commercial bands, although he did have opportunities to record with Condon, Benny Carter (1933), and Mezz Mezzrow (1933-1934). Kaminsky gained some fame for his work with Tommy Dorsey's Orchestra (1936), including broadcasts with an early version of the Clambake Seven…