Crotchet midprice
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Highlights from
ARTIE SHAW
Self portrait
 Bluebird 09026 –
63845 –2
- Nightmare
- Free Wheeling
- Any Old Time
- Carioca
- Frenesi
- Star Dust
- There’ll be some Changes Made
- Two in One Blues
- Bedford Drive
- Summertime
- Begin the Beguine
- Afro-Cubana
- Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered
- Scuttlebutt
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This is a selection from a five CD boxed set [review
to come] and if the whole thing is as good as this sample, it would
be a good acquisition for any serious collector.
Artie Shaw or Arthur Arshawsky, which was his real
name, had everything, he was a brilliant clarinet and saxophone player,
who paid his dues by playing lead alto in other peoples bands to gain
experience. He was extremely good looking, which no doubt helped to
attract a whole series of film star partners. He was also blessed with
a rare musical ability, to be able to change his style to whatever was
the current vogue and sound as though ha had always played that way!
The opening track ‘Nightmare’ was Artie’s signature
tune, most bandleaders of the time had up-beat bouncy swingers as openers,
this one is dark and brooding befitting the title. ‘Free Wheeling’ has
a vocal from Leo Watson. The next track, one of the best on the album,
features Lady Day, Billie Holiday singing ‘Any Old Time’. Shaw was obviously
a man of some integrity, as few had the guts to feature a black singer
with a white band in those times. It is a classic Holiday track. Carioca
has the excellent clarinet of Shaw and the added boost of a young drummer,
Buddy Rich no less. There is also some nice Trumpet from Hot Lips Page
in ‘There’ll Be Some Changes Made’. The classic ‘Begin the Beguine’
put Shaw on the road to international fame, he followed it up with Frenesi
another No1 hit. The version of Hoagy Carmichael’s Stardust is a superb
example of Shaw’s excellent clarinet technique, not even the incomparable
Goodman had such enviable control in the high register.
By 1949 Be-Bop had arrived and Shaw took the new order
in his stride in a manner few of his contemporaries could master. ‘Afro-Cubana’
is an example from the 49 band, which included the likes of Al Cohn
and Zoot Sims.
Tracks 13 and 14 saw the return of Artie Shaw to his
Gramercy Five format, which he often went to in between big bands. With
Hank Jones on piano and Tal Farlow on Guitar this combo could not fail
to excite. Shortly after completing his work with what was probably
his best small band, Shaw put his clarinet in its case and never played
again. Fortunately a record such as this enables us to remember just
what a brilliant instrumentalist he was.
Don Mather
CD Reviews
