1. Soar Like an Eagle
2. The Louie Shuffle
3. Blow Your Horn
4. L.A. Suite: Vine Street Waltz / Beverly and
the Beach / (Studio City) Gathering
5. Louie & Clark Expedition
6. Francine
7. Santos
Louie Bellson – Drums
Clark Terry - Flugelhorn
Joe Roccisano, Steve Wilson - Alto sax
Ted Nash, Scott Robinson - Tenor sax
Jack Stuckey - Baritone sax
Robert Millikan, Danny Cahn, Glenn Drewes, Darryl
Shaw, Marvin Stamm – Trumpets
Larry Farrell, Mike Davis, Keith O'Quinn – Trombones
Herb Besson - Bass trombone
Derek Smith – Piano
Harvie Swartz – Bass
At
their most impressive, drummers can make your
jaw drop open in disbelief. That happened
to me when I first heard Louie Bellson’s recording
of Skin Deep with Duke Ellington’s
orchestra. It was a skilful, well-constructed
drum feature which only deteriorated towards
the end when Louie over-used his two bass
drums. The recording displayed Louie’s fine
technique and his ability to drive a band
with a mixture of power and swing.
That
mixture is evident in this album of a 1993
concert in New York, now reissued in Telarc’s
mid-price "Discover Jazz" series.
Louie wrote all the tunes himself, although
the opening track sounds remarkably like another
swing tune whose title I cannot recall. At
any rate, Louie opens it with an ear-catching
solo that uses some of the same licks as Skin
Deep. And the drums are prominent on most
tracks of this CD – notably in the extended
solo on the 16-minute Santos which
closes the concert. Lasting around nine minutes,
this solo is in danger of outstaying its welcome
(and annoying the many jazz fans who hate
drum solos), although it is varied enough
to just about retain one’s interest. It also
includes a swirling trumpet solo by Marvin
Stamm.
Another
horn player – Clark Terry – guests on flugelhorn
in Blow Your Horn and Louis &
Clark Expedition, although these tracks
were actually recorded by the band the afternoon
before the concert and Clark’s solos were
overdubbed later. The former is a tender ballad,
the latter a jaunty mid-tempo number, and
Clark Terry acquits himself well on both.
His puckish tone is unique and instantly recognizable.
Of
the other tracks, The Louie Shuffle
is an easygoing bounce; Francine is
a love-song written for Louie’s wife; and
L. A. Suite a three-part invention
co-written by Louie Bellson and Tommy Newsom.
The suite starts with a jazz waltz, then slows
down for Beverly and the Beach (with
a delicate piano interlude by British-born
Derek Smith), and ends with (Studio City)
Gathering, delivered in varying tempos
and climaxing with Bellson’s assertive drums.
This
is an album of fine big-band jazz, which avoids
the big-band clichés by using a variety
of arrangers - including Matt Catingub and
Bob Florence. It may be enjoyed by drummers
more than anyone else but it should appeal
to all fans of big bands, especially as the
recording quality is excellent.
Tony Augarde
CD Reviews
Telarc CD
83334
