1. Bugle Boy March
2. Roamin’
3. She’s Cryin’ for Me
4. Chimes Blues
5. Rockin’ in Rhythm
6. Joe Avery’s Piece
7. Mazie
8. Oh My Babe Blues
9. Stevedore Stomp
10. Red Wing
Recorded at Het Congres, Breda, The Netherlands, on November 1, 1987.
Tony Pringle – Cornet and leader
Bill Novick – Clarinet and alto sax
Stan Vincent – Trombone
Peter Bullis – Banjo
Bob Pilsbury – Piano
“Pam” Pameijer – Drums
Eli Newberger – Tuba
This is the ninth in a series of fourteen limited edition CD’s, reissuing material by the band that previously appeared on LP’s—mainly on their own label
but also on a few other small labels, such as Philo, Philips, and Dirty Shame—and on cassette tapes. Some of these cassettes were issued simultaneously
with the LP’s but also contained additional tracks. Other cassettes with different material were issued in that format only. When the company that produced
the cassettes went out of business, the digital masters were returned to the band. These form the basis of most of the material on this CD set.
Almost any New Black Eagles recording gives a good representation of the band, and this one, previously unreleased, is no exception. Like many others, it
would provide a good introduction to the group if one were needed. All of the New Black Eagles features are here, beginning with the tune list. While there
are only ten tunes on it, each is given all of the space needed for the musicians to explore it, the shortest selection being Kerry Mills’Red Wing at approximately four and a half minutes, and the longest Oh My Babe Blues coming in at a little over nine minutes. Other than Chimes Blues and possibly Joe Avery’s Piece, perhaps, most of the others are not to be found in many bands’ books. They include the two
rather difficult Ellington pieces Rockin’ in Rhythm and Stevedore Stomp, as well as the fairly obscure tune Roamin’.
While the band tends to emphasize ensemble work, some solos are provided in almost each tune, often being backed by others in addition to the rhythm
section. Thankfully no track follows the tired formula of ensemble-solos-ensemble. In addition, one of the features that I find enormously interesting is
the textural variety achieved in some of these solos. In Chimes Blues we have the cornet solo backed by banjo only, all the others dropping out.
That is followed later by the tuba solo being backed by stop time from the piano, banjo, and drums. Or in Oh My Babe Blues we find the tuba being
backed by piano and, in the background—very faintly if one listens closely—trombone, for two choruses. After the trombone solo (backed by the rhythm
section) is a cornet solo backed by piano, banjo, and, softly, drums, followed by clarinet backed by banjo only. Succeeding that is a true piano solo, the
rest of the band dropping out completely, replete with broken time, block chording in places, single note expressions in others—all reminiscent of Jelly
Roll Morton. All of this variety heightens the interest of the rendition to the degree that one is quite unaware of the tune’s nine and quarter minutes’
duration.
Another characteristic of the band’s performance is what, for want of a better term, might be termed exuberance. This is displayed not only in the lusty
playing of each musician but also in their constant encouragement of each other, particularly when one is soloing. The soloist is given the complete
attention of the others in the band—no chatting to each other or fiddling with instruments, etc.—and oftentimes the others will emit encouraging cries and
comments, during and especially at the end of a solo. Such attention fosters the same focus by the audience itself—in effect it becomes a “participant,”
not just background. That, in turn, drives the band to even greater heights, each feeding off the other.
So from the authoritative statement of the opening notes of the first tune, Bugle Boy March, to the closing naming of the players of the last, Red Wing, this CD should have the listener’s foot tapping.
At the band’s web site www.blackeagles.com one can obtain more information.
Bert Thompson
CD Reviews
Own Label BE[LECD]4009
