Afro-Cuban: Part 2

As a continuation of the initial posting concerning KD’s record Afro-Cuban, this post will explore the session from March 29, 1955 which was first released on a 10” LP (BLP 5065). The session from March 29 included four tunes: “Minor’s Holiday,” “Afrodisia,” “Lotus Flower,” and “Basheer’s Dream.” Both sessions from January 30 and March 29 were released on a 12” LP on Blue in 1957 (BLP 5035) — but the personnel was slightly different. The team had grown over the hiatus from a sextet to an octet which comprised of KD, J. J. Johnson on trombone, Hank Mobley on tenor saxophone, Cecil Payne on baritone saxophone, Horace Silver on Piano, Oscar Pettiford on bass, Carlos “Potato” Valdes on conga, and Art Blakey on drums.

According to the liner notes from the 10” LP, the conga player, Carlos “Potato” Valdes, had only been in the States for only a couple months before Diz told KD about him and “Little Benny” Harris brought him to the rehearsal. Alfred Lion recalls, “He [Carlos Valdes] gassed them all.”

The tune “Basheer’s Dream” has an intriguing backstory to it — it sticks out as the only piece on the session that was not written by Kenny, but the composition and arrangement were indeed commissioned of reedman Gigi Gryce especially for the March 29th session. due to the fact that reedman Gigi Gryce. According to Rat Race Blues: The Musical Life of Gigi Gryce by Noal Cohen and Michael Fitzgerald this tune is one of first instances where Gryce’s Muslim name is presented to the public. Gryce’s full Muslim name was Basheer Qusim, which was the primary name he would use after his departure from the music business.

“Basheer’s Dream“ has an introduction reminiscent of two other Gryce compositions, “Shabozz” and “Up in Quincy’s Room” (both from Art Farmer recordings from 1955 and 1953 respectively) with the interval of a fourth as the prime voicing used in the horns to give a somewhat “exotic” sound. According to Fitzgerald and Noal, there was an unidentified percussionist (aside from Valdes) on the claves alongside Art Blakey on the drums. This is a very exciting snippet of information that was left out of all three releases’ liner notes from Blue Note: the 10” LP from 1955, the 12” LP from 1957, and the cd release. There has been speculation that drummer Richie Goldberg (prominent in the San Francisco jazz scene of the 1950s and 1960s) but no one has yet to confirm it. Another suspicion is that the mystery clave player was Gigi Gryce himself. This seems more of a feasible story because it was Gryce’s tune and it would not seem out of term for Gryce to sit in during the recording session to see how his composition was turning out. Sadly for Mr. Gryce, this is the only recorded version of “Basheer’s Dream.” It is unclear if it was predetermined that this would be the only recording of Gryce’s composition, as it was written for the date. If this were the case, it would certainly lend credence to the idea that Gryce sat in as the unidentified percussionist on the session — who wouldn’t want to be present for the one and only recording of their own composition?

And so, to sum up the session, I leave you with a quotation from KD himself concerning the Afro-Cuban motif present in all four tunes from the original liner notes from the 10” LP:

“I tried to write everything so that the rhythm would be useful throughout and would never get in the way.”

KD has done exactly that on this record. Leonard Feather concurs with KD’s self-reflection by writing, “As a consequence, the Cuban touch sounds as if it is a part of the whole, rather than something that has been superimposed on a jazz scene, as it is sometimes the case.” An example of this superimposition would be the live concerts of Dizzy Gillespie’s orchestra with Machito in the late 1940s and early 1950s. For further reading on the partnership between Dizzy Gillespie and Machito, see David Garcia’s article entitled “’We Both Speak African’: A Dialogic Study of Afro-Cuban Jazz.”

Stay tuned for future postings on Una Mas, In ‘N’ Out, Matador, and Trompeta Toccata.

Behind The Session: “Gayle’s Groove”

In 1963, seven years before this recording, Mickey moved to NYC. One of his first big “breaks” was playing with Hank Mobley at the famous Hotel Theresa in Harlem. His first recordings were with pianist Bobby Timmons (1965 and 1966) and then with trumpeter Lee Morgan (1968). On the session featured here, Mickey recorded with Hank Mobley, and also for the first time with Woody Shaw and Cedar Walton, two artists he would later rejoin as members of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. With the Messengers, Mickey recorded two Prestige albums in 1973 which included two Mickey Bass arrangements (A Chant For Bu and One For Trane). Both combo arrangements are available from Second Floor Music through Hal Leonard and other music stores. Full details are on secondfloormusic.com. Gayle’s Groove was Mickey’s first recorded composition.

What’s In A Name: “Abdullah”

This composition was quite likely named after Art Blakey’s Muslim name, Abdullah Buhaina. The Blakey solo that kicks off this recording sets up the classic high-energy style for which Blakey was renowned. Elmo later recorded this piece as a trio with Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones; that version (released in 1961 on “Here’s Hope” (Celebrity LB209)) has a laid-back swing feel—a casual shuffle in comparison to the earlier recording’s out-of-breath explosion of energy. The fact that the composition works just as well in these two moods is a testament to Elmo’s talents. -Rachel Bronstein

Behind The Session: “Got To Take Another Chance”

Got To Take Another Chance is from Philly Joe’s next album as a leader after his 1959 “Showcase” LP for Riverside. Joe started 1960 by recording a couple of multiple drummer dates: “The Soul Of Jazz Percussion” (Warwick) and “Gretch Drum Night At Birdland” (Roulette). Two days later he recorded a Wynton Kelly trio date for Vee Jay records (April 27), followed on May 20 with the “Philly Joe’s Beat” recording. Before he went back to Blue Note to record another string of albums starting with Freddie Hubbard’s “Goin’ Up” LP (November 6, 1960), Philly Joe did another session for Atlantic as a leader on October 4, 1960 that remains unissued. The 8 tracks that were recorded that day are all clearly titled in discography listings. For us Philly Joe fans, wouldn’t it be great to get that session released? Of course it would. Unfortunately, in February 1978, Atlantic Records had a fire in their Long Branch, New Jersey, non-air-conditioned storage facility which “destroyed virtually all of Atlantic’s unreleased masters, alternate takes and sessions tapes by artists who had recorded for the label and its offshoots throughout its classic 1948-1969 first golden era.”

Behind The Session: “Joe’s Debut”

Slick Philly Joe always loved to have the opportunity to switch from sticks to brushes and vice versa. From my own personal experience playing with him, I remember how we musicians would marvel at his ability to make those transitions seamlessly. We would look back at him in astonishment, observing his devilish smile because he knew we had no idea how he made the change. Philly Joe Jones gets my vote as slickest drummer of all time!

What’s In A Name – “Bellarosa”

This is the first composition recorded (in one take) on the 1953 session. This composition and the composition Carvin’ The Rock are both co-written with Sonny Rollins. To my knowledge, there is no documentation from Elmo as to when exactly these compositions were written. Sonny Rollins says, “if pressed, I would say 1950,” because a period of that year was the only time he remembers being in detention with Elmo at Riker’s Island. Sonny also remembers naming Bellarosa, (which he refers to as Bella Rosa), saying he named it for a current lady friend of Elmo’s named Rosemary. Bertha Hope, Elmo’s widow, remembers hearing that the song, which is played at a gentle walking tempo, evoked Rosemary’s walk.

Who Killed Tina Brooks?

Who Killed Tina Brooks?

A devastating account of Tina Brooks, a would-be tenor sax star stifled by seemingly arbitrary record label decisions. 

Behind The Session: “Bootin’ It”

Sonny Clark started his recording career in California, where he lived from 1951 to 1957. He arrived in NYC in April of 1957 and in June did three days of recording with Sonny Rollins. Four days after his last Rollins session he played in his first Blue Note session, as a sideman on a Hank Mobley date. A little less than a month later, he recorded his own Blue Note date, “Dial S For Sonny” which was his first official album as a leader. “Dial S For Sonny” features a horn section of Hank Mobley, Art Farmer and Curtis Fuller. Two weeks later, Curtis Fuller invited Sonny to join him for his Sunday Blue Note session in Rudy Van Gelder’s Hackensack living room. Sonny spent two more consecutive Sundays at Rudy’s playing on different Blue Note dates. He took one Sunday off before returning the following Sunday for his second Blue Note date as a leader, “Sonny’s Crib,” this time with John Coltrane in the front line along with Curtis Fuller and Donald Byrd. -Don Sickler

What’s In A Name? – “Carvin’ The Rock”

“The Rock” was what musicians, and others, called Riker’s Island, one of New York City’s large jail facilities. Drug problems caused quite a few musicians to be detained at “The Rock.” The only time Sonny Rollins recalls being detained at Riker’s with Elmo was for a portion of 1950, so, if pressed, he feels Carvin’ The Rock was written at that time. This would therefore be 3 years before the recording. There seems to be no word from Elmo as to when this composition was written. –Don Sickler

Just a peek at our collection…

One corner of our CD collection — the collection spans a few more walls and includes vinyl, as well.