Requisites

It’s A Blue World ~ The Red Garland Trio | By Eddie Carter

The Red Garland Trio enters the spotlight to begin this discussion with It’s A Blue World (Prestige PRLP 7838/PRST 7838), an excellent 1958 trio session that didn’t hit the stores until 1970. It was Red’s tenth release for Bob Weinstock’s label, and he’s working with a stellar rhythm section, Paul Chambers on bass, and Arthur Taylor on drums. My copy is the 1972 US Stereo reissue (Prestige PRT-7838). Side One starts with This Can’t Be Love by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart from the 1938 musical, The Boys From Syracuse. The trio opens the song at a medium tempo with the pianist’s light touch stating a charming melody. Paul goes first and takes a pleasant walk with the bass; then Red entertains us with a highly satisfying reading while Art’s brushwork keeps them moving into the reprise and close.

The pace slows slightly for Buddy Johnson’s beautiful ballad Since I Fell For You. The album’s longest song allows Garland and the rhythm section a broader canvas on which to work as they cruise through the theme. Red opens with a relaxing interpretation as enjoyable as a day at the beach, and Paul takes a carefree stroll in the closing solo preceding the climax. Crazy Rhythm by Irving Caesar, Joseph Meyer, and Roger Wolfe Kahn begins Side Two at a lively tempo for the trio’s melody. It comes from the musical, Here’s Howe and was initially heard on his 1962 album, Dig It! Red’s opening solo is full of energy, then Paul has a few crisp choruses next, and Art delivers a stirring performance preceding the finale.

In their rendition of the jazz standard, Teach Me Tonight, by Gene De Paul and Sammy Cahn, the trio offers the listener a delightful treat. Garland leads off with a delicately tender opening chorus into a graceful interpretation. Chambers follows with an exquisitely beautiful solo, and then Red returns for a few final thoughts just before the theme’s restatement and a quiet ending. It’s A Blue World by Robert Wright, and George Forrest picks up the pace one final time and closes the album on an upbeat note. The mood is jubilant from the opening notes of the melody. Red starts the solos with a vibrant performance, then steps aside for Paul to walk briskly. Art shares the finale with Red in a lively conversation ahead of the closing chorus.

Bob Weinstock supervised It’s A Blue World, and Rudy Van Gelder was behind the dials of the recording. Despite the album’s stereo being electronically remastered, it’s a solid recording with a splendid soundstage that emerges from your speakers vibrantly. If you’re a fan of Red Garland and enjoy jazz piano trios, as I do, I invite you to consider It’s A Blue World on your next vinyl shopping trip. It’s an excellent album, perfect for listening to any time of day or evening, and it should also make an excellent addition to any jazz library!

~ Dig It! (Prestige PRLP 7229/PRST 7229) – Source: Discogs.com
~ Crazy Rhythm, Since I Fell For You, This Can’t Be Love – Source: JazzStandards.com
~ Teach Me Tonight – Source: Wikipedia.org
© 2023 by Edward Thomas Carter

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Sharkey Bonano was born Joseph Gustaf Bonano on April 9, 1904  in the Milneburg neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana near Lake Pontchartrain. In the 1920s he was in the local bands of Freddie Newman and Chink Martin. After moving to New York City he found work as a member of the Wolverines and with Jimmy Durante.

He worked next to Frankie Trumbauer and Bix Beiderbecke as a member of the Jean Goldkette orchestra. At the end of the 1920s, he led a band which included Louis Prima. During the 1930s he formed the Sharks of Rhythm and played in the Original Dixieland Jass Band. His sidemen during this period included Santo Pecora and Thurman Teague.

After World War II he toured Europe, Asia, and South America, played residencies in Chicago and New York, and then was a regular on Bourbon Street in the New Orleans French Quarter. In 1949, he appeared at the Roosevelt Hotel’s Blue Room and the Famous Door Bar.

Trumpeter Sharkey Bonano transitioned on March 27, 1972, at the age of 67.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Derek Hogg was born April 8, 1928 in Oldham, England and started playing early in his career with marching bands. He began working in professional ensembles in the Fifties, including those of Freddy Randall, Don Rendell, Joe Saye, Ken Moule, Buddy Featherstonhaugh, Kenny Baker, Sandy Brown and Al Fairweather’s All Stars group. 

He played with Vic Lewis in 1959-1960, then with The Squadronaires and Dudley Moore in the first few years of the decade. In 1962 he began working with Danny Moss, with whom he would continue to perform until the end of his career. Hogg went on to perform with Rosemary Clooney, Tony Coe, Digby Fairweather, Budd Johnson, Colin Purbrook, Benny Waters and Teddy Wilson. 

Drummer Derek Hogg retired from active performance in 1987.

Confer a dose of an Oldham drummer to those seeking a greater insight about the musicians around the world who are members of the pantheon of jazz…

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Daily Dose Of jazz…

Peanuts Hucko was born Michael Andrew Hucko in Syracuse, New York on April 7, 1918.  He moved to New York City in 1939 where he played tenor saxophone with Will Bradley, Tommy Reynolds, and Joe Marsala until 1940.

After a brief time with Charlie Spivak, he joined the Glenn Miller Army Air Force Band while serving in Europe during World War II. During this time, Peanuts began to concentrate on the clarinet. He was featured in Miller’s hard-driving versions of Stealin’ Apples and Mission to Moscow. Post-war, he played in the bands of Benny Goodman, Ray McKinley, Eddie Condon and Jack Teagarden. From 1950 to 1955, he was busy in New York as a studio musician for CBS and ABC.

He continued working with Goodman and Teagarden, When he visited Tokyo, Japan in 1951 as the lead alto saxophonist in Benny Goodman’s Orchestra, he listened to clarinetist Shoji Suzuki and his Rhythm Aces. With Suzuki and his band, they recorded the song Suzukake No Michi, which broke sales records in Japan. He then joined the Louis Armstrong All-Stars for two years from 1958 to 1960.

Hucko led his own group at Eddie Condon’s Club from 1964 to 1966. He became known for his work with Frank Sinatra as the clarinet soloist on Cole Porter’s What Is This Thing Called Love?, which was featured on Sinatra’s album In the Wee Small Hours. In 1964, he opened his own nightclub Peanuts Hucko’s Navarre, in Denver, Colorado which featured his singer wife Louise Tobin and Ralph Sutton. From 1966, he was featured regularly at Dick Gibson’s Colorado jazz parties where he appeared with the Ten Greats of Jazz, later called the World’s Greatest Jazz Band.

The Seventies saw Peanuts leading the Glenn Miller Orchestra and toured across the U.S. and abroad. He also toured with the Million Airs Orchestra, and appeared with the Lawrence Welk Orchestra. The next decade he toured with his Pied Piper Quintet before going into semi-retirement with his wife in Denton, Texas. He recorded his last session Swing That Music in 1992 featuring Tobin, trumpeter Randy Sandke, and pianist Johnny Varro.

As a composer he wrote or co-wrote See You Again, A Bientot, Peanut Butter, Blintzes Bagel Boogie, Falling Tears, First Friday, Tremont Place, and Sweet Home Suite. Big band clarinetist Peanuts Hucko, who sometimes played saxophone, transitioned in Fort Worth, Texas on June 19, 2003 at the age of 85.

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The Jazz Voyager

The Jazz Voyager is on his way to Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan for a jazz experience at the Dirty Dogg Jazz Cafe. This is the first time in the city and the club, however, it is not the first experience for the talented vocalist of Eugenie Jones.

Opened in 2008, the venue is one of the premier destinations in the United States for world class jazz and cuisine. Combining intimacy, meticulous attention to detail, and hospitality it has the charm of an English-style pub. The atmosphere is relaxed and fun and every visit is memorable and always entertaining.

Jones will bring her talents to the stage Friday and Saturday for two sets each night. An exceptional vocalist and cleverly gifted lyricist she has released highly praised, primarily original, vocal projects. Hopefully we will be listening to selections from her latest  Grammy nominated release, Players.

The club is located at 97 Kercheval Avenue, 48236 and the number is 313-882-5299. For more info visit https://notoriousjazz.com/event/eugenie-jones-2.

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