Requisites
Afternoon in Paris ~ John Lewis and Sacha Distel | By Eddie Carter
My mother was a big fan of The Modern Jazz Quartet, and today’s selection from the library highlights its founder and musical director, pianist John Lewis, joining French guitarist Sacha Distel on their 1957 collaborative album Afternoon in Paris (Atlantic 1267). It was one of her favorite records to play during our Sunday dinners growing up,and I had almost forgotten how enjoyable this album truly is. The supporting cast is superb: Barney Wilen on tenor saxophone, Pierre Michelot (tracks A1-A3) and Percy Heath (tracks B1-B3) on bass, Connie Kay (tracks A1-A3) and Kenny Clarke (tracks B1-B3) on drums. The copy I own is the 2021 French limited-edition mono audiophile reissue (Versailles MEDX 12005) released by Sam Records.
I Cover The Waterfront by Johnny Green and Edward Heyman, which opens side one, begins with John’s beautiful introduction. Sacha takes over to state the tasteful theme, and leads the way in a gorgeous reading. Barney has the last word in a warm performance that picks up pace until the pianist ends the way he began, softly. Dear Old Stockholm opens with piano, guitar, and tenor sax playing a brief segment of the melody, incorporating Pierre’s bass interlude, until it concludes. The pace picks up significantly for Barney’s swinging opening statement. Sacha delivers straight passion in the following solo, then John builds the third reading with smooth efficiency. All three soloists engage in a short exchange ahead of the pianist’s reprise and gentle ending.
The title tune, Afternoon in Paris by John Lewis, slows the pace to mid-tempo as the group begins the melody. Barney is the first to solo and cooks aggressively. Sacha steps in next to offer a splendid study in soulful improvisation. John makes his entrance with a perfectly locked-in groove. Pierre has the last word, and his sturdy bass lines lead the ensemble into the melody’s restatement. All The Things You Are by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II gets side two underway with John’s pretty introduction. Barney launches into a swinging performance, then Sacha takes the reins and gets into a fantastic groove. John follows with a short solo, then he shares a brief word with Kenny before taking the song out softly.
Bags’ Groove by Milt Jackson got its title from the composer’s nickname. It opens with Barney stating the theme, leisurely, alongside Percy and Kenny. Sacha then begins the opening solo. John taps a creative vein next. Barney begins the third reading at ease, but gradually cruises to a satisfying climax. Percy and Kenny share a brief conversation preceding the theme’s reprise and summation. Ann Ronnell’s Willow Weep For Me begins with John’s gentle piano introduction, setting the stage for Sacha’s elegant, understated approach to the melody and his opening statement. The spotlight shifts to Barney, who delivers one of his most memorable solos on the album. John steps in last, providing a gorgeous improvisation that guides the ensemble to a graceful finish.
Although the producer of the original Afternoon in Paris session remains unidentified, Disques Versailles recorded the initial album, and Fred Thomas oversaw this audiophile reissue for Sam Records. The album’s sound quality is exceptional for a 1950s recording, with a warm, airy soundstage that makes you feel as if you’re in the studio with the musicians as they’re performing. It was remastered from the original tapes and pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Optimal Press using the Metal Mothers process from Pallas in Germany. This edition offers a listening experience that truly captures the album’s essence.
This was Sacha Distel’s sole album collaboration with John Lewis, yet both ensembles seamlessly integrate Lewis’s lyrical piano sensibility with Distel’s refined guitar elegance. The musicians’ interaction is both spontaneous and intuitive, culminating in six extraordinary performances. If you’re in the mood for an engaging blend of Bop and Cool Jazz, I cordially invite you to spend an Afternoon in Paris with John Lewis and Sacha Distel on your next record-shopping trip. I’m confident you’ll encounter a memorable album that will leave a lasting impression well beyond the record’s end!
~ All the Things You Are, I Cover The Waterfront, Willow Weep For Me – Source: JazzStandards.com ~Afternoon in Paris, Bags’ Groove, Dear Old Stockholm – Source: Wikipedia.org © 2026 by Edward Thomas Carter
More Posts: choice,classic,collectible,collector,guitar,history,instrumental,jazz,music,piano
DEE DEE BRIDGEWATER & BILL CHRLAP
Two of the most highly respected figures in the world of Jazz — Dee Dee Bridgewater and Bill Charlap — document their critically acclaimed, sold out live concerts on their first collaborative album, Elemental. Bridgewater and Charlap curate a repetoire that only they can present: exploring the deep understanding of Jazz Tradition alongside impecable phrasing and a once-in-a-generation dynamic range, brining a level of sophistication that is sure to be considered a masterpiece for generations to come.
Cover: $45.76 ~ $61.21
More Posts: adventure,bandleader,club,genius,instrumental,jazz,music,piano,preserving,travel,vocal
Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen was born in New York City, on December 26, 1921. As an only child and with his father dying when he was raised on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois largely by his mother’s Irish Catholic family. Running away from home at 16 he easily took to begging. A short stint in the Army was derailed by asthma and he was discharged.
He was a pianist and a prolific composer. By his own estimate, he wrote more than 8,500 songs, some of which were recorded by numerous leading singers. Allen won the 1964 Grammy Award for Best Original Jazz Composition for “Gravy Waltz, for which he wrote the lyrics. His songs have been performed and/or recorded by Count Basie, Tony Bennett, Bobby Darin, Ella Fitzgerald, Mark Murphy, Judy Garland, Aretha Franklin, Lionel Hampton, Claire Martin, Oscar Peterson, the McGuire Sisters and Ray Brown among otheres.
He also wrote more than 50 books, including novels, children’s books, and books of opinions, including his final book, Vulgarians at the Gate: Trash TV and Raunch Radio published in 2001.
Pianist, composer, writer, actor, comedian, television and radio personality Steve Allen, who in 1954 co-created and was the first host of The Tonight Show, died due to a ruptured blood vessel on October 30, 2000 in Los Angeles, California. He was 78.
More Posts: composer,history,instrumental,jazz,music,piano,writer
The Jazz Voyager
It’s a four hour drive through Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey on I95 north to get to the Big Apple. Crossing the Verrazanno Bridge into Brooklyn and up the BQE to the Williamsburg Bridge into Lower Manhattan. This Jazz Voyager will arrive in Greenwich Village where I’ll spend a few hours before showtime at the Village Vanguard, one of my favorite hangouts for jazz.
My Christmas present taking the stage this week is a phenomenal pianist called Kenny Barron. I’ve seen here several times throughout his career and he always has great sidemen and sidewomen with him. He’s bringing saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins, vibraphonist Steve Nelson, Yoshi Kitagawa on double bass, with drummer Johnathan Blake. Unfortunately for you jazz voyagers who haven’t got your tickets or reservations, this engagement is sold out.
The Village Vanguard is located at 178 7th Avenue S, New York City 10014. For more information visit villagevanguard.com.
More Posts: adventure,club,ensembles,genius,jazz,music,piano,preserving,travel
Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Herbert Anthony Charles Spanier was born in Cupar, Canada on December 25, 1928. He played guitar and harmonica at five, bugle in Regina, Canada cadet bands, and trumpet in high school. One of the first beboppers in Canada, and a figure of some legend on the Canadian jazz scene,
He played with Paul Perry and with his own band ‘Boptet’ in Regina before working in Chicago, Illinois from 1949-1950 and from 1950-1954 in Toronto, Canada. He was a sideman to Paul Bley in New York 1954-1955 and Los Angeles, California 1958-1959, and toured out of New York with the Claude Thornhill and Hal McIntyre orchestras in 1955.
He was an influential jazz musician in Montreal, Canada from 1956-1958 and between 1960-1971. Spanier taught briefly at Sir George Williams University, performed in various dance, hotel, and CBC orchestras, contributed music to NFB films. Herbie was the leader on the CBC’s ‘Jazz en Liberté’ and in various clubs. Returning to Toronto in 1971, he was a featured soloist for nine years with Nimmons ‘N’ Nine Plus Six.
For the next two and a half decades he led his own groups, won the Juno Awards, received a Special Recognition Award and recorded sessions in 1993-1994 in which he produced new works which combined with earlier recordings on compact discs.
Trumpeter, flugelhornist, pianist, and composer Herbie Spanier died in Toronto, Canada on December 13, 2001.
More Posts: bandleader,composer,flugelhorn,history,instrumental,jazz,music,piano,trumpet