Requisites
That’s Where It’s At ~ Stanley Turrentine | By Eddie Carter
Stanley Turrentine was an exceptionally prolific tenor saxophonist who garnered numerous admirers throughout his career. He is widely recognized as a key contributor to the evolution of blues-inspired hard bop and soul jazz, as well as a trailblazer in smooth jazz. This morning’s featured album submitted for your approval is a 1962 release, That’s Where It’s At (Blue Note BLP 4096/BST 84096). This record was his second collaboration with pianist Les McCann and bassist Herbie Lewis, coming on the heels of their live performance at the Village Gate just a week prior. Drummer Otis Finch completes this dynamic quartet. The copy in my library is the 2020 Blue Note Tone Poet Series stereo reissue, which maintains the original catalog number.
The album opener, Smile, Stacey by Les McCann, begins with a brief dialogue between Stanley and Les that leads into the foursome’s theme. Stanley takes charge first, delivering a driving energy and brisk articulation. Les then swings in for the second interpretation. Herbie takes a short, sharply executed walk next, which Les finishes, then
Stanley and Les share a brief exchange with Otis before the ensemble’s soft fadeout. The quartet then cools down for Soft Pedal Blues by Stanley Turrentine, which starts with the trio’s slow-burning, soulful intro. Turrentine’s notes are placed with thoughtful precision during the melody and opening statement. McCann caresses each note of the second solo, and Turrentine delicately shapes a final comment into the theme’s restatement and slow fade.
Pia by Les McCann begins with the quartet easing into a mellow groove as the melody is introduced. Les initiates the solos with some good down-home cooking. Stanley steps in next, maintaining the calm atmosphere with a thoughtful message before the ensemble reunites for the closing chorus, which gently fades away. We’ll See Yaw’ll After While, Ya Heah by Les McCann is the pianist’s lively composition with a distinctly Southern flavor. After the quartet’s theme gets things off to a good start, Turrentine leads off the first solo, delivering each verse with precise articulation. McCann responds with a spirited interpretation that gets listeners tapping their feet and grinning along until the group’s return for the ending theme.
The tempo slows down again for Dorene, Don’t Cry, I, by Les McCann, a haunting ballad that begins with the ensemble’s beautiful melody. Stanley fully embraces the opening statement by gently attending to every note with careful lyricism and sensitivity. Les follows with something significant to say in a gorgeous performance preceding the tender reprise and close. Light Blue, by Stanley’s brother, Tommy Turrentine, brings this entertaining album to a close with a lightly swinging melody that invites listeners to sit back and enjoy the ride. McCann takes the lead with a loose, relaxed reading, then Lewis provides a few moments of pure joy. Turrentine offers the final memorable moment ahead of the group’s out chorus.
Alfred Lion produced the initial session of That’s Where It’s At, and Rudy Van Gelder was behind the dials of the recording. Joe Harley supervised the audiophile reissue, and Kevin Gray mastered the album from the original analog tapes at Cohearant Audio. The album’s sound quality is outstanding, with a stunning soundstage that transports the musicians to the sweet spot in your listening room with superb fidelity. The record was pressed on 180-gram Virgin Vinyl at RTI and is dead silent until the music begins. You’re also getting high-definition gatefold photos and superb cover packaging worthy of hanging on the wall. If you’re already a member of the Stanley Turrentine or Les McCann fan club, I highly recommend That’s Where It’s At on your next record hunt. If you aren’t already familiar with either musician, this record is an excellent introduction to their extensive discographies!
~ Les McCann Ltd. In New York (Pacific Jazz PJ-45/ST 45) – Source: Discogs.com © 2025 by Edward Thomas Carter
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HOLIDAY JAZZ VESPERS
Come celebrate the holiday season with the timeless sounds of jazz at the 2025 Holiday Jazz Vespers at historic First Congregational Church in downtown Atlanta. The Holiday Jazz Vespers has become a highly anticipated treat and an annual favorite among jazz enthusiasts.
All Proceeds benefit the Education and Outreach Programs of the First Church CDC.
Featured Guest Artists:
Kathleen Bertrand ~ Vocal
Doc Powell ~ Guitar
Will Scruggs ~ Bariton Saxophone
Phil Davis ~ Piano
Dwight Andrews ~ Flute
Atlanta Jazz Chamber Chorus
Tickets: $28.52
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Bhumibol Adulyadej was born on December 5, 1927 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, however, the family moved to Bangkok, Thailand where she briefly attended Mater Dei school. In 1933 his mother took the family to Switzerland, where he continued his education at the École nouvelle de la Suisse romande in Lausanne. In 1934 he was given his first camera, which ignited his lifelong enthusiasm for photography.
Before he became King of Thailand, titled Rama IX, in 1942, Bhumibol became a jazz enthusiast, and started to play the saxophone, a passion that he kept throughout his life. He received his high-school diploma with a major in French literature, Latin, and Greek from the Gymnase Classique Cantonal de Lausanne, and by 1945 had begun studying sciences at the University of Lausanne, when World War II ended and the family was able to return to Thailand.
Adulyadej became an accomplished jazz baritone saxophone player and composer, playing Dixieland and New Orleans jazz. He also played the clarinet, trumpet, guitar, and piano. It is widely believed that his father may have inspired his passion for artistic pursuits at an early age. Initially focusing on classical music exclusively for two years but eventually switched to jazz since it allowed him to improvise more freely. It was during this time that he decided to specialize in wind instruments, especially the saxophone and clarinet. By 18 he started composing his own music with the first being Candlelight Blues.
He continued to compose even during his reign following his coronation in 1946. Bhumibol performed with Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Benny Goodman, Stan Getz, Lionel Hampton, and Benny Carter. Throughout his life, Bhumibol wrote a total of 49 compositions, much of it is jazz swing but he also composed marches, waltzes, and Thai patriotic songs.
He initially received general music training privately while he was studying in Switzerland, but his older brother, then King Ananda Mahidol, who had bought a saxophone, sent Bhumibol in his place. King Ananda would later join him on the clarinet. On his permanent return to Thailand in 1950, he started a jazz band, Lay Kram, whom he performed with on a radio station he started at his palace. The band grew, being renamed the Au Sau Wan Suk Band and he performed with them live on Friday evenings, occasionally taking telephoned requests.
Many bands such as Les Brown and His Band of Renown, Claude Bolling Big Band, and Preservation Hall Jazz Band recorded some of his compositions and can still be heard in Thailand. A 1996 documentary, Gitarajan, was made about his music. Adulyadej still played music with his Au Sau Wan Suk Band in later years, but was rarely heard in public. In 1964, Bhumibol became the 23rd person to receive the Certificate of Bestowal of Honorary Membership on behalf of Vienna’s University of Music and Performing Arts.
Baritone saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, guitarist, pianist and composer and King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who reigned for 70 years and 126 days and is the longest of any Thai monarch, died on October 13, 2016 in Bangkok, Thailand.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Michael Moore was born December 4, 1954 and raised in Eureka, California. He studied music at Humboldt State and in 1977 graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Jaki Byard and Gunther Schuller, and was a classmate of Marty Ehrlich. He played in a variety of musical contexts, especially those in support of theatre and dance groups.
By 1982 he was a regular member of Misha Mengelberg’s Instant Composers Pool and had moved to Amsterdam. He was also a member of Georg Gräwe’s Grubenklang Orchester. Michael is one-third of the Clusone Trio with cellist Ernst Reijseger and drummer Han Bennink. Originally meant only to play a single date at a festival in Clusone, Italy, the trio toured irregularly for several years and recorded six albums, including one of freely-interpreted Irving Berlin compositions.
His debut recording as a leader was in 1992 but it was with 1994’s Chicoutimi that he began to earn recognition as a composer. The drummerless trio on this album had Fred Herschon piano, and bassist Mark Helias was inspired by the duo recordings of Lee Konitz and Gil Evans.
He put together a jazz quintet in 2005 and the album Osiris. In 2013, he performed with InstanPool, a group of international musicians making improved music and occasionally playing a composition.
Saxophonist and clarinetist Michael Moore, who has recorded twenty-two albums as a leader, continues his journey in performing and recording.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Ove Johansson was born on December 3, 1936 and didn’t start playing the tenor saxophone until the age of 13. However, he gave the clarinet a chance for a couple of years. Very early in his career he got into a professional jazz group playing before starting his own groups where he spent most of the time as a band leader.
For a short period Ove was a sideman with Swedish saxophonist Lars Gullin. From 1972 to 1994 he was a teacher of saxophone, improvisation, ensemble and harmony at the School of Music, Gothenburg University. He went on to start his own small record label LJ Records in 1989 and recorded his own and new Scandinavian jazz music internationally.
The end of the Fifties saw Johansson leading his own groups and a driving force of the Swedish jazz scene. He was musical director of Mwendo Dawa. His musical work stretched from straight ahead, free form and electronic jazz to the acoustic and electro acoustical mix of today.
He toured Europe, North and South America, and China, with Mwendo Dawa. He toured with the trio Natural Artefacts with performances both in the world of improvisation music as well as the world of electro acoustic music.
Tenor saxophonist and composer Ove Johansson, who produced 35 albums with his own material and with the group, died on December 25, 2015.
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