Jaffa

... I found it - exactly the copy Paul Burgess had sold way back !!!! It's certainly obscure but not THAT good. "Operation Bop" is Denzil Best's "Move"- but the members of the band remain a mystery, Sounds like gifted (kid?) amateurs - no clue on the label where this might have been recorded or issued. The only possibly hint might be the mx-numbers: "Jr. 265" and "Jr. 268". Any ideas ?

@ Niko: "and Ray Vasquez: wasn't that Anthony Ortega's cousin?" Yes this is really interesting and sheds light on the odd Rex-Hollywood label: From Isoardi’s interview with Anthony Ortega, Sept. 10, 1994 Ortega Mory Rappaport recorded one record or maybe more than one record for Teddy Edwards on the Rex [Records] label, "Out of Nowhere" and— What was the name of the other one? Was it "Steady with Teddy?" No, "Steady with Teddy" was on Dial. I can't remember the name of the tune. But if you ever interview him he'll remember. I remember now; it was called "Rexology." Incidentally, my cousin Ray Vasquez had got us on a recording session with the same label. It was on the Rex label. This was in about 1947. Isoardi Your group, the Frantic Five? Ortega The Frantic Five. We recorded on the Rex label. Isoardi That must have been a thrill. Ortega Yeah, man. I was only about sixteen years old. I wrote this tune based on the "East of the Sun [and West of the Moon]." I called it "The Clutching Hand." The reason I called it "The Clutching Hand" is because many years before I even played the saxophone I used to go to these serials. You know, they used to have serials every week in the movies like "The Shadow" or all these different— Like "Batman." And in this one incident there was a real bad guy, and he was the Clutching Hand. [laughter] He was the Clutching Hand. If he got ahold of you, man, you'd had it. Anyway, I named this tune "The Clutching Hand." It was based on "East of the Sun and West of the Moon." I really liked that tune ever since I was a kid when I first heard Tommy Dorsey play it and Frank Sinatra sing it, which was one of my early influences, in a sense, hearing Frank Sinatra do all these early things with Tommy Dorsey. I was very impressed with his singing. Anyway, Ray Vasquez got us the date for Rex label. The guy's name was Mory Rappaport who owned the Rex label. Isoardi Where were they based? Ortega They were based in Hollywood there. Isoardi Small independent record company? Ortega A very small independent label. They only did a few sides. But it's funny, too—it isn't so funny—there was a record ban at that time. None of the musicians— They were having contract hassles with the money situation. I think the— Isoardi This wasn't during the war, then? Was that the wartime record ban? Ortega It probably was. It was 1946, I think. Isoardi 'Forty-three, '44? Oh, no, afterwards? There was another ban after the war, as well? Ortega Yeah, something like that. Whatever. I don't know when it was. However, you weren't supposed to record. See, there was a recording ban, but Mory Rappaport had a nonunion label or whatever it was, and we didn't care. We just wanted to play. Isoardi To record. Ortega We thought it was great to do a recording. So we did that one, "The Clutching Hand." On the other side was Walter Benton's tune called "Home Run." It was a blues in F. At that time Walter Benton had written an introduction like a whole tone scale. The introduction was— [sings part of introduction] And his cousin Jimmy O'Brien would play like an augmented eleventh chord on the piano. [sings] But, you know, we were pretty cool for our age. We were only teenagers, you know. But anyway, we did the record, which I still think I have a copy of at home. So that was my very first recording, and it was nonunion and the whole bit. I'd never done anything like that. Isoardi Did you ever have a chance to hear it on the radio? Ever get any airplay? Ortega Possibly. Possibly. They may have played it a little on the radio once or something. I don't know. But it was called Ray Vasquez and his Beboppers, and Ray wasn't even on it. He didn't play nothing. But he got the session. You know, he got the recording session. And we didn't get paid or anything; we just did it. It was called Ray Vasquez and his Beboppers. It didn't have any of the guys' names or anything. That's all it said, "Ray Vasquez and his Beboppers." Could that be Lennie Niehaus who was 18 or 19 in 1947/48 when this was recorded and who was studying in LA at the time ?!?!

Musically, the Don Reed is quite below average: The tp player was heavily inspired by McGhee - but it's not him, of course; yet the best guy in the band. All others are really less memorable. That Rappoport guy of Rex-Hollywood tried to make a fast buck recording little-known musicians - like the Johnny Barbera Quintette (or the mysterious Ray Vasquez) but also hit the spot by recording really great stuff by Teddy Edwards, Roy Porter, Jay McShann - and even Wingy Manone with Kay Starr... Sure - a stunning and puzzling label ! What's the peronnel on the Johnny Barbera ? Never seen or heard it !

I can't find anything on this 78. It has "Perdido, Part I" and "Perdido, Part II. Mx 27014-A and 27014-B. The "Rex"-letters are blackened out like on several others I have on this label beacuse of a copy-right war over the label's name; see Onyx-LP 215 for details. The label of 27015 lists: "Don Reed and his Quintette: Tenor Sax, Ted Hoffman; Trumpet, Don Kaufman; Piano, Bod Feldman; Drums, Don Myerson; Bass, Morton Lampert." Who are theses guys - any ideas ???

Chuck Quite possibly - but why was only one 45 issued ? Nobody bought it then.. For Juke Boxes to match the Decca-45s by LA popular then ?

I have just played my copy again after years: It's not bad at all ! LE is copying Satchmo in a blatant manner. I really wonder what Blue Note had in mind cutting this session...

Musicraft re-issued the Dizzy Guilds !

Great research and lots of amazing information. Thanks very much !!

Thanks again, Jazztrain: I only have Manor 1182 and I doubt the/any other titles were ever issued on Manor - albeit the matrix numbers (source?) and the titles suggest that they MIGHT also be by HH. I am well aware of the entries in Bruyninckx & Lord - which L. copied from B.; abeit without the "dash" in the mx-#; another regrettable case of hasty work, I'm afraid to note. My copy of Manor 1182 has: Bop-Salad mx "N-1793-2-E" Puerto Rican Chaos mx "N-1792-2-E"

Thanks, Jazztrain, for that helpful and informative reply: Much appreciated, indeed !

I recently got Manor 1182 by Hoyt Hughes & his Orch.: Not that memorable musically - but what alluring titles: "Bop-Salad" and "Panic In Puerto Rico". Neither is in any way related to Dizzy as some discographies suggest; misleading info which has been copied way too often. It's not the best of bands but puzzling here and there with "Puerto Rico" the better side, I think. There seems to have been an entry in "Jazz Journal" titled "2037 Who's Hughes" but I do not have this. All I find is the - rather ambivalent - short review in Billboard from June 1949. Can anyone help ? Who is this ? Were the other titles on "Arco AL-8", an LP I have never seen also issued on 78 ? Same band ? Thanks a ot !!!

Sad, sad news. Time to enjoy this one again ! r.i.p.

That Manor is wonderful: Just played it again - after years ! Although pressed on a kind of sand-paper like most early Manor/Regis-78's, it's the music that matters. And it IS great !

There was Ed Lewis who led the tp-section in Basie's band and Ed "Tiger" Lewis" who played & recorded on tp with Andy Kirk, Arnett Cobb et al. I think neither of them worked as a restroom attendant in the mid-eighties.

I'd bid $ 1 to $ 3 on all of these except for the Atomics which would possibly sell for $ 5 to $ 10 in an auction. So: Buy a record player and enjoy these gems !