Joe

And this is the only documentation we have of Dexter's score for the Hollywood production of THE CONNECTION. Now:

I know the tune - “Daahoud” - if not the band. The sound of the bass makes me think this is an 80s recording. The trumpeter is eating the beat for sure. Could this be later period Shorty Rogers? Something about the long runs of notes call his playing to mind. Nice interoplation! Could this be Nick Brignola on baritone? Alto has an nice elastic tone… sometimes I think it’s a tenor (and maybe it is). Tricky arrangmement, with, I think, some transcribed solos folded in. Two tenors. First player has got some of that Hawk / Byas thing going on, shaking or wringing out the tail end of notes. Not sure what the pano player is up to… not your typical comping. Could this be Earl Hines? I don’t want to call the playing florid or decorative, but whoever it is is not afraid to hang a few ornaments. Second tenor player sounds like more of a modernist than the first. Nice interplay around the 3-minute mark. And then the R&B player comes out! Griffin-esque, but it’s not Johnny Grffin as far as I can tell. Pianist solos: definitely sounds like a swing era player. Milt Buckner? I mean, I hear block chords. Some of these harmonic choices seem pretty odd to me (not in bad way), but I could be distracted by the verite recording quality. Would not be surpirsed to learn that this is the drummer’s date, though! Nice cool down. Tune’s shape suggests “One For My Baby (and One More For The Road)” but its not that. Or any standard that I recognize. Pianist has listened to Ellington, it seems to me. Oh, there’s an acoustic guitar? Gene Bertonicini maybe? Sound is more folk than classical though. Like the strings are just a little dead. No idea, but these are not easy phrases to pull off on an acoustic. Watch it be a player mostly known for playing electric. Perfect pacing on this piano solo. And what a great touch. Not quite as crystalline as Hank Jones, but in that ballpark. Tommy Flanagan? And, if Flanagan, could that be Kenny Burrell? If so, I don’t know this record. Such a distinctive tone. I should know who this is. I like that its kind of … sour? Barnyard-y at times. At first I thought Roy Eldridge, but now I’m wondering if its Sweets Edison. Charlies Shavers is a plyer that splits the difference. But then there are those hogh notes. Makes me think this is a Norman Granz joint. Willie Smith on alto maybe? I don’t think so. This one’s going to bother me! Not sure about this drummer. But the soloists don’t seem to mind the slightly overactive (from my POV, anyway) kick drum. Flip Phillips on tenor? Not a Lestorian, but not fully in the Hawk camp either, whoever it is. “Lester Leaps In” even though he’s not actually Lester doing the leaping here. This is more arranged than I expected. I like that the tenor player ibrings gruffness to this. Not grwly, not overly breathy, but he’s got a personal tone. The pianist sounds like they’re haing a llittle trouble keeping up with the bassist. And the bassist… well, this may be my favorite solo yet. Some of the gestures, and the sense of humor, makes me think Red Mitchell. But he’s louder than I thnk of Mitchell typically being. Nice coda. This tempo feels a little risky. Very soulful piano. Probably a player not typically thought of as a “burner,” but the flame is high here. I keep thinking of Les McCann, but watch it be Eroll Garner or player more in that vein! (No, this player has a different relationship to the blues, I think.) “Django,” but this is not John Lewis. I like how they speed up the descending phrase just a hair. Oh, this was not the solo I was expecting. More gutbucket moments than I thought there might be. But this player can just as easily “go lyrical.” They have a snese of space the pianist on track 6 doesn’t (or didn;t exercise there), but similiarites abound. Could this be Les McCann? Its both “churchy” and “showy,” which are modes I associate with him. Whoever it is, they are doing some fun things with the tempo. “Billie’s Bounce.” Sounds like a veteran alto player rather than a younger player of that era (80s - 90s) expressing themselves in this language. Nice piano solo that honors the tune but seizes a few opportunities to push some boundaries. Alto player… that tone tells me this is a veteran player for sure. Frank Morgan? The solo is Bord-like, of course, but it’s not just Bird Redux. Remnds me of Art Pepper here and there (post-Trane Pepper). Works for me whoever it is! There’s joy here. Ah, the Latin tinge applied to track 1! “Daahoud” again. Tenor player almost sounds like Joe Henderson here and there…. is it Henderson? Am I talking myself out if being Joe Henderson? The trumpet player’s tone is very familair, with that burn around the edges. But I could not tell you who it is. And it is just a tinge of Latin; the arrangement doesn’t really retain it. No idea. But the bassist is just a little too heavy for me. Red Garland on piano? I hear what I think of as some Red-isms, anyway. That almost sounds like the Five Spot piano, though. I get the conceit now… “Track 4” take 2. Sprightly! Not too cute, though, and it could be. “Broadway,” and this sounds like an RVG recordings. Putting 2 and 2 together, I’m going to say this is Gene Harris and the 3 Sounds. A good representation of what made them such a tight unit. “Lester Leaps In” again. very different tenor player than on the previous rendition. Excelent solo. Another case of “I should know who it is but coouldn’t tell you.” Shades og Jug, though. NHOP on bass? An earthmover whoever it is. I know this! I just listened to this record for the first time in forever. The Jazztet playing “Django.” Interesting arragnement, but not my favorite from this LP. State of the art for its time, though. And I think Cedar Wlaton has the best showing here. No idea. Nice groove, and the tempo suits these players better than the uptempo heard earlier, I think. It simmers, percolates, never boils over. Al Grey sending us away? Dig it. Timing is everything. Thanks! Eager to see the reveal.

Sad to hear. ASK THE UNICORN is transcendent stuff.

Tom Joad Lennie Small Charley

I learned something new today! Thanks!

Leppo and the Jooves Katrina and the Waves Izhar Cohen and the Alphabeta

Redd Foxx Malcolm X Xavier McDaniel