Jazz Kat Posted March 22, 2005 Report Posted March 22, 2005 What are your opinions on the Ramsey Lewis Trio, Ramsey Lewis: piano Eldee Young: bass Red Holt: drums I like their early stuff, but the late stuff where its all bossa novas under Beatles' songs, just bugs me. The album Pot Luck was pretty good. The In Crowd album was great, it's just the albums after the big hit that I dont like, but there werent that many, just the ones like Hang On Ramsey. What do you guys think?? Quote
RDK Posted March 22, 2005 Report Posted March 22, 2005 They're all good! I actually dig the groovy pop covers, but that's just me. Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 22, 2005 Author Report Posted March 22, 2005 I do too, it's just the ones where Red Holt just does rim shots, with a latin feel, like A Hard days Night, and Day Tripper. Carmen is my favorite Lewis Trio arrangement. Quote
GA Russell Posted March 22, 2005 Report Posted March 22, 2005 Hang On Ramsey was my first jazz album, in the summer of '66! I listen to it occassionally and enjoy it, probably for the nostalgia. I'm not a fan of his. I think that he was the poor man's Red Garland, who was in my book the poor man's Ahmad Jamal. But as I understand it, Lewis was regarded as a great showman. He should be given credit for being the first jazz musician to be hip to what the kids were listening to, and recording The In Crowd, A Hard Day's Night, and Hang On Sloopy. He was to my knowledge, which pales next to that of some of you guys, the first modern jazz musician to record a Christmas album, as well. That's marketing! Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 22, 2005 Author Report Posted March 22, 2005 It's an allright Christmas album btw. I think he was a good pianist, i don't know how he is that much worse than Garland, but I guess you have many reasons for thinking this. He was in the Ray Charles school of piano, IMO. Quote
mikeweil Posted March 22, 2005 Report Posted March 22, 2005 I had a Chess greatest hits comp that I wore out! I bought only "Consider The Source", "In Person" and "Down To Earth" on CD, i.e. the earlier ones. Still waiting for Universal to reissue a more complete version of "The In Crowd". Quote
agriffith Posted March 23, 2005 Report Posted March 23, 2005 The Ramsey Lewis Trio was one of the first jazz groups I heard growing up. I guess I was about 2 or 3 when I first heard the "In Crowd" lp. Certainly the blues-based music that made up much of their repetoire had a big influence on me in terms of what a "jazz" sound was. And, being a drummer, I still count Red Holt as an early influence. That group could swing! I don't listen to them much now, but "More Music From The Soil" remains a favorite lp of mine. Quote
JSngry Posted March 23, 2005 Report Posted March 23, 2005 The later trios w/Cleveland Eaton on bass remain to be discovered by all but the crate-diggers... Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 23, 2005 Author Report Posted March 23, 2005 The Ramsey Lewis Trio was one of the first jazz groups I heard growing up. I guess I was about 2 or 3 when I first heard the "In Crowd" lp. Certainly the blues-based music that made up much of their repetoire had a big influence on me in terms of what a "jazz" sound was. And, being a drummer, I still count Red Holt as an early influence. That group could swing! I don't listen to them much now, but "More Music From The Soil" remains a favorite lp of mine. Me either. They were one of my favorite groups a couple years ago, where I played nothing but them. I loved the arrangements. Quote
Robert J Posted March 23, 2005 Report Posted March 23, 2005 The Ramsey Lewis Trio was one of the first jazz groups I heard growing up. I can also say this. My dad had a few of the albums, including the maligned Beatles one (it's not that bad, there's more electric piano on it if I recall). I had a specific year of RL that in retrospective, maybe changed me more than I thought. When I was 15 and moving away from my mullet and metal collection, Ramsey Lewis, Oscar Peterson and the MJQ were my turning points. But mostly Lewis. I also had the Chess set, and another collection on LP that had a picture of him with his family - like a portrait. I also worked hard to learn the In Crowd solo. I remember even having the balls to play it for some event at my YMCA. In fact my dad has - and I have it somewher - a sheet music collection of RL, which helped my transcriptions. I just loved that funky blues sound he got. I also remember going to a leadership training camp in northern Ontario for 2 weeks - I was later a camp counsellor elsewhere. There were some camps of the Christian Right persuasion represented there that abhorred this long-hair playing jazz until I pulled out a funky Wade in the Water, a la Ramsey. And then they surrounded my piano and started singing. That's an odd memory! While I don't think he's the greatest pianist out there, and I haven't pulled out one of his records in a long time, I think he has a historical significance. The long version of the In Crowd still has a great fun vibe. I love how they bring the volume down to a whisper at the end and then back up again. Very effective. I have a copy of the Young/Holt trio featuring the RL rythym section and with capable pianist Hysear Don Walker - whatever happened to him? Quote
jlhoots Posted March 23, 2005 Report Posted March 23, 2005 I'm not a big fan, but I do like the album with Lem Winchester. Quote
Robert J Posted March 23, 2005 Report Posted March 23, 2005 The YH trio album. Never understood the title Quote
Brad Posted March 23, 2005 Report Posted March 23, 2005 I'm not a big fan, but I do like the album with Lem Winchester. I can't say I am or am not a big fan but I have the Lem Winchester album on argo and it's pretty fantastic. I think if you dig the Sounds, you'll dig this. Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 23, 2005 Author Report Posted March 23, 2005 The YH trio album. Never understood the title Some double meaning. Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 23, 2005 Author Report Posted March 23, 2005 They actually had another hit, Soulful Strut that I would like to hear. Quote
mikeweil Posted March 23, 2005 Report Posted March 23, 2005 More complete? How so? Verve had announced a newly mastered CD of "The In Crowd" with additional material as early as 2003, IIRC. They delayed it for unknown reasons. Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 23, 2005 Author Report Posted March 23, 2005 Additional compared to the vinyl? I got that. My vinyl copy ends with Sparticus. The cd has about three bonus tracks including, "The Party's Over." Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 24, 2005 Author Report Posted March 24, 2005 I seem to kill my own threads. Quote
DMP Posted March 25, 2005 Report Posted March 25, 2005 An earlier album from the Bohemian Caverns has never been reissued (although some of it showed up in that misguided series of double-CD reissues) - it was actually a little bit of a "hit" - the single version of "Something You Got" had some airplay. The album is mostly known for the long "West Side Story" medley, but also had a good version (hard to believe!) of "People." A lot of extra material from the Lighthouse "Hard Day's Night" gig has surfaced over the years in "official" and unofficial releases - that could make a nice package. (Although it's not exactly Bill Evans at the Vanguard...) Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 25, 2005 Author Report Posted March 25, 2005 Basically, none of the Ramsey Lewis Trio albums have been released on CD, except for of course, The In Crowd, and Down To Earth. The albums were Gentlemen of Jazz Gentlemen of Swing An Hour With The Ramsey Lewis Trio Bach To The Blues Pot Luck Hang On Ramsey Swinging With The Ramsey Lewis Trio In Chicago At Bohemian Caverns Never On Sunday More Music From Soil An album with some trumpet player, forgot the name The Sound Of Christmas More Sounds Of Christmas In Crowd Down To Earth Stretchin' Out (none of those, except for In Crowd, Down To Earth and Sound Of X-Mas were released on cd yet, and they're all pretty hard to find.) Quote
DMP Posted March 25, 2005 Report Posted March 25, 2005 Jazz Kat - Good list. Parts of some of these albums have been out on various releases. Don't forget "Hard Days Night" and the Cadet albums of leftovers from that engagement - a lot of that has surfaced on some cheap labels. Quote
Jazz Kat Posted March 26, 2005 Author Report Posted March 26, 2005 Yeah, but I think they should be ashamed of themselves for how they released Ramsey's trio stuff on cd. Unless there's some really good reason.. Quote
JSngry Posted March 26, 2005 Report Posted March 26, 2005 (edited) Here's a trio w/Cleveland Eaton & Maurice White. Yes, that Maurice White. Edited March 26, 2005 by JSngry Quote
JSngry Posted March 26, 2005 Report Posted March 26, 2005 White, Eaton, & Morris Jennings. Got a 5-Star review in Down Beat, for whatever that's worth. Quote
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