AOTW Nov. 13-19, 2005

[DukeCity]

Please don't post here until the 13th. Don't want to step on the Lee Konitz discussion.

The AOTW will be:

Joe Henderson with the Wynton Kelly Trio (Paul Chambers and Jimmy Cobb) from 1968.

Swingin' live date. I'll give some more comments in a few days.

[danasgoodstuff]

I think I was working in a record store when this came out and my memory is that it didn't work for me at all...Joe and the Rhythm Section on dif. wavelenghts basically...willing to reconsider but not willing to buy a copy to do so.

[BruceH]

I'm willing to buy a copy...if I can find one.

[DukeCity]

Looking at the list of previous AOTWs, I noticed no Joe Henderson albums (at least none as a leader), so here we are.

I wouldn't necessarily call this 'definitve' Joe, but it came to mind for a couple of reasons. I like the palpable feeling of the live nature of this date. I like the disparity between Joe's edgier playing and the more straight ahead vibe of the trio. It's also fun to hear these guys stretch out on tunes that have become very standard jazz repertoire. So standard are some of these tunes (Autumn Leaves, Green Dolphin St., Four) that they don't get called these days on gigs and jam sessions, being deemed 'too common' by some players. This was recorded in 1968 at the Left Bank in Baltimore. Joe, who at this point had already released many of the sides that are better known today, isn't playing original tunes. It's not about laying out striking new compositions, it's about this working trio with a guest sitting in, and finding common ground for doing some blowing.

If you don't already have this side, I hope you enjoy it. If you have it, I hope you dust it off for another spin. I'm looking forward to the discussion.

[Rooster_Ties]

We ought to discuss its companion release here in this same thread...

It's from the very same concert, same group, and same date (literally) -- why this wasn't released as a two-CD set, I'll never understand.

Edited November 13, 2005 by Rooster_Ties

[JSngry]

This is some first-rate Joe, imo. I agree that the trio at this stage of the game sounds a bit formulaic, but otoh, it was their formula, and it served them more than well both artistically and careerwise. So I'm not going to be the type that finds fault with a car for not being an airplane.

Also, I think that hearing Joe stretch out at length on such traditional material shows his true nature. He was first and foremost a "changes" player, and a damn inventive one at that. I'm not one of those who find his freer work forced. constrained, or whatever, not at all. But I do see how those who feel that way about it could, since underlying his freer playing was an innate conservatism that was in fundamental conflict to the general notion of what "avant-garde" playing should be all about. Joe was one player for whom preset notions just didn't seem to have any relevance - he was an "out" in player, an an "in" out player. Neither fish nor fowl, some might say, but a breed unto himself says me.

In a setting like this, it's really all about Jazz 101 - a lingua franca repertoire, with the task at hand being to bring the music to life in as swinging, imaginative, hip, and, yes, happy a way as possible. And Joe succeeds marvellously. He swings like a MOFO on every tune, and his harmonic/rhythmic intersections, always the most interesting aspect of his playing to me (well, that and his tone), is freed by the familiarity of the repertoire rather than stifled by it.

There's something to be said for continuing to play "tired" numbers such as these. Not for playing them day in and day out, but in revisiting them every so often just to see what you've really got going on. If the "object of the game" for a jazz musician is interior freedom, freedom within one's self (and I think it should be, although I don't think that it is for a lot of us, which is too bad...), then what better way to test that freedom (or for that matter, just revel in it) than to play some tunes where the "thinking" portion of the equation has been removed. I mean, at this stage of the game, noe of these players really had to think about the changes to something like "Four", ya' know? So you got two choices - you can coast/sleepwalk, or you can treat it like a party in an open field the country - wide open spaces, nobody to fence you in, just get your groove on and GO with it. Needless to say, Joe came with the latter objective in mind, and he achieves it splendidly.

Now as for the trio, this open field in the country is their house. They live here, so their partying is a little more planned than is Joe's. But they're glad to have him over, and they don't get in his way, to put it mildly. And they don't frown upon his revelry, either. When Joe opens up, they don't try to pull back to compensate. There's no worrying that he might be going just a little outside their usual parameters. If anything, they sound like they're glad to have him over to liven things up a bit. No matter how "fixed" this trio was, all three members had HUGE ears, and you know that they could hear more than they sometimes played. Just because they didn't really stretch on their gig doesn't mean that they couldn't. A gig's a gig, if you know what I mean...

And this is about as perfect a gig as could occur with these players and this material in this setting at this time and place. A splendid time was had by all, and of course Henry the Horse danced the waltz. It's not "heavy", but then again, maybe that makes it even more heavy. That's going to be a totally personal call, that one is...

[BruceH]

This is some first-rate Joe, imo. I agree that the trio at this stage of the game  sounds a bit formulaic, but otoh, it was their formula, and it served them more than well both artistically and careerwise. So I'm not going to be the type that finds fault with a car for not being an airplane.

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(Damn non-flying car...)

[Free For All]

[DukeCity]

Nicely stated, Sangrey. You state my position on this album much more eloquently than I did!

Rooster: of course the Straight, No Chaser side is from the same date, and I forgot to mention it. I thought about posting both titles as Album(s) of the Week, but wasn't sure if that would violate AOTW policy.

Of the two releases, my choice of "Four" is almost arbitrary. The deciding factor is the fact that I love Joe's solo on "On the Trail" so much.

[DukeCity]

I think I was working in a record store when this came out and my memory is that it didn't work for me at all...Joe and the Rhythm Section on dif. wavelenghts basically...willing to reconsider but not willing to buy a copy to do so.

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For 99 cents you can get a tune from iTunes and take it for a test drive. Not exactly like the crack dealers who give you 'the first one free', but it's pretty darn cheap for some tasty Joe!

Cheaper, even, than this tasty Joe:

Edited November 14, 2005 by DukeCity

[Free For All]

I love both of these recordings and snapped 'em up the moment they became available. But I'm also a major fan of both Joe and Wynton (and the trio).

I think these are interesting because they represent an intersection of two factions that (in 1968) are generally going in different directions musically, but share the concept of swing as a bottom line. There's not much interaction per se, just the rhythm section providing swinging support and generally just staying out of Joe's way. The piano solos are pure swinging Wynton, of course!

It's interesting to hear Joe just calling tunes and playing on standards- he sounds relaxed and seems to be having a really good time. Anytime some student rags about playing Autumn Leaves or some other well-worn standard I direct them to these sides so they can hear someone breathing new life into these often-played tunes.

Think of those great recordings of Clifford or Bird playing with "house" rhythm sections- and this is no slouch "house" rhythm section by any means!

Good choice Glenn! Great stuff. Five stars.

Edited November 14, 2005 by Free For All

[DukeCity]

It's interesting to hear Joe just calling tunes and playing on standards...

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I like the 'just calling tunes' vibe of these sides, but I wonder who was calling the tunes. You would think that Joe, as the guest in the group, would be invited to call the tunes. But it sounds as if maybe Wynton called "On a Clear Day" (from the Straight, No Chaser album). Of all the tunes on the date, "Clear Day" is probably the newest, being from the Broadway show of the mid-'60s. And it sounds like Joe is really having to feel his way through the head. He is easily able to 'hear' the chord changes, but it doesn't sound like it's a tune from his regular repertoire.

In the grand scheme of this date, it's not that big a deal. But it does make me wonder how this gig was conceived of by the bookers, or by the musicians. Was it a Wynton Trio date with a bonus player (Joe) contracted? Was it a Henderson date, with a contracted rhythm section (that just happended to be an amazing group in their own right)? Did the folks booking at the Left Bank have the complete idea of putting these guys together?

Anyone on this board happen to see this performance in 1968? How was it advertised/billed?

[fent99]

Meant to post on this and though I enjoyed it when I first got it I've not returned to it until it came up here, and definitely prefer Joe's more "rehearsed" Blue Note albums. That said its a great document of something I'd love to have seen. Not the greatest meeting of minds but solid enough performances. Funnily enough I've always thought the rhythm section sounded a bit looser than I'd have expected though Joe is fine. The sounds doesn't flatter them certainly. Nice to hear Joe doing Stardust