Tangerine Records

[Dan Gould]

Just what is the story with Ray Charles' Tangerine Records? I was hoping Mike Fitzgerald's site might have info but it doesn't. Was the label mostly jazz or mostly R&B or what? I've heard about the famous Little Jimmy Scott LP that got withdrawn and is a major collector's item-in fact, its up on ebay right now, for about $80 or so: Little Jimmy Scott on Tangerine.

I do know there's a fine Al Grey record on Tangerine, Shades of Grey with Sweets and Lockjaw.

Are there any other jazz albums in the discography? Is there a discography? I searched Google but all I found was band discographies for Tangerine Dream.

Thanks!

[Stefan Wood]

That Jimmy Scott lp has been reissued on cd by Rhino, in their Handmade limited edtion cd department. I bought it for my dad on his birthday and it is gorgeous!

[Christiern]

There was also a 1963 Louis Jordan album--Charles has cited Jordan as an inspiration.

[DrJ]

Stefan Wood Posted on Aug 4 2003, 07:26 AM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That Jimmy Scott lp has been reissued on cd by Rhino, in their Handmade limited edtion cd department. I bought it for my dad on his birthday and it is gorgeous! 

Hell yeah! I bought a copy of this reissue at Jim Sangrey's recommendation, and it is truly one of the best jazz ballad vocal recordings I've yet to hear. To quote Mr. Scott himself on the title track, it's "WONNN-DER-FUL!"

[paul secor]

There were also two Percy Mayfield LPs. I have one of them, My Jug and I, and it's always sounded to me like Ray Charles plays organ on some tracks.

[brownie]

Some Tangerine releases:

- 1503. Louis Jordan 'Hallelujah'

- 1512. Ray Charles 'My Kind of Jazz 1'

- 1513 John Biship 'Plays His Guitar'

- 1516. Ray Charles 'My Kind of Jazz 2'

[Dan Gould]

Thanks for the replies. I've got a bead on another Tangerine release by a guy named John Anderson.

The listing says this:

TANGERINE 1506 John Anderson Time Will Tell(st) MINT 8.00

(Above LP also features Harry "Sweets" Edison,Lou Blackburn,Harold Land,Buddy Collette,& others)

And AMG indicates that he played R&B as well as jazz and gigged with Mingus and others and in '59 was in the Basie band.

For $8 probably worth a shot.

[Chuck Nessa]

John Anderson recorded with Mingus in 1946. The results are in the Uptown Mingus project. I remember playing the sides for Buddy Collette (over the phone) to identify the players, and he said Anderson was the soloist on Make Believe

[Dan Gould]

Thanks Chuck.

I just wonder what his one leader date is-jazz or R&B? Was it one of those studio dates for Collette and Sweets? I kind of suspect its a big or larger band-why have Sweets on the date when the leader plays trumpet too?

Anyway, I've contacted the seller, should hear whether or not its available soon.

[brownie]

Dan, forgot about that John Anderson Tangerine album. I've got this. It's real good.

I've always been intrigued with this musician. He is black. And he has played with Stan

Kenton back in the mid-40s. Stan Kenton had THAT reputation of not hiring black

musicians (which leaves out Anderson, Karl George, Curtis Counce, Lucky

Thompson among others).

Anderson seems to have had a successful career on the West Coast.

Check this http://www.artistdirect.com/music/artist/c...,563367,00.html

[Dan Gould]

Thanks, Brownie. So its definitely jazz, I take it. Is it big band or what, though?

[Harold_Z]

The Raelettes recorded a string of singles in the 60s for Tangerine. Definite R&B.

[brownie]

Thanks, Brownie. So its definitely jazz, I take it. Is it big band or what, though?

It's big band jazz. Will spin it when I get back home and report further dayside.

[JSngry]

Stan Kenton had THAT reputation of not hiring black

musicians (which leaves out Anderson, Karl George, Curtis Counce, Lucky

Thompson among others).

Oh, he hired them, but they usually didn't stay too long. I've never heard Kenton accused of racism, and I have no reason to believe that he was a prejudiced or bigoted individual on a one-to-one basis. But he did have the reputation, confirmed by many, of having rather far-right political views of the John Birch Society variety, which during the majority of his career must have put him at some kind of odds with a lot of the organized Civil Rights movements.

He also had a thing about creating a "white" type of jazz, reflective more of European "classical" influences than blues/swing/etc. That didn't stop him (or perhaps more accurately, his arrangers), from copping liberally from Lunceford, Ellington, Be-Bop, Afro-Cuban, etc., but that was his story and he stuck to it.

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Here is a quick & dirty listing - missing 1514. Were there any in this series past 1516? Subsequently Charles had some deal with ABC - LPs listed as on the Tangerine label but with ABC numbers.

Scott, Jimmy - Jimmy Scott - Tangerine 1501

Prude, Terrell - Princess - Tangerine 1502

Jordan, Louis - Hallelujah - Tangerine 1503

Grey, Al - Shades Of Grey - Tangerine 1504

Mayfield, Percy - My Jug And I - Tangerine 1505

Anderson, John - Time Will Tell - Tangerine 1506

Graham, Rita - Vibrations - Tangerine 1507

Bishop, John - Bishop's Whirl - Tangerine 1508

Davis, Wild Bill - Wonderful World - Tangerine 1509

Mayfield, Percy - Bought Blues - Tangerine 1510

Raelets - Souled Out - Tangerine 1511

Charles, Ray - My Kind Of Jazz - Tangerine 1512

Bishop, John - Plays His Guitar - Tangerine 1513

Raelets - Yesterday…Today…Tomorrow - Tangerine 1515

Charles, Ray - My Kind Of Jazz 2 - Tangerine 1516

Mike

Edited August 7, 2003 by Michael Fitzgerald

[brownie]

That John Anderson Tangerine LP is damn good. Most of the musicians were involved

with the Gerald Wilson big band so the whole album has a firm Wilson sound. And it

swings all the way.

The lineup is:

Bobby Bryant, John Audino, Anthony Terran, Melvin Moore, Harry 'Sweets' Edison, trumpet,

Lou Blackburn, Pete Myers, Ernest Tack, trombone, Harold Land, Teddy Edwards, Carrington

Visor, Walter Benton, Jewell Grant, saxes, William Green, piccolo, Buddy Collette, flute,

Jack Wilson, piano, John Pisano (plus Barney Kessel), guitar, Robest West, bass, Mel Lee, drums.

Anderson composed five and arranged all the eight tunes.

Main soloists are Bobby Bryant, Edison, Edwards, Land, Wilson and Kessel.

If you get this for $8, you'll make a fine purchase.

[Dan Gould]

Thanks a lot, Brownie ... now, if I'd just hear back from the seller! I'm going to try another e-mail. I've dealt with him before and he took maybe a day to respond but this time its like three days almost. I wonder if he's on vacation or something. At least I found it on his "updated 7/28" list so its not like too many people could have seen it.

Thanks again for the review.

[Dan Gould]

Well, I got the John Anderson LP yesterday, and Brownie is right, its got a very nice, swinging, Gerald Wilson feel to it. So thanks Brownie for the recommendation, I'm glad I pulled the trigger on this one.

[brownie]

You're welcome. Now I'm jealous because you got this album at half the price I paid

for it.

[Dan Gould]

[ghost of miles]

Interesting--in the liner notes to the Rhino Handmade edition of Jimmy Scott's FALLING IN LOVE IS WONDERFUL, Billy Vera says that 10-12 years ago Mosaic tried to put together a Tangerine box that would have included the Little Jimmy Scott, Percy Mayfield, and Louis Jordan material, but that they weren't able to come to terms with Ray Charles' representatives. The Scott and Mayfield sides have since come out in the Rhino series, but a Mosaic with Jordan thrown in would have been quite tasty, I'm sure.

Re: the Kenton post, I should ask David Baker about his experience, since he lives in my neck of the woods and actually played with Kenton (briefly--Jsngry's reply confirmed!) around 1952, I think.

[mikeweil]

Maybe Rhino handmade will do the Louis Jordan - they seem to take their time.

Since the complete Louis Jordan on Decca is still available - a great box set I heartily recommend for all Jordan fans - and the Aladdin sides were complete on some EMI CD, I wouldn't hope for any Jordan from Mosaic.

[jazzbo]

The only Rhino Handmade I've experienced so far is the Percy Mayfield. . .

A MAGNIFICENT cd release. I never heard these Atlantic sides sound so good! And great music with "the Genius" on hand for about 85%.

[ghost of miles]

The only Rhino Handmade I've experienced so far is the Percy Mayfield. . .

A MAGNIFICENT cd release. I never heard these Atlantic sides sound so good! And great music with "the Genius" on hand for about 85%.

I got that one too, Lon, but with the wrong booklet, so I had to return it and haven't had a chance to spin it yet. But if the likes of you, Jim Sangrey, and Joe Milazzo are singin' its praises, I doubt I'll be disappointed.

[Mark Stryker]

Can anyone help identify the musicians on "Ray Charles Jazz Number II" (Tangerine 1516)? There's no listing of personnel on the LP but I believe it was reissued a few years ago as part of an expanded package of "Genius + Soul=Jazz." I'm especially interested in the soloists -- one of whom is Marcus Belgrave -- so if anyone has the reissue and can check the text and listings of liner notes I would be grateful.

Thanks