BUDDY BANKS SEXTET: A representative band

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

I’ve been listening to this LP, which I got when it came out on a pirate label (Official) in the eighties, a bit in the last couple of weeks.

(L-R Huff, Day, Hunter, Banks, Pyles, McFay, Knight)

Ulysses “Buddy” Banks was a Texas tenor player who worked in the territory bands in the thirties. He was with Charlie Echols’ band in 1933/34. Jack McVae was his fellow tenor player in the same band, then run by Claude Kennedy in 1937. That band eventually became that of Cee Pee Johnson, which is said to have been one of the top bands in the region. So by 1945, Banks was a very experienced swing player in the south western tradition. He seems to have been influenced by Illinois Jacquet (but he isn’t a honker) and Herschel Evans, as well as Hawk and Prez.

It seems to me that bands like Buddy’s represent what people could actually hear, most nights, and from a number of places on Central Avenue, during the forties, rather better than do the recordings of the superstars of Central Avenue: Nat “King” Cole; Charles Brown; Amos Milburn; T-Bone Walker; Joe Liggins; Roy Milton; Ivory Joe Hunter; Sonny Criss; Hampton Hawes; Teddy Edwards; or Dexter Gordon. These exceptional artists were, as I see it, nourished and supported by the total scene, out of which they generally arose. Buddy Banks represents what that scene was like.

And, to judge by these recordings, the scene was in general bloody good! I find Banks’ recordings of the period very satisfying. Banks had a slightly different vision from that of most of the bandleaders of the area; his second lead instrument was the trombone – definitely NOT the instrument of choice for most R&B bandleaders – and this gives his music a pretty individual sound. From an examination of the changing personnel on these tracks, it seems that Banks was rather more successful in keeping his band together for five or six years; there are few personnel changes, mainly the vocalists changed.

After these recordings, except for a session with Fluffy Hunter in 1953, Buddy Banks may have disappeared from the scene, or may be the same musician who appeared on a Kai Winding Verve session from the sixties. In either event, after 1953, Banks ceased to be even a minor contributor. Nothing can disguise the fact that he and the members of his band are not great players but only (as if “only” were unimportant) the backbone of the profession in the area.

This LP contains sixteen of the twenty tracks Banks recorded between 1945 and 1949. (A CD containing all of them was issued by Blue Moon a few years ago, but is “temporarily out of stock” at the moment.) The personnel is

Buddy Banks (ts, voc)

Allen Durham (tbn) (1945)

Wallace “Wiley” Huff (tbn) (1946-49)

Eddie Beal (p) (1945)

Earl Knight (p) (1945-48)

Fletcher Smith (p) (1949)

William “Frosty” Pyles (g) 1945-49)

Ernie Shepherd (b) (1945)

Bill “Basie” Day (b) (1945-1949)

Nat “Monk” McFay (d) (1945-49)

Marion Abernathy (Blues Woman) (voc) (1945, 1946 & 1948)

Fluffy Hunter (voc) (1945)

Bixie Crawford (voc) (1948)

Baby Davis (voc) (1949)

Unknown vocal group (1948 & 1949)

Some of these people are known for subsequent work. Ernie Shepherd is a bass player whose name I know from somewhere, but buggered if I can think where. Wiley Huff worked around LA for years, frequently with Johnny Otis. Frosty Pyles was another who frequently appears on other people’s recordings – he joined Jesse Powell’s band and is on Jesse’s TruSound album. I never heard of Earl Knight outside of this LP, but I can’t believe that a piano player as good as he didn’t continue to make good music after this band broke up. Fluffy Hunter also worked with Jesse Powell later and is featured on an early “parental advisory” single, “The walkin’ blues” (my copy has the word “cunt” edited out – perhaps all of them do). Baby Davis is surely celebrated for the duets she recorded with T-Bone walker on Imperial, particularly “I’m still in love with you”. I don’t know anything about Bixie Crawford, but she was a hell of a sexy singer. So Buddy was keeping a pretty good band together during the late forties.

Banks didn’t seem to have a recording contract. The records were produced for Sterling, Juke Box (later renamed Specialty), Excelsior, Melodisc, Modern, King and, once more, Specialty. Only a pirate firm could have produced an LP out of these sources in the mid eighties.

The music generally follows the standard pattern of R&B combos of the period. One cut, “Voo-it; voo-it”, featuring Blues Woman, was actually a decent hit, making #4 on the R&B chart; the first of many hit records on Art Rupe’s Juke Box label. (The song was covered by Helen Humes, without success.) Half the LP is instrumentals, though two of them feature vocal choruses by the band.

This is not, by any standard, extraordinary music. It’s prime virtue is its very ordinariness. But it’s good music. One of the things that makes this band particularly interesting is the care given to the arrangements. It’s not just head (or song) solos, head. The band have often very interesting riffs behind the solos. The singers are all good and the musicians all play well. Buddy must have been able to keep this band together by paying decently, on time, and regularly.

I need it bad (groove juice) - a nice, short solo from Frosty, a longer one from Buddy, and another short one from Beal. Nice band vocal chorus (“Bring me some groove juice, back from the Blue Goose”).

Banks’ boogie – an instrumental feature for Beal, Banks and Pyles with a nice little bass solo. These two were recorded for Sterling.

Voo-it! Voo-it! – the original hit version featuring Blues Woman. The song was written by Frosty Pyles. I prefer this version to Helen Humes’.

Cryin’ blues – the B side. A slow blues done as well as any from the era. Marion was a real singer!

Fluffy’s debut – high powered jump song with enthusiastic solos.

Banks’ boogie – a new version, featuring Earl Knight on piano. Knight is all over the piano on this. But Banks, Pyles and Huff all get a solo, though Knight steals the show.

Hi-jinks blues – Another Fluffy Hunter vocal. Good arranged intro before she comes in. She is a lot more impressive on slow blues than on up tempo numbers. No solos.

Name it and claim it – watch that gravy fly; watch that gravy fly! I live that line, sung by the band, dearly. This is a bit, but not too, boppish. Knight’s block chording is a standout. These last four cuts were done for Excelsior/United Artists – a company owned by the Rene brothers.

Goin’ for the okey-doke – another slow blues featuring Blues Woman.

Roses of Picardy – this is the B side of the previous cut and is credited to Banks, but it’s believed that the backing was by Karl George’s band. It certainly ain’t anything like Banks’ band. I’m glad that, despite this fact, this track was included, because it’s wonderful. Marion sings and swings beautifully, and there’s a nice clarinet solo. These two were recorded for Melodisc.

East side boogie – a feature for the whole band in which even the drummer gets given some.

686 blues – Frosty plays a great chorus here, as does Buddy.

These two nice instrumentals (each of which features a wildly enthusiastic scream) were recorded for Modern.

Maybe some rainy day – this was covered (not as well) by Pee Wee Crayton. Bixie sings this to the limit. And the feeling is emphasised by Wiley’s little fill half way through.

Be fair with me – another feature for Bixie. Someone covered this one as well; I know the song but can’t place it. Buddy’s solo immediately strikes one as developed from Hawkins.

Happy home blues – a nice jump blues. Baby Davis sings her heart out and Buddy comes nearer to honking than he ever did.

The night is fading too soon – a strange number this. Lovely Latin arrangement. Some of the most naff words I’ve ever come across –

“The night is fading too soon, Oh dear, look at the moon.”

But the music is incredible; FAR beyond the limits of West Coast R&B bands. Lovely solos by Knight and Wiley. Banks just stays in the arrangement. These last two were recorded for Specialty.

I reckon the customers at Banks’ gigs must have been well satisfied with their evening’s entertainment.

Watch out for Blue Moon, because it looks like they haven't actually deleted the CD of this band.

MG

[Niko]

Earl Knight has his own allmusic.com biography by Eugene Chadbourne, he is the same person as pianist Joe Knight...:

Biography by Eugene Chadbourne

Just as a knight serves his king, Joe Knight provided the hip Chicago King label with a series of dynamite rhythm tracks, holding down the piano stool in a rhythm section that also featured Carl Wilson on bass and drummer Bobby Donaldson. While it is true that a king would employ more than one knight, the concept that a pianist identified as Earl Knight — playing on similar Chicago-based sessions as well as later hard bop sides — is a different person is faulty. This is also Joe Knight, sometimes credited with the more formal Joseph.

The Brooklyn-born keyboardist was the type of player whose function is his style: he helped lay down no-nonsense accompaniment that suited both heavy R&B talent such as singer Wynonie Harris and old-school swing instrumentalists. One player in the latter category was trumpeter Hot Lips Page, credited by some on the Chicago jazz scene with assembling the particularly nifty rhythm grouping of Knight, Wilson, and Donaldson. Page liked fairly simple chordal accompaniment and Knight provided same; indeed, many florid modern pianists could not play as sparingly as Knight unless they had several of their digits amputated.

The pianist went to work with eclectic bandleader Earl Bostic in 1951 following a four-year stint with Page that had begun in 1947, tucking behind a horn section that included the young John Coltrane. Knight shows up in the esteemed Blue Note catalog on some fine recordings organized by Bennie Green, a highly original trombonist.Knight also gigged in a similar style of playing with guitarist Kenny Burrell around New York City in the '50s and '60s. Credits under Earl Knight include an excellent session from 1954 captained by tenor saxophonist Lucky Thompson.

Edited January 27, 2008 by Niko

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Earl Knight has his own allmusic.com biography by Eugene Chadbourne, he is the same person as pianist Joe Knight...:

Biography by Eugene Chadbourne

Just as a knight serves his king, Joe Knight provided the hip Chicago King label with a series of dynamite rhythm tracks, holding down the piano stool in a rhythm section that also featured Carl Wilson on bass and drummer Bobby Donaldson. While it is true that a king would employ more than one knight, the concept that a pianist identified as Earl Knight — playing on similar Chicago-based sessions as well as later hard bop sides — is a different person is faulty. This is also Joe Knight, sometimes credited with the more formal Joseph.

The Brooklyn-born keyboardist was the type of player whose function is his style: he helped lay down no-nonsense accompaniment that suited both heavy R&B talent such as singer Wynonie Harris and old-school swing instrumentalists. One player in the latter category was trumpeter Hot Lips Page, credited by some on the Chicago jazz scene with assembling the particularly nifty rhythm grouping of Knight, Wilson, and Donaldson. Page liked fairly simple chordal accompaniment and Knight provided same; indeed, many florid modern pianists could not play as sparingly as Knight unless they had several of their digits amputated.

The pianist went to work with eclectic bandleader Earl Bostic in 1951 following a four-year stint with Page that had begun in 1947, tucking behind a horn section that included the young John Coltrane. Knight shows up in the esteemed Blue Note catalog on some fine recordings organized by Bennie Green, a highly original trombonist.Knight also gigged in a similar style of playing with guitarist Kenny Burrell around New York City in the '50s and '60s. Credits under Earl Knight include an excellent session from 1954 captained by tenor saxophonist Lucky Thompson.

This can't be the same guy Niko, if he did a four year stint with Hot Lips Page at the same time as Earl (not Joe) Knight was working with Buddy Banks.

MG

[Niko]

This can't be the same guy Niko, if he did a four year stint with Hot Lips Page at the same time as Earl (not Joe) Knight was working with Buddy Banks.

MG

well, that does sound plausible... sorry for almost misleading you...!

[Big Beat Steve]

Great band, great record, MG!

Well chosen and well written, your endorsement of a band that exemplified the grassroots R&B of the times !

BTW, the label can't have been that "pirate-ish". Line note author Dave Penny ain't no nobody. So Official apparently operated in that grey area of a "couldn't-care-less" reissue policy of the majors where these doings were tolerated, otherwise the label would not have been marketed THAT openly everywhere. But that's beside the point by now anyway, really.

[JSngry]

Ernie Shepard did some really solid work w/Ellington.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Ernie Shepard did some really solid work w/Ellington.

I'm sure that's not where I know the name from. I don't have any albums of the Ellington band with him.

MG

[JSngry]

Ernie Shepard did some really solid work w/Ellington.

I'm sure that's not where I know the name from. I don't have any albums of the Ellington band with him.

MG

Ok, pick one:

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&a...0pfixqegld0e~T4

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Ernie Shepard did some really solid work w/Ellington.

I'm sure that's not where I know the name from. I don't have any albums of the Ellington band with him.

MG

Ok, pick one:

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&a...0pfixqegld0e~T4

Oh, Jug's "My foolish heart"; the Eddie Chamblee "Back Street" session. Well, I should try to remember more things better, shouldn't I?

Thanks Jim. I had no idea you could do that on AMG for a bass player.

MG

[JSngry]

You can do that on AMG for anybody. Just click on the Credits tab.

[Niko]

well, this doesn't prove anything, but just for the record, according to this thing, singer Marion Abernathy recorded with Banks and Earl Knight in LA in 1946 and with Hot Lips Page and Joe Knight in Cincinatti in December 1947...

http://www.eyeballproductions.com/media/BL...o%20samples.pdf

some more info on Joe Knight here:

http://hubcap.clemson.edu/~campber/archia.html

Edited January 28, 2008 by Niko