Rooster_Ties Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 (edited) Was thinking recently how so many of my favorite 60's hard-bop dates all seem to be of bands with three-horn or four-horn front-lines. In such cases, the arranging possibilities seem almost to be exponentially greater than with two horns. What are your favorites?? -- particularly in terms of the quality of the arrangements found therein. Who were/are some of the best arrangers of small groups with multi-horn front-lines?? Edited August 12, 2008 by Rooster_Ties Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 On my second high school prom my date and I were escorted by a Texas longhorn and a unicorn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster_Ties Posted August 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Start your own thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Pretty hard to beat the early Morton Victors with Mitchell, Dodds and Ory or the Wanderers/Bootblacks sessions with Mitchell, Ory, Dodds and Joe Clark. Morton should be credited for arranging his stuff and Lil Armstrong the the Wanderers/Bootblacks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Start your own thread. But I answered your question. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster_Ties Posted August 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Start your own thread. But I answered your question. Just a reference to your comment in the thread about multiple album covers from the same photo-sessions (when I suggested opening the thread up to out-takes from any photo-session that was used to make an album cover). How's about you and I both clean up this thread (deleting all our extranious non-topic comments), and pretend this never happened. Cheers!! -- Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Late Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Definitely check out the Morton sides mentioned above. For your tastes, you'd probably like the CD "The Art of Blakey" by the (one-time) collective called Message. The album seems like another lame tribute project, but this one is actually quite fine, particularly because it doesn't dwell on Blakey staples, and instead breathes "Messenger" life into original compositions. Four-horn line-up: Robin Eubanks (tb), Brian Lynch (t), Donald Harrison (as), Ralph Moore (ts). Geoff Keezer (p), Peter Washington (b), and Carl Allen (d) round out the septet. Lynch's and Keezer's arranging skills, even at this early point for both of them, are pretty solid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidewinder Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 On my second high school prom my date and I were escorted by a Texas longhorn and a unicorn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidewinder Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Some very good arranging work from Graham Collier for 4 horns on his 1960s Deram albums which I particularly like - 'Deep Dark Blue Centre', 'Mosaics' and 'Songs For My Father'. Post bop with almost a 'film noir' mood influence. Gotta mention the Don Grolnick Blue Notes for quality of arranging for the bigger group too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kalo Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 One that springs immediately to mind: Charlie Rouse - Soul Mates (Uptown Records) Recorded 1988, released 1993, and one of the finest jazz recordings of either decade. Rouse on tenor is joined by Sahib Shihab on baritone and Claudio Roditi on trumpet. Walter Davis, Jr. mans the piano, with Santi Debriano on bass and Victor Lewis on drums. Arrangements by Don Sickler. Superb! Nessa should be able to hook you up with this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kalo Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Benny Golson, anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niko Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 talking about roditi, one very fine album with a three or four horn frontline on a number of songs is vitor assis brasil's 1969 album trajeto which is currently available very cheaply, assis brasil is a very interesting alto player and roditi has some nice solos, too (his first and only session for a number of years to come (?)) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 off the top of my mind - and not counting your usual hardbop stuff where by chance there were three horns instead of just two (and mostly no real arrangements, unless you had guys like Gryce or Golson in the mix): Tadd Dameron! His Blue Note sessions are great and feature mid-sized groups with Fats Navarro/Ernie Henry/Charlie Rouse and Navarro/Allen Eager/Wardell Gray, respectively. His later "Big Ten" have more horns, I think (among them were Miles, Kai Winding, Dexter Gordon and others). Too bad most of Dameron's recorded output is crappy boots (courtesy of Boris Rose). I'd love to have a neat 3CD package (or would it fit on two?) with all the Royal Roost broadcasts culled together and cleaned up as well as possible. There you get more frontlines with Navarro/Rudy Williams/Eager and then later Winding/Williams/Eager. All mighty fine music! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexander Hawkins Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 David Murray's 'Ming' is a favourite. Beautiful arrangement in particular of the title track. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Definitely check out the Morton sides mentioned above. For your tastes, you'd probably like the CD "The Art of Blakey" by the (one-time) collective called Message. The album seems like another lame tribute project, but this one is actually quite fine, particularly because it doesn't dwell on Blakey staples, and instead breathes "Messenger" life into original compositions. Four-horn line-up: Robin Eubanks (tb), Brian Lynch (t), Donald Harrison (as), Ralph Moore (ts). Geoff Keezer (p), Peter Washington (b), and Carl Allen (d) round out the septet. Lynch's and Keezer's arranging skills, even at this early point for both of them, are pretty solid. And it just happens to be available in my Stupendous Sale Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catesta Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Always liked the cool vibe going on.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B. Clugston Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Hubbard's Ready for Freddie and Blue Spirits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B. Goren. Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 The only disk that comes to my mind with 4 horns (4 tenors, to be more accurate) is Tenor Conclave. John Coltrane, Zoot Sims, Al Cohn & Hank Mobley blow their tenors and Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Art Taylor complete the rhythm section. One of Coltrane's best early recordings, IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Duke Pearson Wahoo The Right Touch Sweet Honey Bee etc. etc. Plus his work on a myriad of Blue Note dates (both credited and un-credited) ranging from Lee Morgan's Charisma to Mobley's Slice Of The Top Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Don't overlook the writing on this one: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul secor Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Lots of possibilities, but: AEC - Les Stances a Sophie; Reese and the Smooth Ones - could have chosen others, but Sophie is a favorite and Reese was the first Art Ensemble I heard. Pee Wee Russell: Portrait of Pee Wee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Kart Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 When you take in the whole history of the music, the possibilities are mind-boggling (the Morton et al. dates that Chuck mentioned from the '20s, pretty much the entire swath of Ellington small group sides from the '30s), but it might be a good idea to divide things where possible into multi-horn dates where the focus is still more or less on the solos (e.g. "Hub Cap," among the Blue Notes, though Melba Liston's chart on that Randy Weston piece is fine; the Hampton RCA multi-horn things, the Condon Commodores and late '30s Bud Freeman recordings, all those H.R.S. sessions, etc., the Goodman Sextet, the Mulligan Sextet, etc.) and multi-horn dates where the focus is more or less on the writing and/or the overall ensemble statement (the Mortons again, Birth of the Cool, oodles of Mingus, Rod Levitt's things, the list could go on and on -- as could the other list). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewHill Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 Some favorites to come to mind: Wayne Shorter: The All Seeing Eye Albert Ayler: New York Ear and Eye Control GM III: Evolution Jack Wilson: Easterly Winds Steve Lacy: Moon John Coltrane: Africa Brass/Ascension ...and the Messengers augmented with Curtis Fuller Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Ptah Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 The Horace Henderson session which produced "Minnie the Moocher's Wedding Day". The horns included Henry "Red" Allen and Coleman Hawkins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Friedman Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 There are so many!!!!!!! Here are some that come quickly to mind. Lennie Niehaus Sextet - Contemporary Horace Silver - The Jody Grind Blue Note Jack Montrose Sextet - Pacific Jazz Chet Baker & Art Pepper - Playboys - Pacific Jazz Dexter Gordon & Slide Hampton - A Day In Copenhagen - MPS Benny Carter - Wonderland - Pablo Clifford Brown - Jazz Immortal - Pacific Jazz Cannonball Adderley Sextet - Cannonball In Europe - Capitol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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