Gerry Mulligan: The Emarcy Sextet Recordings

[JSngry]

I gets a little wonky, some of it was studio/band performances with charts, some of it Konitz just sitting in at the Haig and either having the numbers to himself or else Bock editing out all but.

I guess it would come down to personal preference...and cost. I gpot that PJ 4CD set for a little under $50.00, so good value for me. Maybe not everybody wants the Koniz & Ross dates (but the Ross is really above-average, imo), so...we have options!

But don't miss those Fantasy sessions! I went fo years thinking they were lesser because of this stupid album cover:

like, ok, what kind of back lot knock off crap is THIS?

opps! My bad!

[BillF]

4 hours ago, JSngry said:

Was consistently amazed, not for the solos, but for the writing for the group. Just four instruments, only two horns, and of course no piano. So, not a lot to work with to get a variety of lines and textures...but there is, every person is playing into the group sounds, not out or above it. 

I recall the British big band leader and altoist John Dankworth saying exactly the same thing about the Mulligan/Baker quartet.

The only thing I'd add is that voices are also used, perhaps on only one occasion.

3 hours ago, Fer Urbina said:

(If memory serves, Max Harrison was very fond of that first quartet too). As for the instrumental limitations, there are a few tracks where either the drummer or the bass player sing a wordless line.

 

 

Ah yes, you've also picked up on British admiration for the quartet - and on the vocal element, too.

[Fer Urbina]

Going back to the Sextet, one thing that sets it apart from the quartets and the CJB is the leaning towards Basie-ish swing. With a natural swinger like Sims in a very lesterian mood and a huge Basie devotee like Brookmeyer on board, you get things like "Igloo", "Elevation" or "Mud Bug" (YouTube), that don't really happen with the other bands.

F

[BillF]

5 minutes ago, Fer Urbina said:

Going back to the Sextet, one thing that sets it apart from the quartets and the CJB is the leaning towards Basie-ish swing. With a natural swinger like Sims in a very lesterian mood and a huge Basie devotee like Brookmeyer on board, you get things like "Igloo", "Elevation" or "Mud Bug" (YouTube), that don't really happen with the other bands.

F

This is very true. I recall that when I and my teenage friends first heard the sextet in the late 50s we thought it surprisingly mainstream (no pun on the tune title) as we had previously only heard the Jeru/Baker quartet the coolness of which we thought somewhat weird.

 

[Bluesnik]

On 6/10/2021 at 6:10 PM, JSngry said:

but the Ross is really above-average, imo

I have it on a separate release, but I agree, it is top notch.

[romualdo]

This double CD (Lonehill Jazz) covers most of the Emarcy/Mosaic 5LP set ie 28 of 34 tracks, only missing 6 alternate takes

[Fer Urbina]

8 hours ago, romualdo said:

This double CD (Lonehill Jazz) covers most of the Emarcy/Mosaic 5LP set ie 28 of 34 tracks, only missing 6 alternate takes

The LoneHill has exactly the same studio tracks as this one by Fresh Sound: https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/gerry-mulligan-albums/4467-the-san-diego-concert-1954-complete-studio-sessions-1955-1956-3-cd-box-set.html

In order to have all the studio recordings on CD, you need either of those, plus the Japanese Mainstream of Jazz, Vols. 2 (32JD-104) and 3 (32JD-105).

Vol. 2 has the alt tk for "Blues" (12061-2), and Vol. 3 has the other five tracks.

NB: all discographies carry mistakes about these sessions. The correct one is the Mosaic (available at Archive.org).

F

[miles65]

8 hours ago, Fer Urbina said:

The LoneHill has exactly the same studio tracks as this one by Fresh Sound: https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/gerry-mulligan-albums/4467-the-san-diego-concert-1954-complete-studio-sessions-1955-1956-3-cd-box-set.html

In order to have all the studio recordings on CD, you need either of those, plus the Japanese Mainstream of Jazz, Vols. 2 (32JD-104) and 3 (32JD-105).

Vol. 2 has the alt tk for "Blues" (12061-2), and Vol. 3 has the other five tracks.

NB: all discographies carry mistakes about these sessions. The correct one is the Mosaic (available at Archive.org).

F

Thanks for pointing this out. But those japanese CD's are difficult to track down and the prices. The days of the Select were over but I wished Mosaic did this as a Select as well . I would have dumped my Lone Hill set with pleasure for a Select.