Any Artie Shaw fans?

[Christiern]

I wonder if it still has his DNA on it....

In case you wander what is printed on that white strip, it reads: Irregular

[Swinging Swede]

The 3-CD set you link to has the complete 1944-45 Victor sessions (including alternate takes) and the first Musicraft session which was the last by that particular band. As a bonus the third disc ends with two tracks with Basie from a 1944 Jubilee show and two tracks from a 1945 Bing Crosby show. Since it is on Hep I'm sure the sound is excellent and the notes too. You can also buy it directly from Hep, although I'm not sure how much cheaper that will be. But at least then all the money goes to the label.

Shaw also recorded for Musicraft in 1946 with studio orchestras. The Musicraft recordings were released a long time ago on two CDs. All the master takes are of course on Classics, which also has reissued his 1949-53 big band (and other) recordings.

As for the 1954 small group recordings with Tal Farlow and Hank Jones there were a couple of Music Master sets on CD that had most if not quite all of those recordings. They are OOP now. The latest Classics volume has reeached 1954, but they have not completed their coverage of the 1954 recordings yet.

[king ubu]

Thanks, Mr. Swede! So disc 1 is almost completely covered by the cheapo box I have, but the rest would be new, and of course a much nicer package... will have to think about it!

[mmilovan]

People,

if you want really rare one, look at this, please:

It features some unknown live recording from 1936.

Virtuoso, Bird-alike clarinet playing!

[BruceH]

People,

if you want really rare one, look at this, please:

It features some unknown live recording from 1936.

Virtuoso, Bird-alike clarinet playing!

Thanks for that, mmilovan. Very nice!

[bichos]

People,

if you want really rare one, look at this, please:

It features some unknown live recording from 1936.

Virtuoso, Bird-alike clarinet playing!

it´s not so unknown. years ago it was issued on an "aircheck" lp-sampler. but rare, that´s for sure!

keep boppin´

marcel

[MartyJazz]

The 3-CD set you link to has the complete 1944-45 Victor sessions (including alternate takes) and the first Musicraft session which was the last by that particular band. As a bonus the third disc ends with two tracks with Basie from a 1944 Jubilee show and two tracks from a 1945 Bing Crosby show. Since it is on Hep I'm sure the sound is excellent and the notes too. You can also buy it directly from Hep, although I'm not sure how much cheaper that will be. But at least then all the money goes to the label.

Shaw also recorded for Musicraft in 1946 with studio orchestras. The Musicraft recordings were released a long time ago on two CDs. All the master takes are of course on Classics, which also has reissued his 1949-53 big band (and other) recordings.

As for the 1954 small group recordings with Tal Farlow and Hank Jones there were a couple of Music Master sets on CD that had most if not quite all of those recordings. They are OOP now. The latest Classics volume has reeached 1954, but they have not completed their coverage of the 1954 recordings yet.

I bought that 3 CD Hep set a few years ago at around $35 or so and it's just wonderful, partially because I think the '44-45 aggregation was his best big band ever. Sure, it had nowhere near the hits of the '38-39 "swing" band or the various '40-41 string orchestras, but it had wonderful "modern" arrangements, e.g., Buster Harding, Ray Conniff, Sauter & Finegan, and the personnel, e.g., Roy Eldridge, Dodo Marmarosa, Barney Kessel, Herbie Steward et al, was superlative. The Gramercy 5 output from that band is also quite excellent. I just really dig the overall sound of that band and I attribute its lack of commercial success to the fact that its more "advanced" approach, as a result of the newer musical influences prevailing at that time, was something the record buying public at the end of the war, was not ready for. That, coupled with the rising popularity of pop singers to the detriment of big bands in general. A shame really because when Shaw broke up that aggregation after his initial Musicraft date, in favor of a more commercial band with strings, Mel Torme & the Meltones, Kitty Kallen, etc., the quality of the output thereafter decidedly declined IMO. In any event, Shaw was tremendous, no clarinetist his equal before or since.

[Fer Urbina]

And is there any way to get the small group session with Tal Farlow and Hank Jones?

There's the Living Era 2-CD set "Artie Shaw and His Gramercy Five - Summit Ridge Drive" (CD AJS 2007). As you probably know the Sanctuary Group has been recently purchased by Universal and it's likely that their reissues will become scarcer. According to the booklet, this set has the complete 1940 sessions, the complete 1945 sessions, plus the 1953/54 sessions with Joe Roland, either Farlow or Joe Puma on guitar, and Hank Jones on piano.

More info here and here.

F

[Larry Kart]

Shaw's short-lived 1949 band was superb. Danny Bank said that it was the best sax section he ever was part of -- Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, Herbie Steward and Frank Socolow altos; Don Fagerquist, tpt.; Jimmy Raney, guitar; charts by Tadd Dameron, George Russell, Johnny Mandel, et. al.

[MartyJazz]

Shaw's short-lived 1949 band was superb. Danny Bank said that it was the best sax section he ever was part of -- Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, Herbie Steward and Frank Socolow altos; Don Fagerquist, tpt.; Jimmy Raney, guitar; charts by Tadd Dameron, George Russell, Johnny Mandel, et. al.

I agree and I enjoy that band's output very much as well. The reason I give the nod to the '44-45 aggregation is that its book of arrangements was completely original. The '49 band often recorded remakes of tunes, similarly arranged, that Shaw had done with previous bands. But you're correct about the fact that it also did record charts by such modernists as Dameron (e.g., "So Easy") et al. I do enjoy that band as well, too bad that Artie again broke up such a wonderful outfit for commercial reasons. Some of the output recorded thereafter by his lesser big bands is truly regrettable, e.g., "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles". Gunther Schuller in his work, "The Swing Era", has some cogent observations about Shaw's annoying habit of condemning the public taste yet occasionally capitulating to that same segment of the music listening audience.

[alocispepraluger102]

i am never without an artie vinyl very close at hand.

[king ubu]

And is there any way to get the small group session with Tal Farlow and Hank Jones?

There's the Living Era 2-CD set "Artie Shaw and His Gramercy Five - Summit Ridge Drive" (CD AJS 2007). As you probably know the Sanctuary Group has been recently purchased by Universal and it's likely that their reissues will become scarcer. According to the booklet, this set has the complete 1940 sessions, the complete 1945 sessions, plus the 1953/54 sessions with Joe Roland, either Farlow or Joe Puma on guitar, and Hank Jones on piano.

More info here and here.

F

Sorry for my late reply. In the meantime I bought Hindsight's 3CD longbox with 1938/39 live recordings (some of which I've heard before). Very good from what bits I've played so far!

Now I also finally want to get the 3CD Hep set, and this one above looks fine. But I've been under the assumption that the 1954 sessions alone were more than what would fit onto 2CDs? And this set linked above contains earlier sides as well... There's a 2CD Music Masters release of the 1954 which I've seen, and which I somehow thought contained only parts (or rather: half) of those 1954 sessions. Is that incorrect and this Living Era 2CD set is in fact complete?

[king ubu]

Shaw's short-lived 1949 band was superb. Danny Bank said that it was the best sax section he ever was part of -- Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, Herbie Steward and Frank Socolow altos; Don Fagerquist, tpt.; Jimmy Raney, guitar; charts by Tadd Dameron, George Russell, Johnny Mandel, et. al.

Would that band be the one documented here, and would this disc be a good (or even: complete) sampling of said band?

The Artistry Of Artie Shaw And His Bop Band 1949

Artie Shaw

Featuring: Artie Shaw (leader, cl) with Don Paladino, Don Fagerquist, Dale Pierce and Vic Ford (tp), Sonny Russo, Fred Zito, Ange Callea and Porky Cohen (tb), Herb Steward and Frank Socolow (as), Al Cohn and Zoot Sims (ts), Danny Bank (bars), Gil Barrios (p), Jimmy

REFERENCE: FSRCD 397

BAR CODE: 8427328603973

PRICE: 9.90 €

In 1949, just before he was about to start yet another big band, Artie Shaw made the following statement: "We'll find an identity. Perhaps it would be fairer to say I'll find one. Sooner or later all bands that stick find an identity, and find it through their leader. All the sounds -the creative arrangements, the pop tunes and the originals - must be channelized through the leader."

And on September 14, 1949 Artie Shaw was back on the bandstand, opening at Symphony Hall, Boston. The band's book contained both old and new material, and it was the first time Shaw had gone on the road with a band for many years. The 1949 band features a mixture of numbers associated with the Shaw bands of the early 40's and some in a more modern vein from new writers/arrangers such as Tadd Dameron, Johnny Mandel, Gene Roland and George Russell, with the more exotic Latin sounds coming from the pen of John Bartee.

Tracklisting:

1. Smooth and Easy 3:22

2. Krazy Cat 3:20

3. Afro-Cubana 3:44

4. Stardust 3:40

5. Fred's Delight 4:07

6. I Get a Kick Out of You 3:26

7. Mucho de Nada 3:28

8. I Cover the Waterfront 3:15

9. 'S Wonderful 3:02

10. Similau 3:27

11. Aesop's Foibles 3:42

12. They Can't Take that Away from Me 2:54

13. So Easy 3:23

14. Carnival 3:07

15. Orinoco 2:40

16. Innuendo 4:31

Arrangements: Johnny Mandel (#6), Tadd Dameron, Gene Roland, John Bartee, Lennie Hayton (#4,8), George Russell, Ray Conniff (#9), George Siravo (#12), and Paul Jordan (#14).

Personnel: Artie Shaw (leader, cl) with Don Paladino, Don Fagerquist, Dale Pierce and Vic Ford (tp), Sonny Russo, Fred Zito, Ange Callea and Porky Cohen (tb), Herb Steward and Frank Socolow (as), Al Cohn and Zoot Sims (ts), Danny Bank (bars), Gil Barrios (p), Jimmy Raney (g), Dick Niveson (b), Irv Kluger (d)

Recorded on 1949.

Or would there be a more legit way to get this music? Or a more complete reissue?

[Stereojack]

There's a 2CD Music Masters release of the 1954 which I've seen, and which I somehow thought contained only parts (or rather: half) of those 1954 sessions. Is that incorrect and this Living Era 2CD set is in fact complete?

There are two double CD's on Musicmasters of the 1954 Gramercy Five sides:

The Last Recordings, Musicmasters 65071

More Last Recordings, Musicmasters 65101

And these are not complete, but they are close. Obviously, the ASV set (which I have not seen) is far from complete.

[king ubu]

There's a 2CD Music Masters release of the 1954 which I've seen, and which I somehow thought contained only parts (or rather: half) of those 1954 sessions. Is that incorrect and this Living Era 2CD set is in fact complete?

There are two double CD's on Musicmasters of the 1954 Gramercy Five sides:

The Last Recordings, Musicmasters 65071

More Last Recordings, Musicmasters 65101

And these are not complete, but they are close. Obviously, the ASV set (which I have not seen) is far from complete.

I see - I think that's what I had in mind... thanks! Will have to look for those MusicMasters sets some day.

[BruceH]

There's a 2CD Music Masters release of the 1954 which I've seen, and which I somehow thought contained only parts (or rather: half) of those 1954 sessions. Is that incorrect and this Living Era 2CD set is in fact complete?

There are two double CD's on Musicmasters of the 1954 Gramercy Five sides:

The Last Recordings, Musicmasters 65071

More Last Recordings, Musicmasters 65101

And these are not complete, but they are close.

Those are the ones I have, and they're great.

(I'm still waiting for "The Absolutely FINAL Last Recordings" to be followed by "The Utterly, Completely Last Recordings, We PROMISE This Time!"

Edited October 29, 2008 by BruceH

[FrancoisD]

There is a recent 5-CD set on Jasmine ("Six Star Treats", JASBOX 20-5) which claims to have the "Complete Commercially Released Recordings" of the Gramercy 5 (1940-1954). As a long standing Artie Shaw fan, I also have the Musicmasters sets, but I haven't had time to cross-check all these issues. The Jasmine box seems fairly complete, and certainly much easier to find than the Musicmasters issues dating back from the early 90's.

Edit: The sessions referred to above are the last on which he PLAYED. However, Shaw conducted a large orchestra with strings on November 21, 1955, in order to complete the album "Did Someone Say a Party?" on Decca, but these tracks do not have any clarinet solos. The FINAL session in which he had strictly a conducting role was "Artie Shaw Recreates His Great '38-'39 Band" on Capitol ST 2992 in 1963. Walt Levinsky (expertly) played the clarinet solos on these sessions.

Edited October 30, 2008 by FrancoisD

[shnaggletooth]

A bit off-topic. I was recently reading about Glenn Miller. Turns out Artie apparently wasn't a big fan of Miller's music:

"All I can say is that Glenn should have lived, and 'Chattanooga Choo Choo' should have died."

[JPC III]

Hi FrancoisD

Your misinformation about the release date of the Artie Shaw LP on Capitol is coming in very high on a Google search. Could you please take a moment to correct it?

Thanks!

jpc

[BruceH]

A bit off-topic. I was recently reading about Glenn Miller. Turns out Artie apparently wasn't a big fan of Miller's music:

"All I can say is that Glenn should have lived, and 'Chattanooga Choo Choo' should have died."

Good one, Artie.

[FrancoisD]

Hi FrancoisD

Your misinformation about the release date of the Artie Shaw LP on Capitol is coming in very high on a Google search. Could you please take a moment to correct it?

Thanks!

jpc

OK. The exact dates for these sessions are unknown, but Vladimir Simosko's authoritative "Artie Shaw, a Musical Biography and Discography" lists them as "c. 1968".

[mr jazz]

I was watching a documentary on Buddy Rich last night and really enjoyed the footage with Artie Shaw; what's available from this period?

[dale88]

I recently read the chapter on Artie Shaw's 501 Navy Band in Vladimir Simosko's "Artie Shaw, a Musical Biography and Discography". There is some wonderful history there. You look at the names of the band members and it is just a tragedy that we have no recordings of what must have been a wonderful band. People such as John Best, Conrad Gozzo, Max Kaminsky, Sam Donahue, and Dave Tough.

When Shaw came back from the Pacific he got a medical discharge. Sam Donahue took over the band. I have a V-Disc compilation that has one track of the Donahue Navy Band 501 recorded February 1944. That performance is so polished that I would guess that some of the Pacific crew were still on board.

[mmilovan]

In documentary about this artist there was short sound clip, with Artie Shaw's Navy Band, they played "Begin The Beguine". Audio quality is poor, it was broadcast recording.

But, while searching various issues, I found this CD:

http://www.hepjazz.com/metro.html#anchorartie

Metronome series:

CD70

ARTIE SHAW

(3 CD pack)

'1944-45'

Artie Shaw and his Orchestra, the total recorded output of this edition with arrangements by Ray Conniff, George Siravo, Jimmy Mundy and Eddie Sauter. Plus four broadcast rareities

Are these broadcasts with Artie Shaw's Navy or "regular" band?

[Stereojack]

In documentary about this artist there was short sound clip, with Artie Shaw's Navy Band, they played "Begin The Beguine". Audio quality is poor, it was broadcast recording.

But, while searching various issues, I found this CD:

http://www.hepjazz.com/metro.html#anchorartie

Metronome series:

CD70

ARTIE SHAW

(3 CD pack)

'1944-45'

Artie Shaw and his Orchestra, the total recorded output of this edition with arrangements by Ray Conniff, George Siravo, Jimmy Mundy and Eddie Sauter. Plus four broadcast rareities

Are these broadcasts with Artie Shaw's Navy or "regular" band?

Hep 3-CD set does not contains broadcasts. These are studio recordings, mostly for RCA Victor.