Jimmy Smith
At The Baby Grand Vol 1 and 2
Blue Note RVG

Lou Donaldson
Here Tis
Blue Note RVG

Ike Quebec
Blue and Sentimental
Blue Note RVG

Freddie Redd
Shades Of Redd
Blue Note RVG

Wayne Shorter
Sooth Sayer
Blue Note RVG
By George W. Harris

The latest crop of Blue Note RVG Remastered classics all confirm my
deep seated beliefs about jazz; 1) It was impossible to put out a
recording from 1959-61 that wasn't absolutely first class 2) anything
that Freddie Hubbard and McCoy Tyner touched in the 60s was gold 2) Jimmy Smith put a groove in music that was as shocking as Stravinsky's debut of "Rite of
Spring" and I hope we never recover from it.

Essentially unavailable in any form in the US until now, Jimmy Smith's
2 volumed "Live At The Baby Grand Club" from 1956 showcases what the fuss was all
about when the maestro of the B3 burst onto the scene. Recording with
his working trio at a tiny Maryland club in front of a very receptive
and hip audience, Smith displays shockingly incredible command of the
newly rediscovered keyboard, literally blasting through long jammed
tunes like "Sweet Georgia Brown" and the gospel drenched "Get Happy".
While fuzz-toned guitarist Thornel Schwartz (great name!) has a few
cameo solos on the slower pieces like "Where Or When", he and drummer
Donald Baily mainly serve as rhythm mates to lay a foundation while
Smith blows the club up to, well, Smithereens! The buildup of
intensity, during chorus after chorus of a tune like Horace Silver's
"The Preacher" reaches a climax that is almost frenzied, finally
breaking into a cataclysm of shattered notes. The walls must have been
shaking at this joint!

Parker-inspired alto saxist Lou Donaldson is still alive and well still playing the kind of music he made on this juicy and loose 1961 date. Baby Face Wilette handles the B3 on this session, and while he doesn’t have the dynamic wall crushing drive of Jimmy Smith (who does?), he more than makes up for it with soulful light touch that is the perfect complement to Donaldson’s airy alto and Grant Green’s bluesy guitar. Basic swinging blues rules the day here, with just enough bebop to keep the toes tapping. Nothing pretentious, just rib stickin’ home cooking. No one played like Green-airy and lonesome, and he mixes brilliantly with the leader.

He didn’t release many discs before his untimely death in 1963, but for my money, tenorist Ike Quebec had the best toned horn in jazz. Deep, bluesy, thick as a San Francisco fog, he was most comfortable with soulful late night R&B tinged jazz. This 1961 classic, which also includes guitarist Grant Green along with a pair of rhythm sections gives drop dead gorgeous readings of overlooked chestnuts like “Count Every Star” and “Don’t Take Your Love From Me” as well as a version of “Blue and Sentimental” that writes the book on ballads. Of all the tenor players, this is the guy I keep going back to.

Overlooked pianist/composer Freddie Redd's 1960 "Shades Of Redd" was a
worthy follow-up to his groundbreaking stage soundtrack "Music from The
Connection". Jackie McLean and Tina Brooks comprise a top notch front
line that goes through Redd's clever bluesy bop. There is a lot of
original music from this underappreciated artist (who's still around in
Southern California) that should serve as material for the current crop
of artists. Brooks was on only a few discs as well, so anything by this
indigo-tinged tenor is worth searching for.

Almost all you need to know about this Shorter-led session that was kept in the vaults for almost 20 years is that it was recorded just a week before Herbie Hancock’s classic “Maiden Voyage” disc, with a similar cast. With Tyner replacing Hancock, and adding altoist James Spaulding for added pizzaz, Shorter put together this 65 session that features incredibly fresh and forward thinking music, in the similar vein as
Voyage”. The wild and wooley title piece featuring some blistering soloing by all of the horn players, and a cleverly arranged treatment of Jean Sibelius’ “Valse Triste” give ample evidence that this group of kindred spirits were on a musical level far above anyone else at the time. Tony Williams (the only musician no longer with us) drives this band like a stagecoach rider through Monument Valley-fast and furious. Store this one away in your treasure chest!