Andy Kirk & His 12 Clouds of Joy

Mary Lou Williams, Andy Kirk & The Twelve Clouds Of Joy | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 20, 1994)
• Original Release Date: May 18, 1993
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Asv Living Era
• ASIN: B000001HHB
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #371,133 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Mess-A-Stomp

2. Corky Stomp

3. Froggy Bottom

4. Loose Ankles

5. Gettin' Off A Mess

6. Walkin' And Swingin'

7. Moten Swing

8. Lotta Sax Appeal

9. Bearcat Shuffle

10. Steppin' Pretty

11. Puddin' Head Serenade

12. Wednesday Night Hop

13. In The Groove

14. A Mellow Bit Of Rhythm

15. Twinklin'

16. Little Joe Rom Chicago

17. Toadie Toddle

18. Jump Jack Jump

19. Dunkin' A Doughnut

20. Mary's Idea

See all 25 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential listening, July 20, 2003

By 

Candace Scott (Lake Arrowhead, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Andy Kirk & His 12 Clouds of Joy (Audio CD)

Andy Kirk's band was an incredible assortment of talent, from the incomparable Mary Lou Williams down to Andy himself. It's sad that he's a little bit overlooked today, because his band had a unique sound, style and swing element. He's not as elegant as Ellington or as polished as Basie, but he has a driving, ragged edge to his music which is addictive. Listen to the brass section on Gettin' off a Mess and the sax solos on Walkin' and Swingin'. Now that is pure music!

My favorite track on this collection, and one of the greatest swing records of all-time, is Little Joe from Chicago. I love how the sidemen sing the chorus, "Little Joe from Chicago, never spent a day in school, little Joe from Chicago, never learned a grammar rule." Now this is hot stuff, classic material, a sound that will never be heard again. If you've never really listened to Kirk and the 12 Clouds of Joy, start right here. I bet you'll be hooked and play this disc over and over. He had a quality band, a unique style and the sound quality on this CD is excellent.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Who is Dick Wilson?, April 30, 2009

By 

C. C. Gayton "tewbagauy" (New York City) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Andy Kirk & His 12 Clouds of Joy (Audio CD)

Very underrated band of that era. Great tunes and writing from Mary Lou Williams, and Kirk himself.
I bought this CD to hear more of the great Dick Wilson, and he's very impressive on these sides. Soon as you feel you've heard what he's playing before, he pulls off some wonderfully strange rhythmic/harmonic idea that is shocking to hear. No doubt that if he had lived, he would have been a major innovator on the instrument.
This CD is worth buying just for the Dick Wilson cuts, but there are many more great performances by all the musicians on this disc.