Customer Reviews

Drum Suite

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
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This is a fabulous album of consummate big band artistry that just boils over with sheer exuberance. The arrangements, musicianship, and the sense that the musicians had a ball doing this album make it a little known but vitally important example of the genre.
NOTE: I had to wait about 3 months for my copy to arrive. It's an import and can be hard to get. But it was well worth hanging in there, and I'm delighted with it. Exceeds all expectations, and gets played constantly. Even my 24 year old daughter finds it a great listen.

Taken as a whole, this just might be Manny Albam's best recording; it is one of my favorite of his anyway. "Bristling" is absolutely terrific, a real up-tempo cooker with excellent brush work by drummers Osie Johnson and Ted Sommer. Also very good is "Dancers on Drums." But everything here clicks and it's a lot of fun to listen to. Highly recommended.

I wore out 2 copies of the LP release as a teenager in the late 1950's. I was thrilled to find the CD re-issue that contained both of these fun "events". It seems we have to thank Europe again and again for re-issuing what the American companies continue to ignore-our musical heritage of swing, big band and jazz!

Kenton, Ellington and now Manny Albam/Ernie Wilkins combined bands. It just does not get any better than this.