Customer Reviews

Happy Days

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This CD brings together two excellent albums Lucky recorded in 1963 and 1965, one for Moodsville and the other for Prestige. Lucky's tone, especially on tenor sax, is delicate and supremely lyrical; he loves the lower register and caresses the listener with its warmth. The tempos on the Moodsville album are brisker than usual for that label, and the results are very impressive. LONG AGO AND FAR AWAY and WHY DO I LOVE YOU practically dance off the disc. WHO is taken way up-tempo but never loses its lyricism. Lucky approaches the soprano sax with an equal amount of lyricism; LOOK FOR THE SILVER LINING is particularly good. Hank Jones is on piano and is his usually fantastic self; his solo on WHY WAS I BORN is terrific.

On the Prestige sides, the tempos are just as varied, but the timings of each tune are longer. There are some real surprises here, one being the unusually fast tempo on CRY ME A RIVER. Another is the use of harp on a few tracks that creates an exotic atmosphere. AS TIME GOES BY is taken medium-up and shows off drummer Walter Perkins's brushwork nicely. PEOPLE also is taken quicker than usual and swings like nowhere before. Pianist Tommy Flanagan is in top form throughout these proceedings. Lucky Thompson was a major jazz player and these two albums are among his best from the 60s. Definitely grab this CD if you can.

I was a DJ, and producer/writer/voice of various jazz shows on the American Fornes Network in Germany 52-53 years ago when I was walking down a the main street in Stuttgart. Walking toward me was the (then) Light Heavyweight champ, Archie Moore and another man.
I stuck out my hand with a big smile, and Archie went to shake it -- but, I said, "no, not you, champ, I've always loved Lucky Thompson's tenor." Therein, shook Archie Moore's "trainer's" hand (he'd just been released from some drug place, as I recall, and Archie was helping assist him back into the Real World) and, a minute later, Archie Moore's himself. Spoke for a few minutes and invited them on the air with me, but scheduling wouldn't allow it.....
Incidentally, ran into the champ nearly 20 years later at a Boys' Club in California, and, astoundingly, he still remembered my name!!
There, my friend, went two pretty terrific gentlemen!