Customer Reviews

His Octet & Quintet

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Finally! Many years ago I owned the vinyl of this recording. (Heaven knows where it got to!) I have been searching for this for years, as it is to my way of thinking, the archtypical collection of west coast jazz. John Mandell's arrangements serve as a terrific vehicle for some of the best inspired solos ever recorded. Touff and Kamuka along with Harry "Sweets" Edison have never been better. A truly remarkable album. Sadly, out of print. Any west coast jazz buff needs to buy it before it truly disappears forever!

The trumpet soloist on this wonderful recording is Harry "Sweets" Edison, not Clark Terry. Also of interest is that the lead trumpet is played by the legendary Conrad Gozzo - 'nuff said . . .

Originally a trombonist with a number of bands in the 1940s, Touff switched to bass trumpet in the late '40s. The horn sounds very much like a valve trombone, pitched slightly higher. He recorded only two albums, this one (his first: 1955) and one for Argo in 1958. He spent much of his career in the Hollywood studios; he died in 2003.

For this recording he gathered some excellent west coast musicians, including Sweets Edison (tp) Richie Kamuca (ts) and Pete Jolly (p). Some of the recordings have a small-big band feel to them, augmented by a 3-brass line-up. GROOVER WAILIN' is one of these, and it swings beautifully. Taken at a solid medium tempo is the quintet track PREZ-ENCE, with Richie Kamuca indeed playing in a very Lestorian mode. Neal Hefti's HALF PAST JUMPING TIME is another highlight, with excellent solos by Jolly, Touff, and Kamuca. Touff plays the big trumpet with the lightest of touches, which is exactly Kamuca's approach on tenor; they compliment each other perfectly. A most enjoyable CD; worth checking out.