Customer Reviews

I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues

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The ASV/LIVING ERA label continually puts out many thoughtful releases, and this one is among their best. This is a brilliant selection of early Teagarden work (1929-1934) featuring an amazing all-star cast of players including Benny Goodman, Red Nichols, Glenn Miller, Paul Whiteman's Orchestra, Eddie Condon, Mezz Mezzrow, Joe Sullivan, Gene Krupa, Jimmy Dorsey, Pee Wee Russell, Adrian Rollini, Johnny Mercer, Joe Venuti, and Eddie Lang.

The listener is treated to a whole mess of Teagarden's sleepy vocal charm, and a big helping of the virtuoso trombone playing which was his hallmark. The whole disc is chock full of swingin' Dixieland flavored jazz, and Big T characteristically imbues the tunes with deep blues feeling. Most tempos here are medium-hot, which perfectly suits the lilting musicianship of Teagarden, though some tracks, such as Two Tickets To Georgia, really zoom. We are even treated to two duets with Johnny Mercer (tracks 16 & 17). Sound quality on this disc is excellent, and all session information is provided, along with some notes about the man himself. There really isn't another single Teagarden disc which so expertly collects the great material from this period, so this is a very smart buy, and the price is sweet.

One of the best blues and jazz singer from the 20's and 30's as well as oone of the all time greatest trombone players. A jazz legend, here are highlighted versions of the wonderful "100 Years From Today" as well as other delightful songs by this jazz legend. Buy it today

Jack Teagarden played with just about everybody who was anybody, and this CD presents an excellent snapshot of his activities between early 1929 and late 1934. That period roughly coincides with the Great Depression, when recording companies which hitherto had indulged the lusty infant jazz, became of necessity more commercial in their approach. Nevertheless, what is here managed somehow to satisfy on both counts, not least because of Jack's vocal delivery, a beguiling lazy Texan drawl. His trombone playing was similarly individual, allegedly because he began practising at such a young age that he couldn't fully extend the slide, and thus had to find intermediate positions, which gave his playing greater flexibility. The story may be apocryphal, but the evidence is here.

This a great cd with catchy singing by Jack T. The sound quality is very good for its time.