Customer Reviews

Music for Loving - Ben Webster with Strings

5 star:		(4)
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Combining two albums of Ben Webster w/strings with the only disk released under Harry Carney's name (also with strings), this is 2.5 hours of rare beauty. If you're a fan of Ben's Verve disks from the 50's, you already know what a great peak he hit as a ballad player in those years. He was THE perfect candidate for string treatment. Norman Granz used the best arrangers here (Strayhorn, Ralph Burns, Gerald Wilson) and the effect is stunning.

The Carney album will have you wondering why he didn't make more records under his own name. His ballad playing was, if anything, even stronger than Ben's. His version of It Had To Be You is the high point of the whole collection. There's a composition credited to Carney alone, which makes me wish we could hear more of his compositions, along with a Strayhorn I'm not familiar with and one credited to Strayhorn and Carney, all remarkably beautiful tunes. The two Duke standards receive completely fresh treatments.

This generous compilation is a tremendous revelation.

I guess the reason they don't rate Webster on quite the same level as Hawkins and Young is because he didn't become this great until the '50s when these sides were created. By that time the jazz critics' ratings had codified. You had Coleman Hawkins as the father of tenor sax, and Billie Holiday's alternative, the Prez, and everybody else on a level below them, not as great. Ben Webster wasn't supposed to keep getting better; he'd already been rated. Anyway, to commence--O the saxophone voicings on this album! The swoops and slurs and silences! The sheer beauty of the man's breath coming out both sides of the bottom of a note that isn't even there! Hrumf...gulp (pardon me while I shed a tear). But I swear to you this is very moving tenor sax. Don't let the fact that this is one of those albums "with strings" dissuade you. Billy Strayhorn and Ralph Burns swap chores as arranger/conductors, and there's some very tasty piano from Hank Jones, Teddy Wilson and Strayhorn. Give track 3) There is No Greater Love and track 5) Until Tonight a listen. I bet you'll be thanking me for it and buying yourself an early birthday present.

Ben Webster's mature 50's sax sound was magic with strings. The orchestrations and arrangements are tasteful (Strayhorn, Burns..pretty good company) While Brownie blew right through his arrangements, and Bird blew above and beyond his, Ben seems to blow right inside the arrangements written for him. He claimed that strings brought the best out of his playing, and who am I to argue. The first time I heard Webster play with unabashed romantic feel was on the Verve recording of an older Billie Holiday singing "Do Nothing 'Till You Hear From Me". His solo on that blew me away, as does his work here on "Chelsea Bridge". Almost every ballad he touches turns to pure melting gold on this great, new, expanded collection. As stated in the original liner notes by Bob Blumenthal - "Listen, but be forewarned - grown men and women have been known to cry".

Although sometimes there is a bit too much orchestra for my taste, Ben has never sounded better. This is an excellent introduction into Webster's great tone and voicing. Certainly superior to the long available Ben Webster With Strings. The sound is much better, the playing much better, and there is minimum schmaltz.

The rating is not for the music - Ben Webster's playing and Billy Strayhorn's arrangement are both wonderful. However, the downloaded mp3 contains a significant sonic blemish (it sounds like a click or pop on the LP copy that was used as a source).