No Funny Hats [Live]

Buddy Rich | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 28, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Label: Lightyear
• ASIN: B0002XEDYY
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #237,131 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

On March 3, 1978, Buddy Rich took one of the best bands he ever had (he called them the Killer Force) to a gig at a Sacramento high school. What was captured will make jazz fans flip: no producers, no set lists just electrifying jazz the way Buddy felt like playing it that night: Grand Concourse; Slow Funk; West Side Story Suite; Someday My Prince Will Come , and more!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I hope this is one of many to come in this series!, November 21, 2004

By 

jjmusic (Cape Cod, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: No Funny Hats (Audio CD)

No Funny Hats is Buddy and the band at their best. For music alone this album is a solid five stars. For packaging and (lack of) content, I'd have to knock off one star. For starters, Grand Concourse by Bob Kaye is the full version, when it was first in the book. The rock section in the middle, while not the most interesting part, was later pulled to make a more cohesive medium swing chart. From a collector's standpoint, it's invaluable that Grand Concourse is available here in it's full incarnation! Ditto for Slow Funk. The ending was later shortened and some of the band backgrounds during the solo were taken out, and it's glorious to hear the whole chart here. Want to turn someone on to BR who may be "anti-jazz"? Play them Slow Funk and you've just converted them!
Excellent recordings of Bugle Call, West Side, Rhoda Rat, and Someday My Prince. For BR fans, this album is a treasure of what we all knew was the best of Buddy - when he was playing live! It would be great to have recordings like this available that showcase the entire book. Cathy could probably release soundboard tapes from the mid 70's to mid 80's Buddy Rich Band every week for the next year and it wouldn't get old!
BUT... ...the cd is too short. Even adding one more chart would have not only made this a better buy, but it would have felt like a full set of music. Please get some new pictures of Buddy to put on covers. We've all seen the Slingerland PR shot a thousand times, and some new pictures from the same time frame as the album(he wasn't even playing Slingerland for this recording), would be appreciated. However, that's a small 'but' for a great release. GET IT. NOW! And Cathy, please keep the albums coming!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great CD by Buddy and his Killer Force, March 9, 2005

By 

Lasse Markhus (Norway) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: No Funny Hats (Audio CD)

This cd is one of the best by Buddy Rich and his Big Band, and that really says it all.
The soundquality is really good and you can hear absolute everything, crystal-clear. I think this cd displays how an actual concert with Buddy was like, and therefore it's definitely worth a listen. Highlights are: Bugle Call Rag, Slow Funk and West Side Story Suite (which contains, in my opinion, one of the best solos ever done by Buddy; he's adventurous and plays some unbelievable, rudimental snaredrum stuff). Awesome phrasing, breathtaking.
A great addition to your collection.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No funny Hats is amazing, March 14, 2005

By 

J. Turchin (Los Angeles Ca) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: No Funny Hats (Audio CD)

I agree with the previous reviewer. I was going to say the same things about it but he beat me to it. The album is like being there and the quality is A-1. I recommend this cd to all Buddy Rich fans. Its a must have cd!