Thundering Herd

Woody Herman & His Orchestra | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 20, 1995)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Ojc
• ASIN: B000000Z0Y
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #72,313 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creative arrangement, July 31, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Thundering Herd (Audio CD)

I had this recording on LP 25 years ago and am going to buy the CD. The arrangement of Come Saturday Morning is a piece of creative genius. The accompaniment is lifted from Maurice Ravel's orchestral masterpiece, Daphis et Chloe. It's a crazy idea, but is pulled off beautifully. Play it for your classical music-lover friends and watch their reactions.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The 70s Herd at their best., April 27, 2001

By 

Fresh Scent (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thundering Herd (Audio CD)

I love this album for the Frank Zappa tune alone. Very dense, complex, and NOTHING at all like the original. "Blues For Poland" and "Lazy Bird" are also worth the price of admission. Tony Klatka and Bill Stapleton are two amazing trumpeters/arrangers who have been sadly overlooked.

Get the "Feelin' So Blue" album for four more tracks that complete this recording's sessions.

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Surprisingly Good -- Especially For the '70s!, April 8, 2002

By 

"mj5" (Harrisburg, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thundering Herd (Audio CD)

I don't know why anyone remembers '70s music fondly. It seemed as if things were going down hill across all styles, and jazz was no exception. There were a few things out there that made the grade, and this delightful Woody Herman album is certainly one of them. What is remarkable here is that, without exception, each tune holds up after all this time. Compared to what the other big bands were doing in 1974 (Duke Ellington died that year, Maynard Ferguson was cranking out album after album of dreadful funk-based tunes, much of Buddy Rich's new material was lacking and he was about to come off the road for a few years, Stan Kenton and Count Basie stuck pretty close to their respective styles but recorded little), "Thundering Herd" is truly special. Woody was always an innovator in every era in which he led a band. He just instinctively knew what was good, and he hired the top musicians and arrangers and gave them free reign to make it happen.

Other reviewers have mentioned individual arrangements on the album, so I don't need to repeat their comments. Except, check out "Come Saturday Morning." The original was a nothing pop ballad, so I wasn't expecting much. This arrangement, however, is about as lush and beautiful as it gets without being sappy. Well, not overly sappy, anyway.

Like all of the big bands in the '70's, Woody had his share of hit-and-miss material. Not on this album. Buy it! Enjoy it!