Customer Reviews

Trumpet Blues: Best of

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Yes, these are remakes of some of Harry James' great songs from the 1930s, but it is great to hear James recorded on first-rate Capitol Records equipment in the mid-1950s. Big Band music is wonderful, and this is much more rewarding to listen to than the scratchy old masters from 20 years earlier.

More importantly -- this album MOVES. Of course James' trumpet is the star, but Helen Forrest's vocals work perfectly on the several tracks where she appears. Too often, remakes are pale shadows of the original, but in this case Trumpet Blues stands strongly as (1) a great, mostly uptempo album with classic James tunes and (2) an acceptably high fidelity recording.

If you have never bought a Harry James album, this would be a good place to start -- a solid introduction to his music, without the distraction of the uneven early recordings. Be assured it is really James playing, not someone else trying to pay tribute!

Recommended.

This compilation came out in 1999, the same year the top selling James biography, TRUMPET BLUES, THE LIFE OF HARRY JAMES, by Peter J. Levinson was published. It is a compilation of some of Harry's top selling singles which just happened to include some fabulous vocals by Helen Forrest, one of the many top vocalists who recorded with the legendary trumpeter.

Harry James was, without question, the undisputed king of the trumpet and the most commercially successful big band leader of the '40's, '50's, '60's, "70's and early "80's. As a trumpeter, he was without peer. Long an admirer of, but unlike, Louis Armstrong and Mugsy Spanier, James had an unmatchable mastery of his instrument, having studied long and diligently with his trumpet playing dad, Everette. Tutored in all the repertoire of the world's great trumpet players, James was a virtuoso at the age of 14. At 16 he was on the road with territory bands playing the lead book. At 20 he was hired as the lead and jazz chair with the Benny Goodman band. At 23 he was leading his own big band. In his brilliant jazz soloing, James incorporated the basic early blues style of Armstrong, Spanier and Bix Beiderbecke with a dazzling technique. He went on to win the "Jazz Trumpet" and "Band" category in the DOWNBEAT and the METRONOME magazine artist's polls for a number of years. He was the idol of such later diverse talents as Maynard Ferguson, Doc Severinsen, Miles Davis, Arturo Sandoval and Clifford Brown. He was the star of his band with all his arrangements built around his incomparable trumpet style. Starting out as principally a hot jazz band he could not get bookings at top hotels and supper clubs that favored quieter "sweet" bands. He then developed the philosophy to always keep his music "danceable". James selected a favorite Judy Garland ballad, "You Made Me Love You", and it became a mega hit in 1941. From there on the James star rose to unprecedented heights in record sales and films becoming a bigger and longer lasting big band attraction than his other top peers: Glenn Miller, Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, Woody Herman and Artie Shaw. In the mid fifties James went back to a more Basie styled jazz band, hiring many of the Basie arrangers, to build a blues oriented big band that played concerts, television specials, colleges, jazz festivals and many world tours.

This album gives the uninitiated listener a cross section of James' versatility as a leader, stylist and writer-arranger. His own composition, "Trumpet Blues" is extrordinary in it's power, musicality and variations,a true classic. "James Session", another James original, hearkens back to Benny Goodman's "Sing, Sing, Sing". A real barnburner! All of these are 1955 recreations of the note for note originals first cut in the '40's. Several others, "Blues On A Count" and "Barn 12" are from the late '50's. "Ciribirbin" is the ballad version of his famous theme song. Many of his later recordings featured the jazz version of the theme. All in all, this is a great "teaser" album for the neophyte James fan. The sound is great!

For the James devotee or "new fan" I would recommend Harry James & His Orchestra, STRICTLY INSTRUMENTAL (Memoir 534), Harry James THE SILVER COLLECTION (Verve 823229-2), Harry James JAZZ MASTERS 55 (Verve) and Harry James ONE NIGHT STAND (Collectors Choice). These four albums will give the listener some of the best of Harry's great trumpet and big band recordings.

a nicely mastered rehash of the re-recordings James did for Capitol in 1955 of his 40's hits. Capitol was kind enough to sneak in a couple tracks from his 1957 comeback band featuring Buddy Rich. Mosaic records has the rest of that band's recordings in a seven-disk set but a single disk from Capitol would be much appreciated. If it's good music why not put it out?

Why was it that Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Maynard Ferguson, Doc Severinsen, Clark Terry and Adolph Herseth all have sung praises of Harry James? One need only buy this CD to find out. Although many of the songs included are reworkings of his earlier hits using modern recording technology, the updates are truly thrilling! Take a listen to "James Session" and hear how one can be astounded by just a trumpeter and a drummer playing. A solid CD throughout, and when you get done with this, check out the "Jazz Masters" CD on Verve which explores HJ's forays into hard bop ala Clifford Brown and Fats Navarro. Then dig way into your pockets and pick up "Bandstand Memories" which features unreleased "air checks" that HJ and his band would play prior to going "live" on the radio broadcasts in the '40's. When you listen to these and realize he was playing these charts LIVE without a net, you will shake your head in wonder.

Harry James was...and still is....unfairly judged by critics who have a hard time with a jazz artist who was willing to play what the paying public wanted to hear instead of what the critics wanted. The thing was, HJ could have it both ways without diluting either sensibility. Impeccable musicianship, taste, technique and execution, and a set of chops that have yet to be truly equalled. And I say that with all due respect to Faddis, Chase, Ferguson, Gozzo and Anderson. Clark Terry once exclaimed "Harry was a BITCH!". Doc Severinsen recalls, "Nothing was ever hard for Harry".

As a connosseuer of HJ recordings, I can state the sides included here are sharp, well balanced, and in some cases exceed the quality of the originals. You will not be disappointed, whether you are a novice listener or a seasoned fan.

I picked this CD up because of the lure of Helen Forrest, one of my favorite songbirds from the big band era. She only sings on a trio of tunes (including a reprise of James' big wartime hit, "It's Been A Long. Long Time"), but it doesn't really matter. The vocal numbers are swell, and Forrest fans will be pleased to hear them. Still, these latter-day swing sessions (from 1955-'58) lack the fresh, light feel of James' classic 'Forties hits... Instead, the arrangements are too brash and punchy, with a muscularity that more often than not simply overpowers the melody. OK for the Eisenhower-era crowd who may have enjoyed these tracks the first time around, though younger fas might want to look to the older material first.

Yes, these are 1950s hi-fidelity recordings of Harry James playing the original charts of his older hits from the 1930s and 1940s. But modern recording technology is worthless if WHAT you're recording wasn't good in the first place. A bad song by a bad performer isn't going to get better just because you re-record them in stereo. In the the case of Trumpet Blues: The Best of Harry James, the original material and the talent of the artists was top notch, so these "modern" recordings from the 1950s are simply great! My trumpet playing dad owned the original hits on 78 rpm records. He then bought these tracks on vinyl albums when they came out in the '50s. I've now purchased this CD and I am VERY satisfied with the sound, the talent and the material. Sure, Harry's fans can debate the finer points of whether particular nuances of the original performances were carried forward to these recordings. On the other hand, an argument can be made that these recordings provide new touches that make the originals even better. My own subjective opinion is that these Trumpet Blues recordings are well worth owning because they are an honest attempt to be faithful to the originals and the sound is head and shoulders above the fidelity of the original recordings. The sound is bright and there is great "presence" to the recording. It seems to me that if the performers involved were satisfied with these re-recordings of original hits (and from what I've read, they were), we should be satisfied, as well. There are plenty of Harry James recordings to own (and I own many), but I would say this one is a "must have."

Harry James fronted a big band in the 50's that was, arguably, the equal of the Woody Herman and Basie outfits. This CD, done as a companion to the troubling biography of the same name, features Capitol sides recorded from 1955 to 1958, and does include material that jazz critics hated him for; on balance, though, much of this release is straight ahead big band swing that is notable for James' performances alone. James Session is big band rockin' blues at it's best, evoking memories of both the Basie sax section as well as the cohesiveness and drive of Benny Goodman. Moten Swing remained in the James book until his death, along with Two O'Clock Jump, both excellent takes. The two standouts are Barn 12 and Blues On A Count, taken from the Capitol LP Wild About Harry featuring ex-Lunceford alumnus Willie Smith on alto and Buddy Rich on drums. Willow Weep For Me, arranged by Ernie Wilkins, is an eight-bar blues featuring Jack Perciful on piano and the muted trumpet of Harry with some wonderful ensemble playing by the sections. While there are other James recordings with many of the same charts, these are superior in my opinion. The liner notes are an unexpected plus, including comments from Doc Severinsen. Until they release Wild About Harry as a solo CD, or someone manages to find and release The Jazz Connoisseur in its entirety, this will do nicely.

It's rare that a re-make improves on the originals, but 1950s high-fidelity combined with the availability of original musicians and singers, some absolutely first-rate studio players, and the incomparable Harry James at his seemingly endless peak, make this a winner. I was a big band radio program director for twenty years and this is one my all-time favorite big band albums.

Buddy Rich is the drummer, and James was one of the few for whom he would harness his otherwise flashy style to the benefit of the overall sound. As a result, the world's greatest drummer and the world's greatest trumpet soloist have created more than a collection of hits. The hits sound great, but they are accompanied by a few newer tracks that make the package that much more attractive.

Trumpet Blues,released in 1999,coincided with the Peter Levinson book of the same name from the same year,who also provided the liner notes.We are told here that these songs were mastered using 24 bit technology.Well if that it is so,why is there so much tape hiss?Because they have used the same existing tape master copies.The songs need a proper remastering(which can do wonders)and if needed,some noise reduction to get them up to par.The usual re-recorded renditions are here like I've Heard That song Before,Trumpet Blues,Cherry,etc.But the tantalizing tidbits thrown in which you don't see often or at all(to get you and I to buy again)are Blues on a Count,Barn 12,the blistering James Session,Moten Swing and Willow Weep for Me(my personal fave).The latter two were taken from my favourite Capitol LP "Harry's Choice".The album ran with a horse racing theme with its title and in its liner notes;the picture used on that album is same as the one on this CD.However if you look closely there are other unrelated trophies in that picture like ones from broadcasting and golf,to name but two.Hey,it was a good gimmick.
We need a complete release of all of Harry's Capitol(and other label)recordings.There was briefly such a release in the 90s,twinned with Krupa's Capitol output,but it was an extremely costly one which few could afford.
Harry's fans will not be disappointed with what they hear here as Harry's technique and form are top drawer all the way.However,until we get a complete release(if we ever do)I suppose Harry's fans will just have to put up with greatest hits or disguised greatest hits releases such as this one.

My favorite Harry James album! nothing bad about this music! Had it on cassette 25 years ago.. glad to get the CD..